Did You Know?
I hope to add a lot of different tidbits of helpful information from cat care that works for us to vaccines.
I will add links to the articles within the post, this will give credit to the article where I got it, and add links to several other articles on the same subject. This way my clients can read even more on the subject posted.
Stay tuned for more articles to come!
We no longer invite strangers into our Home
This is Why!
For over two months, Lori Heimer’s tight-knit family has struggled to understand why anybody would want to target the loving mother of four daughters.
Lori, 57, was murdered in her home in southeast Assaria, Kansas on Saturday, June 25th.
She was found by family members — who immediately called 911.
June is harvest season in Kansas, so Lori’s husband Ron had to be retrieved from cutting wheat out in the fields.
There have not been any arrests and authorities have released few details about the crime scene.
Lieutenant Michael Ascher with the Saline County Sheriff’s Office said that Lori was “brutally murdered” and it was a “brutal crime”.
Ready, Set, Go - Your Poolside Cat is coming!
It’s time to get ready, get set & go shopping for your new PoolsideCat or PoolsideCats.
1. Find a vet – the best way to find a vet is to call a vet office close to you. Ask them how many Bengal or Savannah clients do they have? If none, move on to the next one.
2. Kitten proof – kitten proof – kitten proof – your house. Before you bring home your new bundle of fur you need to kitten proof. Put all the breakables away until after kitty has grown out of every old is new again and interesting. Clean off the dressers, put away important nick knacks for a later time. Believe me you will thank me!
3. Get your kitties safe room ready. Usually a Master Bedroom Bath for the first night or two, then master bed room or spare bedroom Set up a cat condo, cat toys, a bed, a place to eat, water bowl, and a litter box.
Plan on spending as much time in this space as you can to bond with your new kitty!
This is the most important 2+/- weeks for you and your kitty to bond.
Bonding – SO IMPORTANT – Bonding
You only get one 1st time bonding with your new kitty!
The more you put in the more you will get out!
I get questions from time to time asking why I feel setting a kitty cat up in a safe room is so important.
Kitties from breeders are leaving a stable home life with a bunch of their siblings or playmates. They differ from cats at the shelter. The shelter cats have had to at one time or another fend for themselves.
Breeder kitties are more sheltered, no pun intended, but we baby them, give them tons of attention so they look at other humans as strangers and wonder if the stranger is a good or bad stranger. So it takes more time with a ‘sheltered kitty’ than a kitty ‘from a shelter’ – these kitties from a shelter may have been a street kitty, had to be a tough kitty, bolder kitty and seek out humans faster than one that already comes from a family environment.
So this is why we feel doing a slow and easy approach is better.
I think it is time for you to decide just what kind of kitty you want your kitty to turn out to be. A kitty that is just a kitty, or a family member kitty?
If you want a family member kitty, one that greets you when you walk into a room, one that can’t wait to be pet by you I would strongly consider these steps.
Now the work begins for you!
Do NOT bring your kitty home, open up the carrier door and say welcome home kitty. Big, Big mistake.
If you follow these steps you will thank me in a few months, trust me!
You need to set up a safe room for your kitty. This room will work throughout your cats life. (more on this later!)
FIRST COUPLE OF NIGHTS:
I strongly recommend your master bath the first couple of nights. It is small compared to a bedroom, less over whelming for him/her. You need a litter box, water bowl, his/her carrier with door open so they can use it as a bed. During this time, you need to go into the room and spend as much time as you can with the new kitty. Get down on the floor, we are giants to these cats. Some clients have taken a book into the bathroom while waiting for kitty to come around. Talk to your cat, talk a lot! This new kitty needs to learn your voice sound, your smells, your mannerism — everything about you. I mention the first couple of nights, if more is needed that’s ok each cat is different. When you see your kitty is less scared of you, using the litter box, eating and drinking you can move on to the next step.
2 WEEKS OR MORE IN BONDING ISOLATION:
When you feel it is ok to move on, walk out of the bathroom leaving the door open, but make sure your bedroom door is closed. Do not bring your kitty out of the bathroom, let him/her come out on their own. If you work on their terms you will move forward faster, I know it doesn’t seem it but it will be faster.
