Remember the days when cats were more often family pets that helped out in some capacity around the home (mostly as mousers) rather than being members of the family? Yeah, neither do we. These days, our kitties are full members of the family, which means we celebrate their important occasions, whether it’s a birthday or a pregnancy.
When it comes to pregnant cats, there’s no better way to celebrate than with a kitten shower! What exactly is a kitten shower? It’s a baby shower for cats! Throwing kitten showers for pregnant cats has become more popular recently, so you’ve probably heard about this phenomenon before. Kitten showers are a great way to celebrate mama cats and welcome new kittens into your home. In fact, even if you’re just adopting a kitten, you can still throw a kitten shower to welcome them (even shelters bathe kittens during kitten season to encourage people to adopt kittens!).
You may not know how to throw a kitty shower, however, so here we are. We’re sharing kitten shower ideas below so you can plan the perfect party for your soon-to-be cat mom!
Before You Begin
You can’t throw a party without doing some preparation, of course.
The most important party preparations are:
- Choosing a date and time for the event
- Creating a guest list
- Setting up a gift registry
You’ll also need some supplies, which we’ll cover below. Supplies will vary depending on how extravagant and creative you want to get with your kitten shower.
How to Throw a Kitten Shower
Now that you’ve made your preparations, it’s time to throw a fabulous kitty shower for your soon-to-be kitties!
1. Send Invitations
Once you’ve chosen your party date and time and created your guest list, it’s time to send out the invitations! Invitations can be as simple or as fancy as you like. Get some cute physical invitations and send them out like the first few days, or just create a Facebook event page and invite your guest list there. Whatever works best for you.
2. Start a Registry
Make sure your invitations include the link to your registry. You can start a registry on Amazon or a site specifically for registries and add items you will need for the upcoming kittens (food, crates, bedding), items for the mama cat (she deserves give a push gift!), and items for kittens ( toys and more toys).
3. Get Some Decorations
Decide how you want to decorate and get your decorations. This is another place where you can go as big or as small as you want. Grab cat-related banners, tablecloths, paper plates, and more to go all out for your kitten shower or put up some pictures of mama cat (or the new kittens, if adopting) and blow up some balloons for a simpler vibe. Pinterest is a fantastic place to get ideas for decorating a kitty shower.
4. Plan Party Games
Once your decorations are assembled, decide if you want to play party games with your guests. If so, you may need to get some more supplies. Some fun kitten shower party games include Pin the Tail on the Kitty, a cat cookie decorating contest, and a litterbox toss!
5. Choose Your Food
Again, you can be as creative as you want with the food for your kitty shower. You can choose to stick with simple finger apps or go all out with a kitty-themed cake. Don’t forget the special treats for any furry friends who may be in attendance! Make some delicious cat snacks or order some items from a bakery that offers cat-friendly items. If you decide to order food, make sure you place your order far enough in advance that the food is ready on the big day.
6. Start Setting Up
Once everything is decided and the day of the kitten shower has arrived, it’s time to set everything up! Put up decorations, prepare food, set up any games you want to play, and make sure everyone in your home is ready to have fun!
7. Don’t Forget the Pictures!
Choose a family member or friend to take the photo. You’ll likely be busy the day of the kitten shower, but you’ll definitely want lots of photos of the event, so ask someone to act as a dedicated photographer.
8. Do a Safety Check
Before people come to your home, consider the safety and comfort of any pets in your home. Whether it’s a mama cat or another pet, determine how well they handle having lots of people around. If you have a pet that is anxious or stressed, consider putting them in a separate room away from the action. If the mama cat or kittens may not enjoy the attention, take them out briefly to greet people, then separate them from the action.
A Few Last Things
There are a few things you should avoid during your kitten shower. One is to put your cat (or cats) in a costume (unless they really want to dress up). As great as it is to see kitties in costume, they’re usually not fans, and you want your pets to have fun on their big day!
You also want to avoid having any food at your party that could be toxic to cats. Check any foods you order or make to make sure they won’t harm cats; this way, if something falls on the floor and one of the cats in your home picks it up, you can be sure they won’t suffer any serious consequences.
Final Thoughts
Kitten showers, or baby showers for cats, are a newer trend that is becoming more popular. Whether that means celebrating a pregnant cat or simply throwing a shower to welcome new kittens into your home, a kitten shower is a fun and wonderful way to celebrate. Kitten showers are easy to put together and throw, because you don’t have to do any more work than you would for a baby shower. They’re also guaranteed to let you, your friends, and any cats in the house have a good time!
Featured Image Credit: Sheila Fitzgerald, Shutterstock
