Confusing kitten--Back-story included!

[hellomisslady]

Hello every one!

I am a new kitten owner as well as new to this site. However, I am not new to cats! 

I adopted a kitten at 6 weeks who is now going on 8 weeks! I love him to death and he loves us right back. I know he was adopted too young, but we weren't sure where he would end up if he wasn't adopted immediately. I know with him being so young, that he needs his behavior to be closely watched as he does not have a mother or litter-mates to show him the ropes. And I just want him to grow up happy and well socialized!

He is a DSH. However, we know the breed to be a bengal/russian blue mix.

He will be getting his first round of shots this weekend. 

He is litter trained and using the Blue made from walnut shells and doing great on it.

and at the very least gets 3 sessions of 15 play to burn off his energy.

and he is great with new people--Almost no fear!

Plenty of new toys too! with new ones being invented frequently to prevent boredom. 

His diet is kinda yucky though! His previous owner had him Purina Kitten chow. We are slowly phasing him off of this and on to a more nutritious food for kittens. 

The thing that is concerning to me about him is how fast he is growing a maturing. He was less than 2lbs when we got him, and he is now pushing 3lbs. He considerably taller and gaining more lean muscle. We think he is too young to be fixed, however, he really seems to be going through a growth spurt and a bratty teenage phase. When we take him in to vet for shots, I will ask if fixing at his age and weight is appropriate. Through my own research it seems as though your cat must be at least 2 lbs or 3 months old. I'm just worried he is too young!

His behavior is night and day sometimes!

 

He has yet to grasp that hands are not for biting or scratching! We have never used our hands to play with the little guy. And when he gets too rough, we distract with a toy. The only thing that seems to be working is the saying OUCH in a high pitched voice. However, this method is only stopping him in the moment. Not from doing altogether. Is this normal with the "ouch" approach? He seems to think its okay to bite and play, just very very lightly. I would like to discourage this hand in mouth play altogether as he may hurt someone when he older, even though he is trying to be gentle. When he is being crazy and playful, it is very hard to calm him down.

The second thing he does is really strange to me, as neither of my other cats had done this. He stalks me and my boyfriend constantly. and either jumps on us (no claws) or taps us... and runs away and repeats.

It scares the hell out of me sometimes! Especially when you are watching a really intense Madmen episode 

He doesn't ever use claws when doing this. But he does catch you on accident sometimes. The problem with this is he has done it to our face a few times and nearly caught my eye. I think it's adorable that he wants to play, but this could be dangerous and I would like to discourage it. 

I usually put him down and ignore him when this happens to show him its not nice and we don't like it. 

Other than that, he is a LOVE machine. just cuddles and purrs and headbutts and scratchy kisses. 

Just needing some new kitten advice!

Sorry for the length and detail but would love feedback!

Thank you!

 

[alistair]

Keep saying "ouch" and exaggerate the pain and he will likely catch on. That's what I did with my kitten they I adopted at 9.5 weeks old.

If you are open to getting another kitten, that would be the best thing to teach him the boundaries of scratching and biting as well as give him a play mate so he can burn some some of that energy instead is stalking you guys all the time. If he has Bengal in him then he's going to be high energy.

Last but not least. I would never ever neuter a male before 6 months of age. They need that testosterone to grow and mature. Shelters do it much younger because they don't have a choice and can't risk any breeding. Males fixed at a young age grow to have small looking heads in proportion to their bodies because their scull needs those hormones to grow. Hope this helps. Got any pics of your kitten you can post?

 

[fhicat]

Last but not least. I would never ever neuter a male before 6 months of age. They need that testosterone to grow and mature. Shelters do it much younger because they don't have a choice and can't risk any breeding. Males fixed at a young age grow to have small looking heads in proportion to their bodies because their scull needs those hormones to grow. 

Myth.

https://www.avma.org/news/journals/collections/pages/avma-collections-spayneuter.aspx#1

 
Short- and long-term studies, up to 11 years post-procedure, have found no physical and few behavioural problems following early neutering in cats.^14,15  Male kittens that underwent early castration had a significantly lower incidence of abscesses, sexual behaviours, urine spraying and aggression towards veterinarians. In both sexes, the occurrence of asthma, gingivitis and hyperactivity was also reduced.¹⁵  Shyness and hiding were the only behaviours found to increase in those animals neutered before 5.5 months.¹⁵

Cats spayed before 6 months of age showed a 91% reduction in the risk of mammary carcinoma compared with intact cats.¹⁶

Help Stop Teenage Pregnancy! - Early-Age Neutering in Cats. Alison Joyce, BVetMed BSc (Hons) MRCVS, David Yates, BVSc MRCVS.

 

[catpack]

Hellomisslady, have you ever owned an "exotic" breed? Bengals are notorious for high energy and are very smart cats that require a lot of stimulation.

