cat care guide

Cats do not like to be dirty. Most cats spend a good part of their day licking their paws and face to stay clean and tidy. However, despite this, few cat owners think about grooming their cats.

However, grooming a cat is very important. This process helps remove loose hair from your cat’s body. Without brushing, a lot of this hair would have ended up in your cat’s stomach. Since hair is not easily digestible, it often forms hairballs. While cats can sometimes cough up hairballs, they can clog the intestinal tract, as well. In addition, grooming can remove dirt and debris from your cat’s coat. It is also a great opportunity to check for fleas and ticks.

If you thought your cat would hate to be groomed, you may be surprised at how much he actually enjoys the experience. Of course, it is much easier to accustom your cat to brushes and combs when he is still a young kitten. Gently brush or comb over your kitten’s coat, following the grain of the fur from his neck to his tail. If he begins to grow irritable, stop grooming him and play with him for a few minutes until he is relaxed. Do not groom his face or paws with the brush or comb, as most cats do not like this.

For cats who do not like to be brushed, you can try a different grooming tool, the grooming glove. While your cat is happily enjoying a nice, luxurious kitty massage, the glove is working to remove loose hair and debris, just as a brush would do. Your cat should not mind having his face groomed with a glove, but he may still object to having his paws groomed.

While you are brushing your cat’s coat, be sure you take the time to check out his eyes and ears. His eyes should be clear and bright, without matter in their corners. His ears should be clean and pink. Excess dirt in a cat’s ears can be a sign of ear mites. These mites can actually cause the ears to shrivel up and your cat can lose his hearing, so be sure to take your little guy to the veterinarian if you suspect mites.

Next, if your cat is not de-clawed, you should use pet nail clippers to remove the hooks on the ends of his claws. If these hooks snag on things and get caught, it can be painful both to your cat and your possessions. You should also check his teeth to be sure there is no tartar buildup. Since teeth problems can lead to serious health conditions, you may want to brush your cat’s teeth once a day with a finger tip brush and pet toothpaste.

Finally, if you have a long haired cat and his coat has become matted, you may need to have him shaved. Most cats need to be sedated since they will not tolerate the animal clippers, so you may have to take your cat to the veterinarian to be groomed. Being shaved is a stressful experience for your cat, so it is best to avoid this process by keeping his coat tangle free.

Choosing a Bed for Your Cat - The Perfect Place to Cat Nap

Are you tired of cat hair on the counters, footprints on the windowsills, and rumpled pillows? If so, you may want to consider giving your cat his own resting spot. In fact, to truly make your cat happy, you may need to provide him with several cat beds in different areas.

There are so many different types and styles of cat beds that finding one that blends with your décor should not be too hard. You can look for colorful cat beds in fun pet prints that add a touch of whimsy to the room or you can shop for cat beds with plenty of designer elegance, instead. Of course, your cat will be more concerned with how the bed feels than what it looks like.

Cat beds often have fleece pillows to keep them feeling cozy. These beds may be oval shaped with high sides or they may actually be completely enclosed to form a cozy nest bed. Cats enjoy being able to snuggle up in a secure spot, which is why so many of them manage to squeeze inside sofas or other odd spots to nap.

Some nest beds are even heated to add more warmth. If you have a cat that spends time on the porch or in other chilly areas, you may want to consider providing him with one of these beds.

If your cat sheds hair on the furniture, a nap mat is a useful option. Place the nap mat where your cat usually sleeps and simply store it away when company comes. The cushions beneath the mat will be cat hair free.

A cat perch, which is a padded shelf, is another popular piece of napping equipment. Attach the cat perch to your windowsill so your cat can look out the window and dream of stalking the wild birds he sees as he naps.

When you buy a cat bed, don’t be surprised if your cat ignores it completely for a while. If he refuses to explore the bed, you may want to add a catnip toy to the bed to attract his attention. Placing the bed in a cat friendly location will also make it more appealing to your cat. Cats do not care to nap in low places. Instead, position the cat bed on an end table or platform that is a few inches off the floor. Also, be sure the bed is not in an area that receives heavy traffic. If your cat feels as though he can never let down his guard and relax, he won’t want to nap in his bed.

Of course, if you have several cats, you may need a napping spot for each cat. If you don’t want three or four cat beds in your home, you may want to shop for the kitty version of a play gym, the cat condo. The cat condo allows several cats to nap in elevated spots. To get the most value for your money, look for a cat condo that has climbing areas and a place to sharpen claws in addition to napping spots.

Has your cat been coughing and hacking? If so, he may have hairballs. If you see disgusting skinny oval blobs on the floor, you will know that your cat has managed to dislodge one of his hairballs.

