Hi from New Westminster, BC

[sharviss]

Hello,

I've been avidly reading this forum for a week now - what a great place for pet information! My husband and I adopted a five year old DSH named Mrs. Potts from the SPCA last month and are very interested in how we can keep her healthy and happy.

Here's a pic:

[hazelrunpack]

Hi, sharviss!

I can tell you've been visiting--you knew how to keep us from bugging you for pictures of the beautiful Mrs Potts!

I love the name "Mrs Potts"!! It suits her well--very dignified. And I can see she's a lover of shoes. She's got beautiful coloring!

There are a lot of knowledgeable cat owners on board, and I'm sure you'll get plenty of good advice! Not from hazel, though...too many dogs around here...

Welcome to the board!!

[sharviss]

Thanks! And yes, I got the perfect cat for me, she seems to love shoes too

[aslan]

welcome Sharviss and Mrs.Potts. Thank you for adopting this little cutie. Yup you know how to keep us happy, post pics immediately.

[Dog Dancer]

Welcome Sharviss and Mrs. Potts (and Mr. Sharviss) from a fellow Lower Mainlander. I don't have cats any longer, but would only say give her the best quality cat food you can afford. There are many very knowledgeable cat folks on here who can help you with that. Can I ask what she's being fed now (and I only say this because you asked how to keep her happy and healthy and the cat folks will be able to help with that if diet is a concern)? Thank you for rescuing an adult cat, there are many benefits to this. She's gorgeous and I'm jealous, I miss my kitties. Oh, and you'd do best at keeping her healthy by keeping her indoors only. It may take her some time to adjust to this if she's used to being outside, but it's definitely better for her in the long run.

[sharviss]

Thank you for the welcome!
Dog Dancer: We are feeding Mrs. Potts Wellness canned food mixed with some Orijen dry food mixed in. I'm trying to transition her to completely wet food but she's very used to kibble so it's gonna be a slow go. I have to mix in bonito flakes too or she'll have no part of it!
Before we got her, I went to PetSmart to buy food. I was super confused by all the options and knew nothing about pet food so I ended up getting Nutro Max. Then, two days after we got her, I brought her to the local vet for a check-up. The vet recommended Science Diet so I had a look at the ingredients and realized that Nutro Max and Science Diet were very similar. I wondered what the deal was with that so I started looking for cat diet info online and at the library. I feel a little more knowledgeable now which is why I want to get her off kibble. Sorry for the long-winded answer
As for the indoor thing - we keep her strictly indoors. She couldn't get outside via our front door if she tried (and she does) as we live on the second floor of a condo building.

[Dog Dancer]

Sounds like you're doing great! As far as I know Wellness and Orijen are both very good foods. I really only know the dog food side of it now though. I had a couple cats many years ago, both were indoor kitties, and while they didn't get this quality of a diet (I was way underinformed back then, and mind you these products didn't exist either), they both lived to be 18 and 17 respectively. Enjoy your kitty she looks so lovely and happy.

[Tundra_Queen]

Hi there. Welcome to the forum!! *waving* Love your kitty!

Debbie