The arrival of a new cat in the home is a very exciting event for all guardians. If you have just adopted a kitten, you will surely be eager to play with it, pet it and see it jump happily. However, the first days of a cat at home require a lot of patience, attention and determination, since you will need to respect the adaptation time of your cat to this hitherto unknown environment and all the new stimuli that it provides.
In this article on our site we show you some tips for the first days of a cat at home, which will help you answer your doubts about the adaptation process of your new partner and to help him feel comfortable and safe to explore his new home and start interacting with his relatives.
1. Be patient and know how to respect the cat's adaptation process
Before telling you all our tips for the cat's first days at home, we want to emphasize again the importance of respecting the adaptation process of your new companion. No species is capable of instantly adapting to a new reality, because adaptation is precisely a process and each individual requires their own time to carry it out.
Arriving in a new home is a totally new experience for any cat. So, remember to have patience and a lot of dedication during the cat's first days at home. At first, it's totally natural for your cat to be shy, confused and even a little fearful in the face of this unfamiliar environment and all its new stimuli. Therefore, it is possible that he spends much of the day hidden and avoids contact with other people or animals.
How long does it take for a cat to adjust to a new house?
Ello will depend on the personality of each cat and the environment offered by their guardians. Therefore, you will need to know how to expect and respect that your kitten takes his own time to feel safe and begin to want to explore his environment and interact with you. Remember that forcing a cat to do something against its own will is totally counterproductive for its adaptation and education.
During this adaptive process, you can help him in many ways. First, offering a positive environment, calm and comfortable, where the cat feels welcome and safe to express himself freely. Balanced nutrition and essential care with your he alth will also be essential to allow you to grow and optimally develop your physical, cognitive, emotional and social skills.
Next, we will show you some tips that will help you prepare for the cat's first days at home and favor its adaptation process.
two. Prepare the home for the cat's first days at home
Before taking your new companion to his new home, it will be essential to prepare the environment for his arrival Each feline should have its own space, where you feel comfortable and safe to rest and begin to get used to your new home. In it, your cat should find the basic utensils, such as the litter box, the drinking bowl, the feeder, the bed or cradle for rest, in addition to its scratching post, its toys and other accessories that will provide it with a better quality of life. This will make the kitten feel welcome, favoring its adaptive process.
If you already have another cat in your house, remember that each cat must have its own resources to avoid fights and possible accidents. Felines should not feel obligated to interact or share their territories, therefore, each one needs to have its own environment. Likewise, when it comes to the sandbox, it is necessary to add another extra. In addition, you must pay special attention to correctly introduce your cat to the new adopted kitten and encourage their coexistence. Little by little, having socialized and introduced your kittens, you will see that they will show curiosity to meet and interact.
Remember that the feeding, toilet, rest and fun areas must be separated from each other,to allow better hygiene and respect the needs of your feline companion. And to learn more tips on preparing the home, we invite you to read our article on how to prepare for the arrival of a cat at home.
3. Preventive medicine for the he alth of the cat and its environment
When adopting a puppy or adult cat, you must take him to the vet to check his he alth status, as well as start or update his calendar vaccinations and regular deworming. There are many advantages of adopting a stray cat, but we must consider that an animal that was born or lived on the streets is exposed to various pathogens and, therefore, there are some diseases that a stray cat can transmit to humans and others pets.
To preserve our good he alth, that of the adopted kitten and all the members of the family, we must offer adequate preventive medicine for our felines throughout their lives. Thus, we manage to prevent or diagnose early the most common diseases in cats that can seriously harm their well-being.
4. Ensuring the best nutrition in every phase of your life
The cat's diet must be complete and balanced to meet its nutritional requirements at each stage of its life. From birth to 2 or 3 months of life, the ideal food for a baby cat is mother's milk. For this reason, it is essential to respect the weaning age when adopting a feline, since kittens separated prematurely from their mothers can present not only he alth problems due to their weaker immune system, but also have learning and socialization difficulties.
But if for some reason you had to adopt a newborn or nursing kitten, you should offer him formula until his body is ready to assimilate and digest other foods. On our site we teach you how to make formula milk and homemade recipes for baby cats.
