I Got A New Kitten, Any Advice?

[Ember11681]

She is around 6 weeks old (I think) and I've had her for about 1 week, she loves to climb and she always scratches me. Is this activity normal? Anyways if there is anything I should watch out for, any priorities? Etc. I would gladly take any advice!

 

[amethyst]

So you got her at 5 weeks? Did something happen to the mother? That is very early to be separated from her mother and siblings. 8-12 weeks is a much more normal and safe time to go to a new home, even if something happened to the mother the extra time with siblings helps. At that age they would be play fighting and learning what they can can't do and how hard they can play. So yes scratching and even biting at that age is very normal. You will have to teach her that biting and scratching you is not good. If she scratches, act like it hurt badly, stop all play and leave her for a moment. She will learn that scratching you ends play. Also don't play with her using your hands, use a toy only otherwise you are teaching her that hands are for attacking and playing with. Scratches from a kitten don't really hurt, but once she is an adult she can do some real damage and attacking hands can be a hard habit to break.

Some things to watch for at such a young age is make sure she is eating and drinking. Watch for soft poops, diarrhea can kill a young kitten pretty quick due to dehydration. It would also be a good idea to weigh her to make sure she is gaining weight and growing. Don't be surprised either if you get another cat later and this one has no manors. At around 4-8 weeks they are normally learning from there mother how to properly be a cat. If you already have another older cat that may help so it can learn proper cat manors from it.

 

[Ember11681]

Thanks for the advice, I will make sure to watch out for things like that

 

[talkingpeanut]

Where did you get your kitten?

 

[kashmir64]

Also, watch out for electrical cords. Kittens love things that dangle and electrical cords are a prime target.
Even if they're just laying on the ground, like an extension cord, they attack and chew on it.

Also, non clumping litter until she is 12 weeks.

 

[Resa]

The electrical cord struggle is real. Also, make sure you don't have any string, ribbons, rubber bands, etc. laying around anywhere. The silly little darlings eat them and they can clog up their intestines and kill them.
My best cat advice:
Keep the litter box really clean. The cleaner it is, the more the cats are willing to use it. I have one cat who will perch on the edge if it gets too messy and she doesn't always get her rump aimed in the correct direction.
Wet Food. My cats are so much healthier since I learned to feed them wet food. They still get mostly kibble, but it seems like a litte wet food goes a long way to improving cat health and quality of life.
Gentle handling. The more gentle you are with your cat, the more gentle your cat will be with you. Great advice already up thread about what to do about the biting/scratching. All kittens seem to go through what I call the "rwawr, I bite you!" stage. They eventually calm down, especially after they get spayed/neutered.

 

[Ember11681]

Where did you get your kitten?

I got Her from a friend of mine.

 

[talkingpeanut]

Ok. It's good that you have the kitten now and that you're asking responsible questions!

Please encourage your friend to spay her cat. In the future, kittens should stay with mom until 10-12 weeks old at least.

Have you taken your kitten to a vet yet? She will need vaccines and will need to be spayed in a month or two.