Dear PA,
I have read many a thread on pets. I have, after 3 years, of living on my own and having a somewhat stable job decided to get a cat. What I need advice on is what type of cat should I get? Also, any tips on cat proofing an apartment? Lastly, is 674 sq feet big enough to have a cat?
Facts:
I am gone from 8:30 - 7:00 PM every day ( Commute+ Work + Gym)
I am on the first floor
I have never had a pet like this, had two turtles when I was little (Michelangelo and Leonardo)
I have a lot of small figurines and action figures, those are probably destined for display cases correct?
Thanks in advance!
Posts
Re: the action figures, probably, but it really depends on the cat. My aunt's cat will knock anything over that even remotely moves or he doesn't think should be where it is. My cat has only ever done that when she was pissed at me for ignoring her for too long.
The worst thing about my cat is she likes to eat certain items of clothing. Anything ribbon-like, or shiny/sheer or lace. Depending on your clothing preferences and those of people who stay at your place, this may never be a problem, but just throwing it out there.
Also if you are going to be gone long periods of the day, investing in a good scratching post or even a scratching playhouse, will help save your furniture/cat's sanity.
A self-filling water dish couldn't hurt either,
As for knocking stuff over, you won't know til you get your cat home, some will knock over anything and everything, others will go the reverse and do insane acrobatics between stuff ( altho they aren't perfect and will also knock stuff over , just not purposefully)
So anything breakable/etc, case is probably best, but if cat ends up the latter type, can usually just not put stuff to near a shelf edge and it's fine.
Also, if going for an adult female cat, if possible, find one that was fixed after at least 1 litter, they tend to be more docile/loving and less standoffish than a 0 litter early fixing/late life fixed cat(2-3+ litters before being fixed)
That is interesting, if true.
Less a scientific fact, more an observation ( I've worked with an Animal Sanctuary/Spca for 10 years+ on the side, and both have noticed it firsthand, and been told this by vets and such, but could just be a coincidence thing as I said, no research basis, just an observation over the years.)
I personally haven't found it to be true and we have had a lot of cats. It really depends on the personality of the cat and the cat's history - the cat we have which was abused at the place we got it from is much stranger and less "pick me up and cuddle", obviously, and the cat that we got as a 4 week old kitten (mother was killed by a car, teacher was giving them away to try to save their lives) is the friendliest, cuddliest cat you could want. Ideally if you want a cuddly cat you need to spend time with cats until you find one who is very people-friendly, rubs against the bars and your hand, follows you around as much as it can, etc. Even then it's a tossup; my mom got her previously abused cat because the cat was attacking the person who was feeding her, and she is a little weird and standoffish and hisses a lot (no scratching or biting, though) but will follow me around the house, rub up against my legs, climb in my lap, and on occasion sleep in my bed.
For general advice, get a cheap cat brush and see if your new kitty likes it; a few little toys (toy mice packed in a baggie of catnip generally go over very well) but don't spend too much on those - cats are picky bastards; at least one (preferably two) large litter box you will clean pretty often; food bowl, watering bowl - a self watering thing is useful if your cat will use them but ours won't, they prefer either a bowl of fresh water or a filtering fountain type water bowl; a cardboard or other scratching pad that the cat can use; a few different types of cat treats.
Flea control will probably be necessary and you should plan on it. Even though you have no other pets, fleas can tag along on your clothes, especially in warmer months, and end up in your apartment. Never, ever, EVER use a flea collar on your cat. Flea collars are good for only one thing, and that's for putting in your vacuum canister to kill fleas that you have picked up while cleaning. Get a good prescription flea medication from your vet. It may seem expensive, but it costs far less than having to take kitty to the vet because they are having an allergic reaction to fleas.
Plan on at least a $20-40 a month maintenance cost for your cat just in kitty litter and food, and put some away in savings in case your cat has an accident and needs care. And perhaps most importantly, plan on your new cat having several days of being uncomfortable and hiding once you get it to your place; it will be in a new place, it doesn't know what's going on, and it needs time to acclimate. Be patient and stay calm and your cat will eventually relax and be friendlier toward you.
The thing about female cats being more loving if they've had a litter is a load of crap.
If you want a cat with a specific personality type, get an adult. Some will be aloof, some will be extremely friendly, etc. Kittens are adorable, but a crapshoot. I got a siamese mix kitten--looked JUST like a full-blooded Siamese, except orange points (I guess some "real" siamese have orange points too) and as he grew up, his fur got much darker and oranger and he's really stocky. Now he looks like a kind of creamy colored orange tabby, built like a football player. I mean, I wouldn't trade him for the world, but he's not the sleek looking Siamese I expected.
