Whether you’re getting a new cat or have a current one, you’ll want to make sure it feels safe, secure and happy in your home.
There are a few things you can do to help your cat acclimate to their new environment. Here are a few of the best Cat Owners tips you can use to make your fur baby feel at home and well-cared for!
Make Your Home Cat-Friendly
Cats have many needs that your home must satisfy if you want them to feel safe and happy. They require a variety of resources, such as food, water, litter trays, beds and hiding places.
Providing them with multiples of these in different locations is a great way to ensure that they have plenty of options around your home.
You can create vertical spaces within your house by providing lots of elevated places for your cat to climb up and jump on, as well as quiet spots they can hide in (such as cardboard boxes or cat ‘igloos’).
Cats like being up high and having a good ‘vantage point’. This gives them a sense of being in control and can help to keep them mentally agile.
Keep Your Cat in a Separate Room
Most cat owners let their cats roam throughout their homes, but there are some that will keep their cat in a separate room. This can be done for a variety of reasons, from a sick cat to introducing a new cat into the home.
Keeping your cat in a separate room is a great way to help them get used to their new surroundings and become comfortable with their new family members. Ideally, this room should have food and water dishes, litter boxes, toys, and soft blankets or beds to sleep on.
When your cat is in this room, try to spend as much time with them as possible. This will help them become comfortable with you and build a bond between the two of you.
Make Sure Your Cat Has a Safe Place to Hide
Every cat needs a safe place to hide and rest, so make sure that your home has at least one spot. This area should be large enough for your cat to fit in, have sides around it, and be raised off the ground.
Hiding is a natural behavior that cats use to protect themselves and their surroundings. It may be in response to new guests or a new pet, changes to the environment, or any other situation that makes them feel vulnerable.
Many cats like to hide under a bed or underneath a blanket, but you can also create a great hiding spot by using a cardboard box. Put a soft blanket in it and tape the box closed so that it has an entrance.
Keep Your Cat Indoors
When you bring a new cat home, it’s important to transition them to living inside gradually. This will help your pet become accustomed to their new home environment and avoid any lashing out against the new lifestyle, such as scratching at the door or clawing at the windows.
The outdoors is full of dangers to cats, including infectious and deadly diseases, speeding cars, human cruelty and attacks by dogs. Outside cats also have a serious impact on local wildlife.
Keeping your cat indoors can make a huge difference in the world, especially for bird and small mammal populations. As long as you keep your cat indoors at dawn and dusk when they’re most likely to hunt, this can help reduce their negative effects on local wildlife.
Make Sure Your Cat Has Plenty of Space
Cats need to have plenty of space in order to be comfortable. You want to make sure that they have enough room to move around and get plenty of exercise.
It’s also important to provide them with a safe space where they can hide. This could be a small quiet room, like a bathroom or a closet.
You should also try to offer your cat multiple, comfortable places for them to sleep. This could be a cat bed or a box where they can curl up.
You can also provide a few hiding spots outside your home, where they can go when they feel frightened or when they see something new that they are not sure about. These could be in dense shrubs and other foliage that they can get through or old wooden boxes or tables, etc.