Like the saying goes, the mouth is the portal to the whole body—what goes on with teeth and gums can lead to problems occurring elsewhere. Just as humans can develop dental diseases, cats can, too! Good oral hygiene is probably one of the most important daily habits for people and animals in order to keep the body heartier and healthier! While some pet owners may already practice taking care of their pet’s dental needs, some of you may be skeptical about what cat dental maintenance requires and how to go about it. That’s where I, Laszlo, come in to
give you a heads up on what you’ll need to know!
You would probably expect brushing your cat’s teeth to be the most efficient way possible to help your cat maintain a healthy mouth. However, many cat owners often find it impawssible to get the job done, that is, without getting scratches and bites up their arm. We cats do not usually like our purrsonal space invaded, especially our mouths. So if you’re concerned about how to keep a cat’s teeth clean besides brushing, there are still many ways to lend them a paw that will
feel less invasive to them. Keep in mind, though, that we cats may dislike one method and be okay with another, since we can be very finicky. With some trial and error, you’ll be sure to find an oral hygiene tip that works for your cat.
A. Feeding your cat a proper diet is one of the best ways to ensure their teeth stay cleaner and build less plaque that, if unattended, can lead to dental disease in your feline friend. Mom says that cats should be fed a raw food diet, which is completely free of by-products, fillers, and poor quality proteins found in commercial cat food that can cause plaque buildup and gingivitis (a dental disease). A raw food diet is better for your pet’s overall health, so it’s important that you seriously consider that your cat be given a raw diet.
B. Dental toys and raw, uncooked bones can help keep your cat busy and remove plaque in their teeth and massaging their gums. Healthy gums are far less likely to develop infections and diseases. Alternatively, raw bones that are cooked become brittle and can easily splinter if your cat chews on them, so any raw bones you give your cat to chew on should always be uncooked. As for giving cats raw chicken and turkey bones to chew on, we strongly advise that owners check raw bones for splinters and cracks that may break off and get lodged in your cat’s teeth and gums or your cat accidentally swallows them. Cats’ teeth are made for tearing meat off the bones of their prey, so giving your cat raw bones will help scrape off plaque. Uncooked, raw turkey and chicken bones are safe for your cat to clean their teeth with and provide a good source of calcium! Dental toys are also popular for helping to scrap off plaque and tartar. Our silvervine stix are very good for that.
C. Water additives, cleaning gels and powders are especially helpful if you have trouble using a pet toothbrush to clean your cat’s teeth and gums. Water additives contain anti-plaque chemicals, so when your kitty drinks from their water bowl, they’ll be getting a gentle mouthwash. Some kitties might not care for their water having an alternate taste, if the additive you use has such effect, however. In this case, you could add a little watered-down tuna water from a can to the dental water mixture. Dental cleaning gels on the other paw, are a step down from the toothbrush but can be just as effective. The gel can be rubbed daily over your cat’s teeth and gums with your finger, which is less abrasive to your cat who may try to fight you off either way. Dental powder is simply added to the food and is basically tasteless so there is no issue for the pet.
D. The dreaded toothbrush. I’ve never heard of a cat that enjoys getting their teeth rubbed by bristles on a stick or having one in their mouth. However, mom says it’s necessary for cleaning our teeth and gums in a way that we can’t do ourselves. As a cat, I’m not thrilled with the idea, but I can tell you that you can ask your vet about what kind of toothbrush is best for cleaning your cat’s pearly whites, because toothbrushes for cats are designed to be a lot gentler (my paw!!!) and to reach the curves of our mouths better.
If you’re using the traditional method of cleaning your cat’s teeth and gums, keep in mind that human toothpaste is NOT safe for us cats. You should never use regular, human toothpaste on any of your pets, which can contain ingredients that are toxic to pets.
In theory, brushing a cat’s teeth may seem simple enough, right? But chances are, your cat will not agree, and might express it with their teeth and claws. You might have brushed a dog’s teeth, but cats need to be approached differently in order to ensure a successful teeth cleaning that is most efficient and least annoying for your cat.
Currently, a video-guided, 28 day training program is available through Cornell University of Veterinary Medicine that teaches you how to brush a cat’s teeth! The program features a step-by-step tutorial on helping your cat feel more comfortable with getting their teeth and gums brushed as well—which will definitely make the experience easier on both you and your cat (especially the cat!)
With your cat’s dental health being an important responsibility and there being many ways to go about keeping your kitty’s chompers in tiptop shape, you’ll need to know how to spot common signs of dental issues and why they may be happening. While some might be easily detected (such as bad breath or drooling), if you’re not one hundred purrcent sure, contacting your vet for a second opinion is always a good idea. Remember to always inspect your kitty’s mouth gently; after all, we’re not too crazy about having our mouths poked and prodded.
1. Stinky breath. Harmful bacteria left behind in your cat’s mouth can cause your cat to have bad breath. From there, it’s a good idea to check the rest of your cat’s mouth for other issues they may be having. Unless it’s just tuna breath (but you should still make sure there are no other problems going on other than bad breath).
2. Visible plaque/tartar buildup between teeth. If you can see bits of food stuck on or between your cat’s teeth and on their gums, they definitely need a good brushing or other means of dental cleaning. Plaque and tartar buildup are notorious for causing a myriad of feline dental diseases, including gingivitis and tooth root abscess (bacterial destruction of a tooth’s roots). By brushing or cleaning your cat’s teeth daily, you can significantly decrease their risk of developing plaque-originating diseases.
3. Your cat is pawing at their mouth or having trouble chewing. This could signify that your cat is seriously uncomfortable with something in or around their mouth or jaw. If your cat is having trouble chewing for any reason or pawing at their mouth, they could be dealing with anything from a toothache, to bleeding or sore gums, to something more pressing. If you see something inside of your kitty’s mouth that you’re not sure is normal, be sure to contact your vet for advice.
4. Drooling. As weird and harmless as it may seem, a drooling kitty can be cause for concern. Detecting whether a cat’s drooling indicates an issue is tricky, because there are many reasons why cats drool. Drooling while kneeling or purring can mean your cat is super relaxed and happy, which is definitely an okay thing. Cats may also drool when they’re stressed, such as during car rides or in loud, disruptive situations—not a good thing, but it happens.
However, if your cat’s drooling doesn’t appear to be tied to feeling happiness or a spike in stress, a medical problem may be to blame. We cats generally don’t advertise when we aren’t feeling well or when there’s a problem, so if your cat’s drooling spells seem out of place to you or are unexplainable, you should contact your veterinarian, who can help narrow down your cat’s symptoms.
5. Red gums that are swollen or bleeding. No one finds eating with swollen, aching, or bleeding gums a good time. Frequently check your cat’s gums for redness or swelling, even if your cat seems to have a healthy mouth. On the other paw, if your cat’s gums are bluish, this could be a sign of trouble getting enough oxygen, and your cat should be seen by a vet immediately.
6. Discolored or missing teeth. Just like with humans, yellowed or oddly colored teeth are a sign of poor dental hygiene or dental disease in cats. This is also a possibility if your cat is starting to lose teeth or some of their teeth are missing. Discolored teeth in cats are usually caused by tooth damage or infections from bacteria, and can actually affect other areas of the body if left untreated. Discolored teeth is also a symptom of Gingivitis.
7. Loss in weight. Believe it or not, if your cat is suddenly losing weight, this could be attributed to them having difficulty chewing and thus not getting enough food in their body. If there are no other possible reasons for your cat’s sudden weight loss, contact your vet immediately to discuss the next course of action and learn how to help your cat take in food easier and get the nutrients their body needs.
Having a well-rounded understanding of your cat’s dental health and the daily care that it needs is key to helping them live a long, and happy life. We cats know you care when you lend us a paw with problems we can’t always handle on our own, even if we don’t like it (I’m looking at you, vet visits). I, Laszlo, have had my own share of dental obstacles, (I had to have 10 of my teeth removed over the last 3 years! MeOWCH!) but I know my mom is only looking out for me and wants the best for me. And even if I have to pout and hide (or growl) for a while, I always feel better in the long run. Thanks, Mom. *Purrs*
]]>Whether we like it or not, us kitties need frequent exercise! Just like you humans, obesity is on the rise in cats and is generally caused by a poor diet and lack of exercise.
As many of you know, we are a fresh, raw food family which has contributed to Bouvier's, Beau’s and my overall good health from the inside out. You can learn more about what we have said about the BARF diet and how it can transform your cat’s health and well-being here.
We are also a three-cat family which brings us to today’s topic – that us cats need to workout!
The absolute easiest way to get us off our butts and running around is to have a second cat. Every cat advocate from rescues, cat behaviorists and adoption groups promote the concept of a two-cat household. Cats are NOT solitary creatures, though there is the rare exception when a certain cat needs to be the only cat in the house.
Generally speaking, cats will become buddies and spend part of their day playing together and rumbling and tumbling around the house. Being three boys, it was a natural for us and thankfully it has worked out great. Beau and I are particularly a good match because I was a couch potato until he showed up with his energetic personality. It is a “Yin and Yang” situation, but it works as he gets me moving!
It’s important to consider the personalities when adopting a second cat, to hopefully ensure that they will “exercise and entertain” each other, which is a win-win for all.
It is also important that we exercise with our humans for 15 minutes a day whether we are a solo cat or we have an in-house posse!
Remember we love you and it is a great way to bond and have some fun, too! And surely 15 minutes a day devoted to our health and well-being is not too much to ask!
Get out the fishing pole or feather wand as we love to jump high to catch it…15 minutes goes fast!
Throw the little balls we like to chase around the floor – some of us cats will even play fetch with you and bring it back – stay actively involved and hunt down the ball and throw it to us repeatedly to make us get moving for 15 minutes.
Break out the catnip and silvervine toys and watch us go crazy for a few minutes, but be sure each cat has its own kicker or stuffed toy…granted we might get too stoned to stay active for 15 minutes!
Here’s an easy one – roll up a plastic bag into a small ball and toss it to us so we can play hockey. Mom always says cats can be a cheap date!
And if you’re looking to splurge a little, there is that fabulous spinning wheel exercise contraption that mom is fascinated with – One Fast Cat has one. Mind you, we have never tried it ourselves, but some of our furriends have one and seem to be getting lots of exercise!
She says if we are very good kitties, maybe Santa will bring it to us for Christmas! Meowza!
No matter how you get us moving – the important message is that we need exercise to offset the fact that we like to sleep 18 hours a day!!!
I can brag a bit – and say that between diet and exercise I have gone from a hefty 15.5 lbs to a sleek 13 lbs over the last year – so it does work!!
]]>Founded in 2014, Pet Hub is an innovative company that offers an external ID tag which comes with a solid support package, that in case your cat or dog got lost, would help in reuniting you with your pet. One thing the company does is send an alert to all the shelters within 50 miles if your pet goes missing.
Their tagline is “modern pet identification”. It’s more than just a tag!
Mom and I studied their website and we highly recommend you visit them as they post wonderful resources for pet parents about PREVENTATIVE actions you can take to prevent your pet from getting lost to start with!
The reason that July is the chosen month for loss prevention is because there is a 30% increase of lost pets during the July 4th holiday time period over any other time of the year. The fireworks and festivities often make pets scared and they can bolt out an open door or window to hide somewhere.
Or you have guests who inadvertently leave the door open and a curious pet gets out.
1 in 3 pets will get lost during its lifetime.
10 million pets are lost every year.
A family pet is lost every 2 seconds in North America.
The word PREVENTATIVE always makes our ears perk up!
How does the saying go, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!
Mom has always been proactive and tries to prevent disasters before they happen with us, because the costs are high both emotionally as well as financially. Believe me, Beau, Bouvier and I do not want to get lost either because we have it too good here!
However, full disclaimer, Pet Hub’s focus is very dog centric even though they do mention cats from time to time in their various blogs and posts.
We are used to that being the case, but we still found very useful information in their resources that applies to both canines and felines!
All pets need to have an external ID collar, which goes without saying for dogs. However as indoor cats, we do not regularly need a collar except for when we would walk outside on a leash or go on a trip with mom.
Back up for a second, the first line of defense is to microchip your cat or dog, in case something happens to that collar. In the case of cats, their collars need to be “break-away” in case of accidental strangulation from jumping and catching the collar on a branch or similar object and hanging to death. Yikes!
Make sure your home is well-secured! We just talked about warm weather and open windows in last week’s blog. When you give a party, or you know there will be a lot of noise such as fireworks or loud music, please put us in a quiet room away from the party with a bed, toys, a treat and access to a litter pan. We will be much happier!
Making sure your home is well-secured includes having cameras inside and outside for a few reasons – your safety and your pets. You may not have thought about how an outside camera can help you get on your pet’s trail if they slipped outside, showing you in which direction they wandered.
Us cats can get spooked and run off if we feel threatened while we are sitting outside in the garden and we can get lost if we decided to take a stroll around town. So what is the preventative measure? Don’t let us outside unless we are at the end of a leash and harness or inside a catio in the backyard.
