best and worst products

Orla K

I'm getting a cat, I'm wondering what to get for it. I don't have too much spare cash so I don't want to spend money on something and find it's useless. I was thinking of feeding it the lidl food wet and dry but the satchets of wet food (don't want the place being stunk out of it with big tins). I'm also wondering about the litter tray and the smell there, any good products that keeps smell to a minimum and a tray that the cat doesn't kick the stuff over the sides.

I've had cats before but it's been a few years so I don't what's out there and I want to be prepared before the cat comes. I've also picked it out from an animal shelter, and it has three legs but gets around fine and loves attention.

lubie76

Hi Orla. Well done on rescuing a cat that many others probably would have passed over. I presume the cat is neutered and vaccinated since you got it from a shelter but double check to make sure as this is the most important investment for your cat.

I personally wouldn't bother with wet food at all as they can have a complete diet with a decent quality dry food and you will have the added bonus of a less smelly litter tray and stinky cat breath. The quality dry food that the Vet/pharmacy/zooplus.ie etc sells can be more expensive but a large bag will last months and you would end up spending twice as much on them crappy wet food pouches that have very little nutritional value for your cat. Just make sure your cat has loads of fresh water at all times with the dry food diet.

For a litter tray, I would just get a decent sized plastic tray and make sure it is accessible to the cat and their disability. Unfortunately, this means it can't be too deep which means you might get a bit of overflow but a dustpan and brush nearby will fix that. I don't think them covered ones are any better and provided you use your scoop daily it shouldn't get too smelly. You can buy cat litter freshner in Tesco that you can sprinkle over the top of the litter after scooping.

For toys etc, just use your imagination. A few scrunched up balls of paper and paper bags can keep cats entertained for hours. If you do want to invest in just one really good toy, I would recommend 'da bird' which you can buy on ebay. I have never seen cats react as well to any other toy. It mimics a bird in the wild. Drives them crazy!

Best of luck with your new best pal!:)

Sigma Force

I rekon you'd be better off investing in a good quality food and only just a few other bits. The Lidl and Aldi cat trees/scratching posts are grand but there pretty cheap anyway.

Cats will play with anything usually pens lol.

Litter trays are cheap, the most expensive part is cat litter but some hardware shops sell the very large bags which can work out cheaper.

Dressing gown/bath robe belts are a great source of entertainment.

Good one you for taking on a kitty, had a 3 legged cat before and she zoomed around, climber trees, the lot not a bother on her.

Xiney

classy cat litter from zooplus.ie is by far the most economical I've found - because it clumps properly you don't have to replace the full pan so often. It also smells less bad because you can clean it pretty effectively so often.

Most of the cat litter available in pet shops/hardware stores in Ireland is rubbish.

hadook

Food is not the place to be making a saving by buying lower end brands- a decent quality food will mean less vet trips etc as your cat gets older. A decent diet will mean less dentals etc.

A mainly dry diet would be best for cutting down on the smell but make sure the cat has access to plenty of fresh water (invest in a water fountain if you can) and do give some form of daily wet food as well as the dry. Recent studies have shown that cats fed exclusively on a dry diet run into almost as many problems (though not the same ones) as cats feed exclusively on wet food. The best option is to feed a mix.

I free feed my lot on dry food and give them "human" food - raw chicken legs etc instead of pouches of cat food. Value range chicken from the supermarket or odd bits from the butcher is far cheaper than a box of pouches anyway. They're still getting a balanced diet of vitamins etc from the dry and the chicken/turkey/mince/liver etc gives them added variety.

Asan cat litter (distributed by the people who do Arden Grange food) is one of the best litters I've come across for smell reduction. It's incredibly easy to clean the trays afterwards too - no clumping mess of horribleness stuck to the bottom of the tray. Unfortunately it's not as cost effective when you have 8 of the monsters so I don't use it as much as I'd like

For a litter tray - argos do a lovely big sturdy one for 22quid. The higher front means that kitty doesn't track litter out and it's easy to clean etc. I've seen some lovely hacks too for cat litters inside boxes/ cupboards that I'd love to do if, again, I didn't have 8 cats and the stupid number of litter trays that go with them.

Adventure Pout

Hi Orla,

That's great that you adopted a cat from a shelter - particularly a 3 legged one , as so many people think it is too much hassle! Am sure the kitty will give you plenty of affection and unconditional love...
I have an extra litter tray if you are interested in. It has been used only once by a kitten I was fostering. It is a corner one, big enough and it has a cover. Am in Dublin - If you are interested, PM me. I give it to you without charge, as I am planning to give it away to charity.
In term of cat litter, I use Simplicity plus - It is a clumping litter, like sand.
There is another one that you can use - it is a bit more expensive but a small bag last you for a month - you can find it on zooplus and it is called: World's best cat litter.
For food, I wont recommend Lidl/Aldi or cheap brand -although cats seem to like it. I don't like the idea of feeding cat with dry food either as cats are OBLIGATE carnivore, and carbs are not suitable to their digestive system. If you can, try to get premium food or even buy raw chicken/turkey/rabbit with some liver pieces, or any meat - Cats love raw meat and it is better for them. I mixe it with a powder formula for my kitty.
Cats on cheap food have a very very smelly poos, compared to eating raw meat.(I did some research on how cat/dog foods are made, and now I understand why... that is just disgusting!!!)

Orla K

Thanks for the replies, I still haven't gotten the cat:( but I have everything for it. My granny gave me a litter tray and I got Royal canin food for her(which works out cheap, she's a small cat so wouldn't eat too much) so right now I'm just impatiently waiting for the shelter to ring me. I also went to the vet and they said they would give her a check up free:D. Now I just want my cat.

PCros

Adventure Pout wrote: »

I don't like the idea of feeding cat with dry food either as cats are OBLIGATE carnivore, and carbs are not suitable to their digestive system.

+1 on the mixed diet, don't agree with lubie and the 100% dry food diet. Cats need a bit of mixture. I feed them pouches and a bit of dry to graze on.

Also you should get and enclosed litter tray, looks like a carrier, you don't have to deal with spillage over the side and have to view a lump of poo everyday like you do with those tiny trays.

Heres a link for litter trays...
http://www.zooplus.ie/shop/cats/cat_litter_litter_boxes/hooded_litter_box

PinkTulips

totally agree about dry food being a false economy. i've always fed mostly wet with dry to supplement and my cats are never ever sick and are in great condition. some cats respond very badly to dry only and it could end up costing you hugely in vets fees.

find a decent priced pet food shop and stock up monthly, i find that keeps my costs bearable.

we use oko cat's best wood pellet litter as it seems expensive but i was shocked when one bag that cost 10 euros lasted my six cats 2 and a half weeks. that's about 5 times as long as a similar volume of any other litter and it's flushable so poo can go down the loo which is dead handy

wet food we have to change every few weeks as my fussy lot refuse anything that's served for longer than 2/3 weeks but there are decent quality cheap options out there.

Orla K

I have the cat, at the moment it's sitting on my fleece blanket (which now I suppose is it's bed) after eating loads of dry royal canin food and a bath (which she purred throughout) I've already found out she doesn't like fish. She's underweight and her skin is very dry but I'll make her better.

PinkTulips

pics?

Orla K

PinkTulips wrote: »

pics?

It was taken with the isight on the mac while she was sitting on my lap

PinkTulips

awwww, she's stunning. i have a real soft spot for black cats

bet she'll be in great shape in no time with some tlc, you'l be amazed at how quickly they put on weight when they have a decent diet, i found a kitten half starved 2 weeks ago and he's a pudgy ball of fluff now

Orla K

you cant really see it there but she has white paws and belly