Pet Goddess

MEETING OTHER HOUSEHOLD MEMBERS

Once you and your kitten arrive home, expect an adjustment period of several days or—if you have another cat, a dog or children—a couple of weeks.

The moment you arrive, show your kitten to the litter box. Litter boxes are comforting to cats and, of course, your kitten will need to know where to find it when it has to go.

Make sure the litter box is in neutral territory, away from the feeding dishes and sleeping quarters of other pets, in a quiet place without too much traffic.

Your new pet will probably be a bit nervous or skittish.  Allow your new kitten or cat a little space while she introduces herself to other household members. Don’t overwhelm it and constantly be picking it up or pursuing it around the house.

Posted September 13, 2008 Comments(0)

Remember how happy it made you when you were a child, and you got home to find all of your favorite things things waiting just for you?

Your snug little bed, lovely toys to play with, and a kitchen full of yummy foods and treats?

Before you get your new kitten or cat, you will want to get everything ready so you can make your new friend feel just as welcome and at home.

That’s why you should try to bring your new cat home when you have several days to stay at home. This will give you and your new friend some time to get accustomed to one another, making your new family member feel welcome and secure.

This series will talk about bringing your new kitten or cat home, the dos and don’ts of cat care, and how to make sure your new cat feels welcome, safe, and stays healthy and happy.

Posted September 11, 2008 Comments(0)

The great thing about breed rescue is that people experienced in the various breeds are able to not only help the dog, but make an assessment as to its overall personality and ability to integrate into your own family circumstances.

For instance, they can tell you if the dog is good with older or younger children, other dogs, whether it has special health needs, and so on.

One really human friendly breed you might want to consider is the cocker spaniel.

http://www.nyabandonedangels.com/ is located in New York City, and serves the tri-state area. Their dogs really live up to their names. Many of them are total angels who have just had a hard time and need help to get back on all four feet.

So if you were thinking about getting a nice mid sized dog for the whole family, why not consider a cocker!

Posted September 9, 2008 Comments(0)

Congratulations! Your new kitten or cat will be a fun addition to the family, and is a relatively low maintenance pet.

But toilet training your new pet, and getting it used to its new home, is a must.

You’ll want to make sure there is no nonsense when it comes to her litter box and adapting to you and your family’s routine.

When bringing kitty home for the first time, welcome her in ways that will make her feel comfortable. Consider these easy tips to keep her happy in her new home, and you’ll have an easier time with her care.

How to succeed with toilet training your new arrival

* Keep her in one room initially (with litter, food and water) before letting her roam the whole house.

* Create an easy bed by putting together some old clothing and a pet bed in a quiet location. They cat will start getting used to your scent from the clothes.

* Litter supplies are a must if you want a well trained cat. You will need a roomy litter pan they can turn around in easily, filled with about 3 to four inches of fresh litter, preferably unscented. Do not use clumping litter with kittens. They can eat it and get an intestinal blockage. You will also want a rug or tray for when they step outside the box, and a scooper, and a handy trash can with a plastic bag and spare bags close by.

* Some cats prefer a hooded litter box and others like a more open pan. Feel free to experiment with your cat. Be careful with the automatic scooper litter pans, as they can be scary, especially for your kittens, or seen as an object to be played with.

* Keep the litter box in a place that’s convenient, yet out of the way of your family’s line of traffic and quiet for kitty. Do not let other cats near kitty for the first few days.

* If it is a very young kitten, get an old sweatshirt and a hot water bottle and a clock that ticks. It will be warm, snuggly, and not feel so lonely without its mommy and litter mates.

Posted September 7, 2008 Comments(0)

Other flea management options

Vacuuming on a regular basis will keep developing flea populations low. Flea larvae are likely to escape capture in carpet because they coil themselves around the fibers. Vibrations caused by vacuuming will stimulate new adult fleas to emerge from their cocoons. These new adults will then be captured in the next vacuuming.

Dust in the vacuum bag will kill most fleas by blocking their breathing apparatus, but to be sure, vacuum up a tablespoon of cornstarch.

Dispose of the used vacuum bag immediately, otherwise they will come right back out again. Badly infested areas should be vacuumed every day. Wash any removable floor coverings, such as rugs. There are also flea powders designed to help kill or to act as birth control, for fleas.

