I'm gonna be a cat mom

[Maki]

Thanks for the water bottle idea! I'll try that out, but I've read everywhere that cats respond best to positive reinforcement? However I dont know how to tell if that's effective.
I think I underestimated how rambunctious kittens are because trying to teach them things is difficult I've started teaching them how to sit, but they just keep trying to grab the dang treat out of my hand. And if they can't, they'll just climb on me Gahh
I haven't taught them their names yet because I still can't tell them apart and don't know who to reward T___T I'm thinking maybe I can isolate one and teach their name separately, but I dont think the other kitten would love that very much. I'll say this, it was like 10000x easier to teach my dog things when he was a little pup HAHA

Also, I accidentally bought non clumping litter because I misremembered the advice here. I don't know if it's me but I feel like I'm just going through a lot of it rn...
What I'm doing is, every day I scoop out the poops and the spots of litter where they've peed. Obviously it isnt clumping so I end up scooping out a lot. Am I doing this wrong or am I just supposed to go through a lot every day?

[PabstBlueRibbon]

Jajajaja, yeah, kittens are like that. They're either hyper and bounding around or unconscious on the floor. Hopefully yours were with their mother long enough to figure out how not to nip. If they're not, another tip is to basically not let them get started play-biting you, if they do, give them a firm No and refuse to continue the game or put them on the floor if they jump on you. (They can come back up or start to play with you again in a minute or two.) If they bite again, another No, with maybe a light thump on the end of their nose -not really hard, about as firmly as if you were tapping your finger on a table to make a noise and stop the game again. They'll figure out fairly soon that biting derails their game and they should chill out about it and stop being so mouthy.

One of my cats was a Petsmart adoptee and at 7 months old at the time, was a full blown nipper. That was 10 years ago and because she wasn't trained right when she was young, she's a biter now, despite my working on her constantly, even now. The best I was able to get is that she'll think about biting twice... and then do it anyway if I don't catch her first. That being said, she's still sweet in her grouchy way, lol.


Be sure you're putting enough litter in the pan, like a good 3 inches or so. If your kitties can dig to the bottom of the pan, when they pee there, the urine will spread down across the bottom and you end up having to throw away a pancake instead of a small ball. That might help you cut down on any excessive loss while you use up the non-clumping litter too. In a pinch, I have had decent luck mixing a small bag of clumping in with the non-clumping just to help it work better while I worked through the wrong litter.

[sugarsneak]

I'm coming in here late to the party so I'm sure you have a ton of advice already - just wanted to say welcome to being owned by a kitty. Mine rules the roost here but I love her and she's great to have around. She also came from an unwanted litter - she was the last, tiny one that nobody else wanted and I'm a pushover.

[Gato]

Thanks for the water bottle idea! I'll try that out, but I've read everywhere that cats respond best to positive reinforcement? However I dont know how to tell if that's effective.
I think I underestimated how rambunctious kittens are because trying to teach them things is difficult I've started teaching them how to sit, but they just keep trying to grab the dang treat out of my hand. And if they can't, they'll just climb on me Gahh
I haven't taught them their names yet because I still can't tell them apart and don't know who to reward T___T I'm thinking maybe I can isolate one and teach their name separately, but I dont think the other kitten would love that very much. I'll say this, it was like 10000x easier to teach my dog things when he was a little pup HAHA

Also, I accidentally bought non clumping litter because I misremembered the advice here. I don't know if it's me but I feel like I'm just going through a lot of it rn...
What I'm doing is, every day I scoop out the poops and the spots of litter where they've peed. Obviously it isnt clumping so I end up scooping out a lot. Am I doing this wrong or am I just supposed to go through a lot every day?

Cats are notoriously difficult to train! I'm pro positive reinforcement as well but gotta tell you, I also have a spray bottle haha! Very soon you'll start noticing very stark differences in their personalities, and even the sweetest and most obedient cats will have their "you know what? I'll do whatever I want" moments XD To be honest though I only keep the water for fights, it's my last resort (that and lemon peels), otherwise I'd rather have a staring competition until he submits to my will.

Non-clumping litter is like that, it's alright that you're scooping out a lot! It's typically more affordable but you end up going through it pretty fast! I wouldn't recommend crystal based litter, the silica dust (if present) can lead to respiratory problems, especially with kittens still in development

I've been catching up on the thread and figured I'd throw this in (sorry if it' been mentioned!): consider getting at least one additional litter box. The general rule of thumb is #of litter boxes = #of cats + 1. Oftentimes sharing a single litter box between several cats leads to behavioral issues down the line, territorial aggression being one of them - nip it in the bud! Also, I highly recommend closed litter boxes and getting a mat (rubberish, or something with a coarse and pronounced texture) - they'll both help in eliminating the litter drag

Biggest advice would be to scan your place for any toxic substances for cats.. like plants, if you have any, or common household cleaning supplies. Recently my cato had a bout of throwing up (unusual for him) - it turns out he was eating the neighbor's palm tree through a slit in the balcony, a lot of it D:

My babies!

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[Maki]

Yeah, I've been slacking on getting more litterboxes LOL my apartment is so tiny that 3 will take up so much room, but I have heard of that general rule of thumb. @(you need an account to see links) I decided to follow your lead and I've just been staring them down when they do something bad. It actually works to get them to stop pawing at my food! So, thanks for that, haha. Out of curiousity why are lemon peels your last resort? I was thinking of spraying down my toxic houseplants with lemon juice.