Every day mom sees posts on Next Door for lost cats and dogs in our neighborhood and surrounding areas. In the case of the cats, many post how their cat hasn’t come home in a couple days or worse a few weeks, and mom always shouts “why the heck do you let them free-roam outside to begin with?”.
That is why mom is a proponent of taking preventative measures – not reactive measures.
Mom says she is going to order tags for us from Pet Hub because she likes what they offer in terms of support!
As always, our recommendations are based on our opinions only and we are not compensated for this post.
I have put together a simple list of 3 things to consider, a sort of "no-no list" of treats and toys that should be avoided, and made some suggestions for alternative gifts that are more appropriate and healthier for today's cats!
Let's start with treats - cute little pouches of dried food - basically a bag of kibble in small quantities. There are so many choices in this category, you might not know which one to buy. I say - just read the ingredients!
Kibble-type dried food and treats have no true nutritional value. It has been baked and "processed out" - and the vitamins and minerals have to artificially be put back in. Generally there will be a long list of ingredients, many of which you cannot pronounce and nor do you know what it is. So beware of treats with a long list of mysterious ingredients.
Instead look for a freeze-dried or dehydrated single ingredient treats such as "turkey breast, beef liver or pork"...or limited ingredients (3-6 additions) that begin with a whole animal protein, often organic. These treats been minimally processed raw and then freeze-dried or dehydrated. They have never been commercially processed or baked. They are a purr-fect alternative to a processed kibble-type treat, packed with more naturally ocurring vitamens and minerals supporting a healthy feline species appropriate diet.
Toys are always a bit of a challenge mom says because there are so many different types of toys on the market. Good news, there are many wonderful toys available today created by talented designers and artisans for the kitty's enjoyment. These toys and gifts are created with a great attention to a cat's specific needs that bring out their predator instinct to "attack the prey" (aka the toy) and not your couch or curtains. Toys are created to be destroyed!
However there are many toys out there that are really not cat- appropriate because they are too big for a cat to fully enjoy it, or there are small parts that can break off and perhaps get ingested and cause health issues.
So focus your attention to size-appropriate toys that the cats can hold in their front paws and lick and bite it - little balls the size of a Ping-Pong or golf ball is purr-fect as are little "pillow" toys. Also kitties like to "bunny kick" a kicker toy which are about 6" total length so the kitty can hold it with their front paws - and kick it to death with the back paws just like a bunny!
Additionally be on the lookout for any attached trims that can break off through rough play and/or poor quality construction. Metal bits, strings, beads, plastic parts and many more can cause terrible internal damage to the cat who ingests these kinds of items, which can be costly at the vet and even deadly to the cat.
Most kitties love catnip (reportedly 85-90% of all felines) so selecting a cute catnip toy is always a good choice for us cats. However there is "good catnip" and "not-so-good catnip" so please choose wisely and pick the good stuff!
The best catnip to buy, which is an herb from the mint family, is organically grown and harvested in the USA. This way you can be assured that no chemicals or toxic fertilizers were used in the cultivation of the plants.
Catnip that is grown in other countries that is not organic is grown and harvested with chemicals and preservatives so that it can grow faster and be shipped around the world. Often this catnip is stale in a shorter period of time, so best to avoid it.
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Every year this time, mom starts debating whether this is the year she puts up a tree. She says it is a big conundrum because she wants to have a tree, but knows the perils it comes with for the pets.
This seems to be THE discussion in many cat families as well. Social media is filled with zillions of recommendations on how to cat-proof a tree (really?) to “giving up” and recommending to absolutely not have a tree at all. That at the end of the day, it’s just not worth it, everything considered.
Christmas trees come with so many perils for the pets that it requires a lot of thought and consideration on how to have what you want – but also does not pose a safety risk to your cats or neurotic monitoring on your part. For example, the liquid that people put in the tree water that supposedly extends the life of the tree is filled with chemicals that are poisonous to both cats and dogs should they drink it.
So far, in this house, resignation has won out, and she hasn’t had a tree in many years. While I would maybe swat at a few low-hanging branches and things, Beau and Bouvier would absolutely consider it their job to explore every inch of that tree and knock off a few decorations to play hockey with on the floor, if it hasn’t broken into hundreds of pieces that is!
She otherwise sprinkles the house with festive decor, placed high so as not to be in our direct line of attention. She does decorate the tables but only with things that she is certain Beau or Bouvier won’t chew on or otherwise destroy! She says she won’t give up completely – but work with the challenges and still have a festive home.
Another big decision is the holiday plants, flowers and scented plug-ins, which are safe and which pose risks to the pets. Consider this fact – almost every traditional Holiday plant and flower is poisonous to cats and dogs. And many essential oil plug-ins are also toxic to cats such as eucalyptus oil. Best to check the ASPCA toxic plant list BEFORE you go shopping!
Candles are another issue around the holidays, though their threat can be anytime you light candles with cats and dogs around. One wrong swish of a tail and that candle can hurt the animal – and even set the home on fire! We only use a candle warming plate now for a candle with a non-toxic scent. Ocassionally she will have tall lit candles on the dining room table for atmosphere during a party. As soon as the dinner is over, the candles are blown out.
Holiday food and cocktails can be very enticing to many pets, both cats and dogs. However, so much of traditional holiday food, snacks, desserts and cocktails contain ingredients that are basically poison to us! I am rather polite and understand the expression “her food” so I know not to jump on the buffet table – but Beau is a whole other story and ignores her because he has to taste-test everything!
After a little “meet and greet” time with the early guests at her parties, mom sends us upstairs to the bedroom for the remainder of the time. This way, she can enjoy her paw-ty and not worry about what trouble Beau and Bouvier might get into! Notice I only mentioned my two brothers…
The mission of this blog is to get you thinking about the big picture of safe-guarding your pets during this Holiday season.
To learn more, check on these blog posts that take a deeper dive into this topic of poison-proofing your home during the holidays:
]]>November is designated as National Diabetes Month to increase the awareness of this common endocrine disease in humans – and how to hopefully prevent it (Type #2) as well as how to treat it and live with it in a proactive, healthy way.
With the increasing number of us pets coming down with diabetes, the pet industry decided to tag along on this "human holiday" and raise awareness of the shocking statistics for cat and dog diabetes!
Depending upon the article you read, 1 in 250 – 500 animals will be diagnosed with diabetes. Dogs tend to come down with Type #1 diabetes, whereas cats come down with Type #2 diabetes.
It can be managed, but it cannot be cured. And it can be fatal.
How did it start you ask…why are us cats and dogs coming down with this human disease?
Very simply – pet obesity which is caused by a poor-quality diet and little exercise. Over 50% of dogs are considered obese, and almost 60% of cats! Meow!!
Like you humans, it all starts with the diet. We are what we eat, just like you!
As those of you who have been following us know, we regularly talk about the importance of a fresh, raw food diet to help provide optimum species-specific good health. The food is pure whole animal protein and additional ingredients according to feline and canine requirements.
By following this simple fresh food diet, Beau and Bouvier stay trim and “over-weight” will never be used to describe them. As for me however, I used to weigh 15lbs when I was 18 months old and now I weight 14lbs and I am almost 9 years old. Mom tells me that I am just big-boned and bulit like a Sherman tank - but the vet is always harping on me! I know it's not a lot of weight loss, but by being proactive with the correct diet, hopefully we can prevent diabetes in our family.
Exercise is also important to help stave off diabetes as well. Having three cats can help with the exercise, as Beau and I love to rumble and tumble daily and chase each other around. Bouvier and Beau like to race back and forth the length of the house. Bouvier also likes to place fetch with his little ball and will drop the ball in front of mom - and she will throw it and he chases it and trots back with the ball in his mouth. Have to say its pretty cute!
Every day it is important that we cats get some exercise even if we are the only cat in the house. Spend 15 minutes each day playing with your cat – whether it is the feather wand – or the little balls that we love so much – toss it and we will chase it for sure!
Mom really likes the Pet Diabetes Month site! She feels it is a great source of information to educate pet owners about the symptoms, treatment and management of pet diabetes. She agrees with them that the greatest risk for the pet, today, is the lack of owner awareness that pets can and do come down with diabetes. And it is growing every year!
Mom says that all pet parents should use this November to learn about pet diabetes and the symptoms to see if your pet is experiencing some/any of them.
With the help of their site, pet owners can find all the info they need to act if they suspect their cat or dog might have diabetes. And be sure to check in with your vet immediately if you suspect something might not be right with your pet.
During our Meow Mini Mart pop-up events, mom gets asked a lot of questions from cat parents regarding dietary issues and litter box use – or the lack of!
The diet questions are to be expected since we promote the raw, fresh food diet – but she didn’t expect to hear about the litter box issues.
Waste Management seems to be a hot topic today – as lately it’s the biggest complaint she hears from pet parents – the cat is not using the box regularly…or peeing in one spot or in several spots around the house.
Is it vengeful behavior towards the human parent? Or a behavioral problem with another cat in the house? Or caused by a medical issue? Or just an occasional “mistake”?
Since Beau arrived 5 yrs. ago, every so often mom will find a “tootsie roll” outside the box – like upstairs or in another room….and wonders WTH? I assured her it was not me, so therefore it must have been Beau!
We can not figure it out other than a “dingle-dangle” gets stuck to his “balcony door” and falls off somewhere in the house as he wanders away from the box! Mom thinks it’s just the occasional mistake, so she is not panicking that there is something wrong with him.
And then there is Bouvier, the Sphynx whose previous pet parent complained that he would "miss the box" or even pee on a pile of laundry etc occasionally. When we inherited him, mom was shocked at how often he would "miss the box". A vet visit was scheduled and he had a urine test - and everything came back ok.
Meanwhile observing him for a few weeks, she concluded that Beau and I contributed to his issue by bullying him sometimes as he would head to one of the 6 litter boxes we have on 3 floors! I guess since Beau and I were caught in the act, I couldn't deny it.
But additionally she has concluded that Bouvier is lazy about emptying his bladder frequently enough - and will "hold it" until finally he can't hold it any longer! Did I mention we drink 1-1/4 cup of lukewarm water a day in our food? Lots of water makes for lots of urine!
So the first thing to do is to determine whether these litter box issues are caused by a medical condition...or a behavioral problem...or something else?
As we have always stated, mom is not a veterinarian. She is a passionate pet parent who has been self-studying cats pretty much all her life, their habits and behaviors and has learned what some of the best practices are to handle some of the issues facing cat owners today. In this case, you want to assess immediately if your cat’s “mistakes” are caused by a medical condition.
If your cat made a mistake and didn’t use the litter box one time – or it happens very infrequently (like Beau) – then chances are, there is no medical condition involved.
However, if it is starting to happen often or worse happens a few times in a week – take your cat to the vet asap. One of mom’s friend’s cat was peeing outside the litter box initially very occasionally – but then it started to happen more frequently, so she took her cat to the vet – and it was diagnosed with a bladder infection and now needs meds to clear it up. Repeat behavior means an immediate vet visit.
In the case of bullying or "other issues" like Bouvier, it maybe good to consult with a cat behaviorist as how to work with the dynamics of the other animals in the house to hopefully be able to mitigate the problem. I am going to write a follow-up blog on Bouvier's issues and how mom is working on it with us 3 cats!
Lastly maybe your cat is just being vengeful or lazy and just acting up, let’s review the basics for litter box management to hopefully stop your cat from being naughty!
Consider using a litter that is organic and sustainably sourced with no chemicals and synthetics added whenever possible. We have sensitive noses, and certain odors can turn us off! We use OKOCAT recycled wood litter that is sustainable, minimally processed with no chemicals, flushable and biodegradable.
Some pet parents have had started to use specialized litters that specifically address the issue with a good successrate, such as Dr. Elsey’s Cat Attract Litter or the Cat Attract Additive that can be sprinkled on to any litter in order to seduce the cat to use the litter box – supposedly it has a “catnip” quality that calms the cat and draws it to the box. Worth a try for stubborn situations!
There are also some special training litters just for kittens who sometimes need a little help in reinforcing good litter habits.
Scoop Everyday – it goes without saying that us cats like a clean box.
Throw Out and Replace your plastic litter boxes every year or two as they will retain the urine odor over time – and us kitties don’t like that.
The rule of thumb is to have One Extra Box for the number of cats you have. o if you have one kitty – have 2 boxes in different places in your home.
If you have a multiple story house, it is a good idea to have One Box on Each Floor. Beau, Bouvier and I have 6 boxes in our house scattered on 3 floors.
Make sure that the Litter Box Placement is in a roomy area, away from high-traffic areas, where your cat can have some privacy.
Consider the Cat’s Size and Age – large cats need large boxes – and kittens and seniors need pans with low entry.
And please Do Not Ever Place the Litter Box Near Our Food Bowls…you know the old proverb…we do not poop where we eat!
Once you have the basics covered, then you can see if the litter box issues clear up or remain. If they remain and it’s not a medical condition, then you need to work on the behavior. Here are a few tips for that.
