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Family Cats and Pregnant Women: Take Measures to Prevent Toxoplasmosis Infection
Category:
Feline, Living With Your Pet, Providing Care
Nothing must spoil the joys of becoming a new parent. Not even your pets. But family cats with normal, every day habits can pose a risk to expectant women. Women's immune systems can be disturbed by a parasite carried in fecal matter. If you're the primary caretaker of your family's feline friend it
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Create an Environment Your Cat Will Love
Category:
Feline, Living With Your Pet, Bringing Your Pet Home
The Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery confirms that feline emotional wellbeing, behavior and physical health are a result of how comfortable they are in their environment. Understanding how our cats interact with their environment can help us create a space for owners and cats to mutually thrive
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Common Feline Skin Conditions: Protect Your Feline
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Chronic Conditions
Cats can suffer from a variety of different skin disorders, including feline acne, allergic dermatitis, mites and ringworm. If your cat is frequently itching, scratching, licking his skin beyond normal grooming, or suffering unexplained hair loss, a skin condition may be the cause.
The first step to
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Catnip: Why Cats Love It
Category:
Feline, Living With Your Pet, Providing Care
Few things stimulate a cat's pleasure faster than catnip. Exposure to this simple herb can reveal a new side to their feline personality. Many cats will go crazy at the smell of this plant.
Catnip has a reputation of being a feline drug and many cat owners wonder if it is safe to give it to their pet.
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Zoonosis
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Diseases and Viruses
Zoonosis refers to diseases that can be transmitted to humans from animals. In particular, they occur when an infected animal passes on bacteria, parasites, fungi or viruses to humans through scratches, saliva, feces and urine. Vectors (e.g., organisms like fleas and ticks) can also carry zoonotic diseases
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Heartworms
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Pests and Parasites
While more common in dogs, cats also suffer from deadly heartworm infestation. Heartworms, spaghetti-like white creatures, can measure 1-foot long and cause an inflammatory response in your pet’s heart and lungs. Heartworms are especially prevalent in hot, humid parts of the country, especially in
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Heart Problems
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Chronic Conditions
A cat’s apricot-sized heart is susceptible to several problems. Some develop in young kittens while others may strike at any age.
Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
Cardiomyopathy results from a structural abnormality of the tissue around one or more of the heart’s chambers. It disrupts the heart’s normal
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Health Hazards
Category:
Feline, Living With Your Pet, Providing Care
Cat lovers do not like to contemplate the expression “Curiosity killed the cat.” Nonetheless, it is true that cats like to explore and all too often they can encounter serious hazards in their own homes. Cat owners need to assess these dangers so their cats stay safe and happy.
Everyday Hazards
Home
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Hairballs
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Digestive and Oral Health
Cat owners are all too familiar with that distinctive sound that cats making when trying to expel a hairball, often in the middle of the night. However, did you know that coughing up hairballs is crucial to your cat? The inability to do so can result in a deadly intestinal blockage.
Anatomy of a Hairball
Cats’
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Gastrointestinal Issues
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Digestive and Oral Health
Cats generally face the same gastrointestinal problems that humans or other animals do. If your cat has frequent diarrhea or episodes of vomiting, or other gastrointestinal (GI) issues, make an appointment with your feline veterinarian immediately. Here are a few common GI problems many cats face.
Inflammatory
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Fleas and Ticks
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Pests and Parasites
Fleas and ticks are very common in animals with fur. They hop onto your cat and make their way to the skin of the animal, where they proceed to feed on your pet’s blood. They also find your cat’s warm, soft fur to be the perfect breeding ground.
Fleas can be obtained when cats go outdoors or come
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Feline Pancreatitis
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Diseases and Viruses
Pancreatitis is rare in cats, but can be very serious. It comes in two forms: chronic and acute, with chronic being more common for cats. The disorder happens when something triggers the pancreas to start destroying its own tissue.
Function of the Pancreas
This V-shaped organ is small—a cat’s pancreas
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Feline Leukemia Virus (FLV)
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Diseases and Viruses
Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) is a retrovirus that, like feline immunodeficiency virus (another retrovirus), produces an enzyme known as reverse transcriptase, which allows the retrovirus to inject duplicates of its own genetic matter into the cells it has corrupted.
Though closely related, because a
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Feline Infectious Peritonitis
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Diseases and Viruses
Feline infectious peritonitis (FIP) is a terminal disease that affects cat. Caused by feline infection peritonitis virus (FIPV), it is a mutation of feline enteric coronavirus (FECV) and is more likely to occur in environments where large groups of cats are together, such as animal shelters.
The virus
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Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (FIV)
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Diseases and Viruses
Feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) is a type of virus that weakens a cat’s immune system and makes it difficult for the cat to fight other infections. This virus affects only felines.
Spread of FIV
Between 1.5 and 3 percent of healthy cats in the United States are infected with FIV. Cats that roam
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Feline Diabetes
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Chronic Conditions
Diabetes mellitus is a common disease in which a cat’s body does not make enough insulin or has difficulty using it. This hormone is produced in the pancreas. Its job is to help move glucose from the bloodstream into the body’s cells to provide them with a source of energy.
Many cats with diabetes
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Feline Anemia
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Chronic Conditions
A diagnosis of anemia means your cat does not have enough red blood cells and/or hemoglobin to carry sufficient oxygen to all of his or her tissues. Each red blood cell lives only 70 to 80 days, so your cat’s body must constantly replenish these. Anemia itself is not a disease; it indicates that some
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Eye Problems
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Chronic Conditions
Cats normally have excellent vision—their eyes are about six times more sensitive to light than a human’s eyes. However, injuries and a variety of diseases can impair a cat’s vision and even cause blindness.
