As a cat sitting business owner it didn’t seem fair that I didn’t have a cat of my own. For years my husband said no but then we saw a huge rat and I said what a good idea it would be to have a cat to take care of the rats! He gave in.
Off to the Seattle Humane Society I went. There were lots of kittens to choose from but I chose a little white and grey tabby with a deformed foot. I named him Hunter on the way home because that’s what he was going to be, the great mouse and rat killer. Of course as soon as my husband saw him he knew that cat was never going outdoors. And he was right no hunting for Hunter (at least outside) so we renamed him Jax.
Ok, so what is I’ve learned?
1. Don’t bother buying to many toys. He makes his own fun with what he finds around the house. Jax loves empty boxes.
2. He need some place high to escape the dogs, that means expensive cat tree.
3. He love windows. I’ll never have clean windows again. It use to be nose prints from the dogs but now it’s paw prints for the cat trying to get at what ever he sees.
4. He is expensive to feed. I can feed 3 dogs for the price of 1 cat!
5. He claws my furniture. He has a very unhappy mommy over this and now he gets to wear some pretty rubber claw caps.
6. He doesn’t listen to me. I’ve tried to raise him like a dog but it’s just not working.
7. He desperately wants outside. This is a challenge since we have a dog door. He’s learned to use it so we built a cover but he’s learned to slide it open. Obviously he can’t read, it clearly states this door is for Schnauzers only!
8. He is very particular about his litter boxes. I must be supervised while scooping and then he needs to critique my work.
9. He loves his doggy brothers and sister. They do not love him back.
10. If there’s a hiding spot he will find it. For some reason he responds to “where’s my cat” instead of his name. As long as he comes I don’t care how I call him.
I’ve only had him since mid August so I will be learning many more things along the way.
As a relatively new cat owner, I’d love to hear your cat care tips and suggestions.