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Old April 25th, 2009, 01:19 PM
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sugarcatmom sugarcatmom is offline
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Join Date: May 2007
Location: Calgary, AB
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Quote:
Originally Posted by WantingToLearn View Post
As most of you know, I'm getting a kitten from the SPCA. I was going to get one from kijiji, but I decided to go with the SPCA because then kitten would have had all it's shots, been de-wormed, vaccinated, and spayed or neutered.


Quote:
Originally Posted by WantingToLearn View Post
I've bought 20 cans of Friskie' cat food, half a can a week as a treat and I'm getting the litter pan and carrier in a week.
There are better foods than Friskies, which tends to be full of poor quality by-products and grains. You might want to find some Wellness, Innova Evo 95%, Nature's Variety, Precise, Natural Balance, By Nature, Merricks, .....

Quote:
Originally Posted by WantingToLearn View Post
TidyCats Small Spaces has gotten rave reviews. Anyone else use this brand?
My personal choice is to not to use clay litters, since it isn't good for the environment and even when they say dust-free, it never is. There are a number of plant-based litters using corn or wheat or even newspaper that you could look into. Here is a previous thread on the topic: http://www.pets.ca/forum/showthread....ght=cat+litter
The one thing I would emphasize though, with whatever litter you choose, is to make sure it doesn't have any added scents.

Quote:
Originally Posted by WantingToLearn View Post
I'm going to line the litter pan and this will make emptying it much easier.
Most cats don't like the liners, and they can actually trap odours. Here is a link on litter box maintenance I recommend reading: http://www.catinfo.org/litterbox.htm

Quote:
Originally Posted by WantingToLearn View Post
About the food. What do I feed? I don't think that the wet food daily is good....which is why half a can a week is the treat. But isn't dry also pretty bad. I'm on a student budget and I want to make sure that kitten is well fed and healthy. What brands are good?
Wet food is the only thing cats should be eating. Dry food is completely inappropriate in ingredients, texture, and moisture level. This link has some good info on feline nutrition and how to pick a commercial canned food: www.catinfo.org Spending more on food will save money in vet costs in the long run, trust me.

Quote:
Originally Posted by WantingToLearn View Post
Also, how often should kitten be fed or will the SPCA go over that with me when I pick it up?
Kittens should eat several times a day, or free-fed if you can't be home to do that. And yes, you can free-feed canned food.

Pictures, when you do pick up your new kitty, will of course be mandatory.
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