Hey all... t'is the season and all that gaff, but I've been offered a kitten who was rescued from someone who was going to drown it... what could I say... Obviously YES (looks like a little snow leopard... might call him 10.6) To the point... He's 12 weeks old.. I intend to keep him as an indoor cat, just need to know how much it's gonna cost me to keep him, injections, neutering, flea stuff, chipping etc etc... as this is going to be my first pet so have no idea on costs of things... Any advice welcome as I should be getting him tomorrow... Now to run to tesco and buy stuff to deal with going in one end and out the other.... Cuteness on page 2
Is there no garden you can let it poop in where you live? I find that cats really enjoy a bit of the outdoor life. As for vet bills expect at least £50/pa for flu injections and stuff, maybe more if it's a sickly animal that needs a bit of care! Food is pretty cheap, if it doesn't mind eating dry food you can get enormous bags which makes it very cost effective (we do this with our current cat and she *loves* dried food, more than meaty glob). [edit] Also, Gunsmith: Cats >> Dogs.
Cost of chipping varies from vet to vet... but don't get it done until you get him neutered.... its a painful process and stressful.. best get it done while he's out cold being neutered. It cost me £50. Flea stuff.. get "Program" from your vet... it doesn't kill fleas... it sterilises them treating the cat's blood stream. Breaks the breeding cycle. Don't let him out yet... let him know it's his home for a week or two.. then slowly let him out while staying with him... he's a little young to be out yet though. If you live near a main road.. consider having him as a house pet only... Cats and traffic do not mix. If you need a litter tray, get the type with a roof and a little trap door.. the better ones has a charcoal filter for smells... and they really work. Use Catsan litter in the blue bag... everything else is useless.
nah cats are awesome. you dont have to walk them or anything. but seriously, i believe the RSPCA will pay for the neutering (or ask for a small donation), but vets bills might cost a fair bit. but when you bond with the kitten you wont mind paying at all.
Yeah that's the main reason for him being only a house cat, I'm on a main road with the main fire police and ambulance route and also live in a flat, so I won't be letting him out... That is a certainty. And furnature < cat. Cat>Dog Anyone else with any help or idea more than welcome.. (I'll post pics of the fuzzball when I get home!)
If he's a house cat.. he won't get fleas.. so that's one expense less. You now have to practice your "secure the cat before opening the front door" routine
We have 3 cats. Norwegian Forest cat, Burmese, and a Calico. All pedigreed. None has ever been outside. They have all been neutered and de-clawed at the same time. Once the early shots and stuff are done they are cheap to maintain. Dry food as mentioned. Pretty interesting pets if you can wake em up. They tend to identify with one person mostly. Never destroyed anything. The Black Lab ate one of my Palm pilots when young and the new King Charles Cavalier puppy eats everything in the house made of wood. Tables, chair legs, even the steps going up to my room. Cats, dogs, reptiles all pretty much the same. Just house critters to walk around or step over.
I'm lucky I suppose.... we have an inner door.. then an outer door. I just need to remember to have my keys on me before I do that however
I have a cat. He is a filthy little beast that ruins furniture and craps the nastiest smelling **** anything has ever crapped this side of hell. He is currently available for adoption.
Make sure you get it insured, £8 quid a month is a small price to pay for the assurance it gives you. I dont really like cats myself, much prefer dogs and rats.
Cats aren't too expensive with the vets generally, they tend to stay much healthier than say, a rabbit, those things get ill all the time. But pet insurance is a good idea anyway. As has been said, you're looking at about £50 a year for jabs. What sex cat is it? Cos it makes a difference to how much it is to get them sorted, a lot more invasive to cut out a girls jobbies than it is a blokes so it's pricier. Food it all really depends on the cat, some cats just don't eat a lot, my old cat I had with the ex only ate a bit of the super duper dry food, my granny cat here would eat the house if it could. So pricing food is a bit hit and miss, it depends what they like and how much of it they eat. Cheap cat litter isn't too expensive, and it's not that bad. You can tell when they've taken a dump but you can just scoop it out and throw it out in the garden or whatever when the pungent smell reaches your nostrils.
For the whole disposal of poop thing I'd recommend a trowel and a supply of cheap sandwich bags - that way you can scoop the whole lot into a bag, throw a knot in it then lob it in the bin.
I prefer dogs to cats. Even with odor control liter, the house will smell. I found the cats liter out stank the wet dog odor. we got one of the tilt to clean litter boxes. helped contain the smells and dead easy to clean use a good clumping litter like catsan. +1 for dried food. Both our dogs and cats had dried food. They got tinned from time to time as a treat, but liked dried. Also. If you want to REALLY treat your cat...... CATNIP!
catnip is hilarious as it will have 1 of 2 effects. either it will act like weed and the cat will get really high and chilled, or it will act like speed and you'll see a hyper cat zooming around for the next half an hour.
I'm sorry, but having not only worked in the pet industry, but also having talked with a great many people that are pivotal in the rescue and aide of animals (had many a dealings with the SPCA): you, sir, are a complete idiot, and should never have an animal. Period. (while I realise this is rather harsh, "The Beast", I'm not truly directing this at you, more towards your mentality, so please don't be too terribly offended, though I know this is going to hit some peoples nerves, for which I am a bit sorry, but I still feel it needs to be said) "Walking" a dog is a hell of a lot more than just a bit of exercise once or twice a week. Being that they are purely a pack creature, they need deep bonds with the alpha, along with every other member of their perceived pack. Chucking rover out into the back yard once or twice a day so it can bark at the garbage man, and take a dump in the roses does not suffice for their need to bond with you. Dogs absolutely need to be taken for multiple, controlled walks a day for their mental, and physical health. And no, it does not matter what bread of dog it is, it must be taken for it's walkies. Bad behaviour in dogs is often caused by people ignoring the basic pack instinct of the animal: chewing, leading, pulling, barking, aggressiveness, ect are all directly caused by the animals direct mistreatment and what I would argue as abuse. But, to keep this post more in-line with the topic at hand, I do have to ad that keeping cats outdoors is just silly at best due to the number of diseases and predators they encounter on the streets (not the mention the issues they cause to local wildlife, eg: birds). Aside from that though, enjoy your new kittie!
You cannot say that without meeting me or my dog. He is well trained and just because I don't walk him doesn't mean I don't have a connection with him. I play with him everyday.... and that's just me, he has 3 other people in my house that do the same thing. Besides when he goes outside that's his time, he doesn't want to be on a leash, he wants to run and be free.