Combining "healthy" and "affordable" when feeding our pets is the biggest challenge! Certainly, there are many affordable products on the store shelves, but are they healthy? Often, they are not even adequate, as claimed by their manufactuers. Additionally, it's difficult to find a food that has not appeared on a recall list.
By the time you find a petfood that has safe, optimum ingredients, the price has skyrocketed beyond the wallets of many pet owners.
It might be useful, however, to look at this in another way....that is, what's best in the Long Run?
I performed my own experiments a couple years ago and discovered that feeding what's called a "premium" pet food led to several unexpected results:
1. The cats ate less, because the nutrition satisfied their appetites rather than the quantity. This meant the product lasted longer.
2. The cats visited their litter boxes less often, and when they did, the droppings were smaller, better formed and easy to scoop. This means I use far less kitty litter...another savings.
3. The cats were more energetic, and over time, we were making fewer visits to the veterinarian. Many health problems are nutrition-related, similar to the human experience.
To keep things interesting, I also began making my own petfood from natural ingredients. There are many good recipes you can find online if you search for "natural homemade petfood." If one has the time and energy, making your own petfood is not as expensive as one might think, either.
In the final analysis, when you factor in the savings of using less food, less litter and fewer vet visits, I discovered that I actually spend about the same amount on the cats by feeding premium food as I did on cheap, commercial foods, and everyone is healthier.
Tuesday, November 5, 2013
Saturday, July 6, 2013
Cat Safety Tips in the Summertime
In most areas, summertime can be a risky season due to extreme heat, increased insect populations, and exposure to sunlight. Yes, pets can become sunburned.
The following 5 tips will help you protect your beloved kitty from suffering any these problems:
1. Provide shade for outdoor animals. For the most part, it's just best to keep them indoors, where air conditioning, or at least a good fan, will help keep them cool. Like dogs, cats do not sweat. And though they may be seen panting, it's only normal for dogs. If your cat is panting, it's usually an urgent sign of trouble. Immediately cool the cat down with water. If she won't drink it, you will need to drizzle some onto her fur, or use a small cloth dampened with cold water, especially on her head and paws, while you are on your way to the veterinarian's office.
2. Never leave ANYONE in a locked vehicle on a hot day. It literally becomes an oven in there and WILL result in heatstroke and probably death. If you see a pet (or child!) in such a car, immediately contact local police.
3. Sunscreen may be just as helpful for animals as it is for humans. Apply it to the areas of thin fur on the head of your cat, but be sure to clean it off when the sun goes down or the cat comes inside. Cats like to wash themselves and human sunscreen may be toxic. There are animal sunscreen products that are better for your cat, such as Solar Rx. (Look for the page of cat products.)
4. Use flea protection products year 'round, but especially during the summer months. Check out the variety of products available at Only Natural Pets. Also look for tick prevention products!
5. Create and keep a first aid kit at the ready for your kitty. Use a breakaway collar, and keep identification on your cat. Here are some poison control contacts you should keep handy and hope you never need:
http://www.pacc911.org/Poison_Control.html
http://petpoisonhelpline.com
The National Animal Poison Control Center 1-900-680-0000 or 1- 800-548-2423
Once you have these items and ideas in place, you can enjoy the summer months with your cat without taking chances.
The following 5 tips will help you protect your beloved kitty from suffering any these problems:
1. Provide shade for outdoor animals. For the most part, it's just best to keep them indoors, where air conditioning, or at least a good fan, will help keep them cool. Like dogs, cats do not sweat. And though they may be seen panting, it's only normal for dogs. If your cat is panting, it's usually an urgent sign of trouble. Immediately cool the cat down with water. If she won't drink it, you will need to drizzle some onto her fur, or use a small cloth dampened with cold water, especially on her head and paws, while you are on your way to the veterinarian's office.
2. Never leave ANYONE in a locked vehicle on a hot day. It literally becomes an oven in there and WILL result in heatstroke and probably death. If you see a pet (or child!) in such a car, immediately contact local police.