When you are in your bedroom with your kitty, now you should have a litter box in the room, and a cat condo. You can leave the water and feeding area in the bathroom. You are going to start over in this room. If you have a TV in the bedroom keep it on, it will calm kitty, silence in a new house is scary. Spend as much time as possible in the room, talking, talking and more talking to your kitty. Play with your kitty, win over his/her confidence. I usually recommend 2 weeks as a minimum some cats take longer. When your kitty comes running when you come in the room, rubs up against you, looks up to you for lovin’ your getting there. If kitty runs and hides while in the room you should keep him/her in the room until this stops.
Remember, the more you put in the more you will get out of your new family pet member.
When you feel the time is right do the same as you did when kitty came into the bedroom. Go out of the bedroom leaving the door open. Kitty will venture out, may run back in the room a few times, but when kitty is ready to meet the big house you will know. Slow and steady works best.
Before you allow kitty to roam the house make sure you have litter boxes in place – guide kitty over to them so they know where their potty box is.
Safe room….
By starting your kitty out this way you have created a room where your kitty can go to be safe. If you have contractors in and you are trusting they will not let your kitty outside. Big mistake. I suggest you put kitty in the safe room when you have them in. If you are having a party use the kitty safe room. You will be happy that you are not out searching for your kitty after the party.
I do these steps myself when I bring in new cats to our program. I will also do this if I have one that is just a little shyer than others. So I am speaking from experience. 🙂
You’ve picked out your Poolside kitty, let’s go shopping!
1. Litter boxes – We use Sterilite storage containers. You can buy them at most Wal-mart store for under $7 a box. They are about 24 inches long x 18 inches wide x about 12 inches high. We recommend getting several. They work great stacked with product in them, makes them ready to go and they don’t tip over when stacked.
2. Cat litter – We use Equine Pine Pellets. We buy ours at our local Tractor Supply store for $6-$7 a 40lb bag. It is the same litter as Feline Pine Pellets just whole bunch cheaper. We use a water pitcher as a measuring cup. If you measure each litter box out, you should get about 10 litter boxes out of one bag
3. Cat condos and toys. Our Bengals & Savannahs have plenty of cat condos to start them out on the right path. Now its your turn to continue to provide them with their learning tools. We have no cats scratching our human furniture because we have all the cat condos any cat would want. In fact we rarely have cats sitting on the human sofa.
Cat Toys:
Cat toys that are a hit with our Bengals & Savannahs are mice with plastic bodies, wrapped mice, cat nip toys, ping pong balls, teaser toys on a pole, and water balls. (dollar tree – water toys for kids) NO you do not wet the water balls. The cats like the water balls because they are squishy, light, airy and go far when they hit them with their paws. Also these are key to getting your cat to play fetch with you. Small balls come 4 to a package, big balls come 2 to a package for $1 at the dollar tree. (warning…seasonal item though)
Cat Condos:
I really like cat condos that are made of real wood, and covered with carpet. I find Molly & Friends to be great cat condos. I personally have several in our house. You can go to their website and have them shipped to you, but shipping is pricey. Or you can go to Pet Supermarket and buy them there. Sign up for Pet Supermarket coupons on their site, they also have a friends and family day, once a year if not more. This is for 15% off.
If you are unable to get a Molly & friends cat condo get one made out of wood and carpet. They will last longest. Well worth the money…
I would have one in every room you hang out in. If you bond with your cat he/she will want to be with you. If you give kitty their own furniture you will have less damage on your human furniture. I rarely have cats on our sofas because we have a lot of cat condos around for our cats.
Go high with several platforms too. Bengals and Savannahs like to be high.
If you have a screened in pool or patio area, add one there if you are going to let your cat in this area. Same goes for litter box.
The more you give to your cats the more you will see they use their things over yours.
So you want to walk your cat on a leash do ya? I agree it is a cool thought.
But there are cautions… One backfiring car can send your cat into a panic. How about the neighborhood dog who jumped the fence to get to your cat?
And better yet, cats are groomers, what they get on their feet usually ends up being groomed right into their bellies.
And this…once that cats gets use to it, they think it’s ok to walk over that threshold and they will think it can go outside any time that door opens up.
