Do Calico Cats Have to Be Female? Unraveling the Science Behind the Trait
Calico cats are not a breed, but a color pattern consisting of black, white, and orange patches, found in many cat breeds.
Should You Spay a Cat in Heat?
Spaying a cat while in heat is possible but not ideal due to more complicated surgery and potential risks.
Exploring Lentigo: Understanding Black Spots on Orange Cats
Lentigo is a benign, genetic condition in orange cats causing black or brown spots and is not associated with cancer.
What Your Cat Is Saying With Its Eyes
Cats communicate with their eyes, and understanding the position of the eyelids and pupil dilation is crucial in interpreting emotions such as arousal, trust, dominance, and aggression.
Understanding Cat Tail Talk
Feline communication is a complex system of sign language, some vocalization, and even scent cues people can’t detect. Signals help define and reinforce the cat’s social position and smooth cat-to-cat, cat-to-people, and cat-to-dog relationships.
What Happens When a Cat is Spayed?
Spaying a female cat prevents heat cycles, reduces the risk of mammary cancer, and helps control overpopulation.
How to Solve Aggression Between Household Cats
Aggression between cats is influenced by social history, medical issues, and the introduction of new cats.
Feline Breeds, Domestic Shorthair Cats, and Color Pattern Differences
There are over 70 recognized cat breeds, but only around 41 are recognized by the CFA. A breeds' recognition can vary by different cat registries.
Effective Cat Flea Control: Treatment and Prevention Strategies
Fleas are common parasites that affect both cats and humans.
How to Tell How Old a Cat Is: Decoding Your Feline's Age
*Teeth:* A cat's age can be estimated by examining the condition of its teeth, considering factors like the presence of baby teeth, permanent teeth, and any evidence of wear or tartar.
Is Cat TV Safe? Learn How Much Feline Screen Time is Too Much
Cat TV can be a great source of mental stimulation and enrichment, especially for indoor cats.
Highlander: Cat Breed Profile, Characteristics & Care
Developed to resemble big cats, the highlander cat is medium to large, muscular, and athletic, with a naturally short tail. The highlander comes in both short-haired and long-haired versions, and may come in any color in solid, tortie, tabby, or silver/smoke patterns. The breed’s most distinguishing features are a straight to slightly convex forehead, wide nose bridge, blunt profile, and wide-based ears that are loosely curled at the top.
The Costs of Responsible Cat Ownership
Owning a cat requires financial responsibility, including costs for food, litter, spaying/neutering, vaccinations, and veterinary care.
Kitten Development in the First Six Weeks of Life
The first six weeks of a kitten's life are crucial for development. Kittens grow quickly but are susceptible to various threats. Now outside the womb, a kitten will need warmth, food, and protection from infectious diseases and parasites (such as fleas).
Is Your Cat a Pure Breed?
Most cat breed standards allow for several different eye and fur color or coat patterns within the physical appearance descriptions. This can make it difficult if you are trying to determine what kind of cat you have by reading what colors and patterns each breed of cat can come in. Just because you have a black cat with golden eyes does not mean you have a Bombay, nor does your large longhair tabby automatically become a Maine Coon since you read Maine Coons can come in that pattern. Domestic h
Are Hydrangeas Poisonous to Cats?
Hydrangeas contain cyanogenic glycosides, which release cyanide when ingested and can be toxic to cats.
How to Choose the Best Cat Food
One of the most important aspects of pet ownership is ensuring your pet is getting all the nutrients they need from its diet. Sound easy enough, right?
Common Health Problems in Senior Cats
Getting older is inevitable, even for our furry little friends, and as your cat gets older, you may begin to notice they’re not as spry as they were when they were younger. This is completely natural, of course, but sometimes changes in your cat’s behaviour can be a sign that something else is happening with them, such as illness or stress.
The Complete New Kitten Checklist
Welcoming a new pet into the home is both a joyous and mildly stressful experience, especially when that new pet is a rambuctious kitten.
How to Manage Seasonal Shedding
Shedding, or moulting, is a natural process where cats and dogs shed their dead hair to make room for new, healthier hair. Shedding season for dogs and cats typically occurs during spring to make way for a pet’s summer coat, and in autumn to make way for their winter coat.
What is Catnip and What Does it Do?
Catnip is one of the best-utilized herbs in the pet ownership community, helping to make cats more playful or calm in seconds! But what is it about this plant that drives cats up the wall (literally or otherwise). Find out what catnip does and how it works so you can better introduce catnip into your cat’s playtime.
Why is Your Cat Hiding
Cats are elusive and peculiar pets at the best of times, especially those who spend most of their time outside. However, one thing many new cat owners can become confused by is a cat's habit of finding the smallest possible space to squeeze into and hiding there.