After two months of life, or a month and a half, when the kitten has finished weaning, you can choose to offer him a natural food or base their diet on an industrialized feed. If you opt for the second option, you must choose an excellent quality feed made for each stage of their life. This feed must contain the appropriate proportions of the five fundamental nutrients: proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins and minerals. To help you, we teach you how to choose the best feed for your cat.
On the other hand, if you prefer to offer your feline a natural and homemade diet, we invite you to better understand what the BARF diet is and what its he alth benefits are for your cat. And we also show you some BARF recipe ideas for cats.
However, always remember to have the help of a veterinarian to choose the most appropriate diet according to the specific needs of your cat or make any changes to your diet. The trained professional will also be able to guide you on the incorporation of natural supplements to strengthen the immune system of your kittens and prevent numerous diseases.
5. Enrich your environment for a he althy body and mind
When adopting a cat, you will also need to consider that your companion is a very intelligent and curious animal, who needs to be physically and mentally stimulated to maintain a balanced behavior and to prevent the symptoms of stress Therefore, it is essential to provide him with an enriched environment, where he finds ways to exercise his body and mind, entertain himself and fully develop his skills.
The concept of environmental enrichment includes different factors that allow us to offer a better quality of life to our kittens. To enrich your kitty's environment, you can use objects such as toys, scratching posts, climbing shelves, hiding places, mazes or entertainment centers, etc. But you can also incorporate sensory stimuli into your routine, whether through smells (catnip or catnip, for example), images or interactive toys that invite your feline continue to develop its senses and intelligence.
You can use all your creativity and get to work making homemade toys and accessories for your felines. On our site we offer you several very fun and cheap ideas, which also allow you to reuse some objects that would end up being thrown away, such as paper rolls or cardboard boxes, for example. See all you can do yourself to please and stimulate your kitty's curiosity:
- 5 Homemade toys for cats;
- Home scratcher;
- Toys made with cardboard;
- Wooden cat house/hideout;
- 3 super easy toys (with instructional video)
However, you must not overload the environment of your kitty so as not to confuse him or impair his free movement around the home, this being another advice for the most important first days of the cat at home.
6. Strengthen the bond with your feline
For your cat to feel safe to start interacting with you, you will need to invest in creating a positive bond, based on trust and in affection, from the cat's first days at home.
The first step is getting to know your cat's personality so you know how to approach and interact with him, as well as avoid making common mistakes when raising a cat, which can hinder its learning and socialization process. In this sense, an essential aspect to get to know your cat is to understand his way of expressing himself, which is based mainly on body language. By learning to interpret their postures, actions, facial expressions and also the sounds of cats and their meanings, you will be able to understand what your cat wants to tell you and improve your communication with him.
When your feline is already comfortable in his new home and predisposed to interact, you can start playing with him and dedicate some exclusive time to enjoy his companyThere are several games to entertain your cat at home and stimulate their intelligence. In addition, we will teach you some tips to play with a cat safely and share quality moments to strengthen the bond between you.
However, remember that cats have their own nature, which makes them much more independent than dogs and other animals. Therefore, you must respect when your cat prefers to be aloneand quiet or simply enjoy watching him sleep peacefully in his home.
7. Education and socialization for balanced behavior
One of the fundamental aspects to provide an excellent upbringing for your kittens is never neglect their education and socialization The independent character of felines It doesn't mean they can't or don't need to be educated. A cat is intelligent and sensitive enough to learn, therefore, we must start educating a cat from a young age to teach it positive behaviors and enjoy optimal coexistence in its new home, as well as avoid inappropriate behaviors. With the help of positive reinforcement, you can begin to educate your kitten and practice training with him, from the first days of the cat at home.
On the other hand, socialization is an essential process in the life of every cat, as it teaches them to relate positively to people, animals and other stimuli in their environment, reinforcing their self-confidenceA kitten that is not properly socialized can develop numerous behavioral problems and difficulties in living with other individuals, appearing skittish, fearful or insecure.
Although the ideal is to start socializing your cat as a puppy, it is also possible to carry out this process with adult kittens. If you have adopted an adult cat, be sure to check out our tips for socializing adult cats.
