Toxoplasmosis

Toxoplasmosis and Cats: Toxoplasmosis is found all over the world and infects about 30 percent of the feline population and 50 percent of the human population.

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Toxoplasmosis and Cats: When Should You Be concerned?



Toxoplasmosis is found all over the world and infects about 30 percent of the feline population and 50 percent of the human population. In adults, it rarely causes any signs or symptoms because the immune system is usually strong enough to control the organism. Although it does not affect healthy adults, it can affect adults whose immune systems are compromised and unborn offspring of humans and animals that are exposed to the disease.

Dr. Christine Merle, a veterinarian at the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine in Urbana, says, "Toxoplasmosis is caused by a single-celled organism that is transmitted through the feces of infected animals, usually cats, and through raw meat, particularly venison and pork." The organism can also be found in soil that has been contaminated with the feces of an animal that is infected with the disease. Cats are the primary carriers of the disease, and usually contract it from eating birds, mice, and other small animals or through eating scraps of uncooked meat.

In humans, a mild infection manifests as flu-like symptoms accompanied by swollen lymph glands and muscle aches and pains that can last as long as several weeks. Although the organism usually does not cause any harm in adults, people and animals with immature immune systems, such as unborn children, can develop brain damage or blindness from the disease. Individuals who have compromised immune systems, such as people who have the AIDS virus, are also at risk and should take precautions to avoid the disease.

Because toxoplasmosis is so prevalent, there is a good chance that a woman who becomes pregnant may have already been exposed to the disease. If she has been exposed, then her body will have built up an immune response to fight off the disease and antibodies will be present in her blood that will be passed to the unborn child, making him or her immune to the disease before birth.

A simple blood test called a titer can be performed to determine the presence of antibodies in the blood. If they are present, there is no need for the woman to take special precautions to avoid the disease because the unborn child is already protected. If there are no antibodies present, then the mother must take precautions to make sure that she does not come in contact with the disease while she is pregnant.

There are many things that can be done can do to avoid this parasite. The handling of raw meat should be avoided or, if this is impossible, gloves can be worn and all surfaces and kitchen utensils that may have touched the meat should be disinfected afterwards. Any meat that is consumed should be cooked thoroughly until it is no longer pink.

Cats are major carriers of this parasite, so pregnant woman should avoid cleaning litter boxes. If handling the litter box is unavoidable, gloves should be worn, and the hands should be washed thoroughly afterwards. The box should be cleaned every day because the eggs are not infective until 24 hours or more after being passed in the stool.

Dr. Merle says, "Cats and other animals may also use gardens and sandboxes as litter boxes, so pregnant women and people with compromised immune systems should wear gloves when working in soil and wash the hands thoroughly afterwards."

If you are a healthy adult who is not pregnant and you think that you may have contracted toxoplasmosis, chances are no treatment will be needed and symptoms of the parasite will subside within a few weeks. If you are pregnant or have a weakened immune system and you think that you may have come into contact with the disease, contact your health care provider to discuss treatment.

If you have any other questions regarding this parasite, contact your local veterinarian.

About the author:

Jennifer Stone Information Specialist University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine


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Norwegian Forest Cats lived in a harsh and cold climate for most of the year, so their coats are adapted to this environment. It is long and thick to protect them from the hash winters and virtually waterproof. They get a summer coat in spring, resulting in shedding that needs to be attended to. Some say that grooming so not necessary, regular grooming of a Norwegian Forest Cat is a useful tool in combating shedding, though they shed far less than other longhairs. They require regular brushing to help deal with tangles and matting and may require a bath at times if they get too oily (the oil is what makes the coat water resistant). The coats themselves appear in many colors and patterns.

