Getting a new cat - what shall I buy?

cazs

Thanks everyone for their contributions. It's interesting to hear how people do things differently.
I've ordered quite a bit from Amazon, fingers crossed the pet carrier arrives in time for the weekend!!

judderman

Yeah, thanks to all in this post some good tips and advice. #thumbsup
We've just taken in two female kittens I think their about 8 months young and this is all new to me! )
Will it be ok to start putting wet adult food down? One of the kittens (Miss Mogg) ;o) is a lot smaller than her sister (Miss Meg) lol I'm a little worried she's under wait. Miss Meg like's tinned tuna in spring water but Miss Mogg's like my 3 year old nephew!!! fussy!!!
We're all off to the Vet's Wednesday for jabs, chips, check-up's.
Any more tips for a !!!!! lol word filter blocked pus sy virgin? ;op

Fire_Fox

judderman wrote: »

Yeah, thanks to all in this post some good tips and advice. #thumbsup
We've just taken in two female kittens I think their about 8 months young and this is all new to me! )
Will it be ok to start putting wet adult food down? One of the kittens (Miss Mogg) ;o) is a lot smaller than her sister (Miss Meg) lol I'm a little worried she's under wait. Miss Meg like's tinned tuna in spring water but Miss Mogg's like my 3 year old nephew!!! fussy!!!
We're all off to the Vet's Wednesday for jabs, chips, check-up's.
Any more tips for a !!!!! lol word filter blocked pus sy virgin? ;op

IMO a decent quality adult diet is far superior to a low quality kitten diet (most supermarket stuff). Whatever foods you use - adult or kitten - be sure they are high quality, not full of cheap fillers and additives. Many pouches are actually stuffed with water (jelly, gravy) which is calorie free, many dry foods are stuffed with low quality grains/ cereals whereas all cats need more animal protein and saturated animal fat (BUT also bone for minerals). Bozita pate is particularly solid, up to 90% meat with only a tiny bit of jelly.

Also be sure they are getting enough food, feed rate varies massively with the quality of the diet. If you switch foods from what they are used to do so slowly over a period of weeks to allow their guts to adapt and avoid tummy upsets.

Please limit tuna to a rare treat, maybe choose a fishy cat food instead: too much tuna can cause a painful condition called steatitis. It doesn't contain any saturated fats or minerals both of which are essential for feline health.

Are your kittens neutered - have you actually seen the vets invoices not just been told they are? If not are you sure they are not pregnant? Why aren't they vaccinated at eight months old? Well done for getting them microchipped! :T

Arguably the best cat toys here: highly recommend a laser pointer, Da Bird and attachments, play cubes or tunnel, mylar balls or mice, Bergan Turbo Track.
http://www.purrsinourhearts.co.uk/shop/
Get as much adult sized as possible, they will grow out of kitten sized very soon and you will have to replace.

judderman

Thanks for the reply FF.
The kittens haven't been neutered yet or had any jabs because they've never been outside, Nor are they likely to be going outside unfortunately, but they will be getting the works done though.
They did belong to a friend of my Mrs, but she's got to much on her plate so to speak my Mrs and I have taken them on. :A
We lost our old cat back in October who was also a rescue cat but he was a lot older when the Mrs got him. So having kittens is new to us both. :kisses:
I want to get them on some better food as from what I've been told they've been given GoCat Kitten form the off. :eek: My Mrs has started mix in Iams junior & kitten dry food. They got roast chicken tonight, If they'll eat it!!
I was looking on zooplus at the food both wet & dry mentioned in this thread.
As for toys, I spent £60 on purrsinourhearts :rotfl: I went for two of the turbo tracks. :cool:
Thanks for the info.

Fire_Fox wrote: »

IMO a decent quality adult diet is far superior to a low quality kitten diet (most supermarket stuff). Whatever foods you use - adult or kitten - be sure they are high quality, not full of cheap fillers and additives. Many pouches are actually stuffed with water (jelly, gravy) which is calorie free, many dry foods are stuffed with low quality grains/ cereals whereas all cats need more animal protein and saturated animal fat (BUT also bone for minerals). Bozita pate is particularly solid, up to 90% meat with only a tiny bit of jelly.

Also be sure they are getting enough food, feed rate varies massively with the quality of the diet. If you switch foods from what they are used to do so slowly over a period of weeks to allow their guts to adapt and avoid tummy upsets.

Please limit tuna to a rare treat, maybe choose a fishy cat food instead: too much tuna can cause a painful condition called steatitis. It doesn't contain any saturated fats or minerals both of which are essential for feline health.

Are your kittens neutered - have you actually seen the vets invoices not just been told they are? If not are you sure they are not pregnant? Why aren't they vaccinated at eight months old? Well done for getting them microchipped! :T

Arguably the best cat toys here: highly recommend a laser pointer, Da Bird and attachments, play cubes or tunnel, mylar balls or mice, Bergan Turbo Track.
http://www.purrsinourhearts.co.uk/shop/
Get as much adult sized as possible, they will grow out of kitten sized very soon and you will have to replace.

rising_from_the_ashes

Mine like their beds ...... but most of them are HM from things like old pillows with nice warm fleece blankets over:



Mia's partial to one of the bought beds but it was only £5 so don't spend a lot of money on them!

