How to Grow Your Cat in OSRS: A Step-by-Step Guide

Old School RuneScape (OSRS) offers players a variety of unique activities, and raising a pet cat is one of the most rewarding yet often overlooked features. Whether you’re a new player or a seasoned adventurer, growing your cat from a tiny kitten into a formidable feline companion adds a fun layer to your gameplay. In this guide, we’ll walk you through everything you need to know about how to grow your cat in OSRS, from obtaining a kitten to nurturing it into an overgrown cat—and beyond. Optimized for both players and search engines, this post will help you master the art of cat care in Gielinor.

Before you can grow your cat in OSRS, you need to get your hands on a kitten. This is the starting point of your feline journey, and it begins with a specific quest.

Complete Gertrude’s Cat Quest

The first step to owning a kitten is completing the Gertrude’s Cat quest. This beginner-friendly quest is available to all members and has minimal requirements:

Quest Start: Speak to Gertrude in her house west of Varrock.
Items Needed: 100 coins, a raw sardine, a bucket of milk, and a seasoned sardine (use doogle leaves on a raw sardine).
Reward: Access to purchase kittens from Gertrude.

Once completed, Gertrude will sell you a kitten for 100 coins. You can choose from various colors like black, white, or tabby, though the color doesn’t affect growth.

Tips for Quest Preparation

To make this process smoother:

Gather items beforehand from the Grand Exchange or fish a sardine yourself.
Keep your inventory light to avoid banking mid-quest.
Talk to Gertrude’s sons, Shilop and Wilough, for key quest clues.

Caring for Your Kitten: The Basics

Once you’ve got your kitten, the real work begins. Growing your cat in OSRS requires consistent care and attention, much like a real pet.

Feeding Your Kitten

Kittens need food to stay happy and healthy. You can feed them:

Raw Fish: Sardines, herring, or anchovies work well.
Cooked Fish: Any cooked fish from your inventory.
Bucket of Milk: Available from dairy cows or the Grand Exchange.

If you don’t feed your kitten regularly, it’ll run away, so keep a stockpile of fish handy.

Interacting with Your Kitten

Beyond feeding, interaction is key to growth. Right-click your kitten and select “Interact” to:

Stroke: Boosts its happiness.
Play: Use a ball of wool (crafted from wool) for extra engagement.

Your kitten needs about 2-3 hours of active playtime (while following you) to grow into a cat, so keep it out of your inventory as much as possible.

Growing Your Kitten into a Cat

After proper care, your kitten will naturally mature into a full-grown cat. This stage unlocks new abilities and reduces some maintenance needs.

Timeframe for Growth

It takes approximately 2-3 hours of in-game time for a kitten to grow into a cat. This timer only counts when the kitten is following you, not when it’s in your inventory or when you’re logged out. To speed things up:

Stay logged in and active.
Engage in skilling or low-intensity activities while your kitten follows.

What Changes When It Becomes a Cat?

Once grown, your cat:

No longer needs regular feeding (though it’ll still drink milk).
Can catch rats more effectively with the “Chase Vermin” option.
Retains its love for playing with a ball of wool.

Advancing to an Overgrown Cat

Your journey doesn’t end with a regular cat. With more time, it’ll become an overgrown cat—a larger, lazier version of its former self.

How Long Until Overgrown?

After another 2-3 hours of following you as a regular cat, it transforms into an overgrown cat. This stage is mostly cosmetic, but it has some quirks:

Pros: Looks impressive and still enjoys milk or wool.
Cons: Too bulky to catch rats effectively.

Managing Multiple Cats

Once you have an overgrown cat, you can buy another kitten from Gertrude and repeat the process. This is great for players wanting a collection of feline friends.

Taking It Further: Wily and Lazy Cats

For advanced players, the Ratcatchers quest unlocks two additional cat stages: wily and lazy cats. These require more effort but offer unique perks.

Unlocking Wily Cats

After completing Ratcatchers (a members-only quest with moderate requirements), visit Felkrash in Port Sarim’s Rat Pits. She’ll train your overgrown cat into a wily cat if you’ve caught 100 rats with it. Wily cats are:

Agile: Excellent at chasing rats, butterflies, and even Kalphite larvae.
High-Maintenance: Need regular exercise or they revert to lazy cats.

Managing Lazy Cats

If a wily cat doesn’t get enough exercise (e.g., chasing vermin), it becomes a lazy cat. Lazy cats:

Can’t chase anything until retrained.
Revert to wily status by catching more rats or training with Felkrash.

Ratcatchers Quest Requirements

To access this stage, you’ll need:

Requirement	Details
Quest Prerequisite	Gertrude’s Cat, Icthlarin’s Little Helper
Skills	Low combat recommended
Items	Cat, 4 pieces of cheese, bucket of milk, etc.

Tips and Tricks for Growing Your Cat Faster

Want to streamline the process? Here are some pro tips to grow your cat in OSRS efficiently:

Optimize Your Playtime

Since growth depends on active following time:

Pair cat care with AFK activities like fishing or woodcutting.
Avoid banking your cat unnecessarily—keep it out!

Stock Up on Supplies

Always have a surplus of:

Fish (raw or cooked) for kittens.
Balls of wool for playtime (cheap at the Grand Exchange).
Milk for occasional treats.

Use Your Cat’s Abilities

Maximize your cat’s potential:

Send regular cats to catch rats for extra loot (e.g., coins or herbs).
Use wily cats in Pest Control or Slayer tasks for added fun.

Growing your cat in OSRS is a delightful side activity that blends patience with rewarding milestones. From a tiny kitten to a wily rat-hunter, your feline companion can become a loyal part of your RuneScape adventures. Start with Gertrude’s Cat quest, nurture your kitten with care, and explore the advanced stages with Ratcatchers. With this guide, you’re ready to raise the purr-fect pet in Gielinor—happy adventuring!