Move the litter box to the spot where the cat pees or poops, hopefully the cat will use the box then. Over the course of the next few days, pull the box towards its original spot a few inches every day – hopefully the kitty will follow! If your cat stops and reverts to the original spot – put the box back and try again.
If your cat is attracted to a certain texture – like a tile floor or a soft carpeted area – you can try clearing a large spot on the litter box bottom to simulate a tile floor. Or you can add a small remnant of carpet to the bottom of the litter pan if your cat likes soft textures.
You can also try closing off some of the areas that the cat likes to do his business with a piece of furniture, shutting a door on a favorite room or even covering the spot with a few cat treats in a bowl – as we said the cat does not like to “go” near where it eats.
If your cat does not respond, then mom would say it’s time for a cat behaviorist to step in and assess the situation.
]]>This month we celebrate National Holistic Pet Day! Lucky for us, we celebrate a holistic lifestyle every day – by living it.
Growing up in Los Angeles, mom has always focused on living a holistic lifestyle for herself. It was easy for her to consider that I should be living one too when my over-grooming was getting out of control and it was determined that I had a food allergy.
Holistic practices and lifestyles treat the whole pet just as it does with you humans – body – mind – spirit - the big picture. It takes an integrative approach to treating the total pet to hopefully ensure a longer, healthier and sustainable lifespan. A holistic lifestyle will always try to resolve issues through diet, environment, exercise and mental stimulation before it resorts to chemicals, drugs or surgery.
Holistic has nothing to do with food ingredients - there is no such thing as holistic meat or holistic fish, etc. Focus on all-natural and organic when it comes to ingredient listings. And if the ingredients have words you can't pronounce or recognize - take a pass.
For Beau, Bouvier and me, eating with an holistic approach means the BARF diet – Biologically Appropriate Raw Food – fresh raw food for our feline species - whole muscle meat protein, organs and bones frozen or freeze-dried for us carnivores.
This is our ancestral diet. We don't need grains, veggies or fruits in our food as our digestive tracks are shorter than our canine friends and we can not digest them well. Today there are many raw food brands - and some include a small percentage of 2% - 4% veggies/fruits which is not going to necessarily hurt your cat. Sometimes it is hard to avoid based on the brands you purchase so read the ingredients just to be sure. A few plant nibbles are fine when it comes to fresh grown pet grass and a fresh catnip plant in the house...and both Beau and Bouvier beg for a few arugula leaves when mom is making a salad. Personally I don't care for arugula.
I have to mention that traditional kibble is death nuggets with 6% moisture and cats fed kibble exclusively have a higher incedence of obesity, diabetes and cancer. Choose freeze-dried nuggets as your kibble substitute.
Additionally mom puts 1 1/4 cup of water a day in with our raw food divided between our 2 meals a day - looks like chunky soup - and we lap up everything in the bowl. So we are well-hydrated daily which you all know is a problem for us cats!
If we are good which we always are, mom gives us a mid-day treat – freeze-dried single meat protein like turkey or pork.
Mom pays attention to the household environment to ensure that it is “safe and sound” for us kitties…from making sure there is nothing bad that we can scoop up and eat, to cleaning the house with organic products and eliminating scented plug-ins as well as not burning candles anymore – except at dinner under strict supervision.
As for exercise, we have a mom who loves to be sure we have a lot of climbing opportunities, as you know we kitties like a high spot in the house from which to view our kingdom! And we enjoy playing on the condos and chasing each other up to the top landing perches a few times a day.
Beau and I, we love to rumble and tumble and chase each other up and down and around the whole house! And this goes on frequently...one of the many reasons to have more than one solo cat! So we get plenty of exercise daily.
Bouvier on the other hand is naked and can't really play rough like Beau and I can for exercise because he has no fur for protection. However Bouvier loves to play with little balls and bat them around the house, throw it down the staircase and run and get it...bring it back up and deposit it a few feet away from mom, and they play "toss and fetch" together for a few minutes...and he will play like this for an hour or more while Beau and I are snoozing.
And for mental stimulation, mom keeps us supplied with organic catnip and silver vine so we can zoom around the house chasing our intoxicating toys! She loves to throw them to us and watch us 3 cats have a race to grab it first. I usually win! And let’s not forget the feather wand sessions and fishing pole toys…Beau jumps the highest! Of course there are always our favorite toys - empty boxes and brown paper packing materials to jump inside and play around in…and hide! All the better to scare her when we take a swipe at her ankles as she walks by!
Okay, all fun aside, living a holistic lifestyle also means considering Integrative Holistic Veterinary practices before invasive surgeries, having anesthesia, taking chemicals and drugs, etc. Holistic vet practices include such things as homeopathic medicines, chiropractic services, and acupuncture and ozone therapy.
Four years ago we switched to a holistic vet who is certified as a traditionally educated and trained vet, who went on to study Eastern Integrative methods and practices than can be considered for certain conditions and situations before resorting to drugs and surgery.
Many of you pet parents are exploring more holistic solutions for yourself as well as for your pets. The easiest example today is the growth of CBD for both humans and pets....a plant product with therapeutic abilities and benefitting many people and pets today.
As always no matter which vet you choose, mom says to be sure to check in with your vet annually for a check-up and contact them immediately with any serious health situations. A holistic lifestyle is about “everyday living” to hopefully prevent certain diseases and accidents from occurring to begin with – it is not a replacement for an annual or semi-annual check-up vet visit!
A holistic lifestyle for your pet will also save you money potentially on extra vet visits and/or emergency ones by being pro-active and preemptive when it comes to your pet's food choices, a safe environment, exercise and mental stimulation.
July 15th is National Pet Fire Safety Day! Mom’s greatest fear is a house fire and we have to evacuate quickly, or worse, a fire breaks out when Beau, Bouvier and I are home alone.
Naturally occurring wildfires, which are somewhat customary out west during the summer and fall, are now exploding more often and with a greater intensity than ever before. More local to where we live, we are startled to see so many apartment and house fires in and around the tri-state New York metro area.
More than ever, pet parents need to have a plan of what to do in case you have to evacuate quickly to save yourself and your pets.
Be prepared has been one of mom’s mantras since she heard it in the Girl Scouts! And being prepared will help A LOT were you ever put into a situation of escaping a fire – either within your home or threatening your property and community. Most often you will have no warning and will have to “grab and go” to escape – so let’s be prepared!
All homes need to have monitored smoke detectors – meaning they are connected to an alarm company and the fire department so that if a fire breaks out, the alarm company will call the fire department immediately. This is very important, particularly, if a fire breaks out when us pets are home alone. Or a fire starts in the middle of the night while everyone is asleep…yikes!
Fire “pet proof” your house inside…in other words, go around your home and look for ways that your pet can start a fire.
Beau once sat on the stove’s control panel and turned the oven on! Digital controls present a new set of issues so be prepared and lock your stovetop and oven panel. Our control panel has been locked ever since, unless it is in use.
Check for electrical and cable cords as many pets like to chew on them (Beau and Bouvier are guilty) and find ways to discourage that behavior. Fires have started because of frayed wires, as well as pets being electrocuted. They make “cable/cord covers” today for this exact problem.
Take care with candles and never leave them unattended with pets around – one tail swish and that candle can be knocked over and start a fire. Mom has banned the use of lit candles in our house unless it’s the dinner table and they are blown out quickly at the end of the meal.
Prepare your pet’s emergency travel kit with food, water, medicines, supplies, vet’s information and vaccination history, microchip company details, recent “straight on” photos of your pet in case it gets lost somehow during the crisis, leash and harness set for each pet with their name tags attached, also all carriers should have name tags as well.
The internet is full of checklists recommending what to include in your pet’s kit. Do your research so you can have peace of mind that nothing has been forgotten if you had to “grab and go”.
Investigate which animal hospitals are open 24/7 in your surrounding area – and keep those numbers in your phone and written out in the pet’s kit.
Also check out hotels/motels in your area that accept pets – and keep that information handy as you will might need to find a new place to stay if you have a house fire depending upon your family and friends’ ability to take you and your pets in.
And most of all – have a plan for each fire scenario…it’s important to consolidate the carriers and travel kits in one place so they can be accessed quickly. Remember to stay calm as you search for us kitties as we may have gone into hiding – so pay attention to where we like to snooze or hide as you search for us.
Always keep a Rescue Sticker Alert on your front door to alert firefighters that you have pets inside so they can look for them right away (particularly if you are not home) – you want them to save your pets first!
And most importantly, if you have to evacuate from a wildfire, take your pets with you for all the reasons we can imagine. It has been a problem that shelters would not take evacuees with pets – but there has been tremendous public blow-back on that policy – and mom thinks that might be changing. Nevertheless it’s important to talk to family and friends to see if you could go stay with them in case of an emergency, or know that hotel and/or motel that takes pets.
]]>With each passing year, mom has been thinking about how things have moved forward in many positive ways for cats.
Since she first adopted me in January 2015 and dedicated herself to helping cat rescue as a way of giving back, she took a deep-dive into the cat world and researched cat allergies, the feline diet and behavioral cat issues.
Five years ago, we launched the Best Life Pets blog to share with you our experiences for a holistic and sustainable lifestyle for cats.
We kept the basics simple so that any cat parent could slowly but surely transition their felines to a better life nutritionally and environmentally.
Our aim was to elevate all cats’ lives to their rightful position by addressing their unique needs holistically and sustainably. Cats suffer from a lot of misinformation and over the last few years, mom says she sees a major shift in the way of thinking about cats, particularly among the Millennials and Gen Z.
What sounded “radical” at the time seven years ago about how cats should be cared for, is now starting to become the “norm” for many new pet parents. Millennials are the largest group of pet parents today with approximately 70% of them having a pet of some type.
They are research-driven by the device in their hands to find out “why their cat is doing such and such” or “what is the best organic food to feed their cat”. And because of the digital age we live in, news travels fast and cats’ lives have improved in many ways, though we still have a long way to go!
Here are a few examples of the advances in cats’ lives driven by a new generation:
The raw diet is here to stay as cat parents get educated about a cat’s need to eat a biologically appropriate raw food diet with 90+ whole animal protein! Frozen, freeze-dried or dehydrated and priced to compete with commercial brands, many more cat and dog parents are switching to the raw diet.
At the very least, kibble is declining as many humans seek out "limited ingredients and lightly cooked" wet food - the first step towards a more healthy and species appropriate diet!
More and more pet parents are understanding that cats should never be allowed to free-roam outside. There are many multiples of reasons why us cats should remain indoors only and cat parents are changing the way they think about the idea that “cats must go outside”. It is simply not true and downright dangerous to our longterm wellbeing to let us free-roam outside. Consider leash and harness training your cat if you insist on taking them outside...or build a "catio" for your cats - a screened-in porch for your kitties!
You know what they say about curiosity and cats! You can not forget that us cats are like toddlers - for our entire life! Pet parents are paying attention to all the ways cats can get into trouble in their own home. Poison-proof your home and environment for the sake of your pet.
Cat lovers get the fact that their ancestral needs include giving them lots of climbing levels and spots near the windows, and be sure that you always have two cats as we are not solitary animals, or at least a canine buddy to hang with.
Since Millennials are actively involved with cat rescue, you are seeing their influence with the newer venues for cat adoption such as the cat cafes that have opened, with more popping up. Fundraising efforts are "hipper and cooler" reflecting the taste and interests of a newer mindset.
TNR initiatives have also seen more men get involved than previous generations which were mostly dominated by women trapping, feeding and fostering. And as communities see more diversity so do the TNR efforts - more and more people are becoming interested in the cause.
Mom is so excited to see that there is a big increase in volunteers in general in the TNR initiatives. The more people who understand that trap-neuter-release is the only way to curb the population growth, the more cats who will be spared a rough life on the streets in this country.
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It’s been more than 5 decades since the late President John F. Kennedy designated the 3rd week of March as Poison Prevention Awareness Week. It was originally started to raise awareness to prevent injuries and illnesses in adults and children, but has since expanded to include pets – and it gets a whole month now!
I have spoken many times since mom and I launched Best Life Pets about poison-proofing your home because some of us pets are curious and often on patrol for “prey” which can be literally anything.
My little bro, Beau, is a notorious scavenger who will taste-test everything that comes into our house and is out there for the nibbling….and this includes plants, cardboard, paper, rubber bands, yarn, and even a pistachio shell…as for me, on the other hand, I have taste and would never consider chewing on or eating anything that lowbrow!
During one of mom’s parties, Beau stole food right off a guest’s dinner plate when she looked away to talk to another guest! Thankfully it wasn’t something that could make him sick. Since then, we have been banished to the bedroom during dinner parties – both for the guest’s sake as well as ours! But why me, I ask, I didn’t do anything!!
Recently mom came across an article by the Pet Poison Helpline which outlined a checklist for your home and yard of all the potential poisons and “trouble spots” that you should be mindful of when you consider your pet’s safety.
We have “one of those” pets who puts himself at risk because he is so inquisitive and nosey. It is up to mom to be proactive and poison-proof our home for Beau, Bouvier and my safety. Even though I am not a nibbler, mom says it is better to be safe than sorry, and she can’t train Beau!