Severe infestations may require the services of a commercial steam-cleaning firm. This process kills adult and larval fleas and probably some eggs as well. Any remaining eggs will hatch a day or two after the cleaning. Continue vacuuming to remove these last few fleas.

Comb pets in infested rooms with a flea comb, dropping the fleas and eggs into soapy water. Wash pets’ bedding regularly. Ultrasonic flea collars are completely ineffective. The regualr kind of flea colar should help keep them off, but they can be toxic around the home and tend to bed less effective if they get wet.

Trained animal-control technicians can remove wild animals around your home with traps. Ask your county Cooperative Extension Service agent for a recommendation. Repairs can then be made to the building to exclude animals from attics and crawl spaces where racoons, possums and so forth might be getting in and allowing fleas to come in with them as well.

Flea and tick season are upon us, so beware the summer and early autumn months in particular with regard to fleas. Flea and tick protection monthly using a spot treatment on your pet like frontline for dogs and cats, especially if you have an outdoor cat, is an idea way to protect yourself and your pet from irritating and potentially dangerous flea infestation.

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Posted September 5, 2008 Comments(0)

Detection of fleas, and monitoring

If pets are kept in the house, check their bodies and the areas around their cages often. One sure sign of infestation is the presence of flea dirt, black flecks.

It is important to also check in places where animals might find harborage, such as basements, crawlspaces, attics, eaves, roof structures and shrubs near your home

Long, white athletic socks worn over the shoes and trouser legs allow you to easily see and count adult fleas as you walk through an infested area. Socks also provide some protection from bites. You can certainly get bad allergic reactions from flea bites.

In situations where the flea population is likely to be small, light traps are especially useful. A small electric light attracts fleas to a sheet of sticky paper, where they are trapped. Research has shown that the most effective traps are those with a green light that can flicker on and off.

Check the traps once a week. If only a few fleas are caught, the infestation is very small and probably can be controlled by the monitoring traps themselves.

If 20 or more fleas are caught in a single trap in a week, this probably indicates a more serious infestation to the point where you can most likely see them in your home with your naked eye, particularly as they hop from one host to the next.

Posted September 3, 2008 Comments(0)

Pull your socks up, early fall is flea season

Flea bites can cause irritation and serious allergic reactions in animals and humans. The most common flea found in home and school environments, the cat flea (Ctenocephalides felis), can carry or transmit tapeworms, as well as the organisms that cause bubonic plague and murine typhus.

Even if no pets are kept in a household, family and visitors can bring in adult fleas on their clothing without even realizing it. Urban wildlife, such as feral cats, squirrels and birds, can also be a source of infestation as well.

Identification and biology

Adult cat fleas are small (1/16 inch long), oval, wingless, reddish-brown to black insects with powerful hind legs. After mating and feeding, adult females lay oval, white eggs that fall into cracks, crevices, carpet, bedding or lawn covering. A mature female can lay up to 25 eggs a day for three weeks.

Within 48 hours, wormlike larvae hatch. Larvae feed primarily on “flea dirt” (adult flea feces, which is relatively undigested dried blood) that falls from the host’s fur.

They develop in areas protected from rain and sun, where the relative humidity is at least 70 percent and the temperature is 70ºF to 90ºF. So they like Indian summer in particular.

In eight to 24 days the larvae spin cocoons in which they will develop into adults. Under optimal conditions, new adults are ready to emerge from their cocoons within two weeks, but they can remain in their cocoons up to a year. Vibrations stimulate them to emerge.

As soon as adults emerge, they look for a blood meal. Adults can live a month or two without a meal and up to six months with one.
These variations in flea development time account for the sudden appearance of large numbers of adult fleas in “flea season,” usually in the late summer and early fall.

The flea population has been building up all year long in the form of eggs, larvae and pupae (cocoons), but rapid development into biting adults cannot be completed until the temperature and humidity are optimal and host cues signal adults to emerge. This is usually at the end of a long spell of hot weather, the summer, and continuing into the fall, especially if there is an indian summer.

Posted September 1, 2008 Comments(0)