What exactly is a hairball? It is a mass of hair and food that did not digest that forms inside a cat’s body. Loose hair that collects on his tongue when he grooms himself. For some reason, the hair comes together and forms a ball in his stomach instead of simply passing through his body. Since these hairballs aren’t able to break down and be digested, cats often cough them up to get rid of them.

While most cats don’t have a problem with dislodging hairballs, they can occasionally pass into a cat’s intestines and cause a blockage. This can be a life threatening problem. There are a few signs you should look for to find out if your cat’s hairball is dangerous. If your cat seems to be constipated, he may be experiencing a small blockage. If he seems lethargic and his coat is dull and unhealthy looking, or he is eating less than usual, then he may have a serious blockage. Either way, you should take him to your veterinarian to be sure a hairball is the problem and to have it removed.

Of course, it is much better to prevent hairballs than to treat them after they have formed. One of the easiest ways to keep your cat from developing a hairball is to groom him frequently, especially if he has long hair. Thoroughly comb or brush his hair each day to remove excess hair. If you begin this routine when he is a kitten, he will actually look forward to being groomed. In fact, some cats will even bring their combs to their owners so that they can be groomed. If your cat doesn’t care for brushes and combs, try a grooming glove, instead.

If your cat still seems to form occasional hairballs, there are several dietary aids that you can try. One of these aids is dry cat food that was developed to help prevent hairballs. However, don’t just buy the first bag of hairball formula cat food you see. Be sure that it is high in protein and other nutrients, as well. If your cat already has a hairball, you may want to shop for a gel that can be added to his food that will help the hairball pass through his body. This gel is actually a lubricant. Talk to your veterinarian before using one of these hairball remedies for a long period of time, as they can end up removing important vitamins and minerals along with hairballs.

Finally, some people have their own remedies and recipes for removing hairballs. Before using folk remedies to treat your cat, please consult with your veterinarian to be sure you aren’t unintentionally causing harm to some other part of your cat’s body. A few common folk remedies are butter, mineral oil, and pumpkin.

Get Rid of Those Itchy Insects

Has your cat become infested with fleas or ticks? If his buggy skin has been keeping you up all night, it is time for you to get those fleas or ticks under control.

Even the cleanest cats can end up with a flea infestation. All it takes to turn your flealess pet into a flea bag is one friendly stray cat or dog that comes along for a visit and leaves his fleas behind. When a person or cat walks outside, he will pick up the fleas and bring them inside. Even one flea can lay quite a few eggs. When the eggs hatch, you will have a full scale infestation.

Some people don’t want to risk having fleas or ticks at all and use a flea and tick preventative before the insects even appear. Two of the most well known flea and tick preventatives for cats are Frontline and Advantix. These products both come as pre-measured liquid treatments. The treatment is applied directly to your cat’s skin and works to kill fleas and ticks right away when they hop on your cat.

However, most people wait until they see fleas or ticks before they begin fighting them. Of course, if you see tiny black or dark brown insects hopping around, there is little doubt that your cat is flea infested. By the time you see fleas, though, you probably already have a major infestation on your hands.

Why not make sure you catch any flea problems right away by looking for signs of fleas on a regular basis. To look for fleas, you should have a flea comb. Carefully comb through your cat’s hair, paying close attention to the hair around his head and on his belly. Fleas like to hide around a cat’s ears, eyes, and nose. They also tend to hang out in  the creases where a cat’s legs and body meet.

If you catch a flea, you will know that your cat is starting to develop a flea infestation. However, what if your cat has a flea that could make stealth operatives look like amateurs? While the flea may be able to evade your comb, the dirt he leaves behind will not. If you see specks of blackish dirt in the comb’s teeth, this is evidence that fleas are hiding somewhere on your cat.

To find ticks, run your hands over your cat’s body, looking for any raised spots. If you find a raised spot, check it closely to see if it has little legs. If so, your cat has a tick. Ask your veterinarian about having the tick removed, as removing one yourself can often result in the tick’s head staying behind in your cat’s skin.

To get those cat fleas and ticks under control, you can use one of the liquid flea and tick treatments, flea or tick collars, and flea and tick baths. If your house has become flea infested, you may also need to use powder or spray on your cat’s bedding and your upholstered furniture. If all else fails, you can use a flea and tick bomb on your house, but be sure to keep your pets out of the building for at least twenty four hours.

So, you have a new kitten. You can just dump some cat food in a bowl and get on with your life, right? Well, there’s a bit more to the process than this. To keep your kitten healthy, you will need to be sure that you meet all of his nutritional needs.

