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Kitten Behavior Essentials

By Natalia Macrynikola

They say moving to New York City is tough, but the biggest challenge I faced during my first few weeks was unexpected: raising a kitten I rescued from the street, weaned off its mother prematurely. The veterinarian warned me that 3-week-old Andy was too young to survive away from his mother, but to me, Andy looked like a trooper.

According to The Humane Society of the United States, there are five stages of kittenhood. As I listenened to Andy's steady breath while he slept that first night, I vowed to see him through all five.

The Neonatal Period: Birth to 2 Weeks During a kitten’s first two weeks of life, its eyes and ears slowly open. Being with its mother is critical at this time because antibodies found in mother’s milk help to build immunity. What’s more, “if a kitten is raised without the ability to be comforted by a mom, it can begin life as a dysfunctional animal,” says Dr. Nicholas Dodman, author of The Cat Who Cried for Help (Bantam Books 1997). Uncertain of how much contact Andy had with his mom, I wondered whether his nestling in my hands was enough to ensure his well-being.

The Socialization Period: 2 to 7 Weeks Between the second and seventh week, kittens develop their senses fully and learn to run, stalk, pounce and avoid obstacles. To my relief, Andy began to do all these things, remaining healthy after a week of sleeping and bottle-feeding. His first feat was learning to jump from my bed into his own. Soon, the brave kitten preyed -- with boundless energy -- on the toys I made for him. It was entertaining to watch Andy blossom during this period, which Dr. Dodman calls “the starting point of their lives…where they learn everything before fear develops.”

Most Active Play Period: 7 to 14 Weeks After nearly two months, a kitten usually starts to scoop, paw and mouth. Andy seemed to turn into an acrobat overnight, often running as fast as he could before springing himself onto my bed. “Having gone through ‘acclimation,’ kittens continue using that talent [skills they learned in the socialization period],” says Dr. Dodman.

Ranking Period: 3 to 6 months “In this period, kittens are still continuing to learn…when to run away and when to fight,” says Dr. Dodman. Andy learned the hard way how “ranking,” or basic dominance and submission, works. As my two older felines ate side-by-side one night, he slowly crept up behind them. His small nose suddenly sniffing in their food bowls surprised them and caused Freddy, the oldest, to strike Andy on the head. Andy slumped back with his belly up and lay still on the floor, meaning no harm, while Freddy retreated into her favorite room. From then on, Andy stayed by himself more often.

Adolescence Period: 6 to 18 months During adolescence, kitten play and exploration continues, but the onset of sexual maturity is the biggest change. It was right before this time that I handed my kitten over to new owners. There were many reasons that I couldn’t keep Andy, but his new human family was ecstatic. For an unneutered, orphaned cat, Andy was surprisingly well-adjusted.

The Secret to Good Behavior
Andy’s adjustment to his new life was not a surprise, as I had nurtured him well in the socialization stage of his life. “If you introduce almost anything during this period, whether it’s kind and gentle handling or even your dog or bird, kittens will soak in the information like a sponge,” affirms Dr. Dodman. To ensure that your own kitten grows up to be intelligent and social, follow these five critical steps, especially during the tender socialization period:

Handle your kitten often Wrap one hand around your kitten’s body under its front legs and scoop the back legs with the other hand. Studies show that kittens frequently handled by people are more likely to develop larger brains.
Teach your kitten to love toys, not hands Drag or throw a toy and let your kitten chase and pounce on it. A small stuffed animal will allow your kitten to wrestle the way it would with littermates instead of grappling with your feet or hands. Conduct at least two 15-minute play sessions a day.
Introduce your kitten to strangers Teach your kitten not to avoid people by exposing it to others early on. Let your friends play with your kitten, and bring its favorite toys into the session.
Actively encourage/discourage behaviors Bribe your kitten with treats when it does well. When it nips you, squirt it, away from the eyes, with water mixed with a bit of vinegar. If the play session gets too rough, abruptly end it by walking into the other room and closing the door until your cat relaxes.
Avoid physical punishment Flicking or hitting your kitten to reprimand it will only teach your pet to become afraid of your hands.

With proper care and socialization, a cat’s less-than-promising fate doesn’t have to be written in stone. Raising Andy, for me, was proof of that: I was able to overturn the veterinarian’s prediction and help Andy breeze through his fifth stage of kittenhood.

About the Author

Natalia Macrynikola is an assistant editor at Studio One Networks, which publishes The Daily Cat. She's glad her feline roommate, Freddy, is allergy-free, even though Natalia sometimes sneezes when the two of them hang out.

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kitten behaviour essentials

thank u 4 such an informative article!!! i have 2 cats now..the 1st one is 10mos old [egyptian mau]and the 2nd [bombay]is a rescue so i am not sure of her age but they have taught me more about love 7 patience then i thought i already knew from raising my son...pets make a house a home

Posted by trace on 2009-06-02 at 12:22:45

How to get a kitten to stop bitting

Hi I have a 8 week old Male kitten, he loves to play with a towel, but when he gets roudy then he likes to bite hands, and feet. any ideas how to get him to leave feet and hands alone?