Traditional household cleaners – as opposed to organic and pet-safe
Many flowers and plants – check before you buy to make sure it is safe for pets
Many foods like garlic, onions, chocolate, raisins, grapes, etc.
All human medicines of every type
Vitamins
Home fragrance products – eliminate or use sparingly
Automotive products like antifreeze, windshield cleaning liquid, etc…
Any kind of poison for a rodent
Breath mints and sugar-free gum
Human recreational drugs
Hang your purse, backpack, etc up high where we can’t get it…maybe you forgot that you left some chocolate or some gum where we can find it. Mom has found Beau rummaging around in her bag many times and now automatically parks it on a high hook in the coat closet for Beau’s security.
Be careful with your trash – as we will find it and get into it! Keep it well secured in your kitchen – and likewise secured outside in covered bins.
Keep the Pet Poison Hotline number on speed-dial to call in case you suspect your pet has eaten or been exposed in some way to a poisonous substance…you can also call the ASPCA (Animal Poison Control Center) for information. Both companies charge a customary consultation fee to assist in your inquiry.
Lastly, what mom liked about the Pet Poison Helpline article particularly is that they went “room by room” and discussed each room’s likely contents that would be poisonous or harmful to us pets.
Do check it out and apply it to your home and yard to help ensure our safety. It is an easy to-do list!
]]>Depending upon the demographics and varied age groups that responded, some readers will find certain percentages surprising and often in opposition to what they think is the “norm”.
We can tell you that the survey clearly resembles our cat customers who range in age from teens to 80 years +…urban, suburban and rural…and all ranges of household incomes. We have met so many of you at the events and enjoyed sharing our mutual love for our cats. We could hear you “speaking” to us through this survey!
To set the stage, we asked you to tell us how many cats you have!
Clearly multiple cat homes dominate at 76% in total
The question that inspired the survey was “how do you view your cat’s health and well-being” and we are very excited by the responses!
Almost every survey taker, 92%, said they knew it was their responsibility to stay up-to-date on feline health so that they can take better care of their cat.
60% said that they knew that cats can hide pain and illnesses, and they knew what signs to look for and 48% agreed that cats are like toddlers and they create a cat-proof home to keep them safe and healthy!
This was all good news because, overwhelmingly, a large percentage of cat parents recognized the need to be proactive in managing their cat’s health.
However, 16% felt that cats are pretty tough and take care of themselves and will let their owner know if something is wrong.
Clearly, we have more work to do to inform the cat community that cats hide pain and health issues can come out of nowhere. With cats, things can spiral out of control before you know it.
A pro-active viewpoint is better for your cat’s long-term good health!
The question of when do you take your cat to the vet, gave us pause and reflected what we heard from our vet friends – which did not make us happy and didn’t really fit with the above findings!
Clearly, one group (81% combined) feels those visits are based on “need” because of a possible illness or due dates for vaccination boosters.
And the other group (71% combined) sees the yearly and 2X a year visits as a pro-active approach to their cat’s health.
We also think that in the multiple cat households, there are different levels of health management depending upon the health history of each individual cat and whether it is a “low or high maintenance” cat.
When asked how you feel about your vet and do you trust everything they tell you:
When asked if you always trust your vet – no questions asked – 18% responded yes.
Over 50% said that they like their vet and listen to them most of the time depending upon the topic.
And 50% said they like to do their research and come prepared for the vet visit.
25% voiced concern about the high vet bills and are a bit skeptical of the various treatments or drugs suggested – they question if they are all absolutely necessary.
And 20% admitted questioning their vet a lot when they weren’t sure of some things.
We say never be afraid to ask questions – vets are not invincible. And today there are many alternative pet care practices we can try before needing more drugs or surgery.
Speaking of costs – we asked you how you were handling the vet costs today.
Let’s start with 58% of you stated that you would pay anything to keep your pet healthy – no cost was too high! We can relate!
71% said they are proactive and eliminate certain things in order to keep their cat safe and healthy.
15% said that they believe in having pet insurance. And 10% save money each month towards their yearly vet bills.
Lastly, 13% said they were afraid of the vet bills and that it dictated as to when they took their cat to the vet – in other words, it had to be serious!
For this last group, we recognize this concern of some pet parents and hope that as pet insurance companies become more prevalent (over 25 companies now) and competitive in their pricing, and more employers offer pet insurance coverage to their employees, this way more pet owners will be able to get their cats to the vet regularly for a wellness check – and not have to wait until it is too late.
When it came to nutrition and that cats are obligatory carnivores, the answers were very divided on opinions.
While opinions are all over the place, the “fresh raw food” community is growing larger every year as more people are recognizing that our cats are what they eat! And they cannot choose for themselves. We are the only ones who can choose for them.
When we started the Best Life Pets blog 5 years ago (which is now on MeowMiniMart.com), the interest in feeding raw or at least HUMAN grade food versus FEED grade was a very small percentage. Raw feeders were considered “outliers” and on the fringe.
In a very short time, however, it has become “the #1 movement” in the pet food industry and now commands over 16% of the national sales of pet food and growing every year.
The last question asked about your cat’s water drinking habits since dehydration and kidney failure is becoming a big problem for cats particularly over the age of 3 years.
Good news! 79% said their cats drink water all the time with no issues.
30% said they put water in their cat’s food bowl daily with good success.
21% reported that their cat rarely drank water until they got it a water fountain and now it drinks regularly.
And 13% reported that their cat drinks water occasionally just when thirsty.
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We feel that the awareness of best practices for cat health and wellbeing is growing and spreading amongst the cat community. And a lot of that credit can go to the Millennials and Gen Z who are the largest group of pet owners today and who generally are more interested in their own health and diet – and in turn transfer that same mentality when they consider their pets wellbeing.
We want to thank everyone who took our first-ever cat owner survey and truly appreciate your time and responses.
As a shop and blog, we are committed to continuing to share what we have discovered to be the simple things that can give our cats their best life.
Everyone who answered our survey was entered to win our Kitty Kat Jamboree Toy Box – and we want to congratulate Kyle S. for winning!
]]>On January 2nd, we celebrate National Pet Travel Safety Day. Mom said it’s a great time to remind you about pet safety when traveling with your fur baby!
Now if you are taking a plane, bus or train, everyone seems to get what needs to be done and properly restrains their pet in an appropriate carrier according to the rules of the transportation company.
But when it comes to traveling with your cat or dog in a car, all common sense seems to go right out the window for many drivers!
She says she can’t believe how many cars she sees with a pet on the driver’s lap or standing in the back seat with its head out the window. She even sees large dogs roaming free in the back of a SUV!
All of these are big no-no’s mom says, because of all the crazy drivers out there! We live in Northern New Jersey and mom says the old adage “drive defensively” has never been more important than now!
When you let your pet roam around the car, regardless of their size and whether they are tiny and you think you can can hold them on your lap securely, consider what can happen if your car gets involved in an accident.
Your unrestrained pet can become a projectile. If you need to stop short, your pet could fly forward or backwards, hurting itself, you or worse.
It can be thrown out of the car in an accident and then hit by a car in a neighboring lane.
A pet on your lap in the front seat can die from the airbags deploying.
A large dog can fly forward in an accident and impede you both from escaping from a car on fire or in the water.
Simply said, all pets need to be restrained while traveling in a car. No exceptions.
And it is so easy today with a plethora of carriers for cats and small dogs, such as the TRAVEL CAT backpack known for their bubble porthole and super sturdy construction. There are also harnesses for the larger dogs that attach directly to the seat belts.
Personally speaking, Beau, Bouvier and I only travel in the car when we go to the vet 1-2 times a year. Mom attaches our carrier to the seat belts during the trip.
It’s not enough to put your cat in the carrier and set it on the seat unrestrained. It needs to be anchored to the seat, just like you humans with your seat belts buckled!
One comment about letting your canine hang it’s head out the window to enjoy the wind blowing in their face. This is actually a very dangerous thing to do as the dog can be injured in the process.
One thing that can happen is getting hit in the face by twigs, bugs or little stones kicked up by the car’s tires and carried in the air, injuring their corneas with tiny particles that go flying by.
While the dogs love it, it is really not a good habit on any level.
Thankfully, if a dog is properly restrained, it cannot reach the window and is much safer.
It only takes a little forethought to consider the dangers of car travel today. Be sure your cat and dog are properly restrained for their safety, and yours!
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Every Holiday season, we start the conversation regarding your cats and holiday decorations, as mom says there is a lot more to consider this time of year for our kitty safety – and her peace of mind!
Cat-proofing your home means taking your whole environment into consideration when planning for our feline safety and wellbeing during this festive time. And by the way, any of the issues listed below should really be the standard for everyday of the year – not just during the holidays.
Maintain a calm atmosphere for us when hosting a party – you know how us kitties do not like startling sounds and loud noises. Mom lets us hang out with the early arrivals to say hi. Beau and I are very social and like to be petted and cooed over by mom’s friends, but once a few more humans arrive, we are whisked upstairs to the bedroom for some quiet time for the rest of the evening.
The added benefit for mom is that she does not have to worry about the front door – just in case a guest inadvertently leaves the door open, and one of us kitties get out! Now she can have more fun at her own party!
Be kind to your cat and do not feed us human food especially all the rich holiday treats and side dishes which may contain food that is poisonous to us cats like chocolate, onions, garlic, raisins and grapes, as well as nutmeg just for example.
Be careful with lit candles! My tail swished past a candle on the dinner table recently, singeing my fur! Don’t ask what I was doing on the table…!
Best advice - update all your candles in your house with battery-operated lights which come in many shapes and sizes – often with timers, etc. readily available everywhere even at the “dollar stores”.
Scents can be an irritant for delicate feline noses and some are downright toxic – so always investigate the scent or essential oil “online” that you are bringing into the house and use sparingly in your home. Just so you know, the purists would say today not to have any artificial scents in the house!
But we know the humans in our lives often love certain scents, using scented plug-ins in every room 365 days of the year or having essential oils warming in a dish. Mom likes incense sticks but doesn’t use them all the time and keeps the dish up high. The important thing here is moderation.
So, planning in advance can insure us kitties will remain safe this holiday season – and for the rest of the year! And our humans can feel good that they are thinking about the total space in our house all the time to insure our safety. With a little proper planning, everyone can be happy!
]]>Last week I had a big vomiting event after I ate my breakfast and proceeded to have dry-heaves for a few hours with only yellow bile coming up. I felt like “poop” all day and refused treat offerings and even dinner, as I watched Beau enjoy his evening meal from my favorite cardboard box.
And when I did move around, I was lethargic and not interested in mom’s sweet words or being pet, I just sauntered off to another one of my hideaways. Thankfully within 24 hours I was back to my old self and wanting breakfast the next morning!
My poor meowmy always worries so much when this happens as cats have been known to develop health issues sometimes it seems overnight, and we are masters at concealing many of the things that bother us.
The message here is, if your cat vomits often, sometimes, once in a while or kind of regularly, be sure to have your cat checked out by your vet to rule out any health issues that could be causing it. Because "regular vomiting" like 2-3 times a week is not normal.
I have to admit, I do vomit every so often after eating. I guess you could say between me, Bouvier and Beau, I have a more delicate stomach.
I have been known to scarf, barf and then eat my regurgitated mess! (Yup, it’s true!) Mom says it the most disgusting thing us kittys do next to licking our butts.
Just for the record they don’t know why we do this actually, maybe it’s behavioral or maybe now the food is finally warm and therefore more desirable?Bottomline here is to clean up the vomit as soon as you see it and do not allow us to eat it!
Okay, moving on, solutions to the vomiting issues might be as easy as elevating our bowls!
As many of our readers know, we 3 cats follow a fresh raw human-grade animal protein diet that has never been cooked or processed. A proper diet is key to a healthy digestive tract. Just like you, we are what we eat.
We also have mealtime security in that Beau eats in one corner of the kitchen, Bouvier up on a bench at the other end of the kitchen and I eat in the guest bathroom. This way each of us can dine in solitude and there is no competition at a communal dining station. This helps prevent a cat from gobbling its food and taking in air with it which can cause gastroesophageal reflux.
Even in a small apartment, serve one cat in one corner, and the other in another corner and turn them away from each other.
Since mom felt that she had done the right things to help prevent me from eating and vomiting, the one thing she hadn’t explored was raising my bowl off the floor. She had started to notice a trend in the cat chat rooms towards that being another possible solution as the cat would now be eating in a more comfortable position and the esophagus in a more level position leading to the stomach.
She also noticed that many of the pet food bowl manufacturers started making elevated cat bowls and even vets were weighing in and recommending them as a possible solution to cats vomiting after a meal.
With an elevated bowl, gravity would help the food move along the track rather than working against it in the more traditional way of feeding us cats on the floor!
Since we naturally eat in a somewhat crouched position, the ideal height for our bowl is 3” above the floor - about equal to our "elbow" or first joint. When our food bowl is placed on the floor, we have to bend down creating a downward slant to our esophagus where the food now has to travel upward to get to the stomach. It also causes us to curve our spine which puts stress on the vertebrae.
