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Kitten Proofing Your Home

It's finally time to bring your new kitten or cat home with you!! While the event itself is very exciting; it is also a huge change and trauma for the feline, no matter how loving the new home and family. Being prepared ahead of time will greatly ensure that the actual transition for your new furry family member is as quiet, calm and comfortable as possible. Kittens and cats are by their nature VERY curious about their surroundings, so you will need to make sure there are no hidden "escape routes" that lead outdoors for your indoor-only kitty. If you have young children, or any concerns about the cat getting out, you can even make and post small signs at each doorway reminding the family to close them carefully and watch for kitties!

It is so important that you keep your kitten or cat safe when inside a car. You can pad the carrier with soft blankets (another good idea is to get some of the smells from your kitty's previous home on the blanket to provide some additional comfort), and put some soft toys inside, but your kitty will actually feel safer inside the carrier than allowed to roam freely in the moving car.

Your kitty will need time to get used to his/her new surroundings. We recommend that you initially bring her carrier into one room (preferably your bedroom), and keep her confined to that one room for the first few days, with the carrier door open. Always speak in soft, soothing, loving tones, and don't force her to come out of her carrier until she is ready. You can show her where her food and water are, and her litter box. Give your cat some time to get used to things at his/her own pace. The first few days are probably not going to be the time to introduce young children or other pets. You can introduce them slowly and only after your new kitty is comfortable with the surroundings themselves. As your cat gets more comfortable with the first room you can gradually start allowing him/her into the rest of the house (making sure she can always retreat to her initial room if she becomes frightened), until he/she is completely comfortable. Don't worry if your new kitty doesn't eat the first day, the little one will come around shortly. Your new kitty may cry or meow and seem frightened the first few nights. That is perfectly natural, as she is in an entirely new place with new people, new smells, etc. Give her plenty of cuddling, and let her sleep with you if she wants to. This is also a very important time for the two of you to begin bonding together, and the start of the trust that she will be developing in you.

SOME TIPS:

* The real secret to kitten-proofing is to look at your home through the eyes of a cat. Find everything that looks like a swell toy, and if it's something harmful, get rid of it or make it safe.

* Bitter Apple or lemon-scented sprays are both great for marking areas you want to be off-limits. Cats hate the taste and/or scent of them.

* If your kitten will be indoors-outdoors, make sure your yard is clear of snail poison, rodent traps, and other hazardous material.

Keeping your toilet bowl closed after use is a must, move glass or breakable treasures inside a locked cabinet, or use special anchoring clay to keep them secured from being knocked over by an inquisitive paw. Always keep your washing machine and dryer doors closed, and check carefully before and after each use to make sure your kitty hasn't somehow gotten inside.

Be very aware that not all cat toys are safe - be especially careful about leaving any string, yarn, thread, needles, safety pins, rubber bands, small pieces of a toy like eyes or bells that can easily come off and be ingested. Unfortunately, having a feline swallow a foreign object is a fairly common and often fatal event which almost always could have been prevented. Make sure that any toys you make or purchase have no small or sharp pieces that can poke or be chewed off and be swallowed. Cats seem to love household items such as twist ties for plastic bags, but these can be deadly. Twist ties can be swallowed and perforate intestines. You can make aluminum foil balls that your cat will love because they are easy to bat around and make a nice noise on hard floors, but be sure to wad the foil up very tightly so your kitty can't chew off and swallow bits of foil, and also be sure the ball is large enough that we can't swallow it.

Other types of potential hazards for kittens and cats include anything with loops on them, such as grocery paper or plastic bags with the carry handles still on them; litter box liners of the drawstring type if they are pulled closed and the loop is left where kittens can get stuck in them, and even the vertical pulls for window blinds. All of these can be deadly if the kitty gets his or her head caught in the loop. Keep ALL plastic bags safely away from kitties.

If you see a piece of yarn, audio tape, string, tinsel, etc. protruding from your cat or kitten's mouth or anus, do NOT attempt to pull it out! It could be wrapped around your cat's intestines and by pulling, you might inadvertently kill kitty!! Instead, take your kitty in to your vet IMMEDIATELY!! Other symptoms that might occur even if nothing foreign is showing: your kitty is having difficulty breathing, vomiting or trying to vomit, coughing, bleeding from the mouth or anus, convulsing, frothing at the mouth or intensive salivating, or has a swollen tongue. Any of these symptoms require IMMEDIATE veterinary care and intervention.

See also Advice on Kitten-Proofing.