Tag: Signs of a Sick Cat

Genetics and Your Cat

Your cat may be born with an excellent genetic makeup by the luck of the draw. Some cats are born with a fantastic ability to cross the road without getting run over. Several generations of kittens will inherit the ability to cross the road without any problems for generations to come. After five to ten years, this remarkable trait will slowly disappear due to a new Tomcat on the scene or too much inbreeding.

Genetic mutations will generally show up as your cat becomes more mature. I have had cats that inherited lung, anemia, breast, eye, ear, and liver cancers. Sometimes it does not matter that you diligently take your cat for his yearly checkups. The best taken-care cat in the world can inherit some genetic mutation that has kept quiet in his body for years until something stimulates it to rear its ugly head.

I had a Maine Coon cat given to me by one of my cousins years ago. She lived to be about ten years old. I had not had a Maine Coon cat born on my farm for almost thirty-five years, and then one of my pregnant female cats gave birth to a male Maine Coon cat. I gave him to one of my cousins for a house cat. She is delighted to have him as one of her pet cats.

Rex cats or hairless cats are a result of a genetic mutation. A farmwife discovered two furless kittens in her barn one day. She decided to keep the skinless kittens, and now we have a new breed of house cats that do not shed any coats in our homes.

We never know when some horrible genetic mutation might pop up and take the life of our beloved house cat or pet.

Tags Kittens, Picking Out A Kitten, Signs of a Sick Cat

Kohl and his Cyst Removal

I took Kohl to one of my vets because he had a large cyst above his left eye. My vet said he could not remove the cyst, which would keep getting more significant. The cyst would get so large that Kohl could not open his left eye eventually. My vet gave him an antibiotic shot. The shot did not help the cyst get smaller.

A friend said to take Kohl to a different vet for a second opinion. I am sure glad I listed to her sage advice. I took Kohl to another one of my vets. My vet said he could remove the cyst. I was able to pick Kohl up from my vet yet that afternoon. I had him sleep next to me in a cage all night long so I could keep an eye on him and make sure he got along fine in the night after his surgery.

The cyst remained swollen for several days. Kohl removed the glue that acted as the stitches. Kohl ate the bond with no side effects. The cyst drained more after Kohl pulled the glue and licked away at the area where the cyst used to be. The swelling in the cyst is about gone entirely now.

Kohl is in good spirits and is very active again and playing with his cat toys. Kohl has a good appetite, and all is well in his World again. Kohl is eight and one half years old. He is sitting in my picture window watching the birds eat out of my bird feeders.

Always remember to get a second opinion on your pet’s health, just as we humans need a second opinion. If you do not get a second opinion quickly and efficiently, it might be life or death.

Tags Cat Emergency, Signs of a Sick Cat, Whats Upsetting My Cat ?

Why My Cats Throw UP

Why My Cats Throw Up

If my cats eat too quickly, they will throw up. Garfunkel eats very fast, and therefore, he throws up now and then. If your cat eats a new food that does not agree with him, he will be sick. Garfunkel had a blood test at the beginning of 2023 since he had lost weight. He was diagnosed with IBD in 2023, an irritable bowel disease for which he takes a pill.

My outdoor cats love to eat grass when I let them outside for a while. By eating the gra, ss they will generally get rid of a hairball. If you do not groom your cats often enough, they will throw up a hairball occasionally. Cats need to be groomed more often in the spring and summer since they are losing their winter hair coats.

Do not feed your cat too much in one single day. If we overeat in one day, we do not feel too great either. Do not give your cat a can of cat food, cat treats, and regular dry cat food in one day, as it will be too much for his stomach to handle.

If your cat is nervous or upset about something, he may throw up. When I leave on vacation, my cats throw up for a few days because I am gone, and they feel uncomfortable having someone else take care of them.

