November 28, 2006
Simple rule to learn more: Read up, ask and ask some more.
Being in the knowledge world, we have 3 great resources to find out more. Most, if not all, are easily obtainable and actually free for all! Amazing, isn’t it?
Internet:
It is quite amazing how much you can find out, nowsaday without leaving your home. All thanks to the internet. One site which I find particularly good is the following website: http://cats.about.com. Although it might refer to items in the US, you can get most, if not all, of the products here via a pet shop or worst case, get it ordered from the US. It is really a small world.
Another good source is http://tippedearclan.wordpress.com/. The owner of this blog is someone who cares a lot and has put up a lot of information. I learnt a lot from the experiences and information that was posted there. I learnt more by speaking with the author. Real life experiences is much better. But to make the learning process a little more constructive, please find out more on your own before asking. Your time is precious, so are others.
Good old Books:
Another source is, surprise, the library. We have a great library in Singapore. There are books on cat ownership that give you a pretty good idea of what, why, how and when of keeping a cat. I found the following book particularly helpful. The library has it. It is not very thick, well illustrated, and details it in an easy to read manner. If you are not a keen reader, this might be a good book to start with, if you choose to read one book. I read a few but I really this book.
“Kiss: Guide to Cat Care” by Steve Duno. (ISBN: 0789480123)
I am sure that there are other references that are good, which I am not aware of.
Speak to pet owners:
Nothing beats speaking to someone who owns a pet. I have spoken to dog owners, cat owners and even rabbit owners. Although the advice you get might be conflicting, some tips are pretty much similar. I got so much more insights into owning a pet by speaking to current and past pet owners. The information you get might be conflicting because of a simple fact:
Every cat is different. Face it, they do not beat to your beat. They might try to accomodate you, but you have to learn to accomodate them too! Tough. But they do learn rules, so your rules must be consistent and applicable by all at home and all times. Even though I discipline my cat, he still looks for me to play and follows me around, yes-I said: follow me around. He looks forward, in the morning, to seeing me. He waits patiently outside my toilet door, for me to do, well, stuff.
Hopefully, this has been helpful. Like I said before, this is my experience. I am solely responsible for the errors and omissions. If you have other experiences to share, please do. We want everyone to benefit from your experience. I am writing this blog because of the grace and generosity of others who care to offer their experiences and knowledge. So, should you, if you can.
Next post should be about the chronology of events from picking the cat up from the cattery to your home. I am very lucky to have an easily adjusted cat. I have heard more challenging stories. Like life, you get the good, but some days, you get the short end of the stick.
