Welcome Home Callie

aivzdog

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#1
Hey everyone,
I have a new member of our family. Callie the kitten.



She was one of the stray kittens that live around our cabin. From the moment I saw her weeks ago I knew I wanted her. So, Saturday I was playing with one of the other stray cats and along comes Callie. She started playing too and when she got close enough I bent over and picked her up. She squirmed a little but settled down pretty quickly. She is doing well now in the house and exploring. She stays upstairs with me. Princess and Oliver are doing fine with her and just interested in her. Lady is not allowed near her because Lady wants to eat her. Overall, I am happy to have little Callie part of the family now.
Anyways, since I am a dog person I know really nothing about cats. I mean I know the basics of breeds and colors but not really a lot. Some people say she looks like Tortie and others say she is just a multicolored. She is pretty calm and seems relaxed. Also, I know about litter boxes and stuff but if you want to explain more to me about how to take care of a cat please do :)
Thanks.
Anna
 

Labyrinth

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#2
She's a cutie. From her coloring I'd say tortoiseshell, but I'm definitely no expert on it either.

As for care, I've always found cats to be one of the easiest animals to take care of. Just give her a comfy place to sleep, scoop the box daily, and keep her fed and she'll be one happy little cat. I personally free feed my cats (leave a bowl of kibble out 24/7 out of dogs reach) with occasional wet food, and bedtime treats. Others feed exclusively canned, and some feed raw, but in the end whatever you're most comfortable with will work.
 

Maxy24

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#3
awww congrats on the new kitty! She does look like a tortie, basically a tortie contains orange and black but can have white and unlike calicos the orange weaves in with the black instead of being in solid, separate patches of color.

start getting her used to having her paws handled now when she is sleeping on your lap. Gently pet them and if she doesn't mind squeeze them gently so the claws stick out. Eventually you want to be able to clip the nails which will be a huge help to curbing furniture scratching. On that note buy some scratching posts. Each cat is different, the easiest posts to get are cardboard ones so I'd get one of those and see how she likes it. Some cats however will be more picky, try sisal and carpeted posts too. Cats NEED to scratch so if you do not provide a few posts she likes she will scratch your furniture or rugs. Also think about if you want to brush her teeth, cats on raw will not usually have any dental problems (whole raw, not ground) but cats on any commercial diet will most likely need cleanings done by the vet, brushing will likely slow the build up or plaque and tartar so you can go longer without needing a cleaning. if you choose to brush start getting the kitten used to lip lifting NOW. Then find a toothpaste she likes (will eat off your finger) and then get her used to you rubbing it on her teeth with a finger. Then start using the brush (you'll need to find a small cat tooth brush, CET makes a good one I guess). The longer you wait the harder this will get.

A good diet is very important for cats. The most common health problems in cats like urinary tract infections, crystals, obesity and diabetes are largely caused by an improper diet. the healthiest diet you can feed your cat is a raw diet. But if you do not want to do this a low carb, high protein wet food is a good option it's just more expensive. dry food is an inappropriate long term diet for a cat, the amount of carbs it contains is far too much for a carnivore to handle without it effecting health. However as the minority of the cat's diet it should not do harm. The more wet or raw food the better.

If she gets zoomies get out an interactive toy (that is the name I've given to toys that YOU need to play with too, toys on a stick basically) to redirect her energy so she doesn't break anything. Lots of play will be good for her. most cats love the simple things, rolled up paper balls, the plastic thingys you pull off of a milk jug, pipe cleaners (I fold down the ends to keep the metal from poking), etc.
But there are also fun interactive toys like "da bird" which are great.

I would get her spayed around 6 months, before she goes into her first heat (although I believe they can go in as soon as 4 months) and she'll need a vet check up soon since she probably has worms.

If you have ANY questions I would be glad to help, I adore cats. If you are interested in feeding raw I would love to teach you how to do it, it's pretty easy to do with kittens who are not picky yet.
 

Boemy

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#4
Awwwww, what a sweetie! For toys, try a cat wand. My cats go nuts for them. Also prepare to train her where to scratch. I used disposable cardboard scratching pads for my kittens and they LOVED them. (I still buy them for my cats, actually!) Every time they tried to scratch furniture, I said "no no!", then gently set them on the scratch pad and praised them.

Her coloring is what I call dark tortiseshell.

I am a big fan of pediatric spay/neuter for cats . . . My cats have never had any medical problems as a result and they recover SO much faster as kittens . . . My boy kitties were running and playing the day after getting neutered, I don't think they even noticed anything was "missing." Girl kittens take a little longer to recover, but still recover much faster and with less trauma/drama than adult cats. The general guideline is that kittens can be spayed/neutered when they weigh more than 2 lbs.
 

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