New kitten, first time cat-owners - lots of questions!

[LackingInspiration]

We've considered and researched all these but are struggling to come to a decision!

Our kitten's previous owner let her out - no vaccinations and obv not neutered. We are making a vet appt. in the morning so hopefully will get her first jabs very soon; but I understand they shouldn't go out until their second jabs? I'm kind of hoping we can get her used to being indoors in that time; and entertained enough that she can be an indoors cat because we have no way of having a cat flap and I'm not sure what we'd do if she were off somewhere when we needed to go out IYSWIM.

So, first question is: if your cat's going to be an indoors cat, do you need to get it neutered and innoculated at all?

But...I expect insurance is higher if they're not neutered or innoculated...can someone help me decide about insurance? We had just about decided to get the cheapest insurance going (about £3-5 per month) (after a friend had said don't bother at all just to confuse us further!) and then I spoke to another friend with cats who's not only got insurance costing £10 per month, but also some pet plan thingy from her vets, which also costs £10, which gives her a percentage off vaccs etc. and some help with treatment if needed...or something! . Help!? I don't know what to do! (we're on a tight budget btw!)

Lastly, food...what's the deal with wet food and dry food and does it really matter what you give them or if you give them a mixed diet or not or what?

I am getting so confused reading about kittens and am going cross-eyed with it all, going round in circles. Please help me make sense of it all!

Insurance really matters if they are going out - I got a £700 vets bill after one of mine hit by a car.

So if not going out, maybe not so important.

But does your cat really have to be an indoor cat? Is there no way to get outdoor access? I think it is a shame for cats to be kept indoors, I think you have to be prepared to give them quite a stimulating and interesting environment if they can't get out, otherwise they do seem to get quite depressed/anxious.

It's not that I want her to be an indoor cat. We live in an area with some fairly aggressive cats - hear them fighting all the time . I keep reading arguments for keeping them indoors and entertained...but of course it feels very unnatural and I don't really want to do it.

What's the deal with insurance and vets plan thingies though? I dont' really understand the difference - are you meant to do both?

Cats are predatory canivores, it is in their nature to be aggressive. Even if your cat does get beaten up by local toms, I imagine he/she would have a better quality of life if there is outdoor access.

All I have ever done is get bog standard cheap insurance (since the nightmare vet bill) and the standard jabs which are about £30 a go and a booster each year. Then you factor in costs of worming, flea stuff etc but if the cat never goes outside, I doubt it will get fleas or worms.

I think you can end up spending as much or as little as you want. I am not that sentimental so if my cats got some hideous disease that required huge vets bills or expensive insurance, I probably wouldn't bother. My cats have generally had happy lives and not got ill but two did get killed on the road and one got a broken leg. But I would still rather they had a short and happy life.

We're not sentimental either, Spero. So there's no law saying you have to treat long term pet illnesses then? I kind of thought we'd be in trouble if we just said 'we can't afford it, she's too ill'!

I hope there is no such law!!

I do love my cats and they are nice to have around but I honestly can't see myself spending £1,000s on treating them if they get cancer etc, etc. I did balk a bit at spending £700 on my kitten's leg but she had dragged herself home and was mewing piteously at me and I thought it was my fault for not getting her insured. But some friends were a bit sniffy with me for spending that kind of money and I agree there is something wrong about it.

As far as I know, you could be in trouble if you were cruel or neglectful, (apprently the RSPCA can break your door down if you have left an animal for more than 24 hours??? I have frequently left cats for the weekend with lots of water and dried food) but if a pet gets very seriously injured or has a terminal illness I thought you could just ask the vet to put them down. We did this with a family cat who had a brain tumour; my dad cried so much he had to leave the vets.

Our ginger cat has always been an outdoor cat, but we never had a flap until we moved house when he was about 4. He coped fine, just got in the habit of talking to us when he wanted to be let out.

Insurance is a tricky one. I always begrudged the monthly payment until my other cat developed a heart condition this year. Now I think the insurance is not so much for the animal but for my own peace of mind in that I didnt have to make the awful decision to stop treatment as I couldnt have afforded lifelong medication and a pacemaker.

Our vet offers a similar "petclub" thing where you pay a monthly fee and it covers flea/worm treatment, vaccinations and yearly health check, but I felt it was unnecessary as I do have the ability to pay for those sort of things at the time. I get the feeling I would end up paying out more under those sort of plans.