Understanding Cat Body Language
Our pet’s happiness is always our priority, and we’d all love nothing more than to know what’s going on in their fluffy little heads. While cats can’t communicate with us in the traditional sense, there are still some ways we can study our cat’s body language to better understand how they’re feeling.
Is Your Cat Not Eating? Here's Why
Food is an integral aspect of any living thing's life, and going without food for a day or more can lead to consequences. For dogs, it’s usually not too drastic for them not to eat for a day, but when it comes to cats, they can quickly become nauseous from lack of food. This nausea can then cause your cat not to want to eat any of their food, which, if it continues, can lead to them eating less and less, which can have an extreme effect on their health and overall well-being.
How to Cat-Proof Your Christmas Tree
There's something about Christmas trees that brings out the mischief-maker in cats. With their flickering lights and dangling decorations, they're the perfect temptation for our feline friends.
Wet vs Dry Cat Food: Which is better for cats?
We all want the very best for our feline friends, and that starts with their food. Providing your cat with a complete and balanced diet is crucial for their health, but with so much variety in the pet food market, it's hard to know where to start.
What Human Foods Can Cats Eat?
Understanding your cat's nutritional needs is an essential part of pet ownership, and that includes what they can and can’t eat when it comes to human foods. While most cats might not be as bad for scrounging as most dogs, there may still be those that like to sneak food from counters when you’re not looking.
Do Cats Drink Water?
Water is one of the foundations of life, and very few living things can survive for long without it, including cats. This can make it concerning if it looks like your cat isn’t drinking, but it’s important to remember that cats do drink water and should always have access to fresh, clean water at all times.
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How To Keep Your Cat Warm in Winter
As the temperature continues to drop and the winter weather creeps in, we all find ourselves reaching for that extra jumper or warm drink to help stave off the chill. But what about our feline friends?
What is FIV in Cats?
There is a lot of confusion around FIV in cats, with many owners believing it to be the feline equivalent of AIDs in humans. This, however, is a myth. In this blog, we’re going to explain what FIV is, how you can spot it, and what you can do to care for cats positive for FIV.
How to Give a Cat a Tablet
No matter how well you care for your cat, there will inevitably come a time in their life when you’ll need to give them a tablet. This could be to treat an existing condition or even just to give them a routine deworming tablet for cats.
Bringing Home a New Cat
Whether you’ve decided to rescue, have gone through a breeder, or have found yourself opening your home to a cat for any other reason, there are a lot of things you need to consider when welcoming a new cat into your home. In this article, we’ll take you through the key things you need to remember when the time comes to bring your new bundle of fluff into your family so they can settle in properly and feel at ease in their new home.
Is it Cruel to Keep a Cat Indoors?
One of the choices a new cat owner needs to make is whether or not they’re going to allow their cat to free roam outside of the home. While many people think this is a simple decision, there are actually a few reasons why an owner might keep their cat indoors.
How to Care for Your Cat’s Ears
As a pet owner, it’s your responsibility to maintain and keep track of your pet’s health, both inside and out, but even with regular health checks, some things can easily be missed, especially when there are no obvious signs of a problem. When it comes to cats, one of the most common missed issues is with their ears, partly because they’re not a fan of sitting still long enough for you to properly check, and also because they are very good at hiding when something is wrong.
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Lara Hew 27 articlesLara is a photography major at UArts in Philly! In her free time, she likes to walk dogs and, of course, take photos. She also loves reading and movies, hiking, kayaking, and just anything that involves being outdoors. She has grown up with animals since she was little and currently has two dogs and a cat of her own.
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Peyton Shine 26 articlesPeyton originally from Michigan, but have lived in Philadelphia for 10 years. She grew up surrounded by animals, both at home and on her grandparent's farm. She now has one dog, a golden retriever-boxer mix named Cooper.
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Tiffany Salmon 47 articlesI focus on empowering my team through collaboration, transparency, and a shared sense of purpose. I believe in leading by example, maintaining a mindset of continuous learning, and encouraging others to think creatively and take calculated risks.
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Dana Minacapelli 47 articlesDana started her journey in the veterinary field in 2004 at an animal shelter in Corpus Christi, Texas. She immediately fell in love with the profession and nurtured her passion for helping animals that were in desperate need of a second chance. Here, she began implementing improved policies that mitigated disease control, managed a low cost spay/neuter program for the community, and made recommendations to the Board of Directors on best practices for the clinic as well as the shelter as a whole.
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Lizzie Youens 50 articlesLizzie has over ten years of experience as a veterinary surgeon with particular interests in animal behaviour, dermatology, and geriatrics.
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Hannah Clark 25 articlesHannah has worked at Pet Drugs Online for over three years, researching, writing, and publishing all of our blog content. She currently lives in Cardiff with her 5-year-old cat, Margot, and 2-year-old Cavapoo, Merida.