Oh me too!!! I'm so looking forward to hearing how you two are getting along. If you need any help, please let us know!!
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- Thread starter flojo75
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- #162
Oh the poor boy [emoji]128575[/emoji]
I'm so glad he's going to have someone as nice as you to care for him. So glad.
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- #164
He will [emoji]10084[/emoji]️ Cats know when they are safe and loved and cared for by a good person. So excited for the both of you l!
You will need to choose a good wet food for him. Since you are in the UK. I cannot recommend a brand (perhaps @Columbine can) but it should have MEAT (i.e. chicken, turkey, lamb, beef) NOT "meal" or "by products" as the FIRST ingredient, and there should not be many high carb items in it like corn, wheat, potatoes or peas, carrots, etc.) in it. It's good to get him used to a rotation of foods so he isn't fussy, and because it's how they eat in nature. One day they catch small rodents, another day they catch a bird, another day they may eat lizards and some crunchy grasshoppers.............
As for the litter box, the general rule is you should have one more litter box than you have cats, so you will need two of them. The should be placed in different areas from each other, and obviously away from the food and water area. Most cats like large boxes. Some like covered, some like open, you might try one of each. The easiest litter to use (and the cleanest) is scoopable clumping littter, and cats prefer it to be unscented. Scoop twice a day, or whenever you see a deposit in the box, and you will have no odor problems at all.
As for the litter box, the general rule is you should have one more litter box than you have cats, so you will need two of them. The should be placed in different areas from each other, and obviously away from the food and water area. Most cats like large boxes. Some like covered, some like open, you might try one of each. The easiest litter to use (and the cleanest) is scoopable clumping littter, and cats prefer it to be unscented. Scoop twice a day, or whenever you see a deposit in the box, and you will have no odor problems at all.
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Ok - food tips. I'd start by finding out what the shelter are feeding him so you can do a change over a couple of weeks. Particularly if the shelter feed more carby foods, a sudden change can cause a mild tummy upset - something that it's obviously bet to avoid
Now, please bear in mind here that I don't know your budget, so these foods range from cheaper to the definite luxury end of the market. All are good choices in my opinion, so you certainly shouldn't feel you need to buy the most expensive food on the list :winkblue:
First, foods from a site called Zooplus. This is a mail order only site that is virtually always the best value for each brand listed. Also, there are a ton of European brands that I've not found anywhere else. I tend to get most food from them, and do a bulk order every couple of months or so. If you spend over £75 on an order, use the code STOCK-UP to get an extra discount (think it's 3% off). Definitely join their savings plan and subscribe to their newsletter - both give you extra discounts too (I think the savings plan gives you something like 7% off every order, and signing up to the newsletter gives you a one-off 5% discount too). They're also listed on Topcashback, so you can save a touch extra that way too. Every little helps :bigwink:
On to the food list!
From Zooplus (in no particular order):-
Wet foods
Grau
GranataPet
Catz Finefood (they also have a range called Purr that is limited ingredient/novel protein)
Bozita tetrapacks (in jelly or sauce - both grain free). Great budget option.
Animonda Carny
Feringa
Terra Faelis (low phosphorus)
Thrive Complete
Animonda Von Feinsten
Leonardo
There are a few other pretty good brands from there (for example Lily's Kitchen), but I feel they're either relatively expensive form the ingredients used, or they contain gums/similar (cassia gum, xanthan gum, guar gum, carrageenan), which can cause tummy upsets in some cats.
Dry foods (ideally should be fed VERY sparingly as they're both high calorie and can cause hydration issues unless you take extra steps to compensate for their dryness)
Applaws
Feringa
GranataPet (standard Adult range)
Orijin
Purizon
Foods from other suppliers:-
Wet Foods
Nature’s Menu www.naturesmenu.co.uk and various other suppliers
Meowing Heads - www.barkingheads.co.uk / Pets at Home and others
Wainwrights - the trays are a lot better than the pouches, ingredients-wise. Avoid the 'Light' version as it's much lower meat
(Pets at Home own brand)Hi Life Tempt Me (Pets at Home and various retailers, including some supermarkets)
Forthglade www.forthglade.com and various online retailers
Purely Holistic (Pets at Home)
Dry Foods
Aatu - www.aatu.co.uk / Pets at Home
Thrive Complete - www.thrivepetfoods.com / Pets at Home/ various other online retailers
Supermarket foods
Sheba trays in jelly only
Lily's Kitchen (tesco - actually a different formulation to their regular, non supermarket range. Exclusive to tesco)
Tesco's Finest in jelly only
Butchers Classic cans
Sainsbury's Delicious in jelly only
Asda Tiger trays - pate only
Sheba Fresh Choice in jelly only
I can't find ingredients listings for Aldi or Lidl foods unfortunately, but so long as they don't have the following ingredients they're on a par with the other supermarket foods I've listed:-
- Cereals
- Grains
- Vegetable protein extracts
- Derivatives of vegetable origin
- Various sugars
- Colourings of any sort
- Caramel
Hopefully the above will give you options to suit any budget
You might find these articles useful/helpful too:-
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Congratulations on finally getting Shadow
I'm sure you'll give him a wonderful home
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- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #168
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- #170
As long as you have the litter away from his food it should be fine. As mentioned above the rule of thumb is 1 box per cat plus 1.
The water should be fine next to the food. I have read that cats actually prefer their water source away from their food but I think you could place another water bowl somewhere else and see if he uses both or what his preference is.
Hope that helps a little.
The water should be fine next to the food. I have read that cats actually prefer their water source away from their food but I think you could place another water bowl somewhere else and see if he uses both or what his preference is.
Hope that helps a little.
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- #172
My cats like having a water bowl nearby to their food. Carrot drinks after he eats his dry food. We also have a water dish out in the living room so they can drink when they're playing and running about.
Just checking in to see how you and Shadow are getting along?
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- #175
Oh that makes sense!! That's good, it gives you time to get organized and get this set up for your boy!
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- #177
Hi folks, I took on columbines advice regarding looking on zooplus for cat food. I read that indoor cats need help with hairball control as they can't eat grass like outdoor cats do, so I've gone for Royal canin hairball control dry food & bozita hairball control wet food. Have I done the right thing????
Personally, I don't like Royal Canin at all. It tends to be expensive and overall isn't a high quality food. I looked up the type you're looking at. The second, third, and fourth ingredients are all grains. Cats don't need grains these are all empty fillers high in carbs for them = not really healthy.
I've never had a single problem with hairballs. My cats are short hair cats and haven't ever had them (I believe Shadow is also a shorthair?) . I feed them only foods that are grain free. Regular brushing does more to prevent hairballs then so called hairball control foods do.
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- #179
I've only rarely had an issue with hairballs with my guys. The easiest and best way to prevent them is regular brushing to remove excess hair. Its free too
When it comes to hairball control, I'd far rather provide cat grass than feed a hairball control food. Royal Canin IS expensive for what it is, imo - you're very much paying for the brand. Aatu and Purizon are my girl's favourite kibbles, for what it's worth
The other one I've fed myself is Applaws. I just slightly prefer the ingredients in the other two
Its free too When it comes to hairball control, I'd far rather provide cat grass than feed a hairball control food. Royal Canin IS expensive for what it is, imo - you're very much paying for the brand. Aatu and Purizon are my girl's favourite kibbles, for what it's worth
The other one I've fed myself is Applaws. I just slightly prefer the ingredients in the other two 
