Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Cat Saliva: Venom or Antidote??

There are a lot of myths swirling around with regard to the supposedly "medicinal" or healing properties of cat saliva, which is thought to be much cleaner than our own. The same story goes for dog saliva as well, often to a much greater extent. This conception arises mostly out of the simple fact that cats and dogs lick themselves (often obsessively) to clean themselves or to tend to wounds. But the simple facts are:

* Yes, cats, dogs, and humans have anti-septic enzymes in their saliva that can help clean wounds and aid healing.

* But cats, dogs, and humans also have enough bacteria in our saliva to make matters worse. The risk of infection outweighs the potential benefits, and because of better veterinary treatments available, we discourage pets from licking their wounds today.

* Cats have a much higher bacterial concentration in their saliva compared to both humans and dogs. Generally, dogs have the cleanest mouths of the bunch!

What makes cat bites problematic is the fact that their teeth are narrow and sharp, and their puncture wounds can be deceptively deep, often causing tissue damage that is not easy to detect from the relatively small hole that is left.

Whether you're dealing with a human or another cat or dog, cat bites should be handled with a level of urgency because of the high risk of serious infection. Over 85 percent or cat bites carry bacteria or pathogens of some kind, and indoor cats are by no means exempt. Bites can easily cause infection, and the resulting symptoms can range wildly from soreness to life threatening complications if left untreated

While it is true that dogs are responsible for the majority of animal bites (over 80 percent compared to 10 percent for cats), the risk of infection is much more serious for cats. Nearly 50 percent of cat bites result in some degree of infection, compared to under 20 percent for dogs. In addition, cats can also infect humans with their claws, as the cat's claws can carry the bacteria from their mouth. This is known as "cat-scratch disease." It usually involves a swelling of the lymph nodes, and can be tricky to diagnose as symptoms can take a week or two or sometimes longer to arise.
Always treat the puncture site with anti-bacterial ointment and/or prescription antibiotics as directed by a health professional. Monitor the bite or scratch for signs of infection, which include redness and swelling. Often it helps to make a mark on your skin where the edges of the redness appear as to track any change. You should take these precautions even if your own cat accidentally scratches you or catches you with its teeth, no matter how cute and cuddly and clean you think they are.

Monday, May 11, 2009

3 ways to handle cat in stress

Cats are sensitive creature thats can suddenly change without our knowledge. How they tell us they're sick or stress is in their own unique way. As a cat owner we have to learn cat characteristic, cat behaviour and a bit of cats symptom in order to keep us alert of any changes.

On my last post I've decribed how cat can be in stress. Things can make cat in stress are fear, loss of family member, moved house, changing in environment and changing in their schedule.

Obviously cat can have a few symptoms when they're in stress. Common changes are :
Having problem with litterbox
Hiding
Restless
Excessive vocalization
Frequent teritorial behaviour eg spraying

Cats at anytime or in sudden could have these common changes. After you'd detect the changes, maybe you can make schedule go for vet - if involved cat's health. Because health also makes cat in stress.

There are many ways to handle cat in stress. 3 tips are listed as follows :

1- Don't change environment
If you'd planned to do make over or decoration for your house, my suggest is you ca go on with that but, do it step by step. What I mean here is, maybe today you only change for the sofa and after cat seems no problem you can proceed to next step. In other words, don't make it in sudden way! Remeber? cat in stress when there's sudden change in their environment.

2- Give them personal space
Give them personal space at corner of your house. It can be define as their home. The objective is to make a safe retreat for them. You can put toys, bed, scrathing post or any other things. make it a safe haven for them. So, in whatever environment changes in your house cats had a place called haven. A place where they are safe retreat.

3- Put your cat on schedule.
Cats are absolutely happy when their lives revolve around the schedule. They truly a cratures habit. You should play with them, should feed and go to sleep with your cat approximately
at the same time every night. With this schedule, it could influence your cat lives. they will love you. More than you could imagine.

Love your cat , cat will love you back as long as the right trains are in placed.

Saturday, May 9, 2009

Cats and Stress

Cats may not have to deal with rush hour traffic, a
grouchy boss, or paying the bills - but they still
get stress, just like people.

Many times, a cat's behavior problems are a result of
stress.

You may be wondering, why would a cat get stress?

Cats are creatures of habit, and are very sensitive
to change. Cats are happiest when their lives revolve
around a set schedule and their environment stays the
same.

Here are a few situations that can cause stress in
your cat:

A new member of the family, whether it's a dog, cat
or person.

