CAT ARTICLES Archives

Are Cats Really All That Independent?

Many experts are those who say that cats are strictly independent animals. These are the same experts that state  cats have chosen to make contact with people, as the strategy of survival. Although many argue with this statement, there are many who agree as well – though they generally agree that the percentage of those who disagree with the cats.

Anyone who has ever had a cat will tell you that cats bond with humans. This is very strange. Normally, the cat chooses someone in the house to bond with. You will know if the cat wants to bond with you, as she will bounce on your lap or snuggle.

Although many experts trying to figure it out, no one really knows why cats choose a particular person to whom they will bond. It may be that individual’s behavior, voice, or simply how that person treats the cat. It Might be that the individual is really gentle, or maybe a bit stronger and it brings out the best in the cat.

There are many ways that researchers have tried to test this topic. Some say that cats bond with someone due to a “psychic aura” that is compatible with both the person and the cat. If a cat feels that someone gives them a bad mood, She will simply ignore that person. While this may be true in a sense, the majority of those who own cats will tell you that it could not be further from the truth.

Although there are many theories and speculation there, no one really knows why cats bond with humans. There is little or no evidence  available, except for the cats and the natural instinct for physical survival. There are those who know that their cats  crave attention, simply to feel needed. They love to indulge the owners, and shower you with love and attention, if only they have the chance.

 Cats are different from other animals, including dogs,  Different types of cats bond with their owners, although most prefer affection and attention. The more time you spend around your cat, the more they will bond with you. Over the years, you realize that you link with your pet has grown very strong – and simply can not be broken.

Do You Know How To Groom Your Cat?

Cats are naturally clean animals but it's up to you the cat owner,
 to help them stay clean and groomed.
The process starts with a good brushing. Cats get hairballs in
 their fur and brushing prevents that from happening.
If hairballs get in the fur they quickly get into the cat. They lick
 their fur and loose hairballs get into their mouths and they
swallow them.
Hairballs can lead to intestinal problems if the cat can't throw it
 up. These blockages of the intestines can become life threatening
and lead to costly vet bills..

Longhaired cats need to be combed and brushed every day. Yep, every
 day. A weekly regimen of combing and brushing
will be adequate for shorthaired cats. As you brush always check for
 problems like skin irritations and lumps in the coat.
I have found it's best to start on the cat's back and brush the
loveable critter from head to the tail. Start on one side, brush
a few times, then switch to the other side. Do this a few times and
 brush in the direction that his hair is growing.

But you say, 'are you kidding me? My cat isn't going to sit still for
 a thorough brushing. Luck you're reading this article-there's an
alternative. It's called a grooming glove. If you're used to
 petting your cat, he won't mind the grooming glove at all. Even if
 you don't pet your cat, he will welcome the attention. Cats
 naturally crave attention.

In your grooming, make sure you check out your cat's claws teeth eyes
 and ears. The eyes should be clear and bright with nothing
in the corners. In the pink, the color that is, should his ears be.
 Make doubly sure there is no sign of ear mites. Dust
building up in the ares is the cause of ear mites. The mites are not
 only uncomfortable for your cat, but can
also cause deafness. They are a devil of a pain to get rid of, so
make sure the cat's ears stay clean.

Go a bit further with your examinations each time you groom your cat.
 When the cat is still and calm, make sure you
heap praises on him and give him a treat. This will ensure his
 cooperation. In case he doesn't cooperate, don't try to
force him. Just let him go and try again tomorrow. Cats, once they
 get used to it, tend to look forward to their
grooming time.

Can You Get Rid Of Your Cat’s Bad Breath?

As most cat owners know, cat breath can just about knock you down.
 It's similar to human breath as the causes are the same. Bacteria
 forms in the mouth and breaks down protein, thereby releasing
sulphur compunds into the air. Sulphur has a foul smell on its own,
 so it's no secret if it has formed in the mouth, then it's going
 to make the breath smell pretty onerous.
Tarter forms around the teeth, causing a build up of bacterium in
the cat's mouth.
Tarter is composed of a coating food, minerals and bacteria and
 has an unpleasant yellowish color.