Since us cats don’t chew, we bite, tear and swallow our food, you can imagine how it can back up in the esophageal tract and guess what happens next? That horrible sound you all hate when we throw up!
So mom created DIY elevated dining platforms for Beau, Bouvier and me to try out, so each of us could be more relaxed while eating therefore reducing the strain of bending over. And of course our esophagus is a little more level with the bowl.
I am happy to report that once my bowl was elevated, there was an immediate reduction of my vomiting events which made mom even happier than me! I still have an incident every so often - maybe once a month. Mom says maybe I ate a bug or a fly?
So check out getting your cat an elevated food bowl or create your own like mom did and see if that is the solution to your cat's vomiting incidences!
]]>Okay, so what could it possibly have to do with cats, you might ask.
Cats’ DNA is 96% the same as the wild cats out on the plains or roaming our mountains. They are obligatory carnivores and need animal protein, bones and organs to lead a healthy life.
Another important fact is cats are like toddlers, curious and often getting into things. Their nature is to hunt and hopefully find something to put into their mouths.
Holistic practices and lifestyles treat the whole pet just as it does in you humans, body, mind, spirit, the big picture, not just the parts of the pet. It takes an integrative approach to treating the total pet to hopefully ensure a longer, healthier and sustainable lifespan.
A holistic lifestyle will always try to evolve things through diet, environment, exercise and mental stimulation before it resorts to chemicals, drugs and surgery.
Holistic has nothing to do with ingredients, there is no such thing as holistic meat or holistic fish for example.
Check out all-natural and organic when it comes to ingredient listings. It is hopeful that the food you eat should be all-natural and/or organic whenever possible.
Let’s start with the diet, us cats are what we eat, just like you humans. Putting your cat on the right diet is #1 when it comes to starting your cat on a holistic and sustainable path to overall wellness.
For my 2 cat brothers and me, eating holistically means the BARF diet aka biologically appropriate raw food or fresh raw food for our feline species and 90%+ animal protein for us carnivores.
We never graze and are used to being fed twice a day and eat everything in 5-8 minutes. More like the way the big cats live! If we are good and not snoozing, mom gives us a treat mid-day, freeze-dried single meat protein!
Here is something that you might not know: cats prefer to eat alone!
Mom gives each one of us our own dining space which helps in maintaining mealtime security. There is always one bully in every pack and mom says it’s me!
Here is another tidbit you might not know: cats are not hard-wired to drink water from a bowl or fountain, and kidney disease is rampant in cats. So how do you get enough water into us daily to keep us well-hydrated?
Simply put ½ cup lukewarm water into each meal, giving us a full cup of water a day. When you put it in with the raw/wet food, it imitates the “warm blood from a kill” and we drink it all up. Our bowls are licked clean.
Sustainability for cats means being proactive about our environment and daily living experiences to help ensure that no accidents occur that could have been avoided by thinking ahead and taking precautions.
It’s also about providing us cats with an enriched indoor life to help prevent us from becoming couch potatoes and getting obese and lethargic.
An indoor only life? Now that is a controversial topic among the humans today. But the reality is there are 25 things outside that can injure and kill us cats today.
It doesn’t matter if you live in urban, suburban, or rural parts of our country, the threats are big and on-going.
Every day mom opens her computer and reads of neighbors’ lost cats, dead cats and stories of cat abuse on NextDoor. Mom always says, if they hadn’t let their cat free-roam outside, none of this wouldn’t have happened.
If the fresh food diet is the #1 thing for cats well-being, living an indoor-only cat life is #2.
To ensure that your cat has a great indoor life, it is important to “catify” your home.
We have a mom who loves to be sure we have a lot of climbing opportunities as you know we kitties like a high spot in the house from which to view our kingdom!
We have multiple cat condos, cozy beds and plenty of toys. And always make sure there is one extra litter box than there are cats. Since we are 3 cats, we have 4 boxes available all the time.
Mom also pays attention to our “cat experiences” to ensure that it is “safe and sound” for us kitties. She says she must poison-proof the house from making sure there is nothing bad that we can scoop up and eat, cleaning the house with organic products, eliminating scented plug-ins as some scents are harmful to cats and does not burn candles anymore except at dinner under strict supervision.
Another controversial area is vaccinations and flea medicines for cats when it comes to a holistic and sustainable living.
We received all our first rounds and boosters of vaccinations, but we do not get vaxed anymore and mom prefers to titer test for immunity. Since we never go out and mom does not work in cat rescue and therefore does not come into contact with possibly infected animals, she and our vet have decided to not give any more vaccinations.
We also are not treated with flea meds though there are holistic alternatives to traditional chemicals available in the market if needed. As always check with your
vet, do your own investigation and then make a conscious decision based on your findings when it comes to this topic.
Exercise and mental stimulation are very important for our well-being.
The key to that is having a second cat! When I was an “only cat”, I was bored and depressed. Mom adopted Beau and everything changed for me. I became more social and my personality opened up. Now we are 3 cats who love to rumble and tumble and chase each other up and down and around the whole house!
And for mental stimulation, mom keeps us supplied with organic catnip and silverline so we can zoom around the house chasing our intoxicating toys! She loves to throw them to us and watch Beau, Bouvier and I have a race to grab it first. I usually win!
And let’s not forget the feather wand sessions and fishing pole toys! Beau jumps the highest!
Okay, all fun aside, living a holistic pet lifestyle also means considering Integrative Holistic Veterinary practices before invasive surgeries, having anesthesia, taking chemicals and drugs, etc.
Holistic vet practices include such things as homeopathic supplements, chiropractic services, and acupuncture in addition to all traditional vet services.
Mom encourages cat parents to consider a holistic vet. We love our holistic vet who is a certified traditionally-educated vet but believes in the benefits of Eastern medicine for pets.
Many of you pet parents are exploring more holistic solutions for yourself as well as your pets. The one of the best examples today is the growth of CBD for both humans and pets and the mainstream trend towards organic and non-GMO foods.
As always mom says to be sure to check in with your vet annually for a check-up and contact them immediately with any serious situation health-wise.
A holistic lifestyle is about “everyday living” to hopefully prevent certain diseases and accidents from occurring to begin with, it is not a replacement for a vet visit!
]]>If you’re traveling for fun or moving to a new home with a pet, being prepared for the trip beforehand is the most important part of the plan. Mom and I have put our heads together to bring you the best tips for ensuring that both you and your kitty are ready for anything!
Even with absorbent bedding, a cat carrier should be easy to clean in case of accidents and motion sickness. The carrier should also be durable enough so that your feline friend won’t break out during the trip and cause chaos for everyone and themselves.
2. A breakaway collar or a collar with an elastic opening should be worn by your kitty while traveling. Even if you are diligent about keeping your kitty safe, accidents like getting their collar caught or snagged on something can happen. In this case, the benefits of a breakaway collar could be lifesaving, therefore freeing your cat and preventing them from choking.
Your cat’s breakaway collar should include ID tags, including their name and a current cellphone number. We also recommend carrying extra ID tags and a collar with you in case your cat has to break free from their collar and get loose. This way you will be able to provide identification to authorities if necessary.
3. Leash and harness training your cat is a must before introducing them to travel and walking with you out in the open. We strongly recommend beginning their leash and harness training from the time they’re independent as a kitten, when they’ll have an easier time getting used to being leashed and wearing a harness than as an adult. You still can leash and harness train an older cat, but it will likely require more patience and time for the kitty to feel comfortable with them on. Every cat is different and may require alternative approaches on how to harness and leash train your cat.
Helping your cat grow accustomed to wearing a harness and leash is necessary to maintain control over their safety if you intend to walk them outside, so they can enjoy and explore the outdoors safely. Not every cat who travels with their owners, will learn to walk on a leash outside well. If your kitty doesn’t like it, do not force the issue – and let them travel in their carrier like kings and queens.
4. Pack necessities for your cat. Even if you like to travel light, there are still some things you should always pack into your kitty’s suitcase whether traveling on vacation or moving to a new home.
a. A portable water bowl/dispenser. Many pet stores sell them, and they are convenient in that they both carry water and provide a reservoir or bowl for your cat to drink from over the course of the trip. Most have lids or resealing features, which makes bringing water onto a plane a lot less messy should your kitty get thirsty during the flight.
b. Prepare a cooler for raw food. When you’re traveling with a raw food diet for your pet by vehicle, you’re going to need a good, portable cooler. If you’re planning on a few days or less of travel time, you can use a cooler to keep their meals fresh and preserved. It’s also a good idea to portion out the food into servings appropriate for the amount of days you and your kitty will be spending on the road. Storing your cat’s meals in air-tight containers will keep them fresh longer and make it easier to pack them into the cooler and serve them later. If you’re getting on a plane with your cat, your best option is to take the freeze-dried raw food route. Simply bring an extra bottle of clean water designated for hydrating your pet’s meals on the go. Remember not to feed your kitty for about 4-5 hours before departing on road or by plane, as this can lead to
motion sickness!
c. Your pet’s medications. Be sure to pack your pet’s supplements and any medications that they need to take while you are traveling. Also include a first-aid kit in case of any accidental injury along the way.
d. Litter and cleaning supplies. If you’re traveling by vehicle, keep a disposable litter box in the car for your kitty to use, and be prepared to clean up after them. The only time you should have them outside to do their business is if they are leashed and harness trained and are wearing both. This will keep your cat safe from running off without warning.
e. Be sure to bring your kitty’s favorite things! Does your kitty have a favorite toy or blanket they like to curl up on? Something that smells like you, their favorite human? Whatever makes your cat purr is something you should consider adding to your baggage for the journey, or even better, in their travel crate where they can keep it close for the long ride! Everyone has that special thing they like to take with them on a trip, especially when they’re moving to a new place and can’t bring everything they want in one go. Just as most humans changing homes or going on vacation like to bring something that reminds them of home or a loved one they’re going to miss, kitties need comforts, too!
Not all places are pet friendly, and it’s your responsibility as a cat parent to make sure we are welcome wherever you choose to stay for the night. Some places charge extra for our stay (too bad they don’t accept cat ‘gifts’), mainly to cover extra cleaning to rid the space of any pet allergies between guests. Finding pet friendly hotels doesn’t have to be like searching for a flea on a Persian. Fortunately, furry guests are becoming more common now, and now there are many cat friendly hotels around the world! Many of them are brands you may already be familiar with.
Anywhere you plan on staying overnight over the course of your trip with your cat will expect them to be well-behaved and that you take full responsibility for any accidents, messes, or mishaps that may occur. Please take any behavior change in your cat into consideration when you’re expecting them to settle in and not act out while staying in a different living space than what they’re used to. As I said before, comforts from home and extra necessities will make the experience easier for everyone involved!
It might be a good idea to bring a foldable playpen to house their toys and comfort things and set it up in a separate area. Your cat will have their own space to play and be around familiar smells that will help them get more comfortable where you are staying over the course of the trip. The toys will help keep your cat busy and entertained, while other favorites of theirs in the playpen will provide them with a sense of security, which cats need in order to adjust smoothly
to new situations and environments, however temporary.
Traveling with your cat whether on the road or in the air to any destination is one that only work if you and your kitty are both happy and secure throughout the journey and upon arrival. Change can be a big or small event for you, but will almost always be a big event for your beloved furry friend. The better you can take care of them while they’re experiencing new and unknown things, the smoother the transition for both you, your cat and anyone else involved will be. Moving with your cat or any other pet is a great bonding opportunity for them and you, and when they know you’ll be there for them during uncertain times, rest assured they’ll be there for you.
]]>This holiday was created to highlight and call attention to the importance of pet identification methods so that that you could take the appropriate steps to ensure your pet’s security and your own piece of mind.
It has been reported that almost 2 million pets are stolen each year, and the numbers are continuing to rise.
Cats and dogs are like toddlers – no matter how smart you think we are, we cannot protect ourselves from being picked up and carried away...even big dogs get can stolen!
In the case of dogs – to be used as bait for dog fighting or to re-sell to a research facility, which can happen to both cats and dogs.
In the case of a purebred cat or dog – stolen to re-sell to someone looking for a purebred “on the cheap”.
In the case of any cat or dog – stolen to be used to get a ransom from you – you will pay anything to get your baby back, right?!
Spay, neuter and microchip every pet you own. Neutered pets tend not to stray as much, and microchipping adds another layer of identification.
Dogs need to go outside, but cats don’t…so for those pets that do go outdoors, you can now buy collars with GPS technology.
As I mentioned before, cats do not need to go outside, especially with all of the fun ways you can make your home an active playground, the new litters that have come onto the market, and when you consider the perils of the “outside” for us kitties today. Keeping us cats indoors is a sure-fire guarantee that we won’t get stolen.
Do not let your dog or cat (if you must) outdoors unsupervised – remember we are like toddlers…you would not let your toddler outside unsupervised.
