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Companionship; a state of spending time with someone or having someone to spend time with.
As humans, we all have different needs when it comes to spending time with others. Some of us crave and thrive on human interaction, some choose to spend their time with a select few and others prefer spending time alone.
Our pets are no different! Dogs are pack animals so generally love interacting with humans and other dogs. Some really don’t like other dogs but love humans and vice versa, but #didyouknow that cats generally don’t like other cats and prefer a solitary life?
One of the five welfare needs is “Companionship; be housed apart from or with other animals as appropriate”.
Cats have very specific welfare needs. Cat’s need plenty of resources that they can access without getting too close to another cat that they are not friendly with. These resources are; water, food, hiding places, litter trays and scratching posts. If you do have a multi-cat household or are planning to introduce another cat to your home, here are a few things to consider:
- Environment – make sure there are enough resting places. Each cat needs a space that is warm and comfortable and draft-free and allow each cat to sleep alone.
There should be enough places for your cats to toilet. At least one litter tray per cat PLUS one more. They should be large and filled with enough litter to allow your cats to dig and bury their deposits (at least 3cm deep).
Cats don’t like to use dirty trays so it’s important that you regularly clean the tray to avoid any accidents. Any solid deposits should be scooped out as often as possible and AT LEAST once a day. The tray should be emptied and thoroughly cleaned every couple of days.
- Food & Water – cats can find eating next to each other very stressful. You can avoid this by locating enough ceramic, glass or metal bowls so that your cats can eat and drink away from each other. It’s also important to locate food and water bowls away from each other.
- Behaviour – Hiding is an important natural behaviour for a cat and one that can help a cat deal with stressful situations. Provide lots of places for your cat to hide and if this space is up high, EVEN better! Provide bedding in these spaces so they can rest there too until they feel safe again.
If you are concerned about your cat’s behaviour or their health in general, book in to see one of the team by sending a message via PetsApp or by calling 01772 639800 OR 01253 766352.
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