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These little cats are very sensitive creatures and hate to be upset. They do not like loud noise or yelling. They are easily irritated by others and thrive on a calm, stable environment. Any change in their routine, or if a stranger is in the house, can cause them to retreat and be gone for hours and even days. Cancer cats are cautious about meeting new people. Once they trust you, though, you've made a friend for life. They do not like sharing the home with any other animals, as they want your undivided attention. They do not like to be left alone, and can tend to become a bit destructive if left alone too long

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Homemade Kitten Food

Do you need a cheap, healthy alternative to store bought kitten food to help wean your kittens off their mother's milk and transition them to traditional canned kitten food? More than likely, they have shown little interest in regular canned food, preferring the milk to anything you might put in their bowl. Dry food will also be too hard on their developing teeth. The best option would be to start them on a food that reminds them of what they prefer, but can be mixed with traditional wet food to help transition them over. This recipe is simple to make, and kittens find it delicious.

Bring 1 1/2 cups of water to a boil, then remove the pan from the heat and mix in one envelope of unflavored gelatin. Be sure to mix thoroughly, and do not boil the gelatin. If the water tastes bad or has a heavy chlorine taste when it comes out of the tap, consider using filtered water instead.

Pour this mixture into a blender along with half of a 12 ounce can of goat's milk. Blend just long enough to combine thoroughly. Do not substitute cow's milk because cats tend to be lactose intolerant. Using cow's milk can lead to discomfort, diarrhea, and worse if fed to kittens.

Add the following ingredients one at a time. After each addition, blend briefly to combine before moving on to the next. You will want to use the lowest setting to avoid overmixing. Add: 3 tbsp full fat yogurt, 3 tbsp real mayonnaise, 3 tsp light corn syrup, and 1 raw egg yolk. Concerning the egg yolk, raw eggs carry a small risk of salmonella poisoning. To eliminate any risk of accidentally passing this on to your kittens, use eggs that have been pasteurized in their shells.

You can serve the completed homemade kitten food the way it is, or you can store it for use later. To store for later usage, cover the mixture tightly in a small container. You can store it in the refrigerator for up to ten days or in your freezer for up to three months.

If you are going to use food that you have prepared in advance, you will want to warm it up before serving, especially if it is coming from the refrigerator or freezer. Cold food causes severe stomach upset in kittens. Warming it up will also make it more aromatic, and thus more appetizing to the kittens.

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newbornkittens.net
Visit the author's website, http://newbornkittens.net to learn more about newborn kittens, as well as their raising and care

New Kitten Care - How to Kitten-proof Your Home

A very important aspect of new kitten care is keeping your kitten safe from danger. There are a lot of potential hazards round the home for little kittens. This article lists the most common ones and suggests ways you can minimize risks to your kitten and keep her safe.

Washing machine and tumble dryer:
If you leave the door open and there are clothes inside, there's a good chance your kitten will climb in and go to sleep. Always check your kitten isn't inside these before you use them.

Fridge and freezer:
As soon as you've used these, shut the door.

Hob and oven:
Shut the oven door as soon as you've finished with it. Cover hot hob plates.

Raw meat:
Keep it out of reach - it can give your kitten food poisoning.

Garbage:
Put all garbage in a sealed bin that your kitten can't access.

Plants:
Many plants are poisonous to cats. If you're not sure whether a certain plant is safe for your kitten if she eats it, put it out of her reach.

Pot pourri:
The oils used to scent this can be poisonous.

Open fires and candles:
Use a guard on the fire. Never leave a kitten in a room alone with lit candles.

Electrical wires:
If your kitten is a wire chewer, you'll need to put wires out of her reach or buy plastic covers for them.

Curtain tie-backs and cords on window blinds:
Kittens can get caught in these. Either remove them completely or tie them up out of reach.

Filled bathtubs and sinks:
Make sure your kitten doesn't have access to the room when the tub or sink is full.

Open toilet:
Try to get into the habit of keeping the lid down when the toilet's not in use.

Medications:
Keep them in a cupboard that your kitten can't get into.

Small objects:
Kittens can swallow small things like paper clips, rubber bands, staples and needles.

String, wool, fishing line and thread:
Kittens can swallow large quantities of these. For this reason, balls of wool or string and pom-poms aren't good toys for cats.

Household chemicals:
Most cleaners etc. are highly poisonous to cats and need to be kept somewhere your kitten can't access.

