this will be one of the best decisions you’ve ever made

The slow blink/closing your eyes while making eye contact. It shows trust.

Also if they are in your lap or close and they stare directly into your eyes close them, open them, slowly scan the room behind them, make eye contact again and slowly close your eyes. It tells the cat that you’ve checked behind them and it’s safe for them to relax. Especially if they’re chilling and a loud noise startles them and they stare at you like “WTF WAS THAT?!”

Pick them up often enough that they get used to it, even if it’s just for 10 seconds. Some cats like to be cradled like a baby, some prefer over the shoulder, find the one they seem most relaxed with and get them used to it doing it with you.

Learn how and where to pick them up by the scruff of their neck. In an emergency situation you might have to do this. It might scare them and be uncomfortable but it’s better than trying to drag them to safety by a limb or god forbid the tail.

Some cats like to climb into things like cabinets or dresser drawers. If you can’t find your kitty check those places before going to bed or leaving the house. Their curiosity can get them stuck in dumb places.

Talk to your cat. Get them used to your voice.

if you’re raising a kitten you want to get it used to being held/touched. gums, paws, claws, etc make sure to start early so vets have an easier time during exams. positively reinforce good behaviors but don’t punish it for bad behavior; try distracting it instead

keep it far away from human food. garlic and onion are both super toxic to cats as an example and are in basically everything

Don’t let them get in the habit of using teeth or claws to play with you. Don’t punish them or anything, but if they start to nibble or scratch go limp and slowly extract your hand or whatever from the situation without triggering them further. Lot of people think it’s cute to let them play with their teeth when their young and then get mad when their cat hunts them when they’re trying to go to bathroom in the middle of the night.

Don’t spend too much on individual toys, you don’t know what they’ll be in to, it depends on the cat. Get a few of different kinds to start. Mine really likes the little fake mice. Almost universally they seem to like the feather wands, the ones with fishing line.

Cats love churu, amazon has the best price I’ve found on the box of 60. My cat is allergic to chicken so be on the look out for that. Before we figured it out he was just about shaving his ass bald. Apparently it’s not that uncommon. Vets had no idea.

Cardboard scratch pads are a must.

The window shelves are amazing, I have one in every room upstairs. They really like being able to see outside and getting up off the floor away from stuff. I like these, suction cups feel sketchy to me

If you get them something and they don’t use it don’t stress about it, just leave it out and they’ll come around. Mine at least it’s almost like he is programmed to do the opposite of what I want him to do. I got him a scratching post and he didn’t use it for almost a year.

GET AN AUTOMATIC FEEDER FOR THE LOVE OF GOD unless you enjoy 3 AM wake ups. We started out just doing the night feeds and letting the feeder get the morning which still worked well to establish a good bond. Now we just let the feeder do its thing.

I agree 1.5 cups is too much food. My 60lb dog eats 2 cups a day. I would advise weighing his food with a scale. My cat eats 40 grams a day and he’s a BIG cat (14 lbs). If you think about it a 4 gram difference is 10% of his intake which is a lot but imperceptible if you aren’t measuring or trying to go by volume.

Enjoy it, I love my cat so much it’s unreal. He’s a menace though. It’s amazing what he gets away with, my dog could only wish lol

Can I pet your cat

One thing I would recommend is putting a little water in whatever dry food you get for them every day. Keeps them hydrated

Also with the food you want high protein low carb. Cats don’t need carbs they need protein and a little fat.

concats!

Contrary to popular thought you can and should train your cat. Cats can learn tricks pretty quickly if you have a good motivation like treats, and the enrichment makes them a lot less likely to act out and shred your furniture. Fun party trick too

SOrry if this is redundant I don’t have it in me to read 50 comments

watch for changes in gum color

For vet visits a hard top-loading carrier is preferred, with enough space for them to lay and turn around but not too much that they slide around in it. Leave it out as a den for them to explore so they get acclimated to it. Most economical I found is whisker city (petsmart brand) at $26

Cats prefer food and water in separate places

Put scratching posts near objects you don’t want them to scratch like couches, similarly put perches next to objects you don’t want them to stand on

As others have pointed out, getting them used to clipping their nails early is important.

This will sound strange, but as cats (and dogs) grow older their teeth tend to degrade (just like humans). I might also recommend a cat toothbrush - they sell chicken flavoured toothpaste. I know that sounds absurd but in the long run your cat will appreciate it.

Also, get them used to going in their carrier. Not only will this help to take them to the vet, but might save their life during an emergency.