Posted by Ken on 2009-06-03 at 15:08:25

Concern

I am concerned. I have long distance charges on my phone bill, but only Mr Wiskers is home during the day. Is my cat dialing Georgia? I have asked numerous times, but he seems distant and does not respond.

Posted by Frank on 2009-06-11 at 17:23:53

Cats

I like information on how to stop cats going on counters, scraching walls/furniture/carpets,and spraying

Posted by Jeanine Helfer on 2009-06-17 at 10:56:34

Best care for my soon-to-be 17 yo

It is 7 and a half painful months since we had to allow one of our two furters cross over the Rainbow Bridge at the AMC in my arms. Yes, they swere littermates and loved each other. today I received a tc from our vet|s office th at there was a 6 week old tittle gray male kittten and they thought of me.Let alone I do not know if I am ready, but my first concern is for the soon-to-be 17 yo(who just last week got a clean bill of health)-how do you know when it is time for all and what is best?

Posted by Marlene Berkowitz on 2009-06-18 at 15:09:32

my persian feline potty problem

I adopted an one year old persian female kitty 5 years ago. She always seems happy and very content when everybody is around. She is a very friendly girl. 3 summers ago my boyfriend decided to move her litter box to a cooler room from the hotter laundery rroom for the Summer and after Summer the litter box moved back to the original laundery room . And now we have a problem with her wanting to do her business outside the litter box when ever she has something she doesn't like. And she will look at you with her inocent angel eyes like she did absolutely nothing and knows that she did something very bad at the same time. She does use her litter box and I had her checked with her vet and she is perfectly healthy. Does anybody have any suggestion or idea, anything to help her with the problem she has. I really want to keep this sweet little girl around

Posted by Sandra M on 2009-07-14 at 12:33:40

my sister's female bengalcat

she has a very gutteral howl and carries around her toy dolls?

Posted by Bonnie on 2009-08-03 at 13:57:52

To Sandra M

Well, she probly doesn't even know she did something wrong.. Maybe you should get a new litterbox and put it in the place where your boyfriend put it, and keep the other one in place and see if that helps?

Posted by Becky on 2009-08-09 at 03:27:54

3 y/o and new kitten

I have a 3 y/o cat and just got a 7 week old kitten - the older one hunts down the baby to hiss at and slap her. How do I handle it ???

Posted by ginny on 2009-08-16 at 12:55:07

socialization

We got a cat I think when she was a few months. There was always someone around and she got lots of positive attention. We treated her like a princess but we gave her limits too. As a result we had the most well adjusted kitty I have ever known. She never clawed or bit. She loved being scratched. She especially loved her stomach being rubbed.

Posted by John on 2009-08-30 at 16:29:25

new friend?

i am thinking about taking in a second cat. he is 4 weeks old right now. i have a cat who is almost 2 years old. what will this do to him? how should i introduce them? and how can i help my baby through this and not give too much attention to the new one??

Posted by Jasmine on 2009-09-17 at 00:13:11

going outside

how do you keep a kitten/cat in the house?

Posted by stephanie on 2009-09-22 at 09:55:59

Strange Behavior

Why does my cat sit for hours staring at me?

Posted by Lee Brooks on 2009-09-26 at 11:04:00

gracie

all this cat talk makes me want to go play with my cat!

Posted by dan on 2009-09-27 at 19:14:43

kitten potty problem

I had sort of the same problem with my 2 cats whenever I moved. They would only go on either the bath mat or the rug at the front door. All i did was add another litter box and it magically stopped haha. maybe try putting a litter box in each spot? obviously it's kind of a pain to have to clean 2 boxes but its worth a try! its never easy to get cat smell out of things once they use it for their bathroom business

Posted by amanda on 2009-10-01 at 18:30:06

keeping cats off wood furniture

My cat seems to have springs on his feet and I am having a terrible time keeping him off my entertainment center and eating my plants. I removed the plants but he is still up there. Any help will be appreciated.

Posted by Rose on 2009-10-06 at 10:05:26

Another kitten potty problem

About a week ago brought home two cats from the same liter, male and female. During the night one of them (i don't know which one) likes to use the bathroom in my plants. Now they have access to a clean liter box. At first, I thought that it was them marking their territory, since they have a new home, but this is the second time it's happened in less than a week. Any suggestions on how to stop them from using the bathroom in my home garden?

Posted by Falanda on 2009-10-06 at 16:26:09

biting

how can i stop her from biting me

Posted by alyssa on 2009-10-07 at 17:34:33

separation

separation the mother from her kittens?

Posted by janet on 2009-10-11 at 20:42:57

Bitting

Runs to you to bite legs or pet her and she will bite sometimes.four month old female.

Posted by Renee on 2009-10-12 at 02:17:50

kitty pody problem,

well i have a kittyy named smokey and he poops in the corner of my bath room closet and his litter box was cleaned yesterday,i dont know why he does it , how do i brake him of doing this?

Posted by john on 2009-10-28 at 01:42:46