Caring For Cats

Cats are low-maintenance animals, and taking care of them isn’t difficult. In fact, cats are naturally proud and love to take care of themselves. Despite often behaving clumsily with their owners, cats are pretty skillful and extremely clever hunters. However, they do have some basic needs their owner needs to take care of. Assuming you just adopted a kitten or cat, here are a few things you need to know about caring for cats. 

How to Take Care of a Cat

Let’s start with the basics first.

Housetraining

Since cats are naturally curious, training them is very manageable. At a young age, cats can learn to use the litter box, understand where to sleep, and develop a special fondness for particular toys.

At a slightly advanced stage, you can also teach your cat to obey certain restrictions, such as avoiding electrical equipment and only eating from their bowl. Besides that, cats tend to sniff around new places to familiarize themselves with the surroundings. So, when you bring a new kitten home, give it some time to explore and get accustomed to its new environment.

Cleanliness

Cats are naturally clean animals, so they lick their fur to clean it. Cats do not like being dirty, and the same applies to using a dirty litter box. Like humans, cats prefer to find a cleaner place to urinate, so if you’re not cleaning their litter box regularly, they may find a sofa or bed to do the job.

As sensitive creatures, cats communicate with their owners to tell them something is wrong. They might be stressed out due to the unpleasant odor from their food bowl or seeing their dirtied fur or litter box. So, as a cat parent, keeping the cleanliness of your kitty as a priority is not just healthy medically but also helps develop a lovely relationship with your cat. 

Cleanliness also includes giving your cat a warm bath, cleaning their teeth, brushing their fur, and ensuring their bed is clean. 

Outdoor Activities

Cats are playful but cannot be confined to a limited space. Like humans, cats require an adequate amount of sunlight every day. Letting your cat play outdoors is not only beneficial for their physical health but also their psychological health. This also keeps your cat energetic and active, increasing their lifespan. 

They love to rest in the sun, meow at birds, and discover new, playful items. However, it is recommended to not leave your cat unattended during outdoor activity since it may be vulnerable to aggressive attacks by other cats or animals. Cat fights can cause severe complications such as viral diseases, skin infections, or muscle ruptures, which sometimes can be fatal.

Choice of Food

Taking care of your cat’s nutrition and monitoring its daily diet is crucial to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. A healthy diet comes from the right choice of cat food. Cats are obligate carnivores, requiring much protein to avoid significant health issues. When you’re choosing the perfect cat food, here are a few things you should check:

• It contains a healthy amount of protein
• It contains amino acids such as taurine, arginine, and fatty acids
• It includes vitamins and minerals
• It does not include soya beans or other poultry food items
• It does not contain lactose and other potentially allergic elements

Good cat food comes with a diet chart so you can know how much food your cat needs daily, depending on its weight. Also, overfeeding a cat can lead to diabetes and other obesity-related health problems. 

Regular Check-Ups

Visiting the vet occasionally is vital to maintain your cat’s physical health. Your cat must be dewormed every three months and vaccinated once in its lifetime. But, despite being vaccinated, you would also need to get your cat a booster shot every year. 

When your cat reaches around seven months or more, they might need to be neutered or spayed. This benefits them since indoor cats are more vulnerable to diseases and other health issues. 

Regular visits to the vet keep you updated about your cat’s health and whether anything is lagging. Even though monitoring your cat’s diet can save you a lot of trouble, it's still better to visit the vet for your cat’s medical examination every month or two. For more information, check out our article about how often you should take your cat to the vet.

Conclusion

Unlike many other pets, cats are easy to care for, and most cat parents are happy to have their little kitties jumping and playing around the house. On top of taking care of your cat, the most important thing is to spend time with it. Try to involve yourself in their activities, such as bird watching, and occasionally cuddle with your cats to build a solid and loving relationship with them. Cats view their owners as their parents and protectors, so ideally, you should try not to be harsh on them or scold them since this can stress out your cat a lot and create a negative image of yourself in your cat’s mind. At the end of the day, it’s love and cuddles that keep you and your cat bonded together!