Rules

View the FAQ

Due to the continuous changes made to the site, the rules may not always be up-to-date.
#1. NO RELIGION. Religion is a topic that causes a lot of controversy and offends many people. The reason we do not allow it on KT is because it is not an appropriate topic for the young, impressionable players on this site. KittenTracks is a website about cats, not religion. If you would like to talk about religion, convert other people, etc., please find an appropriate place to do so. Violators of this rule will be permanently banned as it has been spelled out for you in several places.

Yes, we do have a "gray area" for religion. Such as if someone says "my ____ just died", we will not punish players for saying "I'm sorry to hear that! I will pray for you." However, as soon as anyone tries to press their religion on someone else ("If you're not a Christian, you're going to hell!"), we will swiftly punish the rule-breaker.

I would like to reiterate why this rule is in place. Religion causes unwanted controversy on a children's game about CATS. There are players from ALL walks of life with MANY different religions that play KittenTracks. Please be respectful to these other people by keeping religious beliefs out of KT...there are other appropriate places on the internet for such talk. Thank you!

#2. USE COMMON SENSE. This is a game meant for people as young as 8 years old. Don't link to bad sites, diss another player, etc. This kind of thing is taken VERY seriously. Don't cheat on the game, and if you find a way to cheat, report it. If you find bugs, report them. If you see someone being mean, report them. Don't ask KT staff for free stuff. These are ALL very much so common sense issues...summed up, meaning don't abuse the game or other players.

#3. NO SWEARING There aren't currently swear filters built into KT. I will put them in if I have to, but I'd rather not. "Little" swears are allowed, such as crap, suck, etc. The "f-bomb" is NOT allowed. Don't post things like "effing this" or use symbols in place of letters if you're going to swear. Also, no sexual terms whatsoever...this will constitute an immediate and permanent IP ban from the site.

#4. NO CHEATING Anything you do in the game that could make it unfair to others is considered cheating. This means using a script to enter shows, moving cats between accounts to up their stats, creating multiple accounts to further yourself in the game (you MAY create multiple accounts assuming you use them ALL), abusing bugs, working around the current rules, and the list goes on. If you're unsure about something, ASK a moderator BEFORE you do it. :)

#5. BE CONSIDERATE Please please PLEASE be considerate to others. I don't care if they're a new player, an old player, a basic member, an upgraded member, a moderator, or what have you. EVERYONE deserves to be respected and treated decently. If you break this rule, more than likely you'll be permanently banned. I've no patience for those that can't treat others as equals. EVERYONE here is important to the game. Everyone. Just remember that :)

#6. YOUR ACCOUNT IS A PRIVILEGE You don't have a right to play this game, it is a privilege that can be taken away at any time. Generally, your account will remain yours so long as you obey the rules, etc. If ya don't...then you could lose everything on KT, regardless of whether or not you've spent money on the game. Selling or giving away accounts is STRICTLY against the rules; mods will permanently ban accounts for this!

#7. ETIQUETTE (aka, be respectful to others!)

Don't use "chatspeak" or "1337sp34k" (meaning using letters in place of numbers [such as the word "mate" could become "m8"], "lyk" instead of "like", "2day" instead of "today", etc...HOWEVER, there are some very common ones that we allow: u, u're, ur, jus (instead of "just"), and abbreviations such as msgs, ppl, and other common abbreviations).

When making a layout, tag, etc., make sure that it will be user-friendly to the majority of people [such as, ENGLISH ONLY, limit graphics to at most 790 pixels wide, do NOT cover the KT navigation bar with your layout, make your filesize small so dialup members aren't stuck waiting forever for the page to load, don't put music/movies on your page, don't put a lot of animated stuff on your page, do not put chatrooms, popups, javascript that's annoying, etc. In other words, make improvements, not hardships.

Images found in a player's name (hereafter referred to as "tags") should be at most 250 pixels wide and at most 100 pixels high (you can adjust these measurements; such as 200 pixels wide by 150 pixels high). They should also be under 25kb in filesize.