Cats do not like any change in their daily life whatsoever. A new piece of furniture or a new house cat could cause their stomach to be upset. A house guest can make your cat feel nervous and uncomfortable. Moving into a new home will cause your cat to be timid and anxious. Your cat will not have any familiar scents in his new home or territory. We teenagers also when we move to a new location. We wonder if r we will find a new job and make new friends quickly.

If your cat throws up over several da, take him to your veterinarian AS, AP, as he may have a severe medical condition.

Tags Hairballs, kitten grooming, Signs of a Sick Cat, Whats Upsetting My Cat ?

What Kind of Carpet or Flooring Should I Buy When I Have a Cat ?

Post author By Laura Weers
Post date June 7, 2016
1 Comment on What Kind of Carpet or Flooring Should I Buy When I Have a Cat ?

I always buy a piece of the carpet treated with a scotch guard. It is much easier to clean then. I also buy a piece of carpet that has a very tight weave. A rug with a tight weave will last much longer than a piece with a loose weave. I always ask the flooring store owner what he would recommend for carpeting in a three-cat household. My last piece of carpet was a pet-safe carpet. If your cat is not declawed, it quickly destroys a loosely woven rug. I have always had good luck cleaning up any little mess my cats put on my carpet. I clean up any mess my cats have made ASAP with a carpet cleaner and a light-colored towel, or I use thick paper towels. I also have a carpet shampooer and a spot bot. I generally shampoo my carpet twice a year.

I would recommend a linoleum floor in a house with over three cats. I like the kind of linoleum that is a no-wax floor. It is straightforward to wipe up any little mess on the floor. I use pine-sol and water to clean the floor. Like linoleum, a bed with no cracks or crevices is much easier to keep clean and sanitary.

I have a Tigerwood floor in my kitchen, a no-wax floor with a high polish that is very cat friendly. I cleaned the floor with water and a little pine – sol in the water. Any mess on the floor wipes up fast and efficiently. I also purchased a special spray bottle cleaner at the furniture store where I bought my wood flooring.

My house’s basement steps are wood and treated with a redwood oil stain. I wash the steps with pine – sol. I also clean the cement basement floor in my house with pine – sol.

I hope this will help you choose the perfect pet-friendly flooring for your house.

Tags Litter Box issues, Signs of a Sick Cat

Why I Should Deworm My Cat

Post author By Laura Weers
Post date June 3, 2016
No Comments on Why I Should Deworm My Cat

You should always deworm your cat, even if he is an indoor cat. Worm your cat preventatively according to your vet’s instructions.

Your cat can get different worms: tapeworms, roundworms, and hookworms.

Heavy infestations of worms can cause intestinal bleeding and anemia. In a kitten, many parasites in its body can be fatal. Roundworms are more common in kittens than in adult cats. Adult cats are pretty often infested with tapeworms. If a cat is stressed by trauma or disease, she is more likely to get worms. Fleas can cause your cat to get worms.

Your cat can get worms by eating infested mice and infested raw meat. Your cat may develop Toxoplasma. Toxoplasmosis can be spread from the mother cat to her kitten.

Pregnant women should not clean out litter boxes. It is straightforward for them to get toxoplasmosis from the infested bowel movements in the cat litter.

Here are some signs to look for that your cat may have worms. Your cat’s fur will look dull and unkempt. Your cat may start sliding its bottom across your floor. Your cat will become lethargic. You will notice that he is losing weight. Your cat will want to nap more than usual.

Try to worm your cats twice a year or more if you suspect they may have worms. You can buy a liquid dewormer to pour over your cat food if you have a farm cat that is hard to catch. You can also mix some dewormer in tuna with water for a cat that is hard to administer.

Your cat will be much healthier if you always remember to have him dewormed. He will also have a shiny and healthy-looking coat of fur. I hope your cat is feeling well.

Tags Kittens, Litter Box issues, Signs of a Sick Cat, Whats Upsetting My Cat ?

