My Lenaptalf Cat Articles

How to Give a Cat a Pill

The showdown begins. On one side, the cat, with claws digging into the carpet. On the other, you, with pill in hand, ready to pounce. After the dust clears, the pill is nowhere to be seen and you’re sporting several new injuries. Sound familiar? If so, you need these tips on how to give a cat a pill (and survive the process!).

The process is much easier if you have someone helping you. One of you can hold the cat still and prevent scratching or running. The other person can gently push on either side of the cat’s mouth, which will cause it to open. Then toss the pill in the cat’s mouth, ensuring that it doesn’t fall out, and release her.

That is the process that my wife and I used when we had to give our cat, My Lenaptalf, a daily pill for a suspected urinary tract infection. We also used it to give her a sedative pill when we moved out of state last year.

If you don’t have someone who can help you give the cat a pill, try to pick her up or otherwise corner her in a spot where she can’t easily escape. If you can block her with a leg against a wall or piece of furniture and use one arm to encourage her to open her mouth, than you should be able to succeed without much harm.

If the pill is chewable, it would also be possible to avoid confrontation altogether and slip it into a piece of food or cat treat.

Good luck with your quest to give your cat a pill, and may you avoid future feline showdowns!

How to Help Your Cat Lose Weight

Is your cat a bit on the plump side? Does she appear to be overweight? Try following some of these steps to encourage your cat to trim that tummy!

First, since cats come in different breeds and sizes, try to gauge how overweight your cat really is. Use a visual chart like this one to assess the different characteristics that indicate the cat’s condition. Your cat’s unique condition will determine the nature and urgency of the weight loss program you use.

Obtaining a baseline weight will allow you to measure your cat’s progress over time. Since your cat is unlikely to walk onto a scale and hold still, you can easily weigh her by picking her up and standing on the scale yourself, then weighing yourself again without her. The difference is the cat’s weight.

Reducing your cat’s weight means addressing the factors that contribute to your cat’s weight. Some of these factors, according to pet product company Iams, include “overfeeding, inactivity, breed, age and sex, spay/neuter status, diabetes mellitus, hyperadrenocorticism, and hypothyroidism.”

Of course, as with people, the two primary factors in your control are the intake of food and the expenditure of energy. Does your cat eat amounts of food consistent with the food manufacturer’s recommendation for her weight? Many popular brands of cat food include low-fat versions for weight loss. Compare their ingredients for fat levels and other important nutrients.

Iams is quick to point out that any cat weight loss plan should be gradual, at a rate of about 1% a week. As you might guess, at that rate, it will take several weeks or more for your cat to enter a more healthy weight category. Don’t rush it!

With regard to expending energy, it can be difficult with a fairly sedate indoor cat. Find several toys that you cat enjoys playing with and leave them near where you cat likes to sit. Providing sources of entertainment, especially while you’re away at work, will encourage her to remain as active as possible.

If all else fails and your cat continues to exhibit signs of obesity, consult a veterinarian immediately for professional guidance. While there is likely to be a small cost involved, it will certainly pale in comparison to the cost of treating future medical conditions if serious obesity is not treated. Good luck!

How to Brush a Long-Haired Cat

If you have a long-haired cat, you know the problem that cat hair can be. The cat sheds it seemingly continuously everywhere she goes. Her fur gets matted in places if left untouched. Hairballs form more regularly as the cat bathes and removes hair. These problems, while quite annoying for you, can be addressed to some extent by following these tips:

Brush Often - It's much easier to keep your cat's fur soft and untangled if you brush her on a regular basis for short periods of time, rather than waiting until there's a huge tangle that will require serious attention. This should reduce shedding somewhat over time as well, as you will have removed hair that otherwise would have been left in other places.

Brush at the Right Time - While some cats (including mine) don't particularly like being brushed for very long, they do seem to tolerate it more when they are distracted. I've taken to brushing mine right after I feed her and she is busy eating. She'll allow me to brush her for several minutes, usually yielding a golf-ball sized clump of hair by the time she's had enough.

Set Boundaries - Reduce hair in unwanted places by clearly defining where the cat is allowed and not allowed to be. Reinforce by placing obstacles where the cat would otherwise sit. You can also spray a small area with perfume to deter the cat from going to that place again. Especially if done in the cat's younger years, she should be able to learn where she isn't allowed.

Following tips like these and your own ideas should help you solve the various problems that arise from your cat's excess hair. Good luck!

Three Tips to Successfully Moving With Your Cat

In 2004, my wife and I moved from Washington to Arizona. Although the 1,500-mile drive looked to be uneventful, one catch was that we were taking our domestic longhaired cat, My Lenaptalf, along for the ride. Now that the experience is behind us, I’m able to offer these three tips to making your cat move a success.

Sedate – We mentioned our moving plans to a vet, and he recommended sedatives for the cat. Though she wasn’t too keen on taking the pills, I highly recommend them. With just one small pill a day, our cat was able to quietly sleep on the floor of the back seat in the car for the entire day.

Be Steady – Provide a consistent environment for the cat each day and night. We made a small, dark, cave-like environment for the cat in the back seat that seemed to help reduce her normal fear of the car and reduce the sense of being in motion. When we stopped in motels, we gave her the same food and a small litter box with the same litter she was used to.

Speak Softly – Especially at the beginning and end of the day’s car ride, speak softly to the cat and reassure her with your voice that everything is okay. Don’t make sudden movements or startle her. Allow her to explore a new motel room for a few minutes before doing anything else. Bring a familiar blanket that smells like home for her to sleep on.

I’m sure there are other success stories out there as well, so take the tips to heart that apply to your cat and your move, and good luck!