Having a cat as a pet is certainly delightful. They amuse us from morning to night, purring into our arms, stretching and jumping at everything that moves. They can spend hours grooming themselves oblivious to the rest of the world or simply just being a cat, doing its thing.
As much as cats are independent, there are certain care we need to take as owners to ensure our cats are healthy and happy and can continue to be the joy in our lives for a long time.
Microchip and De-sex Your Pet
First thing about cat care are to microchip and de-sex your cat if it is not already done so. This is part of being a responsible owner and to prevent your cat producing unwanted kittens.
Frequent Visit to the Vet
Just like humans, cats need regular health check up too. A visit to the vet once a year will ensure your cat is in top state of health, as well as to receive its annual vaccination to ward off diseases.
Creating a Healthy Environment For the Cat
Cats are naturally playful animals and will be looking for entertainment once in a while. If you are keeping your cat indoors, make sure you provide it with the entertainment it needs while you may not be home. A fluffy mouse on a string or a ball that rolls can keep a cat happy for hours.
If you have a garden, and are worried that the cat will feel too enclosed at home, but fear it might go missing running freely outdoors, consider building a cat run. A cat run is an extended cage structure that goes around the garden for the cat to run in, and don't feel like it's been trapped. This provides a controlled environment and prevents cats from going too far, or catching wildlife.
Routine Care For Your Cat
General care routines that you can do to keep your cat healthy are: clipping the claws, grooming the fur, checking for ear mites and teeth decay.
An outdoor cat has the advantage of using tree barks to keep its claws to a good length. However, indoor cats will need to rely on its owner to trim its claws so it does not over grow.
Trimming the claws is not only a practice of keeping it neat; it can also save your furniture being shredded with the cat's sharp claws. This can be done by providing a scratch pole as well as regular trimming with a clipper. Be mindful not to trim too much. Only the sharp tip of the nails needs to be trimmed. Clipping too deep into the nail can hurt and cat and sometimes cause bleeding.
Cats are forever grooming themselves, they do this to clean their fur as well as remove any lose fur hanging around. However this can cause furball, as they would simply lick off the fur and try to swallow it. By grooming your cat regularly with a brush can remove these excess furs as well as being a bonding session between you and the cat.
A cat's ear should look clean, and smell decent. If there are signs of wax build up, this can be cleaned gently with moistened cotton wool. Look for mites or infection in the ear and if necessary, visit the vet for a check up.
As cats are lazy and don't often chew, they are prone to teeth decays early in their lives. Checking the teeth regularly for cleanliness is important and ensure that the cat is given something to chew on from time to time.
Feeding the Cat Well
There is no cat owner that does not spoil their pet. However, sometimes we accidentally feed it food that induces teeth decay or could cause stomach upsets.
No matter what brand of cat food you give your cat, make sure it has a variety of texture and flavours. Cats are naturally carnivores and will prefer to eat more meat than vegetables. A choice of canned food with meat mixed with vegetables will be a good nutritious choice.
Avoid food that are high in salt content, and make sure to give it dried food from time to time to encourage it to chew. Chewing can generate saliva that will assist in cleaning the teeth and gum.
Cats are great pets. They are independent of their actions but are still affectionate and cuddly. With great care, they can be long term companionship to humans.
