How much more for two kittens?

ErezMA

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So my fiancee and I have been discussing adding a little fury friend into our new apartment. Today, we went to a shelter and found a bunch of cats. Someone who works there told us that cats can be adopted on their own but kittens must be together. They explained to us why and I totally get it - they're young, they need attention, they need socialization. At first, it seemed like a lot more and then I asked myself - is it?

The cat toys can be shared.
The scratching post can be shared.

It seems like the only thing we'd need to get more of is more food and litter. Of course, there would be more bills as far as vaccines and all. I just want to know if I'm missing anything important.
 

zarada

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i got my first two cats as kittens together many moons ago. they were very happy to have each other's company, slept embraced on the sofa and groomed each other constantly. they both lived to almost twenty and i remember them fondly. can't remember any drawbacks. of course, when they get much older they don't hug any more, but remain friendly.

personally, i think it's essential to get kittens in pairs - healthy and satisfying for both, feline and human.
 

cornflake

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So my fiancee and I have been discussing adding a little fury friend into our new apartment. Today, we went to a shelter and found a bunch of cats. Someone who works there told us that cats can be adopted on their own but kittens must be together. They explained to us why and I totally get it - they're young, they need attention, they need socialization. At first, it seemed like a lot more and then I asked myself - is it?

The cat toys can be shared.
The scratching post can be shared.

It seems like the only thing we'd need to get more of is more food and litter. Of course, there would be more bills as far as vaccines and all. I just want to know if I'm missing anything important.

Is there a reason you're focused on kittens? You can get a solitary older cat - shelters are full of them.

Yes, kittens are better in pairs, and kittens need a lot of supervision. Cat toys can be used by one at a time or both but they may not share stuff like scratching posts (they may not like the same kind), or beds. You can't tell in advance.

Food and litter are more, food more than litter, obviously, though you'll need at least one more box, but the real cost is, yes, vet care and insurance.
 

ErezMA

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We haven't made a decision to get two kittens. We are searching all our options. We know how much it would cost for a single cat, and we have no problem with an adult cat doing its thing, snoozing the day away.

We know kittens are tougher. My last I got when he was three/four weeks old and he's been more difficult than I'd expect him to be at times. There's a strong advantage of an adult cat that more likely, they're litter trained, fully socialized and not likely to knock things over.

So we're at a researching stage.
 

cornflake

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We haven't made a decision to get two kittens. We are searching all our options. We know how much it would cost for a single cat, and we have no problem with an adult cat doing its thing, snoozing the day away.

We know kittens are tougher. My last I got when he was three/four weeks old and he's been more difficult than I'd expect him to be at times. There's a strong advantage of an adult cat that more likely, they're litter trained, fully socialized and not likely to knock things over.

So we're at a researching stage.

Many, many adult cats not only knock stuff over, but revel in it. Many adult cats are also more shy and more prone to hide. The lap cat vs. more shy you can get more information on, though it's not going to be for sure. Knocking stuff over? Crapshoot. Some do it for amusement, some for attention, some don't, but a shelter won't know that and you won't find it out until it's like 3am and stuff from your dresser starts hitting the floor,

Adult cats also need interaction, play and attention. Not as much as kittens, but they do need play sessions every day and attention.
 

ErezMA

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Many, many adult cats not only knock stuff over, but revel in it. Many adult cats are also more shy and more prone to hide. The lap cat vs. more shy you can get more information on, though it's not going to be for sure. Knocking stuff over? Crapshoot. Some do it for amusement, some for attention, some don't, but a shelter won't know that and you won't find it out until it's like 3am and stuff from your dresser starts hitting the floor,

Adult cats also need interaction, play and attention. Not as much as kittens, but they do need play sessions every day and attention.

If that's the case, maybe a younger one would be better. There's a saying: You can't teach an old dog new tricks. Maybe it applies to felines too. :p

There's no issue with attention and play. I love playing with cats and my cats in the past never had a problem with a lack of exercise. I posted a picture of my former cat, Zeus, in the other post where another AW user had a new cat. My cat had his mouth hanging open. He was tired from playing.
 

cornflake

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If that's the case, maybe a younger one would be better. There's a saying: You can't teach an old dog new tricks. Maybe it applies to felines too. :p

There's no issue with attention and play. I love playing with cats and my cats in the past never had a problem with a lack of exercise. I posted a picture of my former cat, Zeus, in the other post where another AW user had a new cat. My cat had his mouth hanging open. He was tired from playing.

It doesn't apply to felines - they're not dogs. A cat or kitten into knocking stuff over is going to knock stuff over. You can try a bunch of tricks to dissuade them but some are prone to chucking stuff off of surfaces and some aren't and penny cans, tape, foil, etc., may work on an area but a determined kitty will find stuff if it wants to knock stuff over to get your attention.
 

ErezMA

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It's probably that I'm not a good enough owner to know all these things. The most reliable thing I've learned to this was wiping an orange peel on my furniture so that my kitten wouldn't scratch wood, but I'm sure there are tricks.
 

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My cat used to scratch stuff up when he was angry, because he knew he shouldn't. Cats learn what you want from them very quickly. They just don't always use that knowledge in the way you'd like.

The only reliable way to stop a cat with a habit is to remove or cover the item. Ornaments might need a new shelf with a front. Furniture might need covers for the legs/sides. The main thing is to be open to changing things around in the house if you need to. Every cat has different needs.
 

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We haven't made a decision to get two kittens. We are searching all our options. We know how much it would cost for a single cat, and we have no problem with an adult cat doing its thing, snoozing the day away.

We know kittens are tougher. My last I got when he was three/four weeks old and he's been more difficult than I'd expect him to be at times. There's a strong advantage of an adult cat that more likely, they're litter trained, fully socialized and not likely to knock things over.

