7. Sleep things. No doubt about it, cats find their places to sleep. But somewhere special is always appreciated. Kato likes and adopts various blankets. He invariably seems to know we bring them out (and buy them) just for him! And he loves the stuffed fuffy beds I have made, as pictured above. This one is gi-normous! I figure it will be good for at least two cats at the same time (but I made a new bed for Ava anyway)!
A note on fabric. Good polar fleece is the way to go, and it is easily thrown in the wash. The above was cheap polar fleece ($15/m from Spotlight) and it put ink on my hands when I sewed it, and turned the room into a snowy fluff chamber. The fleece I get from Clegs (in Melbourne) is more expensive, but it is amazing! No fluff. Zero. And you can do quick cleans by wiping over with a paper-towel...wella! all the cat hair wiped off!
My decision to make beds and buy human-quality blankets also relates to fabric choices. I just don't know what chemicals/fillings etc are in the commercial cat beds, especially cheap ones.
A note on fabric. Good polar fleece is the way to go, and it is easily thrown in the wash. The above was cheap polar fleece ($15/m from Spotlight) and it put ink on my hands when I sewed it, and turned the room into a snowy fluff chamber. The fleece I get from Clegs (in Melbourne) is more expensive, but it is amazing! No fluff. Zero. And you can do quick cleans by wiping over with a paper-towel...wella! all the cat hair wiped off!
My decision to make beds and buy human-quality blankets also relates to fabric choices. I just don't know what chemicals/fillings etc are in the commercial cat beds, especially cheap ones.
8. Warm things. With a short-haired cat and a cold place like Melbourne, this is important. Korats also only have one coat of hair - they lack the soft fuffy undercoat - and Kato will visibly shiver in winter. The up-side is that he is very cuddly when the weather becomes cool, and will come along to share your jumper with you!
We have purchased a second Snugglesafe Microwave Heat Pad for Ava. They can cost around $70 - savvy shopping will get it around $40.
They have no power cords or electricity to worry about, and truely do stay warm for 10hours!
We have purchased a second Snugglesafe Microwave Heat Pad for Ava. They can cost around $70 - savvy shopping will get it around $40.
They have no power cords or electricity to worry about, and truely do stay warm for 10hours!
9. Food things. When we first got Kato, it was a priority to find food-bowls that lasted, were very clean, and could be cleaned easily...like in the dishwasher. My child-hood cats all had old plastic bowls, and no-one wanted to clean them; they smelt, they felt slimey. It's a pity we didn't think much about this, I think we just thought cat food was gross, and therefore so was the bowl. Unfortunately, it was the plastic, which can harbour bacteria, and even cause a rash under the cat's chin. So, for Kato and Ava, we use stainless steel bowls and glass dinner plates. I like shallow bowls - they seem to accommodate whiskers a bit better, and this was also the reason we started using dinner plates for bigger boney meals like a section of raw rabbit.
We don't seem to have the problem of sliding food bowls, but this issue was in mind when we bought our stainless steel bowls - they have a rubber ring on the underside to prevent meals being chased across the floor. Make sure you get the CAT bowls - the dog dishes are too deep.
We don't seem to have the problem of sliding food bowls, but this issue was in mind when we bought our stainless steel bowls - they have a rubber ring on the underside to prevent meals being chased across the floor. Make sure you get the CAT bowls - the dog dishes are too deep.
10. Medicine things. Flea medicine! Behind-the-neck, spot-on treatments are easiest. Many include worming stuff as well. If your cat doesn't do well on one type (Kato vomited a couple times), try another as they have different formulations. DO NOT get dog ones - some of those formulations are poisonous to cats.
We also have the contact details of our vet, and an emergency vet, stuck on the fridge.
We also have the contact details of our vet, and an emergency vet, stuck on the fridge.