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GENERAL INFORMATION
KITTEN CARE
Below are some quick resources for kitten care. Bringing home your new baby kitten is an exciting time and hopefully we can help you prepare for your new arrival. We will also provide you with a written, more detailed, Kitten Care document for easy review.
NEW KITTEN INTRODUCTION
KITTEN FOOD
At Whiskers Ranch we use a variety if foods to make up your kittens diet. We are careful to choose foods that offer good nutrition for optimal growth and development. We are currently feeding kittens Royal Canin Mother Baby Cat wet food. We also free feed a dry mixture of Iam's Kitten, Fromm Kitten and Royal Canin Mother Baby Cat. We treat all of our kittens and cats with ground up cooked chicken breast. That being said, going forward it doesn't have to be as difficult as it was their first couple of months of life. Please understand that any wet cat food is better than not feeding wet food at all and access to dry food and clean water at all times will suffice.
Your kitten has been prepared and will transition best on any of the following choices of food:
Your kitten will remain on kitten food until one year of age. At that time we feed our adult cat's Taste of the Wild, Rocky Mountain - dry and American Journey Pate Chicken - wet. These happen to be our preferences however, there are a lot of other very good cat food choices available to choose from.
VITAMINS
We use and encourage additional immune support through utilizing Breeders Edge B Strong or NuVet Plus Feline Powder. Either supplement provides a full-spectrum nutritional support that focuses on boosting your pet’s immune system and overall health. It can easily be sprinkled onto dry food and the cats seem to enjoy it.
Ultimately your kittens diet will be determined by both your kitten and you. We can not express enough that an appropriate cat diet will be rewarding in both longevity of life and lower lifetime expenses due to potentially reduced health problems. If and when a cats diet is changed it needs to be gradually done over a 2 week period of time. A kitten or cat will get diarrhea from a diet change.
NEW KITTEN INTRODUCTION
- Acclimate the kitten slowly to it's new environment. Start by keeping it in a smaller area like a bathroom with food, water, scratching post, toys and a litter box. Hold and play with the kitten a lot so that it can get to know you and its new home. Gradually let the kitten out to explore with the opportunity to go back to its safe zone at any time. Before you know it the kitten will be exploring the entire house and feeling secure in its surroundings. This introduction process could take anywhere from 3 to 7 days depending on the kittens personality.
- Other household pet introductions should be done gradually. To start, allow the other pets to smell the new kitten through a closed door. Closely monitor newly introduced pets and always end the initial short visits on a happy note. It usually takes resident pet(s) longer to accept a new member than the new kitten to accept its new friends.
KITTEN FOOD
At Whiskers Ranch we use a variety if foods to make up your kittens diet. We are careful to choose foods that offer good nutrition for optimal growth and development. We are currently feeding kittens Royal Canin Mother Baby Cat wet food. We also free feed a dry mixture of Iam's Kitten, Fromm Kitten and Royal Canin Mother Baby Cat. We treat all of our kittens and cats with ground up cooked chicken breast. That being said, going forward it doesn't have to be as difficult as it was their first couple of months of life. Please understand that any wet cat food is better than not feeding wet food at all and access to dry food and clean water at all times will suffice.
Your kitten has been prepared and will transition best on any of the following choices of food:
- Royal Canin, Mother Baby Cat - Wet and Dry
- Royal Canin, Kitten - Wet and Dry
- Iam's, Kitten - Dry
- Taste of the Wild, Rocky Mountain - Dry
- Fromm Kitten - Dry
Your kitten will remain on kitten food until one year of age. At that time we feed our adult cat's Taste of the Wild, Rocky Mountain - dry and American Journey Pate Chicken - wet. These happen to be our preferences however, there are a lot of other very good cat food choices available to choose from.
VITAMINS
We use and encourage additional immune support through utilizing Breeders Edge B Strong or NuVet Plus Feline Powder. Either supplement provides a full-spectrum nutritional support that focuses on boosting your pet’s immune system and overall health. It can easily be sprinkled onto dry food and the cats seem to enjoy it.
Ultimately your kittens diet will be determined by both your kitten and you. We can not express enough that an appropriate cat diet will be rewarding in both longevity of life and lower lifetime expenses due to potentially reduced health problems. If and when a cats diet is changed it needs to be gradually done over a 2 week period of time. A kitten or cat will get diarrhea from a diet change.
CAT BOXES AND LITTER
We have trained your kitten on Worlds Best corn clumping litter. A non tracking option we enjoy are pine pellets and once the kitten is acclimated you could transition if desired. We purchase our pine pellets from Tractor Supply for just under $6.00 a bag and most places sell Worlds Best Litter, corn clumping litter.
