So you Just Bought Cat - Now What?
You now have a nice little addition to your family and brought it home for the very first time. You cannot expect the cat to just be up and cozy right off the bat as it is now in a new environment which it has not learned to trust as yet. So you will have to give it a little time to get use to it's surroundings and don't expect any quick sentimental lovey dovey until it really gets to know you and its new home. But there are some prerequisites that should normally be done before a cat purchase. These prerequisites require that you have food readily available and a litter box. Ensure that you also have a name readily available so the cat can get accustomed to it from the beginning. You can later get all the niceties that cats like later on.
1. Cleaning The Litter Box
Just like how you as a human flush whenever you use the toilet for hygiene and health purposes, it is no different with the disposal of cat feces. You cat box must be cleaned daily. Clumping cat litter makes this easy. All it takes for you to do is just scoop out the clumps and you're done. Put the litter box in a place where the cat will not be disturbed when he is doing his number 2.
2. Providing Food and Water
Come on now guys, anyone who actually owns a pet and does not provide the basic necessities for survival should simply stop surviving. The cat must have a proper diet and should always be properly hydrated. Always provide a fresh daily supply of water and a healthy meal for your cat. Ensure that the cat bowl has good weight to disallow easy tipping over by your cat. Remember, cats are cats and they love meat, so not because you have gone vegetarian means that you and your cat will see eye to eye on this conversion. I am 100% sure he would prefer a canary any day over broccoli.
3. Cat Toys
Cats are agile and when they are not busy catnapping, they are eating, when they are not eating they are stalking the mop! Cats have a playful spirit and giving your cat toys will help to foster that cheerfulness. The market is saturated with cat toys and it is always a bit difficult to choose what to buy and who to buy from and what your cat will actually use or what he may just ignore. In the beginning, it will be a trial and error thing. But you may just hit the nail on the head and pick the right cat toy for Leo or have just wasted 20 bucks buying something he totally ignores.
4. Scratching Posts
I have a couple quick questions for you; do you like your carpet? do you like your sheets? do you like your furniture? do you like your couch? Well, i can guess that the general consensus is probably yes. If you notice that your cat begins to exercise his claws by scratching, it is in your best interest and the interest of your home to go and get a scratch post or a scratch mat for your cat. The thing is that cats will have that urge to scratch, it is where he scratches is the answer to that 50 million dollar question. Try and get your cat use to scratching on a secured scratch post or scratch mat.
Many people simply believe that when you care for a animal you simply give them food and water and a string! But it entails much more as you have to be keen on grooming and health issues. You should always check the various bodily sections of your cat to ensure cleanliness and that everything is as it should be. Your cat should be properly groomed, this grooming entails more than just a brush of fur. You should ensure that your cats nails/claws are trimmed from time to time once your cat is a total indoor cat. Mother nature helps to keep outdoor cats nailed maintained from time to time naturally when cats climb trees and do other claw bearing activities. But before you go snap snap on those claws, make sure that you go find out the proper procedures in cutting a cats claws and buy a cat claw trimmer. Observe your cats eyes and ears from occasionally to ensure that there is no buildup of dirt in the ears or ear mites. The symptoms of ear mites could be seeing brown clumps of discharge. If this is seen, consult your vet. If the ears become dirty, you can always give your cat a bath and clean the ears with a cloth or if you are not going to give him a bath, simply clean those dirty ears with a damp rag.
6. Outside Activities
Before allowing your pet to venture outside, ensure that there is nothing there to prose a physical challenge for his movements or cause any form of bodily harm. Analyse the risk to letting your cat outdoors. If you live close to lots of traffic having an outdoor cat may not be a good idea. Most times cat owners end up loosing their little fur-ball to Optimus Prime type trucks. So be very careful when you have heavy neighborhood vehicular traffic.