For the first few weeks of his life, your kitten received all of his nutrition from his mother. As he reached four to six weeks of age, the breeder probably began supplementing the mother cat’s milk with canned kitten food or with hard kitten chow moistened with water. By the time your kitten reached eight weeks of age, he was weaned and eating a diet of kitten food. Your breeder should have given you some of the food your kitten was eating or at least the name of the kitten chow.
If you want to change the kitten chow brand that your kitten is eating, you should still buy a small bag of the brand he is currently eating so that you can mix it with the new food. This way your kitten will be able to gradually adjust to the new food without upsetting his digestion.

Young kittens need to eat quite a bit of food. After all, they are growing incredibly fast from the age of eight weeks to about six months. This means that your cat will need to eat more than once a day. In fact, kittens under six months of age do best with four small meals a day, since they do not have very large stomachs, but need plenty of fuel. You should give your kitten an unlimited water supply.

Once your kitten reaches six months of age, his rate of growth slows down dramatically. He will become a bit less active, as well. You can cut his feedings back to two to three meals a day. However, you should not change his food from kitten chow to adult food, yet. He is still a growing cat.

Once your cat is a year old, he can finally eat adult cat food. Since adult cats usually eat when they are hungry, you can simply keep his dish filled with dry food. However, if he overeats and begins to grow overweight, you will need to feed him twice a day instead. If you feed your cat canned food, you should still offer dry food as well, since canned food should not be left out for your cat to eat all day.

When you shop for cat food, look for foods that have the protein source in the first few ingredients. You should also make sure the food is balanced. If your cat has health problems, such as hair balls or urinary tract infections, you should look for cat foods that help control these problems.

Although most cats prefer soft food, dry food can help them maintain better dental health. If your cat refuses to eat dry food, you may want to have your dentist to check his teeth every year or so to be sure they are not too covered in tartar.

One of the most important things you can do for your cat is to be sure its health is protected. Cat vaccinations can protect your cat from many common cat ailments.

You should begin vaccinating your kitten when he is six to eight weeks old. Before this time, his mother’s antibodies have been protecting him from many of the diseases that vaccinations protect against. However, now that he is weaned, he will need to develop his own antibodies.

On your kitten’s first veterinarian visit, your veterinarian will give him a physical examination. He should also complete a fecal exam to be sure your kitten doesn’t have worms. Before your veterinarian vaccinates your kitten, he should do a blood test to be sure the kitten is not already infected with Feline Leukemia. He may also test for Feline Infectious Peritonitis. The tests do not take long. Your veterinarian will have preliminary results in minutes. If your kitten is not already infected with one of these diseases, your veterinarian will give your kitten his first Feline Leukemia and FIP vaccines if he is at risk for these diseases. An only cat who never leaves his home may not need these two vaccines and your veterinarian may recommend against giving them.

However, your kitten should receive his first FVRCPC vaccine whether he leaves the house or not. This vaccine is actually a combination of several vaccines. FVRCPC protects kittens from rhinotracheitis, calicivirus, panleudopenia and chlamydia.

Your kitten should visit your veterinarian again in two to four weeks, when he is eight to twelve weeks old. At this time, he will get a second FVRCPC vaccine and a second FIP and Feline Leukemia vaccine. If he was wormed during his first visit, he will also receive his second worming. Kittens who are twelve weeks old and spend time outdoors should also receive their first Rabies vaccine at this time.

The third visit to your kitten’s veterinarian should occur when he is ten to sixteen weeks old. During this visit, he will receive his third FVRCPC vaccine. Kittens who were too young to receive their first Rabies vaccine on their second visit should be given the vaccine this time.

Once your kitten has completed his third set of FVRCPC vaccines, he will not need any more injections until he is one year old. At that time, he will need a Rabies and FVRCPC vaccine. As long as the Rabies shot is given within one year of the first Rabies vaccine, it will be good for three years. However, your cat will need to return for a FVRCPC vaccine each year. If your cat received FIP and Feline Leukemia vaccines as a kitten, he will also receive boosters for these shots when he is one year of age.

While vaccines are usually safe, some of them do occasionally have side effects. Feline Leukemia vaccines can actually cause a form of cancer at the injection site. This is the reason most veterinarians do not recommend giving the vaccine to cats who are not at risk. Other vaccines can also occasionally cause tumors at the vaccination site. Many times, the tumor can be removed before it spreads. This side effect is rare enough that the risk of catching a disease without vaccinations is much higher. If you notice a lump develop at the injection site, tell your veterinarian, as these lumps usually are a simple reaction to the injection, but can develop into a tumor.

If you’ve never owned a cat before, you may not realize that cats can suffer from quite a few different health problems. Some of these problems are easily preventable, while others are hereditary.