You have to remove the buildup of tarter in order to cure your
 cat's bad breath. You can start by buying a brand of cat food
that cut down the tarter buildup. A lot of them contain enzymes
 that will disolve the tartar. There are many cat treats that will
 also aid in reducing the tartar in a cat's mouth. If the tartar
 buildup is really pronounced, then it's best to have your vet
 give the your cat's teeth a professional cleaning. The happy
 news is, get rid of the tartar and you have gotten rid of the
cat's bad breath. Oh happy day!

If you want to forego the cost of a vet cleaning your cat's teeth,
 it is possible for you to do it yourself. They make toothepaste
 for pets.
I bet you didn't know that. Well, you do now. There are several
 flavors available. The one essential thing you will need is a
mechanical toothbrush. It will provide the needed motion to remove
 the buildup of tartar. If you start early on brushing your cat's
 teeth you can prevent the buildup of tartar and eliminate bad
 breath before it can get started.

Sometimes the cat's diet is the culprit as some foods that the cat
 eats contains bacteria. The key is to shop healthy and feed your
cat only healthy food you'll be doing both the cat and yourself a
 tremendous favor. Give the cat treats but only the ones designed
 to cut down the tartar. After the cat eats, it will help to rinse
 its mouth out or brush his teeth, right then. You'll be knocking
out the source of bad brearth before it can get started.

In some rare cases, the cat can have a bad odor in its mouth that
 doesn't stem from tartar. In this case the cat could have a
serious medical condition such as kidney or liver disease. Please
 then, take the cat to your veterinarian immediately! The Vet can
 find the problem and tell you what it's going to take to fix it.

Now get started today and eliminate that bad breath in your cat
 or cats.
And if the cat complains about your breath, well, you know
what to do.
Chuck Swope
http://www.topcatproductreviews.com

Coping With Diabetes In Your Cat

Cats are one of the most popular pets in North America. They are
 loving pets, capable of providing you years of companionship.
 Like other pets, cats can sometimes get sick. There 

are several different types of ailments that cats can get, one of
 which is feline diabetes. Feline diabetes is a serious disease,
 although it can be treated by a veterinarian.
Diabetes is more common with humans than with cats or other animals.
 The cause of diabetes is actually quite simple. Sugar, or glucose,
 is found in the blood. The level of blood sugar in the body or the
 animal is kept under control by hormone insulin, which the 

pancreas produces. When the pancreas doesn’t produce enough insulin,
 diabetes is to blame. 

The symptoms of feline diabetes will vary. The most common symptoms
 include an increase in urine and an increase in thirst. Other
symptoms of feline diabetes include a loss of appetite, weight loss,
 and a poor coat. An increase in thirst is easy to detect, as you 

can easily notice the water dish empty throughout the day. 

Get your cat treated for feline diabetes at once, or else the cat
 will become listless, totally inactive and will no doubt slip into
 a coma. On the other hand, if you get the diabetes treated in time,
 the cat will more than likely lead a normal and healthy life. 

Keep in mind that treatment doesn’t happen overnight – it takes
 time and dedication. Cats that have feline diabetes will need
 to be given food at the same time every day. 

They should be prevented from going outside as well. If your cat
 has diabetes, you’ll need to give him insulin shots once or twice
 or a day. Once your veterinarian checks your cat, he will tell you
 how many shots and how much insulin you need to give your cat. 

Before you give your cat his insulin shot, you should always make
sure that he has some food first. If he hasn’t eaten and you give
 him a shot anyway, he could end up with a hypoglycemic shock.
This can also occur from too much insulin as well. A hypo can be 

really dangerous, and should be avoided at all costs. If your cat
 gets a hypoglycemic shock and you aren’t around, he may end up
 dying. If you have to give insulin shots to your cat due to feline
 diabetes, you should always keep a watchful eye on him after you
have administered the shot. After your cat has been on insulin for
 a period of time, your vet may reduce the amount of insulin. Even
 though he may have to stay on insulin the rest of his life, he
 will lead an otherwise healthy life.

