Before I adopted my first cat, one of the biggest questions I had was how low maintenance they really were. I heard friends praise the felines all the time, “Cats are so much easier to care for than dogs”, they said. While I got a pretty good idea from the information I got from seasoned cat owners, I feel like it is time for someone to do a better job of explaining the subject to those who are still weighing their options.
Perhaps you are thinking about getting a cat, or choosing which pets would be best for a person with a busy life? Either way, In this post I will do my best to fully explain whether cats are low maintenance or not.
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Are Cats Low Maintenance?
Yes, Cats are relatively low maintenance. At least compared to other pets, such as dogs. Caring for a cat mostly consists of emptying their litter box, feeding them, and the occasional play session. Cat owners usually spend less than an hour per day dedicated to caring for their cats.
Compare this to dogs, which are notoriously time-consuming. You’d have to walk them multiple times daily, pick up their feces, brush their teeth (unless you want to smell their bad breath), easily spending hours per day. This is one of the main reasons many people choose cats over dogs.
As someone who’s had the pleasure of owning both cats and a few dogs in my life, I won’t take sides on which animals make the best pets. Something I can do, however, is to guarantee you that cats are much more low maintenance than their barking counterparts.
Whether a cat is the right pet for you doesn’t only come down to their low maintenance, though. There are many factors that could make someone pick another pet that is more time-consuming. For example, cats aren’t always the best at showing you how much they love you. If you are looking for a devoted friend, perhaps a dog is the best option for you.
Another thing to know before getting a cat is that they shed. Some shed more and some shed less, but regardless, expect to see cat hairs at various places of your home. Either you just live with this, or you decide to clean it up. Few people like seeing hairs on their sofas, pillows, and beds, though, so you’ll probably have to add this to the expected maintenance.
They also tend to scratch your furniture. Do you have expensive furniture? Then this might be a problem for you. I have chairs with next-to-destroyed because of scratching cats. Personally, this is something I can live with, but maybe it won’t be as easy for you. To reduce this, try putting scratch posts for your cat to go crazy on! Also, trimming their nails will likely reduce the damage to your furniture.
Lastly, and this applies mostly to kittens, is pooping at places that aren’t the litterbox. Cleaning this up can be a very tedious task. I didn’t enjoy the countless nights of changing sheets in my kids’ beds because of the cat who just had to pee in beds. Our cat did this up until the day he died. He just never learned.
What does cat maintenance look like? Why they are relatively low maintenance
So, what does a cat owner’s life look like? If you are thinking of getting a pet cat, you are probably wondering if you can fit the obligations into your life. You’ll need to make sure that you have the required time to give your cat a good life. Not to mention having enough energy to satisfy their needs to play. Getting a cat before you know you are ready to commit fully isn’t only a waste of money, it is cruel to the cat.
Well, you’ll have 4 main obligations to your new feline friend
- Feeding them good food and giving them water
- Emptying their litter box and cleaning up after them
- Playing with them, making sure they are happy and stimulated
- Giving them love and making sure they are happy
You’ll need to research suitable food for your cat. This might seem like an easy task, but their food needs are quite complicated. A young kitten will need food that is catered to their stage of development. The same food, however good it might be for the kitten, will be completely unsuitable for an older cat.
I guess the second part is quite self-explanatory. Every time they go to the bathroom, it’s your job to clean up their mess. You’ll have to clean their litterbox at least once a day, but most people do it more often. I used to clean up after my cat once in the morning and once in the evening.
The third part will probably be the most enjoyable obligation. I know it was for me, anyway. Playing with my cat was something I really liked doing every day. I actually wrote a whole topic on the subject, if you’d like to read more. I called the post “How long do kittens play before they get tired” because some cat-owners just have to spend hours per day to satisfy their kittens’ play cravings. You should keep this in mind since it can take up a lot of your time when your cat is a kitten. This won’t be a problem for everyone though, some kittens just want you to play with them more than average before they are satisfied.
In addition to these 3 tasks, you’ll also have to give your cat as much love as you can. You’ll most likely take the feline from its family, or at least prevent it from forming a new one. This means you should consider yourself the replacement. Make your cat feel like part of your family, or it won’t be happy.
Is it cruel to have an indoor cat?
As someone who’s kept a cat mainly indoors, my opinion is no. While cats are originally outdoor animals, keeping them indoors doesn’t necessarily need to be cruel. It’s all about how you go about it. For example, keeping a cat indoors, and neglecting their needs & and not offering them company or stimulation, that could definitely be considered cruel.
On the other hand, treating an indoor cat well, playing with it, and catering to its needs… Those are things that will lead to a happy and satisfied pet cat.
When I kept an indoor cat, I made sure to let him be outside as much as I possibly could. Every time my family would go to the countryside, we’d take our cat with us and let him out while we were there. This caused some problems sometimes. I especially recall the end of a summer break, where he wouldn’t come home for 2 weeks. Luckily, my wife’s parents would stay there for another month, so they were able to let him into the house when he finally decided to come home!
Is cat maintenance expensive?
Yes, cat ownership is quite expensive. You’ll have to pay for appropriate, high-quality food, vaccinations, accessories such as bowls & litterboxes, and so on. According to the ASPCA, cat ownership costs on average $634 per year. Before adopting a cat, make sure that you can cover these costs, and budget some extra, in case something should come up.
My ownership costs always came out to be higher than this. I estimate that I must have spent around $1000 per year. I’ve always opted to go for the best food I could find, and I spent a lot on accessories. I did this largely because I enjoyed it, and I could have gotten away with spending significantly less. Our cat was something the whole family enjoyed, though, so these extra expenses always felt like a good investment.
Not being able to care for a cat is unethical. If we decide to adopt one, we need to make sure we are able to provide everything it needs to live a happy, healthy life. After all, it is you who decide to adopt the cat, not the other way around. Don’t go into cat ownership with worries of having to part ways. Do it with confidence that you are able to keep the cat until he or she has grown old.
Conclusion
If you’ve come to this article seeking an answer to whether cats are low maintenance or not, I hope you’ve been satisfied with my answers. Cats are definitely less time-consuming than dogs, and this could be a reason to choose them as pets. There are a lot of things to consider before adopting a cat, though, and I hope you have a better idea of these, now that you’ve read this article.
As a long-time cat owner, I’ve learned so much along the way, and I love sharing my learnings with people. Do you have other experiences? Please share them in the comments down below! That way we can all learn from each others’ unique & valuabel experiences.
Hey, I’m Peter. During the last 25 years, I have owned and raised over 20 pet animals. On this blog, I do my best to share my learnings during this time, to hopefully help others.