Preparing your Home for a New Kitten.

Getting a new kitten is probably one of the most exciting times for any pet owner! If this is your first time or you've had pets before there are few things that you need to do to prepare your home for the new arrival.

 

When you get your kitten home, show it where the food and toilet is and allow it some time to adjust to its new surroundings. It may be timid at first, but it will soon get used to its home. Give your kitten some space and allow it to explore and discover where the good napping spots are!

Feeding

Having good quality food for your pet is key for its health and wellbeing. Ideally check with the breeder or rescue group about what the kitten is currently eating and buy some of that food, as it will take about a week to switch your kitten onto the food that you would like to use.

 

You can feed your kitten any food, but we’d recommend a high-quality dry food that can be complemented with wet food. Kittens usually will eat about 3 meals a day. Try to keep your feeding times constant as this will help the kitten adjust to your schedule.

We recommend Hill's Science Diet Kitten Healthy Development. Click here to buy! 

Toilet

Most cats and kittens prefer a certain type of litter, and your new arrival is no exception. Most of the time the breeder or rescue group will tell you what litter they have been using, and like food if you want to change this it’s best to do it gradually over a week.

 

A cat will naturally try to hide its poop and digging forms a part of this. The litter box needs to be easily accessible, otherwise they will choose something less desirable (e.g. in the dirty laundry). Make sure you clean the litter box regularly as kittens can be finicky as may not use it if it’s too dirty.

Click here to shop our cat litter collection

Entertainment

While cats are not that into toys, this is not the case for kittens! They love to play and chase, it’s a part of their natural instincts. By playing with toys they can expend some of their excess energy. There are a wide variety of cat and kitten toys available. However, the best ones are wands, laser pointers and catnip filled toys.

 

Make sure you replace the toys often, as your kitten can become bored and uninterested in them quickly. Kittens love to hide and leap out at other things as they go past, this is their natural hunting instinct, so don't be surprised if you’re ‘attacked’ as you walk about your home!

Click here to shop our cat toy collection

Scratching Posts

Most kittens will scratch at vertical objects, this can be to keep their claws clean and can also be therapeutic and help relieve stress and anxiety. The scratching post you choose will vary based on the size of your cat and the available space in your home.

 

Ideally, you’ll need a scratching post for every cat and kitten you have, plus one, this is because cats will ‘claim’ a scratching post as theirs. If there are not enough to go around you can end up with your cats fighting.

Click here to shop our scratching posts collection