# Introducing Kitten and Collar.



## Layla0710 (Nov 30, 2010)

Hi all!

I adopted a kitten from the HS 3 months ago and she is now 5 months old. I just recently started to get her accustomed to wearing a collar. Yes, I know that I probably should have introduced it earlier but I failed to do so. She is strictly an indoor cat and I intend for her to remain that way however I would like her to be used to wearing a collar in case I ever decide to keep one on her in the future. 

She lets me put it on her but after wards immediately runs around scrambling low to the ground acting absolutely terrified. She then darts under the couch or bed and hides once she's ran a few frantic circles around the room. Her reaction is the same whether the collar has a ball on it that makes noise or not. It is a safety collar and did not seem to be on too tightly.

What is the best way to get her used to wearing a collar? I searched the forum and didn't find anything, but I am new here so if I just simply wasn't looking hard enough, please redirect me to an old thread or sticky that I missed.  I should probably just let her wear and get used to it, but when she panicked I wanted to see if there was/is a better way even if it takes more time.

Thanks in advance!


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## Carmel (Nov 23, 2010)

I don't really think there is any easier way. The only other way I could think of trying to get a cat used to a collar would be to put it on for a little bit and then take it off, but how's that going to help? Since every time you put it on she'll freak out, that's just making her upset a bunch more times than necessary.

I think the best is just put it on and make sure she doesn't get it off... and then anywhere from an hour to a day she should be back to herself, with maybe a little scratching at it.


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## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

My cats don't wear collars, so my only experience is in convincing prior dogs to wear collars, which I imagine is along similar lines. It's natural for her to react negatively at first, since it's foreign to her. Once she gets used to it, she should be fine. So, it's just a matter of letting time takes its course. 

Since you posted about 7 hours ago, she might well be already accustomed to it by now. If not, or if you took it off in the meantime, then when you put it on again, you might try to see if you can distract her to take her mind off it at first...playing with her favorite toy, giving her something new to play with (even just a box or bag that she hasn't seen in awhile), etc. If that doesn't work, then just give her time.


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## dweamgoil (Feb 3, 2010)

I echo what the others have said about just putting it on and leaving it on. She will just get used to it and forget that she's even wearing it.

The other thing is to make sure it's properly fitted. It should be loose enough for you to place a finger or two between the cat and the collar, but not so much so that a paw can get stuck in there if she really tries hard to take it off.


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## bluegoo06 (Nov 24, 2010)

Just leaving it on and keeping an eye on her to make sure the cat doesnt try and get it off. Make sure its fitted properly. I bought the collars with plastic clasps so if they got "stuck" somewhere it would fall off. This also helps in case they got thier mouth stuck on it or something. 

My cats walk around feeling werid when the collar is off. They look confused and want it back on.


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## Janis (Aug 26, 2010)

The ribbon collars I used to make for my indoor-outdoor heart kitty (he lost them all the time on bushes, or whatever, so the expensive break-away collars were quite an expense!) were made from medium wide ribbon with small pieces of velcro to close, so of course would break away. I would print in magic marker his name & our phone number, in case he was lost.
Those collars were very lightweight and inexpensive & I could have lots of them with different "decor" for various seasons. Had a little heart sewed on one, but of course it is hanging on a bush somewhere with his name & our phone number. When people find them they probably wonder what the h they have found, because opened up they don't look like anything useful. As I said, these are very lightweight, and might be easier to accept. Here's a pic of our beloved Midnight, in his later years, still with a ribbon collar on. As he stayed inside more, he lost them less, but a cat can still get caught on something, and break-away of some sort is a good idea.


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## Greenport ferals (Oct 30, 2010)

Wow, the ideal break-away collar, extremely light.


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