Do not tie your dog up on your front porch thinking that it is a safe spot because it is not.
Leave your pet at home when you run errands – many dogs have been taken when tied up to a pole while the owner is in the grocery store, etc. And don’t leave us in the car unattended either – there are too many stories of stolen pets who were taken in a flash while the owner had their back turned for just a few minutes.
As mom says, it does not take a lot to ensure our safety, just a little forethought and some preventative measures will go a long way to keep us safe and sound!
If you have been following us for some time, you may remember that we have discussed how it seems that almost ALL traditional Christmas flowers and plants are toxic to household pets. Sad, but true!
I can assure you that you will never find me nibbling those green and red things – I have much more discriminating taste and consider myself a true carnivore! However, Beau is another story and a real cat from the streets. He will try to eat anything! He has to taste-test everything new that comes into the house – and plants and flowers really attract him!
Many pet parents are not aware of the potential hazards of their holiday floral decorations, until they read a story of a pet’s passing from digesting some Christmas Lilies or Paperwhites, or even worse, it happens to their pet.
Many of the flowers and plants cause mouth and throat irritations and/or mild gastrointestinal problems, but when consumed in large amounts they can lead to death. Others are deadly even if consumed in small amounts. It becomes an issue of the pet parent getting their beloved pet to the vet in time as to whether it survives.
Mom says “who wants to go through that pain” when you can control it from ever happening to begin with…in our case, because we have “one of those nibblers” – mom has to cat-proof all the holiday decorations…all our plants are under decorative vintage bird cages…or placed up high and not where Beau can reach it easily…and if the decoration is on the table or somewhere accessible, then it is natural and organic but not toxic.
Among the live holiday decorations that are toxic, the list includes:
Poinsettias
Lilies of all types (except Peruvian Lilies)
Amaryllis
Mistletoe
Narcissus also known as Paperwhites
Eucalyptus
Anthurium
Cyclamen
***This is a partial list – be sure to check the name with the ASPCA for everything that you want to bring into the house if you have a nibbler kitty!
In addition – also consider that many plants are treated with pesticides at the nurseries that can often be toxic. And be sure to check the additives that you might put into your Christmas tree water – as it is toxic to pets as well.
And by the way – Christmas trees are highly toxic to cats!
Chewed and ingested pine needles can puncture the intestines.
Pine is very toxic to cats and can lead to liver damage, intestinal blockage or even death.
Since we have a nibbler, mom says a faux tree is the only holiday tree we will ever have, IF we ever have a tree! It’s better to be safe than sorry!
One more word of caution and one you might not think of…Beau and Bouvier also like to nibble on cords, so be careful if your pet likes to do the same, as electrocution is a very real threat to pets. All the cords for our temporary holiday lights and decorations are new tempting targets for our curious nibblers. Mom says there is a lot of solutions on the Internet from covering the wires in PVC tubing or rubbing the cords with a citrus scent which cats don’t like.
Mom says with some careful planning and research, we can still decorate the house for the holidays. And if you don’t have a nibbler like we do – then you can have all the plants and decorations as you like.
Now if we could just figure out how to prevent Beau from climbing the tree to get the view from the top…meow!
]]>Today we are excited to announce that we have partnered with Ask a Vet – and you will be able to connect with a vet right here on our blog!
When you adopt a pet, there are several things you have to consider and chief among them are managing their health care and how will you pay for it.
Most important to start is managing their health care. Depending on several factors, you may or may not have a designated vet when you actually adopt a pet.
Perhaps you grew up with pets and you still live in the neighborhood, then you already have a family vet. But more likely you moved away to college and perhaps live there or someplace else with your first job, and you just adopted your first cat or dog.
Now what do you do? You find a local vet in your area who has reputable reviews, or recommendations from friends with pets in the area. We strongly encourage that all pet owners have a designated vet and schedule regular vet visits 1-2 times a year.
So why Ask a Vet? How can they help me with my pets?
Convenience – pet parents have general questions about their pets all the time and may want a quick answer online within minutes without having to contact their vet, especially if it’s a question of whether they should be worried about it or not.
You can speak with a vet online within minutes who can provide advice for the situation and guide you accordingly – whether it’s saying the pet needs immediate medical attention or if there’s an alternative solution.
Maybe you just adopted your first pet – and you don’t have a vet yet, and your new kitten or puppy is experiencing certain symptoms…who can you talk to right away?
Also pet owners who’ve never owned a pet before have a ton of questions just in general! Wouldn’t it be nice to have someone to call and get those questions answered!
Even if you have a vet, it doesn’t always make sense to be calling your vet non-stop with non life-threatening matters, and many times people just need the reassurance that they’re doing the right thing for their pet.
Heaven forbid, your pet has gotten into a fight with another animal, and he has a wound, it would be helpful to ask a vet if this injury is serious enough to go to an emergency animal hospital immediately or can it wait for the next day to see your regular vet.
You have a family vet, but it’s the weekend and they are closed…And you think your pet just ate something harmful, it would be great if you could call a vet and get some direction if your pet needs to go the emergency clinic immediately or perhaps not - ultimately saving you hundreds of dollars from a unnecessary emergency vet visit.
You are thinking about adopting a pet and want to ask a vet about a certain breed‘s behavior and their health challenges. Searching the internet can be sometimes frustrating, so it would be great to speak with a vet and get some direct answers.
Money – vets charge for every visit which can be quite expensive for some people, and which doesn’t include costs of vaccines, medications or any other procedures that may need to be done. For example, our vet charges $75 just to be seen so vet bills can rack up quickly, and it can be financially hard for those who don’t have a lot of disposable income every month.
Second Opinion – pet parents’ might not agree with something their veterinarian suggests/says, and may want a second opinion on a diagnosis, general question/concern, etc. Meowmy says 2nd opinions are always important to get when confronted with any major issue with your pet involving surgery, heavy drugs, etc.
Contact Free – with the seemingly never-ending pandemic, more and more people have embraced the idea of online professional help due to concerns for their health or loved ones, strict protocols causing inconvenience, social anxiety when speaking on the phone, and many others. Pet parents can enjoy the comfort of speaking with a vet online via chat from the comfort of their own home.
Education – today pet parents are educating themselves on a particular subject or issue more than ever. Millennials are the most active generation in doing their pet research and vets tell us that they come armed to their vet appointments with strong opinions as to how they want their pets to be cared for. With Ask a Vet, they can now speak to a licensed veterinarian about whichever topic they want further info on rather than bothering their own vet when it isn’t a life-threatening situation.
It can be as simple as a behavioral or training type of question and they are searching for some guidance and direction.
Whether you have a family vet or you don’t, there are many times in a pet’s life when you would want to know that you have a source to go to with answers and suggestions to your many questions.
Knowing about Ask a Vet – is like having an expert in your back pocket. They are there when you need them!
Lately us cats and dogs have been contracting “human diseases” at a growing rate every year. The incidences of cancer and diabetes in pets is at an all-time high, most of it due to poor diets and not enough exercise which often leads to obesity. And we know where that goes! No place good!
All of this has been well documented by the Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine in their monthly newsletter Cat Watch. CATSTER Magazine repeatedly publishes articles about the connection of diet and disease. Mom particularly likes Dr. Judy Morgan's Live FB chats and her weekly newsletter as well as Dr. Karen Becker’s daily newsletter for all sorts of information on this topic and more. In the end, everyone comes to the same conclusion that our wellness starts with the diet – cats and dogs are “what they eat” – just like you humans!
If you have been following us for awhile, you may have read our article about the importance of pet insurance in the big picture of caring for your pet.
Why are you bringing that up now you might ask? Because of the high cost of caring for your pet if it contracts a serious disease - that’s why!
Mom says we cannot stress it enough to have some form of pet health insurance according to what you can afford. Mom says that our monthly insurance premium for three cats is as low as the cost of a couple of nice dinners out in decent restaurants…pass up a couple of dinners out with friends in a month – and there is the money for the monthly premium(s) to insure your pet(s)!
Recently, after reading about pet insurance here, Consumer Advocate shared their research on pet insurance with us.
The group did a deep research study and testing of all the current pet insurance carriers in the pet industry. Mom was very impressed with their report and comparisons based on different criteria, and was very happy to see that their #1 company was Healthy Paws – who we use!
They generate helpful, honest and accurate information to match you with companies that are best suited to your specific situation so you can find what you need, when you need it! They make pet parents lives easier by “doing it all for you” and saving you time! Mom says she wishes she had know about them when she needed to get pet insurance!
Mom recommends that every pet parent read this report, draw conclusions and sign up for pet insurance. It will be worth it in the long run – especially knowing that pets are getting ill with many more diseases than previous generations dealt with. When you adopt a pet, you sign up for a lifetime commitment and today pet insurance should be as important as choosing the right vet, spaying & neutering and microchipping your pet.
In the case of cats, mostly because more cats are living indoors only, we are living longer, but still can develop cancer and diabetes in addition to hypertension, autoimmune diseases and others brought on by the same conditions – poor diets and lack of exercise leading to obesity and more.
That begs the question – what can you do as pet parents to help us cats and dogs have a active & healthy lifestyle to help prevent some of these illnesses from starting to begin with?
Feed your cats and dogs raw, fresh whole protein human grade food that closely resembles their biologically appropriate raw food diet according to their species. Today the BARF diet of raw, fresh food is readily available at many better pet products stores, assorted online sites, some PetSmarts and even ShopRite Supermarkets. A raw food diet has no chemicals, fillers or preservatives which all canned and dry food have - and raw food has been not baked and processed. A raw food diet is affordable too. Check out our Food and Nutrition section to learn more.
Limit chemicals and other related “poisons” from entering our bodies. That involves several different areas – but in the case of indoor cats for example, after the first round of vaccinations, mom does not believe that us cats need any more boosters, etc. There have been incidences of sarcomas developing at the injection sites in some pets – including dogs who would need to continue vaccinations as they go outside. In our case, mom stopped giving us kitties flea meds as well since we do not go outside.
And speaking about indoor cats – indoor living has many benefits for us kitties – with the number #1 reason being that it protects us from diseases and other outdoor dangers. Housecats should not be free-roaming if you want us to live long, healthy & sustainable lives! And if we don’t go outside, we don’t need the vaccinations and flea meds as mentioned above.
Besides having a traditional vet, consider connecting with an integrative and holistic vet as well. The integrative vet has to be a traditional vet first and then they can go on to study integrative veterinary medicine. If you are lucky enough to have one in your neighborhood, you can consider just having that one vet who can pull from the “best practices” of both Western and Holistic medicine.
Today in the case of treatments for cancer, diabetes, hypertension, autoimmune disease, etc, there are options to consider both in the traditional and holistic protocols. Mom says the two biggest directions in the pet industry based upon results from the recent trade shows are the raw food diet and hemp oil and CBD products for pets…both holistic approaches but now moving onto mainstream mainly due to our Millenials who often favor more natural treatments as a “first option” then more antibiotics, steroids, and similar drugs to treat a serious condition.
Raw food is improving the animal from the inside out with a diet that closely resembles what they are hard-wired to eat. And hemp products and CBD oil have offered a more holistic approach to treating many issues and illnesses with many glowing reviews from pet parents as to their effectiveness.…in addition there are many natural product options that can support and help many issues that pets have from flea preventatives, to all sorts of supplements and grooming aids.
As always, the recommendations listed here are based on our own personal experience and research as a passionate pet parent. At no time do we receive compensation for our opinions.
Mom always says that in her opinion, pet insurance is a necessary pet-related expense right after spay/neuter costs and microchipping.
For the cost of a nice lunch, $30 a month in my case, mom insures me for the “the great what-if” – those financially catastrophic incidents that can happen in a blink of an eye.
And guess what? I had one of those events last week and without pet insurance, mom would be freaking out! One of the best benefits of pet insurance for the pet owner is peace of mind, she says!
Let me tell you what happened to me last week and how things can turn very badly, very quickly!
Here is a little back story! I have had gingivitis for the last couple of years and it was often speculated that I might have stomatitis.
Do you know what that is? It’s some crazy autoimmune disease where the cat’s teeth are reabsorbed into the gums – yuck! In a worst-case scenario, the cat could lose all their teeth, though our cat rescue friends said that rarely happens! Meow!
Meanwhile mom took me to a holistic vet for a second opinion and that is how we came to know Dr. Gerald Buchoff at Holistic Pet Care in Little Falls, NJ. Dr. Buchoff also surmised that it could be stomatitis, but he suggested we try some holistic solutions first and watch it.
Fast-track to last week, Mom and Dr. Buchoff decide that I should have my first dental cleaning, since I am 6 ½ years old, have some plaque issues and I still have gingivitis.
As with all procedures where we kitties are going to have anesthesia, we have to be subjected to a blood test to make sure everything is in order. Well, I am known in that clinic as a feisty fellow and don’t like being stuck with sharp needles, nor that thing up my butt to check my temperature!
The vet techs have a solution for my feistiness and that is called a muzzle! Mom can’t look at me when I have it covering everything but my nose!