@ Esh, TY for that article Esh, gonna have to switch my autofeeders ( my pet's dailies, and the bowls at the sanc are all ceramic or stainless, so never noticed, but I don't want to take a chance now even in short term with the autofeeder I have.
I'd stay away from a refilling bowl for two reasons. One, they're plastic. Two, if your cat is at all interested in water, expect to wake up every morning with the bowl flipped over and a half gallon of water all over your floor. Get a good, heavy, large ceramic bowl.
Also, echoing "get two cats." They'll play and enjoy each others company much more that way. Your space shouldn't be a problem. Our apartment is around 720 square feet, and we have 4 cats. They'll find where they like to spend their time.
Also, good on you going to the local humane society. Lots of good kitties need a home. They will be far more healthy if you come back and post a picture once they're home, too. Some weird medical connection...
Good call, I have a tendency to do that. I am only waiting so long because my next "fun" paycheck is spoken for and my apartment requires a $500 pet deposit. September 15th is when the funds will be available.
Yeah this is hard to say. My mom's most cuddle-whore cat was like a ghost for the first few months they had him. He was abused in his old home and the shelter asked if my parents would take him too for free when they picked out a different cat who they said he was friendly with. He spent awhile bolting if you looked towards him, but if you happened to sneak up on him while he was sleeping and pet him, he'd roll around and obviously was happy, just too scared to allow it otherwise. Eventually he got used to his new life and now he's the best cat.
The small trouble with two cats is that they may not get along. If you go this route, put them together at the shelter and see how they mix.
If you do it everyday, it takes about 60 seconds. For your poor cat's sakes, do it every day or other.
Two cats are best especially if you'll be absent most of the time, but one cat will be fine on its own.
Don't spend a fortune on toys. Just get a few small balls and toy mice. Or just crumple up some paper.
Also, Boxes, it's like crack for cats.
And paper bags. My cat loves the rings from milk jugs as well.
And don't spend too much money on toys. I bought my cat a bunch of toys and her favorite thing to play with was a crumpled up paper ball.
Also, a scratching post isn't guaranteed to stop a cat from scratching the furniture. I had one but she still went to the couch sometimes.
For couch scratchers you can get double-sided tape. Not the kind you get at an office store, but the kind you get at the pet store. The stickiness is different, and the tape size is different on the pet store type.
Double-sided tape totally broke one of my cats from scratching the couches. He only scratches the post now. The 2nd cat, he still attacks the couch every so often. Even with the tape . He just looks for places with not tape.
And I don't think I saw food type mentioned. High quality food will make for a happier and healthier cat in the long run. I switched from IAMS to Wellness a year or so ago, and there's been a noticeable difference in their coats and the litter box has been much, much cleaner and less smelly.
And quality, dry food will keep them from shitting everywhere. It's worth the extra money.
The best toy I ever bought them was a box.
They also like laser pointers. Gotta keep it out of their eyes, though. Use a red one with a lower megawattage. The green astronomy pointers are too bright. Gotta mix it up with other toys so they can "win"... laser pointers can frustrate them if used too much.
They like tennis-ball bowling (I have a very long, open-planned house so I can "bowl" a ball from the kitchen to the front door), but that is more work.
I saved money and made my own "dangly" things... sticks with junk hanging off of them. They'll destroy the feathery shit you can get at Petco/Petsmart in less than two days. So, I used old khaki pants and cut them into strips and tied them off onto some long, thick dowel rods. The pants are just strong enough to keep their claws from getting hung up in them, so that helps. Make sure you get two... cats often pick which one is "theirs."
I am definitely gonna start the cat on blue buffalo and clean the litter box at least once a day and then clean it out completely once a week.
Thanks for the advice on making your own toys that makes a lot of sense. I also know to have a heavy base steel bowl as the cat wont otherwise knock it over. Yall have already provided great tips , and I have certinately read a lot already. Soooooo PLEASE! keep the tips coming for a little longer, I am looking for more practical tips that ya don't really think about till you have a cat, like the water bowl thing.
Just be warned you will probably have to slowly introduce the new food, unless that's what the shelter is already feeding or you have a very unpicky cat. Same with new litter brands, etc, and some cats won't use specific types of litter or brands of litter - I used to have a cat that would ONLY use tidy cats indoor cat small spaces with crystals (there is a reason I still know the brand name, lol) and anything else would cause her to simply pee immediately outside the box until we bought the proper brand and type.