Tips for a Healthy Pet Cat

cat health

Proper cat health Tips

Proper cat health relies heavily on preventative measures; this includes routine veterinary care as well as grooming on a regular basis. To make sure you cat stays both happy and healthy it is a good idea to watch for any changes in their condition. An excellent time to monitor for cat health is during grooming sessions.

cat health According To Life Stages

The best way to keep on top of your cats health is by knowing the life stages and what proper cat health is for each stage. This way you can easily recognize when something is going wrong with your cats health and seek medical attention as soon as possible.

The first life stage is from birth of sixteen weeks. During this stage you cat is just starting to learn about the world around them. Cats in this stage are often playful but still shy around humans. Cat health is also extremely important in this stage so that they can grow up to be healthy throughout the rest of their life.

The next stage is from sixteen weeks to one year. During this period, cats are often still very playful. To maintain cat health you should make sure you cat is spayed or neutered at about six months old unless you are planning on using them as a breeding cat.

Next comes the one to eight year period, which are the prime years for cat health. During this stage of your cat’s life, it is very important to have yearly visits to the veterinarian. From there is the eight to twelve year stage of a cats life. This is when pre-geriatric cat health comes into play. Your cat will often slow down but their behavior will remain the same.

Geriatric cat health will start when they turn twelve. At this age, you will start to notice health problems in your cat and they will often become worse as they age. Cats will often move very slowly since their joints will start to become stiff. Elderly cats may also be very irritated.

Common Cat Health Issues

There are varieties of health conditions that can affect your cat. A big part of keeping your cat healthy is proper prevention. Contact your veterinarian right away, if you notice any health problems. The following are some of the more common conditions your cat may get.

Flea allergy is a common problem for cats. A cat’s sensitivity to fleabites will increase as they age. Food allergies can also have similar symptoms to fleabite allergies including dermatitis and severe itching, vomiting or diarrhea.

Hairballs are a persistent cause of vomiting in cats. You can reduce this issue by maintaining a regular schedule of coat brushing. Even with shorthair cats, they can get hairballs if you don’t keep them down with routine brushing. You should take your cat into a veterinarian if they have persistent vomiting since this can also be a sign of thyroid or kidney problems.

Fred Long is an aspiring writer who enjoys and writes about a variety of different topics and hobbies. He hopes you enjoy his articles and finds them entertaining as well as educational.
Article Source: http://www.articlealley.com/http://fred3.articlealley.com/tips-for-a-healthy-pet-cat-118155.html

cat health

Does Your Cat Vocalize Too Much?

Sometimes cats vocalize-make loud noises that at top of their lungs. Sometimes it’s meow, meow, meow meow all coming together. Sometimes it’s just howling.

A cat will vocalize when they are bored or when they are in pain. If you think your cat is just bored, get him or her some new toys. The undercover mouse that is sold on this website is a favorite of my 3 cats. The Panic mouse is another.

On the other hand sometiimes excessive vocalization can be the sign of a medical problem. If your cat vocalizes during or after using the litter box, there may be a problem. If your cat howls incessently, there probably is a medical problem. If you determine your cat is not bored but vocalizes a lot-see your vet.

Chuck Swope

 


How to Grow Your Pet Sitting Business Online

Nowadays there are so many small businesses are growing with the use of online exposure. Pet sitting is one of the growing small businesses. Pet sitting business offers pet sitting, pet boarding, pet waste removal, dog training, dog walking, pet grooming, doggie daycare and more services to pet owners for their pets. If we ask when the pet owners needs pet sitters, most of all, when pet owners go off for their work and for vacations they needs pet care professionals. But some pet owners, they bring their pets with them for vacations and cannot do the same when they go off for the work.

But here you have a glance about “how to grow your pet sitting business online”. Online marketing have been playing vital role for these type of business. Yes, through the internet you can get more potential customers to your business in cost effective way. But first of all, pet care professional should have their own website about their business or service, which is very important. The following would be very useful for pet sitters to get some new ideas about how to use the internet for their business.

