Every Cat

Archive for December, 2008

Animal separation anxiety disorder results in a awful and tough to deal with problem for dogs and their owners, in a similar fashion to obsessive-compulsive grooming or spraying for cats who are under this stress and their families. For what reason did I bring up these two seemingly unconnected disorders? You’ll see presently just specifically what it is that joins these two conditions and what exactly they have in common as possible cures and ways to relieve the situation. You certainly don’t want to allow a continuous pattern of destructive behavior to proceed and lead to problems both for your animal and you.

Animal Separation Anxiety

Separation anxiety for dogs is definitely quite a bothersome problem. Dogs are quite social animals and lean deeply on the structure of the pack for their social relationships. As pet owners, people become the head dog in your pack and are in charge. But in today’s busy existence, the pack alpha dogs go off and abandon the dogs separated by themselves for long times of the day. Animals separation anxiety manifests itself by means of several quite clear and increasingly traumatic symptoms. Beginning with barking, salivating, and hyperventilation, it will quickly grow into further stages of inappropriate defecation and / or urination, eating furniture, and tries to escape in order to locate the pack themselves. This will of course be unsuccessful and create noticably more stress for the poor animal.

Obsessive Compulsive Grooming Disorder

Concerns of anxiety for cats are of a different nature. Felines are rather more independent of their owners, though social relationship problems can still happen. Cats can be very territorial and aggressive, so cats might have issues both when moving out of a familiar home to a different, unfamiliar location, or nervousness brought on by aggressive felines either in the neighborhood or the house. Feline anxiety also does show up as obsessive compulsive grooming actions, where the cat cleans themselves so much and actually go so far as to lose patches of their coat!

Clomipramine

Clomipramine is a partial cure to just these types of concerns. In a similar fashion to people and their anxiety disorders, pets can now be treated with medicines for the same types of problems. In simple terms, this is pet prozac. Medications such as Clomipramine work to assist take the edge off from your animal’s stress, giving you time and breathing room to find a resolution for the specific underlying issues. Effects of Clomipramine may include drowsiness, vertigo, dehydration, weakness, constipation and loss of appetite, so you will want to be sure your pet gets lots of water and you observe them closely for a few days. They clearly can’t tell you in plain English if they’re unwell. A Clomipramine cat is a happy, healthy pet!

start potty training

Cat owners know, scooping a smelly cat box and lugging large sacks of kitty litter home is nobody’s idea of a good time. You may have seen pictures of cats using a toilet and wondered how that pet owner got so lucky. Cat toilet training can be conducted in as little as 3 or 4 weeks, or for harder to teach kitties, up to 3 or 4 months. Learn how to potty train your kitty and the reward for your effort will be the end of scooping a stinky litter box.

To start potty training your kitty, go slowly. The transition from litter box to toilet should be accomplished in a series of stages. If at any time he has a setback and uses a rug instead of the potty, then you may be going too quickly. Just back up a stage or two and try again.

To start cat toilet training, move your cat’s current litter box from wherever it is to one side of the toilet. Make sure he knows where it is and that he has used it in the new location for a few days or a week. Next, stack newspapers, a phone book or anything that will add height under the litter box to raise it a few inches at a time. Continue this process until the bottom of the litter box is level with the top of the toilet seat.

Now, move the litter box over so that it is sitting directly over the toilet seat. Let your cat adjust to this for a few days. The next step in potty learning is a big one. Take away the box entirely.

Toilet training for cats is big business and many companies sell “kitty potty training” kits or a toilet training system online and at pet retailers, or you can purchase a metal mixing bowl or aluminum roasting pan for this next step. Place either container (measure the inside of the rim to make sure your bowl or pan is big enough) inside the toilet bowl and lower the seat. Fill it with a few inches of scoop-able litter. You may need to tape it in place to prevent it from sliding around.

Begin reducing the litter in the container every few days. Go as fast as your cat will feel comfortable with. Make sure to flush the waste immediately to minimize both the smell and the possibility that your cat tries to cover it up and ends up tracking unpleasantness into the rest of the house.

By now, you should be down to a teaspoonful of litter in the bottom of the container. Start adding a little bit of water to the container. Increase the water level every few days. Remember that if your kitty isn’t adjusting well, back up a step and try again more slowly.