When you're in the chatroom, messageboards, and anywhere else where you communicate with other members, think about what you say BEFORE you say it. Don't bring up topics like abortion, the president, religion, etc. It doesn't belong here...leave that stuff in the real world.

Facts

Listed below are some random facts about KT. Read 'em...they're helpful :)

Kittens (age 0) CAN die! If you don't feed your kitten every day, it will die. In other words...either breed your cats on Thursday, then feed all the kittens...or be darn good about logging in!

Kittens are hard to keep alive. They can die for no apparent reason.

There's usually 1 to 8 kittens per litter; the bigger the litter, the more likely the kittens are to die.

Cats are not considered "overbred" unless they have upwards of 25 kittens.

Adult cats may run away if they're not somewhat pampered. Most are never found again.

Cats are really likely to die once they hit upwards of 10 years. Lineage will not be broken, so don't worry, breeders! :)

Shows run at 10:30pm

500 experience is a LOT.

Upgraded members, each day you acquire one more show to create; they reset at the end of the week.

Stats affect everything.

The more entries there are in shows, the more points are awarded and the more places are awarded.

Each cat starts off with no experience. The other stats are randomly passed on to offspring...player stats DO affect breeding also!

You may not create a show to run on the current day...it's just not fair.

The News page is a good place to find out what's going on in KT.

Cats are showable from ages 1 through 10.

Cats are breedable from ages 2 through 11.

Cats age once per week on FRIDAYS.

The store restocks TWO TIMES per hour (as of July 18th, 2005)

Your specialty affects how well your cats do in shows and breeding.

Unupgraded members may enter their cats in 25 shows at a time. Upgraded may enter theirs into 50.

Unupgraded members may only breed their own cats together UNLESS they have a breeding ticket.

Unupgraded members may not purchase cats from other players UNLESS they have a purchasing ticket.

Refer people to earn more money/upgrades. More information can be found here.

Pamper your cat at least once per week...otherwise, it COULD run away. Not saying it will for sure...but there's a chance.

Cats that run away end up at Feline Friendship and are available to ALL of KT for adoption.

Only upgraded members may join clubs.

Detailed Information

Player Stats

Please note: player stats are incredibly hard to get. This is to make sure players have something to work towards for a very long time. It's not uncommon to take a year or more to max out all of the stats.
Showing is a player's experience in showing cats. The more shows you enter, the more this goes up. Note: this stat DOES deteriorate as time goes on.
Training is a player's experience in teaching cats right from wrong. This is done mostly through playing with them. Note: when this stat goes up, it resets the Recent Firsts column. So, if you've maxed out the training stat...then the firsts will grow to an unlimited number.
Grooming is pretty self-explanatory. The more you groom your cats, the more this stat goes up.
Breeding goes up ONLY when you breed cats. If a lot of kittens are live-born, this stat will go up. If the kittens have good stats, this will also go up.
Judging affects how you perceive cats. If you have poor judgement, you won't see a cat's true potential (in other words, you won't see what cats TRUE stats are...you will have an altered perspective). There's a few different ways to make this go up, but I won't tell you :P
Management is used to determine how many shows you are allocated per week, in addition to your one "freebie" show per day. You can get this stat up by USING your allocated shows.

Cat Stats

Some cat stats are hard to get, others are not. Some may only be achieved through breeding.
Experience is just like Showing for players...it's how much the cat has been shown and how well the cat has done in shows.
Appearance is how pretty and well-kept a cat is. Give your cat some love...it'll help how your animal carries itself, thus increasing appearance!
Social is how sociable your cat is (duh). If other players pay attention to your cat or you bring your cat to a lot of large shows...this will gradually go up.
Conformation is how well your cat fits into the specs of its particular breed. Conformation may only be attained through breeding.
Obedience is how well-trained your cat is. This is achieved through showing your cat and playing with it.
Patience is how patient your cat is. Patience is needed for a cat to sit still long enough in a show to not be disqualified. Without patience, your cat can't compete! To earn patience, set a cat as your "Active Cat". As you surf KT, your cat will earn patience. You can always see your cat's true patience! You do not need a judge to view the true stat.
Desireability is based on breed popularity and some of the other stats.
Hunger is how hungry your cat is. The higher the number, the hungrier it is. Feed it some food to bring this number down.
Body Fat is basically how fat your cat is. It's good to have SOME fat [otherwise kitty could die], but having too much will make the judges rate your cat poorly in shows. Overweight cats can also die. Try to keep this somewhere around 20%.
Energy is how much energy your kitty has. The more energy, the more playful it is. Play with it to bring this down. If your cat's energy gets too high, it could freak out! If that happens, do something calming to bring things back to normal. (No, I won't tell you what to do for this one...it involves items, though! :P)
Satisfaction is how pampered your kitty is. If this isn't high enough, your cat WILL run away! Again, use items to bring this one up :)

