Basics of Kitten Care
Are you thinking of adopting a kitten? Kittens make for excellent house pets, especially as Christmas presents for your kids. Your kitten needs three things from you: lots of attention, regular and balanced meals, and a little help with grooming. At Total DIY you can find everything you need to meet these needs. Here’s our list of the basics of kitten care to help you prepare for your new furry friend’s arrival.
Basics of Kitten Care; First Days
First thing’s first, it’s important to know how to properly introduce your new family member to your home. Cats are very territorial animals and will naturally be nervous and afraid when introduced to a new environment for the first time. The new smells, noises, and spaces may frighten them a bit, so it’s important to give them the time and space to properly adjust. It’s recommended that you choose a room in the house to the be kitten’s “base camp”, where they should be kept for the first 7-10 days. Don’t let them out of this room, particularly if you have other pets; instead you should go into them for feeding & playtime. Ideally, this should be a small room in the house with a door, limited places for the kitten to hide under, or climb upon – it’s unhealthy to allow the kitten to hide the whole time they’re in there, as they will be less inclined to explore and spread their scent. Be sure they have litter, water, food, a scratching post, and a blanket/bed. As they’re left alone, they’ll quickly spread their scents around the room and make themselves more comfortable with the new environment. From there, you can slowly introduce them to the rest of the house.
Basics of Kitten Care: Food
When you do decide to bring a new kitten into your home, the most important thing is that the right food is provided for them. Kittens have extra dietary requirements than full grown cats. They require extra nutrients, vitamins, and calcium. On our website you will find our Total Nature Kitten Food, filled with all the important fresh and natural ingredients your kitten requires. You can choose the flavour and ingredients that work best for your pet. Kitten food is recommended for cats aged 0-12 months. Once they are fully grown, you can still get all the nutritious cat food you need from us too.
Total Nature Grainfree Kitten Chicken Salmon
Total Nature Supreme Kitten Cat Chicken Fish
Basics of Kitten Care: Health
Another point to bear in mind is to prevent illnesses and fleas in our cats. To do this you can use products that keep them free of fleas that get on your pet, such as the Beaphar Flea Collar For Cats that you can find on our website. It releases an insecticide that kills fleas and prevents their return for up to four months – remember that for every flea we find today, there will be thousands in weeks! That’s why prevention is our best ally.
It’s also vital you ensure your kitten receives all of it’s vaccinations and is correctly de-wormed. Upon adopting, be sure to check the kitten’s vaccination record, and if they are not yet vaccinated, be sure to book them in with your local vet within a few days of bringing them home. The vet will also check if the kitten has had it’s proper de-worming, and will provide you the necessary ointments if not.
Gullivers Cat Spot On
Beaphar Flea Collar
Basics of Kitten Care: Grooming & Cleanliness
And finally, cleanliness and grooming is also important. Cats are very clean animals that tend to keep themselves clean, so what they need most of all is for their litter to be kept clean – that’s your job. The design of our Tribe Diego Litter Tray With Hood, featuring a door flap, handle and activated carbon filter, all help to neutralise bad odours. It is also perfect as its double rim prevents urine and litter being scattered out of the tray. Easy Click clasps make it fast to open and close for easy cleaning.
Kittens use the litter box a lot – considerably more often than adult cats. They eat far more, and, being considerably more energetic, require more water also. This means their litter will need to be changed regularly – every 2/3 days at most (more often if the smell get’s that bit too unbearable – and trust us, it will).
Trixie Diego Litter Tray With Hood
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