The Everything Pet Thread
Posted by biodancer on Jul 04, 2008 · Member since Jul 2007 · 978 posts
I wanted to start this thread to be all about our pets. Ask questions, help answer questions, tell a funny story about something your cat/dog/ferret/bird/rat, etc did, update everyone on your pet's health, tell us about a new pet, vent, grieve, laugh, etc. I know I'll be posting here a lot and I hope you'll join me!
:)>>> :)>>> :)>>> :)>>>
I was making Zippy's food earlier.
Trying to get him to eat more raw veggies
He is getting better and enjoys collards now.
Usually Sunday is food prep day for me.
Zippy I make his food for at 4 days at a time.
I am sure happy he likes oregano since I used a bit to much in his food.
Tasted it and tastes pretty good to me.
Last week I overloaded him on garlic. He smelled like a garlic clove every time he came next to me.
Sure hope I do not smell like that because I use it everything.
Tonight I made him vegan eggplant parm.
My cat Po was a perfect veggie cat with no health issues also.
uzbekjoe: I rememeber seeing a big poster in the vet's office that listed foods that you should not give your dog & garlic was one of them. Others that I can remember were onion, chocolate & grapes. You might want to look into that- I don't want Zippy getting sick!
OK, question for cat people: My cat has a bald spot on the top of his head. At first I thought maybe Molly scratched him, but it's not a scratch at all & he isn't even acting like it hurts, he still is rubbing his head on my leg to get me to pet him. He's just missing hair there. Anyone know what could cause it or how to fix it? I haven't changed his food at all, nothing has changed in the house that I can think of, maybe I bought a different type of litter, could that be it? I'm not too concerned because he is acting fine.
OK, question for cat people: My cat has a bald spot on the top of his head. At first I thought maybe Molly scratched him, but it's not a scratch at all & he isn't even acting like it hurts, he still is rubbing his head on my leg to get me to pet him. He's just missing hair there. Anyone know what could cause it or how to fix it? I haven't changed his food at all, nothing has changed in the house that I can think of, maybe I bought a different type of litter, could that be it? I'm not too concerned because he is acting fine.
It is dry/flaky at all? How big of a spot is it? Ringworm can cause bald spots (and they kind of look dry/flaky/scaly), thyroid issues can cause bald spots, or a food allergy. Even if you haven't switched his food, sometimes pet food companies will change their formulas (more of one type of meat/grain/etc., less of another) and maybe he reacted to that? Those are my only insights.
lisaanddini there is so much controversy surrounding garlic in cat or dog foods.
Some sites say ok and some say no go. Normally he eats very little.
Everything else on the list he does not eat.
Every pet I have had does well on garlic. Zippy has been flea free since I have had him almost 4 years now.
No health issues at all.
This came from the Holistic Dog
Foods to Avoid Feeding Your Pet
- Alcoholic beverages
- Avocado
- Chocolate (all forms)
- Coffee (all forms)
- Fatty foods
- Macadamia nuts
- Moldy or spoiled foods
- Onions, onion powder
- Raisins and grapes
- Salt
- Yeast dough
- Garlic
- Products sweetened with xylitol
uzbekjoe- thanks for the comprehensive list! that is very helpful!
kbuettne- It doesn't look dry or flaky, or red at all. He doesn't act like it bothers him either. I guess I'll just keep waiting & see what happens. He is acting completely normal, eating & drinking, using the box, trying to trip me in the mornings, harrassing Molly, etc.
I would like to take him to the vet to get checked out, but he is such a skittish guy & I know how much it would upset him, so i think that might just make things worse.
I know when my cats have developed food allergies they usually start by chewing on their front legs and tail. I would think ringworm may be more of a possibility if you were feeding raw (which I am pretty sure you don't right?)
The other thing that crossed my mind was contact dermatitis or some skin irritation caused by the weather. I also have a friend whose cat suddenly developed a bald spot on it's back and she found out a week or so later that it was because the cat was rubbing against a potpourri warmer and burning off its fur!