A sudden change in their schedule.

This can happen if you get a new job with different
hours. Maybe you used to feed your cat in the
afternoon and evening but now you now fill the bowl
early in the morning instead. Cats may not be able to
read the clock on the wall - but they have an
internal clock that they revolve their life around.

New furniture, or the furniture in your house has
been rearranged.

Your cat spends a great deal of time marking your
house each day with friendly facial pheromones.

Those pheromones tell your cat this is a safe,
familiar place. When you remodel and get new
furniture, all of those familiar scents have
disappeared, and your cat has no idea what happened.

(Cats don't know that the environment is going to
change, and there's no way to warn them about it.
Imagine waking up one day in a completely different
house and not knowing where you are, how you got
there or where all of your stuff is)

Moving to a new home.

Same basic idea. Your cat doesn't understand the
reason for being in the new house. All your cat knows
is that it's a scary and unfamiliar place. This is
why many cats run away right after moving - they're
attempting to go back home.

Death of a family member.

Behaviorists and other experts disagree on whether or
not a cat can feel grief. (I personally believe they
do grieve) Regardless of whether or not they grieve
when a family member passes away, there is still a
change in their environment.

A member of the family that was once there is now
gone. On top of that, the rest of the family may be
acting differently because they are grieving, which
causes more stress because your cat doesn't
understand what's going on.

Fear

Many things can cause fear in your cat, from being
chased by your dog or being bullied by another cat in
the household -- to fireworks during a holiday,
construction being done on the house (or even at the
neighbors house), a loud party with lots of
strangers, or running out in the street and being
honked at by a big truck!

Friday, May 8, 2009

Healing gemstone necklaces!

Alternative Veterinary Medicine is the practice that analyzes and takes into consideration a wide range of topics that have a direct impact on the well being of your pet. It includes the areas of Holistic, Integrative and Complementary practices that use a combination of conventional and alternative methods to find the best answers for solving your pet’s problem or distress.

Many doctors that understand alternative canine and feline medical practice will give a comprehensive evaluation that encompasses your pet’s behaviors, diet, environment, emotional stresses, and a variety of other factors. Veterinarians that recognize these practices will provide many additional services that go beyond a standard physical examination.

You can now revitalize your pet's senses with hand made collections of healing gemstone necklaces! What about that? Yes, now is possible to offer “alternative” necklaces to your “kid”. On a simple search on the Internet you will find pet boutiques that sell unique pet jewelry and accessories online. Be sure to check out the matching bracelet collections, too – they are truly small treasures. The gemstones are not only beautiful but also have the wonderful ability to rejuvenate your four legged friend through alternative healing methods.

Aromatherapy is also an effective complementary therapy in psychological treatment, beneficial in alleviating many conditions such as anxiety, stress, and depression. There is an undeniable connection between smell and memory. The term Aromatherapy refers to the therapeutic use of aromatic oils, or "essential oils". Essential oils are the concentrated aromatic essences extracted from plant sources such as woods, flowers, fruits, stems, leaves, and resins.

Did you know that breathing in pleasant scents eases psychological problems by activating positive emotional responses from the part of the brain that controls memory and emotion?

Browse for specialized pet web sites and you will be able to purchase adorable fragrant charms, in variety of textile designs and several colorful styles. And be sure you get them made of 100% cotton! They look good and smell great! Or... you might prefer an exclusive collection of aromatic bandanas. This special accessory provides a unique healing essence while keeping your pet in style. They also come in a variety of colorful designs and should be made of high quality 100% cotton. The bandanas are stuffed with aromatic filling containing essential oil. Choose your favorite bandana style that fits your dog or cats aromatherapy needs.

Wouldn't you like to keep your pet as healthy as stylish? I wouldn't waste anymore time and I would check out the Internet!

Animal lovers are never alone

Early childhood is an impressionable period of life in which children are often dog lovers. Parents have a great contribution in the building of their children’s character by encouraging them to be animal lovers and allowing them to have a dog as a pet. Parents should encourage their young to become animal lovers because this will mean never to be alone, to always have a friend, to be comforted when sad, to be happy and needed, to learn responsibility and, last but not least, to love. That's what an animal friend teaches a child: the most valuable lesson of all.

Seeing dog lovers in parks, on television, in stores and on the streets, one can realize the benefit of having a pet as company. Having a dog or cat around the house will surely bring animal lovers a lot of smiles. Cuddling, big round eyes sending messages of love, cute fluffy ears or tail moving in signs of joy should make any heart melt. Animal lovers are the ones that feel for these helpless beings. A pet is not an object one buys to keep around the house, but a living thing that communicates and interacts with the persons around it. Animal lovers know that and they appreciate every smile a pet brings on their faces.

