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Your kitten is one of a kind, not to mention adorable. But training your li’l baby comes with some basic guidelines. Scroll on for a handful of our favorite kitten training tips.
Introduce your new kitten to their litter box as soon as they get home. Then always set your cat in their box right after meals and as soon as they wake up from naps.
And don’t forget to reward your kitten with a treat, toy or some extra love after they use it.
Kitty, meet litter.
Litter, meet kitty.
When Kitty forgets their manners and bites you or shows their aggressive side, say “ow” or “no” clearly and sternly.
Then slowly remove your hand — or other body part — from their razor-sharp clutches. Pick up your kitten, place them away from you, walk away and ignore them.
You can also redirect them to a feather wand or another toy or activity if you want. But that’s your call.
Ouch!
That’s my hand,
not a treat, tiny cat.
By giving your little feline lots of sturdy scratching posts throughout your house, especially where they like to hang out, you can save your favorite furniture from unwanted claw marks and damage.
Oh, and be sure to trim your kitten’s nails regularly.
Say it with me:
Sofas are NOT
scratching posts.
Teach your kitten that their cat carrier is a safe, comfortable place to chillax and feel protected.
Trust us, by making a carrier part of your fuzzball’s daily life, road trips and vet visits will be easier and safer for years to come.
Cozy up,
Buttercup.
It's midnight. Bring on the zoomies, furry one.
(Actually, please don’t.)
Want to stop your kitten from bouncing off the walls while you’re supposed to be deep in slumber land? Try these tips.
Have a long play session later in the evening.
Feed your feline a big meal of delicious, nutritious Opens a new windowIAMS™ Healthy Kitten or PERFECT PORTIONS™
Spend 15 minutes of purr-worthy snuggle time before you hit the hay.
Yep, it’s true! One of our favorite Opens a new windowstudies from the University of South Australia proved it.
To help train your kitten, pick the word that best describes them:
These anxious felines tend to run away when the doorbell rings and are fearful of new situations.
The key to training a skittish kitty? Practice lots of patience and never force them to face their fears, like meeting your house guests after they’ve already runaway and hidden.
Some call them nosy, but we call them fearless. Outgoing kitties are curious and adventurous. They love to explore and get into everything — and they sometimes act naughty because they’re bored.
One of the tricks to training an outgoing kitten is to give them lots of toys and actively play with them. It stimulates their mind and helps burn off energy.
“Bossy” best describes these kitties. They bully other cats (and even other pets) and hog things like food bowls, toys and litter boxes.
If your kitten fits this category, be consistently firm and make sure you play with them regularly so they have less energy to be aggressive.
You might also want to make sure your little CEO (Cat Executive Officer) has their own food bowl, water bowl and litter box.
Two words describe these felines: impulsive and erratic. Their behavior and moods are unpredictable, even if they’ve encountered the same situation before.
When training, never raise your voice — it’ll just ramp up your kitty’s nerves and make them more erratic.
Also, be sure to stick to a consistent daily schedule for feeding and playtime so your little fuzzball knows what to expect and doesn’t get stressed out.
This personality is every cat lover’s dream.
These sweeties can usually be found curling up against your shins, meowing loudly and purring away.
The key to training these kittens is to never yell and to socialize them early and often. That way, they’ll continue to be everyone’s best friend for life.
You had me at
meow, li’l feline.
High fibre cat food has become a mainstay for many cats with gastrointestinal problems. But why is fibre so crucial for cats?
Fibre is a type of carbohydrate that isn't digested by a cat's gastrointestinal tract. It is important for cat health because it provides bulk to move food through. Some types of fibre can be fermented (broken down by bacteria) in the system. This process creates short-chain fatty acids (SCFA), which are an important energy source for the cells lining the intestinal tract.
Thus, understanding the various types of fibre and when to include fibre in a cat's nutrition plan is crucial. High-fibre cat food often contains a combination of soluble and insoluble fibres that aid gastrointestinal health and improve stool quality. Some of these fibre elements are also known as prebiotics, which are nutrients (mostly fermentable fibres) that help the good bacteria in the intestines grow.
