Tips & Tricks - A Safe Home!

Bringing a cat home to a safe environment is vital to the beginning a new chapter in yours and their life.

Get a cat's-eye tour of your house! Get down on all fours and literally take a tour of your house to see from a cats perspective.

Some potential hazards include:

• Breakable treasures - such as vases or glassware. Cats are inquisitive creatures and 9 times out of 10 anything that can be broken will be broken.
• Poison & Plants - Ant traps, roach traps, mouse traps or poison can harm your cat. So you need to make sure your cat can't reach them! Some houseplants can also be hazardous to your cat so make sure none of your houseplants are poisonous.
• Cords, cords and more cords - all types of cords should be out of reach as they are very tempting for a cat and they can end up in a fatal shock. You can also spray them with a foul-tasting repellent substance so they don't try and eat them.
• Choking Hazards - Paper clips. Coins. Bits of string or thread. Thumb tacks. Left over Christmas tree tinsel. Anything small enough for your cat to get in its mouth might end up going further than its mouth. And that could mean serious health problems for your kitty and expensive vet bills for you.

Taking care of all of the above home hazards will get you off to a great start in making your home safe for your cat. But you also need to think about things that you’ll need to do on a daily basis to keep your cat safe.

Try to think of things that might be tempting yet dangerous to your cat. Washer and dryer doors left open, for example, or dishwasher doors left open.

Do you leave windows open on a regular basis? Better rethink that! It’s very common for cats to be injured or killed after falling from a high-level window.

Containment

Consider a quality cat carrier to be a must-have piece of equipment. Even if you never take your cat on a trip, you’ll use the carrier for taking your cat to the vet. A loose cat in a car is a very bad thing!

But you’ll probably also find a cat carrier to be a handy tool at times for keeping your cat safe at home. There may times when work is being done to your house – an exterminator is spraying; carpets being cleaned; etc. – that can be quite hazardous to a curious kitty.

It’s been said that it’s the little touches that make a house a home. And that will also be true for your cat. By eliminating the little, out-of-the-way hazards that you’ll spot when you take a cat’s-eye tour of your house, you’ll make your house a safe and comfy home for your cat.

And you’ll be more comfortable too, knowing that your home is a safe and comfy haven for both you and your cat.

Sources:

• Picture: http://communitytable.parade.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/cat-safety-ftr.jpg
• Author - Natasha Orchard

Tips & Tricks - Getting Started!

We all know how excited we get when we're bring home a new family member but sometimes we forget what we equipment we may need for our little furry friend. So here is a list of equipment you will need when bringing home your new kitten!

Kitty Litter

We're lucky that cats are inclines to go to the toilet in the same area so it won't take long to toilet train them. There are many types of kitty litter trays available some that are just a simple plastic tray ($20) to an enclosed tray to trap the smell ($50-$80) to even the self cleaning kitty litter trays ($150-$200). This is a necessity for your new friend.

Bedding

No one likes to sleep on the hard floor including cats. As long as its soft and warm you cat will be happy, as you kitten grows older you will be able to notice their preference in bedding and be able to provide bedding to what they like. But cats like to sleep anywhere so don't be offended if they don't sleep in their bed.

Scratching Post

Cats love to scratch! They love to scratch! and they will scratch anything they get their claws on. Buying a scratching post early on allows kittens to get used to them and will allow the chance them destroying your furniture to minimise. Their are 3 tips when buying a scratching post

1. It should be sturdy and stable
2. It should be tall
3. It should probably be vertical.

Your local pet store should have a lot of good quality posts available/

Food & Bowls

You’ll need food and water bowls for your cat, of course. Stainless steel bowls are the favourites among vets because they are easy to clean and sterilize. Make sure that the bowl is shallow especially if it is a small cat so they can easily reach their food.

Toys!

Kittens are playful critters, and playtime is an important component in their development. Cat toys are great playtime tools, and just about any purpose-built toy that your cat enjoys will be fine. This will allow them to also have something to do when you're not home!

Grooming

You’ll want to keep your cat looking cute with the proper grooming equipment. At a minimum, you’ll want to have a metal-toothed comb (careful not to get one with sharp teeth), a bristle brush, and a flea comb.

Carrier

Be sure to also buy a cat carrier. It’s the only safe way to transport your cat, even if you don’t plan any trips longer than to the nearest vet. A loose cat in a car is NOT a good thing! Again, you’ll be faced with a bewildering array of choices. Just make sure that the carrier you choose is well ventilated and sturdy.

That's pretty much everything required to make you new family member feel right at home!

Sources

• Photo - http://cdn.pet360.com/pet360/Content/Images/CMS/Articles/Happy_Cat_Smiling.jpg
• Author - Natasha Orchard