Nothing beats the joy of adopting a new kitten. But don’t let their itty bitty size fool you– kittens require a lot of attention and care. If you’re new to cat parenthood, you might wonder how to take care of a kitten for the first time.
Proper kitten care is especially important at the beginning; the first few weeks of a kitten’s life are crucial for them to feel safe and loved in their new home.
Below, we’ve rounded up everything you need to navigate your new adventure into kittenhood, including tips on kitten-proofing, kitten health, and kitten essentials.
What Do You Need Before Your Kitten Comes Home?
“It is best to set up a safe place with all your kitten’s resources when they first arrive,” says Tabitha Kucera, an IAABC Certified Cat Behavior Consultant and founder of Chirrups and Chatter.
To grow into healthy adult cats, kittens need to scratch, jump, and play. Start your kitten off on the right foot, with this essential gear:
- Litter tray or box
- Water and food bowls
- A kitten carrier
- A kitten-sized bed
- Toys for kittens, like wand toys
- Scratching posts or textured cardboard scratchers
Bonus gear includes:
- Cat trees or cat shelves
- Boxes and cave beds for playing and hiding
- Heated cat bed
- Interactive or battery-operated toys
- Food puzzles
- Kitten treats
- A window perch or bed
Should My Kitten Be Indoor-Only?
“Fresh air and sunshine can be beneficial for your cat’s physical and mental health,” says holistic veterinarian Dr. Candy Akers.
However, outdoor cats, especially vulnerable kittens, face many dangers, such as parasites, toxins, cars, animal attacks, and diseases like lifelong and uncurable Feline Leukemia (FeLV) and Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV).
To get all the benefits of the outdoors without the risks, Dr. Akers suggests giving kittens a securely built catio or taking them on short walks on a leash and harness. Both options allow kittens to explore the natural world around them and soak up some sun safely.
How Do You Set Up A Kitten Room?
“For some kittens, exposing them to a whole home can be overwhelming,” Kucera says. “Managing your new kitten’s environment is one of the best ways to eliminate stress and anxiety and to set them up for success.”
Kucera recommends setting up a single room as your kitten’s home base. It’s best to keep all of their essentials here, including their litter box; place it as far away from their food and water as possible.
You can expand the areas your kitten can explore once they become interested. Give them a choice by opening the door when they’re actively approaching it and not hiding.
Additionally, minimize space by closing off doors to other rooms and ensure they can quickly get back to their kitten room safe space.
Lastly, if there are multiple animals in the home, Kucera says it’s vital to spread multiple resources, like food bowls, scratching posts, and litter boxes, throughout the house and not lump them all together. Baby gates with cat doors and other dividers can set up a safe, interruption-free zone for your kitten’s drinking and meal times.
How Do You Kitten-Proof Your Home?
One of the most important ways to take care of a new kitten is to make sure your home is suited for them.
To create a safe environment that minimizes hazards and prevents your curious and playful kitten from getting into trouble, Kucera and Dr. Akers suggest these eight tips:
- Secure cords and wires and cover electrical outlets: Hide and elevate wires and use cord protectors and outlet covers to prevent electrical shock or injury.
- Lock away hazardous chemicals, cover trash bins, and remove houseplants: Use childproof latches on cabinets to keep kittens away from chemicals, move non-toxic plants out of reach, and use covered trash cans to prevent them from ingesting harmful substances.
- Block off unsupervised areas: Kittens can squeeze into small spaces, so make sure they can’t access areas like basements and garages where they might get stuck.
- Check for dangling items and secure blinds and curtains: Remove or fasten cords, strings, tassels, and curtain ties, and never leave wand or feather toys out when your kitten isn’t supervised, as they can become a choking hazard.
- Secure heavy items: Anchor heavy objects like bookshelves and furniture to walls to prevent them from toppling over and injuring your kitten.
- Close off windows and balconies: This prevents your kitten from falling accidentally.
- Limit access to appliances: Dryers, washing machines, dishwashers, and even toilets can be dangerous if a curious kitten climbs (or falls) inside. Keep them closed when not in use.
- Remove small objects: Keep small toys, rubber bands, paper clips, coins, plastic straws, water bottle caps, string, streamers, and tinsel out of reach to prevent choking.
What Should Kittens Eat?
Dr. Akers says kittens should eat a combination of wet and dry food.
Introducing both forms of food while they’re young helps them recognize different varieties of food and get more rounded nutrition.
Additionally, Dr. Akers says the amount your kitten should eat daily depends on their breed and health status. For instance, larger and heavier-bodied Maine Coon kittens need more calories than Siamese ones. Highly active kittens may also require more frequent meals.
Here’s how often kittens should eat, broken down by age:
Kitten Age | How Often To Feed |
Less than 6-8 weeks old | 4-5 times per day |
8-16 weeks old | 3 times per day |
4 months or older | 2 times per day |
Lastly, Dr. Akers says kittens can transition to adult cat food when they’re around one year old.
What if your kitten ingests a potentially toxic substance?
Dr. Akers says it’s crucial to act quickly and immediately call your local emergency veterinary hospital if your kitten’s eaten something toxic. They need to remove it from your kitten’s stomach before their little body absorbs it.
How Do You Litter Train Your Kitten?
Contrary to popular belief, Kucera says cats don’t need to be ‘trained’ to use the litter box; instead, they instinctively scratch in the sand and bury their waste as an innate survival skill.
