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Providing adequate resources in a multi-cat household
28th June 2018
If you live in a multi-cat household, conflicts can arise, which can be stressful for your pets. Cats evolved to be self-reliant so it's important to provide mutliple resources to allow each cat to visit that resource at a time of their choosing. Take a look at our tips below to help create a comfortable environment for each of the cats in your home.
Feeding stations
Cats do not like to eat together and will only do so if they have to. Therefore, it's best to provide multiple feeding stations in separate rooms around the house. This will reduce stress at mealtimes and will give each of your cats a chance to access their food at a time of their choosing.
You should also provide multiple water stations. Water bowls and food bowls should be kept separately as cats prefer to drink away from their food to avoid contamination.
Toileting areas
If you have indoor cats, as a rule, it’s best to provide enough litter trays per cat plus an extra tray for good measure. Each litter tray should be positioned in a different room so that your cats can toilet in privacy. If you do not supply enough litter trays around the house, your cats might find other places to do their business.
For outdoor cats, areas of loose sand located around the garden will encourage your cats to go to the toilet close to home rather than wandering further afield in search of better facilities.
Create a comfortable home
Your cats will need lots of space to roam so try to give them free access throughout the house. Make sure your cats have high perches and hidden areas to retreat to if they feel threatened.
Some cats are happy to snuggle up together at bedtime while others prefer their own space. Supply multiple beds to give your cats the option.
Multiple scratching posts around the home give your cats plenty of places to mark their territory without destroying your furniture.
Cat flaps
If you can, install more than one cat flap in your home. Multiple entry and exit points will give your cats a better chance to patrol their territory freely. If you only have one cat flap, the most dominant cat might block that entrance, which can be stressful for the more timid cats in your home.
A SureFlap Microchip Cat Flap will prevent intruder cats entering your home and causing further upset.
Neutering
Neutering can reduce aggressive behaviour in cats, particularly males. Have all your cats neutered to reduce inter-cat conflict. Neutering will also prevent your cats reproducing and adding to the huge number of unwanted kittens that are handed into animal shelters every year.