Once the water in the bowl or pan is a couple of inches deep and your cat is comfortable with everything, take the container away, leaving the bare toilet. The task of potty training is now complete.

Cat toilet training timeframes are different for each cat. If your kitty is reluctant at any stage of training, then go back a step or two. Don’t sweat it. Just slow down and just follow these potty training tips. You have to be patient.

The domesticated cat of today has become the pet of choice for a great many people worldwide. In the United States alone, more than 30 million domestic pet cats now outnumber the dog population by many millions, with the gap growing ever wider each day. Why has the domestic cat gained in popularity? What is it about this puzzling creature that appeals to so many of us?

One possible reason certainly has to be the ambiguous nature of the cat. Extremely intelligent, it possess an arresting amalgamation of characteristics not found in other domestic pets. Beguiling and quiet, poised and self-sufficient, fastidious and athletic, the cat is rarely needy. It loves company but is also content to pass the time alone for hours on end, making it the perfect pet for single people especially, let alone a family.

This independent streak, a result of cats in the wild living alone by themselves, gives the domestic feline a slightly cavalier attitude for life; for them, the sun does not rise and set around humans, although they appreciate what we have to offer, thank you very much.

The capability cats have to survive, with  or without humans could just be one of the main reasons why we like them so much. Emotionally needy pets (or people) tend to become increasingly irritating after a time; cats are charming narcissists. This, combined with their beauty, grace, dignity, and ease of care, make them always desirable.

Humans also love cats because they say, ” we are your roommate, not your servant,” and for their ability to recognize the value in taking a nap. And who can fail to appreciate the cat’s clean, fastidious nature and built-in toilet training? Try getting a Schnauzer puppy to use a litter tray!

Cats enjoy all the attention we humans lavish upon them, though they will, given the chance, never confess it. They are perfectly happy to remain with us because we love them and carr for them, but if we vanished from the planet tomorrow, chances are the cat would feel sorrowful for a (short) time, meow some, and then continue with the business of finding a furry little meal – all the while laughing at the millions of aimless, grief-stricken dogs wandering around aimlessly, trying to gigure out what to do next.

In my experience, closer ties have been developed with a cat when an owner enables the cat to decide for itself when and where it wants affection from its owner. As my grandmother used to say: “You’ll never own a cat but one may choose to live with you”.

Nearly everybody who owned a house cat knows what a pain it is, to take care of a cat litterbox and clean it frequently. And so many owners of indoor cats have experienced what an even more unnerving job it is if the kitty doesn’t take the litter box! Of course there are many among us always dreaming of more important achievments and do not wish to learn more about litter box cleaning. For these kitty owners, there is good news now. Indeed, believe it or not, it is not a big thing to train kitties, to use a real toilet. When you are toilet training your kitty, you will teach it to move from using a litter box to using a toilet. While this sounds too good to be true, temper your imagination a little bit with the realization that you will still have to flush the toilet for your kitty.

1. Relocating Your Cat’s Litter Box

If your cat’s litter box is not already in the bathroom, you will need to place it there. The cat box should be near the toilet on the ground for some time. After a few days you will raise your litter box up several inches using something very stable to sit under it. If you have no furniture fitting this description, you could use books if they are arranged in a balanced manner. The goal is, to get to the point where the edge of the cat box and the toilet bowl are on the same level. Then you should install a sturdy aluminum pan over the toilet bowl in a way that will allow it to support your cat without wobbling as you start the toilet training. You should put less than an inch of kitty litter across the bottom of the pan.

2. Making your Kitty feel Comfortable when using its new Toilet Seat

When you have removed the litter box and have the cat using only the pan, you are ready to start with the last part of toilet training of your cat. You can begin the training by poking some holes in the bottom of one side of your aluminum pan. Of course, you should cut back on the cat litter so that it doesn’t leave through the toilet. And, you should consider using flushable kitty litter at this point. The holes are supposed to force the cat to put its front paws on the toilet seat as it needs to potty. When your cat has been doing this for some days, you should make holes on the opposite side of the pan and that the cat will stand entirely on the toilet seat. The critical step of the toilet training is that you have to remove the pan after your cat got used doing this with success for quite some time. If you are a successful cat instructor, your kitty will now take the bathroom toilet!