Tobacco:
Tobacco, nicotine patches and nicotine gum are all poisonous to cats.

Reclining chairs, futons, folding beds, drawers:
If kittens get caught when this type of furniture is moved, they can get crushed. Make sure your kitten isn't asleep somewhere she could get trapped before you use any of these.

Safety is a major factor for new kitten care. It's fairly easy to keep your kitten safe as long as you anticipate potential dangers and take the necessary steps to prevent them. Putting brightly colored post it notes up around your home is a good way to do this. Stick the notes on or near potential dangers - for example the fridge, washing machine, oven, toilet and futon - and anywhere else that could be a hazard.

About the Author
Liz Allan
Liz Allan has 25 years experience of caring for cats. To find out more about new kitten care, visit: http://www.cat-behavior-explained.com/all-about-kittens.html

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How to Clean Cat Urine

When cat urine seeps through carpet, into padding and down to the floor beneath, it can give your home an unpleasant aroma (to say the very least!). In almost all cases, cat urine is the worst perpetrator of pet stains and pet odors. If you own a cat, it's important for you to know how to clean cat urine stains.

The color of cat urine and its staining potential will often depend on dietary habits, age and sex of the cat, whether the cat is on medication, and the health of the cat. Urine can saturate absorbent materials such as carpet and padding, upholstery and mattresses well beyond the surface area that can effectively be cleaned. It is extremely difficult to remove all of the urine from inside of these materials. Even after a thorough cleaning, stains and odors often remain.

Tips on how to clean cat urine from the carpet:

Removing cat urine from your carpet can be one of the most difficult cleaning tasks, since it produce an especially persistent, unpleasant odor and amber-colored stains, so here are a few things you can do to eliminate them, when the "accident" is happens.

First, blot up as much of the urine as possible with a soft, clean white cloth or absorbent paper towel. Press down firmly (do not rub) for 30 seconds. The more fresh urine you can remove before it dries, the simpler it will be to remove the odor. Remove the towel and repeat the process until the area is fully dried. Rinse the "accident zone" thoroughly with clean, cool water. After rinsing, remove as much of the water as possible by blotting it up. Next, you have some options on how to clean cat urine from the carpet:
1. Baking soda works well to eliminate surface (but not deeply penetrated) odors. Dampen the area with clean water and then sprinkle baking soda over it. Rub the baking soda into the soiled area and let dry. Brush or vacuum to remove the dry material.
2. Another option in the how to clean cat urine list is white vinegar. Mix together 1 quart warm water and 1/2 cup white vinegar, and dribble the mixture onto stain. Place dry towels over the stained area and put something heavy over the towels to increase the pressure. After some hours remove the towels and raise the nap of the carpet with a soft-bristled hairbrush. Note: Test the vinegar solution on a piece of fabric that is hidden from view - under the cushion or on the backside of the furniture.
3. To clean old or heavy stains in carpeting, consider renting an extractor or wet-vac from a local hardware store. The extracting/wet-vac machines works like a vacuum cleaner and do the best job of forcing clean water through your carpet and then forcing the dirty water back out again. When you use these machines, you should follow the instructions carefully. Note: Don't use any chemicals with these machines - they work much more effectively with plain water.
4. One of the newest technologies for cleaning cat urine is penetrate the soiled area and deactivate the odor with peroxide or detergents. Simply spray a product that consist a 3% hydrogen peroxide and wait about five minutes. After that use a clean white absorbent cloth, blot the area, pressing down firmly (do not rub) for 30 seconds. Repeat this blotting process until the area is dry. If the stain or odor persists, repeat the process.Once the soiled area is really clean, you should use a high-quality pet odor neutralizer. Test the affected surface for staining first, and read and follow the instructions.
If the area still looks stained after it's completely dry from extracting and neutralizing, apply a specialized stain and odor removing bacteria/enzyme cleaner, such as "Outright Pet Stain Eliminator," "Pet 'Oops' Remover," or "Stain Gobbler". Check out the online merchants and catalogers selling pet supplies.

