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Caring For Your New Kitten

Congratulations on the arrival of your new family member! A new kitten brings a lot of excitement and joy. The following information is provided to help you with all the necessary health care for your new kitten.

Vaccination

Vaccination is very important to protect your new kitten against serious and often fatal diseases. Our Fe3 vaccine protects against Feline Rhinotracheitis, Feline Calicivirus, and Panleucopaenia Virus, while the Fe5 vaccine provides additional protection against two more diseases: Feline Chlamydia and Feline Leukaemia Virus.

Your kitten will require a course of three vaccinations, done one month apart, at the following ages:

• 6 - 8 weeks
  
  
• 10 - 12 weeks
  
  
• 14 - 16 weeks
  

Optimum protection can only be achieved if all vaccinations are given. Adults then require an annual booster vaccination to maintain immunity. This is also a good time to get your feline family member their annual general health check and discuss any concerns you might have. Cats tend to age faster than humans (estimated equivalent of 7 years to every 1 human year), therefore their annual visit is a very important part of their health journey.

Heartworm, Worming and Flea Prevention

Heartworms are worms that are injected as larvae into the cat through a mosquito. These larvae grow up to be worms which travel in the bloodstream and lodge in the heart, causing heart failure. All cats in Western Australia are at risk of developing heartworm unless they are on a heartworm prevention program.

The most common intestinal worms in cats are roundworms, hookworms, whipworms and tapeworms. Not only can these cause problems for your cat, but they are also readily transmissible to humans. By ensuring your new kitten is up to date with intestinal worming prevention, you are also protecting yourself and your family.

Kittens should be given an intestinal worming treatment every 2 weeks until 12 weeks of age, then once a month until 6 months of age. After this they should be dewormed at minimum every 3 months for life.

Fleas are ectoparasites that live on a wide variety of mammals, particularly domestic dogs and cats. They feed on the blood of their host and sometimes bite humans. Problems caused by fleas may range from mild to severe itching and discomfort, to skin problems and infections. In extreme circumstances, anaemia may result.

To provide your cat complete overall protection, we recommend NexGard Spectra or Advocate. These are both spot-on treatment that is applied to the back of the neck once-a-month for life. 

Nutrition

A complete and balanced diet is essential for the development of a healthy and happy cat. Your kitten should be fed a balanced diet especially formulated for its current stage of life. We recommend a super premium brand kitten biscuit such as Hills Science Diet or Royal Canin to provide all the nourishment your kitten needs. Your Veterinarian can discuss with you what kitten food is best, based on your kitten's own individual requirements. Once your kitten has stopped growing (usually around 10-12 months) you should start feeding an adult cat food.

Home Environment

Kittens have bright and active minds, so it is important to supply a good range of toys and scratching poles. We highly recommend keeping your cat indoors wherever possible. Keeping cats indoors reduces the risk of contagious diseases and traumatic injury by cars or other animals. Cat runs and outdoor enclosures are a good way of giving your cat access to the outside environment, whilst also keeping them (and the wildlife!) safe.

It's important not to encourage your cat to play with your hands or feet. While it may seem harmless with a tiny kitten, it can become painful and dangerous as your kitten grows. Kittens will bite, as they are biologically wired to attack moving objects, so it's crucial to teach them to play with toys, not fingers or feet, from a young age.

Microchipping

A microchip is a small device the size of a grain of rice inserted under the skin on the back of the neck. A microchip cannot fall out and can be read by a scanner which all vets and rangers carry. This chip connects to a national registry that holds your contact information, including your address and your phone number so your cat can be reunited with you if it gets lost. Always remember to update your pet's microchip if you move house, change phone numbers or separate from partner. If your pet was microchipped with us, you can update their details at Australasian Animal Registry 

We recommend microchipping your kitten, as other identification methods (such as tags and collars) can easily fall off. The microchip can be implanted either at the time of vaccination or the time of desexing.

Desexing

Desexing is important. If you are not a registered cat breeder, you are legally obligated to have your cat desexed, microchipped, and registered with your council by 6 months of age. In addition to reducing the number of unwanted kittens, desexing also helps prevent cats from roaming, urine spraying, and fighting. Furthermore, there are several health benefits. Desexing prevents testicular cancer and prostate enlargement in male cats, as well as mammary cancer and uterine infections in female cats.

Cats reach sexual maturity by 4 months of age. We recommend desexing your new kitten between 4* and 6 months of age. If you have two kittens of different genders, separate them from 4 months old until one has been desexed.

*Female cats can be desexed at 4 months of age if they are 1.2kg+

Pet Insurance

There are a number of good pet insurance policies now available. It is highly recommended to insure your kitten as we can't predict what sort of mischief they may get up to in future.

If you have any queries, please do not hesitate to ask. Our staff are always happy to help you and your new kitten in any way we can.