~Chameleon~

McKneff wrote: »

She may not like grazing, ours would just eat the whole lot thinking it was a meal. You really would be better giving her set meals at set times. You are letting her know you are the boss.

:rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: Do you seriously think you could ever be the boss of a cat!!!

On a more serious note cats are naturally grazers. It's those that feed set meals that have problems with wolfing down food as the cat knows it won't get anymore any time soon. Far better to leave a bowl of dry food to graze on 24/7.

Dont ever feed a cat milk, it is bad for their kidneys.

Not true, nothing to do with kidneys, it's a digestive problem as cats don't produce the enzyme lactase to digest milk.

Start as you mean to go on. She wont understand if you change things in a cuple of months time.

Enjoy your new pet.

Avoid the usual supermarket brands as they're not very good, with the exception of Classic tinned meat, which I think is what you said she is currently being fed so stick with that one.

rising_from_the_ashes

cazs wrote: »

• Litter tray (one called Aristo from Pets @ Home looks good as has hood and filter) Have just switched to a huge open tray - working well so far
  
• Litter - clumping? which brand? Biokats - make it nice & deep & it's really easy to keep clean & will last ages so very economical
  
• Litter scoop Yup
  
• Litter tray liners Waste of money!
  
• 3 bowls - one for wet food, one for dry and one for water Would add another 2 so you can wash the dry / wet ones - don't get plastic ones
  
• Mat to go under bowls look out for freebies when ordering stuff, esp places like Zoo+
  
• Cat food fork/spoon have one set aside from human stocks!
  
• Can opener most tins have ringpulls?
  
• Wet food - which is best? Have a look on Zooplus as great quality wet foods on there - things like Bozita etc are fab & much more economical to feed (may be more expensive than sm stuff but you don't need to feed as much)
  
• Dry food - ditto As above
• Scratching post yup
• Cat bed not essential
  
• Toys scrunched up paper etc, wee mice, poles with feathers on etc - cheap tho as they will usually get wreaked pretty quickly!
  
• CarrierYup - Cabrio is fab as top & front opening!
  
• Grooming brush Yup
  
• Nail clippers?? :eek: wouldn't get near mine with these!
  

Wishing you many happy years together & pic please when s/he is home!:D

Once you're organised, have a look around at sites such as Zooplus as you can make big savings on things like wet & dry food and litter by buying in bulk / better quality (as you need to use less) etc.

valk_scot

Three cats atm, two adults and one five month old kitten

• Litter tray I have two for ease of changeover and washing. Cheap basic plastic.
• Litter - clumping? which brand? Tesco Value. I'd rather change it more often than worry about clumps. It does the job.
• Litter scoop Two, one for each tray.
• Litter tray liners Waste of money imho
• 3 bowls - one for wet food, one for dry and one for water Two sets of three, plus a couple of spares. Charity shop dishes are fine!
• Mat to go under bowls I have two plastic trays.
• Cat food fork/spoon Just use the house ones.
• Can opener Ditto. Tinned cat food is as hygenic as human food !
• Wet food - which is best? I use the Butchers Classic. Great value.
• Dry food - Purina One
• Scratching post no
• Cat bed no
• Toys a few, the kitten usually finds his own.
• Carrier Essential
• Grooming brush Yes, plus a good comb if cat is long haired.
• Nail clippers?? Not necessary if cat goes outdoors.

Plus insurance, a good local vet and lots of attention and love.

Fire_Fox

judderman wrote: »

Thanks for the reply FF.
The kittens haven't been neutered yet or had any jabs because they've never been outside, Nor are they likely to be going outside unfortunately, but they will be getting the works done though.
They did belong to a friend of my Mrs, but she's got to much on her plate so to speak my Mrs and I have taken them on. :A
We lost our old cat back in October who was also a rescue cat but he was a lot older when the Mrs got him. So having kittens is new to us both. :kisses:
I want to get them on some better food as from what I've been told they've been given GoCat Kitten form the off. :eek: My Mrs has started mix in Iams junior & kitten dry food. They got roast chicken tonight, If they'll eat it!!
I was looking on zooplus at the food both wet & dry mentioned in this thread.
As for toys, I spent £60 on purrsinourhearts :rotfl: I went for two of the turbo tracks. :cool:
Thanks for the info.

They are more likely to escape not neutered, so please do get that done ASAP, IMO more important than vaccinating unless you need to cattery them soon. IAMS is almost as rubbish as Go Cat.

:j Hope they love the Turbo Tracks, the flashing ball is good for nighttime play if you do another Purrs order in a few months. Toys can be expensive for indoor only kittens, they do need a lot of entertaining. But once you have everything it should last you years.

Expensive time all round! :eek: