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Bringing Your Kitten Home
You are now the proud adoptive parent of a brand new ball of fluff and you can’t wait to welcome your new kitten as a member of the family.
Just as bringing a new baby home involves a lot of preparation, so does the welcoming of a new kitten.
Your young kitten will be making a transition from our nursery where he or she is comfortable, to a new and even a little scary (but loving) environment. There are many steps that you can take to make this transition as smooth as possible for your kitten.
Pre-Kitten Arrival Shopping List
Before bringing your kitten home, you’ll want to stock up on some necessities. Check with us at Doll Face Cattery to find out what kind of food we feed our kittens and adults. It is recommended that you continue to feed your kitten this brand for several weeks after adoption, before very gradually switching to a new food, if you choose. This will avoid any unnecessary tummy troubles or loose stools to bother your kitten as he or she adjusts.
Buying the same brand of kitty litter that we use at Doll Face Cattery is a good idea as well, as the sight and texture will be what your kitten is accustomed to, and this familiarity could possibly prevent a few accidents.
Here’s a list of some other recommended kitten gear that you may want to have on hand before the big day:
Cat Carrier
Please bring your cat carrier with you, Make sure to pad the bottom of the carrier for both comfort, and as a precaution towards accidents.
Dishes, Food and Water
Be sure to monitor the kitten closely to make sure that it is eating and drinking, though they might do neither for a few hours after you first bring them home. We recommend both food and water dishes be emptied and washed daily to prevent bacteria and germs from accumulating.
Litter Tray/Scoop
You’ll want to have a litter tray ready and waiting and introduce your new kitty to it immediately. I like the covered variety, as it prevents litter from scattering to the four corners of the room at the first scratch of a paw. If your kitten does have an accident, wipe it up with a paper towel and then place the paper towel in the litter tray. After a little repetition, this will show your kitten that the correct place to use the potty is in the litter box. Don’t punish your kitten, as this will only cause him or her to not go in front of you. Kittens are very sensitive to odors so scooping twice a day will encourage regular use of the litter pan.
Grooming Set
A brush, a comb, and nail clippers will come in handy. You won’t be using them during the first week, but after your kitten is all settled in, you’ll want to establish a grooming routine.
Cat Tree
A good, sturdy sisal rope or carpet-covered cat tree can be a huge asset to any cat lover’s home, as the scratching post will stand up much better to needle-sharp little claws than your nice sofa or curtains. Make sure to get one that is at least 2 and a half-feet tall with a heavy base that won’t tip if your kitten gets a little enthusiastic. I also use natural slabs of wood for shelving, it still has bark on it and the cats love to scratch it.
Make Sure Your Home is “Kitten proof”
Since your kitten is still technically a baby, you’ll want to make sure that your home is kitten-proofed before he or she gets there. Keep all dangerous cleaning chemicals, pesticides, or antifreeze up and out of the way, or behind child-locked cupboard doors. Child locks can be picked up cheaply at any grocery store and you would be surprised at how dexterous kittens can be when it comes to opening cupboard doors.
In addition, any plants that may be harmful to kittens, such as those listed below should be kept out of reach.
One way to know for sure that your home is kitten-proofed is to stoop to their level, so to speak.
Get down on the floor and check out your home from their point of view.
Your Kitten’s Safe Room
When you bring your kitten home, have his or her own special place (ideally a separate room) set up and ready for them.
First Vet Check
Once you get your kitten home, you should schedule a checkup with your veterinarian as soon as possible. Scheduling a well visit for within the first few days of having your kitten at home will give your vet an opportunity to meet your kitten and record the health information to date that you will receive upon your kitten's arrival. At this time, you will also be able to schedule your kitten’s spay or neuter appointment and administer or schedule the last of your kitten's series of vaccinations. Any other questions about the care of your new kitten can also be answered at this time.
Introducing Your Kitten to Other Pets, Take your time!
If introducing your kitten to the rest of the family includes him or her making the acquaintance of your dog Fred and two elderly cats named Togo and Yoni, proceed with caution. Your other pets have staked a claim on your home and need to be reassured that the newcomer isn’t there to oust them. This process can take a few days to a week to be successful, be patient.
By quarantining your new kitten, your other pets will already have been aware that he or she is there, and had an opportunity to get used to their scent. When the first meeting takes place, keep it short. Let them all get the chance to see what that odd scent in the guest bedroom was, but don’t let your kitten become too frightened or your other pets too aggressive.
From then on, allow the pets to be in the same room together, with supervision, until they’ve all become used to each other. They will work out their issues, given time. This could take a week or more, but exercise patience and be sure to lavish attention and reassurance on your established pets, to stop any jealousy in its tracks.
By following these outlined steps, you will be able to welcome your kitten into your home with a minimum of fuss and stress on you, your new pet, and your established pets. Before long, your kitten will be settled in nicely, and so much a part of your family, it will seem like they’ve been their forever.
I hope you enjoyed this newsletter.
