New to cats - advice please

[SarfEasticated]

We are just about to get a cat from our local cat sanctuary - a 5/6 yr old female. She is lovely and friendly and me and dd6yrs fell in love with her. We have passed the home visit and hope to pick her up on Saturday. We don't have much time to prepare so I would really appreciate some advice. Could you let me have your recommendations for the following?

1. Food - would like to feed raw if possible.
2. Cat litter - there seem to be different types - no idea which to choose
3. Toys - we have been recommended to play with her a lot to bond but not sure what toys
4. Scratching post - are these important?
5. Where is the best place to buy this stuff - online preferred.
6. Pet insurance - have been recommended pet plan - are they good?
7. Anything else I need but don't realise yet?

We have also been visited by mice recently and have had 'pet friendly' poison down. I assume I should remove it now - hopefully cat will sort them out? Any advice appreciated.
Thank you :)

One thing they like is getting to know your normal routine. So act nonchalant.

I also sneaked a few kisses when Mr Cory the fat tabby came, he tolerated them with aplomb.

Some cats don't like being picked up (see my scars) so avoid that for a bit.

The best way to get a cat to love you ime is to pretend to ignore them! This worked on both of my cats, who if we tried to make a fuss of them - hid but if we 'ignored' them they couldn't get enough of us

Welcome to the crazy world of being a cat owner!

She's gone back in, but when i go down she comes out to say hello... tiny baby steps...

She's bonded with you it sounds like.

Thanks everyone! I'm not really a nonchalant hard-to-get kind of a gal, so hopefully Modom will be kind to us despite that.

DD is nearly 7 and very sensible so we should be fine - it's very exciting - a new member of the family without my having to give birth to it!

Has it been decided where she is to sleep yet? (All my Siamese sleep with me in bed but I know that not everyone likes that.)

Not yet. We have a selection of options for Modom. we have made a bed for her out of a box and towel, or we have the carry case with a blanket in it from the sanctuary, or we can buy her something else.
What would you suggest? We have a small flat really so not much space for elaborate structures. I assumed her bed would be in one room (living room?), food in kitchen and litter tray in bathroom.

What you already have sounds fine - it's just that in my own experience, cats decide themselves where they want to sleep. Which may or may not be a place you provide for them.

(And which may not even seem that comfortable!)

Yes I thought that would be the case!

Both my cats have their own beds, the kittens is slightly posher but they both use them all the time. Mind you my cats sleep in the kitchen (shut in) at night so the alternative would be a hard floor!

They do some lovely ones our kitten got one similar to this that she loves www.petsathome.com/shop/en/pets/cat-beds-21102--1/rspca-engraved-plush-fur-igloo?pageSize=45#

We live in a smallish flat as well and I keep all the cat beds, food and litter tray in the kitchen.

It's amazing, in the course of the day she has graduated from hiding under to the bed to exploring our bedroom and my dd's bedroom and also giving me my dd and my mother lots of smooshy cuddles. Amazing progress.
She hasn't made it up the hallway yet, but she is doing so well. We don't have one room big enough to take all her paraphernalia.

One final question - how do you manage a litter tray. I assume you scoop out poo and put in loo? Do you empty and refill tray after every wee?

She has now visited all if our flat and is getting braver, but still disappears under our bed if she's spooked. She has been so brave we're really proud of her!

What a pretty girl. She looks 'wary but getting there'. (She's alert but not on the edge of her seat.)

What type of litter are you using?

That's a very accurate reading of her Cozietoesie. She is making it further and further towards the front of the house but still scarpers back to under the bed when she's spooked. Aww.
The litter is like small bits of pumice stone and comes from our local Sainsburys, in a pale blue packet. Not sure what it's called. At work today so can't go and look. Modom is being looked after by my mother.

Check and see when you get home. There are almost as many types of litter and techniques of dealing with it here as there are posters - or rather posters' cats. (They can be fussy devils.)

All of my boys like the Sainsbury's own brand clumping (although I think I have a bag of cheapo somewhere for emergencies) so that's what they get. I am a person under orders on these matters - when it comes to litter, I fit in with them.

She's a very pretty girl, lovely dainty bone structure.

She has a bit of low hanging tummy - but I wonder if that means she has had some kittens? She is so friendly though - we love her.

Possibly, or it's flubber.

Is that a technical term Fluffy?

I would love to understand just what she is trying to tell me - how do you work it out? She can't be permanently hungry can she?
She makes lots of squeaky clicking noised too which are really cute...

Oh yes, very technical!.

You'll learn what she wants.

It's possible (depending on her experiences in life) that her notion of love and feeling good may be all tied up with food at the moment. Maybe try just to talk to her and give her attention or a game if she seems to be squeaking for nosh? (That's what many cats really want when they talk to you but owners sometimes misinterpret it.) As Fluffy said, you'll learn what she really wants soon enough.

It's called Catsan...

I use a wood pellet kind of cat litter (morrisons own brand) I find it ticks quite a few boxes ie its cheap, cats like it, is light and covers odours o.kay. I scoop the poo out and flush down the loo, the wood pellets seem to dissolve in water.

What did you decide on feeding her in the end?

OP I use natural instinct raw cat food and plan to use it for a long while.
I rotate it with good quality grain free wet food such as grau, catz finefood, animonda carny, ferringa and butchers classic.
This keeps my cats 'offerings' sweet smelling and the litter box inoffensive.
Any time I run out of raw food, I notice much stronger smelling poops. I also give them raw chicken wings, which clean their teeth beautifully.

Since starting raw, I notice how less 'catty ' they smell, and their breath is fresher.
Their coat also softened and gleams, and beautifullymixed blackandwhitecat in particular got sleek and muscly.

I'm also not brave enough for whole prey and can't be doing with preparing raw food. Also I worry about getting the nutrients correct. I love that all the work is done for me.
I do plan to try a bit more variety soon, such as heart.