Kitten and Adult Cat Care

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Feeding Schedule
Kittens should be fed small frequent meals 3-4X/day of a good quality kitten food (ie. Hill's Science Diet Kitten Food). It should be stored in an air-tight container in a cool place. We recommend gradually switching to a similar adult formula between 10-12 months of age. Hill's Oral Care or Prescription Diet T/D are excellent for promoting healthy teeth for adult cats. Cats are particularly sensitive to fresh and stale food. They tend to gorge on fresh food when large amounts are first put out, which occasionally results in food regurgitation. Small meals (usually 1/8 - ¼ cup is adequate) are better appreciated and lead to a more positive relationship. Small meals also lend to better weight control as overweight cats are more prone to diseases such as arthritis, diabetes, and fatty liver disease.

Claw Trimming
Cats shed their claws every 4-6 weeks. Trimming their claws monthly helps prevent lameness caused by claw snagging. Loopy carpets frequently snag their claws and can lead to ligament tears. Providing adequate scratching post opportunities helps your cat naturally shed their claws while also preserving your furniture. Placement of the post in desirable places is the key to success. Choose social locations where the family spends a lot of time, near couches and window views. Many posts are now designed as comfortable perches for lounging as well.

Ear Care
Cats may occasionally have a "normal" oily ear excretion, but any thick or one-sided discharge is usually a sign of an infection. Please call your veterinarian if your pet has any significant ear discharge, or if you see any signs including head shaking, scratching, head tilt or redness.

Deworming
Minimally, annual preventative deworming for all pets going outside is recommended along with annual stool checks. Fecal exams look for microscopic eggs shed in the stool. Not all life stages are able to shed eggs, therefore false negative stool samples are possible. Fresh moist samples are ideal, and can be dropped off anytime we are open. Kittens should have their stool checked initially at their first visit and after 16 weeks of age. Many of the intestinal parasites can be contagious to people, children being the most often infected. Frequent hand washing, especially before eating and after cleaning the litterbox is recommended.

Heartworm Disease
Heartworm are parasites carried by mosquitoes. If your pet is bitten by an infected mosquito, they will likely develop heart disease as the parasites mature and multiply. A monthly preventative kills the heartworms before they mature. There is a monthly heartworm preventative available for cats.

Teeth
Healthy teeth are important not only for chewing, but also because of the effects on multiple body systems. As your cat ages, severe tarter and gingivitis allow bacteria into the bloodstream. This leads to infection in the organs including the heart, kidneys & liver. Brushing your pet's teeth with a soft toothbrush and pet toothpaste will help prevent future dental cleanings under anesthesia. Pets don't spit out the toothpaste so human fluoride products can be toxic and often make them nauseous. Many of us are unable to brush our pets teeth for various reasons. A dental diet such as Hill's Prescription Diet T/D (tarter control diet) may be helpful in addition to or instead of brushing.

Fleas and Ticks
Tick season can begin as early as February. We recommend aggressive tick & flea management (ie. Frontline). Indoor cats can get fleas, most often from rodents bringing them into the home. Flea season peaks from August until November. Prevention is the best measure, with Frontline being an effective topical application. If they get established on your pet, they will drop eggs in your home which can hatch many months later. It is much harder to eliminate fleas and their eggs from your home than from your pet. Flea bite allergies are common and typically appear as scabbing along the back near the tail. Topical flea treatments kill the flea before it is able to expose your pet to significant amounts of allergenic saliva. Please ask us about the appropriate flea treatments for your pet(s) and home.

Outdoor Cats
Cats spending time outside are potentially exposed to many more diseases than indoor cats. Intestinal parasites can be picked up while grooming, eating rodents, or by eating blades of grass. Fleas infestations are common especially in late summer and early fall. Avoid using flea collars as most are NOT a quick-release design. Eating infected fleas can lead to tapeworm infections. Please let us know if you are finding rice-like grains around your pet's tail, as tapeworms don't always show up in a stool sample. Exposure to other cats makes them prone to viruses such as feline leukemia, feline infectious peritonitis (FIP), feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV), or feline viral rhinotracheitis to name a few. Annual testing will help pick up these diseases early. It is always wise to isolate your new pet from your original pets until it is examined by a veterinarian. Even then, a two week isolation period is ideal. Some of these diseases are not prevented by our current vaccines, and eventually can be fatal. Your outdoor cat is prone to many predators such as fisher cats, owls, coyotes and cars. Twice daily feeding allows you to catch your cat in the evening and confine them to help protect them from nocturnal predators. Remember, your cat is a hunter and is likely killing many birds, chipmunks, mice, etc. It is only natural that they may eventually become a victim themselves.

Bathing
Most healthy animals do not require routine bathing. If for some reason, there is a need to bathe your pet, try using a moisturizing oatmeal shampoo rather than a human or standard pet shampoo. Human products tend to cause excessive drying of the skin which can lead to itchiness.

Vaccination Schedule for Kittens & Cats

Feline Distemper Group:
The Feline Distemper Group vaccine for cats protects against several viruses including feline panleukopenia, feline viral rhinotracheitis, feline calicivirus and chlamydia. Kittens should receive an initial set of the Feline Distemper Group vaccine starting at about 8 weeks of age, and repeating every 3-4 weeks for a total of 2-3 boosters with the last vaccination given at an age of 16 weeks. The Feline Distemper Group vaccine should be boostered 1 year from the last kitten vaccine, then every 3 years for the life you your pet.

Rabies Vaccine:
Kittens should receive their rabies vaccine around 16 weeks of age. The Rabies vaccine should be boostered yearly for the life of your pet.

Feline Leukemia Vaccine:
We recommend the Feline Leukemia vaccine for all cats that go outside for any length of time that may come in contact with other cats. Kittens can start the Feline Leukemia vaccine around 12 weeks of age. They will receive their second Feline Leukemia booster in 3-4 weeks. The Feline Leukemia vaccine should be boostered annually if the cat is given access outdoors and is potentially exposed to other cats.

Other things to consider:
We recommend testing all cats and kittens for Feline Leukemia/FIV. This is most helpful and usually done at the time of your first visit. It is especially important to test cats before introducing a new cat into the household….not only do you want to make sure your new pet is free from the Leukemia and FIV viruses, but you want to make sure your existing cats are also free of the virus as not to expose the newcomer to these potentially life threatening viruses. If your pet has tested negative for both viruses, you can decide to vaccinate against Leukemia if your cat will be going outside. We also recommend checking a stool sample for intestinal parasites on kittens at least twice, 2 months apart, and then at least yearly for all cats. Minimally, annual preventative deworming for all cats going outside is also recommended. Heartworm preventative should be given on a monthly basis at least through the mosquito season.