Unfortunately, we usually have to learn the hard way. I certainly did. I have cats now, but I used to have a dog called Benji and I learned a lot from him. He died of congestive heart failure, about 17 years ago. Because of his health problems I discovered that a lot of what I thought I was doing right, was actually harmful. I was feeding him what I thought was high quality food. I took him to see the vet regularly, and made sure he received all his shots and so on. I thought I was doing the right things – but it turned out that I wasn’t.
When it was too late, I learned that the food I was giving him, had actually contributed to his health problems – even though it was one of the most popular commercial brands
of food (and not even the cheapest). Although I don’t have a dog any more, I use the knowledge that I gained from that experience to help my cats . I study and learn as much as I can to help them stay healthy and to avoid cat health problems.Boots was a beautiful and perfect cat. She came to us when she was 8 years old. We adopted her from the Humane Society. We were very surprised to learn that she had been in the shelter for 4 years. She died 2 years ago at the age of 17.
We adopted Flugel at the same time as Boots. We think he’s a Norwegian Forest Cat (because I saw a pictur
e and description of one in a book and it matched him perfectly). He was sharing a cage with Boots at the Humane Society. He was 2 years old then and he is now 14. He is a very happy and healthy boy, but a couple of years ago we almost lost him. He had a hernia - a small hole in his diaphragm. Some of his organs (gall bladder, spleen, etc.,) moved through the hole and ended up near his heart. This was a condition he had been born with. Fortunately, he had surgery and now everything is back where it should be and he’s doing very well. He recovered quickly considering how serious the problem was.Tinkerbell came to us about 6 months after Boots died. When we adopted her she w
as a year and a half, she is 4 now. She had been adopted by another family when she was a kitten. But they returned her to the shelter because she stopped using her litter box. The reason was because she had a severe urinary infection and was in a great deal of pain. When she was returned to the shelter, her infection was treated, and we found her shortly afterwards – she now happily uses her litter box and has never had a problem in the time that she’s been with us.To avoid cat health problems and to keep our cats happy and healthy we need to provide first and foremost good quality food. Most people don’t know that many cat health problems can be avoided if just by providing healthy, natural food? People are often surprised to hear that this does not include the majority of commercial brand cat foods that you find in the supermarket. Most of that food is not only unhealthy, it’s very harmful.
Cats also need plenty of exercise and mental stimulation. Cats are intelligent, and they need stimulation and activity. Indoor cats particularly need plenty of activities and exercise.
Finally, a stress-free environment is important. If your cat is being chased and harassed by children, attacked by other pets or spending a lot of time hiding out of fear, that constant level of stress can be very harmful.
If you are aware of your cats needs, feeding them healthy food and keeping them stimulated and stress-free will help you to avoid most cat health problems. It’s worth the time and effort and you will ultimately save money because you won’t have expensive vet bills.
Our cats give us love and endless pleasure. The least we can do is take care of them and provide what they need.
To learn more about how to keep your cat healthy and happy, visit the Cat Health Problems Blog.
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