One of the most common cat health problems is the hairball. Cats groom themselves constantly with their tongues. The loose hair comes off on their tongues and is swallowed. Sometimes the hair gradually forms into a ball instead of passing through the cat’s body. If your cat starts coughing and hacking, he may have a hairball. Usually, the cat will expel the ball on his own. To prevent hairballs, groom your cat frequently to remove loose hair. In addition, feed your cat food that helps control hairballs. Recently, cat treats that help control hairballs have become available, as well.

Another common health problem in cats is the urinary tract infection. This infection is particularly common in un-neutered male cats, although female cats can also develop this problem. If your cat has suddenly stopped using his litter box, a urinary tract infection could be the culprit. If your cat’s urine smells strong, you should suspect a urinary tract infection. These infections need to be treated by your veterinarian. Be sure to ask about cat foods that help alleviate the chance of an infection re-occurring.

There are also several dangerous viruses that cats can catch. Feline Infectious Peritonitis, Feline Immunodeficiency Virus, and Feline Leukemia Virus.

FIP is a disease that is related to Corona virus. This problem is serious, because there is no known treatment for the disease. Cats who test positive for this disease may not actually have it, as Corona gives the same result on the titer. There is a vaccine for FIP, but many veterinarians and scientists say that it actually is not very effective. Luckily, this disease is not as easy to catch as some other diseases.

FIV, or cat AIDs, is not always fatal. Some people are afraid that they will catch HIV from a cat with FIV, but that cannot happen.

FLV is preventable if the cat has not been exposed to the virus before being immunized. Although the disease is not always immediately fatal, cats with FLV rarely have a long life expectancy. You should never bring other cats into your household when you have a cat with FLV.

Worms are also a problem for many cats. Roundworms, tapeworms, and hookworms are the most common types that infect cats. However, they can occasionally develop heart worms, as well. If your cat seems unable to gain wait, is infested with fleas, or has white specks that look like grains of rice in his stools, you should take him to the veterinarian to be tested for worms. A cat with worms is easily cured with a few doses of medication, but worms can prove fatal if left untreated.

Finally, if your cat spends time outdoors, you should keep a close eye on him for ticks. If you find a tick on your cat’s body and he has been acting lethargic or moving slowly and acting as if he was in pain, you should ask your veterinarian to test him for Lyme Disease. This disease is transmitted to people and animals by ticks.

Are you interested in finding a purebred cat? As you shop for your cat, you may notice the initials CFA in some advertisements. What exactly does this mean? CFA stands for the Cat Fancier’s Association, the largest purebred cat registry in the world. The CFA was created to maintain breed standards and register litters of purebred kittens. In addition, this association holds cat shows, where cats are judged to see how closely they adhere to their breed’s standard. The CFA recognizes only forty one breeds of cats.

When a breeder registers a litter of kittens with the Cat Fancier’s Association, he or she has the option of deciding that the kitten cannot be bred. Only cats with a pin number on their registration forms will be eligible to have their kittens registered. This allows the breeders to continue to better their breeds. Once the litter is registered, each kitten will need to be individually registered by its new owner.

The CFA has placed the cat breeds it recognizes into three categories. These groups are the Championship Class, the Provisional Class, and the Miscellaneous Class. Each of the forty one breeds that the CFA recognizes is placed in one of these groups. When cats are shown, they must win first place in their breed and then their class before they can compete for the title of best in show.

Cats in the Championship Class are those who are solidly established cat breeds. The breeds in the Provisional Class have been more recently established and are still being closely watched to be sure they conform to the new breed standard. Finally, the one breed currently in the Miscellaneous Class is still having a breed standard created and cannot actually compete for the best in show title.

If you live in Canada, you have a second option. You can register your cat in the Canadian Cat Association. This association was formed by Canadians who did not want to register their cats with an association in another country. Other popular cat registries are the Traditional Cat Association, which supports original breed standards and does not uphold current trends that exaggerate breed characteristics, the Governing Council of the Cat Fancy, which is the United Kingdom’s cat registry, and the Fédération Internationale Féline, which is the European cat registry.

Although there are many breeds of cats, they all fit into one of two categories, short hair or long hair. Short hair cats include breeds such as the Abyssinian and the British Shorthair, while Norwegian Forest Cats and Turkish Angoras are representatives of long hair cats. Of the forty one CFA recognized cat breeds, the most popular is probably the American Shorthair, which has been in the United States for over 300 years. Although non-pedigreed pet cats often resemble this breed, it has actually been carefully and selectively bred for generation after generation to develop characteristics that would appear in every kitten. Other popular breeds are the Siamese, the Rex, the Main Coon, the Persian and the Ragdoll.

Just remember, a pedigree doesn’t make your kitten any more loving and affectionate. There are many wonderful pet cats without a pedigree. However, a pedigree does enable you to pick out a kitten that will have certain characteristics.