Bringing your new baby home...   


It can be a little daunting so here are a few guidance notes for your new kitten which I hope you will find helpful.  A shopping list / to do list can also be found at the bottom of the page….

 

Settling In

Cats do not travel well and their journey home with you ends in a strange environment away from their mother and littermates so the playful and friendly kitten you have chosen may initially be nervous or attempt to hide away.  Try to make their arrival home as quiet as possible.  Although your kitten is well socialized and handled and played with on a daily basis they are not used to other any other pets or new people.  Choose a room where your kitten can explore safely and ensure windows and doors are closed and any other pets are kept away for the early days.  Open the carrier and allow your kitten to make its own way out to explore.  Ensure that the kitten knows where it food, litter try and water are.  

To avoid toilet accidents it may be wise to shut your kitten in own room at night along with the litter tray for the first week or so until they are absolutely certain of where their litter tray is. 

If you have other pets it’s probably best to leave introductions for a couple of days.  Please take particular care when introducing your kitten to your family dog particularly if the dog has not lived with a cat before.  For the first couple of weeks interaction between your kitten and other pets should be closely supervised until you are confident they are happy and relaxed together. 

Children will obviously want to play with the kitten and the feeling will be reciprocated by your kitten.  However please remember that, just with human babies, kittens will need many hours of restful sleep.

 

Keeping your kitten safe

Please take extra care with windows and doors.  Kittens can escape through the smallest of gaps and are escape artists and have a natural desire to explore.  Even leaving the door ajar while you pop out could give room for your kitten to escape and could lead to fatal results.

 

Pet insurance

Your kitten has come to you with 4 weeks free insurance.  The insurere will write inviting you to take out a yearly policy and whilst this is by no means compulsory we would strongly recommend you take out a yearly policy for your kitten with an insurer of your choice when the cover expires.  Vet fees can be astronomical and this helps to protect you and your kitten.

 

Healthcare Plan

Many vets offer healthcare plans for your kitten.  Vets4Pets (part of Pets at Home) offer a Complete Care health plan that covers annual vaccinations, as well as providing preventative, year-round treatments including protection against fleas, worms, ticks. They also give access to consultations with our expert vets and other great benefits and discounts.  These are a cost effective way of protecting your pet and work alongside and complement pet insurance.

 

Wormer

Your kitten has been wormed with Panacur at 2, 4, 6 and 12 weeks and requires ongoing worming, monthly for the first 6 months.  Speak to your vet to obtain advice on worming.  Please do not use shop brought wormers such as Bob Martins as they are completely ineffective.  (Panacur and Drontal wormers are now available at Pets at home stores and are ideal for worming your cat)

 

Vaccinations

Your kitten has received its first vaccinations and will require a follow up annually.  Your vaccination card will be included in your kitten pack.


Microchip

Your kitten has been microchipped and the details are in your kitten pack.  Please ensure you update your address on the tracker as soon as possible.

 

Litter

Your kitten is currently using Super Benek Corn Cat Litter (available from zooplus).  We would recommend using the same litter initially as the cat will recognize this.  This litter is compostable and biodegradable, particularly absorbent and efficient at removing unpleasant odors from your cat's litter tray or toilet.  It can also be flushed down the toilet so more environmentally friendly.

 

Fleas

Your kitten is flea free.  If you have other pets which have outdoor access or you allow your kitten outdoors you will without a doubt at some point find fleas on your pet or in the home.  If your kitten is to go outdoors when older we recommend Frontline (or similar) which are available from your vet.  Again generic shop brought flea treatments are not effective.

 

Diet

Please do try to stick to your kitten’s usual diet for the first month. Digestive upsets as a result of a sudden change of diet is the most common reason for new owners having to seek vetinary attention for their kitten in early weeks.

Your kitten is currently eating IAMS Advanced Nutrition Kitten (ocean fish) biscuits and Smilla kitten wet food.  These are high in meat content and provide the vitamins and minerals needed for your kitten.  These are available from Zooplus and is cheaper than anywhere else.

Other suggested foods are James Wellbelloved and Animond Carny wet food and Smilla or Sanabelle biscuits.  I would recommend going for grain free or sensitive stomach biscuits as the get older.

Some kittens continue to eat very well from day one in their new home, others may not.  This is almost always due to the fact that the ‘competition element’ for food from their littermates has gone or from the stress of moving home. Try not to be tempted to cave in and offer an alternative to the kitten’s usual diet – the kitten will eat when hungry and feels a little more confident. 

Cat treats and tidbits – please keep them to a minimum – you will soon find your kitten prefers what is on your plate than on his but please avoid feeding anything other than a suitable kitten diet as above.

Raw mince beef, cooked chicken, tinned tuna (with sauce/oil washed off) can be given once in a while as they get older but keep to a minimum to avoid faddy eating.  Avoid raw fish.

Ensure your cat always has fresh water and make sure food and water are away from litter trays (no one likes to eat/drink near where they toilet!)

 

Neutering

Most vets will recommend neutering/spaying at around 6 months of age.  Please speak to your vet to arrange for your cat to be spayed/neutered. 

It is a complete fallacy that it is kinder for your female cat to have a litter of kittens prior to being spayed or that it is kinder to keep your male cat “whole”.  Cats become sexually active at around 6-8 months of age and will stray a long way from home, potentially into dangerous areas or across dangerous roads seeking a mate and can get into fights.  Males confined to the house will also begin spraying urine (scent marking) around your home and furnishings. 

As part of your kitten agreement you will be required to confirm you will have your kitten spayed/neutered.

 

Toxic Substances

The lists of plants and flowers which are toxic to cats is long.  However by far the most important as they are highly toxic and commonly used in home are lilies.  All parts of the plant are toxic but the pollen particularly so;  Sadly a number of cats die every year as a result of chewing lilies in a vase or from ingesting pollen which has transferred to their coat from brushing against a vase of flowers.

Poinsettia plants (with bright red bracts, popular at Christmas) are also toxic.

 

Cleaning

Many cleaning products and disinfectants are toxic to cats but none more so than those containing phenol – any product that turns the water cloudy like detol or zoflora.  The best way to clean your cats litter tray is normal domestic unscented bleach. 


General care and grooming

Please do not bathe your cat.  They do not need it unless they have picked up a noxious substance on their coat which cannot be removed by combing.  In general your cats will only need combing once a week.

Eyes – as a breed Britiish Shorthairs have relatively short noses and due to this your cat can get a small accumulation of black/brown crusty bits just below the nostrils and on the inner corner of the eye.  These can be wiped away gently with a moist piece of tissue.

Nails – can be clipped for the cats comfort and for the sake of your furnishings.  You can use nail clippers purchased from the vets or pet store.  Get someone to hold the cat securely and gently and squeeze each paw between the thumb and forefinger to extend the claws – if done in good light you can easily see the pink ‘quick’ which should obviously not be cut into, you only need to take off the very tip of the nail.

This can be done at home or your vets can do for you. (don’t forget the dew claw which is slightly higher up on the inner side of the front paw, cats cannot retract this claw so it can snag on clothes/furniture.  

Also provide your cat with a scratching post covered in sisal rope to help them shed their claws.

 

Shopping / To Do List

We recommend buying the following items: