OMG kitty! \oO/

[Mashirosen]

Yay for adopting strays! I hope the kitty takes well to life at der Meisterhausen.

What little I know from a lifetime of having cats around:

Dry food is better for them than wet, although a can now and then as a treat is okay. Same with milk -- a few tablespoons once in a while is all right, but giving it to them all the time can upset their stomachs. Don't ever give them table scraps or they'll assume they're entitled to a share in anything you ever eat anywhere near them again, and they will try to take it from you. Nothing is sadder than a bowl of ice cream ruined by a fat little head shoved into it, lapping away greedily with the same tongue it uses for toilet paper.

Everything is poisonous to cats. They don't care. In fact, the more likely a thing is to make them expensively sick or dead, the more they're convinced that they have to eat it, right now, all of it, preferably while you're not looking so you look like an abusive, neglectful moron in front of the emergency vet. Here is a brief list of things harmful to cats that Kurt and Maceo have tried to eat anyway: cellophane, tape, string, plastic bags, twist ties, craft glue, garlic, onions, chocolate, lens cleanser, live electrical wiring, our fingers. If you have houseplants or a garden, google any variation on the phrase "plants poisonous cats" and various lists will come up -- the better ones will list plants' different regional names along with toxicity symptoms.

They will watch you on the toilet. Get used to the idea of having less bathroom privacy than a prisoner of war. Of course you closed the door. They don't care. They will find a way to get it open, and they will do it at the most embarrassing moment possible -- expect to have the kind of intimate acquaintance with repair and delivery people usually only seen in '70s porno. Why do they do it? Who but god knows?

But they're also pretty and hilarious, and they'll surprise you by doing things like learning how to play fetch, or patting you ever so gently on the cheek with one paw when you're sick or sad, or climbing under the covers to snuggle up with you at night because they've missed you all day. And every now and then they'll look up at you with big, worshipful Bambi eyes full of love, usually when you're just about to throttle them blue for getting into the trash at four in the morning, but sometimes just because.

Mostly to get out of the throttling, though.

[Skyshot]

Originally Posted by Osterbaum

Don't let your cat kill innocent animals in hope of a prize!

Actually, I have a cat who subsisted almost entirely off hunting in our backyard. She's well over ten years old and still going strong. My mother theorizes that they're connected. Give it a try, at least. They know better than to eat something that's sick, anyways.

I might could get you all sorts of useful information on the particular breed if you can supply it to us. Pictures are always nice.

Also, cats have claws. They will attempt to sharpen them. A scratching post can help, but it's not a guaranteed fix.

Squirt guns are said to be great for cat discipline. For more extreme cases, I've found that swatting the tail is a harmless but effective wake-up call.

[Viktor Von Russia]

Originally Posted by Skyshot

Also, cats have claws. They will attempt to sharpen them. A scratching post can help, but it's not a guaranteed fix.

If you can, you should train your kitty not to use furniture as replacement scratching posts. If you can't, do not leave it unattended for long periods of time. My aunt once came home from the supermarket to find a ripped up couch, a pile of what used to be pillows, and the cat wearing an expression that said, "What?"

And also, could you post pictures of the kitty as soon as possible? Because NPF could always use more kitty pictures.

[BitVyper]

Regarding wet vs dry food; the dry is better for their teeth, but with cats, it's good for them to get the extra moisture from some wet food too. I usually say that a tea or table spoon a day is good. As far as quality goes, premium food is still premium food. I'd just avoid anything you can find in a grocery store. Science Diet, Nutro, Royal Canin, and Nutrience are all good foods if you're looking for a little guidance where that is concerned. I'd reccomend that the owners stop in to a local pet store (preferably a large chain, like PetSmart, as they tend to be well trained) and ask about what to feed. The vet will probably give some advice too, but it will most likely be to feed a significantly more expensive food that can only be purchased from the vet. Now, if the cat actually has health issues and needs the stuff, then there's no substitute, but for a regular cat, any premium food is just as good. I've been working with pet food for quite a few years now, so if you have any questions in that area, I can help out. Also, if there is a major Pet supply store near you, check there around noon on a weekend. There will usually be representatives from different pet food companies there. Now, I wouldn't pay attention to anything they say about other pet foods (some can get very aggressive, and/or stretch the truth to the point of telling blatant lies), but they do know a lot about their own foods, and they generally have coupons. I wouldn't take the word of just any one person though, as people tend to be extremely opinionated about pet food. It's wierd.

Speaking of food, you might find that your(their, whatever) new kitten is reluctant to eat from a dish. If he is, just try hand feeding him at first. After awhile, just start luring him to the dish while you're doing that, until eventually, your hand is actually in the dish, and then start dumping the food from your hand, into the dish. It's kind of a pain in the ass, but it works.

The cat will most likely find something he likes to scratch pretty quickly. If it's always in the same place, then you're lucky. The first thing to do is to see how he likes to scratch; some of them stretch, some don't, some go high, some scratch the floor, and so on and so forth. They can even prefer specific materials. After that, get a post that suits your cat's preference (if you can get him on a post before he scratches somewhere else, it is of course, preferable), and put a little bit of double sided tape over the area he's been scratching. Double sided tape tends to make a really good deterrent for cats. Put the post next to that, and you'll usually find that they start using the post after a couple of rounds with the tape. Once they've been using the post for a few days, just start moving it as little as a few inches per day, until you have it where ever you want it to be. You can use a similar method to this for all kinds of cat problems, even litter training. Tin foil is another alterative to double sided tape, but it doesn't usually work as well.

Many cats are extremely sensitive to change. They don't like it, and they'll let you know in their own special way (usually with a fair bit of puke). They can get stressed out when things are moved around, litter is changed, company is over, and all kinds of other things. You'll usually see effects from this sort of thing last for a few days at least. It's usually best to err on the side of caution and try to introduce any changes to your home, and especially to anything more directly involving the cat, gradually. Obviously, you can't always do this, but it's good to do so when you can. Now, I don't want to scare you into thinking every little thing will stress out your cat; that's relatively uncommon, but you'll find that different cats are sensitive to different sorts of changes.

I have also found that quite a few cats eat too fast. They'll swallow all their food, and then throw up. You'll know this is the reason they're throwing up if you find many whole (unchewed) chunks of food in their puke. Dealing with this particular problem can be a little tricky, but I've found two methods to work fairly well. The first, is mixing in some oral care food with their regular food (I believe Science Diet makes the only OC food that does what you need it to here). Oral care food uses bigger, harder chunks, so the cat is forced to slow down and chew. Now, that isn't really an option with a kitten, as they need to be on kitten food for the extra protein, DHA, antioxidants, and all that other jazz. However, if you do find that you have this particular problem, another way to solve it is simply spreading the food out. Now, you probably don't want to be throwing food all over your floor, but it is possibly to get large, rubber place mats that have a ridge around the side. It's not ideal, but it works.

Also, with any kind of behavioural issue, a particularly effective correction (with most cats) is a shot from a little squirt gun. I'm not talking about a super soaker here, but something that actually fires a jet, and doesn't just mist like a spray bottle. You have to catch them in the act while using this though.

Anyway, I think that covers a few common cat issues.

Some good links:

http://maxshouse.com/PreventativeHealth.htm - preventative health care. I didn't read the whole thing, but it does have some basic symptoms to watch for on there. Others include watery eyes, runny nose; basically the same kind of stuff you look for in a person. However, never rely solely on your own diagnosis. If you think something is wrong, take your cat to the vet.

http://www.moggies.co.uk/behaviour.html - a few good tidbits about behaviour here.

http://www.petalia.com.au/templates/...ts&category=32 - I've found this site to have pretty good info in the past.

Edit: Also, don't expect the kitten to be attracted to catnip at all. Cats usually don't develop that attraction until they're adults. Honey suckle makes a good alternative.

Edit 2: I gave a pretty massive explanation on dog food in my second last post on this thread: http://www.nuklearforums.com/showth...puppy+problems . It's not exactly the same as with cat food, but the brands and ingredients are pretty close. Another good reason to avoid grocery food is that it contains more of the ash and magnesium that lead to very unpleasant, very expensive urinary infections.

[MasterOfMagic]

Also, if you decide to take the easy way out and get it declawed: ( I don't like the idea, but some do, I guess) Outside = dead kitty. So if you plan on letting it outside at all, don't declaw it.

