echaq
September 2nd, 2007, 11:33 PM
Hi all! I'm new to this forum, and I have a few kitten questions. My roommate and I are fostering a wonderful kitten named Magellan. We've had him since he was found at three weeks old. He's now five and a half weeks old, we think, and he's just a lovely kitten, happy and very friendly with people. We're still bottle-feeding him, but he's figured out the litter box thing, and he's quite steady on his feet and can even climb onto my bed. Here are my questions (with the ones I'd most like answers to first):
1. How to deal with play aggression- he's gotten to the point where he gets into playful moods and will play with a toy, or, if no toy is proffered, he'll play with us. Before when I've fostered, and growing up at my parents' house, all the kittens I've taken care of have had litter-mates to play with, so this hasn't been TOO much of an issue. Also, I've never dealt with a kitten who's been taken from his or her mom so early. So I've looked around the internet and on these forums, and I've found pretty conflicting advice. Some people say that when you are taking care of a young kitten who won't have a mom to teach him how to behave, you have to be pretty firm- scruffing him when he tries to bite you, or holding him down gently until he seems subdued. But other people, especially people on this forum in the relevant posts I could find, say that at this age that kind of treatment is inappropriate. They say you should just divert his attention to a toy or avoid him when he's bitey if you can't spare the time right at that moment to play with him and a toy (just to clarify, Magellan never bites us when we're dangling a toy for him). Can anyone give some insight as to what's really best at this age? He's so small that I don't really mind the biting (although my roommate could do without it), so mostly my concern is that I want to make sure he doesn't learn incorrect behavior, given that he's been apart from other cats since 3 weeks old.
2. Does anyone have any tips for making solid food more interesting for him? We've already tried mixing KMR into it. He'll maybe take one lick, or play with it with his paws for a little bit, then go away. We've tried putting it on a finger and trying to get him to lick it, but he's just not interested.
3. I'm seriously considering adopting him, rather than sending him back to the (no-kill) shelter that's been having us foster him. One of my concerns is that I'm a grad student and have a somewhat tight budget. I have an emergency fund just in case in a savings account, so I'm less concerned about the possible but unlikely crisis than about the everyday expenses. Does anyone have an estimate for how much you pay for one cat's expenses every year (or month, if that's easier)?
4. This is probably just me being neurotic, but he has a few areas (elbows, under his chin, lower belly) where his fur is thin and fine- downy, almost. It's not that fur is missing, so much as it's just much finer and than anywhere else. You can definitely see skin through it. Should I be concerned about ringworm, or is this normal? There aren't any scaly patches, and it's symmetrical (e.g. both elbows in front). I've always had long-haired cats in the past, so I'm not sure what to expect.
Thanks so much for your help! I can tell that you guys are both extremely loving and extremely knowledgeable pet owners, so your advice will be much appreciated! :)
1. How to deal with play aggression- he's gotten to the point where he gets into playful moods and will play with a toy, or, if no toy is proffered, he'll play with us. Before when I've fostered, and growing up at my parents' house, all the kittens I've taken care of have had litter-mates to play with, so this hasn't been TOO much of an issue. Also, I've never dealt with a kitten who's been taken from his or her mom so early. So I've looked around the internet and on these forums, and I've found pretty conflicting advice. Some people say that when you are taking care of a young kitten who won't have a mom to teach him how to behave, you have to be pretty firm- scruffing him when he tries to bite you, or holding him down gently until he seems subdued. But other people, especially people on this forum in the relevant posts I could find, say that at this age that kind of treatment is inappropriate. They say you should just divert his attention to a toy or avoid him when he's bitey if you can't spare the time right at that moment to play with him and a toy (just to clarify, Magellan never bites us when we're dangling a toy for him). Can anyone give some insight as to what's really best at this age? He's so small that I don't really mind the biting (although my roommate could do without it), so mostly my concern is that I want to make sure he doesn't learn incorrect behavior, given that he's been apart from other cats since 3 weeks old.
2. Does anyone have any tips for making solid food more interesting for him? We've already tried mixing KMR into it. He'll maybe take one lick, or play with it with his paws for a little bit, then go away. We've tried putting it on a finger and trying to get him to lick it, but he's just not interested.
3. I'm seriously considering adopting him, rather than sending him back to the (no-kill) shelter that's been having us foster him. One of my concerns is that I'm a grad student and have a somewhat tight budget. I have an emergency fund just in case in a savings account, so I'm less concerned about the possible but unlikely crisis than about the everyday expenses. Does anyone have an estimate for how much you pay for one cat's expenses every year (or month, if that's easier)?
4. This is probably just me being neurotic, but he has a few areas (elbows, under his chin, lower belly) where his fur is thin and fine- downy, almost. It's not that fur is missing, so much as it's just much finer and than anywhere else. You can definitely see skin through it. Should I be concerned about ringworm, or is this normal? There aren't any scaly patches, and it's symmetrical (e.g. both elbows in front). I've always had long-haired cats in the past, so I'm not sure what to expect.
Thanks so much for your help! I can tell that you guys are both extremely loving and extremely knowledgeable pet owners, so your advice will be much appreciated! :)