Picking up a kitten tommorow, what else do I need to do?

Hi,

I'm picking up a kitten (either tommorow or the day after), and I was wondering what else i'd need to pick up. I have some toys, scratching thingys, litter box and litter, food bowls and some kitten chow. I heard that its best to keep the kitten in it's own room for a few weeks to adjust, but that might not be viable for me (it's a shared house with no free rooms).. would it be okay in my room or should I keep it in the familyroom/kitchen area? Would odor be an issue if the litter box is in my room, or could I keep the litterbox in the bathroom and keep my bedroom door slightly open? If the litterbox is in my room for now, would the cat refuse to use it if I move it to the bathroom later? Also, can kittens climb down stairs? What can I do to kittenproof my room? I have a lot of electronics, so I was thinking about rubbing the wires in orange rind to give off a citrus scent. Lastly has anyone flown with pets in cabin via westjet? How strict are they with carrier sizes and types?

Hopefully things will go well.

Thanks again for the help guys

sounds like your doing good already.. I dont see a need for a few weeks, if there are no other pets in the house, a couple of days would be fine, just so you spend time with the new kitten.

hmm yea, i have seen little ones climb staris before. Hmm sometimes it can be rough, to move a litter box after the cat gets used to it. But it can be done. As for the Smell if you keep the box clean every day, it should be no issues(please note, half the time i cant smell anything anyway)

you can look for bitter apple, to spray also i just taped some old carpet over top some computer cables,
good luck :d

I'll move you to care and grooming

I'm picking up a kitten (either tommorow or the day after), and I was wondering what else i'd need to pick up. I have some toys, scratching thingys, litter box and litter, food bowls and some kitten chow.

Save for a good tall treehouse (minimum of 4 feet tall) - well worth the investment. I'd get the same food the kitten is eating now and then change over to a better quality food other then kitten chow.

I heard that its best to keep the kitten in it's own room for a few weeks to adjust, but that might not be viable for me (it's a shared house with no free rooms).. would it be okay in my room or should I keep it in the familyroom/kitchen area? Would odor be an issue if the litter box is in my room, or could I keep the litterbox in the bathroom and keep my bedroom door slightly open? If the litterbox is in my room for now, would the cat refuse to use it if I move it to the bathroom later?

Keep the kitten in your room for a week or so with the litter pan. Then as the kitten gets more comfortable you can put the pan in the bathroom. Put the kitten in the bathroom for a few hours so it knows where the pan is now. As long as you scoop daily, there shouldn't be much odor. Supervise exploring time - if you are not there, confine the kitten to your room.

Also, can kittens climb down stairs? What can I do to kittenproof my room? I have a lot of electronics, so I was thinking about rubbing the wires in orange rind to give off a citrus scent.

Yes, tho if they are very young, it takes a few days of practice. How old IS this kitten? Ideal time to adopt is when 10-12 weeks old. They need time with mom/siblings to learn proper cat manners and better social/emotional behaviors.

I'd get some Bitter Apple Spray to put on the wires. Some cats LIKE citrus

Lastly has anyone flown with pets in cabin via westjet? How strict are they with carrier sizes and types?

IMO the soft-sided carriers are ideal for under the seat travel. Most hard side carriers will NOT fit under the seat. I think the soft-sided ones are standard size cause if the cat/dog fits in there, they will fit under the seat.

Good advice from GK. I'd just add that one of our litter boxes is in our bedroom at the foot of my bed and with daily scooping and a good litter there is no odour - well, except for when they first use it just as our human bathrooms may have an odour right after we use them.