I have often heard it mentioned that cats have poor kidneys due to the fact that so many cats develop kidney disease. While it is true that kidney failure is a leading cause of death for older cats, it is not true that they have poor kidneys. In fact, the exact opposite is true: feline [...]
Too often I hear people comment that their cat is [insert symptom or condition here] because it is old, and old cats just “get that way." While it is true that many disease processes are more likely to occur in an older cat, the cat’s age is not a prerequisite for disease. Younger cats can [...]
Feline Leukemia Virus (FeLV), like FIV discussed last month, is a retrovirus. These viruses insert themselves into the host's DNA and are one of the main reasons that these infections are difficult to treat and have no cure. Of the two viruses, FeLV is the far more contagious disease. Like FIV, FeLV can be transmitted [...]
This month’s newsletter is dedicated to “Percy”. Percy is a cat that was brought to us by a Good Samaritan after they found him on a hiking trip in the middle of nowhere. He has come a long way in a short time. When he first arrived, he was so matted that we could not [...]
Come to our Open House! Saturday, August 29th from 1:00pm to 4:00pm Okay, normally we don't send out 2 newsletters in one month, but August is a busy month! With Pet Fest behind us for this year, we now look forward to our Open House! This Saturday, we're inviting the community to come check us [...]
Hello, Cat Fans! We just wanted to take a break from the usual newsletter to let you all know that we'll be at Pet Fest again this year! We were a bunch of newbies last year, so our booth was pretty plain. This year, however, we've grown and improved our Pet Fest booth, so we [...]
Nails aren't just for shredding furniture! Scratching is a normal feline behavior. Many people think that scratching is a destructive behavior when it is actually a necessary part of your cat's physical and emotional well-being. Even cats who have been declawed continue to exhibit scratching-like behavior. Scratching serves many vital functions, as we shall learn. [...]
What is all that licking really about? Most healthy cats will spend up to 50% of their awake time engaging in some form of grooming. Grooming is a learned behavior; most kittens learn to lick themselves by two weeks of age, and they are washing by the time they're weaned. However, if kitten's mom-cat is [...]
Spring is the time when many "indoor" cats head back outside, even if only for short periods of time. Most of these cats will end up hunting and eating something at some point. Some cats are obvious about this and will leave "presents" at home, while others are very sneaky. (There was one study which [...]
Hairballs are one of those things which everyone assumes goes along with cat ownership. Eventually, everyone finds one... often by stepping on it. But, what exactly is a hairball? Why are they unique to cats, and are they really normal? The Merriam-Webster definition of a hairball is “a compact mass of hair formed in the [...]