Pet communities:

Online, you can get some pet community sites. You have to join in these websites and post your profile on these websites. You can get potential clients from these web portals. Pet care professional can also tie up with lead generating websites like petsitting.com, localdogwalker.com and more.

Social media:

Nowadays, as we all know, social media is nothing but about Twitter and Facebook. Both are very powerful social media tool. Create a profile about your business in both Twitter and Facebook. In Facebook, show your business details, upload images, create groups, join to pet related groups, and make new friends and post about your business in wall. In Twitter, tweet about your business and make followers and follow the people. Don?t forget to post your Facebook and Twitter profile link icon on your website. Pet sitters can get and keep in touch with their potential customers through these Medias. Also not only they can get local customers and they can cover worldwide as well.

Business listing:

There is plenty of business listing websites available such as Google?s local business center, local.yahoo.com, local.com, supermedia.com, yellowpages.com and so on. These business listing sites are particularly created for local businesses. You are assured that you will get more leads from these sites. All you have to do is to choose the descriptive categories and list your business details such as services, offers, images, operating hours, certifications, method of payments, specialties and so on.

Online forums:

Join to online pet related forum sites and participate the discussions, post your business, exchange your thoughts and clear the doubts about pet related questions. Here you have the chances of pet owners to be turned into your potential customer.

Classifieds:

Online classifieds websites are great way to advertise your business online. Choose your local area, appropriate category and post your ad on the classifieds websites like craiglist, oodle and so on. Classifieds sites also a promising online lead generation tools.

I hope this article would be informative for the pet care professionals. Just follow these things and make potential clients for your business from online.

The author of this article belongs to petsitting.com ? a lead generation site which matches pet owners with cat care professionals. If you are cat sitter providing cat care services including cat sitting, cat waste removal, and more, join with us and get leads for your business.
Article Source: http://www.articlealley.com/http://queendiana.articlealley.com/how-to-grow-your-pet-sitting-business-online-1963515.html

Why Do Cats Eat Grass

Some cat owners make the mistake of preventing their cat from eating grass. There are various reasons for this, one being that they think it makes their cat ill or upsets their stomach. This is an incorrect assumption and in fact the eating of grass followed by regurgitation is a perfectly natural behavior for all cats.

Cats do not possess the ability to separate meat from fur bones or feathers before eating like we do so they have to eat the digestible parts along with the indigestible parts. When the cat has finished digesting what he can the rest has to be removed from the system. To try and pass this through the digestive tract could cause obstruction and severe illness so this is where grass eating comes in.

The habit of eating grass triggers the natural process of regurgitation of indigestible foods including its own fur balls which would otherwise obstruct the system. This can appear to us humans as if the cat is being violently ill but this is not the case and in fact is very beneficial to the cat.

What about other plants and vegetables?

Cats cannot produce the enzymes needed to break down plant matter. Even when pureed or powdered, vegetables simply pass through the digestive tract without leaving any of their nutritional content. This alone is not harmful to your cat, but when undigested plant matter mixes with highly digestible food such as meat, indigestion and other complications may occur. Grass is an exception however; some cats compulsively eat grass when you leave them outdoors. This will cause them to regurgitate the indigestible matter, including raw vegetables.

If your cat is unable to get access to grass he may attempt to eat your house plants instead. This could be dangerous because some house plants and flowers are toxic to cats, so if you have a house cat like a Ragdoll cat for example you should provide a regular supply of potted grass to prevent him looking elsewhere. And most importantly do not punish your cat for regurgitating on to you carpet because he will not know why you are punishing him. Regurgitation is an involuntary action of your cat’s stomach so he could not stop it happening even if he tried. Cleaning up after the occasional regurgitation should be an accepted part of being a loving cat owner as they are only doing what comes naturally.

Drew is the writer of ‘The Complete Ragdoll Cat Keepers Handbook, to find out more visit:

http://www.ragdoll-cat-care.com
Article Source: http://www.articlealley.com/http://drewpilton.articlealley.com/why-do-cats-eat-grass-185160.html

Has your cat chosen you

You have already chosen your cat. But have you ever wondered whether your cat has chosen you? Knowing these small tips will help you find the answer for that question. They can help you a lot in building a great rapport with your pet.