I think you're right to keep an eye on it for a few more days - see if the fur starts to grow back, if it gets worse, or stays the same. I'd give it 7-10 days of no change before I went to see a vet. If it gets worse or develops somewhere else, I'd definitely call the vet.
Keep us posted.
Thanks! I'll take your advice about when to take him to the vet. I don't feed raw. He is on special food for cats who are prone to urinary tract infections. I suppose it could be the weather, or we have radiator heat, maybe he rubbed against one of them when they were really hot, I didn't think of that before. I paid more attention than usual to him last night & he is not scratching it or anything.
I just made Josh call the vet about Pouncival, because lately he's been yowling at the walls (more than usual) and sometimes he'll jump as if something scared him or bit him and then he'll bolt a few feet in a random direction and start licking himself.
The vet's response? "He's probably just crazy." Which cracks me up, because he is crazy.
But I think he's about due for a wellness check anyway. I think I'll make an appointment for him after my exams next week.
Diagnosis: crazy
:-D
I just made Josh call the vet about Pouncival, because lately he's been yowling at the walls (more than usual) and sometimes he'll jump as if something scared him or bit him and then he'll bolt a few feet in a random direction and start licking himself.
The vet's response? "He's probably just crazy." Which cracks me up, because he is crazy.
But I think he's about due for a wellness check anyway. I think I'll make an appointment for him after my exams next week.
Diagnosis: crazy
:-D
Have you looked into giving your home an EMF test? Electromagnetic Fields can cause a wide range of symptoms in people and animals. His strange behavior may be caused by high EMF readings in certain areas of your home. It might be a long shot but it could be worth it if your home is older or you have young children. Older homes tend to emit higher readings and high EMF readings may be linked to childhood cancers.
This is just a hey what about this kind of thing. Read up on it though. You never know.
Both of my hermit crabts molted successfully :)>>> I was a tad worried because people i know have had them die right after due to lack of strength.
I went out and bought them new sand and bedding and fun things today for their hard work.
My dog hasnt been eating his food as much lately though, i think it might be to hard for him to chew (we do dry and wet mixed, and he eats the wet stuff..) We had senior food for him a little while ago and he ate that fine.
Though he had another seizure the other day :-\ He has them every once in a while. But i bought him a nice new toy today that he lovess. And he seems fine. So yay.
JC, hah. hes crazy ::) Thats great. I've seen people who have cats that do things like that also, quite strange.
Does anyone else's dog dislike heartguard? Every other dog I had thought they were great treats. Dini LOVES them. He starts drooling when he sees me take out the frontline & heartguard boxes. (I always give them front line first, then the heartgaurd as a treat after). But Molly doesn't care for them. She spits it out. I have to break it into little pieces & mix it in her food. & even then sometimes she picks out the little pieces.
Jeana, i just thought, mabye your cat sees a speck of dust, or a fly/gnat/moth? My dog goes crazy when he sees one and then just goes back to normal right after.
My cat keeps jumping up the door jamb and slides her way down with her claws in the wood. It sounds like someone scratching a chalkboard. It's terrible and for some reason its always at night, or normally at night. Not to mention it looks hilarious!!
I never put chemicals on or let them ingest anything
Zippy dog has never had fleas or any type of worms.
Only problem I have is in the summer here on the farm have to keep an eye on the ticks.
I believe it has something to do with his vegan diet.
He will be 6 in April and still runs and plays like a puppy.
Po Cat was always healthy and never had issues either.
My cat keeps jumping up the door jamb and slides her way down with her claws in the wood. It sounds like someone scratching a chalkboard. It's terrible and for some reason its always at night, or normally at night. Not to mention it looks hilarious!!
My male cat totally does that, too! It's such a horrible sound!
Jeana, i just thought, mabye your cat sees a speck of dust, or a fly/gnat/moth? My dog goes crazy when he sees one and then just goes back to normal right after.