Tips on how to clean cat urine from your upholstery:
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Cat People

Cats: the mere word conjures up images of mystery and beauty, of ancient Egyptian goddesses, of Halloween night and witches on broomsticks. What other animals are so associated with occult imagery, while also being commonplace companions in our daily lives ? Wolves may share a spine-tingling association with ancient legends, from the werewolf to the big bad wolf of fairy tale fame. Dogs may share our lives and can be found in most suburban backyards. Yet only cats move silently and comfortably between the two worlds of the mystic and the mundane. Why do cats fascinate us and why do we love cats so ?

Cats are beautiful. Cat lovers and non-cat lovers alike must admit to the beauty of their large, soulful eyes and lovely faces, their elegant silhouettes, their dainty noses and paws, and their metronomic tails. Cats may have shimmering green eyes, cool blue eyes or surprising yellow eyes. Their fur may be long or short, smooth or bushy, uniformly colored or patterned like tigers or calicos, and come in many shades of orange, yellow, brown, grey, black, and white, or some combination of the above.

Cats are fascinating to watch. We're amused by the comical antics of lively kittens playing, leaping, bounding, and rolling about the floor, sometimes reacting to things that we mere humans can't even perceive. We're entranced by the graceful movements of adult cats, their ability to move silently and stealthily, the ease with which they can leap and climb and walk along sloped surfaces or narrow ledges that only a trained human acrobat would attempt.

Some people admire cats for their mysterious ways and associations with the night and with past ages when magic seemed more possible. Some respect them for their reputation of being aloof loners. Dog people claim that cats, being too independent, view humans with disdain. Cat lovers say that being loved by your cat means much more than being loved by your dog because, while a dog is a social animal who needs a master or pack leader to slavishly follow, the cat is by nature solitary. If a cat craves your companionship it is because she has chosen you and because you have earned her love, trust, respect and affection.

In my own experience, cats are wonderfully loving and affectionate friends. True, they may not be waiting by the door, wagging their tails, when you come home. On the other hand, one of my cats does wait by the door when we come home and our other cat is constantly seeking eye contact with us. As soon as we look at her, she meows to solicit our attention. They both show affection and they love to receive it and few activities are more relaxing than sitting on a sofa stroking a cat for hours on end. Cats are so soft and warm to the touch, and they love to curl up on your lap to be patted and given chin and belly rubs.

In addition to the emotional reasons that so many people love cats, there are also many practical reasons that cats share so many of our lives and homes. They are a very practical choice of house pet, especially for city dwellers. They are small and thus easily adapt to life in a small urban apartment. They don't need to be taken outdoors for daily walks, making them easier to care for than dogs, especially for people who are at work all day or who lack a big yard or who hate to walk in the rain. Cats are also very clean and quiet and they don't track mud onto your carpets, chase cars or bark at passers-by, which could attract the wrath of your neighbors.

Cats are smart and kittens are easily trained to use litter boxes, making them far neater and far easier to assimilate into a household than are puppies. Because of their small size, cats don't eat the quantities of food required by large dogs, making cats more practical than dogs for families with smaller budgets. It's also feasible to share a home with several cats at one time.

Cats were first welcomed into human homes for their ability to kill mice, for their usefulness to humans, but for me this is a negative point. First of all, I see companion animals as independent beings of another species who share our homes. It's an honor to be accepted and trusted by fellow creatures, and my goal is to deserve that trust, to give them a safe and happy home with proper care and plenty of love and affection. They're not here to serve me in some way. Also, as an animal lover, I don't want to see mice killed, and so my cats don't have access to smaller creatures.
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Why Chemotherapy for an Older Cat Is Less Effective

It's difficult to watch your suffer from cancer, and even harder to choose a course of therapy, like cat chemotherapy or radiation, to try to improve the situation. However, for older cats, many veterinarians recommend against treatments like chemotherapy, as they can be less effective. Age Is an Important Factor for Chemotherapy

When he was a kitten, you never had to worry about recovery time. One minute your kitten had a cold, the next she was bouncing off the walls. Recovery time is increased with age, and it takes longer for your cat to heal.

