which is easiest

I am wondering which gender is easiest to litter train. I have never trained a cat/kitten my parents always have or they already came littertrained. My cat just had a kitten 2 days ago (yes one I checked everywhere to make sure she didn't hide one and she is skinny minus the loose skin) and I think its a boy and am just wondering if gender matters on how easy or hard it would be to littertrain?

I have never noticed a gender difference when it comes to litter box training- males and females seem to take to it the same (and you always have the rogue kitten who just doesn't want to grasp the concept). I think the bigger issue you will have is with a singleton litter. He will learn from watching Mom but may not pick it up as quick as he would if he had litter mates training to the box as well. When he is around 4 weeks set up some baby boxes for him (low sided baking sheets or the cardboard boxes kitten food comes in work well) and make sure you use a non clumping litter (in both his boxes and Mom's). Space his boxes out so he doesn't have to go far to get to one- it will help minimize accidents. 

Also, you need to be extra viligent in weighing him everyday. Sometimes one kitten is not enough to hold Mom's interest and she may stop caring for him earlier than she would with a big litter. Make sure you have syringes/bottles and KMR on hand. If she stops nursing you will need to step in and feed him until he's big enough to do it on his own. If you have no experience with hand rearing it's a good idea to do some research now just to prepare yourself. Hopefully you won't need to do it but better to be overly prepared than scrambling! A good place to start is with this article: http://www.thecatsite.com/a/hand-rearing-kittens . 

Since I'm not sure the background on your Queen I have to in good conscience add the standard reminder that she can get pregnant again now that she has given birth. So, until she is spayed she must remain indoors and away from any intact Toms! 

Ask more questions if you need to and good luck! 

She came to us pregnant cause she has never been around another cat since we got her. She has never been outside except when they brought her to us and when I took her to my parents car to show them and she wasn't around any other cats the whole time cause there is strays around but she is our only cat.

The litterbox probably will be over near the bed instead of where Tabbys is at unless its ok since they would be in this room cause that is where Tabbys is and I'm here like almost 24/7 and when I ain't here my boyfriend is and we keep an eye on the little one. I am over paranoied so I always make sure he is feeding and ok whenever it meows and so does Tabby. Mine is I never had to deal with a newborn kitten and I'm affraid something will go wrong so I'm always watching and so far since he was born she has let it do everything to her possible and do you think praising her would help with her letting it feed till it is weened

tabbymommy said:

She came to us pregnant cause she has never been around another cat since we got her. She has never been outside except when they brought her to us and when I took her to my parents car to show them and she wasn't around any other cats the whole time cause there is strays around but she is our only cat.

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Hey I'm not judging the how or the why. People post in the PC&K section who are raising kittens for a variety of reasons under a variety of circumstances. Some work in rescue, others breed, some have a "housecat" who got pregnant and still others, like you, who had one show up on their doorstep. She is very lucky that you were willing and able to bring her in and give her somewhere safe to have her baby! 

Regardless of how any of us came to have these kittens in our lives, it is a common belief that Queens can't get pregnant again so long as they are nursing and that's just not the case. Because this stereotype runs deep (I thought that before I started fostering) I always remind anyone and everyone. Especially considering that once kittens come things can get a little hectic and it's easy to forget that if a Queen has access to the outdoors she will come home with babies in her belly before she has the first batch off the nipple! 

tabbymommy said:

The litterbox probably will be over near the bed instead of where Tabbys is at unless its ok since they would be in this room cause that is where Tabbys is and I'm here like almost 24/7 and when I ain't here my boyfriend is and we keep an eye on the little one. I am over paranoied so I always make sure he is feeding and ok whenever it meows and so does Tabby. Mine is I never had to deal with a newborn kitten and I'm affraid something will go wrong so I'm always watching and so far since he was born she has let it do everything to her possible and do you think praising her would help with her letting it feed till it is weened

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There is certainly no right or wrong answer as to where you should place another litterbox, though I generally put the kitten boxes near Mom's. The goal of course being that he will see and try to emulate her. If his box is on the other side of the room he may not draw the connection. If the room is big and he has access to it all you may need more than one box. Kittens have tiny bladders and usually go on impulse. If there isn't a box in the immediate vicinity he won't seek it out at first- he will just squat where he is at. 

It's good you are keeping such a close eye on him and monitoring his eating, but be sure you are weighing him daily too. Weight loss is the first indication that he isn't getting enough to eat or that there is a medical problem. The first few weeks gains and losses can be so minute that you won't be able to tell just by feel or by look. You really need the accuracy of the scale (preferably one that weighs in grams) to know that he is continually gaining. Average daily gains should be between 10-15 grams. Some days with lower or higher gains is normal but any weight loss and he should be evaluated by a vet ASAP to rule out medical issues. 