Dog lovers know that pets depend and need them more than a human ever will. The animals around the house have to be fed and watered and cleaned constantly, just like a child. They need their masters just like a child needs his mother to survive. Having a pet means having a lot of responsibility and dog lovers sacrifice their time, money and effort to keep their beloved company around them. Animal lovers assume the responsibility towards their pets with pleasure and never regret their efforts, because they do it out of love. In exchange, animal lovers receive even more. Animal lovers are never lonely, are always loved by their pets, they never get disappointed and often receive the comfort that a human could not give them. Not to mention animal lovers won't ever feel nagged by their pets, neglected or left aside. Having an animal for a friend is having a true friend for life.

Another reason to why animal lovers are never lonely is the fact that their sacrifices talk a lot about the kind of persons they are: communicative, generous, not selfish, always around to help their friends in need, loving and attentive. There are many people who would want these qualities in their friends or their lovers, so animal lovers are very appreciated and loved by everyone. Single persons that are dog lovers can easily find company not only in their animal friends, but in their human friends also. Not to mention that dog lovers usually find dog lovers also as their friends, because their passion for the same pets will give them a lot of things in common to talk about. A shared passion (of any kind) will always bring two persons together. Imagine a dog lover going out to walk the dog every day. Who is he most likely going to have as a friend? Will it be his female neighbor that can't stand dog lovers? Or will it be the girl that walks her own dog in the park every morning just like him? Animal lovers, because they love life and its smallest proofs (animals) will never be alone and they will always share their pleasure with those that appreciate the same thing as them.

So if you are looking for company, animal and human, don't forget animal lovers and their pets! They will bring you the soul medicine everyone needs: love.

Think before declawing cat.

Declawing is a major surgery known as onychectomy, performed under anesthesia, that removes the tip of each digit (from the first knuckle out) of the cat's forepaws. There is a slight chance of death in the surgery, and a declawed cat may have an increased risk of infection and life-long discomfort in its paws. This surgery is not recommended for an adult animal and is considered an act of animal cruelty in some countries (see below).

People generally have cats declawed to prevent them from hunting and from damaging furniture. Rarely, vicious cats are declawed. In the United States, some landlords require that tenants' cats be declawed.

Veterinarians are generally critical of the procedure and some refuse to perform it because the absence of claws in a cat:

1. Deprives it of its main defense abilities, including escaping from predators by climbing trees;
2. Impairs its stretching and exercise habits, leading to muscle atrophy;
3. Compromises its ability to balance on thin surfaces such as railings and fence tops, leading to injury from falls;
4. Can cause insecurity and a subsequent tendency to bite.

This operation is rare outside of North America. In Finland, Germany, the Netherlands and Switzerland, declawing is forbidden by the laws against cruelty to animals.[17] In many other European countries, it is forbidden under the terms of the European Convention for the Protection of Pet Animals, unless "a veterinarian considers [such] non-curative procedures necessary either for veterinary medical reasons or for the benefit of (the) animal". [18] In Britain, animal shelters find it difficult to place imported cats that have been declawed and subsequently most are euthanized.

An alternative to declawing is the application of blunt, vinyl nail caps that are affixed to the claws with nontoxic glue, requiring periodic replacement when the cat sheds its claw sheaths (about every four to six weeks). However, the cat will still experience difficulties because the capped nails are not as effective as claws.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

9 Tips For Choosing The Best Cat Urine Cleaner

This is the best cat urine cleaner Guide for those who ask any of the following questions:
How to choose a cat urine remover?
How to select a cat urine remover?
How to find a cat urine remover?


With all this choice in an endless supply of products there is one problem and that is "CHOICE". How do you choose the right one? how do you select the best product for you and your pet? Well I am going to share with you this secret whether your question is how to choose a cat urine remover, how to find a cat urine remover or how to select a cat urine remover.

The truth is you can spend days even weeks looking at different products and comparing features or value. But somewhere you have to draw the line, some time you will have to make a choice. That is the reason for this article, to save pet owners from wasting their time and money on something that they really are not sure on. I have already spent my time looking at different cat urine cleaners that remove serious pet urine and I'm giving you this information as an easy to understand rating system.

