08-15-2009, 08:54 AM
0
OOH Kitty will be perfectly happy in any size apartment! Kitty will be perfectly happy to be indoors only as well as long as you give it enough toys and quality play time, which knowing you and how you keep your pets, you will. 
In my experiences, males are more mellow and friendly than the girls.
Get a kitten or young adult. I only advise this because it's your first cat and many shelter adults can have some issues you are not experienced enough to deal with and correct yet.
DO NOT DECLAW you cat! It's awful, painful and downright cruel. I don't care what any vet tells you, they only want your money if they say it's not.
It's EASY to teach your cat to not destroy your things! If you see it scratching your stuff, have something suitable for it to scratch instead. Buy cat scratching posts in a variety of textures, wood (with bark on it), sisal rope and carpet.
Have a special bed just for kitty. Most times they will sleep on your bed on your head, or wherever else they want - and this is OK to a degree - they will on their own, seek out their own little snuggly bed too.
If you see kitty doing something you don't like, such as jumping on the counter or your table while you're eating - simply pick it up and put it on the floor. REPEAT this until the behavior stops. I can leave meat out on the counter all day to defrost and NOT ONE cat will jump up there to molest it! * they do tend to take more liberties when they get over 15 years old though! but that's OK by me, if a cat hits 15 or better, they deserve to do what they want! I just take more careful measures and still pick him up and put him on the floor.
Keep your cats nails trim! You can purchase a nail cutter suitable for cats - cut the nails weekly. They can be painful if kept long when they 'fluff' you and they can do some damage to floors with long back nails if neglected.
Get kitty used to his nails being cut at an early age! If the cat is completely unruly, here it only costs $5 and ten minutes of your time in a grooming salon to have it done for you. Make sure they do front and back claws.
Feed your cat canned food! Do not skimp on quality! Dry food can be fed as a treat but I've experienced issues with hairballs and constipation with a strictly kibble diet.
The water bottle can be a good trick too. Simply keep one handy and give kitty a squirt behind the ears or on his ass to abort bad behavior.
One thing I want to point out is whatever method of training you use, DO NOT SPEAK! Let kitty think the water is coming from God. I keep a tiny size squirt bottle around so it's not so obnoxious. In time Kitty will see that bottle and run before you get one shot out!
Not speaking when training cats not to go on counters and stuff seems to work better than words. For some reason, they like to challenge you when you try words. They can't (unless they're vicious) when you just pick them up and put them on the floor.
Get a basket and keep plenty of toys. Most times a crumpled up paper or plastic ring off the milk carton is more enjoyable than a store bought toy. My cats favor those little fur mice with a slight rattle to them.
I also make catnip sock toys! I'll post something on that later, I have to find it and the video that goes with it. I've got step by step instructions with it. These are very good at letting kitty vent out some frustration.
If I haven't hit on something, ask! I'm always here to help.
In my experiences, males are more mellow and friendly than the girls.
Get a kitten or young adult. I only advise this because it's your first cat and many shelter adults can have some issues you are not experienced enough to deal with and correct yet.
DO NOT DECLAW you cat! It's awful, painful and downright cruel. I don't care what any vet tells you, they only want your money if they say it's not.
It's EASY to teach your cat to not destroy your things! If you see it scratching your stuff, have something suitable for it to scratch instead. Buy cat scratching posts in a variety of textures, wood (with bark on it), sisal rope and carpet.
Have a special bed just for kitty. Most times they will sleep on your bed on your head, or wherever else they want - and this is OK to a degree - they will on their own, seek out their own little snuggly bed too.
If you see kitty doing something you don't like, such as jumping on the counter or your table while you're eating - simply pick it up and put it on the floor. REPEAT this until the behavior stops. I can leave meat out on the counter all day to defrost and NOT ONE cat will jump up there to molest it! * they do tend to take more liberties when they get over 15 years old though! but that's OK by me, if a cat hits 15 or better, they deserve to do what they want! I just take more careful measures and still pick him up and put him on the floor.
Keep your cats nails trim! You can purchase a nail cutter suitable for cats - cut the nails weekly. They can be painful if kept long when they 'fluff' you and they can do some damage to floors with long back nails if neglected.
Get kitty used to his nails being cut at an early age! If the cat is completely unruly, here it only costs $5 and ten minutes of your time in a grooming salon to have it done for you. Make sure they do front and back claws.
Feed your cat canned food! Do not skimp on quality! Dry food can be fed as a treat but I've experienced issues with hairballs and constipation with a strictly kibble diet.
The water bottle can be a good trick too. Simply keep one handy and give kitty a squirt behind the ears or on his ass to abort bad behavior.
One thing I want to point out is whatever method of training you use, DO NOT SPEAK! Let kitty think the water is coming from God. I keep a tiny size squirt bottle around so it's not so obnoxious. In time Kitty will see that bottle and run before you get one shot out!
Not speaking when training cats not to go on counters and stuff seems to work better than words. For some reason, they like to challenge you when you try words. They can't (unless they're vicious) when you just pick them up and put them on the floor.
Get a basket and keep plenty of toys. Most times a crumpled up paper or plastic ring off the milk carton is more enjoyable than a store bought toy. My cats favor those little fur mice with a slight rattle to them.
I also make catnip sock toys! I'll post something on that later, I have to find it and the video that goes with it. I've got step by step instructions with it. These are very good at letting kitty vent out some frustration.
If I haven't hit on something, ask! I'm always here to help.
![[Image: PancakeBunny.jpg]](http://www.twitchinkitten.com/myphotos/PancakeBunny.jpg)
I have no idea what you're talking about so here's a bunny with a pancake on it's head