Thankfully my blood work was okay, but it did show that I was dehydrated and had borderline kidney issues, which Dr. Buchoff says is very common in cats. But that’s another story…
On the morning of my dental cleaning appointment, part of my prep was NO breakfast! WHAT?! Mom was a wreak about this part because she knew that I would be pacing and wondering what is going on! And Beau and Bouvier were pretty confused too, and everyone was vocalizing to mom their displeasure at not being fed on time.
At the appointed time, mom pulled out my Your Cat Backpack – which I do love, and I actually ran to jump in it! Next thing I knew, I was zipped in and we were off. She fed the other two cats on the way out the door! She dropped me off with a kiss and went home to wait for the pickup call.
Here is where my routine dental cleaning procedure takes an alarming turn – all in the blink of an eye.
When Dr. Buchoff called he said that I have had an “event” while under the anesthesia, I am OK however towards the end of the cleaning, all of a sudden bloody water started flowing out of the ventilator tube!
They quickly disconnected me and rushed me in for a full-body x-ray and found that I had inhaled a foreign object into my trachea! In his 40 years of veterinary medicine, Dr. B had never had this experience before.
He told mom that she needed to take me to a cat internist who had an endoscope to see what is going on. Of course cat internists are a specialty and the equipment is expensive so there are only a few animal hospitals that we can use.
Meanwhile I had woken from being knocked out and in true “street cat style” acted like nothing happened other than being groggy and not hungry. Mom watched me all day and evening and tried to coax me to eat a little food so I could take the antibiotics required since I had 6 teeth pulled!
The next morning mom called Oradell Animal Hospital in Paramus, NJ which is a 24/7 emergency hospital and has cat internists on staff. We had visited there 5 years ago when we went to see Dr. Heather Peikes in the dermatology department. The animal hospital has a very fine reputation and they have all the specialists.
They admitted me on an emergency basis as that was the only way I was able to see the cat internist who was booked for regular appointments until October! In spite of me having this foreign object at the bottom of my trachea, I had eaten my breakfast and was feeling pretty good!
Until they shaved part of my paw to poke me with an IV needle!! Meow!
Because I wasn’t in dire shape or critical condition, they didn’t get around to me until about 7 hours later. Mom was pretty nervous all day wondering what the outcome would be. But she knew I was in the best hands at Oradell – and that we had pet insurance!
Dr. Julie Lee, the emergency doctor assigned to me, called mom and after studying my Xray and consulting with the cat internist, I needed to have an endoscope to see what was going on down there and retrieve the object. Both Dr. B and Dr. Lee felt it could be a part of a broken tooth since one of my teeth that was removed was broken and a bit crumbly. A growth was somewhat ruled out as they are usually the same color as tissue. My object was stark white.
The next call mom gets is from the billing department with all the charges itemized for the procedure. Ka-ching – ka-ching!!
Meanwhile, the emergency department prepared me for the procedure and as usual, before any endoscopy, they take another x-ray to determine the exact location of the object and whether it has moved up or down. They give me a little Propofol to make me still to take the x-ray.
Here’s where this story really gets interesting…wait for it…
THE OBJECT IS GONE FROM MY TRACHEA!!
All the vets are blown away! No one can believe it except they can see clearly that it is no longer there in my trachea!
It was concluded that I must have expelled the object myself!!! Hacked it up overnight? Someone asked mom if I could have swallowed it (sure after I hacked it up maybe!) But there is no direct passageway from the lungs to the tummy. Hello!!!
Upon discharge at 9pm, they gave me a glowing report that all was good now and that I was a very good patient – ya right! They laughed when mom asked if I had scratched anybody or hissed, and just said that I am one tough cat and they love my spirit!
They warned mom that I was kinda loopy from the Propofol still, so don’t be surprised if I act like I am covered in catnip! And sure enough, for a couple of hours, I had the “zoomies” mixed with rolling on the floor and showing my belly which mom loves! And I was starving and mom served me up some delicious raw food and after a bit, I was asleep for the night.
I guess my reputation around here will go up a few notches since how many cats can say that they saved their own life and reduced the vet bill at the same time! Not that my life was threatened per se, but like any medical incident, things can go from bad to worse with us felines!
In the end, my vet bills added up to $2,500+ all in with the dental, bloodwork and the emergency visit. It would have been more costly had I needed the endoscopy. We have submitted the bills to our pet insurance company, Healthy Paws, and wait for their review!
In the meantime, see what a good cat I am - I saved mom $1,400 just by having one good coughing event!
Mom saw an article recently about Zebra, a national insurance comparison website who extended a $300 stipend to any employee who adopts a cat or dog to encourage pet ownership!
Additionally, they expanded their family-leave benefit to include new pet parents so they would have time off to bond with their new pets.
This got her thinking that it was time to take another look at pet insurance and employee benefits packages considering the dramatic shift in this country with humans’ relationships with their pets.
Considering where we are today, it was only a brief 80 years or so ago that pets started to regularly come indoors. Dogs were frequently left outside in their dog houses or similar as they were mostly working, hunting and sporting dogs. In the case of cats, it was often stray cats and kittens who seemed friendly who became eventual “house cats”.
The rich started to acquire “little lapdogs” who were bred to provide companionship and entertain their mostly female owners with their cute antics. And through those years, many exotic breeds of cats were bred and introduced to modern society.
Through the subsequent decades, the cats and dogs you owned became part of the family with each generation deepening that human-animal bond. Mom says it started to accelerate with her generation, boomers who came from a family with pets, and felt the need for their own pet to take care of as many moved to their own apartments to start their careers. It is always nice to come home to someone!
Because of the deepening intense bond between humans and their pets, pet owners realized how much better people feel when they have their pets nearby. In the 60’s and 70’s, owners of “hipster” companies started bringing their dogs to work and also allowing employees to bring their dogs into the office.
Mom herself brought her Yorkshire Terrier, Hank, to work on many days. She always said Hank was in charge of PR and goodwill around the office. He loved getting all the extra attention and treats that the team would sneak to him behind mom’s back!
For years, Google has allowed employees to bring their dogs to work. Pets are welcome every day of the week in many pet-friendly companies. According to research, 10% of companies in 2017 allowed employees to bring their dogs to work. I’m sure that number is even higher today!
This trend became so popular that 2020 was the 21st year of Take Your Dog To Work Day, and June 17th is celebrated as Take Your Cat To Work Day.
Mom did bring me into the office one day about 5 years ago! That was sort of fun, but you know us cats don’t really “travel well” when it comes to things like that!
I say take the dogs to work and leave us cats at home to snooze.
Fast-forward to today, how did we get to the point of some companies adding pet insurance to their benefits packages?
The dramatic shift came about when millennials became the largest generation of pet owners – 35% of all millennials are a pet owner. It has been reported that millennials view pet ownership as a “practice trial” at having children. And some decide that pets are the only children they want!
Companies have also done research within their own company and found that 70% of employees have pets and only 44% have children.
Companies also recognized that there was a mind-shift among many employees, again driven by millennials that quality of life issues matter when deciding who they want to work for.
When polled by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), 83% of employees would rather work for a pet-friendly company rather than work for a company that does not have a pet-friendly policy.
Recognizing the role pets play in people's lives, and that millennials and Gen Z care more about a company’s benefits package during these challenging economic times, savvy companies are adding pet insurance to those benefits.
It shows that the company cares about their team and what is important in the lives of those employees. Having a pet provides companionship and unconditional love. Pets help with depression and anxiety and have been known to help reduce blood pressure.
In the race to recruit the “best and the brightest” of the employees available, over 5,000 companies now offer pet insurance as an additional benefit to attract and retain valuable people. 34% of Fortune 500 companies offer pet insurance. Considering the demographics of the workers today, it enhances their business’s competitiveness.
For the pet-owning employee, they now have a financial safety net when it comes to their vet bills. They will be much more likely to take their pet to the vet when the need arises because some of those costs will now be covered.
For employees who haven’t adopted a pet yet, it encourages them to consider bringing a pet into their home, knowing they have pet insurance paid for.
If you have been keeping up with us, you know that we believe having pet insurance is incredibly important –right after spay/neutering and microchipping. It is fantastic that so many companies are getting on board and we are confident that it will soon be the norm in the majority of many companies’ employee benefit plans.
And if your company does not currently offer pet insurance as part of their package and you know that the
‘bosses” have pets, bring it up on your next review or roundtable discussion that it would be so great if the company considered adding that coverage along with their family healthcare plans.
It never hurts to ask, and you might get a yes!
]]>Mom spent many years in the fashion industry where education and writing had always been a big part of her career and this blog has been the opportunity to switch the focus from apparel to pets – specifically cats!
She says life is about learning and is always wanting to get educated and grow in her knowledge of feline behavior and how we can share what we learn with you.
Recently, we heard of the company Pro Trainings and their Pro Pet Hero Online Pet First Aid and CPR Certification. The course is specifically designed for pet parents who consider their pets part of the family, as well as pet professionals such as pet sitters, pet groomers, pet store owners, pet trainers and dog walkers.
People who take the course will receive valuable information and knowledge on how to recognize emergencies, provide first-aid care and be an advocate for their pets.
The course is taught by Dr. Bobbi Conner, a specialist in small animal emergency and critical care. She is a board-certified ER and critical care veterinarian who is also a professor of veterinarian emergency medicine.
She specializes in the topic and is the most accredited person to teach both from a medical and educational standpoint. It is the only course written, developed and presented online by such an accredited veterinarian. She teaches in a clear easy-to-understand manner that is not technical and adapts to any person that shares their life with a pet.
Mom learned of this wonderful educational program through colleagues in the pet industry and heard they were looking to partner with retailers and bloggers to spread the word about their new online first-aid and CPR certification. Previously, they would present their courses in person and on-site in pet shops around the country.
As many of you have heard before, when we recommend a product or service, mom only does so as a passionate pet parent and the blog does not receive any compensation for those recommendations.
The strengths of this course made her reconsider that position because this information and training is so important for all of our readers and their pets. And how would they know about it, if we didn’t partner with Pro Trainings and promote the importance of this training both here on the blog – and on our online shop Meow Mini Mart.
And since education has always been near and dear to her heart – she still sits on the Advisory Board of LIM College in New York City, she felt it would be a natural move to launch this new educational online first-aid course for all our pet owners and pet professionals.
Access to required training videos – for 2 years from purchase date
Access to test for 2 years from purchase date
Digital certificate valid for 2 years after passing the test
Pro Pet Hero badges show-carding certification (after passing test)
New Kitten Checklist
New Puppy checklist
Pet Disaster Preparedness Checklist
Pet First Aid Kit Checklist
Pet First Aid Student Manuel
Course length: 1 hour and 39 minutes of video training as well as knowledge reviews, final test, remedial help and reviewing downloaded material.
You can stop and start whenever you choose, the program remembers where you left off.
Course and Certification Cost – normally $49.95, however we have negotiated a reduced price of $44.96 using the discount code: CPR-saveapet! Just enter it at the time of checkout.
We are a member of ProTrainings Affiliate Program & will receive a small commission if you make a purchase through one of our links to the program.
]]>Simply said: cats are like toddlers!
And just like toddlers, you have to watch out for us cats because we can get into trouble. And open windows, even with screens, can be trouble for us curious cats.
This time of year, mom says that she repeatedly sees posts for lost cats all over social media. Many say their cat busted through a window screen or managed to slip through a 3” opening at the bottom of an unscreened open window. The stories are always the same, sadly.
Yes, we cats can be Houdinis! Cats have been known to “work on” a small hole in a window screen and over time rip a big enough hole to bust through. Other cats have slithered through a very small open window that doesn’t have a screen.
If we can get our heads through the opening, then our body can follow. Now, we are not talking about a super fat cat, but within reason that is the rule of thumb. Wait a second, I don’t have any thumbs!
But in all seriousness, you can never trust a cat or a toddler and you can never forget that we are curious creatures and love to explore. Windows are like TV and have lots of “shows” for us to watch but an open window could allow us to actually get out there to be part of the “nature show”.
Just like having a toddler, mom always is aware of where Beau and I am and what is going on. First of all, mom doesn’t really have to worry about me as I know how good I’ve got it as an indoor-only cat – and I have no real interest to go outside. That said, mom still doesn’t trust me 100% because I am a cat.
Beau on the other hand will always be a “juvenile delinquent” and still will jump up on the window screen with claws out, and hang on which tears a small hole in the screen every time. Mom says our screens looks like a cheese grater in some places.
Left to his own devices and the screen on some back window up on the second floor where no one goes, he could over time create a hole big enough for him to slip out. YIKES!
That is where mom comes in!
She basically is always mindful of where we are and what we are doing and which windows are open. If we are sacked out for a few hours, she can get on with her work without too much concern for the open screened windows.
However as a matter of security, no windows are left open when mom goes out to run errands. As she says, you wouldn’t leave your toddler alone with open windows!
]]>If you have been following us for a bit, you may have noticed that we have two vets and we refer to one as our traditional vet, and the other is our holistic vet.