Re neutering, depends on your cat's personality if they will be staying indoors. You may find you have less trouble, with things like spraying and behaviour issues in the long run if they are neutered. But it isnt necessary by any means.

My personal opinion re indoor/outdoor would be if you can let them out, then do. Its a much more fulfilling life for them.

Our cats are indoor cats during the winter and outdoor cats during the summer (when we leave the top window open for them)

They are perfectly happy with this arrangement.

Get them neutered and vaccd anyway in case one day she slips out the door and either gets something contagious or pregnant.

It will lower your premiums and should help your peace of mind.

Got a vacc appt for Thursday.

How do you keep them happy indoors, Salem? I'm thinking it won't be too hard for us - we're rarely out all day long and there are lots of people in our family to play with!

For insurance go for a lifetime policy this is a bit more expensive but more reassurring in case your cat is ill and recieving treatment at the end of a yearly policy the company will stop making payments. Micro-chipping also brings down the cost of insurance. This costs about £25.

You will want to get tit neutered either way because unneutered males spray their territory (your house!) and unneutered girls menstruate and have period pains etc.

Thanks for all the tips. Def. doing vaccs and neutering now.

But still a bit about insurance and vet plan thingies!

My cat is indoors (we live near a big road, lots of cats get killed on roads basically). You will need to get her wormed as they may already be present and don't need introducing from an outside source. The vets say every 3 months but with an indoors cat, I don't think it's bad to do it every 6 months.

I have cheapo insurance that cost like £80 for the year and I then got £40 cashback from quidco but tbh i'm not sure if it will actually cover anything particularly long term problems and putting down a pet you will probably have grown to love for money reasons is pretty heartless.

They keep each other entertained (we have 2) mostly but things like a string to chase and a scratchpost is a must unless you want them to scratch your furniture to pieces.

We have lots of toys for her and a scratch post, Salem. I also plan on getting the children making new toys for her periodically.

I think I'll keep her indoors for as long as she will tolerate it. I'm not going to be cruel if she's desperate to be out, but if we can persuade her to be indoors mostly, then I think we ill.

mrsrisotto - we've found some very reasonable insurance from Sainsbos with the longterm cover you talk about, plus double nectar points for two years - woohoo!

Oooh good one! I'll have to look that up myself!

More questions re. food this time.

She's been having different sorts of dried food at her previous owners, so we bought her some...but she's hardly eating any! We gave her a pouch of wet food yesterday morning and this morning and she guzzled it! We had planned one wet feed; and then three dry through the day.

Do you think we should just switch to wet food completely? I was hoping to get her used to mainly dried so that, on the odd day we're out all day, I can leave her with some and she'll be ok...having said that, she's doing fine hardly eating anything as it is, so maybe it won't matter if she has wet food when we're home; and dried food when we're out?

I'm so confused again! Can I mix half a pouch of wet food with some dried food and see if she'll get used to it that way? I just don't get why she's not used to it when she's been having it up until now.

I don't know which is better to be honest. My kitten was fed dry food when I got her so I have continued. I have given her wet food once and she ate it but didn't go mad for it so I left it. She will be used to dry food if that is what she was given before but maybe just really prefers the wet food? I leave dry food out for mine all the time (in a little puzzle ball which you have to push around to get the food out, for entertainment) and she tends to eat bits and bobs when we're eating (every time we eat, she will eat too, it's quite sweet) and at night time I hear her eating.

I give my cats wet food in the morning and have a bowl of dried food which I keep topped up. They eat when they want and haven't got fat but dried food seems to keep their teeth in good condition.

I don't think a cat would ever starve itself to death by refusing to eat a particular food - but having said that, my mum used to attract lots of cats who just turned up at our home, she tried to feed them the cheap cat food, but having got a taste of the superior whiskas she was feeding our pet cat, they turned up their noses at the supermarket own brand stuff for a week before she caved in and gave them all the same.

Just to add to the indoor outdoor debate, my cat was an outdoor cat but when we moved we decided it would be safer if he was indoor due to the cars & huge dogs in our new neighbourhood. As a compromise, we bought a cat lead and he goes out on that whenever the weather is nice. He seems perfectly happy, hap plenty of toys as well, and is nearly 9 now so not as active as he once was. Hope that helps.