Hello Cat Lover!
Today's edition will cover:
Cat allergies and guests
Health issues... do dogs get better care than cats?
Dental problems
Last issue's problems with links... fixed, I hope
Rebel's story
Videos from a reader
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CAT ALLERGIES & GUESTS
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If you have one or more cats, how do you handle the
problem of guests who are allergic? Do you banish your
kitty to another room when people come over? Or do you
take the position that "this is my house, my house has
cats in it, if you want to see me, you must accept my
cats...?"
There are ways to do this, of course, without alienating your
friends and family (unless that's what you wanted to do). LOL
But I suspect most folks want their guests to be comfortable
and worry about handling 'The Cat Allergy Problem.'
Here are a few tips to help with that:
1. Vacuum just before guests arrive, to get up any
hairs and dander. Use a vacuum with a good filter
system. I hear the HEPA type is best.
2. Put throws on the furniture. If your cat spends time
on the furniture, without you covering it, then the throw
is for your company. If you keep it covered
for the cat for daily use, then the throw is for the cat,
and you can take if off for company.
3. Provide a desirable hideaway for the cat so she can
stay in another room while company is over.
4. To help your cat stay in another area without feeling
pushed out, just sprinkle a little catnip there!
What are some things you do to solve this problem?
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HEALTH ISSUES
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My kitty, Lucky Girl, has been having a time of it
lately. She is a rescue from the street about 5 years
ago, and we have no idea how old she is, but she's not
young. We thought her problems stemmed from an eye
infection, but after months of trying different
treatments from different vets, it appears her eye
isn't really that bad; it now seems that the underlying
infection has been in the sinuses, not the eye (discovered by
the last vet I consulted), but now the eye is at risk because
it got out of control.
It points up the need to diagnose problems properly,
but also spotlights a problem in some areas with getting good care
for a CAT.
It seems most vets know more about dog problems than
cat problems. This makes me ask these questions:
1. Is there simply more research done on dogs than
cats, resulting in a greater body of knowledge about
dogs?
2. Do more people (including vets) care more about
dogs than cats?
3. Are cats harder to diagnose than dogs?
4. What is an owner to do if their cat has an unusual
problem that isn't responding?
Drop me an email with your opinion or experiences.
Even though statistics show there are more cats
living as pets than dogs, it just looks to me like
dogs often get the better deal overall. Do you think
that cats, in general (and compared to dogs), are more
likely to be overlooked? Since I am located in a rural
area, even dogs may sometimes be ignored, in favor of the
more lucrative pursuit of livestock care. Perhaps the
disparity is related to urban vs. rural, and the
availability of veterinary care, i.e., more choices
in cities. How is it in your area?
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DENTAL PROBLEMS
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Is your cat a really picky eater? It may not be a
personality problem. It could be time for a dental
checkup.
Watch your kitty to see how she eats her food. If
she chews only on one side, or seems to "lose" her
grip on a mouthful now and then, she could be having
a problem with her teeth.
She (or he, of course) could also appear to lose interest
in eating, especially dry food (maybe it hurts to chew).
If you can get a look inside the mouth, great, but that's
not the easiest thing to do. It's best to have your vet do that
(and let someone else get bitten, eh?)
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FROM OUR READERS
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I've heard from several readers who had trouble viewing
some of the photos I listed in the last issue. I had a feeling
those links were too long... and they "broke" when they got
clicked on. That means they didn't make it into the browser
address field intact, and the Internet didn't know what they meant.
So, I took the liberty of getting shorter URLs for them, for your
convenience.
I used a service called Tiny URL. If you've never heard
of them, they are great. If you have a long web address to link
to, it's just a lot easier to do that with a short one. I should have
done it that way to start.
Anyway, here they are again, for anyone who didn't get
to see them. If these weren't so cute, I wouldn't bother,
but they are worth it.
http://tinyurl.com/3dfyul
http://tinyurl.com/36lmtz
-----------------------------------
Here's a VERY good story about a cat named Rebel.
This will break your heart, but let's not let Rebel's
tragedy go unremembered, if it will help even one more
cat out there to live a long and safe life:
http://www.kjs-deals.com/blog/
Good luck, KJ, you are doing great work over there,
and lots of cats are going to have better lives because of you.
(Thanks to Kathy for sending this in.)
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A SMILE FOR YOU ;-)
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These are very cute videos, over at You Tube, and were
created by Vicki, a reader with two great cats, Snuffy
and Sofie.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9hM9uecwIc
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=isFzgpubJbg
If you've never heard of You Tube, you will really enjoy
this. I only hope you have a fast connection and can see these.
If not, I have put photos of these wonderful kitties on my web site:
http://www.theproblemcat.com/misc/snuffysofie.html
Thanks Vicki!
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Do you have any interesting stories to share about your
cats? Send them in and I'll put them here in
this newsletter. (Include your name and website
if you have one, and I'll give you a "plug" for
your website. Or, anonymous is OK, too. It's
up to you.)
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https://www.ymlp.com/pubarchive.php?catsgalore
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