Getting a kitten is a super exciting time in your life, however you need to know How to prep your home when getting a kitten. Otherwise you can end up with a stressful time instead of a joyful time. It is really easy to prep your home when getting a kitten and it is a great way to get the kids involved with helping understand the responsibilities of a kitten.

Kittens are like toddlers in many ways, a little bit easier but they are still a lot of work and it is important to prep your home before getting a kitten. When preparing your home for your kitten, think about the things you would do to make sure your house is safe for a toddler. There is a lot in common with making a house safe for a toddler and a kitten.

How to Prep Your Home When Getting a Kitten

1. Pick a food and water location. You need to have this separate from where they will sleep and go to the bathroom.
2. Pick a Litter box location. You want this to be easily accessible to the kitten but not right in the middle of the house or near their food and sleep area.
3. House Safety. Make sure any area of the house that could be dangerous is blocked off from their access. For example we have a well hole in our basement, that is to small for our grown cats to fall into, but our tiny kittens could easily fall in and not be able to get out so we needed to make sure they would be safe if they went in our basement.
4. Pick a safe room for your new kitten. When introducing your new kitten to your house it is important have a safe space for them to go. You want to have enough room in that room for their food, water, litter box and toys. This will be the room that you introduce them to your house in and make them feel comfortable. Make sure you check out these tips for introducing your kitten to your other cats, if you have them. This is also the room you will want to put them in if you are going to be away for a long period of time. As they grow up this will most likely become the room that they run to when they need their own space.
5.  Prep Your home with FELIWAY® CLASSIC. Having the diffusers already in the house and ready to go plugged into the walls will make the kittens more relaxed while venturing in their new home.
6. Move cords, wires and anything else that your kitten could chew. Kittens are curious creatures and they will chew things that they can get their paws on. If you have cords for your computer or other devices, use a cord bundler to to tie the cords together so they are not dangerous to the kittens.
7. Get cabinet locks. Kittens will get into cabinets and even if you just have them shut they will find a way to open them. Using toddler cabinet locks is a great way to keep them out of the cabinets and getting into things like cleaning chemicals and other items that are dangerous to cats.
8. Remove Poisonous Plants from your home. If you have any plants in your home, research to make sure they are not poisonous to cats, if they are remove them from the house. Cats can jump so just moving them up to where you think they won’t get them doesn’t work very well.

Along with the preparing of your home to bring home your kitten, there are also quite a few things your kitten is going to need.

Things Needed for a Kitten:

1. Cat food
2. Food and water bowls. You will want a few bowls so that you are using a new bowl every time you give them food and water.
3. Toys
4. Scratching Post. To help teach your kitten to scratch their scratching post instead of your furniture I highly suggest using Feliscratch.
5. Cat Carrier
6. Cat Treats
7. Cat Litter
8. Litter box
9. Poop Scooper
10. Cleaning Supplies
11. Feliway Spray
12. Feliway Diffusers 
13. Cat nail clippers
14. Cat brush
15. Cat bed or blankets

New Kitten Checklist Printable

To make your life easier when while you prep your home when getting a kitten, we have this awesome Kitten Needs Printable. Just go here, download it to your computer and print it! Super simple and it will help make it easier while you prep your home when getting a kitten.

Also some fun information for you to help your cats, April is Destress your pet month! Here are a few tips to help you with your cats stress and help you have happier cats!

• Individual food and water bowls, and separate spaces to eat and drink for each member of the furry family.
• A good diet based on age, activity level and formulated to reduce digestive issues or food allergies.
• Comfortable bed or kennel in a quiet part of the house where the pet can relax and get away from the family from time to time.
• Exercise to help burn off excess energy and tap into instinctive urges.
• Classical music, a TV or radio on in the house so the pet doesn’t feel all alone or to mask scary sounds like loud engines or thunderstorms.
• Toys and food puzzles to keep a pet busy.  Cats are terrible multi-taskers.  If they are focused and busy playing or working out a challenge for food or a treat, they won’t be as stressed out by other factors.
• A scratching post for each cat.

To learn more about how to reduce stress and anxiety in pets including the signs to look for, visit www.de-stressyourpet.com.

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Feliway. All opinions are 100% my own.