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Cats are beautiful, interesting, weird creatures. If you're lucky enough to be loved by one, it's your God-given responsibility to give them a comfortable and fun home. We wrote about the supplies you should get if you recently adopted a pet, but once you have that pet situated at home, you'll want to create a healthy, welcoming space for them. Cats require a specific type of environment to play, scratch, and relax.
Here are our favorite products based on months of testing with our own cats. Even if our pets rejected a particular product, we still examined overall construction, design, and value to determine whether it may be of use to other kitties. Felines can be finicky, so you may have to go through a few options to find the right fit.
Check out our related guides, like the Best Veterinary Telemedicine Services and Our Favorite Fancy Cat Furniture. More of a dog person? We've got you covered! See our Best Accessories and Tech Essentials for Your Dog guide.
Updated March 2023: We've added a bunch more cat stuff we like, including Purina's Petivitiy bathroom tracker and the Cat Amazing treat puzzles, as well as the Fur Zapper and Sprinkle & Sweep cleaning accessories. We've also updated prices and links throughout.
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Don't listen to the cat haters: Cats do form a connection to their human owners. And while they may be more low-maintenance than dogs, they still require thoughtful care. Here are some basic dos and don'ts when it comes to owning a cat.
DO: Separate food and water. Use multiple litter boxes for multiple cats. Give them ways to hunt their food. Ensure they get exercise. Give them places to hide and feel safe. Regularly trim their nails. Give them love and affection!
DON'T: Leave them unattended around these toxic plants. Accidentally harm them with common essential oils like eucalyptus. Feed them a vegan diet, milk (yes, really), or these other toxic foods. Declaw them.
A litter box is essential. What kind you get depends on your cat—not every cat likes enclosed boxes, and others need high sides to shield your walls from urine (sometimes they aim high!). You should have one box per cat, and one on each floor if you live in a multilevel home.
You'll find cheap, standard litter boxes everywhere they sell pet items, but if those don't work, consider these:
★ You should also use a litter mat underneath the box to minimize the litter tracked through your house. Just vacuum and shake it out regularly.
I (Medea) was unsure about robotic litter boxes—they're big and expensive, and experts warn that not cleaning out a box every day could mean missing potential signs of sickness. But then I tried two that changed my mind: Leo's Loo Too and Whisker's Litter-Robot 4.
Both are still large and expensive, but they connect to apps that keep track of your cat's bathroom habits, alerting you when they use the box and what their weight is. You'll know something is off if their bathroom trips suddenly change, and you can scoop a little less too. Both have sensors and other safety features so it won't spin if a cat is inside. Leo's Loo is the most sensitive, so if you have a particularly curious cat, this might be the one to get. Bigger cats will probably prefer the larger drum of the Litter-Robot.
You don't have to spend $700 to know exactly what's happening when Fluffy visits the commode. Purina's Petivity (8/10, WIRED Recommends) sits underneath a standard litter box and, once connected to the app, tells you which cat visited the box at what time, how much they weigh, and if they went one or two.
This has made my life much less stressful, because now I know exactly how much Huxley, who has lower urinary tract disease, is urinating. If something is off, I know immediately and can get him to the vet.
For years, I didn't understand the allure of the Litter Genie. Then I moved into an apartment complex where taking out the garbage meant a trip across the parking lot, and I started making excuses to not clean out the box—it was raining or dark, or I had my hair up in a towel and didn’t want to go outside. Finally, I bought one.
As with a Diaper Genie, you scoop clumps into the top compartment and open a hatch that drops it to a bottom compartment, where it holds in the odors for up to two weeks. You can clean every day without daily trips to the trash and without wasting a ton of plastic bags. When you’re ready to empty it, there’s a handy attachment that safely cuts the bag to tie it off and start a new one. You'll have to commit to buying refills, though. There's also an XL version if you have multiple cats.
Litter box placement is hard. You need a low-foot-traffic area, away from your cat's food and water, and preferably a space where a stray odor won't ruin the mood. Most people don't want to relinquish closet space or a bedroom to a litter box. I (Louryn) tested and loved this litter box enclosure. It conceals my cat's litter boxes from both eyes and noses, and it gives my kitties privacy. The neutral colors work well in most rooms, and you can also paint it. My cats took to it right away and seem to be as relieved as I am that we can't see one another while they do their business.
