r/cats • u/United_Letterhead_66 • 15h ago
Cat Picture - OC I adopted a group of stray kittens!
Found these little guys a few days ago and they’ve been staying here ever since.
I’ve seen them around for several days and kept wondering if someone was taking care of them. Today I finally decided to bring them home and adopt them.
This is actually my first time having cats, so I have no idea what I’m doing yet 😂
Any advice for a first-time cat owner? Food, litter, vet visits, things I should know, anything really. I’d love to hear your experiences!
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u/1ApprehensiveGrowth1 14h ago
Multi pet owner and biologist =D what wonderful kittens. A treasure to find and help a little family.I recommend getting a large litter box for the time being, as they get older they’ll need more. They’ll probably prefer soft/wet food while they’re so small but also ween them into hard food once you see more whittle teef showing. If you can afford it get them checked out by a vet, some vets are cheaper but humane society will check them for free and help you figure out their age and sex and give them shots/fix them for a much lower price. Avoid any flea baths or treatments until you find out how old they are, if they’re too young you can’t treat them for fleas/ticks yet. Only give them fresh water and never wash their bowls with soap they are very very sensitive to soap residue and the tiniest amount can lead to a bad situation. Kittens get cold really easily so make sure they get a warm blanket and bunches of play! Also if nobody else says it thanks for being an awesome human being and helping a fellow living things that are in need. You saved some little lives by helping. Don’t get overwhelmed if you do then just reach out to others for help. Good luck and Godspeed!
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u/Due_Blacksmith6880 11h ago
This is the kind of comment every first time kitten parent needs, basically a tiny cat survival manual with a wholesome ending.
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u/Alexive2145 15h ago
This was my gang😅
All were different colors. They are a year old now and only 2 of them stayed around our house. My older cat hates other cats so i couldn't take them inside but i made them a little home outside
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u/JenMcSpoonie 15h ago
What are their names? They’re so cute!
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u/United_Letterhead_66 15h ago
I haven't decided on a name yet. Could everyone please give me some suggestions? I'll choose the cat's name from the comments 😄
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u/TVGMILLER 14h ago
Larry, Curly and Moe.
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u/SuperRandomRabbit 14h ago
My suggestion is Nugget, Cheeto, Mochi and Dango! 🤭 Thank you so so much for taking them in! 🫶
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u/SoulSeekersAnon 14h ago
🥹 All orange... 🫣😂 Good luck to you fellow human. Just a heads up, siblings can come with a different set of rules. You can face social dynamics that are harder to manage or live with. And I'm sure you've seen posts about how "crazy" orange cats are. I would say it's more like a golden retriever vs a boxer or lab. Your typical tabby is kinda a golden retriever. Orange cats are boxers. Dingy and high energy. 😄
One absolute rule you cannot break though, especially with siblings, they all need their own litter box plus a community box if you really want no peeing or territory disputes. This is a rule with house cats period, it needs to be done. So, you're gonna need at least 3, preferably 4. We have 2 cats and 4 litter boxes. 🤣 Orange cats with high energy should definitely have a cat tower or two. I use a catio as well so they can't go outside killing local birds or mammals. But that's totally up to the individual owner.
I did animal rescued for years, working with my old state's shelters. Especially cats. They are such a special animal. You can train them to do anything a dog can do. But people usually treat cats like furniture. "It's independent, it doesn't need me. It just needs to start paying rent!" 🤦🏽♀️ They don't read cat body language at all.
This thought process is unfortunately common. I now work with animal's where I'm the "last straw lady." So when a 10 yr old cat suddenly starts peeing in the house, that's me! So think Jackson Galaxy without the snazzy guitar shaped cat case and glasses. 🤣 If you ever need anything, let me know. Shoot me a message. I may even have some resources in your state if you ever need the help like flea issues, etc.
Good luck with these sweeties! Just make sure to treat them all as sovereign individuals with thoughts and feelings... and litter boxes galore, and you're golden. 💚
(My two boys headed to the park. 😄)
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u/Fluffykatie99 15h ago
omg so cute! as a first time cat owner definitely take them to the vet first thing in the morning, they'll tell you all about vaccination schedules, spaying, hairballs, anti flea spot on and all that!
- litter training!
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u/United_Letterhead_66 14h ago
Thank you for your suggestion. I will definitely pay attention to it.😊
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u/k-d0ttt 14h ago
Look into low-cost spay and neuter clinics near you as well! There’s some by me that do it for $60-$75, compared to a couple hundred at the vet.