I have had 2 clients call me to let me know their cats had gotten out when they were not supposeto…the cat got hit by a car. Sad!
General Health
Litter boxes plain and simple!
Everyone hates to talk about the litter boxes for our cats. I don’t know why… if you do a good job keeping your cats litter box(es) clean everything is good. The problem most times is the human – not the cat. Some people don’t clean their cat boxes as often as they should. I will explain just how easy it can be, how to cut your box duty time, save you product, keep the house smelling clean, and your cat will love you for it.
KEY POINT: It is ALWAYS wise and best to have AT LEAST 1 more litter box than number of cats you have in the house. And please, do NOT have them all in one area, like all in the laundry room, or all in the garage. Think of this, you are up on the 3rd floor of your house, you have to go to the bathroom. You MUST go down to the basement because that is the only place there is a bathroom. If you don’t like going all that distance, neither does your cat! You want to have your litter boxes spread all around the house. I suggest have one close to each room you hang out in most. Your cat is your family member, he/she will want to be hanging out with you. So please keep this in mind when buying and placing your cats litter boxes!
What you will need:
A WATER PITCHER: We use a water pitcher as a measuring cup. (dollar tree – in above photo)
BOXES: We have found that litter boxes are too small and too expensive for a Bengal or Savannah cat. These breeds tend to be a longer torso cat and a taller cats. Most time your cat is standing in the litter box you purchased from your local pet shop with his rear end pointed out. Yep peeing right out of the box.
We use sterilite boxes from our local Walmart or Target store. They are approximately 16 inches wide x 24 inches long x 12 inches high. (Photo above.)
LITTER: We stopped using clumping litter years ago. Too dusty, too dirty, and it really is not healthy for your cat to breathe. Also clumping litter clumps when wet…if your cat grooms, he/she gets clumping litter in the belly, I wouldn’t think that would be a good thing. We do not use clay either.
We use (equine) Pine Pellets for cat litter. It is the same as Feline Pine Pellets just a bunch less in price. We get ours at our local Tractor Supply store. 1 bag which is 40lbs cost around $6. Feed stores sell Equine Pine Pellets too!
We have several boxes, I use several stacked with pine pellets (about 3) per litter box setup around the house. This way when I dump one, I am able to remove one if it is horribly dirty leaving some stacked in its normal place so cats always have a litter box at their disposal.
This is what I do… I use the water pitcher as my measuring cup. I put one pitcher full in each box, stacked 3 high with pine pellets. Because we are in several rooms of our house at any given time I have many litter boxes around. I dump boxes, yes dump boxes the night before trash pick up. Refilling and replacing after cleaned. We feed a raw diet to our cats so we have NO SMELLY poops. (more on the raw food diet in another post)We hardly have a urine smell either. When the pine pellets get wet from urine it breaks down to a powder, time to dump.
I have found, that if you use a water pitcher, 1 filled pitcher per box, you can get about 10 litter fills out of 1- 40lb bag of Pine Pellets.
**** I have done something to make my litter box cleaning so much easier. Now I realize I will have way more litter boxes than you but I still thought it was worth sharing!
I bought a small brute trash can with a lid, (amazon) it comes up to my hip, and a trash can wheel caddy for it. I put 2-3 bags of equine pine pellets in the trash can along with my pitcher measurer. I have another trash can, same size with a trash bag liner for dirty litter box garbage. I dump in the trashy litter powder, spray box if not horribly dirty – with a kitchen bleach cleaner, wipe clean, fill it with pine pellets. Job done! I check all litter boxes the night before trash night. This practice will give you a clean smelling house, a cleaner box for your kitty and a routine not too hard to keep up.
Cats get lonely when they are home alone while we are gone to work all day doing our thing. They live longer healthier lives when they have a playmate. Also…idol time for a Bengal or Savannah is the devils workshop! We would much rather offer a discount on a second full priced kitten/cat for a playmate over having your kitty be an only cat-kid.
Bengal & Savannah cats are a higher energy cat than your average cat. Yes they still sleep the same amount of time as any other domestic cat, they just are ready to go when they are up…. They think nothing about pouncing on their playmates, chasing the balls for a game of fetch or climbing to the top of the highest cat condo in the house.
