found a stray kitten not sure what to do

Question
Hi, I found a stray kitten on my wall in the backyard this morning (from finding the source of cries) . I'm pretty sure its a stray as when I went to reach for it to take it in the house to give it food an water it hissed and scratched. after an hour and a half spending time in my room it's calmed down but its still a little skittish and it cries alot.

I'm hesitent on giving it to the humane society since they might put it to sleep. But I can't keep it since my cat Cloey is an indoor cat and its NOT happy about this kitten (which I named Spitfire). I've thought about keeping it for a week or two and sell it to a good home since I think its like 5 or 6 weeks or find its owner if it DOES have one (you never know).

so what should I do?

Answer
Courtney,

If you introduce spitfire to your Cloey, she will take to it and, eventually, they will get along fine. You are right about the humane society.  Also, I would not consider selling the kitten as there are plenty of stray feral kittens around.

If you are going to keep it for a couple of weeks, you can try introducing it to Cloey.

Here is a technique we use to introduce a new kitten to an established cat:

Start out your new kitten in one room with a litter pan and water dish. Ideally, the one room should be a bedroom with yourself or another human resident. This accomplishes a couple of things. Your new cat or kitten will not be overwhelmed by its new surroundings and get "lost", and thusly will have no problem finding the litter pan (often kittens or rescue cats have been confined and are somewhat daunted by wide open spaces!). You will feed the new kitten in this room and keep the established cat out. It allows the new kitten to bond with you or another human being and also build up some self assurance in its new surroundings since it will not have to compete for food or attention right away. Finally, it allows the new kitten and the established cat to sniff each other under the door and get familiar with each others' scents.

After 5-7 days of being in its one room, it is time to let them meet each other. Be prepared for some posturing, some spitting and hissing, and the like. IGNORE IT! After a while, they should begin chasing each other about and still have the occasional hiss or spit as they get acustomed to each other. Cats tend to make a whole lot of noise and even loosen up some fur. Rarely will two cats hurt each other.

Once they are introduced, there are a couple of things you must remember. Do not separate them again, they will get along! Do not interfere in their "discussions" as they need to sort it out amongst themselves!

It does not hurt to give the established cat treats and extra attention after the new kitten is introduced (yes, cats do get jealous!).

A couple of things you may have to do are to feed them on separate dishes. Provide more than one litter pan in different areas of the household (as cats can be very territorial about litter pans).

All, in all, this method seems to have had great success in the past and makes for a fairly smooth introduction. Please remember that they may make up immediately, or it may take a few weeks.


Please loet me know how it goes.

Best regards... Norm.