I think it is very likely what your kitten is doing is quite normal for the breed (and age.). I'm not sure, but it certainly wouldn't surprise me if your kitten's growth is due to the breed AND being transitioned over to a healthier diet.

Certainly talk with your vet about the pros and cons of neutering your cat at a young age. I personally do not like the thought of sedating young kittens (unless truly medically necessary.)

 

[alistair]

Myth.

https://www.avma.org/news/journals/collections/pages/avma-collections-spayneuter.aspx#1


Help Stop Teenage Pregnancy! - Early-Age Neutering in Cats. Alison Joyce

, BVetMed BSc (Hons) MRCVS, 
David Yates

, BVSc MRCVS.

I'm aware of this and do not believe the studies. I have seen enough British Shorthair cats fixed too early and they do not develop the big round head the breed is famous for. Those studies were conduced by people with a conflict of interest and a bias for early neutering.

 

[fhicat]

I'm aware of this and do not believe the studies. I have seen enough British Shorthair cats fixed too early and they do not develop the big round head the breed is famous for. Those studies were conduced by people with a conflict of interest and a bias for early neutering.

So your anecdotal observations trump scientific research?

Okay, then.

 

[alistair]

Lol, you are entitled to believe what you would like. I am not stating that you are wrong about the research that supports early neutering or that you are foolish to believe those studies. Personally after paying $1,400 for a purebred British kitten, I would not jeopardize the chances of him not maturing correctly. I trust the breeders know what they are talking about, so those studies mean nothing to me personally.

 

[Willowy]

Tomcats/late neuters do have larger heads, but I believe it's a muscle development thing and not the actual skull size. If someone doesn't care about how large/round their cat's head looks, it's a rather moot point. There have not been any negative health issues linked to early neutering in cats; any differences seem to be purely aesthetic.

Although, yes, personally for males I prefer to wait about 6 months, but for females I prefer 12-14 weeks. I have never met a male who started spraying before 8 months so I feel like that's pretty safe, and they shouldn't be fertile before 6 months either. I don't like any baby kittens (under 10-12 weeks) to have any surgery if not 100% necessary but of course shelters have to do what they have to do. Youngest I would recommend is 12-14 weeks.

I don't believe his behavior is due to hormones. He's a kitten, and if he truly is half Bengal you need to expect him to be extremely active and inquisitive, they can also become destructive if their needs aren't met (well, this is true of any cat but Bengals have more needs to be met). Bengals never forget their wild roots! You'll have your hands full keeping him busy, that's for sure.

 

[lamiatron]

Lol, you are entitled to believe what you would like. I am not stating that you are wrong about the research that supports early neutering or that you are foolish to believe those studies. Personally after paying $1,400 for a purebred British kitten, I would not jeopardize the chances of him not maturing correctly. I trust the breeders know what they are talking about, so those studies mean nothing to me personally.

I agree with you, this post and the previous one you posted. Sex hormones in the body are not just used for sexual maturation, but other parts of the body as well. This is true for ALL LIVING ANIMALS AND BEINGS. Sex hormones affect all other systems of the body aside from just the reproductive organs.

I don't agree with neutering so young. I have two cats that were neutered under the age of 6 months. 

One of my cats had no issues. He's fine.

My other cat, who was neutered at 8 weeks, was sick from it, weak and frail, and has been the needy kitty, and always in need of care. I seriously feel this is related to being spayed very young. not that her personality is due to her being spayed so young, but, the fact that was sick from the minute i got her home, it has definitely affected her personality. Also physically, she's quite small in size. could be combo of the absence of sex hormones, and the fact that she's a female.  

 

[erikaremmington]

I agree with the earlier comment to trust the breeders. They know by experience.

 

[hellomisslady]

I appreciate all the comments and advice I am receiving. It's great to have this support! Although I didn't mean to hit on such a touchy subject in the feline world. 

I have only had cats were previously fixed and they were just SPCA rescue furbabies. So i'm not really sure when they were fixed, as we had gotten them as adults. 

A few people had mentioned that it was just his breed. Well, to be honest, we don't know for sure that he is part Bengal. We are well aware of the tabby kitten scams! We did not adopt him because of his breed, we adopted him because we fell in love with him. I wouldn't care if he was part fish. We did meet the cats that the seller claimed to be his parents, whom he has papers on. And our little guy does look a lot like his Bengal mother, but we can't know for sure. I'm just going to assume he is and take the necessary steps to make sure he doesn't become reckless. 

If he is partially Bengal as claimed, he is coming to a home that he is more then welcome to be playful! After our cats we have had many dogs; most recently two special needs border collies. I wouldn't even know what to do with a lazy animal

So far the biting thing is very very slowly decreasing. This little guy wasn't buying my fake "ouch"'s anymore. So I have started to hiss at him when he does it. That has been a bit more effective. Although you seem like an insane person hissing at your cat in front of people.