Cat Care
New to cats, or bringing home a kitten? The new kitten checklist covers what to buy and set up before day one, and it works for adult cats too. For a job many cats resist, how to get a cat used to a carrier builds up in small steps so vet day starts calmly.
To save the sofa, how to get a cat to use a scratcher explains where to put one and how to make it the easy choice. More cat guides sit in the other topics, from brushing schedules to winter warmth and car trips. The scratcher, litter mat and other basics mentioned are in indoor cat essentials.
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How-to
How to Make Vet Visits Less Stressful for Your Cat, Start to Finish
A calmer vet visit for a nervous cat, from booking a quiet time and lining a top-opening carrier to waiting in the car, an exam in or beside the carrier, pre-visit medication and the other cat who hisses when you get home.
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How-to
How to Keep a Cat Calm With House Guests: A Retreat Room Plan
Guests bring noise, new smells and doors that keep opening. Here is a host’s plan for your cat: a retreat room set up a week ahead, play and a meal before the doorbell, what to tell visitors, overnight stays, suitcases and visiting dogs, and the stress signs that need a veterinarian.
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Comparison
Indoor vs Outdoor Cats: Risks, Benefits and the Middle Ground
Indoor-only, supervised, daytime or free outdoor access? Compare all four on safety, disease, wellbeing, weight and wildlife, see which cats suit each, and learn how to move an outdoor cat indoors gradually.
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How-to
How to Introduce a New Cat to Your Cat: A Step-by-Step Plan
A staged plan for adding a cat to a home that already has one, from a transition room and scent swaps to sightings and short supervised meetings, with how long each stage takes, the body language to watch and what to do if it goes wrong.
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Guide
How to Reduce Cat Shedding: A Brushing Plan and What’s Normal
You can't stop a healthy cat from shedding, but you can brush out more of the loose hair before it lands on the sofa. Why indoor cats shed all year, how to tell shedding from overgrooming, a brushing plan by coat and the right tool for each.
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How-to
How to Clean a Cat Without a Bath, From Sticky Fur to Messy Bottoms
A cat with one dirty patch or a messy rear end rarely needs a bath. Brush first, spot-clean with a damp cloth, soften soiled fur instead of pulling it, keep wipes for people and scented products off the coat, and know when a veterinarian or a real bath is the better call.
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How-to
How to Clean a Cat Carrier After an Accident and Get the Smell Out
A cat that pees, vomits or soils the carrier needs a cleanup that removes the smell, not just the stain. Taking the carrier apart, enzyme cleaner for urine, washing soft-sided, backpack and hard carriers by the label, drying it fully, and lining it for the next trip.
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How-to
How to Help a Cat Adjust to a New Home After Moving
A settling plan that starts at the new front door: what goes in the base room, how arrival day and hiding should go, why the old bed and litter stay, when to open more rooms, how to secure doors and screens, how long settling takes and when to call your veterinarian.
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Comparison
H-Style vs Vest Cat Harness: Which Is Harder to Slip and Easier to Fit
An H-style harness is two light, adjustable loops; a vest wraps more of the body in fabric. See which is harder to slip out of and why fit matters more than style, how each goes on, which suits kittens, nervous cats and warm days, and how to check the fit of either.
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Guide
Cats and Kids: Teaching Gentle Hands and Giving Your Cat an Escape
House rules for a family with a cat: how children should approach, stroke and pick up a cat, toys instead of hands, the child-free room and high escape routes your cat needs, the signs it wants to be left alone, supervision by age and first aid after a scratch or bite.
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Checklist
Cat Sitter Checklist: Preparing Your Cat, Home and Sitter for a Trip
What to settle before a cat sitter takes over: how many visits to book, a meet-and-greet and trial visit, a one-page care sheet, vet consent and emergency contacts, supplies with spare days, a litter routine a sitter can keep, and the days you leave and come home.
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Comparison
Should a Cat Wear a Collar or a Harness? ID, Outings and Safety
A collar and a harness do different jobs for a cat: a snap-open collar carries an ID tag, and a harness is the only safe place to clip a leash. Compare their safety rules and fit, see why a registered microchip is the ID every cat needs, and find out whether an indoor-only cat needs either.