As for which gender is better, they're are both the same. It depends more on the kitty itself than what sex it is. Only difference would be the spraying thing for males, and the getting pregnant thing for females. Both of these can be avioded by getting them fixed. Or just keeping the female kitty away from male kitties... (EDIT: Wow, did not know females sprayed. Ah well, I assume fixing will still fix that. BitVyper be an expert @.@)

Don't over feed the kitty either. Fat cats might be cute and funny looking, but they are also unhealthy. Now, I only have outside cats (we feed them once in the morning, and if they get hungry they can just help with the mouse problem) so I don't really know how much you should feed one that is kept inside.

Simple, cheap toy: A piece of string. One long enough that you can hold one end, and drag the other one across the floor. They chase it, they love it. You can tie it so that it hangs down from somewhere, just off of the floor, and tie something to the dangling end too. That only works for some, though.

[BitVyper]

If you ever end up looking at declawing as an option, you'll want to check out something called, "soft paws," first. They're basically just little plastic covers that fit right over the cat's claws; can extend and retract with them, and everything. They get glued in place, and tend to last a couple of months before they need to be replaced. Much cheaper than declawing.

Also, don't be fooled; female cats can and will spray too.

[phil_]

I have to second MoM's suggestion to GET THAT CAT FIXED! One cat can be dealt with, no matter how many problems it has, two are tollerable, but if you have three or more you can say goodbye to anything remotely breakable you own. If she has a litter, you'll have at least three cats. So get'er fixed!

A squirt bottle is great, but don't leave it where the cats can get it. Mine tore the bottle to pieces. I have no idea how.

[Meister]

No declawing for a cat of ours. This is pretty much why.

EDIT: Okay, it's really not the most neutral of viewpoints, but he does raise some good points. The less hysteric ones, that is. Besides, I struggled with the post for five minutes and in the end just said "sod it, I'll link to the article." ^^

[Kurosen]

When I was five years old my mom went to work at a vet clinic. She worked there until my parents moved to another state when I was nineteen years old. I grew up in and around that vet clinic. I've also spent a fair amount of time in other animal clinics as I moved around and always had access to cats.

Let me tell you that the people who work at these places, the doctors especially, have a love of and compassion for animals that most of us simply do not. And I say that as an avid, lifelong animal lover. These people are borderline saints when it comes to caring for animals.

Why, then, would these people "torture" animals by declawing them? Answer: they wouldn't because there's nothing wrong with it.

Now, you can choose not to declaw your cat. For instance, all the cats I owned who spent most of their time outdoors kept their claws. Doing otherwise would be kinda mean since they liked to hunt, climb trees, and would have to briefly defend themselves against neighborhood dogs once in a blue moon. My indoor-only cats have their front claws removed because there's simply no situation in which they would need them and their possession of said claws could do nothing but hurt me.

But don't make your decision based on the hysterical rhetoric that it is violently traumatic to the animal to declaw them. I've never seen or heard of a cat that ever had a problem with the procedure itself, or complications that arose later, or infections, or a reduced quality of life. And that's with having a direct line straight into an animal clinic for fourteen years during which my parents and I would talk in depth about our days over the dinner table. Hell, we declawed Kurt when he was a kitten and he was running and jumping and climbing all over the house the same afternoon we got him back.

If you do a little research, you'll find that the story about Iams was investigated by ASPCA, AAHA, AVMA, among others, and all of them found the claims made, to put it kindly, "highly suspect".

I have also found that quite a few cats eat too fast. They'll swallow all their food, and then throw up.

Kurt is the worst cat in the world about this. After some experimentation, we found that four half-meals a day instead of two full meals worked best for him. No matter how fast he eats, it's not enough at one time to make him puke.

[Meister]

I know that SA isn't exactly the place to go for unbiased articles, and I know better than to base decisions on an account of one botched case, don't worry. ^^ It just seems unnecessary to us. I'd rather take my chances with the good old scratching post. Besides, it's illegal over here anyway, so it's not like we actually do have a choice.

Oh yeah, there's also a lot of mice around and often in the house, so she might need those claws after all.