Quantities - Try one tablespoon per meal to start with. If this is not enough, you will soon be informed of the fact! As the kitten grows, increase the quantities and reduce the number of meals until, by 9 months (when the kitten is officially a cat) your cat is having two meals a day plus biscuits and water available at all times. Apart from the dry cat food, never leave food down - always take away what is not eaten. Do not leave cat food in the tin once opened. It is best put in plastic container with a tight lid. Never feed straight from the fridge - food should always be at room temperature. Never feed cows milk, it can cause severe tummy upset. Vary the diet as much as possible.

If you have read a lot of cat books, please remember that your kitten has not, and it cannot be expected to behave exactly as the books say! Like children, kittens vary in their likes and dislikes and behaviour pattern and even kittens within the same litter will vary. If your kitten turns its nose up at some of the food, please have patience, it will come round. An unbalanced diet can cause serious deficiency diseases, so do not encourage your cat to become a fussy feeder. Occasionally a greedy kitten will bolt its food and bring it straight back undigested. It does not mean that the food disagrees with it, but that the food should be fed in smaller quantities or mashed up more finely. Large lumps could make a kitten choke! Fresh water must be available at all times!

Inoculations - Your kitten has been vaccinated against Feline Infectious enteritis and Cat Flu. We recommend vaccination against Leukaemia at 5 – 6 months. This is important, as many cats are now dying from Leukaemia. A well fed, well cared for cat, that has exercise, fresh air and a sensible home, will ail very little.

Ears - Your kitten has clean healthy ears. You can keep them this way with a weekly check. Never poke a cats ears with cotton buds! Neglected ear trouble (Ear Mange, Otitis or Canker) can result in infection spreading through the middle ear, causing pain and distress. Ear problems can be caught from another infected cat, but likewise can be readily treated if spotted early.

Beds and Bedding - A cardboard box makes a perfectly satisfactory bed and is most hygienic, if renewed frequently. Equally any plastic bed is suitable, as it can be easily disinfected. All bedding should be washed and changed often, cats like to be clean. All our kittens are born in the bedroom, where they stay for the first three weeks. After that they are moved downstairs to a kitten pen and get used to all the usual household noises and the litter tray. They love a lap cuddle and lots of toys for playtime. All potential dangerous attachments on toys such as dangling string, material eyes, tail and nose on mice, or elastic etc - they can cause harm or worse if swallowed. Ping pong balls, crunched up paper, small soft toys or small mice are the favourites.

Never lend a cat basked and never borrow one - it may have been used for transporting a sick cat. Always disinfect after a visit to a vet or a cat show. Keep your basket on your lap at the vets, the floor can contain many lethal germs.

Litter Trays - These should be available at all times. Cat litter is now easily available in all supermarkets. Keep clean and change frequently. Wash out with detergent and water. Only use a safe disinfectant, many contain coal tar or carbolic and have a toxic effect on cats (detol or any white turn white when water is added). Household bleach diluted with water is safe. Do not expect your kitten to stay clean, if you play hide and seek with the litter tray - keep it in the same place. Cats do not like to use a dirty tray anymore than you would like to use a dirty lavatory and have been known to refuse an unkempt tray!

Grooming - Brush and hand groom regularly! Don`t faint, if you see a flea. Do something sensible like buying a flea comb and USE it. It is far easier to keep a cat clean from fleas, than it is to try and clean up an infested one. Front Line purchased from your Vet is the most effective form of flea control. With a kitten, a small amount sprayed on the comb and combed into the fur is sufficient for 2-3 months. Flea collars do not work very well and may result in broken neck fur and bald patches. Any cat given its freedom is liable to pick up the odd flea, but if your cat is riddled with them, than you are to blame. Remember, fleas carry disease that can kill, i.e. Feline Anaemia. If there are fleas on your cat, the chances are, they are in the house too, or very soon will be. Staykill or Acclaim used on carpets and furniture will ensure, that your house is free from fleas.

If your cat will have to wear a collar with Name and phone number, it must get used to this from an early age. Do not, however, leave a collar on permanently, take it off, when the cat is in at night. Microchipping is advised for identification should your pet get lost.

Regular hand grooming is necessary for that extra special gloss when showing a cat. However, no amount of grooming will bring a cat into show condition, if it is under the weather! If your cat is not very well, get him/her treated by a Vet immediately - delay can cost life, especially in a kitten. Every one of our kittens is sold with insurance cover and we feel, that this is important to maintain throughout the cats life. Vet fees, even for minor illness, can be very expensive and should an accident occur, they can escalate very rapidly.

Breeding - If you intend to breed from your cat, than do study the subject carefully. Do not assume that mating with a Champion is going to produce lots of Champions in miniature. Breeding cats can cost a lot of money and heartbreak. Once you have paid for the food that a pregnant queen, a nursing queen and a litter of kittens will eat, plus the stud fees, advertising bills and vet fees, you will soon realise, that there is no profit to be made. Also a `Calling queen` is not everyone`s cup of tea. When it comes to a battle of -Close that door- don`t open that window- when your girls wants to be out with the boys, don`t get angry with the battle scarred Tom sitting on the gatepost with six others sitting in the shrubbery. It isn`t their fault that their owners have not had them neutered and your girl did call them to her aid in the first place. It will be your fault, if she gets caught and picks up disease along the way, i.e. Aids and FIP.

Neutering and spaying - This is absolutely essential for any animal not used for breeding and is best done between the ages of six to nine months. A British Male can usually wait a little longer depending upon the time of year and development of the cat. Neutering too early can stop the development of that nice big head a British cat should have. Remember though, that an un-neutered Tom can be a menace. He will wander off, get into fights and mark his territory. You might not notice the smell, but everyone else will! It is equally cruel to keep an un-spayed female, unless you wish to breed from her. A calling queen will wear herself down, lose a lot of weight and become thoroughly frustrated.

There is no need for a Neuter to become fat - it will only lead to heart failure and kidney problems and thereby shorten the cats life, so when you do have your cat(s) neutered be sure that you do not increase the food to a much more rapid amount.

Safety - Keep Washing machines and Dryer doors firmly closed. Shut down lavatory seats - kitttens are curious and drown. Look out for poisons in garages, sheds and under sinks. Don`t leave unsafe tools in the garden or broken glass around. Let common sense prevail at all times.

General - Do not let a kitten go outdoors, unless you are there to supervise it but as they mature into their adulthood and you do intend to let your cat out or within an enclosed garden always make sure your cat is in at night, even if you have to crawl around in your pyjamas in the pouring rain.

Love your kitten, play with it. Talk to it. You will find it highly intelligent. Do not smack it, shout at it or confuse it. Do not allow young children to disturb its sleep or display it to their friends. Provide safe toys for it to play with. A scratching post will save your furniture and wallpaper, as will regular cutting of your kittens claws. Do not be alarmed when your kitten sheds its first teeth - this is supposed to happen.

Diet Sheet - Food given raw can be Rabbit, Beef, heart - not liver, it is a laxative. Cooked meat can be Rabbit, Chicken, Turkey etc ,make sure all bones are removed. Fish must always be cooked, dark and white varieties i.e. Cod, Coley etc, again make sure all bones are removed. Cat Biscuits must always be fed dry. Do not mix in with Tin food. Preferred Tin food we give is in jelly but again there are many different varieties avilable. Tinned Pilchards, Tuna, Salmon or Sardines can be given as an occasional treat. Feed a good variety and your cat should be fit and healthy. It should have an alert look, a soft glossy coat and clear bright eyes.

News - It is always nice to hear how you and your kitten are getting on together, and we are pleased to offer help and advise at any time.