Three Tips for Creating a Cat-Friendly Home

Three Tips for Creating a Cat-Friendly Home

            Cats make wonderful pets and companions; however, they do require certain things to keep them happy and to reduce stress. Cats are not well adapted to change, so keeping a routine and providing some things in the home to reduce stress and provide enrichment are key to giving your indoor cat a good life!

•  Environment:  Cats can be territorial and so it is imperative, especially in a multi-cat household, to provide privacy and space.  Vertical space such as a cat tree or mounted shelf on a windowsill or wall are key to giving cats a feeling of more space and territory.  Privacy and places to hide are also important to cats—boxes, covered beds or other “hideaways” will give cats a sense of security and control in the home.
• Resource management:  A single cat is unlikely to have issues if he or she knows where food, water and litter boxes are located and these stations do not change or move.  With multiple cats, it can be a bit trickier.  It is important to have multiple resources—multiple food and water bowls, perhaps spread out in a few areas if you have more than three cats, and, multiple litter boxes that are scooped clean daily.  It is recommended to have one more litter pan than the number of cats in the home to avoid house soiling.
• Provide environmental enrichment and positive interactions with both humans and other pets in the home.  Cats need interactive toys and may especially like hunting-type behaviors or foraging toys as well as scratching posts to provide an outlet for natural cat behaviors.  Spend time with your cats but don’t force interactions with humans or other pets.  Cats have a keen sense of smell and rely on scent cues in the home for harmony.  Disrupting scent cues can lead to unwanted behaviors, so avoid strongly scented aerosol sprays, scented litters and strong cleaning solutions and consider use of feline pheromone products to reduce stress. 

Following these guidelines can provide a sense of safety and a calm atmosphere for our feline friends to enjoy their best lives!  Remember to provide vertical space and hiding places, interactive toys, multiple food bowls and litter pans and environmental enrichment for your cats to reduce stress and lower the chance of behavior issues, especially when there are multiple pets in the household.

            This blog brought to you by the Patton Veterinary Hospital serving Red Lion, York and the surrounding communities.

https://www.morrisanimalfoundation.org/article/how-to-create-healthy-indoor-environment-your-cat