From my heart to yours, Pat and the critters.
Have you hugged your pet today?
You may print this newsletter for future reference.
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Newsletter from the Heart 2012
Does your pet have the winter blues?
Here is some great advice to help you and your pet get through the cold weather..
This page was last updated: January 21, 2012
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Hi Pat I really enjoyed reading your newsletter. There was a lot of information and it was great.
Iris is doing good. She is the greatest cat and very funny. She has some of the cutest ways about her. I have never had a cat like her. I call her my little shadow. When I am home she never leaves my side. She is more like a little dog in her actions.
If I am talking about something and my voice gets loud or excited, Iris comes running and jumps up in my lap and then puts her paws on my chest and looks me right in the eye with such a concerned look on her face as if to say--what's wrong-are you all right-what's the matter-what's the matter!! So I have to tell her everything is ok and then she will get down and sit beside me. She is sooooooo cute. I love her to death. Thank you again for letting me have her.
I'll send you another picture of her. I take them all of the time..
Talk to you later
Priscilla Iris La Flur's mom.
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Lexi and Carlos dressed the kittens in doll clothes, both kittens look a little surprised at their new look.
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I'm the boss and mommy knows it!
Mary Rose
Winter Blues
When winter sets in most people experience some sort of the blues. Be it dry skin, increased appetite, constant chills or depression it happens to the best of us. As the temperature drops we all take preventative measures to fight the blues, buying warm clothes, stocking up on cold medicines and trying to stay inside as much as possible. Your pet also gets the blues during the winter, even if it is not as obvious to you. It is just as important to take preventative measures against the cold for your pet as it is for you and the rest of your family.One of the major problems for pets during the winter season is dry skin. They begin scratching themselves more often, ripping raw spots into their skin. One way to keep pet skin healthy is to make sure they are given baths regularly. Winter weather presents a challenge for this but there is always the tub and now you can take your pet to some of the new centers and you give your pet the bath. Put a little tree tea oil and olive oil into your pets shampoo to soothe, heal, and condition skin.
To relieve the pain and itching of hot spots and minor irritations, you can spray the spots with Dermaplast found at drugstores.
Pet stores have their own brand of hot spot spray with a very bitter taste to try to keep the dog from repeated chewing.
Pets need to stay hydrated during the winter to retain natural moisture in their skin and coat. Do not let their water freeze, better yet try to keep your pet in as much as possible. My dogs go out for about 15 minuets at a time. Doodle Bug and Lady Bug weigh only 15 lbs and do not have much body fat to keep them warm for a long time.
Doodles stands at the door as if to say, “you got to be kidding”. I have to go out and shovel the walk way before he will go out. This is usually at 6:30 in the morning!
My dogs are Dachshunds with really short legs. Snow on the belly isn’t much fun for Doodles but Lady loves the snow and will bury herself in it. Keep in mind that putting salt or chemicals on your walkway it healthy for your dogs, it will burn their paws and they will try to lick it off and ingest the chemicals.
Exercise is the best medicine for your pet, if you can’t play outside with them than try a little rolling a ball over the floor for your dog or cat to chase, check with your veterinarian to see if they have an indoor exercise arena up for dogs. You may have to pay a small fee to use it, but your dog will feel so much better moving around.
I love hot coffee, macaroni and cheese, pumpkin pie and hot soup in the winter to keep warm.
I call them comfort foods.
We as parents need to monitor our pets comfort food. A fat pet isn’t a healthy pet!
Your pet get it’s comfort the same way as you do. They eat more to stay warm, because they have the blues and just because you left the food down on the floor.
If you don’t control your pets food, treats and table food your pet will be looking for a gym in the spring.
Make sure all pet beds are elevated off the floor. Many of our pets are older and have very stiff joints the cold floor will only make it worse.
I give my little dogs Sea Jerky to help with any mobility problems and it had made such a difference in their lives.
Cats will try to get up on a shelf in the window, on the counter, in a cabinet or a closet to get comfortable.
In our house the higher up the better. You will find Vinnie in a window, Mazie tucked in the house of the cat condo, Tiger Lilly loves to be under the couch, Bella on the top shelf in the cat room, Snokie in the linen closet or behind the plants above the piano . They are safe and warm and happy!
Make sure all shelves are safe and secured to the wall so your cat wont get hurt.
My cats love to chase balls of paper, Snookie will bring it back to me to throw again. Tiger Lilly will play with the little balls that have bells in them and when all else fails I take out the catnip toys.
One last thing, because I heat with a wood stove and have a furnace for a back up it can get really hot in here. Persian cats have a beautiful coat especially in the winter. Keeping the house too hot will make their fur shed causing mats. They need a little extra attention on their coat during the winter. If you have a knot then sprinkle a little cornstarch on it and work it out. Brush daily and you will be able to maintain great coat of fur on your cat. Cats also have dry skin if you are up to the challenge you can give your cat a bath, if you don’t want the mess you can use a foam in shampoo that when dry it brushes out all the debris.
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