Furry bundles of trouble and joy! (Cats in General)

Member Name: eilidhcatriona

Product:	Cats in General
Date:	16/08/09 (88 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Affectionate and playful companions

Disadvantages: Losing them

So many people say that dogs have more personality than cats. In my experience, this is just not true - of course dogs have personality, but so do cats! I got my first cat at the age of 7, and since then, aside from a couple of years when living in halls and a flatshare at uni, I've always had at least one cat in my home and I can't imagine life without them now.

Cats are, on the whole, easy to look after. They don't require walkies like dogs, they wash themselves and you don't have to follow them around outside with a pooper scooper (you can if you want though...). Firstly, I want to go through all the practicalities of owning a cat.

In terms of food, there is a wide choice available on the market, and what you buy can be tailored to your budget and your cat's dietary needs and tastes. Personally I like to feed my cat a mainly dry diet, as this is better for their dental health than a diet of wet food, but some cats just won't have this and want wet food all the time. You can also buy treats, little cat sweets which come in lots of different flavours and types. I always ensure that my cat has a bowl full of fresh water, and a very important point to note is that milk (whether cows milk or special cat milk) is NOT a substitute for water, it is full of fat and is therefore a food/treat. It is hydrating, but don't put out a bowl of food along with a bowl of milk. Interestingly, I've discovered that my cat is rather partial to mineral water - when I've had an unfinished bottle bought whilst out and about, I pour it into his bowl and he adores it. Note: cats do not require mineral water, tap water will suffice!!!

My cat Snoopy is an indoor cat. Some people don't understand this, and think it is cruel. I disagree. I live in a busy area of London, and before that, when I got Snoopy, I lived on a very busy main road in Aberdeen. My then-partner and I made the decision to raise Snoopy as an indoor cat, both for safety and to keep our other indoor cat company. As long as a cat is raised as an indoor cat from birth, there is no problem - but you can't take a cat used to going outside and keep it indoors. Nowadays, Snoopy has the run of a good sized one bedroom flat, he has windowsills to sit on and all the attention from me that he could want.

One important point about indoor cats is that you obviously have to provide a litter tray. You can also provide this for outdoor cats as well, it really depends on the cat - a friend of mine does this for her two outdoor cats, but my parents don't for theirs. The litter tray should be positioned somewhere reasonably peaceful, as cats do prefer a little peace and privacy when doing their business! It should be easily accessible for them, and I would ensure you put newspapers underneath it as accidents can happen. Unless you have no option, I would place it on hard floors, i.e. in a kitchen or utility area, as this makes it easier to clean accidents and sweep up stray litter. I use ultra-clumping litter for Snoopy (Sainsburys is best), as this clumps in a "floating" manner and makes it very easy to scoop waste out of the tray without it disintegrating. It is also very fine, so doesn't leave the floor covered in nasty big stones!

Cats require annual vaccinations to keep them protected against a number of nasty diseases, including feline influenza and feline leukaemia. A boarding cattery will not accept to care for a cat if it does not have an up to date vaccination certificate. These are essential to keep your outdoor cat healthy, but perhaps not so necessary for an indoor cat. If an indoor cat has any contact with outdoor cats, you must have them vaccinated, and if you will put them in a cattery when away, again you must have the vaccinations done. An initial course of vaccinations requires two doses three weeks apart, and then it is another week before they are effective, so it takes a month for a cat to be protected the first time it has the vaccinations. A booster is done annually, and is only one dose.

Spaying/neutering is a choice you need to make about your cat. If you adopt a kitten or an unneutered adult, it is something to consider. Personally, I would always have my cats done. The only reason not to is if you want to breed. Neutered males tend to calm down, and spayed females don't have to suffer going into heat every few weeks. It is the responsible thing to do with outdoor cats, as it avoids there being unwanted kittens. Snoopy was neutered at 6 months, and I believe this cost around £120, but that was four and a half years ago.

Cats are very playful creatures, and love to interact with humans and other cats, or even to play on their own. Snoopy loves to play with a feather waggler toy, which is basically some feathers on the end of a bendy plastic stick - I wave the stick for him, and he tries to catch it. He also loves to chase bits of string. However, he can amuse himself quite happily - my flat is strewn with foam balls, catnip shrimp and spangly mice, which he stalks and then throws around. He also loves his scratching post, which helps keep his claws in check, and has a ball hanging on it for him to play with.