The enclosure looks like a small credenza or freestanding cupboard. I don't think you could guess it housed litter if you didn't know. I sprinkle this deodorizer on the litter, but the enclosure does a good job at trapping odors on its own. This is my favorite piece of cat gear I've ever tried, and it's often on sale.
When it comes to materials, most vets and cat experts will tell you to use stainless steel or glass bowls for your pet's food and water. Plastic can get dingy and dirty fast, and it holds onto bacteria. This can result in what's called cat acne.
My neighborhood has an affectionate real-life squishmallow of an outdoor cat named Stokely. We call him a walking black hole due to his gravitational force (he weighs over 20 pounds). He’s the sweetest, biggest gravy boat imaginable, but it's tough not to feel like an enabler when he comes around asking for dinner. This slow feeder has helped curb his habits—maybe not his appetite, which is a runaway train with no conductor—but the mat definitely slows him down. The included spatula means you don’t have to get mystery gravy on your human utensils, and the suction cups keep it stuck firmly to the floor. The mats are easy to clean. The suction cups might stick to your kitchen counter if you load the mat there, so I find it best to place the mat in the cats’ feeding area before mashing the food in. I fully believe that if this worked for Stokely, it'll work for any cat.
Some reviews mention that particularly toothsome cats might chew on the mats to the point of degrading them. While I have not experienced this, it's always smart to supervise your pet while they're eating.
Cats don't feel the need to drink water the way humans do. So if they're unhappy with their water situation, it could lead to dehydration and other serious issues like bladder stones and urethral blockages—some cats don't like their water right next to their food, which is why it's recommended to keep them separate. Male cats are especially prone to these issues. Feeding them wet food helps with their water intake, but we wanted a more enticing way for our cats to drink water. Some cats prefer drinking from fountains (or, as many cat owners have experienced, from the bathroom faucet).
If you get a fountain, you'll need to have an outlet nearby, and you'll need to change the filter about every month, but it's worth it if your cat uses it. We tried Catit's plastic flower fountain and its stainless-steel-topped fountain. While stainless steel bowls are preferred, the plastic should be OK as long as you keep it clean. See below for a smart option.
Catit’s Pixi series offers a smart fountain and feeder controlled via the Pixi app (available on iOS and Android). The fountain's pump has a small LED that shines through the clear cat nose on the front, turning red when the water is low and blue if UV-C sterilization is on. It blinks blue when the filter needs to be changed, and the app will also alert you.
You can use the app to either pour food remotely or on a daily schedule. You can also press the cat nose to pour, or disable it if your pets figure it out. The app will tell you when the reservoir is ready for a refill. Plus, it includes a spot for backup batteries in case the power goes out while you're away.
★ Another Smart Water Bowl: Sure Petcare Felaqua Connect (7/10, WIRED Recommends) is another great water bowl that tells you when, and how much, each cat drinks that's to its microchip sensor.
Cats need to scratch, and if you want to prevent them from ripping up furniture, you must provide them with ample scratching posts. Declawing is not the answer—it's like removing your fingers at the last knuckles and can lead to a ton of problems.
There's a wide spectrum to choose from, and these are some of our favorites:
★ Don't forget to trim their nails: You should also regularly trim your cat's nails. (It's easier than it sounds, but it might be a two-person job.) Ask your vet to show you where to trim to so you don't cut their quick (the part of the nail that holds the nerves and blood vessels). There are also helpful guides online.
Cats like to jump and climb whatever they can, so a nice cat tree should help keep them occupied and off your mantle or breakable glassware. Cat trees are made from materials that can be scratched up, and some include separate scratching posts. If you aren't worried about aesthetics, you'll find plenty of good cat trees at pet stores, as well as places like Home Goods or the like.
Catit's Vesper line has a nice modern feel that's hard to find in moderately priced cat furniture. The Small Vesper Box doesn't take up too much space, but it's the perfect height to get my cats right at window level. They can nap in the covered bottom level, scratch and play on the second level, and sit on the soft fluffy pillow on top for bird watching. It was really easy to put together, and the cloth pillows and pads are machine washable.
Building material The Vesper High Base is a taller option, great for multi-cat homes or for pets that don't necessarily like to lounge together. The Vesper line includes many other sizes and colors.