Caring For Your New Kitten... 

Why kitten shots?
Your new kitten ingested natural maternal antibodies while nursing. Over a 6-12 week period, these antibodies diminish until the kitten is no longer adequately protected from diseases. Booster vaccines given every 2-3 weeks make sure that we can help your kitten build up their own immunity. After the booster series are given your pet then can move to an annual vaccine schedule keeping them healthy throughout their lives. Throughout the first year monitor your pet's behavior to see if they are interested in going outdoors or trying to escape to the outdoors. If they are then you will want to continue the Feline Leukemia(Felv)vaccine yearly. If they are not interested in the outdoors and you plan to keep them indoors for life, you can opt to discontinue the Felv vaccine.

Vaccination Schedule: (based on your kitten's age)
6 weeks - Felv/FIV test, FV4 #1,Fecal Float, and Deworming
9 weeks - FV4 #2, Felv #1, Deworming
12 weeks - FV4 #3, Felv #2, Deworming
15 weeks - FV4 3yr, Rabies 1yr, Fecal Float, Deworming

***At 4-6 months of age, it's time to spay or neuter you pet. If considering declawing, it is best to have done at the same time of spay/neuter.
***Begin heartworm and flea preventative at first visit.
***Intestinal Parasites: Intestinal parasites are life forms that live in the intestinal tract of other living beings (the host). The parasites may injure the lining of the intestinal tract as they sap the nutrients from the host's tissues or the intestinal contents. This weakens the host from tissue injury, diarrhea, blood loss, loss of vital nutrients, dehydration, and shock. If the parasite is allowed to flourish without interruption,the host may become weakened enough to die. The CDC recommends dewormings every 2 weeks until the cat reaches 16 weeks of age. Monthly heartworm prevention for life will control intestinal parasites.

Feeding
A. Kittens need to be fed 2-3 times a day or have dry food left out at all times.
B. Use premium kitten food, such as Royal Canin, Iams, or Purina. Change to adult food when they get spayed/neutered and try to use the same brand from kitten to adult.
C. Use cat's regular food fed from your hand as a treat as they crave the attention more than the food. This will help keep them fit and trim.

Litter Training
A. Clay litter vs. other litters - kittens have a tendancy to eat the clay litter so try to use the finer scoopable litter.
B. Provide a hooded or open litter box or automatic/self-cleaning litter box in a private place that is easily accessible for your kitten. You should have 1 box per cat plus one. A lot of cats like to use one litter box for urine and the other for bowel movements. This will also help prevent inappropriate urination.
C. Keep taking kitten to the litter box to show them where it is, give a treat when uses litter box correctly.
D. Scoop litter daily and fully change clean box weekly.

Training
A. Hold paws, touch in ears, touch in mouth and on gums, and open mouth and look inside. You will need to do all of these exercises daily in order for your pet to get used to being handled.
B. Use squirt gun or loud noise for negative response to unwanted behavior.
C. No aggressive behavior should be accepted: a firm no or stop should be used.
D. Socialize your kitten and let them play with children and strangers and meet other pets as often as possible

Grooming
A. If you have a medium or long haired cat, you will need to brush daily or at least every other day to prevent matting. Nail trims should be done every 4-6 weeks to prevent ingrown toenails. This will also help your pet get used to getting handled on a regular basis.
B. Use a monthly Heartworm preventative and Flea Preventative to prevent these and other parasites. We sell Advantage,Advantage Multi, Heartgard Plus, Frontline Plus, and Capstar at our facility.
C. You can use either a slicker brush or the Furminator to brush your cat. There are many different styles of nail trimmers available at your local pet store. Any are sufficient, it just depends on what kind you work with the best.

General Recommendations
A. Collar or harnes - if you use a collar, make sure it is one that can un-snap easily in case your cat gets caught by a forein object such as a tree limb or household item.
B. Carrier - use a carrier that your pet can stand and turn in a full circle comfortably. Always use a carrier to transport your pet so that passing cars do not spook them into running away.
C. Food and water bowls - use stainless steel food and water bowls and wash weekly to prevent bacterial infections on your pet's chin. Ceramic, glass, and plastic bowls are all porus and hold bacteria.
D. Toys, scratching post - make sure your pet stays occupied with light-weight toys and scratching posts. Each cat's preference is different for scratching posts - either verticle or horizontal. This will help prevent them from scratching the furniture.