How to Name a Kitten

By eHow Pets Editor

Instructions

Step 1:
Remember that a kitten will eventually become a cat. A name that is babyish or describes how tiny your feline is may not make sense in a year or two.
Step 2:
Study your cat's personality. Select a name that really goes with your cat. Try different possibilities aloud with your kitten.
Step 3:
Choose a short name. The fewer syllables, the better. Kittens respond by tone, not by specific word. They will recognize and respond more quickly to something like "Tess" than to something like "Sir Gawain the Green Knight".
Step 4:
Include all the owners. A family kitten has multiple owners, so get everyone's input on the name. If you have a roommate or close friend, get their take on your selection as well. The right decision sometimes comes from many opinions.
Step 5:
Avoid naming your kitten something that's similar to another pet's name in the household. The more different, the better. "Bess" and "Tess" would be very confusing for both cats and their owner.
Step 6:
Consider changing the name of your kitten if you adopted him or her from the pound or humane society. Shelters usually name the cats to avoid using numbers, but this does not mean you have to use the same name. Most cats will embrace the name change wholeheartedly.

Tips & Warnings

Unless your kitten is the most well-behaved feline in the world, you might have to yell at them or call out their name on occasion. Don't choose a kitten name that will embarrass you (and the cat) in front of the neighbors!
Have a name you absolutely love but could never bring yourself to name a child? Yep, this would be a perfect kitten name.

More Puppy Pages

How to Choose a Family Cat

Do not make a decision to add a pet to the family lightly. Family members should sit down together and talk over the responsibilities of pet ownership, and at least one adult must be prepared to take it on. Children can quickly lose interest in caring...

All across the country, in thousands of animal shelters and humane societies, there are adult cats and kittens waiting to be adopted, who would make affectionate pets and friends. Sadly, estimates are that only 24% of the cats who enter shelters are ever...

Feline distemper is an infectious viral disease that is most common during the warmer months and in the cities. However, feline distemper can occur at any time and any where. Feline distemper is not the same as canine distemper. A dog cannot contract...

For many people, pets are as meaningful as every other family member, so it comes as no surprise that the pet industry is such a booming business. Taking the proper care of your kitten is absolutely essential to her health and well-being. Kitten collars...

When your cat has coccidia it has single cell protozoans attacking its intestinal tract. Coccidia is normally seen in kittens and puppies under the age of 6 months. Puppies and kittens are particularly susceptible because their immune systems are not...