Cat Tips

You probably wouldn’t encourage a toddler to smoke, but if you subject your pet to secondhand smoke, you might as well be offering kitty a cigarette. “The correlation is similar to what is seen in…

Cats are sneaky creatures, masters at hiding anything from pens to hair clips and illnesses. Numerous reasons are to blame, but one theory involves their genetic makeup. “Like wild animals, cats may feel the need…

Just a few weeks ago, a 13-year-old indoor cat in Iowa was diagnosed with swine flu. “Two of the three members of the family that owns the pet had suffered from influenza-like illness before the…

If your veterinarian were to ask you to take your cat’s temperature at home, would you know what to do? This often-necessary task might seem simple, but it requires preparation and practice. Dr. Jodi Korich,…

Adult cats spend up to 50 percent of their waking hours grooming, according to Dr. Cynthia McManis, a veterinarian and the owner of Just Cats Veterinary Services. Since grooming is so important to your cat,…

A highly contagious and persistent skin disease, ringworm can be difficult to diagnose. Cats can act as carriers without ever showing signs of the disease, which can also be transmitted to humans. The disease is…

Many people know someone who has diabetes, but did you know that this someone could be your cat? “Diabetes is pretty common in middle-aged cats,” says Dr. Katy Nelson, a Virginia-based emergency veterinarian. “Cats tend…

While he was completing his final year of veterinary school, Dr. Tony Buffington started noticing a relationship between stressful events or environments and evidence of certain “sickness behaviors” in cats. He happened upon a paper…

Dealing with the death of a cat is difficult for any owner — no matter the age of your pet. Dr. Trisha Joyce of New York City Veterinary Specialists, and Dr. Wallace Sife, a clinical…