16 Feb 2010, Posted by christie in Pets, 27 Comments

Why I’m getting my indoor cats microchipped this year

Every time I read about a pet which was reunited with his or her owner because of a microchip, I vow to myself to find out more about those things! I don’t let my cats wear their collars around the house, because to me the chance of getting hurt that way is far greater than the chance that one of my kids or the occasional visitor will let them outside. But they could easily get outside sometime; it seems that no one who comes to our house knows how to close the front door.   If someone let them out while I was away,  my cats could end up roaming the area with no collars and no way for anyone to identify them.

Last time I was going to take the kitties for their checkups, I didn’t ask about ‘chipping because I’d mistakenly thought they would have to be sedated to have the microchips inserted – sort of like how they have to be under general anesthesia to have their teeth cleaned. I didn’t know if I wanted to deal with that during that particular time period or not.  I finally decided to dig up a little information from the American Veterinary Medical Association about chipping pets, and I’ll share it with you here. (more…)

05 Jul 2009, Posted by christie in Pets, 0 Comments

Declawing

Many loving cat owners don’t realize it, but declawing is amputation of the last joint of the toe. Your cat needs her toes intact, not only for her defense but for her comfort and natural cat agility. There are many ways to keep your cat from destroying your house.

05 Jul 2009, Posted by christie in Pets, 0 Comments

Play with your cat

Why should you play with your cat? For one thing, cats need the mental and physical exercise. Cats were built to spend a lot of their time hunting for food and hiding from predators, but in their modern domesticated lives they sleep a lot and chew and scratch on things they aren’t supposed to.

17 Jun 2009, Posted by christie in Pets, 2 Comments

Trakr the 9/11 hero dog cloned

Trakr, the rescue dog who located the last survivor in the rubble following the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, has been successfully cloned and his owner, James Symington, has received the five puppies cloned from Trakr.

15 Jun 2009, Posted by christie in Pets, 0 Comments

Can cats eat people food?

Safe snacks include commercial cat treats, cooked vegetables, cheese, small bits of cooked meat or cooked eggs, cooked poultry, and liquid from water-packed meats and fish. If you give him any meat or poultry or eggs, be sure they are cooked

09 Jun 2009, Posted by christie in Pets, 1 Comments

Cat Safety Tips

When it comes to what cats could get into, it’s impossible to make a complete list. But here are some things you may not have thought of. Making your home safer for a cat or kitten may seem like a lot of trouble, but remember – your kitten is like a little toddler, except one who can jump up onto countertops and climb the draperies!

07 Jun 2009, Posted by christie in Pets, 0 Comments

Flea allergy in cats

With flea allergy, often cats will pull out their hair, especially on the back half of the body. They often do it when they are not in our sight, so we owners may think that the hair is just failing to grow. And apparently in cats with flea allergy, you may never even see a flea

11 May 2009, Posted by christie in Pets, 1 Comments

Kill roaches (but not your pets) using two simple cookie ingredients

I wrote to a pet columnist asking for a product that I could use to get rid of bugs but not hurt my pets. I thought that would be a great question and one that needed answering, but my question lay dead in his slush pile. Finally I turned to my friend Google and found the simple and safe answer.

27 Apr 2009, Posted by christie in Pets, 2 Comments

The Blind Cat Rescue & Sanctuary – a wonderful place and an easy way you can help

Over the past few months, I’ve been sponsoring a cat at the Blind Cat Rescue & Sanctuary, Inc. in North Carolina. What a wonderful place. They take in blind kitties who are totally dependent on the mercy of humans and provide them a home until they can be adopted, or for the rest of their lives if they are never adopted.

20 Apr 2009, Posted by christie in Pets, 0 Comments

Lend creativePAW your own paws to help animals in need

Are you a creative professional who loves animals and would love to help save some lives? If so, creativePAW could really use your help.