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About Cats
Domesticated cats are predators just like wild cats. They can stalk and hunt prey using tactics similar to those of leopards and tigers by pouncing; then deliver a lethal neck bite with their long canine teeth that severs the prey's spinal cord, or asphyxiate it by crushing the windpipe.
Cats have special teeth and they are meat eaters. The cat's tongue shows sharp spines, papillae, used for ripping flesh from their kill.
These papillae, small though, have backward-facing hooks that contain keratin and assist in their grooming. Cats eat almost no vegetables. They feed exclusively on meat, preferably their own freshly killed prey. All cats have a genetic anomaly that prevents them from tasting sweetness, so the “sweet tooth” does not exist for them.
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Costs of keeping a Cat?
Being a cat owner requires a financial obligation to fulfill a cat’s needs. If you cannot include the additional costs into your already small budget, you might want to reconsider and maybe wait a while with getting a new pet until your financial situation has improved. Being a cat owner should not require you to sell off any
personal effects like watches, tungsten rings or jewelry.
It is hard to resist a cute fluffy kitten that is in need of a home or the pretty stray that sits on your door step one day and wants to come in. If your budget is tight and you are willing to make certain sacrifices for thesake of having the pleasures of sharing your life with a cat, then you may be able to accomplish that dream.
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Cat Breeds
The following list of cat breeds contains the most common known breeds and is not a complete of ALL existing cat breeds.
Longhair and semi-longhair Cats
American Bobtail, Asian Semi-longhair, Balinese, Birman, British Longhair, Chantilly/Tiffany cat, Himalayan, Javanese, Maine Coon, Nebelung, Norwegian Forest Cat, Oriental Longhair, Persian, Ragdoll, Siberian, Turkish Van, Turkish Angora, York Chocolate cat
Shorthair Cats
Abyssinian, American Shorthair, Australian Mist, Bombay, British Shorthair, Burmese, Burmilla, California Spangled Cat, Chartreux, Colorpoint Shorthair, Egyptian Mau, European Shorthair, Exotic, Havana Brown, Korat, Ocicat, Oriental Shorthair, Russian Blue, Siamese, Singapura, Snowshoe, Sokoke, Somali, Tonkinese
Breeds based on mutations Cats
American Bobtail, American Curl, American Wirehair, Cornish Rex, Cymric, Devon Rex, German Rex, Japanese Bobtail, LaPerm, Manx, Munchkin, Ojos Azules, Peterbald, Pixie-bob, Selkirk Rex, Scottish Fold, Sphynx
Breeds from crosses with wild feral Cats
Bengal, Chausie, Cheetoh, Savannah, Serengeti, Toyger
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Grooming your Cat
Shorthaired cats know how to use their rough tongues to groom their coat, longhaired cats can't always groom their coats themselves. Longhairs should be groomed, starting as a kitten, from 10 to 30 minutes a day. If not brushed or combed daily their coats becomes matted.
Special combs and effective brushes can be purchased at pet stores and supermarkets. Another plus of daily grooming is the fact that shedding of the coat will be reduced considerably. Daily combing because you will notice the amount of fleas on your animal during the grooming can reduce flea infestation as well as reduces the amount of hairballs your cat's digestive tract has to contend with.
Cats usually shed their coat in cycles brought on by the length of daylight. If a cat is exposed to natural light only, he will shed in the spring and the fall. Other things that can cause a cat to shed its coat are fleas, an allergy, ringworm, or diet deficiencies. If an unusual amount of shedding is noticed, consult your veterinarian.
Bathing your cat is a big no-no. If you scare your cat by trying to bathe her you can get severely hurt.
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Costs of keeping a Cat?
Being a cat owner requires a financial obligation to fulfill a cat’s needs. If you cannot include the additional costs into your already small budget, you might want to reconsider and maybe wait a while with getting a new pet until your financial situation has improved.
It is hard to resist a cute fluffy kitten that is in need of a home or the pretty stray that sits on your door step one day and wants to come in. If your budget is tight and you are willing to make certain sacrifices for the sake of having the pleasures of sharing your life with a cat, then you may be able to accomplish that dream.
This is what you will need:
Quality Food
Litter Box and Litter
Funds for Spaying or Neutering
Funds for all necessary Vaccinations
Funds for the Annual Veterinary Examination
Funds for Emergency Veterinary Care
Of course the cost for the items listed above varies from city to city and vet office to vet office, so it would be wise if you inquire about it before you get a cat or kitten. Once you are absolutely sure you can provide for a cat, or maybe even two, please go to an animal shelter and adopt a cat that otherwise would have no chance!
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Brushing Your Cat's Teeth
There is only one way to find out if you cat will tolerate to have her teeth brushed: go for it! Use a toothbrush and toothpaste for cats. Human toothpaste is NOT safe for cats. Simply open your cat’s mouth by lifting his lip at the sides of his mouth and start brushing carefully. Regular checkups at the vet’s should include a dental examination and regular cleanings.
Cleaning Your Cat's Ears
You can use a Q-Tip, but be careful. Moisten it first with some water. Carefully wipe the exterior areas of your cat's ears. Never insert the Q-Tip directly into the ears; the eardrum is very sensitive and easily destroyed. You can use a table spoon of Peroxide and let it drip into the ear. The cat will shake his head and get rid of the gunk that way himself.
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Cow's Milk – the BIG NO NO
It will make cats and kittens very sick by triggering diarrhea based on the lactose intake, Diarrhea can be fatal in baby animals, because their immune system is by far not strong enough to withstand any disturbances.
Dogs, cats, and the majority of mammals do not have the necessary enzymes to properly break down the milk sugar which is called 'lactose.' You may have heard of people who are lactose-intolerant.
