Questions from a first time kitten owner

[Thisismynewname123]

These are all stupid questions, so apologies in advance!

1, What are the most important items to have at home before the kitten comes home?
2, How essential is cat insurance, and what on average do you pay for a kitten?
3, Where is a good place for a litter tray? I was thinking I'd put it in the utility room, but I'm wondering if the noise of the washing machine will scare it? I don't want it weeing & pooing around the house because the washing machine is running but I want it in a room that we're not otherwise living in. Where do others keep them? I'm also thinking that if we get a cat flap, that will go on the utility door anyway (there are no other doors that a cat flap could go on).
4, Once we have the litter tray, how will I then encourage it to do it's business outside? I'm assuming it will stay indoors until neutered, but by then it will comfortable going in the litter tray, so how do we then train it to go outside instead?
5, should we be worried for our goldfish??! (the tank is covered but not fixed)

I have had cats for 20 years, my house does not smell, I know as I ask my mum who tells the truth

If you clean up poos as soon as they happen or as soon as you notice and change at least every 2 days, it won't smell. It will get as smelly as you let it.

Also cats would prefer someone to come to your house when you are away, but they will punish you whatever you do. Keep bedrooms shut when away.

@dementedpixie thanks, I'll check them out. Vet said we get first month of cover free with a kitten check, to give us time to shop around

Sorry, another litter tray question .
Someone said above we need to start by keeping her confined to one room. So the litter tray will have to be in the lounge to start with. How do we later transfer the tray to the bathroom, or wherever we decide to keep it permanently?

We didnt really do the confine thing when we got our 2. They had the run of downstairs and then were kept in the kitchen diner overnight which was where the tray was anyway. After a few months they got the run of the house overnight

[quote Thisismynewname123]@thatwouldbeanecumenicalmatter, no only really once a year, in the summer. So nothing imminent. My mum would help us out, whether it's in our house or hers.

@dementedpixie does it smell having the litter tray in your kitchen? I'd be worried having it in a high traffic area that it will get accidentally kicked a lot.[/quote]
Same, sorry its just we have a relation who did this, didn't ask but expected us to look after her pets, we were ok with now and again but they holiday frequently and its shite on the pets as well.

You can move the tray to another location once they're in more than one room. Move it when it has been used (wee not poo) and the scent will help.
I can't see a problem with putting it in a utility room.
Mine stopped using a litter tray altogether when they started going out, although two of them have learned to wee down a sinkhole! They hate going out in bad weather, my other cat has a coat like a bear and is impervious to wind and rain.
Insurance is a must.
I have a microchipped enabled cat flap. You can get very fancy ones that you can program now to open/close at certain times.

@Thisismynewname123 if you move the litter tray just show the kitten to the new spot you've chosen a couple of times. They have a good memory for these things. At first though, always keep it in the same room as the kitten as they settle into your home (they go quite a lot when they're little).

I learnt that if you add baking soda (lightly cover the base of the litter tray) before putting the litter on top then it helps absorb the smells. Once our kittens were old enough I bought a top entry litter tray - it catches litter on their paws and reduces how much hoovering is needed.

At first, when they were let outside they would come back in to use the litter tray, but after a week or two they started going outside. Even though that was a year ago now we still have the litter tray set up. They rarely use it but I like knowing it's there. Also, one of them had to stay in with a cone on recently so had to use the litter tray, so for things like this (and in the height of winter when they don't want to go out in the ice) it's really useful to just have the tray ready and waiting.

When you first bring the kitten home choose which room they will get used to first. It's overwhelming for them to have access to the whole house at first and it will reduce any accidents. Place her in the litter tray after meals to show her what it's for.

I was nervous about letting ours out so we got a fancy catflap. It's from the company surefeed. It has a hub and and an app on your phone that alerts you when the cat has left the house or come back home. I love it as when we go away I know that they are safe. You can set curfews on it so they can't leave the house between certain times. It was expensive but I'm so pleased we invested in it.

Also if there’s no tray and they need a wee but it’s cold/raining/windy they can & will wee on something in the house.

