How to Care for Indoor Cats - Keeping Your Cat Safe

Your cat doesn't have to go outside in order to be happy. One of the keys to keeping your indoor cat very happy and fulfilled is giving it entertainment and stimulation on a regular basis. In addition to exercise and mental stimulation, your indoor cat needs a safe environment to live in, food and water, and regular grooming and healthcare. If you can provide all these things for your cat it is likely to live a happy and healthy life indoors.

1. Create a cat-safe environment. An indoor cat get makes its own amusement, which often means exploring the home and playing with anything that catches its eye. It is important you check around your house from a "cat's eye" point of view and look for things it might hurt itself on and make sure they are safe.[1]
- Be aware cats may jump up onto all kinds of surfaces. Just because a surface is waist-height, or even head-height, doesn't mean that your cat won't thoroughly explore it.
- Put away things what will be attractive to a cat. For example, tinsel, shoelaces, wool, string, sewing supplies are all attractive to cats. If it's long, thin, and snake like then the cat will want to play with it. Make sure these are all tidied away because if the cat investigates with its mouth and swallow a piece of wool the cat could end up with a serious bowel obstruction that requires surgery to correct it.
- Cats and candles don't mix. Cats love to jump up, so even putting a candle on a high shelf doesn't mean it's safe. In the worst case scenario, the cat won't know it's there, knock it over, and cause a house fire.

2. Keep toxins out of reach of your cat. Always make sure cleaning agents and other chemicals are locked out of harm's way. There are many chemicals we use in our homes that are severely toxic to cats.
- For example, many common floor cleaners contain benzalkonium chloride. This chemical can cause burns to delicate tissue, such as the tongue or the lining of the mouth of a cat. If a cat walks across a floor still wet with cleaner, and then licks its paws to clean them, it could develop nasty tongue ulcers which prevent it from eating.

3. Find out if your house plants could be toxic to your cat. Many are. Indeed lilies have no place in a cat household, since the pollen is extremely toxic and causes severe kidney failure. Other plants to avoid include azaleas, hydrangeas, poinsettias, daffodils, and mistletoe. This is not an exhaustive list so always check to see if your plants are feline friendly before bringing them into your house.