Cloth Diapering

Cat owners

This is not a cd question. Sorry I'm chock full of random today

What is a good natural odor elimanating litter?

We are getting Buddy a kitten next month. Kitten proofing? It's going to be an indoor cat. I grew up with outdoor only pets.

What's a good breed for kids? We aren't going to a breeder or anything but definitely looking for a general idea of cats to avoid or types to go for.
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Re: Cat owners

  • lbonga1lbonga1 member

    I've had indoor cats since I was about 3 years old. My first cat was a persian, and he was very mellow. You have to be diligent about grooming them though. Then I found 5 two day old kittens in a bush that appeared to have been deserted. 3 passed away from malnutrition and health issues, but my mom still has the other 2...I'm pretty sure they're birman mixed with something. They've been my favorite cats so far (so soft too!) Now I have a cat that I adopted from a friend since she was going to take him to the pound...I think he's a tabby mixed with a siamese...I wouldn't recommend for a kid. He's very high maintenance and always needs attention.

    I would recommend declawing the front paws. I know some people are against it, but kitten claws are very sharp, and they don't control them very well when they're young. And that way they won't scratch up your furniture too. And for the cat litter I highly recommend Tidy Cats Pure Nature. It's made with cedar, pine, and corn, and it smells really good. I just switched to it recently, and even though it's a few more dollars than normal cat litter I think it's definitely worth it. Just get a mat to put in front of the litter box so the cat doesn't track it all over.

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  • jojobrnjojobrn member

    We use regular old clumping litter, mostly because our older cat was not a fan of a couple of more natural liters we tried, but if you start with a kitten, that should hopefully not be an issue.

    Get things for the kitty to scratch on, we have a post, ours prefer it to the cardboard thingies. We trim their claws regularly, just to keep the needles from jabbing us.

    Breed wise, we have regular old cats, from the shelter.  A younger cat will be more likely to be cool with kiddos, our old man is so-so with the baby, middle cat still is mad at me for bringing her home, and little one doesn't seem to know what is up. She will jump in my lap while I am BFing and is like "oh, what, this is a little version of you! great! Gotta go!" *woosh*

    Cats are fun, we are crazy animal people though and have the 3 cats  and 2 dogs and love them to death.

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  • jojobrnjojobrn member
    imagelbonga1:

    I would recommend declawing the front paws. I know some people are against it, but kitten claws are very sharp, and they don't control them very well when they're young. 

    The reason most people are against it is because it is akin to cutting off the ifrst joint of all your fingers. If you trim the claws and give them something besides your furniture to claw on, they will. OUrs love the scratching post and if they come near our couch, we make a loud noise to spook them and they run away. My couch is intact.

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  • lbonga1lbonga1 member
    imagejojobrn:
    imagelbonga1:

    I would recommend declawing the front paws. I know some people are against it, but kitten claws are very sharp, and they don't control them very well when they're young. 

    The reason most people are against it is because it is akin to cutting off the ifrst joint of all your fingers. If you trim the claws and give them something besides your furniture to claw on, they will. OUrs love the scratching post and if they come near our couch, we make a loud noise to spook them and they run away. My couch is intact.

    Ouch, I didn't know that. It was always my parents' decision to declaw, and the cat I have now was declawed when I got him. But he loves to rub his paws on random things anyway. 

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  • TJ1979TJ1979 member
    I have a Siamese and he is great with LO. In fact, Siamese are known for being very even tempered with children. And their claws retract further than other breeds which is helpful on the great claw debate.
    We use something called magic cat. It's been way better than the big name brands.
    TTC with PCOS since November 2009
    IUI#1 Femara/Ovidrel (cd 3-7) = BFP, m/c
    IUI#2 Femara/Ovidrel (cd 5-9) = BFN
    IUI#3 Femara/Ovidrel (cd 3-7) = BFP!
    beta #1 11/23 = 270, P4 = 75
    beta #2 11/28 = 2055
    Our daughter E was born 7/29/2012!
    Surprise, our 2nd daughter P was born 5/22/14!
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  • We use pine shavings for litter...and it works great!

    as for the great claw debate, our cats are declawed because my old apartment required all cats to be declawed...so iI just found two kitties who had been declawed and needed a home...one from a friend and one from a shelter

    as for a breed...i've had cats my whole life and most of them, especially if you get them as kittens, if they are raised with love they'll return the love. If you look at shelter cats, the ones that are still super lovey in the cages are pretty much all super lovey out of the cages. The more reserved cats can be personality hit or miss...my most recent cat was a reserved kitty and is extremely neurotic but we got her as a companion to our current cat and she is doing well...
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  • Really any litter is good if you clean it daily. I use a regular clumping litter, scoop it every other day and clean the litter pan once a month or so and have no issues with smell. It's just like your toilet, if you don't flush it or clean it, it's going to smell.

