Cat Info Center

Giving Your Cat A Pill

Giving a cat a pill can be a nightmare.  No cat wants something shoved down his throat, and he will fight you tooth and nail to prevent it. Although most cats are small in size, you’d be quite amazed with how much power they actually have.  There are ways that you can get your cat to take his pills, which we will cover below.

The easiest way to give a cat pill is to crush the power into a powdery form by putting it between two spoons.  Once the pill is powder, mix it in with some wet cat food.  Cats that are used to eating dry cat food will see the wet food and think of it as a treat.  They will normally eat it up, unaware that they just took their medicine.

If the medicine happens to be in capsule form, all you have to do is pry the capsule apart then sprinkle the medicine on some wet food and serve it to your pet.  If the food also contains the pill or if your pet is sick, chances are he won’t eat it.  In this event, you should look into a pet piller.  You can get these handy devices from your veterinarian.  They are plastic rods that hold the pill until you press a plunger.  When you get one, you should always get a long one with a softer tip.

When you get your gun, your vet should show you how to use it.  The most difficult aspect of using the gun is getting your cat to open his mouth.  The gun will more or less shoot the pill in the cat’s mouth, and down his throat.  You’ll need to hold him tight, to make sure that he doesn’t wiggle his way loose.  Once you have his mouth open, you’ll need to squeeze the trigger and pull the gun away quickly.  After the pill has been inserted, make sure you give your cat a treat.

If you aren’t comfortable using the gun, you can always try giving your cat his pills by hand.  To do it this way, you’ll need to hold your cat still, and open his mouth with your hand.  Once you have his mouth open, you should aim for the back of his throat and throw the pill in.  Once it is in his mouth, you should close his mouth with your hand and hold it shut for a few moments.  This way, your cat will swallow the pill if he hasn’t already.

If you can’t get any of the above techniques to work, you can always go to a local pharmacy and get them to a make flavored gel or liquid using your cats medication.  You should use this as a last resort though, as it can tend to get expensive.

Water is Crucial for a Cat

Water is one of the most important requirements for your cat. As a cat is composed of almost 70% water, a reduction in the level of body fluid levels can cause ill health and cause the cat to die. Even if the cat loses 10% of its body water, this can cause metabolic problems that will result in illness in a very short time. If the loss increases to 15% then the cat will die, and for this reason if you are concerned about your cats hydration levels get it to a vet as soon as possible, as the vet will be able to hydrate the cat by injecting water under its skin.

You will then need to discuss with your vet why this has occurred, and what can be done to stop it happening again as it is a life-threatening problem.

While the cat can lose a lot of weight, in fat and glycogen, and even half of its protein stores it can still survive, but a reduction in water by even by such a small amount, might mean that it will not survive.

As cats are terminally dependent on water they do regulate their water supplies themselves and conserve water by concentrating their urine.

Your pet should always have easy access to fresh water that gets changed at least once every day.

In hot weather ensure that there is always enough water available, and always have more water if they are on a dry food diet as they can get a lot of moisture out of canned food.

Most canned food, at least the good quality canned food, consists of approximately 75% water, and cats that are fed a diet of good canned food will not need to drink as much as cats on other diets.

Milk is not a substitute for water and cats have no need for milk beyond being kittens.

Cats Living in Harmony

Cats love to be touched, stroked, and petted. Cats will not only derive pleasure from having humans pat them, but they will also enjoy the company and bodily contact of other cats.

Where cats are living together in harmony, or where they have been brought up together, they will often sleep curled up together and also groom one another.

This happens more often with neutered female cats than with male cats, although it is not uncommon to see male cats grooming one another too.

Cats love to rub their body up against humans, in a show of affection and often also to leave their scent as a sign of ownership. Cats will exhibit the same behavior with other cats as they rub up against one another, but it is mainly as a sign of affection when they do this to other cats.

They can feel a sense of comfort and security by sharing their space with another cat and sleeping beside each other.

This is one of the reasons why it is well worth considering getting two kittens from a litter rather than one kitten when choosing.

It is also worth noting that male cats will rarely groom female cats so you might decide if choosing two kittens, to either get two female kittens or two male kittens but not one and another, as they might socialize better if they are the same gender.

Often where there are two cats in the family each cat will claim ownership of one member of the family. If there is only one person in the household then that person will need to ensure that an equal amount of time is spent with both cats so that one cat doesn’t become jealous of the other leading to behavioral problems with one, or possibly both cats.

Making a Kitten Feel at Home

There are several things that you should do to make a new kitten feel at home.

First of all they need a good place to sleep that is private and they can feel safe. Fortunately there are many different types of beds and baskets that are available. The area that the kitten will be sleeping needs to be free from drafts and as warm and comfortable as possible.

It will need a litter box initially as it will have to stay inside until it becomes accustomed to its surroundings. The litter box can have shredded newspaper for a cheap alternative but the best content for a litter box is commercial cat litter as it will absorb urine better and won’t smell as newspaper will tend to do.
This needs to be cleaned out regularly to ensure that it is always clean.

Put the litter box in a quiet corner where the kitten can be private and don’t have it where the kitten will be eating its food.

Cleanliness is another important factor with kittens and any utensils, or feeding dishes that are used with its food need to be thoroughly cleaned after every meal. There are also a wide range of suitable products on the market to make feeding a kitten or cat more convenient.

Grooming is very important with cats and even cats in the wild spend much of their time grooming. You can assist by getting a good double-sided body brush for grooming to make sure that the fur doesn’t become knotted and any lose fur is brushed away to reduce the chance of fur balls causing problems.

Grooming will keep the fur clean from dirt and other problems such as fleas. Kittens and cats with longer fur will need more time spent on them than shorthaired cats as they will lose more fur and this will get swallowed if they are left to do all their own grooming.

Housebreaking Your Cat

Fortunately cats are extremely clean animals and generally you don’t need to house train them at all. In the first few weeks they will begin to use the litter box particularly if they observe their mother doing the same thing. If they are going to the toilet outdoors, it is natural for them to cover up after they have finished.

For new kittens you need to supply them with a litter box as they will need to be kept inside the house until they become accustomed to their new home. Fill a box with cat litter to a sufficient depth that will allow them to dig, approximately 2 inches, and put the box in a quiet place where they don’t feel like they are being observed as some kittens can get quite embarrassed if they think people are looking at them while they are going to the toilet.

You should regularly remove any wet litter and droppings, and ensure that the cat litter remains clean at all times otherwise the kitten won’t be inclined to use it.

When you have more than one cat using the litter box you’ll need to clean it a lot more frequently as they will tend to go more often, as cats like to mark over each other in a similar manner as they do with marking their territory.

If you find that your cat or kitten is not using its litter box as it should there are several reasons why this could be happening. The most obvious reason is that the litter is not cleaned enough. Alternatively the litter box might be in a location that the cat is not happy with and putting it in a more private place could resolve the problem.

Aged or incontinent cats might require a visit to the vet to see if they can solve the problem and sick cats will often not bother going to the litter box.

Sometimes it can just be a behavioral problem with your cat and this will need to be resolved with proper action and the correct training techniques.

Cats on heat will also spray in order to attract mates and the only remedy for this is neutering.