Cat Products - The Basics

This is designed to be a simple guide to the products you will either need or decide to buy for your cat.

You first decision is what type of cat food to Choose. You can of course provide your cat with home cooked food, but the vast majority of cat owners choose between commercial dry cat food and wet cat food.

Cat owners often prefer dry cat food due to the convenience, dry cat food can be left out for the cat to eat at will over the course of several days; whereas, canned or raw cat food spoils or becomes unappetizing after several hours, especially in hot weather. It is important that if feeding dry food then plenty of water should be made available to ensure that your cat's water intake remains high enough to avoid problems with reduced hydration.

Owners and veterinarians who recommend a diet consisting largely or entirely of canned, homemade or raw cat food point to higher water content of such food and the increased total water consumption in comparison to a dry food diet as an important health benefit.

A minimum of two small bowls will be needed for serving your cat's rations and one for water. Some owners who find their cats are reluctant to drink, invest in cat drinking fountain that circulates the water to keep it oxygenated and also cools it. Some purchase automatic cat feeders with compartments that are opened by a timer. These are convenient for feeding your cat if you go away for a short break.

Pet cats that spend a significant of time indoors will need a litter tray and cat litter to use as toilet when indoors. Cat litter trays are offered as open trays or covered varieties which help to reduce unwanted odours.

Cat Litter is made from a variety of absorbent materials including traditional clay or more latterly biodegradable paper or wood.

No list of cat products would be complete without cat scratch posts. Cats instinctively claw or scratch for a variety or reasons; the two main ones are either to define territory, or for exercise and stretching. Cats won't respond to being told off, so providing them materials to claw can help save your valued furniture.

Many good cat supplies retailers offer a range of cat flaps so their cats can let themselves in and out without owners getting up to open doors. Cat Flaps come in a range of designs to fit all types of doors including, wood, plastic or glass panels. It is also possible to buy cat flaps combined with infrared or magnetic collars, to reduce the likelihood of stray cats entering the home.

Like other pets Cats can catch fleas and also require worming the responsible cat owner will need to purchase flea treatments and worming remedies from their preferred cat supplies source.

Cats are reluctant travelers so it may be wise to invest in a cat carrier for those trips to the vets or if you choose to take your cat on holiday with you or to the kennels. These are designed to keep the cat safe and well ventilated when traveling

Terry King runs Parcel Pets [http://www.pets2home.co.uk], a leading UK pet supplies [http://www.pets2home.co.uk] web site and has had pets all his life. He lives with his wife Louise, dog Sam, Cat Sabrina and 5 fish!