So we're at a researching stage.
Kittens should be with their mother for at least 2 or 3 months in order to learn behavioral things. If they don't get that opportunity, they may indeed develop issues. I've bottle-raised many and they simply had no one to teach them to moderate bites, or otherwise behave socially.

I wouldn't necessarily say all costs double. Let's say all in all, you may pay some 50% more. I have 7 cats and 2 dogs, and together they cost me about $250 a month. I do get good deals like 50% off on near-expired food though...
 

Roxxsmom

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Hmm, I know getting puppies together is a terrible idea, because they tend to bond more strongly to each other than to you and it makes them harder to train unless you limit their together time. Because with dogs, being able to play with you is a huge reward and motivator for training.

Kittens are different, since coming up with motivation for training isn't the same issue, but I had a friend who got two kittens at the same time, and while it was fun watching them play together, they didn't seem to like to play or cuddle much with humans. Just each other.

It probably depends on what kind of relationship you want to have with your cat or cats. I think getting two together might be a good thing if they're going to be alone a lot.

I adopted my first cat by himself as a kitten, and the rescue group was fine with that. We bonded very strongly. But a few years later, when I was in grad school and spending long hours in the lab, Oscar started to have issues. He'd be waiting at the door when I got home, and he seemed depressed a lot, gained a lot of weight, and he started pooping outside the litter box (something he'd never done before).

I adopted a second cat, and he was a happy camper again (and they got along wonderfully). Both cats were still strongly attached to me as well.

The main thing with two instead of one cat is more money on routine vet care and food and so on. And you'll go through cat litter 2x as fast. And with two, there's 2x the chance of one being sick or injured at a time. I have three dogs and two cats right now, and sometimes it seems like a month doesn't go by without a trip to the vet.

But if you and your girlfriend work long hours and they'll be alone a lot, they'll probably like the company.
 
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ErezMA

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Kittens should be with their mother for at least 2 or 3 months in order to learn behavioral things. If they don't get that opportunity, they may indeed develop issues. I've bottle-raised many and they simply had no one to teach them to moderate bites, or otherwise behave socially.

I wouldn't necessarily say all costs double. Let's say all in all, you may pay some 50% more. I have 7 cats and 2 dogs, and together they cost me about $250 a month. I do get good deals like 50% off on near-expired food though...

I've learned that from my last kitten. I had him about a month to a month and a half and he didn't have a lot of time with his mom. When I got him, even into adulthood, he kept suckling and kneading with the blanket I got him with. I researched and found out that it showed that he was taken from his mom too early.

Hmm, I know getting puppies together is a terrible idea, because they tend to bond more strongly to each other than to you and it makes them harder to train unless you limit their together time. Because with dogs, being able to play with you is a huge reward and motivator for training.

Kittens are different, since coming up with motivation for training isn't the same issue, but I had a friend who got two kittens at the same time, and while it was fun watching them play together, they didn't seem to like to play or cuddle much with humans. Just each other.

It probably depends on what kind of relationship you want to have with your cat or cats. I think getting two together might be a good thing if they're going to be alone a lot.

I adopted my first cat by himself as a kitten, and the rescue group was fine with that. We bonded very strongly. But a few years later, when I was in grad school and spending long hours in the lab, Oscar started to have issues. He'd be waiting at the door when I got home, and he seemed depressed a lot, gained a lot of weight, and he started pooping outside the litter box (something he'd never done before).

I adopted a second cat, and he was a happy camper again (and they got along wonderfully). Both cats were still strongly attached to me as well.

The main thing with two instead of one cat is more money on routine vet care and food and so on. And you'll go through cat litter 2x as fast. And with two, there's 2x the chance of one being sick or injured at a time. I have three dogs and two cats right now, and sometimes it seems like a month doesn't go by without a trip to the vet.

But if you and your girlfriend work long hours and they'll be alone a lot, they'll probably like the company.

That's true, I'd get two kittens and not just one because I want them to not get so depressed. My question is would this happen with one adult cat? Adult cats tend to be more solitary and less playful.
 

cornflake

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I've learned that from my last kitten. I had him about a month to a month and a half and he didn't have a lot of time with his mom. When I got him, even into adulthood, he kept suckling and kneading with the blanket I got him with. I researched and found out that it showed that he was taken from his mom too early.

This was the prevailing idea from back when, that's since been disproved. A very high percentage of cats engage in kneading behaviour. Some suck on blankets and what have you, some don't, but it appears to be common cat behaviour.



That's true, I'd get two kittens and not just one because I want them to not get so depressed. My question is would this happen with one adult cat? Adult cats tend to be more solitary and less playful.

In general, no; cats are solitary animals by nature. They hunt alone and are picky about their company. There are feral colonies, but they often contain a lot of related cats, or cats that have decided to live in the same area and chill together.

Cats do fine alone with people; some, who've lived with other cats or other animals, may want company, but I recently saw a study that put cameras all around multi-cat households. They found that though the people thought the cats were buds, more often than not, they really didn't appear to be. They didn't fight so much, but if one came in the bedroom, the other left, or if one sat on a chair, the other would look and walk by, even if he sat on the chair when no one was on it other times. I'll look for the study, but I saw it on tv, on PBS or Animal Planet or something.
 

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Nice. In that case, an adult cat may be better for us.
 

Pony.

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Ideally you'd do best with one box per cat plus one more,in different areas. If one cat were to get possessive there is no way he can guard all three at the same time. Multiple boxes also helps keep a single box from getting over loaded and keep the smell down.

Having two kittens also implies that when they get board they'll play with each other rather than climb your drapes.
 

ErezMA

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Well if I do get two kittens, I plan on them being from the same litter. They tend to be less possessive because they've have known each other since they were born. They'd be of the same pride, if you will.