    I work at a shelter and have worked with animals for years. There's really no "breed" that's good with cats. Siamese can be more high maintenance, Main Coons/Rag Dolls can be more laid back, but I've had your typical house cats my whole life and some are good with kids and some aren't. It's more based on their personality than their breed, just like dogs, people, or anything else.

    When people ask me about adoption, I always recommend people to get an older (by older I just mean over 1 year) cat when it comes to kids. This is because kittens can be very rambunctious, more likely to claw and bite. They may be smaller but their baby teeth and claws are very sharp and can just as likely hurt a child. I have 3 adult cats and keep their nails trimmed and they have never once hurt DD or anybody. One plays rough with me, and likes to wrestle but never puts her claws out. Also adults are more prone to get up and walk away if they are bothered or scared, kittens think everything is play, and always play rough until they learn better which they often don't being away from their litters.

    Coming from a shelter I guess my view on declawing should be self explanitory. I'm mainly against it (aside from the type of procedure it is) because I see house cats accidentaly get outside all the time and they have no defence from the outside world and often end up very injured. At the very least I'd never declaw all 4 so they have some type of defence should they ever need it, but I guess that's a moot point since you never even ask about it :).

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  • As far as litter is concerned, it's really up to your cat.  Some cats are very sensitive to perfumey smells and will not use a litter box that smells too strongly to them.  They also may not like the way it feels.  

    Start with the cheap stuff.  We used Tidy Cat for YEARS.  One day, the store was out of Tidy Cat and so DH got Scoop Away.   Much cheaper and works even better as far as clumping is concerned.   So, price is not indicative of quality.  Start cheap and work your way up until you find what works for your kitty.

    As far as breed is concerned...I've never paid attention to breed since all my cats were rescues.   But, I've had all sorts of cats and the only one that we ever had a problem with, growing up, was a Russian Blue that we adopted from the Humane Society.  She came from an abusive home, though, so it wasn't the breed as much as her history. 

    I'm a big fan of Tabbies, though, if I had to pick just one.  All my Tabby cats have been very calm natured with spurts of crazy.  Fun crazy.   And, most of them have been kinda "dog-like" too. 

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  • TJ1979TJ1979 member
    Sorry, replying again to be a geek for a moment...
    Genetically speaking, you should avoid a calico or a female orange cat male orange cats are great! The gene for the orange color is only carried on the Y chromosome. Calicoes are always female, but they have the extra Y, and orange females have the extra Y chromosome. This makes them a little more aggressive with that extra male chromosome.
    And stepping off my nerd box.
    TTC with PCOS since November 2009
    IUI#1 Femara/Ovidrel (cd 3-7) = BFP, m/c
    IUI#2 Femara/Ovidrel (cd 5-9) = BFN
    IUI#3 Femara/Ovidrel (cd 3-7) = BFP!
    beta #1 11/23 = 270, P4 = 75
    beta #2 11/28 = 2055
    Our daughter E was born 7/29/2012!
    Surprise, our 2nd daughter P was born 5/22/14!
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  • imageTJ1979:
    Sorry, replying again to be a geek for a moment...
    Genetically speaking, you should avoid a calico or a female orange cat male orange cats are great! The gene for the orange color is only carried on the Y chromosome. Calicoes are always female, but they have the extra Y, and orange females have the extra Y chromosome. This makes them a little more aggressive with that extra male chromosome.
    And stepping off my nerd box.

    lol...not to be argumentative, but the y chromosome does not have ANY color genes which is why you can't have male calico cats...with the exception of XXY, but that's another ball game all together... all color genes are carried on the X chromosomes.

    ...no need for me to step off my nerd box as I live on it! Insert mobile smiley!
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  • 1. I just buy the clumping stuff at Costco. Clean it every 1-2 days and you'll be fine. If you have a big house, you may need 2 litter boxes for a kitten. They can't hold it as long as an adult cat.

    2. Indoor only is good. Cats are happy indoors and live much longer that way. Kitten proof as you go. Get a scratching post to redirect to from the start.

    3. Cats don't really have breeds if you're just getting it from a shelter or rescue. I choose my cats based on coat texture. I like a short hair, prefer a slightly coarse texture (not too fuzzy), and like a black cat. This is all purely for shedding / fur sticking to me. I never look like I have a cat when I leave the house. 

