How does a cat show affection?

Despite the common misconception, cats are not showing affection when they rub against you with the back of their head and the rest of their body. It´s just cat instinct to mark you with their scent; they are actually claiming you as their territory.

The only time a cat is truly showing affection is when they bump you with the front part of their head, known as head bonks, a cat behavior also called "bunting". He might rub along your chin and nose, engaging in the bunting behavior that began as a kitten when he´d rub around his mother´s head seeking to nurse. Some cats get so carried away that they even drool.

The next time your cat jumps onto the bed and seems to butt you in the face with the top of his head, don´t get irritated, realize the loving compliment your kitty just paid you.

Training an Adult Cat for a Bath

Cat´s don´t like water; that is a well known fact. However, any cat can be trained to tolerate a bath. Use this method once a day, every day, and at the end of a month, you should be able to give your kitty a full bath without too much trouble.

First, the water must be warm, because a cat´s normal temperature is higher than humans. A hot bath for a human is a normal temperature for cats. If the cat shivers, the water is too cold; if he pants, the water is too hot.

Second, choose a location that has a flat surface, so the cat will feel secure that he can stand easily. Add a towel or rubber mat to the bath surface so the cat won´t slip, creating more panic.

Third, start with just enough water to cover his feet. For the first week, just dunk his feet into the water and immediately pull him out and dry his feet. Then give him plenty of treats and special attention.
Gradually increase the depth of the water, and the amount of time you ´dunk´ him. Always give him treats and special attention after the ´bath.´

Finally, use only enough water to get him wet and rinse him; usually no deeper than his ´knees.´ This should be enough water to give him a bath, without creating the panic of trying to swim. Also, don´t leave his feet in the water unless you have to. Allowing him to stand on dry land (like the back end of a bath tub) will decrease his discomfort and make him easier to control.

A note of caution: don´t use a sprayer, this will cause panic in the cat. Instead, use a plastic cup or glass to pour the water over his body.

Plastic bowl problems

About Cat Food Dishes - You probably know that cats want you to clean their food bowls after each meal, and that you should not use dishwashing liquid, because they dislike the smell. What you might not know is that plastic bowls always retain some ´old food smell´. A cat or kitten will notice, even if you don´t. She´ll refuse to eat out of this bowl for no apparent reason. Therefore, invest in some porcelain bowls and make sure they are dishwasher safe.

When washing bowls in the dishwasher, rinse again once the washing cycle is finished for best results.

Controlling Hairballs

Hairballs are more of a problem in longhaired cats than short, but no one like to listen to a gagging cat. Hairballs are caused by too much hair in the cat´s stomach from their own grooming. Although there are many different remedies, I prefer preventative health care measures and training:

Daily brushing is my number one tip to prevent cat hairballs, especially during the warm months of the year. If you start brushing your cat during this time of the year, it is easier to train them to enjoy it. They are naturally trying to get rid of that excess undercoat, and your daily brushing will do that for them.

But if your cat´s pattern of coughing up the occasional hairball changes, take your cat to the vet to find out why.

Another suggestion to stop cat hairballs (or at least reduce them) is to feed your cat or kitten Iams or Science Diet´s Hairball Control. It has worked wonders for my longhaired cat.

Start bathing kittens early

Here´s some bathing cats advice: You have allergies, and still want a pet. The doctor says that weekly baths will help reduce the allergens on a cat. With this in mind, it would be best to adopt a young cat or a kitten so you can train her to take a bath much eaiser than an older cat.

Start the first week you have the kitten. Once a day dunk her feet into very shallow, very warm water. Then immediately dry her feet and give her a special treat and attention. The second week, set her down in the water and let her stand in it for a few seconds, then pull her out and dry her feet always followed by the treat. Towards the end of the second week, you should be able to completely wash her.

Don´t use a sprayer at first, the splashing water will panic the cat. Use a plastic glass or mug to pour water over her body. Keep everything, water, soap, etc, out of her eyes and off her face. This will cause panic, and could irritate her eyes.

The Signs and Symptoms of UI

Urinary infection is a common cat health problem for cats, especailly males due to their physiology. Although it is easily treated, it can lead to kidney failure and even death if left untreated. If you suspect UI, take your cat to a reputable vet immediately.

Some of the symptoms and signs to look for include:
Straining to urinate, discomfort while urinating, howling or crying while urinating, tinkling anywhere and everywhere (very small puddles), and discolored urine (indicating blood in the urine).

Training an Adult Cat to be Brushed

Here´s a good cat grooming tip if your adult cat hates to be brushed, but is a necessary fact of life, especially in the warm seasons. With persistance, consistancy and patience, you can train your adult cat to be brushed.

Make it a routine, if you haven´t already, to pet/groom your cat. Every day at the same time, pet your cat or kitten for several minutes. That action alone will help remove hair and help straighten it.

When Kitty comes to you to be groomed/petted, start using an oven mitten or a cotton rag wrapped around your hand.

Eventually, purchase a groomers mit. That is a specialty type of mit used to help remove fur. Once Kitty is accustomed to the groomers mit, start alternating your touch with the groomers mit, with a brush. Put the mit on one hand, and a brush in the other; alternate between the two. Once you are at this level for a few days, you should be able to groom Kitty with the brush. Slowly decrease the number of ´pets´ with the mit and increase the number of ´pets´ with the brush.

Once Kitty is tolerating the brush, I would suggest you start with the mit and then switch to the brush in Kitty´s daily routine. That will help him to feel like he is being ´loved´ and not just brushed.

Premium Cat Food Lessens Allergens

Feeding your cat or kitten high quality cat food, such as Kal Kan Optimum, Iams and Science Diet Hairball Formula, all brands with Brown Rice, can actually lessen one of the allgergens all cats produce.