To understand the system completely you will first need to have the 9 MOST IMPORTANT CRITERIA you ABSOLUTELY, POSITIVELY must know before purchasing any cat urine cleaners. These following 9 criteria will allow you to make a quick sound judgment on any product, so you know instantly if it is a yes or a no! Without it you could be very disappointed with the product bought because of its lack of performance and with no way of refunding it, you would be wasting money.

So for the pet owners who want to find the best cat urine cleaner to remove those serious pet urine stains just use these follow 9 criteria's.

1. No fragrance to hide or disguise the odor since this will only fix the problem temporarily.
Masking the odor may work for the time being, but wait 2-3 hours and that smell will be back. It is important to be able to smell the urine stain with out fragrances to tell if it was effectively removed. If the smell persists then total removal was definitely ineffective even if no stain can be seen.

2. EASY to use SAVING you time, effort and MONEY!
Make sure the product is an easy one step process for its use! The last thing you need is to spend more time then necessary applying two or three treatments for total removal. I don't think the company really cares how long it takes you to clean up since they are not the ones cleaning up the mess. I want it to be as easy as possible! And so should YOU!

3. No claim to absorb or sponge the stain, since this will later require effort to clean any remaining remnants.
Any product that claims to absorb or sponge the stain usually (but not always) requires an applying step, then wait after X hours to do the second step, which is to vacuum or clean it up. To me this seems like double work and it would have to be cleaned thoroughly to remove all remnants of the cleaning agent.

4. Unmatched quality GUARANTEED by the manufacturer that will remove all components of the stain from color, texture, odor and the toughest component of ALL!.........Uric salt crystals!
A clearly stated GUARANTEE is important to you as the purchaser. This is your insurance and leverage as a customer. And it would not be smart to shop online without any form of insurance. Businesses today usually accept this form of risk to them and I would be suspicious of any business that did not CLEARLY state a GUARANTEE.
The toughest component of urine is the "Uric Salt Crystals". When looking for pet stain cleaner you should be looking to see what has it been tested on and what does it remove? Does it remove Uric Salt Crystals?

5. Must prevent your pet from repeated soiling in the same area.
The reason I was emphasizing about the Uric Salt Crystals is because it is these crystals that hold the marking scents of your pet. Remember how dog marks his territory by urinating around their area. Well it is these crystals that hold their scent in which they can find that same spot over and over again. If you can remover these Uric Salt Crystals then you can prevent this habit.

6. Must be NON-TOXIC for YOU, children, pets and guests.
I have a one and a half year old son at the time of writing this article and for anyone who is a parent, toxic chemicals are a concern. We place all ours outside in the shed and up high so they are out of the reach of little hands. But if you are not a parent then you too should give a thought about the toxics used in your house. This is for you, your pets and for the people you invite to come around to your house.

7. Must have a long history (i.e. 30 YEARS) of customer satisfaction.
If the business or product has been around for a long period time then you can feel assured that the product may be good. The logic behind this statement is that with all the securities commissions around the world and the strong internet anti-fraud measures, a business will have to be legitimate to stay around for any long period of time. If they were not legitimate then they would only be around for a short time before getting shut down. Scams come and go but a good business or product is around for the long term, that you can TRUST!

8. Size.
How much are you getting in one bottle? You want the bottle to last a while before you have to order a new one.

9. Unbeatable value, including FREE bonuses, with out any drop in quality.
What I am about to say may be common knowledge to some people, but the problem with 'common knowledge' is that it is not common. Once you have found your pet stain cleaner that seems to be a high quality product. You MUST ask "WHAT'S IN IT FOR ME!" If you purchase this product, what else are you going to get? By doing this you will always get more value for your dollar.
There is a skill to this as well, since you need to look for the not so obvious. Most people look for the little free gimmicks like a free carpet cleaner included or a free black light to find stains (you will need the right UV frequency for it to work). But what I am talking about are extras that work for you. Are you receiving bonuses that you can sell? Might you get the opportunity to join the businesses affiliate program after the purchase and make money off the product you tested (used). Is that business going to work for you long term?, long after the purchase of their product.

So if you are thinking of purchasing a Cat Urine Cleaner to remove the most serious pet urine stains keep these following 9 criteria's in mind as you will reach the best solution faster. They are valid points in which pet owners must consider and for anyone spending money it is important to ask if that money will return.

For more detailed information on how to choose a cat urine remover, how to find a cat urine remover or how to select a cat urine remover, please look for the free ebook titled "Cat Matters Online".

The ebook above is also useful to anyone searching for pet odor removal too. For example, san francisco pet odor removal or bay area pet odor removal.

by Hayden Brown