Good on you! There you are, reading a cat blog article about keeping your cat healthy and extending his/her life. As a cat lover, myself, I applaud your love for your cat(s). We all want our precious little furry babies to live as long and as well as possible. Fortunately, there are lots of things we can do to help make that happen.
If you’re a regular reader, you probably already know that we had a much (much much much, much…) loved cat named Prissy, who I named after my favorite Gone With the Wind character, who lived for over 20 years. Within those years… 20, wow, that’s a lot of years…. she only had to go to the vet once, when she was 3 – for a sinus infection of all things. Prissy was a house cat, which certainly helped her achieve such an impressive lifespan. In fact Keep your cat safe and secure inside your home at all times was listed number 1 on Real Age.com’s Cat Health Tips for Helping Your Cat Have a Younger Real Age.
Of course, there are times when your cat has to live outside the house rather than inside the house. They’re still much beloved family, of course, their section of the house simply doesn’t have a roof. If your cat has to live without a roof, as some of our cats do, read How to Help Your Outdoor Cats Live Longer.
A few safety precautions all cat lovers will want to take include:
- Make certain your houseplants are safe. Some houseplants are poisonous and shouldn’t be allowed in a cat’s vicinity EVER. I wouldn’t even keep one on the highest shelf in a room my cat never visits. Can you say not worth it? No plant is worth making a cat sick and it certainly isn’t worth the risk of killing a cat! Please see Toxic and Non-Toxic Plants for Cats. Needless to say, if you have dogs, be sure to check the same website for poisonous plants for dogs.
- If you have an indoor cat, be certain that all guests to your home know that the cat is not allowed outdoors. Some people have cats that come and go and may automatically assume that your cat does so as well.
- Please don’t allow your cat to lie on or play near ironing boards. I see a lot of precious pictures online of cats lying on ironing boards (horrifyingly enough, sometimes the iron’s plugged in and is next to the cat) online. I used to keep our ironing board up most of the time (with a blanket on top) because Alexa loved to lie on it and look out the window. One day, she had a terrible accident, though, and somehow managed to pull the ironing board down on her when she quickly jumped off. One of the metal legs landed on one of her tiny back legs, breaking her leg in two places. I’ll NEVER forget the pain she was in or the helpless, sick feeling I had. She had to have a cast and had to spend months in a large cage. It was absolute hell for me and her. When we first brought her home from the animal hospital with a cast on her leg, I had trouble getting her to agree to the cage. At one point, she backed into a corner as tears, literally ran from her eyes (as well as mine!). It’s an image that will stay with me forever and will prompt me to beg cat lovers to keep their ironing boards put up at all times. PLEASE. If you have a cat blog, a facebook page, or a Twitter account, help me spread the word about the dangers of ironing boards for cats.
- Always remember how inquisitive and nosy cats are! Be certain to always double check the dryer before closing the door – even if you’re almost certain your cat never came into the room.
Click HERE to read the Real Age.com article about adding years to your cat’s life. Great stuff!