Best of Breed Shows (BoBS)

These are special shows hosted monthly by the game. You may go to the Cemetary to view them. Basically, ALL cats between the ages of 3 and 7 are welcome to enter. There's only one winner in each show; winners from the different BoB shows go on to compete in the Best of Game Shows [described below].

There must be at least 10 cats between the ages of 3 and 7 of a breed before a BoB show will be created for that cat...please keep this in mind :)

BoB shows are created around midnight on the 15th of every month. They are run at 11:55pm on the 20th of every month. There is a bit of a waiting period until the Best of Game shows are created; this is to allow time to verify the winners. Winners will be disqualified if a player simply purchased a ton of cats for the sole purpose of making sure a BoB for their breed was created.

Cats with the best stats are going to win.

Best of Game Shows (BoGS)

These, too, are special shows hosted monthly by the game. The Cemetary also hosts them. Any cat under the age of 10 that has WON a Best of Breed Show is eligible to enter in this show. The winner gets 10 days of being upgraded for free, plus lots of other goodies. Again, this is a winner-take-all show, just like the Best of Breeds.

BoG shows are created around 6pm on the 21st of every month. They are run at 11:55pm on the 26th of the month. Results for this show are final.

For the most part, cats with the best stats will win. There is, however, a slight randomization factor to keep it a bit more fair.

Display Case

All cats have a display case. If a cat wins a Best of Breed Show or a Best of Game Show, it will be reflected in the Case. Other prizes will eventually be shown here as well.

Avatars (AVs)

Avatars are a fun feature for the game. All players may unlock avatars by completing tasks within the game. Here are all of the avatars:

411: Helpful members are awarded this tag by the moderators.
Almost Angelic: Cats with their stats maxed out unlock this AV.
Avatar Collector: Members with a majority of the AVs unlock this AV.
Beautiful: Cats with high Appearance unlock this AV for their owners.
Christmas Spirit: Once a year, you are given the opportunity to get this AV. Check out the Games page sometime after December 19th and see if YOU can figure it out :P
Desired: Cats with high Desireability unlock this AV.
Early Bird: hehe...I'm not telling you how to get this one :P
Evil: Owners that abandon their cats at Feline Friendship get this AV...not a good thing!
Financial Supporter: Anyone that donates money to the site (either through upgrades or an actual donation) will receive this AV.
Generous: Players that help out others by taking care of their cats will be awarded this by the mods.
Graphic Designer: Players that help out with the game graphics will receive this AV.
Item Hog: Members that hoarde items receive this AV. You DONT want to get this one!
Layout Designer: Members that create nifty layouts are sometimes awarded this AV by the mods :)
Lucky: mmm...the lucky ones may unlock this one :)
Moderator: All mods will receive this AV.
Nightowl: Not telling you how to get this one, either!
Obedience: Cats with high Obedience unlock this AV for their owners.
Obsessive Petter: Players that pet cats...a LOT...I mean a VERY VERY lot...earn this AV :) Only petting cats you don't own count towards earning this one!
Purrfect: Players that win $250 on the Pick a Prize! game earn this AV.
Raining Kittens: here's a hint: it has to do with breeding!
Rescued: Players that save a cat from Feline Friendship earn this AV.
Rich: Members with more than $150,000 kt will receive this AV.
Showing Fiend: Members with more than 1500 experience can get this AV.
Social: Members with very sociable cats may receive this award.
Winner: Lottery winners receive this AV.

