Happy Pets

Unless you are about to become the proud owner of a Sphynx, which has no hair at all, if you buy nothing else in the way of grooming equipment, you should at least invest in a comb that has been specially designed for felines (not a human one) to help your cat to keep its coat tangle-free. Human-assisted grooming is vital for longhaired cats to prevent their coats from becoming so drastically matted that the only solution is a trip to the vet’s to have the solid clumps of fur shaved away. (more…)

If you intend your feline to be an outdoor cat, think about how it is going to gain access to the great outdoors.

With your special skill as a door-opener, are you prepared to be miaowed at every time, day or night that your cat wants to be let in or out? If not, and you don’t want to restrict your cat’s movements, fitting a cat flap into a wall or door (for which some DIY expertise will be required) is probably the answer. (more…)

Unless you intend to breed from, or show, your cat, there is little that a pedigree feline can offer that a mongrel moggie can’t match. Just like people, every cat is a unique character, whether their lineage is uncertain or you can trace it back for many generations. Probably the only significant difference between purebreds like our Somali, Melchior, and crosspeds like his companion, Caspar, is that you can predict with reasonable accuracy how any kittens that a pedigree cat may have will look, especially if the other parent is of the some breed. And although it is often said that because moggies, unlike many pedigrees, aren’t inbred, their mixed gene pool makes them more resistant to disease and generally tougher, this claim hasn’t been scientifically substantiated (and in any case, many moggies are born into close-knit family groups). (more…)

As well as offering considerable advantages, the cat’s body does, however, have its drawbacks, the inevitable consequence of the compromises that nature was forced to make when designing Fells catus. Because the wildcat was — and remains — an opportunistic predator that could not rely on a regular supply of food, for example, the stomach that its descendants have inherited takes up a disproportionately large amount of room at the expense of its heart and lungs. (more…)

Evolution having fine-tuned every fibre, nerve and cell of the feline body many millennia ago, the domestic cat of the twenty-first century closely resembles its wildcat ancestors in both build and mentality. Like every other species — Homo sapiens included — the cat’s ultimate raison d’être is the constant search for, and acquisition of, food, a mission for which nature has equipped it superbly. (more…)

Despite such Far Eastern reservations, about the cat’s exact intentions towards humanity, it is considered wise to hedge one’s bets and to treat cats with respect, as in Persia (Iran), where black cats are said to be jinns (spirits that assume feline form) or hemzads (individuals’ guardian ‘angels’). The world over, the cat’s mysterious, far-seeing eyes are considered to reveal its clairvoyant powers, as well as its agility and cunning ingenuity, just some of the characteristics for which it is respected as a totemic animal by many African and Native American peoples. (more…)

Wheezing

Wheezing is noisy breathing (respiration) and may be accompanied by increased effort during breathing, noticeable by exaggerated movements of the abdomen or chest, and perhaps more rapid breathing than normal. True wheezing is often caused by allergic conditions, especially the quite common condition of feline ASTHMA, but most owners would be unable to differentiate this from similar breathing noises caused by other conditions such as PNEUMONIA. (more…)

Collars and leads

Even if you have no plans to take your cat out for walks a collar and lead will be useful as a means of control and restraint when you have to take it to the vet or on a journey. The collar must have an elastic section, so that if the cat gets caught on a nail or twig it can free itself without risk of choking. The collar should also carry an identity disc with the address and/or telephone number of its owner, or a cylinder that holds a roll of paper on which they can be written. The cylinder type is useful if you move around a lot and have to keep on changing your address, but the disc will be more easily noticed and read. (more…)

Damage to furniture, carpets and curtains can be a frequent problem with an untrained cat. Like spraying, it is a means of claiming territory: particular sites are repeatedly scratched and scent marks from the paws deposited at the same time. Outdoors this may occur on trees and posts, indoors on your furniture or perhaps a doorway. Once a particular place has become established as a marking site, it can be extremely difficult to transfer the attention elsewhere. For a cat, scent-marking is like running up a flag to declare one’s territorial rights; and the markings must be continually refreshed. (more…)

Cats are cautious and do not usually take unnecessary risks. They are also very curious and the world is full of dangers, from the juggernaut on the main road to the threaded needle on the carpet, the dog next door to the pot plant on the table. Every owner should know how to deal with minor injuries and administer first aid, though the untrained should not usually attempt more than that. If you do not know what to do to help an injured cat then it is better to do nothing other than see that it does not injure itself further and get professional help straight away. However, immediate first aid treatment can often make a minor contribution to its recovery. (more…)