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Posts Tagged ‘animals’

It is well known, cats have an absolutely amazing tongue that they use to keep their coat clean and beautiful. Sometimes, especially in what is called “the shedding season”, or for cats with very long or thick fur, your cats own efforts may need some help. Getting an occasional bath can remove a lot of loose hair, which spells less hairballs, and less cat hair on your “fur”niture. It also keeps mats and tangles at bay while keeping kitty looking magnificent.

Most groomers will bathe the cat and add some form of conditioner. But there are many other services a groomer will do. Many groomers offer haircuts for cats. Some will do an overall trim, while others do fancy cuts. Your cat can look like a lion, or, **cough** a poodle.

Plenty of cat owners send their cats to the groomer in order to get their claws trimmed, and in some cases there are cat owners who send their cats to the groomers with the express intent of getting the cats gussied up with nail polish on the claws and bows in the fur.

Needless to say, most cats do not enjoy this process whatsoever and will put up a fight every step of the way. After all, cats aren’t really sure what is happening when a groomer starts coming at them with water and soap, and so it’s only natural that the cats would react with fear and sometimes even with aggression.

Finding a groomer that has extensive experience with cats is important. Grooming a cat is very different from grooming a dog. A groomer inexperienced with cats can make the visit into a disaster. Groomers used to cats will have the right temperament and be gentle with the cat, while at the same time knowing how to safely restrain kitty while she is being shampooed and getting her manicure.

When your cat comes home from the groomers – especially if this was its first experience with a groomer – it may hide out for a while. You might be disappointed because perhaps you want to show off your shiny, groomed cat, but you need to be patient with your cat because going to the groomers can be a traumatic experience for a cat.

Do all cats need to go to a professional groomer? No, not at all. Most cats are quite self sufficient in the art of keeping themselves clean and beautiful. If you do decide to take your cat to be groomed, be prepared that it may cost a bit and have some extra delicious treats for her in order to get back in her good favor again.

Cat urine odor is for sure one of the most challenging issues one may face as a cat owner. Getting cat urine out of the carpet is for some as pleasant as going to the dentist. Not only is it upsetting, but it smells bad too! Really Bad!

Cat urine can be a challenge to remove,the key is to use the proper cleaners. When the urine is allowed to dry into the rug it forms strong chemical bonds with the material of the carpet.

Not only do amino acids bind with the carpet, so do salts. Salts cause a bond with an ionic charge that is increasingly difficult to dissolve the longer the urine has been on the carpet. Steam cleaning, or home made cleaners will not dissolve these strong bonds, actually steam cleaning the carpet may make the problem worse.

Some cleaners available at the store are nothing but “odor maskers”. Other products attempt to absorb the foul smell.

There may be an immediate relief from odor using these products, (or a home made one) but as you may have noticed, the smell comes back especially on damp, humid days. In order to eliminate the urine totally and comlpetely, you need to use a cleaner which will actually consume the urine. This is done with a cleaner containing not only enzymes but bacteria as well.

So, you got cat pee on your rug? What is the first thing you should do?

1. Remove as much urine you possibly can by using absorbent towels. The spot may have seeped through into the padding of the carpet, so blot a larger area than what is visible. Do not add too much water to the spot, it may make it spread into a larger spot in the padding.

2. Use an enzymatic cleaner that you can inject into the padding underneath the carpet. Inject the cleaner in order to cover a spot 1/2 a foot in diameter, then spray the surface of the spot with the cleaner.

3. That’s it! With the proper cleaner this all that is required from you. Now, keep kitty away from the area until it has dried thoroughly.

Even though it can be easy to let the frustration out on the cat, remember that cats do not eliminate outside the box without some, for them, good reason.

Inappropriate urination is a symptom that something is not OK. You may need to investigate what caused your cat to not use the box along with some enticement to use the box again. Not correcting the reason your cat is not going in the box may keep you cleaning your carpets and furniture over and over again.

Armed with the correct information and the proper products cleaning the urine from your carpet while preventing the behavior to re-occur, you are well on your way to have a happy purring kitty and a clean smelling home.

Most of us believe that when we buy food for our precious feline, it is good, healthy, nutritious food. But guess again! Finding a high quality food for your cat can be a bit tricky amongst the expert marketers of cat food all trying to get you as a customer by using words such as “approved by top vets” “Wholesome” “nutritious” not to mention deceptive labeling practices making it appear that “meat” is the number one ingredient.

There are many ingredients found in cat food that do not belong there. They have no value to your cat, instead they can be downright detrimental.

Pet food companies go through some effort to make you believe that grains are “wholesome” for your pet. The truth is that grains are implicated with a slew of health problems. Grains are also not part of a cat’s natural diet.

One of the worst ingredients in pet food is corn. It irritates the bowel, it is highly allergy producing and it has a high glycemic index.

Every time your cat eats food containing corn, there will be a spike in blood sugar levels. Cats do not metabolize foods the same way we do, and do not have the enzymes and hormones necessary to keep their blood sugar levels within normal range after consuming carbs. Cats are designed to get their energy from protein, not carbohydrates.