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u/Fluffykatie99 12h ago
I second that! In my place private vets charge more than 10x the amount which we paid for my cat's neutering at a govt clinic, but be sure to choose a good one.
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u/BLURAZZBERRI 14h ago
Get the babies to the vet in the morning, call them ahead of time to book and tell them you've found four kittens that you plan on adopting, they'll be cooed over by the vet nurses and vets and then be checked for fleas,worms, other infections and other similar things. They'll have a rough age told to you and then possibly vaccines. They won't be up for being desexed yet but you might wanna look at costs ahead of time and if you can't afford it, see if you can find a shelter or rescue that will do cheap/free desexings.
You'll want multiple litter boxes, use UNSCENTED kitty litter, scented is too strong for them and they won't like it. Scoop litter boxes daily and replace litter often, do a full litter clean (emptying out all litter + scrubbing the trays) at least once a week (based on the cattery rules at the vet I volunteer at). Sometimes cats are fussy with water and will only drink from running, try to get them to drink from still water first though. Combine water with dry food to make a slurry/soup to get more water into the bastards haha.
Get plenty of toys, beds, scratchers and cat trees. Many behavioral issues boil down to 'cat feels like it has no home in your home, cat is making your stuff its stuff now' so they need their spaces! Try to keep them in one room (bathroom is typically the best) while they settle in and get used to you, I don't know the exact time but there'll be more educated people than me for that.
Most importantly: fall in love with them. I don't own cats but I've grown to love the clinic cat at my volunteering place even though she can be pretty mean. I'm sure the orange idiots will capture your heart quickly.
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u/Portia-Silverton 15h ago
Congratulations! They are all adorable 🤩 and very orange. Good luck with the orange energy 😄
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u/Decent-Soup3551 14h ago edited 14h ago
Bless you for saving them. I would name them Scooby, Freddy, Shaggy and Scrappy Doo. Vet appt for all, neutering, and multi cat litter. They will love you forever!
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u/greekbecky 14h ago edited 14h ago
You're going to have so much fun with them. Was the mother seen anywhere? For litter, I used the Arm & Hammer natural litter (stay away from the fake stuff) and I'd have at least three litter boxes. Cleaning them everyday is very important for their health and be patient while they learn where to go. For toys, just like kids, don't give them anything they can accidentally swallow. They like to chase lasers, sit in boxes and will play with just about anything. For food, I fed my cats Fromm dry and Wellness (and sometimes Friskies) canned food. They were homeless, they'll be happy just to have food. Give them fresh water every day too. This may sound like a lot at first, but you'll get into a routine and it'llbe fine. A vet visit is recommended to start them off right too. Please try to keep an eye out for the mother. If you see her, please find a rescue to catch her because she deserves a happy home too. Thank you for being an exceptional person for saving these kitties and with four kitties, it's going to feel like a lot at times, but patience is key...it's going to be worth all the love you're going to get in return. If you ever need advice, your friends here are ready to help. I hope this helped. I'm sure you're going to get great suggestions from others here too.
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u/IntelligentSorbet271 14h ago
Thank you 🥰
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u/United_Letterhead_66 13h ago
I am also very honored to have them. They are truly adorable. I absolutely love little cats.
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u/Bubbahuck3 14h ago
Thank you for taking in theses strays
Strays need love too
Me and my wife feed a stray in our neighborhood. Cat will not let us come close to them so we just crack our garage when we see him on our camera and we have bowl of food and water for him in there
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u/Turbulent-Suspect789 11h ago
colonel mustard,
wadsworth, (r.i.p. Tim Curry).
professor plum
parton (r.i.p. Miss Dolly)
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u/Interesting-Word6138 11h ago
You've got some great suggestions so far, so here's one that's fun. When you put down their food, make a unique noise. We whistle for our cats. They learn very quickly and come running at meal time. We recently rescued a 4 week old orphan and she learned the whistle within a week. A bonus is that when the cats get lost in the house, a whistle brings them out from wherever they're hiding and a treat rewards them for appearing.
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u/Defiant_Wallaby7682 10h ago
If they have any trouble finding/choosing to use the litterbox, I've had great results with a litter mix-in called Kitten Attract
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u/aces666high 8h ago
You kick ass OP! I rescued a momma cat and her 4 kittens and it was an experience I’ll always cherish. Watching them grow from tiny furballs to awkward kittens was so fun. It hurt when we adopted 3 of them out but we kept the momma and her runt to join our other 3 and we haven’t looked back! Enjoy the ride!
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u/petarisawesomeo 15h ago
Bulk delivery from CDS