If you have a cat, then you’re probably familiar with how much you spend a year on it. There are many expenses associated with cats, including food and medical bills. There are steps you can take to spend less money on the things your cat needs, which you can see in the following article.
Before acquiring a cat, be sure that you have the wherewithal to take care of all necessary vet care. Cats reproduce at an alarming rate, and spaying or neutering is essential to keeping cat population under control. Check spay, neuter and vaccination costs and packages with local vets and clinics and be sure you can afford to give your cat proper medical care.
Don’t be pushy when you are getting to know your new cat. Cats prefer to be in control and take things at their own pace. Make sure your new cat is comfortable and safe. Let your cat take its time exploring its new environment. When your cat feels at home, it will be more likely to try to make friends with you.
Have your cat spayed or neutered. Pet overpopulation is a growing problem, with millions of homeless cats and kittens euthanized every year. Besides the problem of too many kittens and not enough homes, unfixed cats can have a multitude of behavior problems. Males who are not neutered at a young age often start spraying to mark their territory, and females who are allowed to come into heat yowl incessantly as they try to escape to find a mate. Kittens can begin to breed as early as 4 months of age, so get your new kitten spayed or neutered as soon as possible.
Normally cats are nocturnal animals. Thus, the bulk of their activity will occur at night. If your kittens are keeping you awake into the middle of the night, close the door to your bedroom. This will stop them from bothering you at night, and playing with your feet beneath the covers.
There’s always a chance that you cat can slip outside your home and become lost. This can be prevented with a breakaway collar. The collar includes an ID, featuring your name, phone number, and address. If the cat is found, anyone can easily contact you and return the cat to you thanks to the information on the collar.
If you have more than one cat, you should have as many litter boxes as you have cats. If too many cats have to share the same litter box, it can mean disaster! The cats may choose not to share their eliminating space, instead, using other areas, such as clean laundry or hidden corners of the home to do their business.
If there is a place where your cat likes to use the bathroom other than the litter box, there is a simple way to deal with this. There are sprays formulated to be very offensive to cats. If you apply this spray in these areas, the cat will stay away from there.
If you’re tempted to load up on litter to cut back on cleanings, think again. Some people believe that the more cat litter they use, the longer they can go between emptying the litter box. Actually, this is a waste of your litter! Many cats refuse to use a litter box with more than 2 inches of litter on the bottom. Some prefer to dig to the bottom of the box before doing their business.
Your feline friend should always wear a collar and tags with your name and contact information. This should be done even with an indoors cat. The animal could get out. If your cat were to escape, it’s important for them to get back home safely.
When introducing a new cat to your home, make sure that your other pets have time to adjust. You will want to give the new cat extra attention, but it is important to keep up established routines with your other pets. Allow the new cat to explore its new home while you care for your other pets.
Put tape on your furnishings. A little strategically-applied tape can discourage your cat from tearing upholstery and scratching furniture. There is tape available that is specifically designed for this. The tape throws the cat off when it starts to scratch the furniture. In addition, buy a scratching post to satisfy the cat’s instinctual need to scratch.
While the holidays might seem like a nice time to gift a pet to a child, they are quite hectic and sometimes not great for spending a lot of time getting to know a new furry friend. It is a better idea to allow your child to help pick out your new pet.
If the weather gets too bad, you won’t want your cat to stay outdoors in that. This includes extreme wind, rain, or cold. When it is bad outside, cats search for a hiding place, which may be under a car’s hood. Keeping a cat outside during such weather events increases the chance that the cat might become injured or die.
Most cats are drawn to houseplants. This can give you many headaches; this is especially true if your plant is poisonous. Your pots could even become infested with cat poop. Even if you put the plants on ledges and shelves, the cats will still get to them. Instead, hang the plants from your ceiling away from bookshelves or other launching pads.
Cats aren’t exactly the cheapest pets on the planet. Food bills alone are expensive enough, and when you add medical bills and more, things get even more expensive. If you take this article’s contents into consideration, you won’t have to worry about emptying your wallet in order to make sure your cat has the best.
