Good kitten = good adult cat?

*blackrose

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#1
Histamine has me curious. Can you get a rough idea of an adult cats behavior by the way they act as kittens?

Histamine, so far, is a very good kitten. She doesn't tear stuff up, she doesn't leave marks when she plays, she's great for having her nails trimmed and baths, and she let's us hold her in any way, shape, or form and she doesn't care. Michael's even grabbed her by the tail before and pulled her back to stop her from getting in to something (the tail was the only part he could reach) and she didn't even meowl at him.
The first time we put a harness on her she was just like, "Toy? No? Okay, whatever." and went about her business as normal. She's inquisitive and interactive towards strangers and when she does get spooked, she braves coming out again a bit later.

Will she always be like this (tolerant, gentle, inquisitive), or is that purely a kitten thing? She's currently about 13 or 14 weeks old. I guess I'm just trying to get an idea of what her adult personality will be like.

I've only had one cat from kitten hood to adult hood (Apollo), but he's a bit of a freak so he's not a good example. LOL My parents adopted a kitten when I was two, and mom said he was one of those kittens that just let whatever happened to him and he never got angry. He was the best cat I could have hoped for growing up. He passed away when I was 16. I'm kind of hoping we'll end up with a cat like him, and not like Apollo. Hahaha
 

amberdyan

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#2
I've never actually had a cat of my own and can't make any broad assumptions, but my best friend has had two cats since they were kittens, and they both *pretty much* had the same personality at 4 months old as they do now at 2 and 3, with the exception of the fact that one of them grew out of his obsession with chewing things up (thank goodness).

I do think that major life changes can change any animals personality, though. Another friend of mine got a TINY kitten that was so sweet and outgoing for like 3 weeks and then they moved out to a farm where she didn't see anyone else... like ever. They were out of the way so they always drove in to hang out with people. Now she's pretty scared of strangers.

I hope Histamine stays super laid back!
 

Snark

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#3
Most of our cats have stayed pretty much the same (those we've had since kittenhood). We mostly have former feral cats, so while they're good with us, only a couple are brave enough to show their whiskers when company is present.

That said, we did have one feral, LucyFurr, adopted as a kitten with her sister, Zasu Spitts, who never, ever got over being feral. Sixteen years and LucyFurr always looked at us like we were monsters, didn't want to be touched, talked to, anything - just feed her and leave her alone. Trips to the vet were a nightmare. Her sister, Zasu (aka ZazzCat), was fine with being petted, brushed, played with, although she would hide from strangers, too.

Love Histamine's name! :) If she were mine, I'd probably make her a traveling cat - take her places, socialize her, etc. One of our cats from years ago, (younger sister brought him from college, looking for a home and we got him) was very outgoing and social. He'd walk with the dogs (everyone on leash), go to pet stores where he'd hop up on the counter to schmooze with the employees and go on family vacations. He even liked seeing the vet. The bigger the crowd, the happier he was.

We did the same with Bailey, took her on vacations, to see 'grandma', etc. She kept that confidence her entire life.
 

Juniper48

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#4
Yes IME, kitten behavior is realted to adult behavior. My one tom cat who was a total spazz as a kitten is now a laid back senior, but still has his moments. He does not tolerate the dog and won't hesitate to let everyone know he still rules the roost. His personality has always been "all in". As a kitten, he was spastic with his toys, and now as a senior he takes his role as #1 very seriously.

My Persian who I thought was the BEST kitten ever has turned out to be an interesting adult, that's for sure. He always was SO laid back as a kitten. Rarely played, never attacked our feed in the middle of the night walking to the bathroom, just hung out. He's also a senior now and barely moves all day. He's stuck in his ways. Before his neuter surgery, he whined incessesantly for a drink. I cheated and gave him a very shallow dish with just a bit of water in the bathtub. He has never forgotten that and when he's out of water will go to the bathroom and whine and howl until someone pays attention. So in some ways he's very bright and in other ways, completely dumb. We had to move his food up to higher ground after adopting a dog. It's been 4 days and he still can't figure it out. :rolleyes:
 

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