Socializing Kittens

One of the pleasures of breeding pedigreed cats is receiving happy texts, emails, and photos from their new families raving about their kitties.

- Laurie Coughlan

In a world where the majority of cats are randomly bred, socialization can take a back seat to survival when kittens are placed by rescues at earlier-than-ideal ages to make room to save more. As a result, acquiring a pedigreed cat who has been properly socialized is a new experience for many cat owners. Teaching our kittens how to be good feline citizens is one of the most important things we do to ensure their future happiness and that of their new families.

What qualifies a cat as a good feline citizen? Humans expect cats to use the litter pan, use a scratching post rather than furniture, accept claw clipping, and allow appropriate grooming. Cats should allow themselves to be picked up and carried, go into and travel in a carrier, and refrain from using claws and teeth when playing with their friends, both human and animal. They should also be used to routine activities and noises they are likely to encounter in a home or even at a show. Much of the socialization process involves figuring out what will be new and different to a kitten and exposing it to these things in as nonthreatening a way as possible.

Start With Good Parents

Maine Coon breeder Teresa Sweeney recommends the earliest possible start for socializing-when planning the breeding! "I think it is always important to know the temperaments of the parents. It is so important because I believe there is a genetic component." She believes that as good stewards for our breeds, we need to have that awareness and breed only cats that are even tempered.