While Tabby will probably enjoy the praise I don't know that it would have a huge impact in her attentiveness toward her kitten. Oftentimes with singleton litters Mom does a great job until she starts calling again. When that is just varies. The earliest I have ever seen personally was 12 days after delivery, though I know a few other users have had Queens go back into heat as early as 4 days after. Hopefully she will continue to be attentive until he is big enough to start handling his basic needs on his own (usually around 4 weeks). If she doesn't then you may need to intervene. There isn't really a way to know how this will all play out except to give it time and see what happens. So long as you are weighing him daily and are prepared to bottle feed if necessary you should be fine! 

Nerves are of course normal when it's your first ever newborn kitten. Be sure to look through past threads as you can learn a lot from what others have been through, and check out all the PC&K care links: http://www.thecatsite.com/t/249018/...regnant-cats-kitten-care-articles-and-threads . Not only will these links prepare you in case an emergency arises, but they are just really helpful in understanding kitten development and for getting an idea of what is to come. 

it is a common belief that Queens can't get pregnant again so long as they are nursing and that's just not the case

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And in another post SaveTheMommies says that her cat with kittens that are at most 2 weeks old is in heat again and so pre-occupied with that she isn't looking after her kittens...

She is so layed back she probably will want more attention and that's it so I think I will just stay with her a lot more than I do now when I think she is in heat so that her baby will get fed and she can get her loves without getting pregnant till we can get her spayed cause I was thinking do both at the same time so that the baby (looked closer and was able to tell the gender and its a bouncing baby boy) won't be trying to play as much so tabby can have her rest after the sergury and he can to. Any sujestions on names and ik I miss spelled.

She has no opritunity to get out the door her only connection is the windows and screans

Oh did I mintion we didn't know that she was pregnant till the day she had the kitten.

Well that was a surprise!:lol3:

How young will your vet do neuters? If he/she does them at 8-12 weeks, there's no problem in getting them done at the same time. But if your vet wants to wait until the kitten is older than 16 weeks, you'll want to have the mama cat spayed first because there's a possibility of her son getting her pregnant after he's that age.

The cats that I have experiance with (the outdoor cats that are some strays) won't have kittens with their parents cause momma cat outside and her babies was around eachother all the time and didn't cause there was just one stray tom cat that she always went to to have kittens now he is dead and she is spayed (all are except one cause she doesn't like people) but I need to do research on who can do them earliest. Oh it is deffanatly a boy and we named him Tigger today.

Oh, apparently some studies have shown that cats prefer not to mate with cats they were raised with, or they raised themselves (having nothing to do with blood relations but who they knew as kittens). But for indoor cats, there aren't a lot of options and they definitely will mate with their own kittens.

For the one that's not fixed because she doesn't like people. . .maybe you can borrow a trap somewhere.

We didn't even know that the people took them to fix them except one of the cats (mama) and they took a couple of mamas babies and never returend them. We want them back cause they are our cats even though mama is an outdoor cat and she was ours since she was about a year old when she came here and was dropped off by someone that we knew and my bfs dad didn't really care for animals in the house so she had to stay outside if she hadn't been outside we wouldn't have her babies

Oh, it was sure nice of them to have the kitties fixed! It's so much healthier for them and makes their lives much better. Not much quality of life for a poor mama cat being chewed on by tomcats and popping out kittens constantly . Maybe they thought the kitties were strays? Do they wear collars? Unfortunately, if there's no way to know who owns the kitties, there's no way to know who to ask if you can adopt a few. Or they may have thought you didn't care if someone adopted them (most people with unneutered outside cats don't care). Hopefully they're living cushy lives inside with loving owners .

My boyfriends brother told them that they was our housholds cats and we couldn't bring them in but I wanted to so bad cause it got me mad and my grandma mad that they was outside the only time they was inside is when they are sick or seem like they are so we try to save them the best we can so far since I been around no luck but bfs mom says they have saved a few from dying just not from cars out front

tabbymommy said:

The cats that I have experiance with (the outdoor cats that are some strays) won't have kittens with their parents cause momma cat outside and her babies was around eachother all the time and didn't cause there was just one stray tom cat that she always went to to have kittens now he is dead and she is spayed (all are except one cause she doesn't like people) but I need to do research on who can do them earliest. 

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This is just one instance. As Willowy pointed out indoor cats have fewer options and are more likely to mate with each other if given the chance. Once the boy hits sexual maturity he will no longer associate that Tabby is his Mom. It's a moot point as it sounds like you plan to have them both fixed but it's something to be aware of. 

I understand your frustration when the kittens were taken away but it is a safe assumption that if cats are unaltered, uncollared, and outdoors then they are strays. It sounds like the people who took them were just trying to do the right thing. If you want any of them to be recognized as having "owners" then you need to collar them, feed them, and take financial responsibility for them. This means paying for their surgeries, vaccines, and annual vet visits at a minimum. Otherwise, they are probably better off (the kittens anyway) being taken and re-homed somewhere that they can have access to the cushy indoor life. Not so much fun for you but certainly better for them. And, looking out for their best interest is what being an animal lover is all about. 

Oh I know that but it still just pevs me off cause they knew and didn't let mama cat keep them. But hey what can you do what's done is done.