Single kittens
Whenever possible, we rehome kittens in pairs.
We are often asked if we have single kittens up for adoption, the answer will almost always be 'no'.
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It's what the kitten would choose
Imagine you just moved to a brand new house.
You’re scared, everything is strange, and you miss your family.
How would you feel if you had to do all of this completely alone?
Now imagine you had your best friend right there with you, how much better would you feel then?
3 reasons why don't we rehome single kittens:
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It's important for their future happiness
Kittens are like little social butterflies. They learn the most important things, like how to play gently without biting, how to be brave, how to be good friends from their brothers and sisters. What they learn in kittenhood, sets them up for life.
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It's important for their behaviour
If we rehome a kitten to a home all by itself, they will get lonely without a friend to communicate with. They could also get very bored. Both of these can make them act out, attack instead of playing, scratch the furniture, or meow non-stop because they are so sad.
When kittens go to a new home together:
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they settle in and relax much quicker
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they will burn their kitten energy off with each other
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they are more likely to use the litter tray correctly
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they will love their people more as they have each other for play
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they keep each other warm and have a cuddle buddy
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they play with each other all day, so they don’t get into trouble
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they learn to play gently with each other and with people
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they learn from each other and grow up to be confident, happy cats
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they are less likely to get poorly from the stress of moving home
By keeping them together, in at least pairs, we are giving them the best start in life
Single Kitten Syndrome (SKS)
This a phenomenon where an isolated kitten fails to develop normal social behaviors and emotional stability.
SKS isn't a medical illness but a term used to describe a set of behavioral problems that often develop when a kitten is raised or adopted alone, without the companionship of another kitten or cat.
The core issue is that kittens learn essential social skills from their littermates. Their development needs siblings or a parental cat figure to teach them basic social skills. Kittens learn bite inhibition, appropriate play intensity, and social boundaries through constant interaction with their siblings.
Without a companion, they learn to play inappropriately, for example with our hands and feet, which can lead to aggressive behavior that is hard to break later in life.
Common symptoms and behaviors associated with Single Kitten Syndrome include:
Aggressive behaviour due to loss of boundaries with people.
Destructive behavior such as scratching furniture or knocking things over.
Hyperactivity or an inability to settle down, as they have no one to tire them out through play.
Anxiety and stress which can manifest as over-grooming, hiding, or fearfulness.
Excessive meowing or vocalization due to loneliness and boredom.
Difficulty bonding they may become overly dependent with people or, conversely, avoidant because they lack a secure social foundation.
Essentially, a single kitten often misses out on the natural socialization process that happens in a litter, leading to an adult cat that may be difficult to live with or may require significantly more work and attention to correct these behaviors.
As we offer ‘Care for Life’ for all adopted cats, we have to give all our kittens the best possible chances of a permanent home as well as a happy and stress free life. Single kittens are more likely to be returned or rehomed later in life when they develop behavioural problems.
And should we need to take the kittens back in at any point in their life time, it helps if they have been given good social skills from the start!