Sebastian's Story

Sebastian’s Story

Sebastian was born and raised on my farm. He would always walk under your feet when you would walk outdoors. Luckily no one ever stepped on him. One day he kept meowing right outside of my back door. I felt sorry for him, and he became my third house cat.

Sebastian was knowledgeable. The first night Sebastian was in my house, I heard quite a racket from my living room. Sebastian had been busy gathering all the missing toy mice and placing them in a neat little row. Sebastian also let me bathe him. He seemed to enjoy his bath, and he made no fuss whatsoever.

Sebastian did not respect my older house cats, to begin with. He liked to wrestle with them, but they did not greatly appreciate it. As Sebastian matured, he acted much better with my other house cats.

Sebastian loved to balance on the window valances, and he would walk across them to the other side. Sebastian was quite the acrobat. As Sebastian matured, he could no longer perform this feat.

Sebastian loved to sleep on my bed at night. It was a three-cat night in the winter instead of a three-dog night. I always would end up with three cats sleeping peacefully in my bed.

Sebastian’s favorite toys were always toy mice. He had quite an assortment of them to play with. He also liked to bat away at a mouse in a circle toy.

Sebastian was about twelve when I discovered lung cancer from an X-Ray that my vet had taken off his chest. I thought he just had asthma. My vet put him on a steroid treatment. The steroids worked for about one year. Sebastian kept losing weight and had more difficulty walking up and down the steps in my house. He was thirteen years old when I had my vet put him to sleep. I never want to see one of my beloved pets suffer.

Tags Introducing a New Cat Into Your Home, Kittens, Signs of a Sick Cat

Cat Hazards

Many cats die from poisoning every year. Please ensure all your poisons and hazardous chemicals are stored where your cat cannot reach them.

I will give you a list of poisons and chemicals that may be fatal if ingested by your cat:

drain cleaner
mouse poison
makeup
perfume
oil
antifreeze
floor polish
car wax
rust remover
glass cleaner
medications for humans
fertilizer
chemicals
gasoline
diesel fuel
and many more

Have a medication on hand that will induce vomiting if your cat has swallowed something that could be fatal. Check with your vet if he wants you to induce vomiting for your cat. It will depend upon what your cat has swallowed if it is necessary to induce vomiting. If you are unsure if your cat has ingested poison, but appears sick, call your vet ASAP. Depending upon what type of poison he may have swallowed, he could die in a manner of minutes.

Do not put any mouse poison or ant killer out if you have a cat. If you change your engine oil, put the old oil where your cat cannot reach it. Cats will drink antifreeze because it has a sweet taste. The antifreeze will kill your cat. Never, never leave out hazardous items that could kill your cat. Remember to make sure cupboard doors and closet doors are correctly shut. Cats can sneak into the smallest openings and quickly get into trouble.

Garbage can be a hazard. Your cat can get his head stuck in a can or a bottle and suffocate. Plastic bags can also cause suffocation if they become stuck in them. Dispose of your garbage correctly.

I hope your cat never swallows anything that will harm him. Always be extra careful with all cleaning supplies and chemicals.

Tags Cat Emergency, Signs of a Sick Cat, Whats Upsetting My Cat ?

A Tom Cat That I Rescued Difficult Cats

A Tom Cat That I Rescued

A sickly Tom cat came to my house years ago. His ears were frozen off, and he was pretty ill. I treated his frozen ears with antibiotic ointments. I put drops in his ears for ear mites. He had a horrible cough without diarrhea. I had penicillin on hand and gave him a shot in his back thigh. I had asked my vet what dosage was suitable for a cat before I gave him his shot.

He was a beautiful white Tom cat. He did not seem to mind my constant doctoring. Tom started to put weight on gradually. He was skinny when he first arrived on our farm. He stayed in a vacant dog house with straw in it. I kept treating his ears and giving him penicillin shots. Tom started coming out of the dog house and eating with my other farm cats.

