Socializing is not only enjoyable, it is very important. Before a kitten is ready to leave home she should have learned that people are good to have around. Petting, playing and good food all happen with people. Purring, not hissing brings these good things her way. Fortunately, cats are smart and observant creatures. It is really very easy to instill this attitude in a kitten. It just takes a little bit of patience and perseverance on your part.

The socialization process can begin even before a kitten has opened her eyes. Pick her up and pet gently for a few moments then set her back down where she was. Your motions should be slow and gentle and your voice soft. Handle the kittens daily if you can. The mother will generally allow your attention to her kittens,  especially if you give her petting and attention first. If she doesn’t like your interest in her kittens, or if she has hidden her litter somewhere so that you can’t find them right away, don’t worry. You can begin the socialization process later when they are a little more independent and still get great results.

As the kittens get older and start to toddle around under their own power, continue to regularly pick them up and pet them. Playing with them can also begin now. Slowly dragging a string will catch any kittens’ attention. Continue these sessions on a daily basis. You really don’t have to make a big issue of it. Just go over to the kittens at odd times of the day, whenever you have a moment. Be sure that each kitten in the litter gets some attention.

Introducing the kittens to children and other adults is a good idea. Expand their definition of people to be more than just you. Remind the children that the kittens are just babies and need to be handled ever so gently. Always supervise children around pets until they understand how to handle them properly.

By the time the kittens are old enough to leave for their new homes they should be relaxed and happy around people. Purring happily when they are petted and reasonably patient when picked up. If the kittens are to be indoor cats, then they should be introduced to litter boxes and scratching pads or trees. A first visit to the veterinarian should be accomplished in a calm sensible fashion that will not alarm your kittens. If your kittens are young enough on their first visit, bring the entire litter along with their mother in a carrier. It will reduce stress on both the kittens and their mother. This may seem like a lot of extra effort but it will be worth it. What will be your reward for all of your work? Your reward will be a well socialized kitten that will be a joy to her new owner.

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Let’s start from day one. Most likely, you walk in and find your cat already nursing her new litter. As there will be a bit of a mess where she is, you will want to move her and her kittens somewhere clean and safe. Mother cats prefer a darkened den, so putting a blanket over her box and lining it with nice clean bedding will do nicely for a nursery. The nursery should be set up in a quiet area, away from traffic.

Too much noise and light can upset a mother cat and she may try to move her kittens if she doesn’t feel her they are safe. A sad fact is that sometimes there are one or two dead kittens born along with the live ones. Remove them immediately along with the rest of the birthing mess. The mother will be unlikely to show any interest them.

For the first few days the mother will be constantly with her kittens. They need warmth and frequent feedings at this time which doesn’t leave much time for socializing. By the time they are approximately a week old their need for very warm temperatures will begin to reduce. The mother will begin to leave them alone for longer and longer periods. They will begin to huddle up together for warmth.

If you peek into the nursery and find a ball of kittens sleeping peacefully, rest assured they are doing just fine. Kittens will sleep nearly all the time for their first two weeks. If the kittens are crying constantly then they are ill or not getting enough milk. Call your vet immediately. Ill or starving kittens can die very quickly without your help.

Assuming that kittens and mother are all healthy and content, you will need to do very little during the first month. The kittens’ care will rest primarily in their mothers’ capable paws. Normally, kitten eyes will open in seven to fourteen days. If they stay shut for longer than that call your vet. Kittens often get a mild eye infection. The infection results in the eyelids being gummed shut.

A cotton ball that has been moistened with warm water should be all you’ll need to open the eyes again. If a kitten gets this eye infection keep a close on her. The infection could build up behind those glued shut eyelids and damage the eyeball. The infection usually clears up by itself in a few days. If it turns particularly severe, take the kitten to your vet.

At about one month of age, the kittens should toddle around pretty well and will want to start eating solid food. You may find one of your little tikes standing in his mothers’ food dish trying out the food. You will want to put down a plate of a good quality kitten food for them to nibble on. Kitten food is formulated specifically for the needs of growing kittens, where adult food is not.

Poor nutrition while the kittens are growing could result in health issues when they become adults. The trick will be keeping the mother out of the kitten food. Most adults find kitten food absolutely delicious.

The first planned visit to the veterinarian for vaccinations should come at about two months of age. By about 3 months of age the kittens should pretty independent and ready to move to their new home if you are planning to sell or give them away.

I’ve given a general overview here. For a normal healthy litter and mother these guidelines should serve you well. If there are any issues, rely on your vet to let you know the best thing to do in any situation. Enjoy your kittens while they are with you. They grow up so amazingly fast!

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But this article will talk a little bit about the cat litter box concerns for special needs kitties. Due to their limited mobility or lack of site, litter box type and location are absolutely critical.

If you have a blind cat, your best bet is maintain location consistency as much as possible. When your blind kitty has become accustomed to finding his cat litter box in one location, the most successful strategy is to leave the box there. However, if you have to move the box, you’ll need to help retrain your blind cat to find his way to it again. A lot of patience will be necessary. You could even confine the blind cat to that particular location for awhile, so he’ll re-learn how to find the litter box easily.

