Cat Care Information

This page contains Cat Care Information  ::  go to Dog Care Information

Cat Diets -Cats are notorious for being finicky eaters. They can become addicted to their food and not just the flavor, but also to its size, shape and texture. If they do become addicted, they may starve themselves refusing to eat anything but that food. This becomes problematic as health concerns arise calling for a diet change, or if the food is taken off the market. Therefore, it is very important to feed your cata wide variety of foods including table scraps (starches, vegetables and proteins). Table scraps should be fed in small amounts once a week. The majority of the diet should still be good quality dry cat foodand occasional wet food.

Your cat should always be fed food in his/her dish. It is important to put table scraps into the cat's dish to prevent your cat from jumping on counters. If they get into the habit of looking for food in their dish they will be less likely to go looking for it on your counters, sinks and even on your stove.

You get what you pay for in cat foods. Generic food is junk, while brand name diets are at least researched and nutritionally balanced. Premium brands have more digestible and consistent ingredients so the cat eats less and produces less feces.


Hill's has created a tartar control diet formulated especially for cats. We recommend this food forgood dental health. T/D can be used as a complete diet in cats. Optimally, it is recommended that ½ of the cat's diet be T/D, unless other medical issues require a specific prescription food. Not only is it a very nutritionally balanced diet, but it also cleans your cats' teeth when they chew it. Microscopically aligned fibers within each kibble make sure the teeth penetrate the kibblebefore it breaks, thereby "cleaning" the outer surface of your cats' teeth where tartar first starts to build up

Heartworm Disease in Cats -Feline heartworm disease was first identified in 1921. Heartworms are traditionally thought of as a canine parasite, but cats are considered a susceptible, but resistant host. Merial began manufacturing preventative heartworm medicine for the cat, making heartworms a preventable disease in cats for the first time ever!

Heartworms are caused by the bite of an infected mosquito. Indoor cats are actually being found to be at a slightly greater risk for the heartworms because less bites from mosquito's causes less stimulation for the cat's natural immunity.

Typically cats carry heartworms without any signs. The clinical signs seen fall into two categories: acute and chronic infections. Acute infections are characterized by collapse, vomiting, diarrhea, difficulty breathing, blindness, and convulsions. In chronic infections, coughing, vomiting, lethargy, poor appetite, weight loss, and difficulty breathing can be seen.

Treatment is very difficult in the cat. The recommended treatment in cats is surgical removal of the worms-at a cost of one thousand to two thousand dollars. The success rate of this type of surgery is low. There is only a 35% chance that all the heartworms will be removed. Three of five cats that were treated conservatively at Michigan Veterinary Specialists died within three months of a positive diagnosis.

In the usual host, the heartworms reproduce and circulate young (microflaria) about six months after the initial bite. It is extremely rare for heartworms to successfully reproduce in the cat.

Preventative medication is available in a chewable monthly tablet. The preventative medication would not affect adult worms, but it can kill microflaria. Unfortunately, tests designed to diagnose heartworm in cats are not completely accurate; therefore, we suggest putting your cat on heartworm preventative as early as possible in order to kill microflaria before they develop into adult heartworms. It can be a full 2 months after the mosquito bite before the preventative kills the infected larvae.

Our shortened winters enable mosquitoes to live longer into the traditional winter months and return earlier; therefore exposing your cat to the possibility of heartworms throughout the year. For this reason, it is our recommendation you use heartworm preventative year round.

Viral Diseases of Cats -Cats are susceptible to four different incurable viral diseases. Feline Leukemia, Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (Feline Aids), Feline Infectious Peritonitis and Virulent Systemic Feline Calicivirus.

Feline Leukemia, Feline Immunodeficiency Virus (Feline Aids), Feline Infectious Peritonitis all can be contracted from the mother or direct contact with an infected cat's urine, saliva, respiratory discharge, or feces. Indoor cats are at risk from their mother, cats they live with, cats entering their house, or contact with cats through an open window. The calicivirus can be contracted from direct contact with an infected cat's urine, saliva, ocular and nasal discharge, blood or feces. Also from inanimate objects (tables, hands, clothes, door knobs etc.).

Clinical signs of these diseases are wide ranging and present with a variety of symptoms. Feline Leukemia and FIV are clinically more similar to human AIDS, causing any of the following: solid tumor formation, immunosuppression, vomiting, anorexia, lethargy, muscle atrophy, etc. FIP has two clinical syndromes, a "wet" form and a "dry" form. The "wet" form of the virus causes fluid to build up in the chest and/or abdomen, while the "dry" form attacks specific organs leading to organ dysfunction. With the calicivirus you may see high fever, facial and limb edema, hair loss, nasal and ocular discharge, anorexia, and depression.

Vaccines are available to help protect against these viruses. The Feline leukemia vaccine has been on the market since 1980, the FIV since August 2002, and calicivirus vaccine since February 2007 (which contains 4 strains of the virus). Feline leukemia vaccine requires an initial series of two vaccines give 3-4 weeks apart followed by an annual booster shot. The FIV vaccine consists of an initial series of three vaccines with each 2-3 weeks apart followed by annual boosters. The Feline Leukemia and FIV vaccines can be given as early as 8-10 weeks of age.

The virulent calicivirus vaccine is included in the annual distemper vaccine booster, which consists of feline rhinotracheitis, panleukopenia, and chlamydia psittaci as well. Depending on when your cat's last annual booster was, we may need to booster the virulent calici part of the vaccine 2-4 weeks after the annual distemper to boost the immunity to the virulent calici virus.

With new kittens we recommend starting the distemper booster at 6-8 weeks old. It's usually a series of 3 vaccines 3-4 weeks apart. We also encourage testing for Feline leukemia and FIV. They can also get the rabies vaccine at around 16 weeks old.