A Final Info on Toilet Training your Cat

These 2 lessons could take as long as two or three months time with a narrow minded, older cat. So be patient with your little friend. Always remember a wet environment isn’t something cats are innately comfortable around. Don’t give up if your kitty doesn’t use the new toilet a couple of times in a row. You should keep your pan in case your cat is against it or is just not in the mood using the toilet. Put the pan back again on the toilet seat and the cat can be re-trained to use the toilet again pretty fast. The benefits of toilet training your feline companion are many.

Healthy Cats

If you are new to owning a cat, you may be surprised to find that health problems are a common thing.

No matter what breed of cat you own, cat health is one of the major topics you will have to know about.  There are certain problems with every breed, some of which may be hereditary, but there are also certainly others than can be prevented easily. Worms are a common and recurring problem for every breed of cat.

Tapeworms, roundworms, and hookworms are among the most common that infect cats. There are several symptoms that indicate your cat may require testing for worms including trouble gaining weight, fleas, or white specks in his stool. Worms have been proven to be fatal if not treated correctly, so always remember to use the medicine prescribed.

Hairballs are the most common health problem for cats. Cats clean themselves every day, and they swallow the hair that they shed. Sometims the stray hair will become a large ball and get caught in the cat’s digestive tract instead of passing through the stool. When your cat starts to cough and hack, he is normally coughing up a hairball – as a popular cat owner manual confirmed recently. Although it is kind of gross, cats can usually get rid of the hairballs without difficulty. Although rare, a hairball can occassionally become lodged in the cats intestines, this creates blockage.

Blockages are very serious problems, and can be life threatening if they arent treated. Not eating properly, having a dull coat, and blockage are three factors that could lead to your cat being constipated. Seek veterinary assistance immediately if any of the symptoms listed appear.

You can prevent hairballs and blockages by brushing your cat 2 3 times a week to remove loose hair. You can also feed him food that is designed to control hairballs as well. Urinary tract infection is also a common health problem with cats.

Female and male cats can suffer from urinary tract infections, however, this is more likely to occur in male cats that have not been neutered. This is the normal cause as to why a cat stops using the litter box. One symptom that your cat may have a UTI is strong smelling urine, and if this symptom is there they need to go to the vet. Your vet can treat the problem with medicine, and make recommendations to help avoid this problem in the future.

In the past, feline leukemia was the biggest cause of death in cats. These days however, there are vaccines available that can treat the disease. To treat the disease, your cat will need to be given the shot before he or she is exposed. Even though death doesnt happen immediately, cats that are exposed to feline leukemia normally don’t have a long life span. If you know your cat has feline leukemia, you should never allow other cats around him, as the virus is highly contagious.

To protect your cat, you should always make sure that you take him to the vet for his regular check ups. If you keep him up to date on his vaccinations, he should lead a healthy and productive life. Although some health problems can’t be avoided, most of them can. If you take cat care seriously, take him to the vet and keep him healthy he will be your companion for years to come.

Certainly, you are innately aware of Feliway, the feline pheromone formula that does amazing things for ameliorating your cat’s stress and helping make a unsettled cat haven significantly more easy to deal with and eliminating inappropriate urination, at least what we can blame on the felines, that is! You’ve ordered a diffuser and now require a Feliway refill so as to make the system completely operational.

A Feliway diffuser refill unit is simply the essential oils distilled in a liquid form in a glass bottle containing the spray solution. These are quite often put together in a 6 pack package, for simplicity. When plugged into the diffuser unit and plugged in, the diffusion plate warms up in order to induce evaporation, spreading through the area. Each piece can cover about six square meters. You must make sure they are not set behind curtains or furniture, because this will stop the evaporate from moving throughout the room and eliminating the beneficial effect achieved from utilizing them in the first place. Definitely be sure that the unit is open to the air on account of the fact the heating element can get quite warm and you must be sure this does not end up a concern. Used safely, they are quite wonderful to for cat health care issues.

