I am getting a kitten from my friend who has a pregnant barn cat. My question is how long should I wait to get the kitten? My last cat I got at 6 weeks and she is 100% fine. But I think I should consider getting this kitten earlier? I read that it's better to take wild cats earlier so they will be tame. Also none of the cats are litter trained and I definatly want my cat to be litter trained. Thanks!

First of all, cats litter train almost instantly, as it is instinctual so that should not be a concern. Optimally you will get your cat at 8 weeks of age or older. It is still benefiting from it's mom and siblings and any other cats it is socializing with until at least 8 weeks. Please don't even consider taking it any younger than 6 weeks AT ALL. It is still an infant.

Pet sitting company owner- 12 years, Certified Dog Trainer, dog breeder, animal lover

NO! 8-10 weeks is perfect. Any earlier could be bad for the cat. They need to be with their littermates and mother to learn.

If you are taking a barn cat kitten with no litter training, YOU will be the one that has to teach it everything. The ideal age is 10-12 weeks old but during that time mom will have weaned them completely and they will be litter trained.

When we had barn kittens, we would bring them inside at 5-6 weeks old and finish weaning them ourselves and training to the litter pan - when the kittens were released at 3 months old they were friendly and ready to go. By taking a kitten younger then 6 weeks you risk the kitten not making it.

Kittens nurse up to 8 weeks old and are NOT weaned at 6 or 8 weeks old - they are barely old enough to nibble on food. And kittens taken before 10-12 weeks old can have serious social and behavior problems. You were just lucky with your other kitten - many kitten complaints and problems are due to kittens being taken before 12 weeks old.

Do what you want, but you are in for a lot of problems. BTW they are not totally reliable with the litter pan till about 3 months old.

Generally eight weeks is long enough for them to have learnt all they need from their mother and litter mates.
Getting a barn cat at a later age won't make much difference. I got a farm cat at 3 weeks old and she still didnt grow up to be particularly tame. My latest cat I got at ten weeks and she just purrs like an engine all day and insists on getting carried everywhere like a lapdog.

I say 12 weeks minimum; this due to the FACT that the mother teaches it babies during this time, that biting and scratching is not the correct thing to do. Then also by the time you get this cat it will already be toilet trained.

pets question and answers,www.5d2d.com

Toilet training made easy: Take animal outside upon waking. Like us they need to pee on waking.
and after a meal - take outside for a pee etc. Stay with the animal until it has done its business, you don't need to stand over the animal, give it some privacy. Praise the animal, it will get the toilet training easier.

Good luck to you and bless you both.

8 weeks

Do NOT take the kitten too early! I keep all of my foster kittens with either their mom or litter mates (if no mom) until they are AT LEAST 12 weeks old. Teaching a kitten to use a box takes less than 24 hours. Put the kitten in the clean box right after the first meal. If s/he doesn't go right then, but him//her in an hour later. In the worst case (accident) put the results into the box, which will then smell like the kitten. He/she will then know when he/she is supposed to go. Honestly, I've never had a foster kitten have an accident after 6 weeks of age, even if there were no litter mates or a mom to teach the baby "the ropes". pets question and answers,www.5d2d.com

PLEASE do not take the baby before 12 weeks. Kittens need to be with mom and litter mates to learn how to be cats. Otherwise, your kitten will/might chew/suck inappropriately or play very roughly with people the way they are only supposed to play with their siblings.

40 years of being owned by cats and 30 years of fostering kittens