Many insurers offer cat insurance. This is something which I would recommend - vet bills can be expensive, and if your cat is injured or ill, you will want them to get better, and having insurance can ease the financial burden. Snoopy's insurance is £10 a month, and well worth it - if he were to get ill, I would find a way to pay the bills, but this means that if he does get ill, I won't have to worry about the cost. Some insurers however only offer to pay for the first 12 months of treatment for a condition, and of course some illnesses such as diabetes or arthritis are treatable but longterm, so I would advise looking at insurers which offer cover for life, such as Petplan.

Cost-wise, I don't find caring for Snoopy to be terribly expensive. I feed him Hills dry food, which is at the more expensive end of the price range, and wet pouches a few times a week. Add to this his litter, treats, toys and vet care/insurance, and I would say that, unless he requires particular treatment (recently he had teeth removed), in an average month I spend about £30 on him, and he is worth every penny.

My first cat was Tigger, who we adopted from a woman moving abroad when I was 7 years old. I think Tigger was about 2 years old at the time. He was a beautiful big white and tabby cat, and as my dad always fondly says, he was "a real cat". He was so friendly and playful, but he would not stand for any other cats in his garden, and promptly chased them away! He was king of the neighbourhood. Sadly, he was run over when I was 12 years old. I was devastated - he was my first pet.

A few months after Tigger died, we went to the local cat shelter with the intention of adopting another cat. We came home with two! Zazu was a very shy little black cat, about 10 months old, and Tikka was a large ginger, about 18 months old. Zazu was a funny wee thing, with short legs and a gigantic tail and ears. He was incredibly affectionate, and rarely strayed beyond the garden. When my mum was off work ill for a long time, he liked nothing better than to curl up beside her on the bed - which shows how special he was, my parents didn't like cats in the bedrooms. Sadly, Zazu was also hit by a car, aged only 5 years old. He is still missed today. His "brother", Tikka, is now 15 years old and as happy as ever. He is an incredibly docile cat, and is ridiculously laid back - he pays no attention to the parade of neighbourhood cats trailing through the garden, and even ignores them when they come into the kitchen! Recently he has been paying attention to a family of hedgehogs which have moved into the garden, but it's only a passing glance - he hasn't yet stirred himself into action. He goes nuts in high winds - and this otherwise slow and relaxed cat starts flying up trees and shooting across the lawn at top speed.

Whilst I lived with my former partner, we had three cats - Snoopy, and two female calicos. Those two girls are among the sweetest natured cats I have ever known, and the best of friends - they even look almost identical, we are the only ones who can tell them apart!

Snoopy was 8 weeks old when we adopted him. He was a farm cat by birth, and only a few days after he and his siblings were born, his mother was killed by some farm machinery. Fortunately the litter was found, and raised in the farmhouse kitchen. Snoopy was the runt, and at 8 weeks old was still tiny, the size of a normal 4 week old. He was chock full of personality and purrs though, and wasted no time exploring his new home. He was completely black when he came to us, but over the next few months he changed colour and back again - he went a funny grey/silver colour for a while, and actually had monkey-like markings on his face! Fortunately that was some sort of strange growth thing, and he is now black again.

Snoopy is now 5 years old, and a troublemaker! When he was tiny we let him chase our hands as his claws and teeth were so soft, and as a result he has grown up thinking it's ok to bite hands - this is an annoying habit I have never managed to break him of, but I accept that it is my fault. He loves to knock things off bookcases and tables, and then look at me like he is the cleverest cat in the world. In the flat I have now, I have venetian blinds on the window, which Snoopy likes to play with - at first I thought he was rattling them to be annoying, then as I watched I realised he was pulling the bars down so he could see out clearly! Things like that show his intelligence, but he swiftly dispels the notion that he's a bright cat by bumping his head on the coffee table! He is very enthusiastic in his litter tray, digging away busily, but never manages to cover his business, he just throws litter all over the kitchen floor!

He is a very boisterous cat, and loves playing and running around the flat. We have hours of fun together, but he also loves to relax with me on a Sunday afternoon on the sofa, as I do some writing or chill out with a good book. Right now he's curled up beside me, snoring away (yes I have a snoring cat). He has helped me through some rough times in my life, and when I am down, he seems to know this, and isn't all bouncy, but comes to curl up on my lap, purring and gazing up at me. Snoopy is my companion, and I wouldn't be without him.

Summary: My favourite pets