You’ll also want to think about the type of cat litter box. If it’s too high to climb up in, he’s going to get discouraged, and he’ll find another, easily accessible location to void his urine. You may even need to buy a large storage container, cut out a “U”-shaped entrance (the bottom of the “U” should be up about 3 – 4″ to hold the cat litter in the box), and train kitty to find it.

Obviously, this depends upon the type of dwelling you live in, how many other cats and litter boxes are in your home, and if you own a multi-story house. Consult with your vet for other strategies.

Very old cats often develop mobility issues. If this true for your kitty, you may need to strategically place cat litter boxes in places you didn’t previously consider, just to make it easy for your senior cat to make it to the box in time. Again, if you live in a multi-story house, you’ll probably have to place cat litter boxes on different levels.

However, if your senior cat voluntarily confines herself to one area, then you may only need to consider litter box placement in that part of your home. And just like blind kitties, consider the type of cat litter box that’s best for your senior cat. If she has stiff joints, be sure she can easily climb in and out of the box. If she’s unable to squat to urinate, you’ll need a high-sided box. The solution given above may be just the ticket to avoid cat urine odor problems for your senior kitty.

Talk to your vet to see if there are any medications that may ease your cat’s joint pain. This removes most of the challenge of getting to the cat litter box in time.

Paralyzed cats face daunting challenges. They can’t feel anything back in that region, so very often their voiding functions simply happen. I have had cat owners tell me that the best solution is to diaper the cat. The downside is you have to constantly check the diaper, but if it stops a cat urine odor problem in your home, and you can keep your wonderful, special kitty, that’s a small price to pay.

You will probably want to make certain that your home has as much tile floor exposed as possible. Carpet cleaning can be costly, and eventually the material will not clean up as well as it used to, making replacement necessary and costly.

Some cat owners confine their paralyzed kitty to one area of their home that’s easy to clean up. Consult with your vet on the best strategy for your paralyzed kitty.

If your special needs kitty is an amputee, you may either have a few cat litter box problems, or absolutely none. I have met cat owners who tell their three-legged cat has no trouble balancing in the litter box. Others report that the only thing they need to do to accomodate their amputee cat is to make sure they buy cat litter boxes that are low enough for kitty to hop in and out of.

Cats that lose a limb later in life may have some initial balancing issues. I recommend confining kitty to one area with a floor that’s easy to clean up, while the amputee practices new cat litter box skills. Consult with your vet for more ideas.

With a little bit of thought and preparation, special needs kitties can as trouble-free as any cat when using the cat litter box.

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Well the first thing is more of a “what not to do” – don’t yell at the kitty! Count to 10 and calm down, and then firmly take hold of your kitten, say “No” in a firm clear voice and put the kitty either in his bed – or in his safe zone if you’ve created one and he’s still using it. The next thing is to identify why your kitten has gotten into this particular mischief – is he bored, did it offer too much temptation, or is he pandering his hunter genes?

Usually it’s a mixture of boredom and practicing his hunting skills that gets a kitten into the most trouble around the house! The boredom leads him to find things like trailing plants, or apples that roll, and they tempt him to playful mischief. A cat loves to hunt however, and so occasionally he will “kill” the odd cushion!

Buying a few cat toys will help teach your kitten what is acceptable to play with and what’s not. A soft ball, not necessarily a small one either – some kitties are quite happy to push something that’s about half their size but not too heavy around the house – is a great toy.

A ball made out of scrunched up newspaper is another good way of getting your kitten to play – but make sure that you scrunch it quietly because loud noises will probably scare him. Any toy that has been filled with catnip – some kind of dried herb that cats go crazy over – is destined to keep him amused for hours, but often the most entertaining of all for kitty is a box with large holes cut into it that he can jump in and out of.

A kitten getting up to mischief can often be frustrating, but given the right toys, he’ll not only entertain himself, but he’ll also keep you entertained watching the antics he gets up too. Remember, he’s not intending to be mean when he does something he shouldn’t, he’s just bored, so find something to occupy his mind!

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One of the best sources of information is your veterinary clinic. Not only will they be able to provide you with free leaflets and information, they may also have their own guide they give out to new kitten owners, and books that they suggest you read or have on your reference shelf in case of emergency. There are so many books published on the subject of cat and kitten care that it’s easy to get lost, or pick up a book that’s not quite as comprehensive as it could be, and a recommendation or two from your veterinary can allow you to choose between books that he thinks are the best ones available for your situation.

If you are still at the deciding stage about whether or not it’s a good idea to bring a kitten into your home, check out some recently published books on kitten care from your local library. As with human healthcare, trends in feline healthcare also change to reflect new techniques, new medications, and the environments that cats now live in, so reading up on recently published books will allow you to learn current ideas and solutions rather than some that could be outdated.

The Internet offers a great resource for anyone thinking of buying, or having just bought, a kitten. Here you will find websites that are run by both professionals, and ordinary people with a passion for cats. Amongst the cat websites you’ll find everything you could ever want to know from cat toy reviews to latest feline research news, and everything in between. There are even online courses you can take to help you learn about taking proper care of your kitten.

There’s so many ways to learn about making sure you keep your kitten healthy, so it’s just a question of finding the right resource that works for you, and having it accessible so that whenever you need it, you just have to open or log-in and the answer to your question will be there for you.

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