If you are looking for a cat that will just be yours and sit in a corner a Poolside cat may not be a great choice for you. Most of our cats really love hanging out with their human. They love human attention for the most part.They love a long game of fetch with their humans. Not all Bengal cats are lap cats, but they are as loyal as you can ask for! Talk to your cat, bond with your cat, that cat will be your best feline friend!
FVRCP vaccine things you should know! — Kidney failure
Feline Vaccine Dangers- Kidney Failure
Holistic veterinarian Dr. Deva Khalsa says in her newsletter:
“It’s important that we all know the side effects of the vaccines we give our cats. One of the most dangerous side effects of the feline distemper vaccine is that it causes kidney failure in cats.
Let’s take a look together at some plain and simple facts. The most important vaccine for cats to get is feline distemper (also called feline paneukopenia), yet only kittens get feline distemper. So if your cat has had a vaccine or two for feline distemper and is not a kitten, why get the vaccine at all? How about if your cat is an indoor cat? How often is he or she exposed to any disease? The vaccines are effective and long lasting so why keep getting them?
But that’s not the whole story. There’s more. Because if vaccines didn’t have adverse affects on our cats health I wouldn’t even bring this topic up. So what if cats get too many vaccines, if it doesn’t hurt them and it makes your veterinarian happy… where’s the harm?
But vaccines are not harmless. They are considered a medical procedure, with risks and benefits. Are vaccines safe? That’s the first question to ask. And the answer is an emphatic NO. Vaccines do not only cause immediate reactions like swelling at the site of vaccination or lethargy and fever. Vaccines do cause real life threatening health problems later on.
The virus for this vaccine is grown in a culture of feline kidney cells. And there’s some frightening information concerning this vaccine made even more distressing because something like 80%-90% of cats will go into kidney failure. Colorado State University did some research which showed that the majority of kittens developed autoantibodies to their own kidney tissue after being vaccinated for panleukopenia-feline distemper. And each booster vaccine creates more antibodies in the cat to the cat’s own kidneys. Your cat’s immune system then attacks it’s kidneys causing a low grade inflammation and as the years pass it all adds up and kidney failure is the result. The rub is that these vaccines are long lasting and adult cats are resistant to the disease so the vaccine isn’t even needed.
Vaccinate responsibly. Adult cats do not need this vaccine at all. You can learn more about vaccines at the dogandcatvitamins.com blog.
I hope the information in this newsletter helps you to decrease your beloved cat’s risk of getting kidney disease. Pass this onto your friends so other cats can also live longer and happier lives.”
Raw Diet for our cats and why
So many ask why we feed raw diet to our cats. I fought the raw diet for a long time. But… after buying a early generation Savannah breeder who came to me after being fed a horrible diet of kibble and cheap wet food which gave her a urinary tract infection which I just could not cure. No meds, no special Urinary diet suggest by my vet would help, after 11 months of weekly urine tests with results being 1 week UTI, next week crystals, one week a little bit better but not cured, I had had enough. I talked with several breeders asking about their food and almost everyone I spoke with fed a raw diet. This got me on the research wagon and found out so much on why commercial food is horrible for our pets.
We have been programed to easy is best for our pets. Kibble is king, when it really is cat crack. Kibble is only 8-10% moisture. Can/wet food and raw is 80% moisture. Cats will NEVER drink enough water to combat the kibble they are taking into their bodies. This is hard on the kidneys. My Savannah girl had gone the can/wet food gamut with no good results even prescription urinary foods.
I decided I was going to stop the meds, off the vet recommended foods and go for the raw diet…I was all in, I figured I had nothing to loose and maybe something to win. Talked it over with my vet who didn’t know much about feeding a raw diet. (I’ve sense learned many vets don’t know about the advantages of raw over store bought kibble and canned.) She was on board as she knew I had done everything humanly possible to cure my breeder girl.
So raw diet it was. I bought a grinder, ground up a chicken diet, she gobbled it down. I showed up as usual to the vet for a urinary test. CLEAR. The first clear I had ever had with this cat. Following week, clear again, and so on.
