Cat care tips for beginners: Starting a fabulous feline friendship

A round of a paws, you’re a new pet parent starting out on an incredible journey of becoming a first-time cat carer. As with any pet, you want to make sure you’re doing everything to be the best pet parent you can be, and we want to help you if we can! We’ve rustled up some cat care tips for beginners to offer the cat's whiskers, the cream of the crop, and the cat’s meow of how best to look after your new feline friend. This includes anyone totally new to pet parenting, not just new cat carers.

So, grab a glass of milk and settle in as we unravel cat care for beginners and those all-important cat essentials…

Cat care tips for beginners

Cat essentials

Let’s do a quick round-up of some cat essentials all new cat homes need:

• Food bowl - look for bowls that say they’re designed for cats, this will make sure they’re the right size for your kitty and portion control.
• Water bowl/water fountain - cats need 24/7 access to drinking water and it needs to be refreshed daily.
• Cat food - food that is specifically made for cats, sounds obvious but be sure to always read the label. Your vet will have a few recommendations for you.
• Litter box - start out with a sturdy plastic tray and dust-free litter choice. Allow your new kitty to become familiar with where they can do their business before looking to buy a cover over or self-cleaning one!
• Appropriate grooming brushes - make sure the brush matches your kitty’s fur type (long, short, curled, etc.)
• Cat carrier - an absolute must, especially for vet visits. Solid plastic carriers are the most secure, easiest to clean, and often the most handy for scooping up cats and letting them out.
• Cat toys and puzzles - these can be homemade from bits of string attached to a stick, or pieces of screwed-up paper. As long as it makes a noise, you can throw it or swish it about, they’re not too picky.
• Scratchpads and scratching posts - cats scratch, it's just nature. Provide plenty of scratch posts around your home so they don't go for the furniture. You can buy some on Amazon for as little as $10 (£6), or even old compact cardboard boxes are enough.
• Cat bed - again, you don’t need to break the bank on this one, and often cats will pick their favorite spots (under beds, cardboard boxes, house plants). To help, you can put comfy, warm blankets in quiet corners or under furniture to offer a bit of assistance.

As your cat settles into their new home, you’ll begin to work out what they do and don’t like, what works for them, and whether you need to change things up. Don’t worry, most cats aren’t afraid to tell you if something isn’t to their liking.

Regular vet checks to keep them healthy and happy

Top of the list of cat care tips for beginners is to make sure they have regular vet checks. This starts from when you welcome them home, and then at least once a year for the rest of their furry lives. Your vet will make sure they are the right weight, give them vaccinations to offer a longer and fuller life, offer tips on care and lifestyle choices, and help calm any anxieties you may have around cat care. Your vet is your lifeline as much as your kitty’s.

Spaying or neutering?

Deciding whether spaying or neutering is a personal pet parent decision, but it will be one of the first things you’ll discuss with their vet. While the cost of spaying or neutering can put some people off, others simply aren’t sure if it’s the right thing to do. This will also hugely depend on your new cat’s age and circumstances - are they an indoor kitty, or are they likely to be roaming around outside?

While the decision is ultimately yours, it’s worth noting the positives. Spayed males are less likely to wander off, escape, and roam away from home. It reduces their instincts to create a large territory or the need to find a mate. For neutered females, not only does it stop unexpected pregnancies, but it can also protect them from a deadly virus like Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV). FIV is incurable and sadly causes their immune systems to shut down.

However, all surgery is risky and some pet parents don’t want that for their fur babies, and that’s absolutely fine. Talk with your vet and come up with a plan of what’s best for your kitty. 

Feeding your cat

One thing to know about cats is that they have sensitive tummies. While dogs can enjoy a few different human foods, you need to be a lot more careful with cats. Until you’ve talked to their vet, never try to give them any human foods or change their diets suddenly. Stick to what you’ve brought them home with and decide with their vet how you would like to change things. 

A water bowl or water fountain?

In all honesty, this is totally up to you as their pet parent, just make sure they have water available all the time. Some cat carers believe a water fountain is more appealing to kitties are it simulates natural running water. It’s also thought the water in a water fountain will take much longer to become stagnant. Truthfully, you still need to refresh a cat’s water fountain every day as you would do their water bowl. Just saying!

Trusted tip: keep your cat's water bowl or water fountain separate from their food area. Why? Their ancestors (and even wild kitties today) prefer to keep eating and drinking apart, it’s instinctual. Keep the two in different parts of the same room to prevent your kitty from drinking out of sinks, plant pots, or sharing your bedtime glass of water.

Litter box hygiene

This is super important, not just to prevent a stinky home, but also for the comfort of your cat. Cats are clean creatures, even when it comes to bathroom breaks. They will not use a dirty litter box. In fact, they’re so against unemptied litter trays, they will often choose to go next to the litter box rather than in it. Yeah, we warned you. To avoid this, make sure you clean them out at least once a day. It doesn’t matter if you use eco-friendly litter or store-bought clay stuff, they expect the best possible cleaning service at all times.

Brushing your cat

All cats need to be brushed, but how often will depend on their fur type. Luxurious long-hair cats will need to be brushed every day to prevent matting. Short-haired sweethearts won’t need to be groomed every day, but once a week will help with malting and hairballs.

Now, hairless cats, obviously don’t need brushing but they do need regular bathing. All cats secrete oils from their pores for skin protection (and fur health, if they have it). Hairless cats continue to do so, only it has nowhere to go. So, it’s up to pet parents to bathe them weekly to keep them clean and prevent them from leaving oily patches around the home. 

Playtime

Designated playtime is vital to having a healthy and happy cat. As well as being a great exercise for them (particularly indoor cats), it taps into their instincts to hunt and search. This keeps their mental health in check too! Happier cats are less likely to be destructive, anxious, depressed, or develop behavioral problems.

If you’re a new pet parent or an old hat at cat care, head to our Community Forum to connect with other feline fanatics. Find out first-hand tips on cat care for beginners, or share the love with your pearls of wisdom. You can also find other pet-loving members when you search for cat sitters near you - discover trusted, verified sitters in your area who would love to look after your purr baby.