Grooming

You’re petting your cat and you realize that her silky coat is not so silky anymore. Whether your attention has been grabbed by small...

A webinar from the Pet Poison HelpLine by Charlotte Flint, DVM, DABT, raises more concerns about essential oils, which are concentrated volatile plant oils...

Bottles of eye drops and tubes of eye ointment are generally small because you don’t need much of these medications and having leftover...

Nail care should be a part of your cat’s routine health maintenance. Many cats wear their nails down on their own, but others can...

Hairballs, also known as trichobezoars, are a fact of life for most cat fanciers. This is especially true if you have a long-haired cat, such as a Persian or domestic long-hair, but even domestic short hairs can suffer from hairballs.

My 2-year-old cat, who we took in as a stray after gradually gaining his trust about a year ago, has been having a problem that I wonder if you can help with. He has started to pull his fur out in small cotton ball-sized clumps. I find these clumps all over the house, and its driving me crazy. He is an indoor/outdoor cat and there are no other pets or kids in the house. Can you provide some insight?

Ear infections are relatively uncommon in cats - infections of the external ear occur twice as often in dogs. However, you should be aware of these significant facts: A study shows that geography can determine if your cat is likely to develop an ear infection. Left untreated, an infection can become chronic, causing pain and irreparable damage to the ear canal or eardrum. You can become the first line of defense in identifying an ear infection. Simply check your cats ears by giving them a quick rub - something you probably do everyday. Whether your cat shows pleasure or discomfort is a clue to the ears condition.

Cats depend on their claws to grip while climbing. They serve as weapons in a fight, hold their prey and release scent to declare ownership of your sofa. While many cats are fastidious about grooming, indoor kitties depend on their owners to keep their claws in top shape. They dont do enough digging and scratching on abrasive objects to keep the claws short.

Fur, primarily made of the protein keratin, grows from follicles in the skin. While human follicles each grow a single hair, animal follicles may grow many. Each follicle has an oil gland to lubricate the skin and hair, and to keep the coat lustrous. If your cats coat turns dull and dry, you may suspect a medical problem and make a veterinary appointment. Meanwhile, you might also want to check the labels on his food.

Your cat has always sported a shiny coat, soft to the touch. You marvel at the time he dedicates to grooming. But lately when you pet him, his coat feels greasy and you detect an odor. His grooming clearly is off, and its a worry.

If clouds of cat hair dont complement you, your furniture or your home, you may be among the owners looking for solutions to shedding. Dermatologist William H. Miller, VMD, Medical Director of the Cornell University Companion Animal Hospital, has a simple two-step prescription to tame it: a brush and a vacuum.Shedding is a normal function. However, Dr. Miller offers this cautionary advice: If your cats shedding appears to be unusually heavy or results in bald spots, make a veterinary appointment to determine if he has an underlying medical condition. High fevers, allergies, the hormonal imbalance hyperthyroidism, pregnancy and parasites like fleas and ticks can cause a cat to shed excessively.

Ticks can be found anywhere on a cats body but usually attach near the head, neck, ears and feet. If you discover one, remove it as soon after attachment as possible, says Meryl Littman, VMD, ACVIM, at the University of Pennsylvania. Do not cover the tick with Vaseline, gasoline or anything else beforehand. And do not remove it with your bare hands - a crushed ticks bacteria could get into your cuticles and infect you.