Love the pics of all your kitties. Your flame point tabby is gorgeous!

Here are better pics of mine:

Scotch:

- actual baby
- chill and relaxed most of the time, won't chew wires or misbehave twice
- loves munching on food and watching me cook

Bourbon:

- actual gremlin but the biggest cuddlebug
- most playful, has a bigger personality than Scotch
- super affectionate

I feel like they could eat more :/ but choosing a good kitten food is pretty overwhelming. Apparently you're not supposed to choose the "adult + kitten formula" and of course I was dumb and I did

[ruzzeh]

Oh my god they're perfect.
Also get ya some clumping litter, so much better.

Personally I'm against spraying w/ a water bottle, positive reinforcement works so much better. The water bottle will only teach them to behave when they know they can be sprayed. Positive reinforcement teaches them to be good even when you're not watching.

[Gato]

Yeah, I've been slacking on getting more litterboxes LOL my apartment is so tiny that 3 will take up so much room, but I have heard of that general rule of thumb. @(you need an account to see links) I decided to follow your lead and I've just been staring them down when they do something bad. It actually works to get them to stop pawing at my food! So, thanks for that, haha. Out of curiousity why are lemon peels your last resort? I was thinking of spraying down my toxic houseplants with lemon juice.

Love the pics of all your kitties. Your flame point tabby is gorgeous!

Here are better pics of mine:

Scotch:

- actual baby
- chill and relaxed most of the time, won't chew wires or misbehave twice
- loves munching on food and watching me cook

Bourbon:

- actual gremlin but the biggest cuddlebug
- most playful, has a bigger personality than Scotch
- super affectionate

I feel like they could eat more :/ but choosing a good kitten food is pretty overwhelming. Apparently you're not supposed to choose the "adult + kitten formula" and of course I was dumb and I did

You're welcome haha D The tinies are so cute I just want to implode D:

Thank you! They are both quite the characters XD
Lemon peel because most felines despise citrus smells - I prefer peels or slices (lemon/orange/clementine, whatever is at hand) rather than juice because it's not as violent of a smell but gets the job done. I've only really used them a handful of times - for a while when I was trying to correct some nasty behaviors of the Persian, particularly peeing everywhere but the litter box. She was abused in her previous household and was dumped in my lap one day - it was an uphill struggle until someone recommended I try this and I started leaving the peels in her "favorite spots". Eventually she decided that the litter box is, afterall, an adequate location for her royal butt. Since then I've only resorted to them during "fights" (to be fair, these are pretty rare) - the Persian is a senior cat, weighing barely 1kg and the flame point is 8kg with a death grip. If he's too excited and gets a hold of her, there is a high risk of injury and one sniff of the hated lemon is all it takes to make him gag Usually followed by a smack (at me ). I've never used the citrus or sprayed him with water outside of these violent cases, I really don't think it's necessary - unless the consequences are truly dire, then a firm NO or the aforementioned staredown work just fine XD

[♥ Vee ♥]

Oh my god they are SOOO precious. They are beautiful! aaaaah congrats on becoming a cat mom!

My cat is an absolute twat. I adopted her when she was 3 years old already and she is wayyyy too smart. She has to stay in the hallway while I'm gone or otherwise she destroys all my furniture and plants, I wish i was kidding. I have like... scratchmarks all over my wallpaper and pieces hanging loose. It's a freaking nightmare, but I love her so. <3 I've tried both positive reinforcement and a water bottle, but ended up just giving up. xD I'm not sure if I want to put lemon/orange juice all over my furniture.

As for kitten food, I have good experiences with Royal Canin, but it's also petty expensive... What brand have you got now?

[Maki]

Ugh @(you need an account to see links) I feel you! My kittens just learned how to open the door to my room lol. Id let them hang around but I havent exactly kitten proofed my room and idk if I want to yet T___T I love having Christmas lights in but they like to chew on them. I suspect its for attention though.

Hmm have you tried leaving cat puzzles for yours while youre away? Poor thing, the hallway sounds like a cramped area

Ive just changed to Purina Kitten Chow right now! Its a hit with them so I hope to see them gain weight from here!
@(you need an account to see links) cat reactions to lemon are pretty funny. My boys just smelled citrus Lysol wipes for the first time and they made the FUNNIEST stank face LOL

[♥ Vee ♥]

Ugh @(you need an account to see links) I feel you! My kittens just learned how to open the door to my room lol. Id let them hang around but I havent exactly kitten proofed my room and idk if I want to yet T___T I love having Christmas lights in but they like to chew on them. I suspect its for attention though.

Hmm have you tried leaving cat puzzles for yours while youre away? Poor thing, the hallway sounds like a cramped area

Ive just changed to Purina Kitten Chow right now! Its a hit with them so I hope to see them gain weight from here!

Oh yeah no worries, my hallway is MASSIVE (I got lucky with my house lol)... She has a few tall scratching posts, balls and stuffed mice and puzzles all across the hallway but still tears up the wallpaper. She is very destructive. I've tried leaving the door to the living room open while I'm away but she teared up some of the wallpaper there as well and 1 carpet. 8) At night she sleeps on my bed and even in my bedroom my wallpaper is screwed.. It's very annoying but at least it can be replaced!

Oooh Purina is a great brand too.. Glad they are doing well on that!