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Articles

What Is Toxoplasmosis In Cats by Thierry Babineaux
This series of articles was requested by a reader, so you will have something of this nature each month this year.

Cat Spraying - Can I Stop It? by Angelica C

Cat Hoarding - How Many Cats Are Too Many? by Larry Chamberlain

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What Is Toxoplasmosis In Cats by Thierry Babineaux

Toxoplasmosis is actually a very common parasitic disease that affects overall cat health and normally harvests itself in only warm-blooded animals, which can even include humans. The extent of cat health condition will depend on the life cycle of Toxoplasma gondii. It's life cycle is actually quite complex and involves 2 different types of host: the definitive and intermediate.

Cats can act as the definitive hosts for the parasite Toxoplasma gondii. This basically means that the Toxoplasma gondii parasite will only be able to produce oocysts or eggs while infecting the cat. If the cat consumes infected raw meat or prey then the parasite will automatically be released into his digestive tract giving rise to a pet health issue.

Once the parasite is inside the stomach of the cat, this parasite will start multiplying within the walls of his small intestine and start producing eggs. This type of condition is called intraintestinal infection cycle and during this period, the eggs can even be seen in cat faeces. These eggs have the ability to survive in different or fluctuating environment conditions for more than a year. Most cats infected by this parasite will not display any symptoms at all.

When disease actually occurs, the immune system of the cat will not be able to tackle it and stop the spreading of the tachyzoite forms and this can raise the question of pet health issue. The disease will spread in cats and at the same time suppress their immune systems. Young and newborn cats are highly susceptible to this disease and if unchecked, it will not only adversely affect cat health but also infect them with feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) or feline leukemia virus (FELV).

There are some common symptoms of this parasitical infestation and they include loss of appetite, fever, and lethargy. There are some other symptoms too but their occurrence will vary depending on the extent of the infection i.., whether the infection is chronic in nature or acute in nature. The T. gondii infection can easily spread to different parts of the body and cause pneumonia by infecting the lungs. This will lead to respiratory distress faced by your cat and aggravate the current pet health issue.

Toxoplasmosis is a concerning cat health issue because the infection can affect just about any organ in the body including the nervous system as well as the eyes. It will lead to inflammation in the eyes and the retina and the size of the pupil will be abnormal. If after diagnosis, it is found that your cat has Toxoplasmosis then there is always the chance of recovery. Treatments normally include the use of an antibiotic known as Clindamycin. Depending on cat health condition other drugs can be used that include sulfadiazine and pyrimethamine. About the Author

Toxoplasmosis is a parasitic disease that affects cat health and should be treated as a concerning pet health issue. This disease is caused by a single-celled parasite known as the Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii).

Cat Spraying - Can I Stop It? by Angelica C

The cat never seems to tire of annoying me by depositing small amounts of urine, from our mailbox, to my daughter's swing set, car hood, on my furniture, on my porch, on kitchen counters, on doorways and even window panes! It drove me nuts; I kept on following her with a Lysol on one hand and alcohol on the other. It was being O.C., I know. But it just wouldn't stop.

Is this a litter box problem? My veterinarian disagreed. The doctor informed me that this act is called Feline Spraying or Cat Spraying. It is when a cat is seen backing into an area, with tail high and quivering and a little crouching, as it SPRAYS its urine.

Apparently, urine spraying is a communication system for cats. My tom (male cat) started spraying when he reached sexual maturity, and this occurs between 5 months to a year old. This is his way of marking his territory and letting other cats know that my house, this area, this particular boundary is owned by him. Talk about being possessive, huh?

Sometimes though, my veterinarian pointed out, that cat spraying may be due to stress. He may have felt some threat that he needed to mark his territory around my place. Additionally, the spraying could have also been done by Miming, my daughter's female cat. Cat spraying is common to unneutered males. However, female felines can also do cat spraying if they are in heat and they want to let the male cats know that they are.

I was determined to stop this behavior, despite the fact that this may be a natural occurrence in homes with cats. Since I do my living, baking and catering, it is my utmost rule to keep the house, particularly my kitchen, clean and tidy. Does this mean I should give up taking care of kitties?

Fortunately for my little girl, the veterinarian said it's not necessary. The easiest way to deal with the problem is to consider having "Tom" neutered or spayed, which I did. Statistics showed that at least 90% of neutered male cats stopped spraying after the process, 78% of which stopped immediately and 9% stopped in a few months. There were about 13% that did not stop spraying even after being neutered.