As a result of the cancer, your cat may have suffered damage to his or her immune system. Before setting on a course of chemotherapy, understand that the procedure includes pumping chemicals into your cat's system, causing sickening side effects. Your cat may not be able to recover from the drugs themselves. Consider Other Options for Older Cats
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Coughing Cat - Mysterious Causes You Must Know

A coughing cat demands cat pet care. The cat does not necessarily mean that the cat is sick or ill. Maybe the cat has diarrhea or maybe there are simply cat hairballs. There are several causes for a coughing cat. They are enumerated here.

Asthma and bronchitis may be a cause for a coughing cat. If asthma is causing the coughing then your cat will be given an x-ray. Your cat will have an inhaler, some asthma medication, and some steroids. Your cat may have bronchitis as shown by the x-ray. This is normally treated with steroids. Some cats may also have allergic reactions to airborne elements which may cause their asthma.

Cat hairballs may be one of the causes. If your cat has long hair then it is very likely that their coughing is caused by falling hair. This is one thing that you can treat at the comfort of your own home. You can purchase one of several over-the-counter remedies for hairballs at your vet's office, pet shop, or pharmacy. If you want to use a natural treatment for your cat's hairballs then you can use papaya treatments instead.

The coughing may be caused by cardiomyopathy. When your cat has this kind of illness, their heart will not pump blood properly. As a result, there will be a build up of pressure. This will cause the fluid in the lungs to be come congested and thus, cause the cat to cough.
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Two Unusual Rare Cat Breeds

There are many types of cats, you have your exotic cats, you have your domestic tabby cats and then you have your more unusual rare cat breeds. If you are looking for a rare cat breed then you have a few options that your can choose from. Here we will discuss the Sphinx and the British Shorthair, both rare and both very beautiful cats.

Sphinx
The Sphinx is a rare cat breed that you might want to think about and one of the most unforgettable since they are hairless. In fact the Sphinx is not always completely hairless there can be a fine down on the body, similar to that on a newborn baby.

One of the features that make them so extraordinary is the surface of the Sphinx skin. It has been compared to a suede-covered hot water bottle of heated chamois. These are impressive cats which are medium sized and strong. They characteristically have strong boning and superior muscle development and the adult cats tend to be bigger than the female cats.

As well, this rare cat breed requires a particular cat diet, so you are required to make sure that you are feeding them the correct foods if you want them to be healthy and do their best.
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Good Things To Know About Russian Blue Cats

People say that no other cat breed can be as beautiful as the Russian Blue! They are indeed wonderful cats, which can steal anyone's heart with their emerald green eyes, silver-tipped fur, refined boning and plushy coats! These cats have a very strong personality. It is not the owner who chooses to take in a Russian Blue cat, but it is the cat that chooses to accept him! The cat has the final say as to how the relationship develops. If you are lucky enough to win her trust, you will get her full loyalty and love. The cat will treasure you more than anyone in the whole world. Unlike the other cats which are usually very friendly to people, the Russian Blue kitten is rather shy when meeting a stranger. The little one hides in a safe place, most of the times behind pieces of furniture. From there the kitten can review all the new aspects of her life. The only working strategy at this point is to sit down, quietly dangle a shoelace or move a cat teaser back and forth slowly and wait. The Russian will be unable to ignore the motion and will most certainly try to catch the moving object.
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Meow Mix House - Cat Reality Television

My friends at Meow Mix have done it again, they have produced a reality TV show staring 10 homeless cats. All ten cats were chosen from animal shelters from around the country.
The cats are spending their time in a storefront window in New York City. The players are brought to life with the use of voice over and the public votes one of the cats out of the house each week. Sound like something you've watched before?
The best part is when the cats gets voted out of the Meow Mix House they go to an adopted new home and the winner will be the new Meow Mix spokes-cat.
Thanks to Meow Mix for providing great entertainment for us cat lovers.

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