Although you don’t need to “train” your kitten to use a litterbox, creating a feline-friendly litter box space is important. This includes choosing:
- The right-sized litter box: The litter box should be at least one and a half times the length of the kitten from their nose to the base of their tail. Your kitten should be able to turn around in the box comfortably.
- A low-sided litter boxe: A low-sided entry to easily walk in helps kittens avoid lifting their legs high or jumping in, which can be painful.
- Covered litterboxes: Covered litter boxes are often too small, trap odors and dust inside, and trigger a fear response because kittens feel exposed to threats.
- Good litter: Kittens have a strong sense of smell (about 14 times stronger than humans) and prefer soft, unscented, and dust-free clumping litter. Avoid using litter deodorizers or air fresheners.
- The correct number of boxes: The ideal number of litter boxes in a house is one box per cat plus one. Spreading litter boxes out prevents aversion and accidents.
- A good location: Don’t place litter boxes in the same area as your kitten’s food and water. Avoid high-traffic areas and locations where a kitten could be cornered or other animals in the house can block their exit.
- Quiet areas: Avoid laundry rooms and places with loud appliances like furnaces. These can scare kittens and cause them to associate the litter box with a negative situation.
What Vaccines & Other Medications Do Kittens Need?
Taking care of a kitten means keeping them healthy. Dr. Amber Carter, an ABVP board-certified feline practitioner, says three vaccines are recommended by the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP) nationwide.
These vaccines include:
- FVRCP: No earlier than 6 weeks of age and then at 3–4 weeks until the kitten is 16–20 weeks
- FeLV: Two doses 3 to 4 weeks apart, beginning as early as 8 weeks
- Rabies: Dose times and frequency depends on local and state laws
Dr. Carter says kitten deworming can begin as early as two weeks of age and be repeated every two to three weeks until regular broad-spectrum monthly parasite control begins.
Ideally, kittens should be examined at their first veterinary visit, during their booster shots, and then yearly. Dr. Carter urges cat caregivers not to wait for signs of illness.
How Can You Keep Kittens Engaged & Playing?
Joey Lusvardi, a Certified Cat Behavior Consultant and founder of Class Act Cats, says the most energetic kittens need as many as five ten-to-fifteen-minute play sessions daily.
Kittens like solo play toys more than older cats, but Lusvardi says nothing builds a relationship like mutual human-feline fun. Try to make playtime interactive and let your kitten engage in their hunting instincts by playing with them with the following:
- Wand toys
- Stuffed mice
- Springs
- Crinkle balls
- Catnip bananas
- Laser pointers
- Chirping bird toys
- Ball track toys
Additionally, Lusvardi says yarn or string can make excellent DIY toys but should always be used under supervision and immediately put away when you’re done. Kittens naturally chew on most toys they play with, but if they keep trying to nibble at wires or cords, they’ll benefit from teething toys.
How Do You Hold A Kitten Safely?
“The best way to hold a kitten is to gently lift the kitten with one hand under their front legs area and with the other hand support the kitten under its rear, back feet,” Dr. Akers says.
Regarding children and kittens, Dr. Akers says they can be wonderful companions but make sure to teach them how to hold a kitten properly beforehand.
Dr. Akers says the steps for holding a kitten include:
- Sitting down: This minimizes the risk of dropping the kitten.
- Properly supporting the kitten: Place one hand under the kitten’s chest (between its front legs) and the other hand supporting the back legs and hindquarters. This provides full support to the kitten.
- Holding the kitten close to your body: This offers more support and makes the kitten feel more secure.
- Showing kids the proper way to handle kittens: Children often learn best by seeing. Emphasize that a kitten’s tail is not a toy and should never be pulled.
- Limiting the time you hold the kitten: Short, positive interactions are best, especially when the kitten is still very young.
- Getting low to the ground: Always squat or bend down and place the kitten on the ground gently; don’t drop the kitten or let the kitten jump from a height.
Holding a kitten can be daunting, especially for new pet parents and children. Everyone makes mistakes; just make sure you handle the kitten correctly and gently the next time around.
How Do You Keep Kittens Safe When They Leave The House?
You’ve made your home kitten-safe. What about keeping them safe outdoors if they venture out? Microchipping is one of the ways you can keep kittens safe when they leave the house. This is a quick and non-invasive procedure usually performed during a kitten’s spay or neuter surgery. A needle inserts a tiny microchip under the skin on the back of your kitten’s neck. This chip needs to be registered in the kitten caregiver’s name.
Dr. Carter says to check your local laws before microchipping. Some states, like Hawaii, and cities like Houston, Texas, have specific requirements.
What about carriers? Lusvardi says the key is to make the carrier a positive experience off the bat.
Lusvardi suggests leaving the cat carrier out in the open so it becomes a regular part of your kitten’s environment and not a sign that something bad or scary is coming.
Here’s four tips for getting your kitten accustomed to their cat carrier:
- Build positive associations by giving your kitten treats and toys around and in their carrier
- Take your kitten on short “trips” in the carrier from room to room and even outside and back.
- Visit a friend or family member your kitten likes and bring them there for playtime and treats.
- Take a fun visit to a Fear Free Certified veterinarian. These trips give your kitten the chance to have fun and learn the carrier doesn’t always lead to scary things.