Each Feliway diffuser refill unit is good for a period of some four to six weeks. It’s a wonderful method to keep continuous amounts of the calming and relaxing feline facial pheromones constantly circulating through your cat-friendly locations. Utilizing multiple diffusers spread throughout any home will help to keep the kitten population contented, soothed, and stress free, which helps keep you from going crazy. For this reason the 6 pack Feliway diffuser refill, which provides 288 milliliters total measure, and makes it easier to purchase and get delivered. It’s much more convenient to buy in bulk, instead of having to order solitary packages with shorter intervals.

The vials are often advertised combined with the diffuser, but it is quick enough to locate them available separately in addition, if you already have a diffuser and only need the Feliway diffuser refill by itself, or of course the 6 pack packages that are also quite commonly sold.

In a time when there seems to be almost constant talk about the issues surrounding health care coverage for families in the United States, there is an insurance product that is often overlooked. Pet health insurance is designed to cover the veterinary costs for the health care of the four-legged members of the family. If your family includes one or more family pets, then seeking out policy information from a reputable pet insurance company might make good economic sense.

Just as the human members of the family need and deserve adequate health care, so do your pets. Household pets and even livestock such as horses, cattle and exotic animals are all subject to any number of illnesses and accidents that threaten their health and longevity. In fact, in the last decade or so there has been a significant increase in the incidence of cancer and other serious diseases in domestic pets and other animals. Because of this, it is a wise choice to seek out pet insurance coverage.

Securing pet health insurance coverage from a reputable and reliable company can be of enormous benefit to a family, especially families with many pets in the household. Such a pet plan can guarantee protection against financial hardship for a family if they are faced with large veterinary pet bills. The stress and anxiety that a family is put under if they cannot afford a life-saving procedure for their animal can be devastating.

In recent years, veterinarian care has expanded and there are more diseases and illnesses that can now be treated. With the expansion of care, there has also come an increase in associated costs, very similar to the rise in health care for humans. The good news is that this shift has lead to more interest in pet health insurance and an increase in pet insurance company coverage options that are now available. In addition, there are also more companies offering pet insurance, increasing the competition and thereby keeping the cost in check.

No matter which pet plan company you select to carry your pet insurance coverage, the reputable companies will strongly recommend that you take steps to try to prevent illness so that your pet can enjoy health and well-being to the greatest degree possible. The best pet insurance plans will cover wellness care, or preventative care procedures. This would include vaccinations, health screenings and other types of routine care that should be taken care of as advised by your trusted veterinarian. Also, new kittens or puppies introduced to the family should have a visit to the vet’s office for their first examination within 48 hours of bringing them into the home.

In most cases, your veterinarian will have you bring your new pet back to the office to get booster vaccinations three to four weeks later. In addition, preventative care routines dictate that you return for annual vaccinations and booster shots for the long-term benefit of all the pets in the household. These costs can add up to several hundreds of dollars a year, especially if there are multiple pets in the household. Before choosing your insurance company, be sure that they offer coverage for preventative care.

Although it can be tempting to buy the cheapest pet insurance you can find, often in the long-run it is better to choose a pet insurance company that believes in the value of preventative health care for domestic and other animals. A policy that covers wellness care might cost a bit more each month, but it will ensure that you never have to worry about being able to pay for the proper care for your family pets.

For a lot more informational value go to this online destination: Cheap Pet Insurance also head on over to Older Pet Insurance as well as Pet Insurance Quote

Being a animal owner certainly you must be knowledgable of a every day cat health concern that affects cats:  the hairball.  But what do you know of a hairball’s signs, causes, and therapies?

What Makes A Hairball?

Hairballs are created by the tough exterior of a feline’s tongue removing free hair during the process of cleaning themselves.  This hair is then ingested and drawn into the digestive tract.  Ideally, this hair would not be digested, but would get excreted when the cat uses the litter box or goes outside.  In the end, kitties are killers, and are evolved to be capable to handle swallowing fur, like from a poor mouse it catches.   As the hair congeals into a mass, the feline will probably end up with the messy experience of barfing it back up.  In unfortunate situations however, this might not take place and the hairball might become stuck inside your pet, potentially bringing about potentially disastrous health concerns.

