Your New Cat’s First Week at Home: What to Buy, What to Skip, and What to Expect Each Day

You have the carrier by the door, a bag of supplies from the pet store, and a cat who has no idea what is about to happen. The new cat first week at home goes best when the plan is small: one quiet room, a handful of useful items, a predictable routine, and a lot of patience. Most of what new owners worry about, like hiding, skipped meals on day one, and a cat who ignores them, is normal.

This walkthrough goes day by day, with the gear that matters and the purchases that can wait.

Before she walks in: setting up a quiet safe room

A new cat is arriving in a place full of unfamiliar smells, sounds and open space. A whole house is too much to take in at once. A single small room gives her something she can learn quickly and feel in control of.

A spare bedroom, a home office, or a bathroom with enough floor space all work. Pick a room with a door that closes, few gaps behind or under furniture that she could wedge into and be hard to reach, and no foot traffic. Before she arrives:

• Check the room at cat level. Look for loose cords, small items she could swallow, open vents, and gaps behind appliances.
• Close the windows or secure the screens. A frightened cat can push through a loose screen.
• Put away anything fragile or toxic. Houseplants are the usual one. Lilies are dangerous to cats, and many other common plants are too, so move all plants out for now.
• Plan the layout. Put the litter box and the food on opposite sides of the room, with the bed or hiding spot in between or in a corner.

Tell everyone in the household what the room is for. The door stays shut, and nobody wanders in to check on her every ten minutes.

The short list of gear you really need on day one

You do not need a cart full of items. These are the things that make the first week work:

1. A secure carrier. You need it for the trip home and for the first vet visit. A hard-sided carrier with a top opening is easier to get a nervous cat out of than a front-only door.
2. A litter box and litter. Choose a box large enough for her to turn around in. For a kitten, make sure the sides are low enough to climb over. An uncovered box is a good default, since some cats dislike being enclosed. Use plain, unscented litter, and ask the shelter or breeder what she has been using. Matching it avoids one more change.
3. Food and bowls. Get the same food she has been eating. If you plan to switch, you can do it later (more on that below). Shallow, wide bowls in ceramic or stainless steel are easy to clean. Put out a separate water bowl.
4. A hiding spot. This is the most overlooked item. A cardboard box on its side with a towel inside is enough. A covered cat bed or a cave-style bed also works. It needs to be somewhere she can see out from but not be seen into easily.
5. A scratching surface. A sturdy post or a flat cardboard scratcher gives her something appropriate to scratch from the first day.
6. A couple of simple toys. A wand toy and a few small balls or crinkle toys are plenty.

If she is a kitten, ask whoever you are adopting from about her age, vaccination status and any food or litter recommendations before you buy anything. Kittens have different needs from adult cats, and the person who has been caring for her knows the details.

Day one and two: let her hide, and why that is fine

When you get home, take the carrier straight to the safe room and close the door. Set it down on the floor, open the carrier door, and then sit quietly or leave the room. Do not pull her out.

Many cats walk out within minutes. Many others stay in the carrier for hours, or slip under the bed or behind a piece of furniture and stay there for a day or more. All of this is ordinary. A cat who hides is a cat who is deciding the new place is safe by watching it from somewhere she feels protected.

Here is what helps in the first 48 hours:

• Keep the room calm and quiet. Low lights and low voices are enough. Skip the music and the television.
• Sit in the room without staring at her. Read a book or scroll your phone. Cats often take direct eye contact as a threat, and slow blinks and a relaxed posture read as friendly.
• Talk softly now and then. Your voice becoming familiar is useful, and it costs nothing.
• Do not force contact. Never reach into her hiding spot and drag her out. Let her come to you.

Expect very little interaction. She may eat and use the litter box only when you are out of the room. She may not purr, play or come near you. Those things come later, and they come faster when she has not been pushed.

Feeding and litter in the first week: keep it boring

New surroundings are already a lot of change, so keep food and litter the same as before. A sudden diet change on top of stress is a common cause of an upset stomach.

Food. Offer the food she was eating at her last home, at the meal times and amounts the shelter or breeder suggested. Kittens usually eat several small meals a day, and adults usually eat two. Put the bowl down, leave the room, and check back later. Some cats will not eat while you are watching.

If you want to change her food, wait until she is settled, then mix a little of the new food into the old and increase the proportion gradually over about a week or so. Moving slowly gives her digestion time to adjust.

A cat who eats less than usual on day one is common. Appetite normally picks up by the second or third day. If she refuses food completely, see the vet section below.

Litter. Put her in the box gently once, soon after she arrives, so she knows where it is, and then leave her alone. Scoop at least once a day and keep the depth consistent. If she goes outside the box, do not scold her. Move the box if it sits somewhere noisy, make sure it is clean, and check that you are using the same type of litter she had before. Accidents in the first days are usually about stress or an unfamiliar setup, not bad behavior.

Watch her litter output without being intrusive. You will want to notice if she is going, roughly how often, and whether the stool looks normal. Soft stool for a day or two during a move is common. A cat who strains, cries in the box, or produces nothing is a different matter.

Days three to five: short, gentle steps toward trust

By the third day, many cats begin to explore the room when they think nobody is looking. You may find the food eaten, the litter used, or her sleeping out of the hiding spot. These are good signs, and they are your cue to start building contact in small steps.

Spend time in the room on purpose. Sit on the floor a few feet away and let her approach. A few sessions of 10 to 20 minutes a day are enough.

