The Big Day!
If you haven’t already, you should check out my post on “Recommended Products for Your New Kitten.” I have included some more products here which have to do with the transport of your new kitty. When you come to pick up your kitty to take him or her home, you will need to bring a carrier with you. I personally own two of the hard plastic kind shown below (in 2 different color variations). You can find this exact carrier at PetSmart and probably Petco, but I linked one to Amazon as most people prefer to order through them. You may opt for a soft carrier, which works well for flying with a kitty under the seat in front of you. Some people just prefer the softer style as well. Lastly, I linked a cat backpack which I think is pretty cool, I might have to get one of these! I have seen people post pictures of themselves with their cats with this particular backpack.
TIP: I recommend putting a potty pad in the carrier for the journey home, in case kitty gets stressed and has an accident. My kittens are litter box trained but getting transported to a new home is stressful on them. Usually there are no accidents, but it has happened on occasion. So unless you want to potentially launder a blanket or towel, you can alternatively use a potty pad. Or you can put a potty pad on top of a more cushy blanket or towel. I also recommend using potty pads in instances of flying on a plane, or any type of long journey home.
Once the kitten comes home with you, it will need its own “safe space.” Because Ragdolls are such social creatures, they don’t like to be alone. I highly recommend keeping your new kitty in your bedroom with you, especially for the first few nights as it adjusts to its new home full of new smells, sounds, sights, etc. I recommend getting a tent like the one shown below and keeping it in your bedroom with you. Within the tent the kitten should have everything it needs including a litter box, food/water, and a few toys. I actually would NOT recommend putting a soft pet bed in there just yet, because your kitten is coming from a house that has NO CARPET and kittens can have a tendency to pee on soft things. A cardboard box with an old blanket or towel will suffice for now, in case of any accidents. I recommend Costco for free boxes! I particularly like the one for frozen strawberries for its dimensions and how it feels partially enclosed to the kitties.
I want to clarify that I definitely potty train my kittens before they leave my home. But sometimes when they go to a new home, it's stressful. If you combine that with giving them free reign of a huge (to them) house, a potty accident might occur. The key is to keep your kitten's "world small" and slowly introduce your baby to more and more of the house over time. Please remember that at 12-14 wks. old, your kitten is still very much a baby and should be treated as such. Also once you start to give your fur baby more and more freedom in the home, you need to make sure that there is an adequate number of litter boxes, especially if you live in a two story home. If there is only 1 litter box on 1 level of a 2 story house, well, it may seem like a huge distance to a kitten. You can't go wrong with putting out a few litter boxes and then slowly taking them away as your kitten gets older and you feel more confident in his/her potty habits. This will help set up your kitten for success! Also avoid bath mats until your kitty gets older, or just hang them up for now. Your kitty may be great from day 1, but sometimes accidents occur so I want to give you all of my advice to help prevent that from happening. :)
In addition to making your kitten feel safe and secure, and helping promote good potty habits, you also want to minimize stress as much as possible during the transition. I know family members and friends may be super excited to come see your new kitty, but consider giving it time to adjust to its new home before having lots of visitors. All household members should be gentle with the kitten and should try to not to be too loud. Also it's a good idea to have people wash their hands before handling the new kitten, which has a more susceptible immune system. Hopefully you have already scheduled your first wellness check with your vet, because vet appointments often take a while to schedule.
Remember that due to the very personable nature of Ragdolls, it will not want to be alone and will likely cry if left by itself. This is why the ideal home for a Ragdoll is a home where there is a human around most of the time, or another (friendly) animal. If you don't have any other pets in the home currently, please consider adopting a pair of Ragdoll kittens so they can grow up together. MANY times people say they only want 1 Ragdoll, only to come back later for a 2nd! ;) It's best to adopt two at once, especially siblings, so they can play together and have each other for life. I will discount for anyone adopting a pair, and most breeders will do this to keep siblings together. It's so much easier to adopt 2 young kittens together, then to try and introduce a kitten to an older cat later down the road. With Ragdolls it usually works out well, but of course there are never any guarantees. If you have another (older) cat in the home, please watch the below video by Jackson Galaxy on how to introduce cats. And last but not least, enjoy!!! This is a very special bonding time between you and your new kitten! Make sure to take lots of pictures, because they sure grow FAST! ;)
Tip: To help decide on a name for your new kitten, try searching baby name lists as well as pet name lists for more ideas! Try looking up name lists by categories such as "nature themed names for a baby girl" or "Japanese names for a baby boy." Also you can try pet searches such "pet names for a black and white cat."
