Expert: Dear Tabbi - 1/25/2009

Question
QUESTION: I adopted a 4 month old male kitten right before Christmas.  His history, lost his mother and his siblings were adopted, rescue picked him up and found a foster mom and kittens that took him in until I adopted him.  I live alone and he is the only pet.  Has lots of toys that he plays with and he and I play with together.  He gets lots of love and is very affectionate.  No matter how much I play with him before I go to bed, he turns into a crazy kitten at bedtime doing all the bad things that kittens can do.  Over the past week, he has started taking his feces out of the litterbox (which is cleaned twice daily) and is playing with it.  He keeps me from sleeping and when he does finally come to bed, he insists on sleeping on my face, neck, etc.  He also is biting and when scolded, doesn't help.  One night he bite at my chin.  The big thing lately is the cat litter incident.  I had a rug in my kitchen that he loved to play with at night.  Two mornings ago, I woke up to a lot of litter on this kitchen rug.  I live in a two bed, two bath apt and his litter box is in the 2nd bath which is a good distance from the kitchen.  BTW, there was no litter between the bath and kitchen.  It was like he carried it in his mouth but had to make several trips because of the amount of litter.  I also found a small amount of litter in my bathtub.  The lack of sleep, the biting and now the playing with his feces and the litter thing is making me believe that he has more issues than I can deal with.  Can anyone help?

ANSWER: Paula,

Welcome to world of having a kitten! Don't worry, he should grow out of his behavior....in about a year! (smile). Some kittens pick up strange behaviors, but luckily they get bored with them and go on to something else.

The one mistake I see is that you didn't get TWO kittens. A kitten NEEDS another kitten to play kitty games with that humans can't do, to snuggle with, and to be comfort and companionship when they are alone. A single kitten is more destructive than 2 (or more) kittens plus they need much more attention from their owner. I would try to find a sibling, or another kitten about his age and temperament. There are many being put down at shelters because of overcrowding that are sweet and loving, but will never know having enough food, love, affection, or even a home before being killed.

Getting a pet laser light will help to burn up some of the kitten's energy. You can get them at PetSmart or similar stores. Even Safeway carried them! (Never shine the light into their eyes). It is funny to watch them try to catch the 'red bug' on the floors, ceilings, and walls!

Play 'throw and fetch' with your cat. Get some furry stuffed mice or shiny craft balls that come in a package at Wal-Mart's craft dept. or a craft store. My cats love to just carry them around when I get tired of throwing them!

Play with him right before you go to bed. A good play session before bedtime, especially with the pet laser light, will tire him out, which is essential for a good night's sleep for you both! Give the cat a can of catfood after you play with him, just before you go to bed. A full tummy will help him sleep.

Also leave out a bowl of good quality kitten chow all night. So if he gets the munchies he can nibble and not wake you up for it.

I hope this helps.
Tabbi



---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Ever heard about another cat doing this cat litter thing?

Answer
Paula,

No, I can't say I ever have known (or heard of) a cat that will pick up cat litter in it's mouth (unless it is a little kitten not knowing better and trying to eat it) and carry it. The closest semi-explanation would be that his feet are getting wet and he is tracking it, but then you would see a trail.

Some cats have strange quirks or habits, or weird things they do when they are bored, but your kitten's is a doozy! I hope you can break the kitten of that soon because, if you are using clumping litter you know what happens to the litter when it gets wet, it can cause an obstruction in his intestines if he swallows it, and the result could be fatal. For now, I would change to clay litter, or shredded newspaper until he stops doing it.

Tabbi