Hairballs and Your Cat’s Health

Hairballs of cats are irritating enough all by themselves, but can in addition induce many corollary concerns, rapidly growing dangerous if not expelled or cured promptly.  Aside from the open and unpleasant throwing up, of course, the unexpelled hair can cause digestion problems and constipation.  Your cat might cease eating and become lethargic as the hairball multiplies in size, while the cat are still unable to expell it.  Their intestines can bloat and this can undoubtedly create many kinds of harmful issues that you’d rather not have to deal with.  This condition could even wind up needing invasive medical procedures to remove the hairball, which is an awful unwelcome cost and jeopardy to your kitty, especially considering the simplicity of preventing the problem in the first place.  Left alone, it could become a fatal illness.

Removing Hairballs

Cats naturally attempt to self treat by vomiting.  They can do this by consuming grass, which often causes cats to throw up due to the irritating fiber content.  Other methods to cure cat hairballs revolve around petroleum or mineral oil based products made to grease the intestines so as to ease the natural elimination of the hairball.  Products such as Laxatone or Petromalt fiber capsules have been made to eliminate hairballs in cats.  They are a semi-solid glop that you administer to your felines before meals.  This slides the impediment through the system and is helpful to relieve non-hairball related constipation as well.  They are available in a multitude of flavors like tuna or catnip flavoring.  One serving daily for two or three days, and your concern should be fixed.

Prevention of Hairballs

Prevention of hairballs is accomplished by certain varying methods, some of them complementary.  One is a half dose of Laxatone or Petromalt 2 or 3 times per week.  Petromalt comes highly endorsed by veterinarians and pet people alike. There are specific “hairball prevention” diet foods available.  A huge proportion of hairball prevention is to be sure proper grooming.  Always brush your short-haired cats but comb the long-haired felines regularly.  They love it and it’s a great means to spend time making sure your feline remains happy and healthy.

On 27 August 2008, Sharp Corporation issued a press release that may someday be recognised as the true beginning of mankind’s war against bird flu! Incorporated in its ionic air purifier, the Plasmacluster Ion Technology (more on this in a later post) has just been scientifically proven to be 99.9% effective in eliminating the bird flu virus known as H5N1.

As we have been constantly reminded by the press, bird flu is the prime suspect to cause mankind’s next pandemic. Pandemic sounds terrifying. It is. That’s when a highly contagious virus goes global, in a very negative sense. History records for us that 50 million people may have died during the 1918 Spanish Flu pandemic! That deadly killer flu was confirmed on 5 October 2005 by the World Health Organization (WHO) to be caused by H1N1, a bird flu virus.

Red Alert! Time to PANIC?

Not now. “Only” 245 people infected by the H5N1 virus, as per WHO data as at 10 Sep 2008, have died since 1996 when it first surfaced in China. So what’s the fuss? The greatest nightmare for scientists monitoring the bird flu virus is to see it attain human-to-human transmission capability. To the knowledge of WHO, there has been only one probable case of human-to-human transmission recorded in Thailand in September 2004. Don’t be surprised by the global pandemonium in the event that the dreaded virus mutation actually occurs.

As the threat grows day by day, countries around the globe are conscientiously preparing for the worse (more on this in a later post). At the individual level, we should start making preparations too.

Ok, so what’s all this got to do with Sharp’s ionic air purifier. Isn’t it just another ionic air purifier? It is ordinary in that it performs the usual functions of the run-of-the-mill air purifier by getting rid of dust, dirt, smoke, dander, pollen, cuisine and pet odours, pollutants, allergens etc. But if we can get protection from all these and more in one ionic air purifier, especially one that is a tested defense shield against a potentially deadly virus, why not? The complete package is promised in Sharp’s Plasmacluster Ion Air Purifier.

The next obvious question for the value-conscious, would be “yes, that makes a whole lot of sense but at what cost”? Per Sharp, not a penny more! Sharp asserts that it is cheaper than any other ordinary ionic air purifier when measured over 5 years. Now, that’s value for money! But, how is this possible in this nothing-is-for-free world?

It is entirely possible, says Sharp. For example, there is much better value for money in its Plasmacluster Ionic Air Purifier Model FP-N40CX as there is no filter replacement costs for the first 5 years. Upfront costs at US$399 for the Sharp model is higher than the typical competitor’s US$160. But the latter requires annual filter replacement costs of US$100, adding to a total cost of US$560 over 5 years.