Commercial kibble containing corn has 30-60% carbohydrates. A cat in the wild, eating what nature intended for them to eat, will eat food containing 3-5% carbohydrates.

After a meal of corn containing kibble, the cat will have a spike in blood sugar. Cats do not release insulin after eating carbs, cats release insulin after eating protein, thus are inefficient lowering the blood sugar.

The elevation in blood sugar is taxing for vital organs such as kidneys and liver.It taxes and exhausts the endocrine system. After time, the pancreas is unable to keep up and feline diabetes is a not uncommon end result.

Corn is also a culprit in feline obesity. Cats do not register full after consuming carbs. Cats register full after having consumed the required amounts of protein. In order to satisfy the need for protein your cat has to eat more of the inferior, grain containing kibble.

Getting your pet onto a food that contains no grains should be a goal for all pet owners and can reverse illnesses such a IBD and even insulin dependent diabetes.

Getting your cat or dog, onto a food that does not contain corn is of utmost importance.

When you are ready to include a magnificent feline into your family and life the question arises whether to purchase a cat, or to adopt one who is looking for a safe loving home. You can purchase a kitten or a retired breeder for a reputable breeder, or you can adopt a cat from the shelter or from a family who for whatever reason needs to relinquish their cat.

If you are interested in showing your cat, buying a purebred cat may seem like the only option, but in fact the major cat organizations such as ACFA also have a household category where you can show off your pretty kitty regardless of origins.

Purchasing a cat from a breeder or pet store comes with some benefits. Many of these places offer guarantees and documentation which allows you to not submit your cat to shows and to use your cat for breeding purposes, but for some people it’s a matter of status.

Some people are very set on a particular breed. Or a particular personality trait. One way to get what they want is to buy a cat from a breeder, however, most cat breeds are available for adoption, and getting the personality you want may be easier with an adult cat than with a kitten.

Choosing to adopt a cat means that your options are wide open. An added advantage is also that cats waiting for a home will already have lived in one and information about their behavior will most likely be available.

Many of the cats at the shelter come witha full history. Important information as to how they deal with children or other pets, such as your dog. Adopting a cat in the shelter also mean you have given a precious feline another lease at a great life. With all the cats at shelters, millions of them are euthanized each year. Saving a cats life can be very gratifying.

There are many other ways to adopt a cat than shelters. Your local newspaper will have many ads about cats looking for a loving family. The reason someone has to give their cat away is many. Allergies is a common one, as is change in living conditions, the death of the cats owner, a divorce etc.

The advantage of adopting a cat from the shelter is that the cat will have had it’s health evaluated. Adopting a cat from a family mean you have no idea if there are underlying health problems.

If you are indecisive whether you should adopt a kitty, or purchase one from a breeder, do not worry. Cats have an uncanny way of coming into our lives in just the perfect way. You can start exploring both options, and before you know it your absolutely purrfect furbaby will find you.

Find more of Sonia’s articles in categories such as 2 Person Hot Tub and great information about Coleman Hot tubs. Sonia writes about topics ranging from gardening, pets and cooking. Visit our site today.

As a horse lover, I appreciate horses that have a naturally smooth gait. When I first came across the Paso Fino horse, it was one of the things that really was appealing to me. They are naturally gifted riding with a nice smooth gait.

A horse’s gait is the way that it moves. When you determine a horses gait, you look at a number of factors including speed, foot pattern, and foot sequencing during the movement. This can vary from the walk to the full gallop, but what we are interested in when determining a good horse for trail riding is one that goes at a speed that is somewhere in between. The Paso’s unique pattern of foot movements makes the ride very smooth and there is not a lot of up and down motion for the rider.

The cadence of the Paso’s 1-2-3-4 gait is distinctive as the horse effortlessly glides to its destination. It is almost like military precision when it takes its strides. I liken it to the riderless horse of presidential funerals. To be riding a horse that moves like this is akin to feeling like royalty.

Referred to as an “ambling” gait, the Paso’s gait is a intermediate gait that is quicker than a walk but slower than a canter. The foot movement in the Paso Fino is lateral. Lateral movement is when the front & hind feet on the same side of the horse moves in sequence.

In the Paso Fino gait, there are essentially three speeds to its ambling gait. From slowest to fastest, there is the paso fino, paso corto, and paso largo. There is also another one referred to as the Paso Llano and is found in the Peruvian Paso.

There are many Paso Fino completitions that demonstrates the excellence in Paso Fino training. If you’ve never seen it before, be sure to get on Youtube and search for “Paso Fino.” You will see many examples of the championship quality gaits of these horses. To many, the gait looks like a well orchestrated hat dance by the horse… and I guess you could say that is true. All I can say is simply amazing.

Even if you’re not looking to get started in Paso Fino competitions and are just looking for a good riding horse, the Paso Fino makes an excellent horse to buy and enjoy it for your own pleasure. If you like to go on trial rides, you can’t beat the beautifully smooth and steady horse gait of this horse breed. Have fun and go ride a Paso!