If your lucky it will be a washable surface. If not it’ll be the bed/mattress/sofa.

Utility room will be fine once your cat has settled in. Cats like being able to climb up higher security so if you have some shelves or cupboards they would help. We kept ours, including the litter tray, in the living room when she was settling in for the first couple of weeks. Also put newspaper around in case of accidents. If they've been with their mother long enough, kittens will be trained to use a litter tray so it won't take them too long to adjust to your one. I agree a covered one is best for smells and also because cats feel quite vulnerable when using the loo. They tend to go crazy after using it (running around like mad).

I'd give the kitten a day to adjust to her new home before introducing to kids as it is likely to be quite frightened. Ours hid in the pet carrier for a good few hours when we brought her home, then hid behind the sofa for a few more hours, then tried to climb up the chimney (so make sure you have it blocked off).

Re cat food, one pp said they were recommended 100% dry cat food but this can cause kidney problems later down the line as the cat may not ingest enough moisture. I mix of wet and dry food is best but also best to but grain free cat food. Cheaper food, especially dry food has very little meat content and is filled with cereal. Dogs are omnivores so can tolerate cereal and vegetables but cans are pure canines so should stick to meat.

On that note cats love raw chicken (probably wait til a couple of months old) and will happily munch on raw chicken wings - the bones are fine enough for them to chew - drumsticks will be too thick and don't ever give them cooked chicken bones as the cooking hardens them too much and they can splinter and cause problems.

Zooplus is a great website for cat supplies. Much easier to get big boxes of food and litter delivered and they do a greater variety and often bulk prices.

@Mum2b2020 the kitten is currently be fed Lily's kitchen chicken dinner from Pets at Home. Is that a good one for us to continue with once she comes home? Do we give dry food as well from the beginning, or just the wet food to start off with?

Regarding age and using the litter tray, the kitten will be 9 1/2 weeks old next week when it gets it's vaccinations. Do you think we should give it another week after that before we bring her home, or do you think that by then she'll have had long enough with her mum to have learned she needs to from her?

I know people do it but personally i think 9.5 weeks is young for a kitten to leave it's mum. The longer they spend with them the more adjusted they will be. We had to wait a minimum of 12 weeks for ours. Only works if the kitten will actually be with its mum though.

Unfortunately with our second cat we were on holiday so couldn't pick him up until 14 weeks but that breeder let the mum go out after 12 (or possibly before) and the other kittens had gone, so he was pretty much by himself for 2 weeks. When he came home he was very needy, cried a lot and used to suck blankets for quite a while, and pad an awful lot. I think he could have done longer with his mum.

Regarding food, lily's kitchen is a good one as it has a high meat content and grain free, but it could get expensive. Our breeder recommended animonda carne or felix 'as good as it looks' for the occasional treat. We mainly use bozita in gravy chunks now (all available on zooplus) which works out about £1 per carton and that feeds my two large adult cats for a day, plus a small scoop of bozita grain free biscuits in the morning and evening. James wellbeloved are good biscuits too but expensive.
I think kitten size biscuits should be fine but i'd let her get used to wet food first.

Cats also love raw meat including and can eat raw chicken ring bones (never cooked!) And they are good for strengthening their teeth too. I'd prob wait until the kitten is a few months old first though.

*chicken bones not chicken ring bones :s

I say this as someone who has her own cats litter tray to clean as well as my neighbours cats delightful offerings in my flowerbeds

Chicken and egg though. If your cat pooped outside in your garden, no-one else would, so you just get to clear up your own cats poop, which you do anyway.

I am afraid I am very pro letting cats out and about day and night. We have only ever had litter for the first 6 months, and then cat flaps with 24/7 access.

We have insurance at £10/mth, and vet plan at £15/mth.

We had the litter tray in the utility room & she was fine re noise. Food in kitchen as they won't use a litter tray next to their food. She was itching to get outside so we left her litter tray for a week or so then only had it at night: until she decided she had to be out at night. Tesco pet insurance is mega cheap.Petsathome deliver flea treatment monthly for £4 a month.