Some of you have asked, why two vets? Good question! Simply said, we love both of them! And our cat family started with our traditional vet and his wonderful clinic and team.
Both Beau and I have been to specialists as needed in the traditional vet world too, me for my food allergies with an animal dermatologist and Beau to an animal eye doctor. In every case, we were treated with compassion and the best veterinary care by everyone along the way.
So then why do we have a holistic vet too? Because they bring different practices and disciplines to the table as mom says. The same way many of you might have your internist but also see an acupuncturist, a chiropractor or a holistic nutritionist.
Let’s start with the definition of a holistic approach to veterinary health care. Holism is a philosophical belief (started in Asia centuries ago) that the body will function better when all individual areas of the body are in top working order. We call this a “whole body approach”.
When doctors focus only on the incident or problem as presented by the symptoms, it is possible that the real cause will be overlooked because it may be present in another area or organ.
When vets are presented with a pet’s health issues, they have to follow a certain prescribed protocol in thoroughly examining the pet’s overall health, perhaps ordering certain tests and of course the all-important physical exam.
All of this mirrors what happens to you humans when you have a health concern and you go to your doctor to check it out.
While most times, the diagnose is the same between the traditional vet and the holistic vet, the approach from there on is often different.
Let’s understand one thing, all holistic veterinarians went to traditional vet school just like all traditional vets do. They all graduated and became US certified veterinarians in the traditional sense. After that is where some vets go on to specialize in certain areas like dermatology, eyes, cancer and some go on to train and be certified in holistic veterinary medicine.
Traditional and conventional medicine relies on drugs, surgery and other relative treatments, many of these have bad side-effects which can be just as debilitating as the disease that it is supposed to cure.
Holistic medicine starts with the whole-body approach, and constructs a lifestyle shift for the pet that can include changing the diet. For example, a fresh food diet will always be recommended as step one followed by certain supplements and herbs to help boost the immune system.
Also, the home environment will be examined as certain ailments can be brought on by stress and anxiety within the home itself. We all know now that stress causes inflammation in you humans, well it is the same with us cats!
After that, the holistic vet may prescribe chiropractic sessions, acupuncture, or physical rehab to help with the issue and see if it can be addressed without drugs or surgery. That is the main mission.
These various treatments can also help when the pet has to take medication or endure surgery too.
On a personal note, currently I am being treated for gingivitis which both of my vets feel might be a signal that I have stomatitis. The holistic vet has been trying some immune-boosting serums that have helped other cats with the same gum inflammation. I know that I will have to go in and have my teeth cleaned at some point – and so they can get in there under the gums to see what is going on. Weird thing is my teeth are in pretty good shape. Keep you posted!
And like we always say - be sure to book your pet’s semi-annual or annual vet visit!
]]>First, a couple reminders: Beau and I are INDOOR ONLY cats, and mom has a big problem with the “poisons” as she calls them in flea meds unless they are absolutely necessary. So let’s start there!
You may be thinking, when is it necessary?
When there is a dog in the house (not necessarily) or the cat is an “indoor-outdoor” cat (possibly yes).
There has been a lot of debate on the topic of whether indoor cats really need flea meds even if there are no dogs in the house. The traditional consensus is YES because you could bring a flea in on your shoes from your property or the street. But the holistic-minded pet parents would say NO, it’s not necessary unless your area or property is flea-infested.
With that in mind, we are focused on some home remedies for proactive flea prevention just in case your indoor cat might get fleas, which is highly unlikely. But it’s better to be safe than sorry as they say!
As always, let’s try to do it without chemicals, treatments and collars that can have side effects and adverse reactions from skin irritations, flea allergy dermatitis, hot spots, seizures and even death.
Before we start, let’s remember that a healthy cat from the inside out has a better chance at not getting fleas than a less-than healthy cat.
We recommend a diet of fresh, raw whole animal proteins filled with naturally occurring digestive enzymes and vitamins that would otherwise be destroyed by processing and cooking.
When we eat commercial pet foods from “Big Pet Food “companies, the ingredients are often made up of animal by-products and other discarded parts deemed not human-grade that are filed with hormones, pesticides and antibiotics.
Should your cat get fleas, do not use a flea dip! They are filled with lots of chemicals. Fleas will die with any gentle soap such as our organic shampoo or even baby shampoo.
Do not use Dawn either!
Cedar chips – sprinkle them in your outdoor garden as a ground cover. Fill your pet’s bed with cedar chips inside
Rosemary – grind up into a powder and sprinkle in your pet’s bed and condo
Cumin OR Brewers Yeast – add a ½ tsp food which makes the cat’s skin become unappetizing to fleas
Create a spray for the cats with the following choice of ingredients:
Spray your cat if it will let you – otherwise spray your hands and rub/pat your cat down with raw unfiltered apple cider vinegar diluted with water or brewed chamomile tea, let it cool and dilute with water
You can also squeeze a fresh lemon (NOT a citrus essential oil) and rub your cat down.
A cup of lemon juice is also very good to add to the wash when cleaning their bedding if you have an outbreak of fleas.
After spaying or neutering, which are two of the best things you can do for your pet, next comes microchipping your pet.
Why, you ask? Because 38% of microchipped pets are reunited with their owners versus 2% of animals who are not. Which is huge when you’ve lost your pet.
Mom says she repeatedly sees lost cats and dogs posted on every social media platform every day and it makes her very upset for the pets and the owners.
She knows the pain as many decades ago, one of her cats escaped out of her summer rental in the Hamptons on Sunday night as she was leaving to return to NYC. Thankfully, the cat was found 36 hours later near the house and that story ended well. Not all lost pet stories do!
It has become our mission to encourage all pet owners to get their pets microchipped if they are not already.
Collars can break and fall off and ID tags can get lost. Tattoos fade over time and can become illegible. When your pet is microchipped, it has the best chance of being returned to you if lost.
Mom’s done the research online and there are several vets within 10 miles of our home who advertise “low-cost” veterinary services. Check your local area and neighboring suburbs, and we are confident that you will find a vet who will work with you on the cost. Many vets will add the microchip for a small fee when done with the spay/neuter services.
The average prices seem to be around $40 - $50 though when Beau and I got our chips, mom paid $80. Now she has heard prices as low as $10 - $20.
Some municipalities offer “free spay/neuter” events during the year for town residents and microchipping is usually offered as well. Check with your town and see if they have a similar program.
Mom says that, lately, she is hearing from some rescue groups that the adoptable kitties are spayed/neutered, vaccinated AND now microchipped! That’s a new trend – and a good one!
Be sure to check if you are considering adopting from a rescue group or shelter if the animal is microchipped too.
Please understand that there is an adoption fee when you adopt a cat or dog from a shelter or rescue group because the vet bills need to be covered as the rescue groups simply do not have the funding to give away pets for free after getting them fully vetted.
Ultimately it is a small price to pay for a lifetime of unconditional love!
Don’t forget to update your information with your vet and the microchip company if/when you move or you get a new phone number. This is major, think about it, what’s the point of the chip if they can’t find YOU after they locate your pet?
Lastly, microchips technically last a lifetime so it is important for you to have your vet scan your pet every checkup to be sure that the microchip is present and working. Be sure the vet scans the entire pet as chips can migrate and drift away from the injection site between the shoulder blades.
Chips have been found as far away as down one of the back paws!
]]>It is a global professional observance celebrated annually on the last Saturday of April. Each year, the organization selects a theme and this year the theme is to celebrate the work of veterinarians to protect the environment.
The worldwide veterinarian community recognizes that climate change has its effects on the health of animals and humans and that we are all connected today. This year its overall mission is to promote environmental protection for improving animal and human health.
This choice of topic is particularly timely on many levels. Currently, there has been the speculation that the COVID-19 virus perhaps transferred from the wet markets, live animal markets in Asia, to humans. And locally in NYC, the Bronx Zoo has 3 tigers and 3 lions who tested positive and the only source appears to have maybe been their specific caregiver who tested positive. And the latest news is 2 domestic cats in NY State have tested positive. Perhaps the humans are passing it to the animals?? At this time, there is no evidence that the virus passes from us cats to you, nor do we contribute to the spread in some way!
Mom came up with a good idea to send special thank you cards to our two vets. They probably don’t get too many thank you cards except when they save a pet’s life or something similarly dire. Just to thank them for being good practitioners and caregivers to your pets is something they don’t hear every day!
You can also shine a light on them on your Facebook and Instagram pages thanking them for all they have done for your pets. Who knows, maybe one or more of your friends will start using your vet’s services!
Every veterinarian appreciates clients’ testimonials and referrals to help grow their practices.
In our case, we want to personally thank Dr. John Hatch of Secaucus Animal Hospital in Secaucus, NJ and Dr. Gerald Buchoff of Holistic Pet Care in Little Falls, NJ for all they do for Beau and me!
And we also want to thank the Animal Planet channel for featuring all the vets that they do who provide life-saving services to pets and service animals all over this world. God bless all the veterinarians out there! Thank you for your commitment and service!
]]>Cats are like toddlers! Just like kids, you have to save us from ourselves.
Mom and I have our hands full with Beau, who mom laughingly calls our juvenile delinquent. The old adage “curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back” must have been written for him.
He is forever on the prowl for prey whether it be a scrap that may have fallen from the kitchen counter, a paperclip left out that is particularly shiny or the need to investigate the open dryer. He has eaten pistachio shells, large rubber bands and nibbled every plant in the house.
He loves to chew on cardboard, wood, mom’s sneakers and yoga mat. He doesn’t actually swallow any of that stuff, just bites it off and spits it out all over the floor.
We learned early on that we had to be proactive to protect Beau from all his shenanigans, which could lead to some very serious trouble health-wise if we were not!
Since we are all home now, we felt it was a good time to remind you of the ways us cats can get into trouble.
The two most basic safety measures to take is to spay or neuter your cat and keep it indoors.
When you spay and/or neuter your pet, you not only prevent unwanted litters and potential diseases of the reproductive organs, but you also prevent our over-active hormones from getting us into trouble in other ways such as fighting with other cats in the house – and worse if let outside.
An indoor life is the only life for a friendly feline today, as there are so many things outside that can ultimately kill us. I have spoken extensively about all the threats and dangers of letting us free-roam outside. We can wander off and get lost! We could also get killed by a car, or attacked by wildlife, and you will never know what happened to us. Imagine how you would feel!
Make the house “toddler safe” for your cat and you will sleep better at night!
Be sure to pay attention to which plants come into the house, only non-toxic plants should be in your home since many cats like to nibble on all greenery.
Refrain from using real candles around the house and switch to the faux lit candles, except perhaps at the dinner table during the meal. We still want you to have some nice candlelight at times! Cats swishing tails and candle flames do not mix!
Be mindful of strings, ribbon, yarn, tinsel, rubber bands, etc as some cats like to chew on stringy things and swallow them like spaghetti, which is very dangerous to our insides. And you will have a big vet bill if they have to operate to remove those types of items.
Also, watch out for your medications, vitamins and supplements so that they don’t fall to the floor or get left on the counter for your cat to taste-test! Protect your medical marijuana and carefully put away. Cannabis can be poisonous to us kitties.
Burners and stovetops can be particularly tricky when you have a cat who likes to counter surf while you are cooking, much to your frustration. Besides making it hard to cook, it’s another dangerous place for cats to want to hang out. Mom manages to defend her space, but after she’s done cooking and turns everything off, we still want to get up there and see what we missed. Since the burners are still hot, she covers up the burners with upside-down cookie sheets to protect our little paws from getting burned.
With the warm weather coming, windows can be a danger spot if not handled with your cat’s safety in mind. Do not leave a window open if there is no screen. Cats have been known to escape out a window cracked only a few inches. We have very flexible skeletal structures and as long as we can get our head through, we can get our bodies through.
Also, be sure your window screens are secured and well-connected to your window frames. Make sure the screen has no holes or tears. Cats have the ability to “break out” of window screens and escape if they are not secure. Any little space where the cat can wiggle her paw through can eventually, with some time and effort, provide a way out of the window to the outside.
Lastly, watch out for us cats when it comes to things with doors, compartments, hidden spaces, etc. Beau loves to go exploring and what’s more fun than curling up somewhere dark for a snooze? Trouble spots include all appliances such as washers and dryers, dishwashers, ovens, refrigerators, closets and furniture that closes up like sofa beds and recliners.
I have to own up and one evening I slipped into the space between the storm door and the front door while mom was talking to a neighbor through the door. Being black and after dark, she didn’t notice me and a couple moments later, they finished and mom closed the door, with me stuck in the 8” space between those two doors!
Meanwhile, it was about 35 degrees and honestly I could have been stuck in there all night! But since mom knows that Beau and I are basically toddlers, she never goes to sleep without taking a “cat count” to be sure neither of us are stuck somewhere or are in any position to get into trouble overnight.
This night, she heard my meows when she went looking for me and rescued me right away! It was kinda scary actually being stuck between the two doors, so I won’t be trying that anytime soon again!
So, humans, take that as your “go ahead” to save us from ourselves!
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