They are also missing these digestive enzymes. If the proper enzymes are not present, the lactose remains undigested and tends to ferment in the intestine and cause diarrhea.
Give your pet one of the commercial cat or dog milk replacer on the market that has had the lactose removed. You can obtain mother's milk replacer for young kittens at many of the pet stores in the area.
Many cats just love to drink cow's milk, which includes canned milk, but I advice strongly against it! Most cats, or all mammals for that matter, are lactose intolerant and letting them drink milk will result in an upset tummy and diarrhea, which is especially dangerous, even fatal sometimes, in kittens who can dehydrate quickly.
An adult cat doesn't need to drink milk at all. If you must give your cat milk, it is recommended you purchase special "cat's milk" which has been specifically formulated for cats to drink.
Should you get end up with an upset tummy, it is ok to offer her a table spoon full of plain yoghurt. The natural bacteria in the yoghurt will help settle down the stomach and aid the digestion.
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Physical Characteristics of a Kitten
• Under one week: Eyes closed, ears lie flat to the head, the skin looks pinkish. Part of umbilical cord may still be attached.
• 1 week-10 days: Eyes start to open, ears still flat. A kitten this age is smaller than your hand.
• 3 weeks: Eyes are fully open now, ears are standing up, teeth are coming in. Kitten will try to to walk and will be very clumsy.
• 4-5 weeks: Eyes have changed from blue to another color and kittens have started to pounce and leap. They can e given regular dry cat food.
Development Characteristics of a Kitten
• 5-8 days - Ears open
• 8 days-2 weeks - Eyes open
• 2½ weeks - Can crawl
• 3 weeks - Ears erect; Stands up
• 3½ weeks - Sight and sound oriented; Can follow noise/objects
• 4 weeks - Can eliminate without help and learn to lap from a dish and eat solid foods
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Keep Cats in at Night
The simplest way of making a difference to the wild bird population is to keep your pet in at night when the hunting instinct peaks. Keeping night-time activities to the minimum not only reduces hunting, it might also reduce the incidence of unwanted litters.
In turn, this will prevent many domestic cats contributing to the feral population, which poses a great threat to wildlife. Hunting is a matter of survival for the feral cats. They are responsible for many more kills than the average domestic kitty. Keeping your pet indoors is an effective step in protecting our wildlife.
Some owners are concerned about being cruel by restricting their pet's natural instinct to hunt and roam. Studies show that decreasing a cat's opportunity to hunt actually decreases the hunting desire.
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Feral Cats
The average life expectancy of a feral cat is not even 2 years. How sad is that? Understanding about the behavior of feral cats and what to do is important, so read on:
There are three different levels of feral cats. Nearly every feral cat can be tamed with enough time and patience.
Level 1
are the real feral kitten and feral cat. These are the cats that are very scared of humans and will run from you. If cornered they will hiss and spit, scratch and bite. These animals appear almost impossible to be domesticated. They will run from you or if cornered, they probably will hiss, growl, scratch, and even bite you. Don't give up; it IS possible to tame them!
Level 2
are the kittens and cats that lost their home or owners and ended up living on the streets. They will appear shy and take off once you get close, but usually they won't run far. They seem to be always on guard and very nervous. Try to bribe them with a piece of food and you will see that the cat will slowly change her demeanor and soon will come running when you come around.
Level 3
are the kittens and cats that left home on their own due to abuse. All they have learned is to be scared of humans, but have no experience to survive by themselves. There is a good chance that these cats can be tamed, depending on the severity of the abuse. They might display some odd behavior for the rest of their lives.
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Busy Lifestyle Pet
A decision like this has to be made for everyone on individual basis. Some cats are more independent than others. Every cat needs a certain amount of human companionship and affection. Why have a pet that you do can’t or don’t want to spend time with? That would be a little bit selfish now, wouldn’t it?
If you do lead a busy lifestyle, spend a long time away from home working, it is strongly suggest that you have at least two cats. Cats like to be amongst their own kind and they can keep each other company.
You might be concerned that you will be left behind if you have 2 cats. Do not worry. As soon as you get home, your cats will compete for your love and attention!
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How to remove Ticks
1. Gather the tools. The list is below.
2. Don't do it alone, have another person help you..
3. Take the tweezers and grab the tick by the head, as close to the cat's body as possible. Do not grab the tick's body!
4. Slowly but firmly pull outward. Do NOT twist or jerk.
5. Once the tick came loose, drop it into the glass with alcohol where it will be killed and disinfected.
6. Apply hydrocortisone spray to the bite wound.
7. Thoroughly wash and disinfect your own hands and safely dispose of the dead tick.
Myths:
It is an urban legend to use Vaseline, kerosene, nail polish remover, or rubbing alcohol to either suffocate the tick or force it to come out on its own. All this action will do is irritate the skin around the bite more and cause infection.
Keep treating the bite wound with hydrocortisone spray until it scabs over.
Tool List
• Tweezers
• Rubbing Alcohol in a glass
• Disinfectant
• Hydrocortisone Spra
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Old Cats - Special Care
Many of us are fortunate to watch our cats grow old, even though it is difficult for many to outlive their pets; the joy of the years together makes it all worthwhile. Now we want to give our senior cat the best care we can give. What should that include and what do you need to watch out for?
1. Dental Care
2. Arthritis
3. Hearing Loss
4. Vision Loss
5. Aches and Pains
6. Weakened Immune System
7. Weight Management
8. Nutritional Supplements
Of course our cats have a hard time letting us know when something hurts, so you have to practice awareness and pay attention to anything out of the ordinary. Do not hesitate to take your cat to the Vet for a seemingly unimportant symptom; nothing is unimportant when it comes to your aging cat.
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