The short answer: yes, whenever the chance is offered
Meeting the mother is one of the most useful things you can do before choosing a kitten, because kittens learn their first lessons by watching her. How she greets a stranger, whether she settles or stays tense the whole visit, how she calls, corrects, and grooms her litter — all of that shows you the emotional weather your kitten has been growing up in. A mother who is relaxed around ordinary household sounds and people has usually been giving her kittens a calm template to copy during the weeks when that copying matters most.
It is not a guarantee. A kitten is not a clone, fathers contribute too, and a mother who is protective or tired on the day you visit may simply be doing her job with a litter underfoot. Treat what you see as strong evidence to weigh alongside the kitten's own behaviour, not as a verdict that overrides it.
What to actually look at during the visit
Start with her condition. Her coat should look cared for, her eyes clear, and she should move easily and show interest in food. A queen nursing a large litter can look lean, so judge with some fairness, but obvious neglect, persistent coughing, or a mother kept apart from visitors without a clear reason are all worth a direct question. Ask how old the kittens are, what they are eating, and whether they have started using a litter tray.
Then watch the interaction, not just the animals separately. Healthy litters move between nursing, playing, and sleeping in a loose rhythm, and the mother usually drifts in and out rather than guarding them constantly. Note whether the kittens approach a new hand or scatter and stay hidden. Brief caution in a tiny kitten is normal; a whole litter that cannot settle after several quiet minutes is telling you something about how much gentle handling they have had.
Questions her presence lets you ask well
With the mother in front of you, questions become concrete. You can ask about her temperament at home — is she a lap cat, a talker, an independent hunter type — and about her health history and routine vet care. You can ask what the kittens have been handled by: children, other cats, a dog, the vacuum cleaner. The answers shape which kitten in the litter fits your household, because the boldest kitten of a quiet mother may still be a steadier choice than the shyest kitten of a highly strung one.
Also ask what happens next. A good breeder or rescue will welcome the visit, let you see where the litter lives, and send the kitten home with food and litter details rather than a blank slate. Reluctance to let you meet the mother at all, with kittens offered in a car park or at the door, removes exactly the evidence this visit is meant to give you — and that absence is itself a deciding factor.
Choosing the kitten, not just approving the mother
Use the meeting to match, not merely to screen. If the mother is a confident, people-focused cat and you want a companion who follows you from room to room, the kitten already toddling toward visitors is probably your match. If your household is quiet and adult, a more watchful kitten from the same litter may settle more happily than the fearless climber. Watch each kitten eat, play, and recover from a small startle; recovery speed is often more informative than first boldness.
Write down what you learned the same day, while details about the mother, the litter's feeding, and each kitten's character are still distinct in your mind. Those notes become the start of your kitten's own record rather than a memory that blurs within a month. When she comes home, KinsLe Transferrable Profiles carry that breeder or rescue history into her profile intact, so the mother, litter, and early-care details you gathered at this meeting stay attached to the kitten they describe.