Looking after your new kitten
Congratulations on acquiring your new kitten
We are sure that by now you will have fallen in love with your new family member! Please read on for simple guidelines regarding the care of your new pet.
Things your kitten needs:
- A food and water bowl
- At least one litter tray (one more tray than the number of cat’s in the home)
- A scratching post
- Toys
- A sturdy carrying basket
- Pet health insurance – kittens can be accident prone!
Feeding
Bedding
Toilet training
Handling and grooming
Vaccinations
Introductions to children and other pets
Feeding
For the first few days after taking your kitten home it is advisable to feed the same food as was given by the breeder. After your kitten has settled in, you can change the diet if you wish to. Cats have very special nutritional needs, which are very difficult to meet with home cooked diets and can lead to deficiencies. When choosing a food, make sure you get a good quality complete food which will contain everything your kitten needs.
Small kittens (8 to 12 weeks old) need four meals per day, this can gradually be reduced to three and then two meals by the time they are six months old.
Small kittens (8 to 12 weeks old) need four meals per day, this can gradually be reduced to three and then two meals by the time they are six months old.
Bedding
Provide a soft warm bed. This means that your kitten needs a private place to retreat to when it is tired or a stressed. A bed in a cat igloo or even a strong cardboard box with a hole cut into the side is ideal will suffice. Make sure no-one disturbs the kitten when it is in the bed
A pheromone diffuser such as “feliway” can be helpful in reducing anxiety in cat’s and kittens during stressful times.
A pheromone diffuser such as “feliway” can be helpful in reducing anxiety in cat’s and kittens during stressful times.
Toilet training
Most kittens do not need toilet training and will use a litter tray straightaway. Cats are quite fussy with their toilet habits, so please put trays in a quiet place and keep them meticulously clean. Do not place the litter tray near food and water bowls – no-one likes to eat right next to the toilet!
A pheromone diffuser such as “feliway” can be helpful in reducing anxiety in cat’s and kittens during stressful times.
A pheromone diffuser such as “feliway” can be helpful in reducing anxiety in cat’s and kittens during stressful times.
Handling and grooming
Get your kitten used to having his or her ears, mouth and feet handled while enjoying a cuddle. If you have chosen a long-haired cat breed, make sure he/she gets used to daily grooming to prevent matting of the coat. This will help to establish a strong bond with your kitten and will make it much easier later when your cat requires veterinary examination. This is also a good time to gently introduce teeth cleaning.
Vaccinations
You should have your kitten vaccinated against ‘cat flu’, panleucopaenia (‘enteritis’) and usually also leukaemia. The vaccination course can be started at nine weeks of age and, to ensure full protection, kittens need to be vaccinated twice within three to four weeks.
Introductions to children and other pets
Explain to children to be gentle with their new pet. Excited children can easily injure a kitten unintentionally and a frightened kitten can use sharp teeth and claws to defend itself! Introduce other pets gradually and make sure they cannot harm your kitten.
Microchipping
A microchip is about the size of a grain of rice and contains a unique bar code number which can be read using a small scanner. The microchip number, together with the details of the owner and cat are then registered on a national database. Should your cat ever become lost and is found, the chip number can easily be read by using the scanner and your cat can be re-united with you.
Unlike dogs, cats are not required to be microchipped by law, however it is strongly advised, especially if your pet will be spending time outdoors. Your kitten can be microchipped at the time of vaccination or neutering.
Unlike dogs, cats are not required to be microchipped by law, however it is strongly advised, especially if your pet will be spending time outdoors. Your kitten can be microchipped at the time of vaccination or neutering.
Parasite control
Your kitten will likely have received at least worming control before coming to your home. We recommend monthly treatment for fleas and mites (+/- ticks), and three-monthly treatment for roundworm and tapeworm. Your Vet will be happy to discuss which products best suit your needs.
Going outdoors
While your pet will be covered by his/her vaccination course seven days after the second injection, it is strongly advised that you do not let your kitten outdoors until he/she is both microchipped and neutered. It takes a while for a young cat to learn its way around and it is not uncommon for kittens to get lost. Female cats can become pregnant extremely young and male cats who have not been castrated are more likely to get into fights with others which can lead to abscesses or even viral infections such as FIV.
Neutering
There are many unwanted cats and kittens in rescue shelters or fending for themselves. Neutering your cat ensures that you do not contribute to this problem. Please only let your cat have kittens if you already know that they will all go to loving homes. We castrate and spay cats from four to six months of age (depending upon your pet’s size and weight).
Cat Health Information – Find out more:
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