Congratulations on bringing a cat home! Whether it’s a kitten or an older cat, black or striped, purebred or mixed, shy or affectionate, you’ll want to provide it with the best possible home –which means making sure things are safe for it in your apartment. Here are some tips to help you understand safety issues for cats at home.
Protect the places they play
First, keep an eye on your furniture, especially your plants — yesterday it was just furniture, but now it’s all a potential scratching post or food source for a curious cat. Certain popular indoor plants, including aloe, Chinese evergreens, and golden pothos, can be very dangerous, if not fatal, in a cat’s digestive system. The ASPCA keeps a list of plants toxic to cats, or you can search Cornell University’s database of poisonous plants.
Your furniture and appliances also pose a threat to your new cat. If it can leap onto the kitchen stove, you’ll need to keep the burners covered, especially if you have electric burners that will stay hot for a few minutes after you turn them off. And don’t run your oven, dishwasher, or clothes washer or dryer without checking to make sure the cat hasn’t snuck in first!
Keep vases and other breakable objects either high up or secure; not only would it be an expensive mess if the cat were to knock it over, it would also leave broken glass or clay on the floor for the cat to walk on or even swallow.
Curious kitties need protection
You absolutely do not want your cat taking your medicine. Make sure all pills are in secure containers, preferably on a high shelf to which the cat can’t jump. Don’t leave medicines out. The same goes for needles and thread, and even yarn — it’s cute to see a cat playing with a ball of yarn, but if the cat were to swallow any of the yarn, it would be at risk of intestinal damage, so keep any yarn-play supervised!
If your cat has regular access to the outdoors, look into getting it a “breakaway” collar which can snap open if the cat gets caught in a fence or tree. You may also want to have your vet implant a microchip so that if your cat got lost and lost its collar, a finder or shelter would still have a way to identify you as the owner.
If your cat doesn’t get to go outside regularly, you might be able to take it for a walk — but use a harness designed for cat walks, not a collar. Some cats, particularly those with pink noses and lighter skin, may be prone to sunburn; check your local pet store or vet to find cat-friendly sunscreen.
A busy cat is a happy cat
Finally, a bored cat will be an unhappy, and potentially unhealthy, cat. Make sure to provide plenty of toys for your cat, and food hidden (in safe places) so the cat can exercise its natural inclination to hunt for prey. Scratching posts should be as tall as possible so the cat can stretch.
The Feline Advisory Bureau has a number of other tips for making your home or apartment as “cat-friendly” as possible.
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