After that, I fed the birds the kibble cat food, and all our cats were moving over to the raw diet. Been on raw ever sense. I grind, package up in Ziploc freezer bags and put in the freezer, thaw, feed… Sure it’s work, but so is taking your pet to the vet all the time for urinary infections. Now I see the vet less often, I cannot tell you how happy that makes me…and my healthier cats are happy too!
I found on youtube, Dr. Karen Becker, she wrote a book “real food for healthy pets” It is all about the advantages of a ancestral diet. No one cooks for the feral cats or the wild cats do they? They eat raw diet for the most part if not all raw!
I do not require my clients to feed their cats raw, but be warned of the problems that CAN come with commercial foods. It’s all good until it isn’t any more.
I have lost many cats over the years to kidney disease. I never knew it could have been the food I was feeding them. The commercials told me it was good for my cats. I believe it too.
Cystitis, Urethral Obstruction, Urinary Tract Infection
By, Lisa A. Pierson, DVM
Important points:
- Any cat that is having trouble urinating may have an obstructed urethra which is a medical emergency.
- “Water” is the most important word when considering urinary tract health.
- Feeding a water-rich diet of canned or homemade food is critical for urinary tract health.
- Feeding dry (water-depleted) food contributes significantly to urinary tract dieases.
- Cats consume double the amount of water when fed a water-rich diet versus dry food. This fact considers both sources of water: food and water bowl.
- Urinary tract infections are significantly over-diagnosedleading to antibiotic abuse.
- Blood in the urine is not necessarily indicative of an infection.
- Cases of sterile (non-infectious) cystitis (inflammed bladder wall) are far more common than infections.
- It is important to define the “I” in “UTI.” Infection? Inflammation?
- Crystals are very commonly erroneously diagnosed and over-treated with so-called “prescription” diets.
- I do not use any prescription diets other than the occasional use of canned s/d, temporarily.
Please read more on this Dr. Lisa A Pierson, DVM has a lot to offer on the subject.
Food for thought!
De-Clawing your Cat, Really?!
If you are someone who values your belongings over the well being of your cat, you need to move on.
I am NOT the breeder for you.
I am sure there are breeders out there that don’t really give a crap what you do with your cat, I’m not one of them!
I want you to think about what it is like for your kitty to be de-clawed. Look down at your finger while you are sitting at your keyboard or typing on your phone…Maybe you have a nice manicure too. Now look at your tips of those fingers and visualize them ending at the first knuckle. How do you think that feels?
Remember it didn’t happen via an accident but on purpose because someone thought you would be better without those tips. Not thinking of the pain and suffering you will go through. Or thinking about how awkward it is doing everyday things.
But only to save your humans belongings. When the only thing your human needed to do was to buy you your own cat condo to scratch on.
There are many articles written about this. See Links below!
The USDA Forced Kittens to Become Cannibals for Research, Watchdog Report Says
TIME MAGAZINE
BY JAMIE DUCHARME
UPDATED: APRIL 2, 2019 11:03 AM ET | ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: MARCH 20, 2019
Updated, April 2:
The USDA’s Agricultural Research Service (ARS) announced Tuesday that it will refocus its toxoplasmosis research, and that “the use of cats as part of any research protocol in any ARS laboratory has been discontinued and will not be reinstated.” Fourteen cats that are currently part of the research program will also be adopted out to USDA employees, according to the statement. In response, White Coat Waste Project President Anthony Bellotti said in a statement that the group is “elated that after a year of intense campaigning by White Coat Waste Project and our 2 million members and supporters, alongside leadership from scores of Republican and Democrat Congress members, the USDA’s kitten slaughterhouse has finally been relegated to the litterbox of history.”
A shocking watchdog report alleges that the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) spent $22.5 million conducting “unnecessary and unjustifiable” research that involved killing cats and forcing “kitten cannibalism,” among other unsavory practices.
(there is a lot more this article says, link provided below)
As of 2013 hobby breeders can no longer ship pets. All pets are placed face to face. We gladly meet our clients for a reasonable transport fee some place in the middle.
Ask for more information.
We’ve stopped inviting strangers into our home.
Click & READ: Breeder Lori Heimer killed by man viewing puppies!
Thank you for understanding!