3. Sunscreen may be just as helpful for animals as it is for humans. Apply it to the areas of thin fur on the head of your cat, but be sure to clean it off when the sun goes down or the cat comes inside. Cats like to wash themselves and human sunscreen may be toxic. There are animal sunscreen products that are better for your cat, such as Solar Rx. (Look for the page of cat products.)
4. Use flea protection products year 'round, but especially during the summer months. Check out the variety of products available at Only Natural Pets. Also look for tick prevention products!
5. Create and keep a first aid kit at the ready for your kitty. Use a breakaway collar, and keep identification on your cat. Here are some poison control contacts you should keep handy and hope you never need:
http://www.pacc911.org/Poison_Control.html
http://petpoisonhelpline.com
The National Animal Poison Control Center 1-900-680-0000 or 1- 800-548-2423
Once you have these items and ideas in place, you can enjoy the summer months with your cat without taking chances.
Tuesday, May 7, 2013
New Book is Now Available!
Thanks to a great group of writers who love their cats, our next book is now a reality...and is available at these links:
https://www.createspace.com/4252359
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1484163443
https://www.createspace.com/4252359
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1484163443
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Outdoor Cats Are Killers
Have you seen the recent "news" articles about all those horrible feral cats demolishing and decimating all the wildlife all over the world? Well, OK, maybe they are having a negative impact on some environments, but it's very upsetting to see how the media is handling this.
They make it look like feral and stray cats are from another planet and have invaded earth and their only purpose in life is to destroy the entire planet....because they are such awful little beasts.
The FACT remains that these cats are only doing what they must to survive, because some HUMANS put them in harm's way. It was NOT their idea to live like that.
Responsible pet owners don't throw cats out like just so much trash, littering the landscape as if they are bags of dirty diapers tossed out the back window of the car as they drive by.
Those of us who rescue these hapless creatures and work so hard to rehabilitate them, often at great cost, are going to have an even harder row to hoe with the already negative attitudes of many who either don't understand cats, or even actively hate them.
How can we teach compassion when the mainstream media preaches hate, without the least concern for the effect this will have?
Now it's going to be that much harder to find homes for even the shy, easy-going and loving cats stuck in shelters everywhere. There is way too much killing of sweet, gentle cats, and now many people will feel even more justified to accelerate the kill rate.Worse, more cat haters will feel justified in torturing them.
Why not take this opportunity to promote the spay-neuter agenda? Or, why not put the birth control drugs back on the market? FeralStat was working! Yes, it had side effects in some cases. But what is the side effect of allowing abandoned cats to reproduce at will? Hint: a short list includes starvation, disease, injury, etc., all adding up to misery. Oh, but who cares, right?
Better yet, teach responsibility in cat ownership: keep them indoors, get them altered, give them the life they deserve.
They make it look like feral and stray cats are from another planet and have invaded earth and their only purpose in life is to destroy the entire planet....because they are such awful little beasts.
The FACT remains that these cats are only doing what they must to survive, because some HUMANS put them in harm's way. It was NOT their idea to live like that.
Responsible pet owners don't throw cats out like just so much trash, littering the landscape as if they are bags of dirty diapers tossed out the back window of the car as they drive by.
Those of us who rescue these hapless creatures and work so hard to rehabilitate them, often at great cost, are going to have an even harder row to hoe with the already negative attitudes of many who either don't understand cats, or even actively hate them.
How can we teach compassion when the mainstream media preaches hate, without the least concern for the effect this will have?
Now it's going to be that much harder to find homes for even the shy, easy-going and loving cats stuck in shelters everywhere. There is way too much killing of sweet, gentle cats, and now many people will feel even more justified to accelerate the kill rate.Worse, more cat haters will feel justified in torturing them.
Why not take this opportunity to promote the spay-neuter agenda? Or, why not put the birth control drugs back on the market? FeralStat was working! Yes, it had side effects in some cases. But what is the side effect of allowing abandoned cats to reproduce at will? Hint: a short list includes starvation, disease, injury, etc., all adding up to misery. Oh, but who cares, right?
Better yet, teach responsibility in cat ownership: keep them indoors, get them altered, give them the life they deserve.
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