The extra nutrition in these good cat foods will increase the quality of your kitty´s coat and skin, thus decreasing the dander they produce.

Low Cost Medical Advice

Your kitty is sick or injured and needs veterinarian cat care, but your budget this month can´t afford the bill.

Call your local animal shelter/dog pound, humane society, ASPCA, or rescue organization. They have lists of low cost vets in your area, and can even help pay for vet bills in some cases.

Shaving a Cat - Cat Coat Problems

Cat grooming and matting - I do not recommend shaving a long haired cat or kitten unless the vet or groomer can see a need to; such as the mats are so bad that they are causing problems for your cat.

Cats need their fur to protect their skin from the sun, and other possible dangers. Since they do not perspire, removing the hair does not help them to stay cool. On the contrary, it could make them feel hotter since the sun will reach their skin.

It is best to brush your long haired cat for several minutes every day, and do this several times a day during the warm summer months. This will allow you to catch those annoying mats when they are small enough that you can easily trim them out.

However, once the mats have formed tight enough to be next to your kitty´s skin, let a reputable-professional groomer or your vet remove the mats, since you could seriously injure your kitty if you try.

Excessive licking and grooming

Your kitty´s excessive licking and grooming can have several causes: stress, food allergies, and more. Your first step is a visit with your vet to determine whether it´s a health or behavior problem.
Many cats are allergic to corn, a main ingedient in most dried cat foods. If your vet suspects an allergy, change the cat´s food and watch for improvements in your cat´s coat and behavior. Your vet can suggest brands of food that will help the most.

If the licking is due to stress, try to remove the source, or simply manage the stress. This is particularly important in multiple cat-households. We have four, & the low man on the pecking order stopped chewing his fur when I started feeding him without the others present. I also give him ´special time´, i.e. an hour per day, when he is with me alone and gets undivided attention.

Kitty doesn´t like to be brushed

Cat training tip - Cats naturally groom themselves and can take offense when you try to help them.

Here´s a cat grooming tip on how to get your cats or kittens comfortable with regular cat grooming - Try purchasing two identical brushes. Start brushing your cat with one of the brushes, when she reaches around and grabs that brush, let her have it. Then pick up the second brush and continue brushing. Whenever she grabs the brush you are using, just pick up the other one and continue brushing.

Eventually, your kitty will learn that you are not hurting her, and that this cat grooming actually feels good.

Good and Bad Table Scraps

Here´s a good cat food nutrition tip - Table scraps should be used as treats, not the main course in your kitty´s diet. I recommend no more than a Tablespoon of scraps at a time.

Suggested scraps are: Meats without bones, cooked vegetables, cooked grains, and brown rice.

TABLE SCRAPS YOU SHOULD NOT GIVE YOUR KITTY: Corn is very difficult for our pets to digest. Chocolate has chemicals that are toxic to almost all pets.
Sweets are not good for our kitties, since their systems are not desgined to process the sugars as easily as human bodies.

Bones, cooked or raw, are a definite NO-NO.
There is a movement to feed pets raw uncooked meat-bones included, but my vet tech lost a puppy from a perferated colon when he couldn´t properly chew and digest a bone. My parents lost a Siamese when she choked on a pork chop bone.

It is safer to not let your cat or kitten have bones, unless they are ground to a fine mush or powder.

Protect the Couch!

If your cat or kitten is constantly clawing your couch or chair, this is what worked magnificently for me:

Put a carpet covered scratching post directly in front of the area of the furniture the cat loves to destroy. Rub the post down with catnip and the cats will be drawn to the scratching post instead of the couch.

Now, my cats scratch the post instead of the couch and love the occassional sprinkling of catnip.

Clean the Cat Too

Your doctor has given you the information on how to live with allergies, and one of the recommendations is to bathe your pets at least once a week.
According to our members, the medical field has determined that humans have a hyper-sensitivity to the proteins in feline saliva. When a cat or kitten cleans itself, the proteins in the saliva remain on the cat´s coat. When the saliva dries, the proteins flake off and cause the allergy symptoms.

Bathing your cat or kitten once a week will help remove these and other allergens. There are several products on the market to help remove the allergens from your pet´s coat. Check with any pet store or your vet for recommendations.

Cleaning cats teeth

Here´s a cat grooming tip that will make a big difference in your cat or kitten´s oral health. The key to getting your cat to tolerate having his teeth brushed is to do it in small steps over time and to be patient and encouraging. Try to brush several times a week with a child´s toothbrush or a fingertip brush and a toothpaste designed for pets.

Regular cleanings under anesthesia by your vet is important to address problems at the root line. Left unchecked, plaque buildup on teeth can ultimately cause infections that can lead to tooth loss, make eating painful, and puts your cats internal organs under pressure, therefore causing illness and premature aging.

Kitty picks at his favorite food, but doesn´t finish it

Cats and kittens can have several reasons for not eating: illness, they may be tired of a flavor, plus they will slow down their eating in the warm summer months.

Once you have ruled out disease, you can move on to the other reasons for picky eating.

When your pet nibbles, but then leaves most of a favorite wet food to spoil, stop giving him wet food for a few days. Be sure to leave plenty of dry food out. If you have a routine established for feeding him, just add more dry food to his bowl to keep the routine.

Next, use the wet food as a treat and give it to him only once or twice a week. If he eats the dry food, and doesn´t beg for the wet, you know he is getting enough to eat.

Then when the weather cools down-and he starts eating more, you can start giving him more wet food, if you choose to start it again.

Steps to Grooming a Persian Cat

Step by Step cat grooming methods for a long haired or Persian cat or kitten:

1. Use the wide toothed or a comb with alternating long/short teeth to comb the coat backward from the way it lies. For h