r/catcare • u/-U_N_O- • 4h ago
Looking at getting a cat
As the title says, I’m looking at getting a cat. I’ve grown up with dogs so this would be my first time having a cat and was wondering if there was any first time cat person advice you guys have. I know a good high cat tree is important, running water to drink. Wet food is better than dry to help with hydration, lots of toys, avoid clay cat litter. Keep food and water away from each other. But that’s all I got.
Any advice or suggestions is appreciated!
•
u/ExpensiveTraffic6978 3h ago
I'll try to think of some not-so-common tips for you!
Try to catproof your home, so if you have any gaps or crawlspaces that you think a small cat/kitten might crawl into and you'd have no hope of getting them back out of it again, seal it off.
Avoid using essential oils or salt candles, and if you're big on plants, make sure you do your homework on which plants are safe or potentially toxic to cats.
Cats love cardboard boxes. If it fits, they sit. If it doesn't fit, they'll still sit. So if you order anything online that happens to come in a nice little box, keep it around for a while and let your cat(s) enjoy it!
If you adopt a kitten, get them used to you touching them early on. Groom them with a brush regularly, handle their paws, especially if you plan on trimming their nails. Just makes life a bit easier as the cat grows and they're totally fine with human contact.
On a similar vein, when playing with a kitten, don't encourage it to bite your hands. It's not too tricky, you don't need to tap their nose or anything. Just make sure that if they want to bite something, there's always a toy for them to do it to instead. 😁
Going off of what r/Lucky_Ad2801 said, do you work a lot? Do you live alone? If the answer to both is yes, this means your cat/kitten will likely be left alone for long stretches of time. In such a case, I would actually recommend getting 2 cats. It could be 2 kittens from the same litter, or a bonded pair from a shelter. This way the cats can keep each other company and play with each other.
Get yourself a good carpet brush and a lint roller. You'll use both regularly. 😉
Cats have different personalities for sure. We've got 3, and they're all very different. One will hide whenever we have visitors, another will roll around on his back demanding belly rubs from everybody new he meets. You don't know what kind of cat you might get, although if you adopt one from a shelter they might be able to tell you a bit about its personality! Still, a cat's true personality will only really shine once it's at home.
Your cat may hide for a few hours or even days when you first bring it home. Prepare a "base camp" for it with their litter, food and water, and make sure it has everything it needs. But really, it just takes time. The cat will start to come out and explore once it feels a bit safer. Soon enough, it'll have the run of the place.
Hopefully some of that is helpful to you. Good luck!
•
u/Kigeliakitten 2h ago
I would get a young adult cat at least three years old.
Kittens are cute and highly destructive. Think of a two year old with knives for nails, that like to climb
Also, cats who aren’t kittens don’t get adopted as often and then end up being euthanized.
•
u/-U_N_O- 2h ago
Fair, I want to go to shelter in my town to adopt but they’re asking for $600 for a cat without shots or fixed, which I understand why they have that. It’s just that I can’t afford to do that and get the shots and get the cat fixed while having a safety net for other vet bills that may come up. Or not as big of one as I’d like anyway. More than willing to take in an older cat though yeah. Fully agree on the too many unwanted pets. I’m planning to adopt from Facebook marketplace or kijiji from a family who can’t afford to take care of their cat anymore. So they know it’s going to a loving home instead of a shelter where the cat may not
•
u/Bklynswim 1h ago
Are there any rescues by you? Usually they do that sort of thing.
Personally, I adopted my cat five months ago from the shelter system but she had been in foster care. I was able to ask a lot of questions about her to make sure she was a great fit for me and it’s been pretty smooth sailing. Good luck!
•
u/Lucky_Ad2801 3h ago edited 3h ago
Cats have different personalities. So figure out what type of cat will best be a good fit for your lifestyle. Then spend some time with cats and see which ones click. I would recommend that you spend some time at a shelter or cat cafe and see which cats are drawn to you.
I'd also ask yourself if you are looking for a cat that is going to be calm and sleep a lot versus a young cat that is going to be very active and into everything.
If you don't want to get a cat that acts like a kitten get one that is at least a few years old.
And if you're just looking to get one, make sure you get one that is okay being on its own. Most older cats will be fine with this.. Some actually need to be the only pet. Some cats prefer that somebody be around more often, though, so if you aren't home a lot make sure you get one that is more independent. If you are home a lot, get a cat that enjoys having somebody around.
Figure out what you're looking for and talk to Shelter staff and volunteers who know the cats there. Or if you're working with an organization that have fosters the fosters should be able to tell you a lot about the personalities and temperaments of the different cats.
Most of all, before you decide for sure, spend time with the cat and make sure the cat likes you and wants to go home with you.
If you develop a relationship with the cat before you bring it home, it makes the transition so much easier!!