How to Create a Stress-Free Home for Your Cat: Tips for a Happy, Calm Cat

• Safe spaces can help cats cope with stress, especially if they are new to a home, have had a stressful past, or are in a multi-cat household. This allows them to feel more secure, relaxed and to explore at their own pace. 

• Mental stimulation and play: promoting natural behaviours indoors.  

To promote natural behaviours and mental stimulation for indoor cats, provide opportunities for  

• Play with wand toys, fishing toys and interacting with you.  

• Create enriching environments with vertical spaces, window perches, hidden treats, puzzles feeders.  

• Mimic their natural instincts such as hunting for meals by scattering food in different locations, hide and seek, rotating toys.  

• Cat friendly spaces with access to comfortable areas and scratching posts. 

To establish a stress-free feeding routine:  

• Multiple small meals throughout the day mimic their natural eating habits and regulate their metabolism.  

• Measured portions of food, both wet and dry, to prevent overeating and maintain a healthy weight.  

• Avoid leaving food out all day can lead to overeating and weight gain.  

• If you have multiple cats, ensure each has its own food and water bowl in a quiet, low-traffic area.  

• Choose a peaceful location for mealtimes, free from distractions and other cats.  

• Observe your cat's preferences for food type (wet or dry) and feeding times.  

• Pay attention to your cat's eating habits and be aware that any sudden changes could indicate a potential health issue. 

Guests:  

• Introduce people one-by-one. Cats may feel overwhelmed if you try to introduce many people at once, especially if they are naturally shy or timid. By introducing people one at a time, you can help your cat to gradually accept and trust new people.  

• Go slowly. Encourage family members and visitors to take their time in getting to know your cat. It's best to sit back and let the cat make the first move. This is much less confrontational. Your cat will also appreciate having an escape route or somewhere high to hide if they get scared.  

• Keep quiet. Cats are more likely to bolt if your visitors are noisy. By speaking in a calm, soothing voice you can help the cat to feel safe.  

• Avoid handling. Cats generally don't like to be picked up unless they're being handled by someone familiar to them. 

Children:  

• Introduce the cat to children in short, supervised sessions, allowing them to get used to each other gradually.  

• Teach children to approach the cat slowly, speak softly, and allow the cat to sniff their hand before touching.  

• Teach children to respect the cat's need for space, especially when eating, sleeping, or grooming.  

• Always supervise interactions between young children and cats to prevent accidents and ensure safety. 

Other pets:  

• Introduce the cat to other pets in a neutral space, allowing them to get used to each other's scents and presence.  

• Supervise interactions between cats and other pets to prevent any conflicts or aggression.  

• Ensure that all pets have access to safe spaces where they can retreat if they need to.  

• It may take time for pets to adjust to each other, so be patient and allow them to settle in at their own pace. 

Litter box etiquette refers to the principles of maintaining a clean and suitable environment for cats to use their litter box. This includes:  

• Litter type: large and flat with plenty of space to move in order to pass urine and stool.   

• Proper placement: in a quiet corner, away from food and water and from doors and cat flap (seen as dangerous places) and ideally placing one litter tray for every cat in the house plus extra one in different locations around the house to avoid clashing between cats in the same household.  

• Cleaning frequency: remove soiled stool and wee at least twice a day and clean the entire tray weekly avoiding strong smelly cleaners. 

• It also involves addressing potential issues like inappropriate passing wee or passing poop outside the litter box.