Cats are fundamentally very clean animals. They put a lot of effort into grooming themselves. An occasionally, maybe weekly, brushing will help it and also strengthen the bond between pet and owner. If a short-haired cat becomes seriously dirty and unkempt there is almost certainly something wrong with its health and you should see your vet. Long-haired breeds of cat, however, do need some assistance with grooming and should be brushed regularly as a matter of routine.

While grooming your cat take notice of its skin condition. Look out for obvious irritations and sores. You might identify a disease problem early by this means and be able to prevent it getting worse.  Always brush the hair in the direction of its growth, from head to tail.  Never brush its face or paws.

There are some cats that do not like a brush.  They will often, however, accept a cat grooming glove.  Most that are groomed with a brush from being small kittens will enjoy the experience.

Don’t only take note of the skin condition.  Look also at your cat’s eyes, ears, teeth and claws while you have thins close up opportunity. Once again you might well discover health problems at an early stage.

Grooming is an important aspect of practical cat care.  For the good of your pet’s health grooming should be done regularly.  It is also one of the great opportunities to strengthen the bond between yourself and your feline friend.

Tags: care of cat, cat care, cat grooming

Cat health is a complex subject.  Many of its aspects are common to all, but individual breeds have different genealogies and as a result of their varying genetic makeup they differ one from another in the degree to which they are prone to various diseases.  Here are just two examples.

A Bengal cat, firstly, can often be prone to problems of the digestive system, probably because of generational closeness to its Asian leopard cat ancestors and lack of time to adapt to anything other than a hunted meat diet.  It was only as recently as the 1970s that the Bengal was developed through cross-breeding of domestic cats with wild leopard cats, and even in the past couple of decades a great deal of breeding back to the wild has taken place, even though it is now discouraged.  Problems such as irritable bowel syndrome are not uncommon.

Secondly, during the process of self-grooming all cats swallow hair.  Shorthaired cats do not normally have a problem with this, and the strands of hair simply pass through the digestive system. In longhaired breeds, however, there can be difficulty with hairballs forming in the stomach, composed of a mixture of hair and fat. Specially formulated foods can help minimise this.  It must always be remembered that long hair arises from a genetic mutation and close attention to cat health is necessary.

Make sure that you read up on the characteristics of a breed before purchasing and taking responsibility for an animal. This should always include any information you can find about the specific health care risks and requirements of the particular breed.

Tags: bengal cat, cat breeds, cat health, hairball, leopard cat

In earlier articles on this blog we’ve mentioned litter trays several times.  The traditional kind of litter box was just an open tray filled with sand.  Eventually more absorbent materials came into vogue, that not only soaked up the moisture but also much of the odour.

This was quite an advance over having a wad of old newspaper on a patch of linoleum, but even so for many cats this was not ideal.  Some seem very concerned about their privacy, and therefore the location of the tray had to be chosen with care.    Then came the enclosed litter box came into use.  This is a box with a roof to it, and a cat flap entrance through which the sensitive feline can go, do what it has to do, and emerge with dignity intact.

For a range of litter trays and boxes take a look at our CatCarePlus.com CatStore.

Tags: cat care, cats, litter box, litter tray

A responsible cat owner will always want to protect the health of the family pet.  Especially where there are children people often treat their cat as a member of the family.  Keeping it healthy and treating it well when ill are seen as solemn responsibilities.

In this article we will look at a few starting points for your cats health. As with humans an important  influence on health is diet, and not only the nature and quality of food but also its quantity

Feline obesity is a major problem in the ‘developed’ countries of the world, where both people and the their animals have become far too prone to eating far too much of the wrong kinds of food.  In the UK, for example, it has been estimated that almost 35% of cats are overweight

Obesity can lead to heart disease, especially as your pet ages.  It is important to manage the quality, quantity and frequency of feeding a cat in this situation.  Get advice from your vet as to all three of these points.  The necessary mix of nutrient material can be crucial to health,and even to survival, and it could be very different from what you might yourself expect.

Whilst shorthaired cats can groom themselves, those with longer hair often need some help.  Keeping your cat’s hair clean and in good condition is important to its health.  Try to give it a good brush on at least a weekly basis.  Incidentally, this can be an excellent way to create an affectionate bond between you and your cat.

Cat dentistry can become necessary.  Mouth infections are not rare.  Even more common, in female cats, are unwanted pregnancies. Unless you especially want a litter of kittens, it is good practice to have your kitten neutered.  Repeated litters of unwanted kittens are not good either for you, the cat, or the kittens themselves.  Remember also that following a sterilisation your cat may need an adjustment to her diet, and you should check this with the vet who does the operation.

Many people prefer to remove the claws of pet cats so as avoid risk of scratches both to humans and to their furniture.  In many countries, however, this is now an illegal practice and hopefully will become so more widely.  Claws are an inherent part of being a cat, and declawing is an attack on its ‘cattiness’.  It is done solely for the convenience of a human owner, with no benefit to the animal itself.

