Is it okay to raise two kittens in a single room?

Question

I need to provide some context for this. I got a kitten around 5 weeks old from a family friend, and she stayed with me for about 3 weeks (about 2 months old). I have done a lot of research saying it's best to get another kitten as it teaches them how to socialize and minimizes aggressive behaviors. As a solution, I adopted another kitten from the same family friend thinking that sibling kittens might get better along (both female sisters/same litter).

Currently I am housing them in my room which is somewhat small, and they occasionally have access to the house. Thus, they are sharing food bowls and litter box due to the minimal space there is. But I will be home a lot because I am on summer break.

It's been 2 days, my first kitten has been stalking and wanting to engage in a lot of play with the new kitten. However, there have been moments when my first kitten might get too aggressive (maybe showing dominance?) with her new friend and I don't know how to deal with her behavior. Are there any tips someone could give me to encourage them to play nice or not overly annoy each other's presence? But when it's nap time, they usually sleep together, so it might just be them being playful.

In a couple months, I will move back to own place where I rent a room (that's about twice bigger than my current room) with more space to roam and a patio for them to chill around. But little to no access around the new house and I will not be home as often due to school. Would this be an adequate living space for both of them, or should I return her sister and count these past few days as a sleepover? Haha.

Answer 1

Rough play is normal kitten behavior, and learning the rules from each other is a critical part of their socialization. As long as they are roughly the same size (as should be true for litter mates) and still affectionate when playtime is over (as you indicate), then there is nothing to worry about.

Answer 2

Yes, it is definitely OK to raise two cats (or in this case kittens) in the same room. For a few years (from the time we got our second cat to the time our first one died) we raised two cats in all the same rooms. Admittedly, the younger one hid from the older one, but since the two you are talking about are somewhat close in age, there should be none of that. As for the rough play between the two of them, that's normal. As other answers have stated, kittens play rough with each other a lot. As long as one is not bigger than the other, it should be alright. They should not be hurting each other though, if you're not sure, it's better to be safe than sorry. Generally, a rule of thumb is when in doubt; space them out. If you think they might be hurting each other, the best thing to do is stop them from doing it. From my experience, cats won't hurt each other unless threatened so just make sure they play nice.