Also I haven't seen this mentioned, and you probably wouldn't do it anyway, but don't let your cat roam around outside. If you live in a second story or higher apartment with a balcony, you can let the cat out on the balcony, but I wouldn't leave it unattended; cats will jump from pretty high up if they think they have a good chance at landing, and ours used to try to jump off the second story patio pretty regularly.
Oh the cat will totally be an indoor cat, we have some strays around I don't want it getting in fights with.
Buy a scratching post and a spray bottle. Spray the cat if it scratches anywhere except the post, or if it jumps up on the kitchen counter etc.
Here's one: buy little cat nail clippers. When the cat is used to you, touch the cat's paws during your usual petting and snugglish sessions. Eventually you should be able to squeeze your cat's paw to see the claw without the cat getting mad. When your cat is fully comfortable with this, wrap it up in a towel like a burrito and clip the nails of one paw. Release the cat and give it treats. Repeat until all nails are clipped.
Neither of my cats love getting their nails clipped but they tolerate it. If you're careful not to clip the nail on the quick, it will be a painless process.
This is just bad advice. Unless you can surprise the cat somehow with the water where they don't realize it's you, this will not work. The cats will only associate the consequence with you holding the bottle. Are you not there? They won't give a shit and will hop all over everything. All spraying them does is upset the cat.
I've found that a pair of human nail clippers works just as well for this. I used to wrap my cats up, but then I found that made them more nervous, so I eventually gave up on wrapping them, and just set them on my lap and let them growl. ^_^ It helps that they are now old and relatively feeble, though.
As far as litter is concerned, I go with the jonny cat natural or arm&hammer unscented. I've noticed that a scented litter box smells worse than an unscented one, and I don't think the cats like the perfumes in the litter either.
Washing the litter box in hot water and a bit of bleach when you change the litter completely is a pretty good idea, though I will say that completely dumping the litter every week seems a bit excessive... unless it's non-clumping litter.
When you first get your cat, start them off in one room of your place with the door closed, preferably the one that the litter box is in. When they've calmed down and explored, you can let them out to see everything else. You just want to make sure they feel safe before they're overwhelmed with new stimuli.
Shelters feed cats crap dry food for the most part. It can be pretty addictive, sorta like feeding a kid twinkies for breakfast, lunch, and dinner so transitioning them to a healthier food can be tricky. With mine we basically started off feeding him mostly the dry food the shelter was using, and over a week phased in more and more wet food. Wasn't any issue at all, but some cats are pickier than others. Do not allow your cat to go more than 48 hours without eating something, as it can lead to a fatal condition known as fatty liver disease. Some tricks that can help are sprinkling some Parmesan cheese over their food, or getting some tuna. Cats don't have much in the way of a sense of taste, but a very strong sense of smell, so that's how you can appeal to them that something is tasty.
Clean the litter box every day. Get a Litter Locker. They make the process a loooooot easier. I love mine. Bear in mind that even if they're using it properly, they may still kick litter out of the box when they're digging around in there. Place the box accordingly.
Get a scratching post, and reward the cat every time they use it.
Have fun! It can seem a little overwhelming and laden with responsibility, but within a week you'll be owning a pet like a champ.
Edit: One more thing. Since you're getting a single cat, you're they're primary source of social interaction, so you'll need to make sure they're getting enough attention and play. Everything from wrestling around with toys to petting and grooming him, to playing hide and seek or chasing him around the house. Or letting him chase you around the house. Cats will tolerate a harness and leash so you can even take him out on 'walks' if you want to. Just bear in mind, the leash is only there so he doesn't get away or into trouble, he'll mostly just go where he wants to. If you try to tug them they'll just lie down. I take mine outside around my house and he climbs the trees and eats grass and is generally happy about it.
as far as litter goes. we use sweat scoop which is a wheat litter and i want to say step something. you can buy it at costco in a purple bag thing now though it used to come in a big tub.
my favorite clay litter used to be this clay litter that costco sold back west, Litter Purrfect. it came in a big green tub and had lemongrass in it. not nearly as cloudy or perfumy as any other clay litter, plus it was cheap.
What is the point of that? Why not just put the clumped litter and poo into a plastic bag and dump it in your outside garbage to be collected? That thing is HUGE too. The OP is in a little apartment.
also
totally changing out the litter once a week is overkill. especially if you clean it out everyday.
I usually do ours once a month. but we have 4 and i keep them clean