Soluble fibre for cats, such as gums and pectins, are the best at absorbing water. These fibres are typically highly fermentable and provide the required energy source. Adding such soluble fibres to your cat’s diet can help it maintain a healthy colonic mucosa and boost immune function in the lower intestine.
Insoluble fibres, such as lignin or cellulose, have a variety of therapeutic properties and can be utilised in your cat’s meal to promote its gastrointestinal health.
Today, people are more aware of fibre and its role in their diet. Studies showing the beneficial effects of higher fibre levels in humans influence the way many people think about their own food and that of their pets. Some manufacturers now apply the recommendations of human nutritionists and make high-fibre diets for cats, but cats have a much shorter digestive tract than we do. And unlike humans, cats are carnivorous, so their nutritional needs are better satisfied with meat rather than plant matter. Therefore, cats have different dietary needs than humans. For more than 60 years, companion animal nutritionists at IAMS™ have been studying diets to meet the special nutritional needs of cats.
Furthermore, fibre-rich cat food benefit cats suffering from GI illnesses of the large intestine. Fibrous food can assist in preserving their GI motility and water balance. This is turn helps prevent constipation and diarrhea in cats.
IAMS Company research shows the optimal crude fibre level for healthy cat’s ranges from 1.4% to 3.5%. At these levels, nutrient breakdown is maximised. In unique situations, such as hairballs, higher fibre levels may be beneficial.
An important characteristic of fibre is its fermentability, or how well it can be broken down by bacteria in the intestine. This breakdown produces short-chain fatty acids, which provide energy to the intestines. Fibre varies in fermentability. Fibre sources used in pet foods include cellulose, which is poorly fermentable; beet pulp, which is moderately fermentable; and gums and pectin, which can be highly fermentable. Research has shown that moderate levels of moderately fermentable fibre, such as beet pulp, provide the benefits of energy for the intestinal lining and bulk, without the negative effects of excessive stool or gas and, therefore, are beneficial in cat diets.
High moisture, protein, and minimum carbohydrate matter are all key ingredients in high-fibre cat diets. Here are some benefits of high-fibrous food for your cat:
Cats with medical issues can also greatly benefit from high-fibre foods. For instance, high-fibre wet cat food might help overweight cats in reducing overeating and lowering their risk of obesity. What’s more is, adding fibrous food to your cat’s meal will also help your pet eliminate more nitrogen through their stool, thus sparing the kidneys. In fact, many dietary fibres inhibit nutrient absorption qualities, which help to lessen the rate at which the GI tract assimilates glucose, thereby keeping the blood sugar levels stable.
High levels of poorly fermentable fibre are used in some weight-reduction pet foods to dilute the calories in a serving. IAMS Company research shows that high fibre in cat food can make it harder to digest other nutrients in the meal and, in turn, reduce the nutritional quality of a feline’s diet. Your cat making more trips to the litter box can be a result.
Low-fibrous food contains nutrients such as electrolytes and B-vitamins that aid recuperation in cats. This type of food is usually recommended by veterinarians for cats who are prone to having a quick onset of GI disturbance. Therefore, when choosing a meal for your cat, always visit a veterinarian. If your cat is on a high-fibre diet, their veterinarian should keep an eye on them to ensure that their fibre-responsive symptoms are under control.
When choosing a pet food, fibre is an important consideration, but remember that the needs of cats are not the same as those of humans. A moderate level of moderately fermentable fibre, such as beet pulp, provides proven nutritional benefits for cats. Cat diets containing high levels of poorly fermentable fibre dilute calories and deprive cats of the nutrients they need.
All IAMS products are made with levels of moderately fermentable fibre needed to promote intestinal health. And all IAMS foods, such as IAMS ProActive Health™ Adult Original with Chicken, contain the moderately fermentable fibre system, which is the exclusive property of IAMS Company and is protected by U.S. Patent No. 5,616,569 for Pet Food Products Containing Fermentable Fibres and Process for Treating Gastrointestinal Disorders.