If this procedure didn't work for my Tom, the doctor suggested giving him anti-anxiety drugs. So, I have learned that felines can suffer from undue stress and that can cause this urine spraying.

Did you know that Clomicalm and Valium are some drugs being administered by vets to address cat spraying problems? However, as with people, these uppers have certain effects on our pets. Some cat owners reported a change of behavior of their cats on anxiety medication.

Another alternative suggested is the use of diffusers and sprays. These new pheromone products (e.g. Feliway) offers us cat owners the chance to help our cats manage cat spraying. By spraying 'friendly' pheromone in places where Tom sprays, which lets the cat know that cat spraying is not allowed in this area. Additionally, the product is available in plug in diffusers which could work best for felines doing cat spraying around the house.

As this cat spraying may be due to stress, it is important to reassure Tom that there is no need to be anxious, and no need to feel threatened.

Did you know that problems in the household and human stress can also affect cats and cause them stress? Just like children, our cats need special attention and a bit of shelter from the stress we grown-ups are so accustomed to. Reducing these in our homes could significantly help in stopping our cats from spraying.

More so, cleaning the areas where our cats have sprayed proves to be not just an O.C. practice, but a good O.C. one. This helps in removing the odor and communicating to Tom that urinating in these areas are a big No-No. To effectively wash the areas clean, it is advisable to use a laundry detergent and mixing white vinegar and water, spraying a little onto the surfaces to remove any unwanted smell.

If your cat should continue spraying despite being spayed or after following the above suggestions, it is best to consult a cat behavior analyst. Your veterinarian may be able to recommend a good one in your area and help your cat get over cat spraying. About the Author

Get More Information about Cats Spraying and everything cat lovers should know about Cats Problems and Cats Behaviour at:

> > www.CatLoversSite.com

Cat Hoarding - How Many Cats Are Too Many? by Larry Chamberlain

Three cats would be too many if you couldn't feed them and afford their veterinary bills. On the other hand two dozen cats may not be too many if you have the necessary finance, adequate time to care for them and ample space for them.

For most people though a limit on finance, time and space means that they could only properly care for a limited number of cats.

For those that practice cat hoarding there is only one criterion - the poor cat needs a home. They do not take into account how many animals they are already looking after, they do not stop to think that it will be yet another mouth to feed, they do not worry about space for the poor creature in their home that is already crowded out with cats.

The cat hoarder will not consider that they cannot afford veterinary bills, or even off the shelf pet medications. There is a good chance that the stray feline already has a condition that needs treatment before they let them into their home.

The feline population inside the hoarders homes keeps on increasing, but not only because they take in more and more moggies.

An awful lot of strays are not spayed or neutered. The cat collector has a house full of them and that means one thing, lots of litters of kittens. Does the collector get their kitties neutered? Not usually, they in all probability couldn't afford to do so, and even if they could it possibly would not enter their heads to do so. Result, more kittens and more cats living in misery.

Is Cat Hoarding An Illness?

Whether hoarding animals is a mental condition or not, is a question best answered by psychiatrists. It does seem to be an obsession though.

Cat collectors are often lonely individuals, they do not enjoy much in the way of human company. Hardly surprising when often their homes are littered with cat feces and even deceased felines. If they did not start off on the outside of society then the way in which they live ensures that they stay there.

Cat hoarding is not restricted to any one social economic group. One Morris County, NJ, resident had 93 cats removed by the New Jersey Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals from her two story house worth around a million dollars. The interior of the home was so covered in feces and trash that it was virtually ruined.

Neither is the problem restricted to any one part of the world, hoarding can occur anywhere. One elderly Moscow lady was keeping 117 cats in her cramped studio apartment on the thirteenth floor of a high rise.

Those that engage in cat hoarding are to be pitied rather than despised. But the practice does cause problems. It is a problem for the hoarded cats, they are not helped by living in squalid conditions, being undernourished and suffering from many serious medical conditions. It can be a problem too for those that live nearby to hoarders.

What can we do to ease the problem? Well if there was not so many unwanted cats at large then the hoarders could not take them in.

The reason that there are so many unwanted strays is, of course, that some of us are not responsible enough to to get our cats fixed.

Larry Chamberlain is a life long cat lover and writes about all things cat related for the Best Cat Art website. Read what he has to say about Cat Training Cat Hissing

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