Kvet Forum
Well-known member
Bright eyes, a shiny coat and an alert disposition are all characteristics of a healthy cat. Healthy cats have good appetites, groom themselves well and interact with their owners.There is no one best place to find a healthy cat, so in your search consider neighbors, friends, coworkers, local shelters, breeders, veterinary clinics and hospitals.
The most important factor in choosing a healthy cat is a good personality.You can tell a lot about personality even with kittens.To test a cat’s personality, hold her in your arms and see if she is relaxed or tense. Cradle her upside down in your arms, like a baby, and again, see how she reacts. If you are looking for an affectionate cat, and the one you are testing will not let you hold her for more than a second, you may want to reconsider your choice or plan to do some work on gaining the cat’s trust and training her to relax.
Two to seven weeks of age is the period considered to be critical to a kitten’s socialization. Kittens who are handled by many people and interact with other cats and animals during this time tend to adjust better socially as adults. Ask about a cat’s early experiences when you are considering her for adoption.
The next test is to touch the animal’s ears, gently open her mouth and touch her toes. Again, the more the cat is willing to let you handle her, the more likely she is to be trusting of you in general. If you put the cat down and walk away, is she interested in you? Does she follow you? Is the cat alert, responsive and playful? Test this by throwing a small toy, or even make one from a ball of paper. All these little tests will give you some idea of what the cat’s personality is like.
Even with a very healthy kitten, the health care costs for a kitten for the first year are generally higher than they are for an adult cat. Kittens have less well-developed immune systems than adult cats, so they are more susceptible to infections. They also require more routine health care during their first year of life than older cats do. This includes initial vaccines, viral and fecal testing and spaying or neutering.