Feedback on relevant data on Sharp or its competitors will be very much appreciated. Feel free to drop me a note if you have actual data.

Meanwhile, I’m going to seriously investigate this Sharp Plasmacluster IonTechnology. Now is the time to research, while bird flu is still not quite at pandemic proportions.

Join me in my quest. Believe me, I have seen it. Recall the last disaster movie when you saw people with terror in their eyes, many with the famed N95 face mask covering their noses as they commute to work. But it was no movie but real life in motion in many Asian cities. Those who could not find the scarce N95 face mask could only pray that they were not the next victim of the near-pandemic scenario that swept across Asia. It was the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) virus. Originating in Asia in 2003, it eventually infected 8,096 people around the world and resulted in 774 fatalities. As always, being prepared is half the battle won.

Watch this space as we track exciting developments in our pursuit of safe, pure and clean air with nothing more than an ionic air purifier.

To easily receive updates on new articles, subscribe to The Ionic Air Purifier Blog today.

It is evident that in many countries around the world, people love theirs pets as much as they do family members. In many households, the animals are regarded as part of the family and their welfare is just as important as anyone else’s in the home. With the availability of pet insurance online, families are able to secure pet health insurance for their beloved animals.

When it comes time to assure and protect the health of your pets, it is very helpful to have pet health insurance coverage in place. Such insurance plans can help to offset the high costs of pet surgery and other veterinary pet procedures that may come up because of serious illness or accident. Before health insurance for animal welfare was available, often people would have to choose between the health of their beloved pet and other family financial needs. Now that pet insurance is widely available online, people can take care of their pets in a convenient and affordable way.

The availability of pet insurance online has had an added benefit of helping to lower the general cost of pet health insurance. This has occurred because of a variety of factors that impact the cost of coverage, such as making it less expensive to advertise and market the pet health coverage and inexpensively creating a larger demand. In addition, this has brought more companies into the industry, including some companies that tout cheap pet insurance. In turn, this has increased the competition which benefits consumers by keeping prices down.

Many pet lovers appreciate the convenience of being able to shop online for their pet plan. For those who are frequent and avid internet users, it is a significant time-saver to be able to research options, coverage packages, the background of the pet insurance company and different pricing comparisons.

When choosing to purchase pet insurance on the internet, there are a wide variety of factors that will impact the premium and effect the monthly cost to your family. You can choose how extensive you want your pet health insurance coverage to be. You can opt to go with a plan that covers just about every pet health contingency from routine veterinary visits to emergency care. You can conversely go with a less expensive plan that is designed to cover the major and most expensive types of events such as cancer treatments, surgical procedures and care for any type of accident.

Another way to adjust the cost of pet insurance is to check what options you have for the deductible. The lower the deductible is, the higher your pet health insurance premium will be. If you are comfortable with a higher deductible, then you will be able to save some money on your monthly premiums.

Additionally, you can also look into with the animal care insurance provider to see if they provide a range of co-pays. This is the amount that you pay for any veterinary visit regardless of other coverage and the reason for the vet visit. Choosing a higher co-pay amount will also help to reduce your monthly premium. Having a good feel for how many veterinary pet visits you expect to make on a monthly basis will help you to know what makes the best sense for your budget, with regard to the co-pay options you have.

Some companies that offer online pet insurance will allow you to choose how often you make your premium payments. While many people like the convenience and the ability to work the amount into their monthly budget, sometimes it is worthwhile to see if you can save money by making other payment arrangements. Some pet insurance companies offer discounts if you pay your premium quarterly, semi-annually or annually.

Researching the options for pet insurance online is the best way to find out exactly what options you have for making sure the health of your family pets is well safeguarded. With just a bit of effort, you will be able to identify the best coverage options for your situation and that will fit within your family budget. Once you have the pet health insurance coverage in place, you can relax knowing that your four-legged friends will be able to get the veterinary care they need.

For extra informative knowledge click here: Pet Insurance Ratings and certainly try Banfield Pet Insurance as well as Pet Insurance For Horses