Clubs

Clubs are a fun feature for upgraded members only. Clubs focus on the members, unlike most games which focus on the animals. Players may only be a member of 1 club. Every 2 months, all members are deleted from clubs. Each time someone joins a club, that club earns 5 points. Every day, club members have a choice of donating a point to the club or trading the point in for $10 KT. The club with the most points at the end of the month wins; each member of this club will receive $500.

Clubs have 3 different things for members to compete in: featured member, featured cat, and featured art. The winners receive club recognition for 1 month.

Breeders Circles

Breeders Circles allow members with similar interests to join together to work towards a common goal on the game. This is done by raising money to cash-in on a selected prize (see below for prizes and requirements). All money donated to the Circle goes directly towards reaching the goal, as do all registration fees. KT players must be verified and a KT member for at least 14 days before they are allowed to join a Circle. The player must also specialize in the same breed as the Circle to join it. Inactive accounts (an account that hasn't been logged into for at least 14 days) will automatically have their circle membership stripped.

Only upgraded players may create Breeders Circles. Each player may be in one circle at a time.

Junior - someone who has been a circle member for less than 30 days.
Regular - someone who has been a circle member for 30 to 180 days.
Senior - someone who has been a circle member for 180+ days.

Members may rate circles that they are in. Each week, the circle with the highest rating AND the most regular and senior members will receive a monetary donation towards the circle's goal.

Player Showing Experience - 500 exp per player; $2000 must be raised per regular and senior member to achieve this goal (AKA $2000/each); 3 upgraded members required.
Cat Showing Experience - 100 exp per cat; $1000/each; limit of 2 cats per member; 5 senior members and 2 upgrades required, OR 5 upgrades required.
Player Training Stat - 1 point per player; $2000/each; 20 regular members and 10 upgrades, OR 10 senior members and 7 upgrades.
Player Grooming Stat - 1 point per player; $2000/each; 20 regular members and 10 upgrades, OR 10 senior members and 7 upgrades.
Player Breeding Stat - 1 point per player; $5000/each; 30 regular members and 15 upgrades, OR 20 senior members and 10 upgrades.
Player Judging Stat - 1 point per player; $2000/each; 20 regular members and 10 upgrades, OR 10 senior members and 7 upgrades.
Player Management Stat - 1 point per player; $6000/each; 20 regular members and 10 upgrades, OR 10 senior members and 7 upgrades.
Cat Appearance Stat - 1 point per cat; $500/each; limit of 2 cats per member; 12 regular members.
Cat Social Stat - 1 point per cat; $400/each; limit of 2 cats per member; 12 regular members.
Cat Obedience Stat - 1 point per cat; $500/each; limit of 2 cats per member; 12 regular members.
Cat Desireability Stat - 10 points per cat; $1000/each; limit of 5 cats per member; 12 regular members.
Cat Conformation Stat - 1 point per cat; $25000/each; limit of 1 cat per member; 30 regular members and 15 upgrades, OR 20 senior members and 10 upgrades.
Item Milk - 75 servings; $1000/each; requires 5 regular members.

In the event that a circle doesn't reach the monthly goal, ALL money earned in the previous month will be put towards the following month's goal. The circle owner may change the goal if she desires. The owner of the circle will NEVER be able to withdraw money from the circle. If the circle owner decides to Disband the Circle (in other words, delete it), all funds will be divided among all regular/senior members.

You will notice in the requirements, there are upgrade requirements. Upgraded accounts fill both an upgraded slow and their respective membership-length slot (junior, regular, and senior). The reason why upgraded accounts are needed to achieve some goals is to prevent the likelihood of someone creating a circle exclusively for herself and her multiple accounts.

Junior members cannot receive the circle benefits. The circle owner may boot any junior member at any time; if the circle owner does so, the junior member will be refunded $100. Circle members may quit at any time. A regular or senior member that quits will cause the circle's rating to drop.