First-Time Cat Owner Checklist India 2026

You just brought home a kitten, and now there's a tiny, mostly fearless animal exploring every corner of your house — and a long list of questions in your head.

This checklist covers everything you actually need in your first month with a new cat in India — litter training, food, grooming, vet essentials, and toys, without the guesswork.

Let's start.

What's in This Guide

• The first 24 hours — setting up a safe space
• Litter box training — age, setup, and technique
• Food and feeding — what to buy and how much
• Grooming essentials — shampoo and nail care
• Accessories and toys
• Vet essentials — vaccines and deworming

1. The First 24 Hours

A new kitten is in a completely unfamiliar space, away from littermates and everything they knew. The first day isn't about play — it's about letting them feel safe.

Set up a quiet base room

Pick one small, quiet room rather than the whole house on day one. Put the litter box, a bed, and food and water in it — with the litter box as far from the food and water as the room allows, since cats generally don't like eating near where they toilet. Let the kitten explore this room fully before opening up the rest of the house over the following days.

Before your kitten comes home

• Kitten-proof floor level — remove strings, rubber bands, small chewable objects, and secure loose wires
• Identify the nearest vet and save their number
• Have litter, a litter box, and food ready before arrival day
• Set up a scratching surface near their base room from day one

2. Litter Box Training

Litter training is usually one of the easier parts of raising a kitten — most cats have a natural instinct to bury waste, so this is more about setup than teaching.

What age can kittens start?

Kittens can start using a litter box from around 4 weeks old, and most have it fully figured out by 8-12 weeks — which is also the typical age kittens are adopted, so many new owners are working with a kitten that's already partway trained by their previous caregiver or mother.

Box and litter setup

• Use an open-top, shallow box — avoid tall sides or covered boxes for young kittens, they need to get in and out easily
• Size the box to roughly 1.5 times the kitten's length, and size up as they grow
• Use non-clumping litter for kittens under 8-10 weeks old, since clumping litter can be risky if ingested at that age
• Place your kitten in the box every 2-3 hours and after meals in the first week to build the habit
• Reward calmly with praise when they use it correctly — never punish an accident

3. Food and Feeding

Like with puppies, food is where most first-time cat owners have the most questions. Kittens need calorie-dense, protein-rich food more frequently than adult cats, since they're growing fast.

Wet food, dry food, and treats

Dry food — a good foundation, easy to store, and helps with dental health over time.

Wet food — higher moisture (cats have a naturally low thirst drive, so wet food helps with hydration), generally more palatable, and a good option for kittens transitioning off their mother's milk.

Treats — for bonding and reward, not a meal replacement. As with any pet, treats should stay under roughly 10% of daily calorie intake, with the rest coming from a complete meal.

Bellotta — a wet food option worth knowing about

Bellotta is a wet cat food brand sold on Mewz, in 70-85g pouches across flavours like tuna, mackerel, salmon, and chicken. The brand was founded in 2001 in Thailand and is now part of i-Tail Corporation (a Thai Union Group company); in India it's imported by Sai International Pet Products. Bellotta states a "three No's" policy across its range — no added salt, no sodium nitrite, and no preservatives. Ingredients vary by flavour but typically include the named protein, taurine, sunflower or tuna oil, vitamins and minerals, and water.

As with any new food, check the pack for age suitability and introduce gradually.

4. Grooming Essentials

Cats are largely self-grooming, but kittens still need help with a few basics in month one, especially around bath time and nail care.

Shampoo

Use a cat-specific shampoo rather than human shampoo, which has the wrong pH for their skin. The OMD Shampoo Cat & Puppy variant — sold on the site and formulated for both kittens and puppies — is a gentle option for young, sensitive skin. Most kittens don't need frequent baths; check the pack for age guidance and only bathe when genuinely needed.

Nail trimming and brushing

A kitten's claws grow quickly. A cat-specific nail clipper, used every few weeks, keeps nails at a comfortable length — clip only the tip, avoiding the pink quick inside. Regular brushing, even briefly, helps manage shedding and reduces hairballs as your kitten grows.

5. Accessories and Toys

Month one doesn't need an elaborate setup. A few basics cover most of what a new kitten needs:

• A lightweight collar (breakaway/safety-release style is safest for a cat that climbs and explores)
• A scratching post or pad, placed near their favourite resting spot
• Stainless steel or ceramic food and water bowls — avoid plastic, which scratches and harbours bacteria
• One or two simple toys to start — a wand toy for interactive play and something to bat around on their own

You can build out a fuller collection of toys and accessories over the following months as you learn what your specific cat enjoys.

6. Vet Essentials

As with puppies, this section isn't optional. A first vet visit in week one — even for a kitten that looks perfectly healthy — sets up the rest of their preventive care.

Core vaccines

Deworming schedule

Kittens are typically dewormed starting as early as 3 weeks (or by 4-6 weeks), repeated every two weeks (or at 8 and 12 weeks), then monthly until they're about 6 months old. Your vet will confirm the exact product and schedule — intestinal parasites are common in kittens and worth treating proactively rather than waiting for symptoms.