    Kittens are crazy. Cute, but nuts. We adopted an older cat from a rescue that someone else had trained to stay off the table and counters and scratch only at his post. We'll do the same thing next time. I have no idea how to train a cat, and don't really have the desire or energy to do so. 

    And yes: you can't really assess personality in a kitten. You can in an adult. So if you want a super affectionate cat, or a more independent cat (and yes, there are different kinds of cats), get an adult. My mom has 3 indoor cats. One LOVES everyone. One tolerates only her and tries to attack toddlers. One is more middle of the road. The mean one is not a good fit with kids, and never will be. 

  • TJ1979TJ1979 member
    imagethemrsbird:
    imageTJ1979:
    Sorry, replying again to be a geek for a moment...
    Genetically speaking, you should avoid a calico or a female orange cat male orange cats are great! The gene for the orange color is only carried on the Y chromosome. Calicoes are always female, but they have the extra Y, and orange females have the extra Y chromosome. This makes them a little more aggressive with that extra male chromosome.
    And stepping off my nerd box.

    lol...not to be argumentative, but the y chromosome does not have ANY color genes which is why you can't have male calico cats...with the exception of XXY, but that's another ball game all together... all color genes are carried on the X chromosomes.

    ...no need for me to step off my nerd box as I live on it! Insert mobile smiley!

    Now I feel so betrayed! The vet clinic I worked at throughout college taught this to all techs and calico/ginger owners.
    The calico I had growing up was extreme aggressive though.
    ...Shamefully hiding under my nerd box.
    TTC with PCOS since November 2009
    IUI#1 Femara/Ovidrel (cd 3-7) = BFP, m/c
    IUI#2 Femara/Ovidrel (cd 5-9) = BFN
    IUI#3 Femara/Ovidrel (cd 3-7) = BFP!
    beta #1 11/23 = 270, P4 = 75
    beta #2 11/28 = 2055
    Our daughter E was born 7/29/2012!
    Surprise, our 2nd daughter P was born 5/22/14!
     image
    imageImage and video hosting by TinyPicimage
    image
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    imageimageimage
  • Thank you all for the info. 

     we didn't plan on declawing. I've heard horror stories. I don't judge those that do. I'd just be extra paranoid if the cat got out side. 

     I always had barn cats growing up. 

      I want to get a kitten from a reputable place but I don't want to jump through hoops and home visits for a cat. kwim?

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  • imageMrsPteranodon:
    I want to get a kitten from a reputable place but I don't want to jump through hoops and home visits for a cat. kwim?

    The rescue we got ours from was just a form that confirmed we were allowed to have a cat (we were renters at the time). Cat rescues tend to be less intense than dog rescues. The pound or SPCA is also a fine place to get a cat. The cost will include shots and spaying/neutering, so it's actually pretty close to that "free" kitten off CL. A pet store would be my last choice (unless they're partnered with a rescue/SPCA). I'd rather take a free kitten than encourage a company to sell kittens.

    And you really do want to spay/neuter. Unfixed cats are terrible. The boys pee on everything and the girls go into heat and drive you insane. 

  • We have a tabby, and she's rather dog like. Comes when she's called, plays with the dogs toys and craves attention. But she came at 1yr old with crazy personality issues and we trained her to be as she is now long story short, before we got her she used to get into her owners cocaine and nearly died). 

    We use whatever non scented litter is on sale, and as long as we scoop regularly we don't smell it. I am very anti-declawing, we have a scratch post or box/toy at the edge of every couch. Our first couches were trashed, but now that we have good furniture and are consistent with training they are in great shape. We startle her with a stomp and clap and a loud NO and she gets the idea pretty quickly. She's nine now and this is her first experience with babies and she's been great. 

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  • We have switched to a pine litter and we have noticed a huge reduction in smell!

    Also, we put these on our cat's claws.  It comes with a tube of glue that is similar to superglue.  You just put some glue in it and slide it on your cat's paw.  They sell a similar product at Petco, but theirs is like $20.00 a package.  They also last quite a while before they fall off.

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004WHQQ5K/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

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  • imagePenelopeThusnelda:
    We have switched to a pine litter and we have noticed a huge reduction in smell!Also, we put these on our cat's claws.nbsp; It comes with a tube of glue that is similar to superglue.nbsp; You just put some glue in it and slide it on your cat's paw.nbsp; They sell a similar product at Petco, but theirs is like 20.00 a package.nbsp; They also last quite a while before they fall off.https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004WHQQ5K/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8amp;psc=1


    Do not put these on back claws. If your kitty DOES get outside, in a fight, his/her instinct will be to flip onto the back and use the back claws to fight.
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