Offer a hand to sniff. Extend one finger or the back of your hand at nose height and let her decide to greet it. If she rubs against it, you can give a gentle scratch on the cheeks or under the chin. Most cats prefer that to being petted along the back or belly at the start.

Use play. A wand toy lets her interact with you from a distance. Move it like a small animal, along the floor and behind objects, and let her catch it from time to time. A few short play sessions a day also help burn off nervous energy.

Use treats sparingly. A few small treats, hand-offered, can teach her that your presence predicts good things. Keep the quantity small so it does not interfere with her regular meals.

Keep to a routine. Feed, scoop and play at roughly the same times every day. Cats take comfort from predictability, and it helps her learn when to expect you.

Progress is rarely a straight line. She might be bold on day four and hide again on day five after a noise from the street. That is a normal step back, not a reset. Return to quiet time and let her set the pace.

If you have other pets, keep them separate from the safe room for now. They can sniff at the closed door, and you can start swapping a blanket or towel between rooms so they get used to each other’s smell. A proper introduction is a separate process that works best after she has settled in on her own.

What to skip: the popular buys that can wait

Pet stores are good at making a new owner feel unprepared. Most of these items are fine to buy eventually, but none of them is needed in week one:

• A large cat tree. Cats do like climbing, and a tree is a good purchase later. In the safe room, a big piece of furniture mostly takes up floor space and may give her one more spot to hide where you cannot reach her. Wait until she is comfortable.
• An automatic or self-cleaning litter box. The motor noise can frighten some cats, and a plain box is easier to keep consistent while you learn her habits. If you like the idea, try it once she is settled.
• Scented litter and litter deodorizers. Strong perfumes can put a cat off using the box. Daily scooping does more for odor than fragrance.
• A drinking fountain. Some cats like running water. A wide bowl of fresh water does the job for now, and you can try a fountain when things calm down.
• Many toys at once. A pile of toys is more than she needs. Two or three, rotated, hold her interest better than a basket of options.
• Clothing and costumes. Most cats are stressed by them, and a new cat does not need extra stress.
• A harness and leash. Some cats learn to wear one. It is not a first-week project.
• Pheromone diffusers and calming sprays. Some owners like them, and some cats seem to settle better with them, while others show no obvious difference. They are an optional extra and not a substitute for a quiet room and a routine.
• A collar with a bell. If you want her to wear a collar, choose a breakaway style so it releases if it snags. Microchipping, and keeping the registration current, is the more reliable form of identification. Ask your vet about it.

Spend the money on a good litter box, a food she will eat, and a hiding spot, and add the rest when you know what she actually likes.

Signs it is normal, and signs to call the vet

Most of what worries new owners is ordinary adjustment. Knowing the difference makes the week much calmer.

Normal in the first week

• Hiding for much of the first two days, sometimes longer.
• Eating little on day one, then returning to normal appetite.
• Coming out mostly at night or when the house is quiet.
• Soft stool for a day or two.
• Wary or flat ears, wide eyes, or a crouched posture when something new happens.
• Hissing or swatting if she is cornered or surprised. It is a request for space.
• Sleeping a lot after the stress of the move.
• Ignoring you, then suddenly approaching for a short time.

Call the vet

Contact your vet if you see any of these:

• Not eating at all for 24 hours. For a kitten, call sooner. Cats that stop eating can develop serious liver problems.
• No urination for 24 hours, or repeated straining or crying in the litter box. This can be an emergency, especially in male cats.
• Repeated vomiting, or vomiting along with lethargy.
• Diarrhea that lasts more than a day or two, or any blood in the stool or urine.
• Labored or open-mouth breathing.
• Thick or colored discharge from the eyes or nose, or sneezing that does not stop.
• Extreme lethargy, meaning she is unresponsive, limp, or will not lift her head.
• Visible fleas, a sore or swollen eye, or an injury.

Whatever you see, trust your own instincts. If something seems wrong and you are unsure, a phone call to the vet costs little. If you have not already arranged it, book a first check-up in the first week or so, even if she looks healthy. Bring any records you received at adoption. The vet can confirm vaccination status, check for parasites, and answer questions specific to her age.

Day seven: opening up the rest of the house

By the end of the week, a cat who is eating, using the litter box, and spending time out in the open in her room is usually ready for a little more space. Not every cat is on the same timeline, and a cat who is still shy at day seven may need a few more days. That is acceptable.

When you are ready:

1. Prepare the house first. Close off rooms you do not want her in, check for places she could get stuck, and put plants and anything fragile away.
2. Open the safe room door and let her choose. Do not carry her out. Sit nearby and let her step into the hall on her own.
3. Start with one extra room or area. Let her explore for short periods and return to the safe room whenever she likes.
4. Leave the safe room as it is. Her food, litter box and hiding spot should stay there for now, because it is her base. You can move them gradually as she gains confidence.
5. Add the extras slowly. A cat tree, a second litter box in another part of the house, and a window perch are good additions now that she is exploring.

She may dash back to the safe room the first few times, and that is a sign the room is working. Over the following days and weeks, her territory will grow, and so will her habit of seeking you out.

A cat that feels secure on day seven tends to settle in more easily over the following weeks. The routines you build in this first week, the quiet room, the consistent meals, the gentle play, are the same ones that keep her comfortable for years.

Get our short list of the gear we recommend for a new cat’s first week, with the researched picks for food, litter and a safe-room setup.