Providing somewhere for your cat to deposit its urine and faeces other than on a corner of your carpet is vital both for your health and hers.  A litter box or tray is a must. However, this does need to be ket clean.  Contaminated areas of litter should be removed daily and all of it replaced weekly.  Be sure to use litter material which is highly absorbent and also, especially if your cat is prone to attacks of feline asthma, make sure that it is not too dusty.

As with small children you should be careful what you leave lying around in the house. Poisonous liquids especially should be away from access even by an adventurous kitten.  You may also be well advised to check on the safety of your houseplants and their fruits.

Cats tend to bond strongly to their location.  Removal to another town or city, or example, can be quite traumatic. Use a cat carrier to transport your pet, and your vet should be able to recommend a mild sedative if he considers it appropriate.

Don’t forget to have your kitten immunised against the more common cat diseases, especially if it is not being kept totally indoors.  Infections pass quickly from cat to cat.  Take advice from your vet and remember that although there is a cost to this, the price of ignoring these precautions can be very much higher, quite apart from the unnecessary suffering that can be caused to your cat

Tags: cat care, cat cealth, cat diet, cat neutering, cat sterilisation, cat sterilization, looking after cats, looking after kittens

Last month we mentioned a story about a cat that developed a practice of slipping in through other people’s insecure cat flaps, stealing soft toys and bringing them home.

It should have occurred to me at the time that our readers might want to think about how to prevent anything similar happening to them. How do you provided a way for your own cat to come and go without opening your house to all the unwanted feline visitors in the neighbourhood?

Well surely the answer is obvious. When you yourself go in and out of your house you use a key. So why not give a key to your cat? Are you afraid she’ll lose it?

Hmm! Can the cat reach the keyhole and turn the lock to let herself in through the door? No, of course not. However there is a way. Install a lockable cat flap. But then, you ask, how will the cat lock and unlock this secure cat flap as it comes and goes?

Answer: a magnetic or infra-red triggered lock.

Lockable cat flaps are available which unlock in response to a magnet or miniature infra-red emitter attached to your cat’s collar as he or she approaches. Any other cat trying to get in without the required collar attachment will find itself firmly excluded.

Lockable cat flap sources: Click on the cat flap above to see a selection from PetsAtHome in the UK, or click here for cat flapsat Amazon.com.

Tags: cat care, cat flaps

Maybe you, like many other people, think it’s cruel to put your cat in a small cage.  Maybe it is if you do it unnecessarily and for long periods, but there are circumstances in which it is the only safe thing to do.

One example is when driving.  A cat roaming free in a car travelling at sixty miles per hour is a serious health hazard both to itself and to you.  A good quality pet carrier is not really an optional extra.

Cats, like other pets, can be unpredictable and as the old saying goes it is always better to be safe than sorry.  When, for example, transporting a cat to see the vet it is always better to have it securely locked in a cat carrier.

There are many different kinds of cat carrier available on the market today.  Here are some points that you should consider.

Your cat carrier should:

• be big enough for a full grown cat; remember that small kittens soon become grown cats;
• allow enough space for the cat to have some freedom of movement;
• have plenty of ventilation to allow air to circulate;
• have a hole in at least one of the sides big enough for the cat to look out;

Many cat owners make a practice of putting several layers of old newspaper in the carrier base so that if there’s an ‘accident’ the urine will be soaked up  This can be especially helpful if your cat is not yet accustomed to being transported in this way.

Just in case the carrier is bumped or thrown around it is also good to have some form of padding around the sides.  This could be your cat’s own blanket; in fact this would have the added advantage of making your cat feel more comfortably at home in its carrier.

Pet carriers these days are made from many different materials.  In times past one would often see a kitten’s head poking out from the top of a wicker basket.  More often today cat carriers are made of plastic materials or plastic coated metal.  There is a wide range to choose from in our CatCarePlus CatStore. The two graphic images above are also clickable and take you to pages with further details.

UK visitors: We recommend the leading UK pet store, Pets at Home

Tags: carrier, Cat, cat carrier, cat safety, cats, kittens, pet, pet carrier

Household pets such as cats and dogs spend a sizeable proportion of their lives sleeping. You will therefore want to provide your cat with a comfy bed.

As with a human bed there are two main components to a cat bed, firstly the frame and secondly the mattress.

One traditional form is the wicker basket. These can be bought in many shapes and sizes. Or maybe you would like some kind of fancy cat bed or a designer cat bed. If you have several cats you might want a cat bunk bed or a bed tree as cats like to be close to others.

Of course, if you have outdoor cats you probably won’t want an expensive decorative bed but something more basic and sturdy, possibly even weatherproof depending on where exactly you intend to locate it.

As mentioned at the outset of this article, in addition to the structure of the bed we have to think about the bedding. Because cats shed hair, some breeds more than others, the bedding needs to be washable. If it is thick and comfy it might take some drying, and even with only one cat it can be helpful to have two sets of bedding so that there can always be a clean one ready

Be kind to your cat. Give him a nice comfortable warm bed. Take a look at the CatCarePlus CatStore.

Tags: care of cat, Cat, cat bedding, cat beds, cat mattress, pet, pet bedding, pet beds, pet mattress