Tom would let me pick him up and carry him around the farm. Tom had penicillin shots for a week before he was ultimately better. Toms’s’s fur looked beautiful, his ears healed, and his ear-mite free. He was a handsome-looking Tom cat now. Tom always slept in the dog house at night. I guess he felt safe in the dog house at night.

I could not find Tom one day. I had treated Tom every day for about a week and a half. I looked for Tom for some time but could never find him. One day I went to a friend’s house, and there was Tom. Tom looked happy and contented. I never told my friend that her new cat was Tom, the cat I had nursed back to health.

I figured Tom got tired of my doctoring and decided to move on to a house where they did not pester him daily with shots and other treatments. All I cared about was that Tom was healthy.

Tags Frostbite, Introducing a New Cat Into Your Home, Signs of a Sick Cat

Cystitis or Bladder Inflammation and Your Cat

Post author By Laura Weers
Post date January 22, 2016
1 Comment on Cystitis or Bladder Inflammation and Your Cat

My Russian Blue cat Catrenia had Cystitis. I had Catrenia for about four years before she got Cystitis. She was not as active as usual. Catrenia started sleeping a lot. I noticed her using the litter box quite often. Every time Catrenia used her litter box, she did not have much urine output. I took her to my vet, and he said she had Cystitis. My vet gave her antibiotics, some medicine, and exceptional cat food that helped with Cystitis.

My vet had told me he would like to have Catrenia if I ever wanted to part with her. My vet told me this about four years ago. I told my vet then I did not want to part with her. I was told by two of my vets that she would get a flare-up of Cystitis for the rest of her life now and then.

I have two other house cats, and buying expensive cat food for Cystitis for all three of my cats to eat was not an option that would work. I knew I would miss Catrenia terribly, but I thought her best option would be to live with my vet, who always wanted to have her. I called my vet and asked him if he would still like Catrenia, and he said he would still love to have her. Catrenia lived in the vet’s office for some time and recovered entirely by eating her exceptional cat food for Cystitis. She could get a flare-up again, but now she lives with a vet that can treat her every need. I visited Catrenia at my vet’s office at least once every two weeks. I could see that she was healthy and very contented living there.

Catrenia now lives in my vet’s house along with one other house cat that my vet has. Catrenia can now get all the care that her condition calls for 24/7.

Tags Cat Emergency, Signs of a Sick Cat, What Should I be Feeding My Cat ?, Whats Upsetting My Cat ?

Getting Your Cat Ready for the Cold Winter Months

Post author By Laura Weers
Post date December 5, 2015
No Comments on Getting Your Cat Ready for the Cold Winter Months

Ensure your outdoor cats have a place out of the wind. I have a unique building for my outdoor cats. I have heated outdoor beds in the building for my outdoor cats. I also have an old chicken nest filled with fresh straw. Cats or kittens without any protection from the elements can get the tips of their ears frozen off. My outdoor cats have a heated water dish. Your cat must have water available at all times for optimal health.

It is essential to check on your outdoor cats often in the winter. In a nasty blizzard, the opening of their building may get covered over with snow. Your cat may also become disoriented during a blizzard. You might save their life by alerting your cat’s well-being during a blizzard.

I have used a heat lamp to keep outdoor kittens warm. Ensure the heat lamp is away from anything that may catch fire. Give your outdoor cats extra food over the winter months to help them maintain more body heat. In cold weather, they will burn off any calories they may not burn off in warmer months.

My indoor cats have heated beds that they can rest or sleep in. They like to sleep in bed with me in the winter. They want to sleep next to the heat registers in my house. When I run an extra heater, I will find at least one of my cats sleeping next to it.

Ensure all of your cat shots are up to date before the cold winter months. A healthy cat can stand the cold much better than an unhealthy cat.

I ensure I have a good supply of cat litter and cat food before it gets icy out. You don’t want to slip on the ice and possibly break a bone trying to bring cat litter into your house.

Tags Signs of a Sick Cat, Whats Upsetting My Cat ?