Hello there my name is Kate from case pet corner and today we're going to be
discussing a very important topic which is how to keep an indoor cat happy and
healthy there are many many reasons that owners choose to keep their cats indoors and what I believe is important is that the decision has been made with the caps best interest at heart and the owner does all that they can to ensure that their cat is kept happy and healthy cats are highly intelligent animals and those
are kept exclusively in doors will need to be provided with an enriched and
stimulating environment they don't become bored or stressed indoor only cats will also need extra resources such as litter trays and scratching posts topics that we will be covering include how to make feeling time more challenging playtime sessions grooming a cat grass litter trays scratching posts a variety
of resting places cat dvds clicker training and walking your cat on a leash
and harness these suggestions are not just for indoor cats some of them can also be applied to cats are allowed outdoors my fast suggestion is to make feeding time more challenging your domestic cats wild ancestors had to hunt which is both mentally and physically stimulating also extending the amount of time that your cat spent feeding can help prevent boredom
you can try hiding their food around the room to do this split their meal into a
few dishes and while your cat is out of the room hide their food and various locations let your cat into the room and at first guide them to where the food is hidden once they get used to this new concept they can start to find the food on their own
you can also use healthy treats instead
another idea is to try interactive food and treat dispenses this method of feeding involves your cat using some basic problem solving skills in order to access their food I have three favorite interactive food and treat dispenses first is the slim cap by petsafe it is filled with food as your cat pushes the ball around with
their paws food falls out of the holes
second is the mad scientist by Trixie you play streets in the plastic test tubes and when your cat swipes and they spin in the treats fall out they then have to retrieve the treats from between the spines that is stimulated by eyeq this involves high food inside the tubes and there are varying heights of tubes for varying levels of difficulty
don't forget to monitor their feed intake to make sure they're not eating
too much or too little for example if you are hiding their food you must check afterwards to make sure that they have found at all daily playtime sessions are also really important for some bonding time of your cap as well as exercise interactive fishing rod type toys such as the cap charmer and the bird are the best when it comes to interactive playtime toys
that you can move around and encourage a cap to hunt and pats on other most
exciting however some of these toys have stringy bits so they should only be played with under your supervision as cats have been known to swallow them when left unattended it is also a good idea to regularly groom your cat
especially long-haired cats not only does grooming help prevent the bowls and
keep your cat's coat healthy and help prevent having cat hair all over your house is also a chance for you and your cap to spend some time together many cats will also enjoy the attention and the pampering cat grass many cats both wild and domesticated seem to enjoy eating grass although the reason for this behavior and not yet fully understood
there are several theories grass contains fiber that may help with their
digestion the roughage may help the move hair they have swallowed while grooming themselves through the digestive tract grass main juice vomiting would help cats expel indigestible matter such as hair they have swallowed while grooming themselves their digestive systems are not designed to process grass with some minerals and vitamins may leak out of the grass juices or it could be that
they simply like the crunchy feel and sweet taste of grass
although there is there evidence that cats need grass if a cat cannot go outdoors and obtain grass and it may be best to provide them with some so they at least have a choice you can either buy pre growing grass or you can grow it yourself grow yourself can be a fun project especially if you have children litter trays are essential
although this is common sense that are a variety of things that you can do to
ensure that your cat is happy with the literature is that you have provided i recommend that you follow the one each plus one rule every tax should have their own astray then you should also have an extra one so if you have one cat you should have two strays and if you have four cats you should have fired at ray's cats should
not be expected to share litter trays
make sure the litter trays are in a quiet location away from where they eat i recommend litter trays with a cover as cats tend to like some privacy while they're doing their business make sure the litter tray is spacious so that your cut doesn't have to step on any old eliminations that you've not had a chance to remove i would recommend to
remove all the eliminations daily and give it a thorough clean once a week
most cats preferred letter that it's fine grained like sound and is unscented however each cat is an individual will have their own own personal preference my favorite litter tray is the critique jumbo hooded literary it is spacious cover for privacy and is easy to clean with a carbon filter to remove odors scratching posts are also an essential item
scratching is a completely natural behavior and if you don't want your
furniture and or carpet to be destroyed then you must buy your cat scratching post cats have scent glands on their paws and will scratch to mark their territory as well as to remove old course she's they also enjoy having a scratch in order to stretch out their spines and work their shoulder muscles as for the litter trays
it is also important to follow the one each plus one rule at all and steady
scratching post is also important as cats want to scrap something that they can use to stretch out their spine and offers in some resistance i highly recommend this smart cat ultimate scratching post since his stylish tool steady high quality and very reasonably priced I also like the dope at Club country has not only does it provide a place your
cat scratch it also provides excellent environmental enrichment for more
information on cat scratching please watch my video on how to get your cat to only scratch the scratching post my next tip is to provide a variety of resting places up high cats like places where they can spy on the rest of the world and when they feel secure
I think cat shelves such as the cat cloud or a fantastic idea
not only do they provide a place your cat to rest but you can also use them as stepping stones your cat to access places higher up such as a top of the Wardrobe radiator beds snug radiator beds make really warm and cozy sleeping areas especially during the winter months window perches window perches make ideal resting places many cats like
to have a spot where they can watch what's going on outside the kitty cart
is perfect for this and it mounts to the window using giant suction cups ideally your cat should also have a private place where they can rest and not be to step when they want some quiet time cat dvds it's true there are dvds that exist are having produced especially for cats
they tend to have a lot of little critters such as birds rodents and bugs
running across the screen will have some cats mesmerised it's not for every cat but some really enjoy it just make sure that pounds on the TV and knock it over quicker training believe it or not you can train cats to do tricks some cats respond really well where some are not so interested
it's a great way to spend some bonding time together and keep your cat both
mentally and physically stimulated it sounds like something you might be interested in i recommend this clicker training start to get it includes a quicker and easy-to-follow training book and dehydrated fish treats walking your cat on a leash and harness if your cat is looking longingly out of the window and
you would like to start taking them outdoors under your supervision been
training them to walk on a leash and harness could be your ideal solution the key to getting them used to being on a leash and harness is to go really slowly and to ideally introduce it to them while they're still a kitten first getting used to being on only the harness well indoors and then gradually getting used to being on both the harness and need only once they are
comfortable walking on the leash and harness indoors
should you attempt to go outdoors this idea is not for everyone but some cats and then owners really love it it is worth considering if you would like to adopt a sibling pair so they can keep each other company although possible introducing a second cat later on can be complicated and will
depend on each individual situation
thank you so much for listening if you have any questions and please leave them in the comments section below and please give this video a thumbs up if you found it helpful