We've looked for bugs, but he makes a DIFFERENT sound for bugs and birds (flying things?). He kind of makes a clicking noise... he goes "eh-eh-eh-eh-eh-EH!"
He does the door jamb thing, too! He grasps the whole thing like the sky is falling and it's the only stable thing in the world, then his pupils get HUGE (like when he's playing) and he makes a very round-sounding yowl... like "REOOOOOOOOOOW?"
Dang, crazy cats!
:-D
Last night my cat hate her food literally without chewing and threw it all back up. We gave her some canned food watered down and with oil in it to help calm her stomach (per the vet) and then tonight we was hiccuping (which i didn't think was possible) because she ate her food so fast again. My only thought is to put hot water on the kibble and let it get soggy but eventuallly that would hurt her teeth. :'(
Anyone know how I can get my little piggy of a cat to slow down when eating? :help!:
Last night my cat hate her food literally without chewing and threw it all back up. We gave her some canned food watered down and with oil in it to help calm her stomach (per the vet) and then tonight we was hiccuping (which i didn't think was possible) because she ate her food so fast again. My only thought is to put hot water on the kibble and let it get soggy but eventuallly that would hurt her teeth. :'(
Anyone know how I can get my little piggy of a cat to slow down when eating? :help!:
Actually, dry kibble does nothing to clean their teeth--that's a myth. The only exception is special "dental diets" that have large, very hard kibbles that do a little bit to scrape off gunk. If you think about it, kibble is basically like cereal and we would never claim that Cheerios cleaned our teeth :) The only true ways to keep your cat's teeth clean are regular brushings, good dental treats, or raw bones.
To prevent the gulping, I would suggest giving her a few smaller meals (like, put her dinner in three different portions so she doesn't have as much to gulp in one setting) or you can put a smaller bowl upside down in her normal bowl and pour the food around it (kind of like one of those puppy feeders, but cheaper). Then she can't just gulp it all down but has to manuver the pieces around in the bowl, thus slowing her down. Adding some water to the food will also slow her down and make the food easier to digest since cats need moisture in their food or will develop kidney/urinary issues.
Good luck!
My cat keeps jumping up the door jamb and slides her way down with her claws in the wood. It sounds like someone scratching a chalkboard. It's terrible and for some reason its always at night, or normally at night. Not to mention it looks hilarious!!
My male cat totally does that, too! It's such a horrible sound!
Any ideas how to make it stop? :) It's funny the first few times but then I want to shoot myself from the sound. Not to mention there are claw marks on all the door jambs now... Ooops.
Anyone know how I can get my little piggy of a cat to slow down when eating? :help!:
As KB said, smaller meals more often. Pounce is a certifiable hog! The vet said lots of cats who are homeless at some point in their lives learn to eat as much as they can while it's available. Just feed her very small meals more often... like 3-4 times a day. You might even do two small ones in the morning 30 minutes to an hour apart, then do the same in the evening.
That way, even if she DOES scarf it, she's not scarfing much. And if she cries, just tell her she can't be such a rabid monkey all the time!
Monk is at the vets in really bad shape :-[ It has only been two months since he had the UTI. He is trying to pass another stone but this time he can't. He is completely blocked. I am at work right now. DH brought him in this morning & the vet said he would do everything he could for Monk & told Ivan to go home & he'd call. I have been calling home every hour on the hour to find out more but they haven't called yet. Ivan says no news is good news but the waiting is killing me. I am very worried. Monk wasn't eating or drinking & he couldn't walk.
I refuse to believe that he will die. He will get better...he has to. And when he does get better, I do not want this cat to ever go through the pain of stones again. I need to be proactive instead of reactive. Does anyone know of a natural homeopathic remedy that will prevent stones from forming? I would love a website that covers all these things & maybe a recipe or two for his food....remember Monk HATES canned cat food., so I don't mind cooking his food if I have to.
Thanx for your help.
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