new kitty to us

hi all,
we finally have a new kitty, she is around 2 years old
seems younger to me, we got her from a local animal rescue, she is very friendly, she does seem ok having free run of the house, my question is should we let her run free in the house when we are not home. we have brand new furniture and carpet, we only have had her 2 days now, we caught her clawing a little on the carpet and the rug, my wife seems to think its ok, she does not waant to lock her in the basement all day,, any thoughts on this?
I think the basement will be fine, plus we are going to get a kitten
to keep her company,, I think.. boy do we feel better having another furball running around.
thanks for any input
happy holidays to all.

I'm no expert, but I can give you my advice. I would not let the kitten have free run of the house yet. They need to be familiar with their surroundings, and the whole house might be overwhelming. I would introduce a room at a time - and keep the kitten in a confined area while you are not there. Just be sure that it has plenty of fresh water, food, and the litter box, comfortable bedding and some toys.

Cats actually sleep a lot during the day when they don't have anything keeping them awake, so you are not being cruel or anything to keep it confined when you are away.

You also need to supervise and train the kitten to behave properly in rooms that have good carpet and furniture - teach it not to scratch and so on, so best that you are with it when it is in those rooms.

I went home at lunch to check on her, sleeping like a baby in the bed upstairs, I don't think there will be a problem.
the cat is well trained, thanks for the responses