Things I Forgot About Kitties

Well, we've had our new babies for about a month, and there are many things that are coming back to my remembrance about kittens. So if you get a kitten or two, keep these things in mind:

1. Kittens like small round things, like hair bands(ponytail holders) and milk rings. Thus, you will find them laying all over the house, and it isn't because your kids were just being sloppy. (My baby Jazz liked to drop milk rings in our shoes. When she was a kitten, she would drop them in the shoe and swat at them. I would think she couldn't get the ring back out, so I would help her. She would then pick up the milk ring and drop it back in the shoe!)
2. Kitties like anything that dangles. Pullies for your ceiling fans(we hold our babies up in the kitchen and let them bat them around for a little bit), strings from your ironing board cover, fringe from your scarves, hair when you bend down, and snowflakes you hang on your banister for your Christmas and winter decor. Take a tip from me--forget the snowflakes on the banister! I had 8-10 or so hanging on mine, looking so pretty. There are none left on the banister--the kitties re-decorated for me, leaving flakes, glitter, and the little metal wires you use to hang them, all over the house, and on two seperate levels of the house.
3. Kitties have sharp claws that snag furniture and sheers. (Okay, I'm crying now!) When you have more than one kitty, the game of "chase" is a favorite across the backs of your couches. When you have tall dining room chairs, small kittens can't always aim perfectly for jumping up on them, thus allowing you to hear their sharp little kitty claws digging in while they get a grip.

A couple tips from me:

• You can buy cardboard scratch posts for your babies-this gives them the pleasure of scratching like they desire(our kitties don't scratch the furniture on purpose, thankfully, but they obviously don't realize what running across the back of the couch does to it, and me(SSSNNNnnnniiifffffff!!!!---excuse me while I wipe my eyes and blow my nose....).
• Instead of declawing your wonderful felines, there is a wonderful product on the market that I discovered, and they definately help! With kittens, they can be a little work, but it definately will ease your nerves when they jump on the furniture. The product is called Soft Claws. They come in different sizes and colors! They are little rubber caps that you glue to your kitten's claws. They do not hurt the kitten, and they turn their sharp little nails into soft, rubber ones. Sometimes kittens will try to get them off, until they get used to them. They should stay on for 8 weeks or so. We team up when we put them on our kitties--one holds the kitten and feeds her treats, while the other extends her claw and puts the cap on. You can find them on ebay, and I'm sure other places on the web. I'll put them in my sidebar on this page for now...you can also trim their nails, but be ever so careful not to trim them too short! Check on the web how to do it!

So there you have it! A few things to remember when getting a kitty. You will also need to have many, many treats on hand, lots of toys, and you will need to remember how to talk baby talk, and call yourself Mommy, Daddy, Sissy, Grandma or Grandpa. :)