Hey guys,

We are getting a kitten this weekend and I have been reading up on general care and can't seem to find good information on what to do with a kitten at night.
We agree that we ultimately don't want pets sleeping in the bed with us but DH seems ok with it being in the same room and I think that would cause problems,too. Aren't cats nocturnal? We are both light sleepers and have difficulty sleeping (needs to be quiet, freezing cold, pitch black and I have to be exhausted).
What do we do with a kitten in the first few weeks? I hate to leave it by itself somewhere else in the house especially if it starts to cry but I don't want it to get used to being in the bedroom. What should we do?
Do we need to buy it a kitty bed?
I read we need special non-clumping litter for a kitten, any recommendations?
Any other tips?
I am excited! :)

edit: Introducing our new little 8 week old kitten - "Sabi Sabi". (sounds like Bobbi) We named him after the Safari Lodge we stayed at on our honeymoon. We really just call him Sabi, though :)

Staring very intently at DH in the first minute or two out of his carrier.


He is already practicing his "who? me??" pose :)


Extremely fascinated with my eyelashes. bit of a scary moment but he just gently pawed at my eyelids.

If your kitten is anything like my cats are........at night, I swear they throw parties.  They are all over the place at night.  I dont recommend them being in your room with you if you're that light of a sleeper.  You'll never sleep again.  If you dont them to have free roam of the house just yet, I'd shut him/her in a room, laundry room/mud room with it's litter box and it's food.  As far as it being alone and it crying, it may happen the first night or two but it's better to just leave it be so it can learn that it will always be alone at night while you sleep. 

Thanks, Tate! We will just have to be strong the first few nights! :)

Good Luck!  Let me know how it goes!  If it wasnt for my FI, all 3 of our dogs and cats would sleep with us every night. haha I'm the "weak" one when it comes to those faces haha.

I kinda trained my cats to sleep at night and they do! I say "lets go night-night" and they follow me to bed and go to sleep. I guess I'm a crazy cat lady!!

I swear by Arm & Hammer for litter...it is a little more expensive but it is the only litter that doesn't stink and it clumps well. GL! New kitties are so precious!!

As far as the sleeping goes...just set up the kitty with a nice little area...maybe a shoe box for a bed with a towel in it... and you will want to give the kitty a "safe" room. One room that they live in for the first couple of days/week until they get used to their new surroundings.

lmao @alisonandjake...i say that too! "night-night time!!!" and they just trot on in!

my one cat sleeps on the couch and the other sleeps on "her" pillow next to my bed. My cats don't naturally sleep at night on their own, I kind of got them into a routine. I walk my cat for about a half hour each night to tire her out. crazy, I know, but she's quite rambunctious.

I would just decide for you guys what you would prefer the cats to do. A kitty bed, a certain room/place, a box with a blankie, etc. Then just keep the routine going. Kittens are scrappy and really playful to begin with, but a routine from the beginning will help.

no clue about litter...I use arm & hammer clumping or tidy cat clumping. tidy cat also has clay (non-clumping) litter, but I guess I never knew that you should use non-clumping for a kitten.

Post pics when you get him/her! :)

Thanks, girls! I would LOVE it if we could get it to respond to "night-night time"! I used to have a dog years ago that just needed to hear me say "bedtime" and he would jump right into his bed. This is my first cat so I think I am going a little overboard with things. DH and I just got back from the store and we bought organic litter and organic kitty food. Organic! We don't even regularly eat organic, haha. We pick him up tomorrow night and will post pics then.
Thanks! :)

I use Nutro for my cats and it is seriously the BEST food you can get them. It is loaded with protein and really healthy! Can't wait to see pics!

@alison- Where do you get the Nutro brand. In my research I found a top 5 list for food and that one was No.1 but I can't find it at my Petsmart or Target. I ended up with No.5 on the list which is fine but I'd like to try the Nutro out if I can find it.
*smh* I'm already turning into crazy pet parent... :P

your little kitty is ADORABLE!!!! :) Congrats on the new addition! If I can give you any advice, it's to not overfeed your kitty haha My cat was a straw that only weighed one pound when I first got him and I fed him alllll day long thinking I needed to plump him up, well now he's almost 16 pounds lol

but seriously, I would reccomend putting him in a small room at night, like the bathroom/laundry room until he's more adjusted to your place. Our cat is very nocturnal and I would get no sleep if we let him in our room at night. So at night he now has free roam of the house. And that's also when he's the naughtiest - he jumps on the counters (which he never does when we're around) and knocks things off. If he can push anything with his paws then it's his new toy to play with no matter what it is lol