If you can avoid it, don’t take your cat on a plane. I did that once and ever since it’s been almost impossible to get her in her carrier, it was traumatizing for her. There was a fire at my apartment building a few years back and I had to frantically get her in her carrier while she was running away from me and hiding and I ended up having to be pretty rough with the poor thing and basically throw her in. We were ok in the end but it could have gone a lot smoother.

Also, avoid having lily flowers in the house at all costs, those fuckin things will kill them.

Congratulations!

Foster kitty parent here.

Keep the cat in the bathroom with the litter box, food and water (all as far from each other as possible) until they use the litter box, both #1 and #2. Then they get access to your place outside of your bedroom. When they’re acquainted with everything, you can try letting them into the bedroom. There’s a chance the cat will fuck with your sleep by divebombing you off the headboard and you’ll have to keep them out of the bedroom. There’s also a chance the cat will howl and howl if kept out of the bedroom and you’ll have to let them in. I’ve never had a cat in the intersection of these two populations but I suppose you could also get one of those, in which case I don’t know what to tell you.

Evenly-spaced meals help with the begging and, in extreme cases, puking from hunger. I tend to feed them at 10 and 10 so I don’t feel guilty sleeping in.

Da Bird is the most popular toy by far. It’s weird to endorse a brand name here of all places, but the only competitor I’ve seen is Kong, a bigger brand name, that gets the string all wrong and the toys don’t fly like birds. Get the breakaway kind so that when the cat catches it, they can drag off half the stick to their victory zone. Make your own if you’re handy.

If kitty needs medicine and doesn’t like it (none of them like it), be very careful not to accidentally condition them. Waiting for the cat to be on your lap before giving the medicine is convenient once, maybe twice if you don’t have the brightest cat. Then they’ll know that your lap is a danger zone and will avoid it. Wait until the same time every night by looking at the clock (no alarms) and finding the cat wherever they are, grabbing them and administering the meds. If you squeeze the cat between you and an armrest, they won’t be able to resist much. Give a treat afterwards but don’t expect the cat to become fully OK with the meds.

Be a total wimp when it comes to the claws. If they claw you, cry out in a high voice and run away like the hurt child you are.

The most popular treats are Churu and dehydrated chicken.

If you have a total floof, they might overheat sitting on your lap – not in a health-damaging way, they’ll just leave after a couple minutes. Put a folded-up blanket on your lap and they’ll stay longer and you can brush them.

It’s easiest to load a cat into an angled carrier, hind legs first – they won’t feel like you’re dropping them into a pit but also won’t be able to effectively use the bottom surface to escape.

Woof

My mom boils chicken breast, no seasoning, then shreds it and freezes it in small portions. She thaws a container overnight every day and feeds the babies. They’re senior cats, all three of them 13 years old, but they’re full of energy. They love their chicken, their fur is soft and shiny and they’re super happy.

you need to get some spray that has eucalyptus and citrus in it to spray shit you need to keep it away from. you can also make your own spray with like cayenne. cats really hate the smell of eucalyptus and citrus and also don’t fuck with spicy tastes, so it can help a lot with a kitty that wants to nibble on the cords.

if you decide you don’t like clay litters, or your cat has a bad response to it, you can go to a farm supply store and get a bag of pine pellets like for horse barns. very cheap per volume, works pretty well as litter.

it is possible for a cat to be allergic to plastic, and that allergy will probably look like little kitty hives that they scratch at. the skin would be raised. same goes for some cat allergies.

food portions are depending on cat’s weight

It’s better to split the food like 3/4 of a cup in the morning and 3/4 of a cup in the evening with treats

definitely do some math based on your cats food, that amount by volume seems high for dry food. you seem to already know this though, this is something the vet will be able to help you with, especially if you ask.

Use Purina Pro Plan Urinary for adult cats. It’s at Petsmart, but little pricey. Other options available. Just give them 1/3 of dry (AM/PM) and split one can amongst the three. Cats eating habits differ.

that’s basically what i do for my 3 cats.

cat behavior is really different than dog behavior. the basic social relation a cat has with you is to see you as a surrogate mother. their typical behaviors tend to be related to that. learning how to communicate will make them more comfortable and confident in your home and with you.

if your cat is too destructive, they might genuinely benefit from a friend. cats are social and kittens especially have a ton of energy they need to get by play hunting and running around. my anecdotal experience is that my first ~1.5 yo cat calmed down a lot after i got my second cat.

there are certain different things cats can’t eat. like dogs, can’t eat chocolates or grapes. also really really can’t eat any alliums, e.g. onion, garlic, shallot, etc.