If a cat starts purring immediately when you start petting it, then that is a good sign .It’s the sign which says it trusts you. The trust is so important. Be a trusted companion. We are in the cats’ world. That is different from the dogs’ world. Dogs have masters but cats don’t. Forget about being a dictator in front of your cat unless you want it to hate you. Cats are much proud animals. But if you truly love them they would love you back very much

It is said that cats wave their tales to show their anger. But I don’t think this is true all the time. They wave their tale when they are playing or up to some hunting too. But it is wise to watch out as they can be much aggressive when they are angry. And you know they got sharp teeth and nails right? Don’t get involved when they are too angry.

If you can spend a little time with a cat each day, it will adore you. Unlike humans it will show that to you by peeping secretly behind you, or sometimes running in front of you (especially if it is a kitten).

You should always feed them on time. There is no proper time for it. But they are much aware of the time you usually feed them. So remember to do it even when you are busy with your own work. Kittens love to play after meals. It is said that if you can play with them, that makes their stress level go low. Believe me! It can lower your stress level too.

Pay attention to ridiculous things they do. When they know you are paying attention, they will be encouraged to do more. This way you can have lot of fun with them. But when it exceeds the limit, it is okay to interrupt .Yet I don’t think punishing much helps to stop their bad behaviors. Instead of changing the behavior they will start to run away from you thinking that you are someone to be afraid of. This happens since they cannot understand the reason.

So be careful with it. You may find much easier ways to stop bad behaviors from animal behavior specialists (using internet).

Have a nice time with your pet and be the first choice of your chosen pet. That way both parties will be satisfied about the relationship.

Do you have a cat as your loving pet? Or do you plan to have one in near future? Then my friend, loving and feeding alone would not complete that remarkable relationship between you and your pet. Understanding is the key of success in any relationship and it is not different here. For more, visit my website .
Article Source: http://www.articlealley.com/has-your-cat-chosen-you-902524.html

CAT BLOOD DONOR

I came across this interesting story and just had to share it with you.
^^^^^
Giving blood is good thing to do – even for dogs and cats.
It is something that Shadow, a cat from McHenry, does regularly. Her owner Kat Egelston, who previously worked at Save-A-Pet in Grayslake, wants to help animals in any way.
Egelston discovered that the Animal Emergency & Treatment Center (AETC) in Grayslake was in need of blood donations from pets. Egelston thought of her own three cats and a dog, and decided to help.
“I thought my cat, Shadow, would be the perfect donor because she is easy-going. She also is in good health,” said Egelston.
The AETC has had a cat and dog blood donor program since 2002. The center is always in need of additional donations, especially during the summer months.
“We run short a lot more during the summer because pets are out more, whether it’s being hit by a car or getting in a fight,” said AETC marketing director Cindy Kaempf.
“Each donation can save up to four lives,” said Amanda Calvillo, a Certified Veternarian Technician (CVT) and manager of the blood donor program. “There are requirements for the cat or dog that is donating. We do provide thank-yous to our donors. All the information is spelled out on our website.”
Shadow was recently hailed as an ‘Everyday Hero’ by the Nutro Company, suppliers of cat and dog food, for her donations of blood.
“Shadow’s tale highlights an important medical need that many people are unaware of,” said spokesperson Brianna Huy. See more at www.facebook.com/NutroProducts.
Veterinarian John Naeser is director of operations at the AETC also oversees the blood donor program in Grayslake. Most pet blood donations come from pets who are referred by other owners like Egelstrom. AETC also solicits donations through trade publications and at pet expos.
“For the first time, the Midwest Pet Expo will be held locally in September at the Lake County Fairgrounds,” said Kaempf. “It will be an opportunity for us to let people know about the program and ask for volunteers.”
AETC is open 24 hours a day and is the only pet blood donation facility in Lake County. They also have a location in Chicago.
^^^^^
Interesting wouldn’t you say? Thought provoking too.