Ragdoll's are large breed cats and enjoy large litter boxes. We prefer a flat pan style litter box with high sides. We use mixing tubs that any home improvement store will carry at a price around $7.00. For smaller areas we enjoy using Frisco High Sided Litter Box EXTRA LARGE and So Phresh Lift-to-Sift Cat Litter Pan EXTRA LARGE. The rule has been one extra litter box per cat count. Example: 1 cat = 2 litter boxes, 3 cats = 4 litter boxes. You will also want to make sure that a litter box is available on each level of a house and keep them far away from their food and water. Cats prefer privacy and would prefer to have their litter box tucked away in a private area if possible.
We have trained your kitten on Worlds Best corn clumping litter. A non tracking option we enjoy are pine pellets and once the kitten is acclimated you could transition if desired. We purchase our pine pellets from Tractor Supply for just under $6.00 a bag and most places sell Worlds Best Litter, corn clumping litter.
Ragdoll's are large breed cats and enjoy large litter boxes. We prefer a flat pan style litter box with high sides. We use mixing tubs that any home improvement store will carry at a price around $7.00. For smaller areas we enjoy using Frisco High Sided Litter Box EXTRA LARGE and So Phresh Lift-to-Sift Cat Litter Pan EXTRA LARGE. The rule has been one extra litter box per cat count. Example: 1 cat = 2 litter boxes, 3 cats = 4 litter boxes. You will also want to make sure that a litter box is available on each level of a house and keep them far away from their food and water. Cats prefer privacy and would prefer to have their litter box tucked away in a private area if possible.
TOYS, SCRATCHERS AND TREES
Kittens and cats love all toys. We have found that ping pong balls and twisted pipe cleaners are very economical and keep them entertained. Tubes and tents are fun for them to run through and the GoCat Da Bird Rod and Feather Cat Toy is a must have activity toy. Either way you will have fun trying different things and watching your ball of joy have a hoot playing with most anything they can find around the house.
It is highly recommended that you invest in taller cat scratching post and place a couple throughout the house. These will meet the inherited need to scratch that every cat has and most importantly save your furniture. They can be found on Amazon for around $20.00.
Cats love to climb and view the scenery from above. If you have the room and the budget, I can tell you that your kitten would absolutely love to have a cat tree. There are a variety of options out there to meet any kittens and purchasers needs.
WATER
It is imperative that your kitten have access to fresh filtered water at all times. Tap water, especially well water, can be home to a great number of indigestible bacteria which is not healthy for kittens. We provide ceramic bowls of water along with water fountains. We fine that every cat is intrigued by the moving water and tends to choose a fountain source of water over any other type. Again there are many choices of drinking fountains out there. The two that we have been pleased with are the Pioneer Pet Stainless Steel Fountain Raindrop Design and the Catit Flower Cat Fountain. Whatever source you choose please change out the water often and sanitize the bowls approximately once a week. If you ever feel that your kitten isn't drinking enough water please try a fountain and start adding some additional water to their wet food.
Kittens and cats love all toys. We have found that ping pong balls and twisted pipe cleaners are very economical and keep them entertained. Tubes and tents are fun for them to run through and the GoCat Da Bird Rod and Feather Cat Toy is a must have activity toy. Either way you will have fun trying different things and watching your ball of joy have a hoot playing with most anything they can find around the house.
It is highly recommended that you invest in taller cat scratching post and place a couple throughout the house. These will meet the inherited need to scratch that every cat has and most importantly save your furniture. They can be found on Amazon for around $20.00.
Cats love to climb and view the scenery from above. If you have the room and the budget, I can tell you that your kitten would absolutely love to have a cat tree. There are a variety of options out there to meet any kittens and purchasers needs.
WATER
It is imperative that your kitten have access to fresh filtered water at all times. Tap water, especially well water, can be home to a great number of indigestible bacteria which is not healthy for kittens. We provide ceramic bowls of water along with water fountains. We fine that every cat is intrigued by the moving water and tends to choose a fountain source of water over any other type. Again there are many choices of drinking fountains out there. The two that we have been pleased with are the Pioneer Pet Stainless Steel Fountain Raindrop Design and the Catit Flower Cat Fountain. Whatever source you choose please change out the water often and sanitize the bowls approximately once a week. If you ever feel that your kitten isn't drinking enough water please try a fountain and start adding some additional water to their wet food.
