Feline Familes Should Consider These Care Tips

The poet T.S Eliot They bring warmth and a sense of happiness to the house. A cat that is healthy and well-behaved can be great for any household. If youve spent any amount of time browsing the Internet, you probably know that cats arent always that agreeable. Consider these tips for how you can coexist with your pet.

Cats enjoy finding small spaces to fit into. If your cat gets caught on something wearing a traditional collar they could end up hurting their neck trying to break free. Purchase breakaway collars that will give if they are yanked tightly. This will help you save your cats life.

If your cat is female, it is very important that she be spayed when the vet feels she is old enough. Even if you own an indoor cat, it might produce many kittens if it escapes during mating season. Spaying the feline is really the optimal way of dealing with this.

Exercise

Cats love to play so make sure that you provide them with lots of toys. Cats enjoy batting around a fake mouse or little ball around the room. Some cats even develop a favorite toy. Playing with your cat is not only fun, it helps them to get exercise too.

A great toy for your cat is a laser pointer. Cats love to chase the laser around and try to catch it. This will help you give your cat some exercise, while your cat is having fun at the same time. It will also help to fine-tune their hunting skills.

You should never allow your cat to be bored all the time. Cats need to play and get regular exercise. Too many cat owners forget this simple fact. Bored cats can develop depression and other harmful health conditions. Therefore, ensure your cat has enough space for exercising and playing. Provide them with an indoor climbing area or scratching post.

There are a lot of cats that are overweight. An obese cat can end up developing health problems such as arthritis or diabetes. If your cat could stand to lose a pound or two, try cutting back their food a little bit at each feeding. You can also buy some toys and encourage your cat to play and exercise.

Nutrition

Choose a high quality food. The key to a healthy cat starts with nutrition. Take a look at the ingredients label. If you look at most "popular" commercial cat foods, you may be surprised to see the top ingredient listed is corn. Cats are carnivores, so look for a food with a real meat as the top ingredient. You may pay more up front, but these foods are often more nutritionally dense, meaning your cat eats less and the bag lasts longer.

Although depicted in countless movies and cartoons, milk is not the best source of nutrition for your cat. Once cats have grown, they do not need milk as a regular part of their diet. Milk can cause stomach distress and bloating. Instead of giving your cat milk, always have fresh, clean water available to them instead.

Splurge on your cats food. Read the ingredient label, and make sure a protein from meat tops the list. Corn and other such protein-free fillers are things you want to stay well away from. Cats are meant to eat meat, and that means that they need to have foods that are high in protein.

There are great benefits which come from owning a cat. If you have an active cat, or one more on the laid back side, the tips in this article can help you get along better with your pet. Youll hear less meowing and more purring then.