Hello pet lovers!

My cat is coming to live with me in Lausanne this December and I'm starting to scope out vets, food and various supplies.

STORES
I am considering ordering heavy things online, as I am vehicle-less; I like the look of meiko.ch so far. Does anyone have experience with them?
How about good pet supply shops in the Lausanne area: are there any you recommend?

FOOD
While the little guy is a finicky eater, canned/dry food is not too much of an issue, as I can look at the ingredient list and go from there. I'd nonetheless appreciate any input from you kitty-savvy EFs! Mister has dry food all day and wet food in the evenings, canned or fresh. When it comes to "fresh", I'm thinking I'll hop over to Aligro and buy a rather large quantity of meat or poultry, which I will prepare and then freeze in portions.

VET
I've looked up a few vets in the area. Dr Pfister's office looks clean and professional: any input there?

LITTER
What I am most keen on gathering intel on is litter. Back home, I use 100% vegetal pellets made from pine. On meiko.ch I've found something that looks promising, but was wondering whether anyone has found a similar product in stores. His Highness is sensitive in all matters and I want something that won't irritate his delicate little "asthmatic" airways.

SCRATCHING POST
Because he's spoiled, Mister is used to a huge and sturdy cat tree back home, from the top of which he enjoys looking down upon the vulgar populace. That thing is very heavy, so I'm not going to schlep it on down here. Now cat posts can be bought almost anywhere -- but does anyone know where I can find a good quality, sturdy one, ideally one I can disassemble and/or add elements to? I considered building one from tree trunks but I'm a student and doubt I'll have the time to dedicate to that sort of project... It needs to be high enough so he can enjoy the view and have at least one good length of post so he can stretch out his long oriental body.

I think... that's all.

If you got to the bottom of this lengthy post, well done and thank you for trudging through! I'd appreciate any advice you have.

Alexia

We have two tortoiseshell (calico) cats, both on the larger side (>6 kilos), and we were able to find most everything we need at Qualipet. One warning, though, be prepared for some sticker shock for a large playset/scratching post- I've seen several of the size you're describing at around 200 CHF. Also, we've had some problems with some of the brands of litter tracking about the apartment and we haven't found a brand that we truly like yet.

I was actually just browsing on Qualipet and yeah -- I see what you mean about pricing! Yikes!
Thanks for the info: I was wondering whether Qualipet was any good.

Alexia

Oh, and also, our impression of our veterinarian is very good. It seems the vets here are much more into homeopathic cures instead. One of ours was having a little 'transition anxiety' and the vet prescribed something that was made from Turkey protein (you know, the one that got the reputation for making all the Americans sleepy after gorging on Thanksgiving ) that we sprinkle in with her food and it has worked fantastically.

That's great to know.
The only time I tried a "calming pill" on my cat, the results were horrid -- as in tripping over his own paws, inner eyelids half shut, distressed meowing type of horrid. I'm glad to learn vets here are open to "softer" treatments if need arises.

Thanks.
Alexia

If you have trouble with litter tracking, why not try something like this?

I bought one (I use Catsan litter), and the amount of litter that gets on the floors etc. has diminished significantly.

And ak2013, if you're living in a small apartment, I would recommend you get one of those closed in litter trays with a door and filter. Particularly if your bathroom (like mine) does not have a window! (Assuming you intend to put the litter tray in the bathroom).

It's true the bathroom has no window; however, my cat likes to "perch" on the side of the litter box (it's quite comical, really), and I would feel heartless to deny him his habits, especially right after moving. I myself wouldn't like to come home one day to, say, a Turkish toilet.

Thanks for the suggestion anyhow; I'll take a look!
Alexia

We tried the knobby mats along with both types of Catsan, and it did help with the tracking a little, but the white litter granules would mark up our darker tile floors (think like chalk on a chalkboard). We've accepted that our cats are just messy.

Dr. Pfister is a good choice

For the litter, you should go to the nearest Landi and buy wood pellets used for heating, something like 6.- for 15 kg. That's exactly the same as the picture you posted, I use it for my bunnies

Be careful about the food, it's really worth it to buy the better brands out there (Hill's and Royal Canin mostly), or you can order grainless food from zooplus.ch, Orijen is a good brand. Store brands are really hard on the kidneys, and whatever you save in food is going to be spent in vet fees
zooplus.ch is a good place to order food, either way, because it's usually cheaper (but everything is in German).

I get my dog food delivered directly to my door from this lot, who were recommended on here

www.editrust.ch

They do cat food too in brands that have had good recommendations on here. My hound loves the Acana. Typically the only order confirmation you will get, though, is a box sitting outside your door the next day lol

Thanks for all that feedback and advice! Great tip on the wood pellets.

I agree to never skimp on food. I like to have canned food to fall back on but prefer to prepare fresh meat when possible. 'Grainless" sounds appealing -- I always cringe when I read the ingredient list in most dry food. I've heard of and looked up Orijen and was impressed when I did, but I couldn't find it in France; I am delighted to learn you can get it here. I will check that out straight away!

Thanks again.
Alexia

Can you post the link again? It doesnt open it for some reason

Opens just fine for me. Curious... Try THIS.

Ooh, another place to check out -- great, thanks!
AK

This opens fine. Thanks!

I giggled.

Thanks! I'm checking it out right now.

How does it work?

If you're still looking for a sturdy scratching post; I'm saving up to buy on of these:

http://www.katzen-deko.de/kratzbaum-holz/index.php

Yes they're crazy expensive, but I've read they're very sturdy and more importantly: it's easy to remove all fabric parts and wash them separately. (They're 100% cotton too.)

Another website with the same principle:

http://shop.petfun.de/en/

Not sure yet what the difference is between the two, but I'm sure I want one. I wish I would have seen this earlier, cause I ended up spending a lot of money on a scratching post (bought in Switzerland) that basically started falling apart after one month.