What to Do When Bringing Home a New Kitten

First and foremost, you will need to put in some due exotic shorthair cat for sale as you prepare your home for the new family member.

It is a good idea to have your kittens litter box in the appropriate place before brining her home and you will want to have a specific spot for the litter box pre-arranged. It should be in a quiet area of your home. It should not be in a noisy laundry room or by a furnace that makes noise. Cats like their privacy, but don’t want continual noise. Your litter box should not be too tall for your kitten to get in and out of. Start with the smaller, more basic one. As your kitten gets older and bigger, you can move up to the larger size.

You should pick a type of litter that you feel comfortable with. Today, most people like the ease of a clumping litter, but do not use the scented litter. Cats normally prefer very fine-grained litter. Think of what cats in the wild do. They do their business in the sand. With clumping cat litter, it is easy to scoop out the urine or feces and discard. Note: Do not throw any cat litter in a toilet. It will quickly form a block in your sewer system. Instead, have a small inexpensive trash container with a liner near your box and simply put it in there. I use the diaper disposal bags from the dollar store. I simply put them by my scooper and trashcan. I scoop out the soiled litter and put it into the bag, tie it up and then put in the trash.

How to choose your cats food and water bowls. It is best to buy a set of ceramic or stainless steel bowls. Start with the smaller ones. Make sure that your kitten has a specific place to be fed and drink water in your home. Again, privacy is best. Make sure you clean the food bowl once a day and fill the water bowl with fresh water daily. You may want to purchase a Drinkwell pet fountain to provide continual fresh water.

There are many brands of kitten food on the market. Make sure that you buy kitten food and not cat food. Your veterinarian can tell you how much you should be feeding and what type of food. They will be happy calculate the exact amount of food to feed. Make sure your kitten food has a high ratio of protein in it’s ingredient list. It should be at least 9-10% protein.

Toys for a new kitten are like buying toys for a baby. All kiittens need toys that are safe. Do not give them a cat toy with a  bell or anything that can be pulled off and swallowed. All cats like things they can chase. I highly recommend that any cat toy is only out when actively playing with your kitten. That way you will never risk the kitten swallowing anything harmful. Always supervise play with children and a new kitten. You can buy a pull and chase cat toy like the Smarty Kat Feather Frolic.  This is a great interactive toy to help hone your cats hunting insticts. Anything that you can pull and the kitten can chase is great.

Do your research before choosing your veterinarian. Talk to friends and see who they recommend. Remember a veterinary clinic that has multiple vets on staff can be the best choice. Also, ask what hours they are open. My veterinary clinic is open every day. Ask if they also have all the equipment and area for immediate care. Find out where the nearest immediate care veterinary facility is also. Have that and your veterinarian’s phone numbers on the refrigerator and programmed in your cell phones.

I have found patience is the key to introducing a new kitten to it’s new surroundings. It is necessary that you ease the kitten through this adjustment period, especially when there are young children around, as well as other pets. In addition to supervising your children when they are playing with the new kitten, you should teach them how to handle the kitten with the utmost care and respect.