by Kurt Schmitt
If your cat isn’t feeling good, you can imagine it’s hard for her to clearly communicate that to you. To make it easier, then, you have to be very observant. Here are a few major areas of cat illness and symptoms to which you should be alert.
Since a radical change in your cat’s behavior can be a sign of trouble, you’ll want to note your cat’s typical routine. Cats are very good at hiding discomfort and signs of illness, but if you notice a change in behavior, look more closely to see if there’s a physical cause.
Urination and defecation — Cats are subject to a number of issues and illnesses involving defecation and urination.
Cats my experience FLUTD (feline lower urinary tract disease). This is actually the name for a group of problems that may involve crystals, stones, inflammation, or infection. Some of these urinary tract problems can be life threatening.
Cats self-groom regularly, but excessive licking in the anal or groin area can be a sign of illness. If your cat is urinating more often than normal, this can be a sign of an illness such as diabetes.
by Kurt Schmitt
Since your cat can’t tell you where it hurts, you’ll have to be on the look out for problems. Let’s talk about some cat illness symptoms you should know about.
Pay attention to changes in your cat’s behavior as this can indicate signs of illness. Cats tend to disguise signs of pain and illness as a throw-back to their wild days.
Elimination problems — Cats may experience a number of issues involving urination, defecation, and litter boxes.
Some urinary tract problems can be life threatening. FLUTD (feline lower urinary tract disease) is a label for a group of problems that can involve crystals, stones, infection, or inflammation.
Be alert to excessive urination as this can be a sign of cat illness such as feline diabetes. Cats are clean creatures and self-groom often, but excessive licking in the groin or anal area can be a sign of problems.
Occasional constipation is common in cats, and is most often caused by hairballs. Treatments are available for this, and include store bought hairball remedies as well as veterinarian prescribed treatments such as lactulose.
July 1, 2008 (3 days ago) – 10:36 pm
by Kurt Schmitt
Worms in cats are a common occurrence, especially in kittens, and your vet will test for them once per year. Testing is done by way of a stool sample.
Worms are intestinal parasites either directly or indirectly feeding off of your cat. Worms use cats in order to reproduce and complete their lifecycle. There are a number of cat parasites out there, with a few major classes of worms.
The main types of intestinal worms in cats are hookworm, roundworm, and tapeworm. Fecal examinations are done as a diagnostic.
Typically, cats that share litter boxes will all be afflicted. A fecal sample from one cat, therefore, is usually sufficient to determine if an infestation exists in the home. By the same token, it is recommended that treatment be given to all cats sharing litter boxes if one of them is infected.
Let’s have a look at more detail on each of the major types of worms that attack cats.
June 26, 2008 (2 weeks ago) – 2:12 pm
by Paula Benson
If there’s one thing that new vegetarians are asked time and time again, it’s “why be a vegetarian?” The motivation for taking meat out of your diet may be confusing for some people, especially if they aren’t familiar with the wealth of delicious food available to vegetarians.
When asked “why be a vegetarian?”, the question can feel like an attack but most people are just curious about the decision. Many vegetarians are caught off guard and feel compelled to defend their lifestyle.
Meat is Very Inexpensive and Tasty, So Why be a Vegetarian When it is So Expensive?
It requires a lot of effort and thinking, is one of the arguments made against vegetarianism. It often appears that vegetarians put a lot more work into their diet than meat eaters do, but really, they just tend to be more selective about what they eat and do more to make sure they are getting balanced nutrition.
A common misconception about vegetarianism is that it’s more expensive to eat foods to take the place of meats. While it’s true that pre-made packaged meat substitutes can be quite expensive, vegetarian food can be found in bulk for very little money. Vegetarian staples like rice, oats, beans, and pasta are very inexpensive.
June 25, 2008 (2 weeks ago) – 4:10 pm
by Lorna Matthews
When many consumers hear about organic farming they may question what is organic food and why does it cost so much. They may consider the typically higher cost and determine the extra expense is not worth the benefits they perceive that is available with eating organic products. However, when looking at the benefits of using only what is organic food you have to look beyond the rice cakes and organic vegetables and consider the use of organic products to be a lifestyle change as well as a health and environmental advantage.
Essentially, organic food can be determined as any food product that is grown in organically-certified land without any chemical treatments, either in the form of fertilizers or pesticides. All substances put on the ground or the plants must come from a natural source and there can be no chemical additives, even accidental ones.Even though the yield of a field may be reduced due to a lack of chemical fertilizer use, or that the crop has a higher price due to a low supply, it is important that we are assured that what is grown is truly organic food.
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