Author name: micathotel

Here are some tips on how to care for a kitten:

1. Make sure you have all the necessary supplies before bringing your kitten home. This includes a litter box, litter, a scratching post, a cat tree, a bed or crate, food and water dishes, and food.
2. Kittens need to eat frequently, so make sure to have a consistent feeding schedule. It’s recommended to feed them high-quality kitten food, either wet or dry, and make sure they have a calm area away from the litter box to eat at.
3. Kittens should have access to clean water at all times. Keep at least two water dishes available at all times. Check and refill the water dishes daily.
4. Litter training should begin as soon as your kitten comes home. Place the litter box in a quiet, easily accessible location and encourage your kitten to use it by placing them in the box after meals and play sessions.
5. Kittens have a lot of energy and will need plenty of playtime. Provide toys for them to play with, such as balls, string toys, laser pointers, cat trees, and scratching posts. This will help them burn off energy and prevent them from getting into mischief.
6. Kittens are very curious and will want to explore their surroundings, so it’s important to kitten-proof your home. This means securing any potential dangers, such as toxic household plants, cords, and small objects that could be ingested.
7. Kittens need to be groomed regularly to keep their coat healthy and free of tangles. Brush your kitten’s coat at least once a week and trim their nails as needed. Do this more often when they are under 3 months to “socialize” them to being brushed.
8. Kittens should be seen by a veterinarian regularly to ensure they are healthy and up to date on vaccinations. It’s important to follow a vaccination schedule recommended by your vet and helps to socialize them to future vet visits.
9. Cats are prone to developing dental problems later in life, so it’s important to brush their teeth regularly as a kitten to keep their teeth and gums healthy and get them used to the process. This should be done at least once a week using a toothbrush and toothpaste specifically formulated for cats. *Do this more often when they are under 3 months to “socialize” them to also being brushed.
10. Kittens can be trained. Think about clicker training your cat. You can even teach your cat to talk with special buttons they can learn to press.
11. Most importantly, give your kitten lots of love and attention! Socialization with a variety of situations and interaction with their owners is very important.

Do you want to keep your cat at a healthy weight? In light of National Pet Obesity Day on Oct 12th I wanted to let you in on a secret to get your cat to slim down without doing anything special. Yes, you can get your cat to slim down safely without doing anything special or even extra. You don’t have to change your routine or even your cats routine. You don’t have to buy any special brand of food. You just have to change one thing. It has to do with water, but not the water they drink.

Do you realize that the majority of pets are too big? Cats are one of the easiest to help though. All you need to do is feed them wet food. Canned cat food. The reason behind this trick is two fold: A:) Cats simply eat less calories on wet food. You feel fuller if you have water with your food. Almost every diet today will tell you to drink a glass of water before a meal. B:) Cats are historically desert animals (think Egypt), so to cats water isn’t found in most places naturally, so cats brains think they get most water from fresh kills aka food and have a lower drive to drink from open water sources, so water content is a even more important factor to consider in cat food. To a cat brain, food already has water in it.

Also helps with bladder and kidney issues

Canned food is more beneficial than dry food for several reasons. As fresh-kill hunters, cats in the wild consume most of their water along with fresh prey and do not have a strong drive to drink independently of eating. I believe most dry food cats under consume water resulting in stress on their kidneys and overly concentrated urine. Canned food mimics the water content of their prey in the wild. This encourages more dilute urine that is less likely to lead to bladder and kidney issues overtime.

Canned food also tends to be lower in carbohydrates compared to dry food and thereby higher in protein. But remember, you can’t make dry food without flour, and flour is carbs. High protein, low carb diets are touted by some to be less likely to cause obesity in cats, but this has been disproven in feeding studies; total calories consumed is most important.

How do I know if my cat is too big?

How do you know if your pet is getting too big? Simply feel the ribs. If you can’t feel each individual rib as well defined, it indicates a layer of fat on the ribs and that you should reduce caloric intake.

I hope this helps you and your cats to live happy and healthy lives.

Can you train a cat? …… …. …the answer is…….

Can you train a cat?

Well can you train a cat? Yes. Of course you can train a cat. In fact a cat can easily be trained with clicker training just like a dog …or whale ….or lion or tiger ….and bears oh my…….So what am I saying? If you want to train your cat… or your dog or any animal…yes it works on people….learn the basics of clicker training. What is clicker training? It is simply teaching your pet when you like something and helping them learn to associate a word with a desired action. Putting it into practice …takes well…practice… but learning clicker training either with a experienced clicker trainer or with a training guide, system, or steps that shape the behaviors, can allow you to teach a animal to do tricks like you see at zoos, aquariums or on TV….And yes pee and poop on command. All without shock collars or pain. Just takes science.

Clicker training myths:

My pet will always need food to be good….100% FALSE. The food is just a reinforcement and is phased out and you won’t always need the clicker either. That being said it is still good to give your pet food as a treat once in a while when they do something you asked them to do (even if you don’t clicker train, if you ask your pet to do something reward them once in a while).

I should click at my pet A LOT if they are bad.…100% false, too often I see people with a clicker and they use it to “annoy” the pet when they do something the owner doesn’t like. This is just not the way clicker training works. EVERY time you click, your pet receives at least 1 small, or even tiny, food treat.

Even if you don’t utilize a clicker, learning clicker training basics will help you to understand most basic behaviors and how to modify them with positive techniques and I highly encourage any animal person to learn more about clicker training. Youtube, google search, amazon books or contact us for a one on one session.