Litter training your new kitten
Cats are naturally very clean and, chances are, you kitten will already have learned how to use the litter tray from her mum. All you'll need to do is buy a plastic litter tray big enough for your kitten to move around in and fill it with enough litter to cover the bottom of the tray (if you can use the same one used at the breeder's house, your kitten is sure to appreciate the familiar smell and texture). Show your kitten where her litter tray is and put her in there after meals and if you see her sniffing around, crouching or generally behaving like she needs to 'go!'

Litter tray dos and don'ts
Place your kitten's litter tray away from her bed and food and somewhere that's reasonably private.

Empty the litter tray regularly - your kitten will not want to use it if it's 'dirty.' Some disinfectants and bleach are toxic to cats, so it's best to only use hot water and detergent. If you're pregnant, try to get someone else to clean out the tray or make sure you wear rubber gloves and wash your hands thoroughly afterwards. This minimises the risk of toxoplasmosis which is thankfully very rare but can cause serious problems to unborn babies.

Once your kitten is old enough to venture outside, you may want to dispense with the litter tray altogether. Don't dispose of it too hastily, though. You may find your kitten refuses to set foot outside if it's really cold!

Accidents will happen
Even the smartest kitten is bound to have the odd accident. Whatever you do, don't punish her. Praise her when she does use the litter tray and maybe offer her a small reward, and you'll soon be back on track.

Spraying
Spraying is perfectly natural cat behaviour and their way of marking somewhere with information about themselves. That said, it's not particularly desirable if done in your living room!

Before trying to solve a spraying problem, it's important to determine your kitten is actually spraying, not just urinating. The latter is performed squatting, whilst spraying is carried out standing up. Small jets of urine are pumped out on to vertical surfaces.

What to do
Take your kitten to the vet to rule out Lower Urinary Tract Disease. This treatable, but potentially very serious condition could cause your kitten to urinate outside her litter tray and thus be confused with spraying.

Spraying is often the behaviour of a stressed cat. Consider recent events that could have upset your kitten. These could be 'big' things like the arrival of a new baby or pet, or a house move, or 'little' things like the furniture having been moved around in your kitten's favourite room.

What can you do to make your kitten feel happy and secure again?

Never punish a kitten for spraying. Cats do not understand punishment and, since spraying is often a result of stress, it can actually make the problem worse.

Cleaning the area that's been sprayed thoroughly is vital. This is because any lingering smell will only encourage your kitten to go and 'top it up!'

Many popular household cleaning substances aren't suitable, because they contain ammonia and chlorine. Both of these are found in cat's urine so can make spraying in the area again more tempting.

Instead, give any soiled areas a wash with as dilute solution of biological washing powder. Rinse and allow to dry. Then, after testing for colour-fastness, spray with surgical spirit. Allow the area to dry before letting your kitten back in the room.

Neutering
Castration of male cats can end spraying in 80% of cases, in most cases immediately.

Persistent problems
In the vast majority of cases, spraying indoors can be quickly and successfully dealt with. However, if the problems do continue, seek the advice of your vet who may prescribe drugs or a visit to a behaviour counsellor.