You can help your cat keep its eyes healthy by making sure it has regular check-ups and
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Euthanasia
Category:
Feline, Living With Your Pet, Saying Goodbye
It is never easy to say goodbye to a cat that has been part of your life for many years. This is even truer when your veterinarian suggests that you consider euthanasia. However, euthanasia may be the most humane way to care for a beloved best friend that is suffering.
Is It Time to Say Good-bye?
The
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Common Fungal Infections in Cats
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Diseases and Viruses
Fungi are spore-generating, parasitic organisms. They are able to survive by taking in food from the hosts on which they grow. Cats can develop fungal infections when fungi spores are ingested, inhaled or enter a cut or wound. Common sources of most fungal infections are soil and bird droppings, making
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Cats and Poisons
Category:
Feline, Living With Your Pet, Providing Care
Many cat owners already know that insecticides and antifreeze are not things their cats should consume. However, many everyday, innocuous-seeming substances are also poisonous to cats. From a beautiful bouquet of lilies to human medications casually left around the house, you never know what you cat
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Anesthesia
Category:
Feline, Living With Your Pet, Providing Care
It’s an unfortunate fact that most cats don’t relish a trip to the vet. For this reason, sometimes they need to be sedated—both for their own and the veterinarian’s safety—during even relatively simple procedures. Anything from dental care to a major surgery may require anesthesia. Some especially
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Cancer in Cats
Category:
Feline, Pet Health, Chronic Conditions
The term “cancer” describes a whole class of diseases. If your cat gets a cancer diagnosis, it means that undesirable cells are growing uncontrollably, invading nearby tissue and possibly spreading through your cat’s body. Some types are more serious than others. As with people, early detection
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Sugar Gliders
Category:
Choosing Your Pet, Small Mammals, Domesticated Animals, Sugar Gliders, Choosing Your Pet, Small Mammals, Domesticated Animals
Thinking of getting a sugar glider? These tiny marsupials are energetic and friendly, making them popular choices as pets. Though they weigh less than a half-pound, they're more closely related to kangaroos than they are flying squirrels. If you think a sugar glider would make an ideal pet for your family,
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Behavioral Issues
Category:
Feline, Living With Your Pet, Providing Care
No matter how much you love your cat, some behaviors are hard to tolerate and may even be dangerous to you, your cat or others. Here are a few common cat behavioral issues and how to best manage them.
Cognitive Dysfunction
Due to better food, information and veterinary care, cats are living longer than
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Aging
Category:
Feline, Living With Your Pet, Providing Care
Owners often feel sad when they are forced to admit that their beloved cat is no longer jumping as high or running as fast as he or she used to. But cats, like humans, are living longer than ever, and their golden years can be of high quality despite slowing down. Advances in veterinary care, better
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Epilepsy
Category:
Pet Health, Chronic Conditions
Epilepsy (often referred to as a seizure disorder) is a chronic neurological condition characterized by recurrent unprovoked seizures. It is commonly controlled with medication, although surgical methods are used as well. Epileptic seizures are classified both by their patterns of activity in the brain
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Seasonal Care
Category:
Living With Your Pet, Providing Care
Heat Stroke
Heatstroke may kill or seriously injure your pet—but it can easily be avoided by adhering to the following tips. Never leave pets in cars on warm days. Exercise your pet during the cool part of the day. Look out for rapid breathing, loud panting or staggering; these can be signs of dehydration,
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Recognizing Illnesses
Category:
Living With Your Pet, Providing Care
Only a healthy pet is a happy companion. Assuring your pet's daily well-being requires regular care and close attention to any hint of ill health. The American Veterinary Medical Association therefore suggests that you consult your veterinarian if your pet shows any of the following signs:
* Abnormal
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Mealtime
Category:
Living With Your Pet, Providing Care
Puppies
Feed a high quality diet designed for puppies. A wide variety of diets and formulations are available and your veterinarian should be your primary source of information as to the best choice for your puppy. The amount fed will vary with the type of food and the individual dog, but in general,
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The Decision
Category:
Living With Your Pet, Saying Goodbye
Your decision is a personal one, but it need not be a solitary one. Your veterinarian and your family and friends can assist and support you.
How Do I Make The Decision?
Your relationship with your pet is special, and you are responsible for its care and welfare. Eventually, many owners are faced with
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Camping with Pets
Category:
Living With Your Pet, Travel
Camping with pets presents its own challenges. Skunks, raccoons, porcupines, snakes, and other wildlife can bite or otherwise injure your pet. Keep your pet within sight and on a leash. Be considerate of other campers. Be sure to ask your veterinarian about flea, tick and heartworm prevention.
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Planning and Preparation
Category:
Living With Your Pet, Travel
Planning and preparation are necessary when traveling with family pets. Consider whether your pet is comfortable when traveling. Some animals, like some people, function better in familiar surroundings. A car-sick animal can make a trip miserable for everyone. Some ill or physically impaired dogs and
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Travel by Airplane
Category:
Living With Your Pet, Travel
Air travel is of most concern to pet owners. You can minimize the chances of an unpleasant experience by following a few guidelines. Federal regulations require that pets be at least 8 weeks old and weaned at least 5 days before flying. Generally, a health certificate (which is not more than 10 days
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Travel by Car
Category:
Living With Your Pet, Travel
Pets should not be allowed to ride with their heads outside car windows. Particles of dirt can enter the eyes, ears, and nose, causing injury or infection.
If your pet is not accustomed to car travel, take it for a few short rides before your trip. Cats should be confined to a cage or crate to allow
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