My Cat and the Kitten Kollege Exams

My kitten, Mittens, is now a year old and with the move from kitten food to adult food I guess she is now offically a cat. This makes it the perfect time to test her development in partnership with WHISKAS®. How will she do in her exams as she graduates from Kitten Kollege?

A little tabby kitten on a blue sofa looking at the hands of a baby

I initially gave Mittens a written paper to complete, but she sat on it and knocked the pen on the floor so I decided the exams would take the form of observational assessment and coursework.

Home Economics B+

Mittens has recently shown her ability to catch and bring home fresh food, however she generally prefers to ask for help in the preparation of her meals. Fortunately due to her friendly and outgoing nature everyone is happy to feed her, from the toddler to the neighbours. Personally I would prefer it if she didn’t request food at 4am though. Mittens has created a partnership with the toddler encouraging Little to drop food off the highchair or she just jumps onto the table and takes it from a plate. Little finds this funny, Mummy not so much.

Geography A

Mittens has impressive knowledge of geography. At an early age she graduated from exploring the back garden to those of the neighbours. We were impressed to discover that she quickly made it into the back garden after escaping from the front door once despite us living in a terrace house. She has also negotiated a single storey roof to access the house via an upstairs window showing a strong recognition of her territory.

A tabby cat sitting on top of a shed surrounded by blackberry bushes

Art B

Mittens loves a white canvas and her preferred medium is a dark brown paint, it could also be called mud. She loves to decorate the bathroom wall as she jumps through the open window and she often creates a beautiful paw print pattern around the edge of the bathtub. She might want to consider a wider range of colours if she really wants her art to stand out from the crowd.

PE A+

This subject is one which Mittens excels at. She has great agility and can jump over fences, climb trees, kick a ball and rugby tackle your legs. In the first couple of months of going outside Mittens showed a strong interest in climbing trees, but lacked the ability to get down again. Several evenings were spent calling for her only to hear a distant mewing up one of the trees in the garden, often above the height of our ladder so I had to get creative in climbing trees myself and holding buckets up for her to jump into.

A little tabby kitten in an apple tree peeking out between two branches

English B-

There is an understanding of a limited range of vocabulary including: her name "Mittens", food, go out and garden. Mittens communicates her needs clearly by using her vocals to wake us up, or if awake and not providing the required food, access, attention she prefers to use more subtle body language of pestering everyone so they can’t fail to miss she requires something. She has shown an interest in literacy, however I am unconvinced that her method of sitting on books, magazines and newspapers is the best way to appreciate them.


Maths D

Mittens appears unable to count how many meals she has been fed each day and repeatedly asks for more. It is unclear whether the issues in this subject are from lack of interest in learning or a genuine difficulty in comprehending numbers.

Information Technology C-

Mittens loves computers, but prefers others not to use them. On many occasions Mittens has chosen to sit on the keyboard while we are trying to type showing that the laptop is for keeping her warm rather than typing. She has also shown an interest in using the television to understand more about the world with her preferred programmes being those with wildlife.

A small tabby kitten on a blue sofa next to a sky tv remote

Science B

Mittens spent many of her kitten days conducting experiments about gravity. She has successfully proven that a large variety of objects will fall straight to the floor if she knocks them off the shelf or high surface they are on when she jumps up. She has demonstrated this through pushing them directly with her paw as well as knocking them off with her whole body.


Overall Grade: B

Mittens has learnt well over the course of her first year. She is a much loved part of the family and shows a lot of affection. She lacks the ability to befriend fellow felines as easily as humans, but she is holding her ground well when neighbouring cats try to invade her space. Her preference for nocturnal outside activities is a little concerning, but we hope to provide her with a cat flap soon to make life more convenient for us all.

***Disclosure: This post is a collaboration with WHISKAS®, but all thoughts are my own. Check out their website for more information on their cat food and their YouTube channel for cute and informative Kitten Kollege videos. 

WHISKAS® have over 80 years experience of making cat food and everything they do is for the love of cats. From their nutritious food and adorable Kitten Kollege to their work with the WWF and the Tigers Alive programme, they’re passionate about cats. They work hard to develop great products to keep all breeds and ages of cat healthy, happy and well fed. ***

18 comments

  1. Oh Mittens is so cute. She makes me miss my long departed cats. One of them used to lick the TV after we turned it off!

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    1. That's so funny, but probably not ideal for watching programmes. I love how they all have their own personalities

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  2. Mittens is so cute. Why do they feel the need to knock stuff over.

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    1. I suspect the answer is in one of the Whiskas videos! It can be a bit annoying though.

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  3. Oh my goodness she is so cute! You're almost converting me into a cat person!

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    1. Thank you. I don't think I realised just how much of a cat person I am until recently

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  4. Aww, bless! Mittens did so well in her exams and your descriptions are so cute! I'm a self confessed crazy cat lady, so you'll have me with anything catlike!

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  5. I wish I could reach through my screen and stroke little Mittens. Great that Whiskas put on fun activities like these exams!

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  6. What a fab post, this! I love the Kitten Kollege adverts, lol!

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  7. Oh she is so cute!! We're in the process of adopting a kitten ourselves, our first pet! She's poorly at the moment so we're waiting it out while she has treatment and hopefully she'll be with us by the end of summer. This is such a cute post, so excited now! x

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  8. This is such a cute post. How adorable is Mittens! Such a sweetie!

    Ami xxx
    www.ami-rose.com

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  9. I'm not a cat person at all, but, I think Mittens is the cutest cat I have ever seen!! xo

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  10. This is actually the cleverest or should that be Kleverest post I've seen today! Mittens is adorable, and is making me miss my cats more by the minute haha. X

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  11. Oh bless, what a cute post and Mittens is gorgeous

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  12. This made me giggle. My 5yo cat still can't seem to grasp when he's been fed for the day and repeatedly begs for more.

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  13. What a cutie! I am forever impressed with how quickly they can go from the front door to the back and vice versa. Incredible!

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  14. When your cat gets the nutrition his body needs he has a stronger immune system so he will get sick much less often. Best Dry Foods for Kittens

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  15. Such amazing article! How adorable is Mittens! Such a sweetie! Read More

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