Congenital heart defects are heart defects that are present at the time of birth.
These defects can be caused by one or a combination of the following: an abnormality in the cat’s genes; environmental conditions; infection; exposure to poisonous material; medications taken during pregnancy; and poor maternal nutrition. If a kitten has more than one congenital […]
Whether you’re going away for the weekend or longer, you’ll enjoy your time more if you know that your kitten/s are being cared for properly.
The stress to kittens of being in an unfamiliar environment, such as a boarding facility, along with the fact that their immune systems are not fully developed to fight diseases, […]
Congratulations! You’ve brought a new kitten or kittens into your home. You may think that your indoor pet is free from the risk of disease or injury, but anything can happen. In addition, felines are adept at hiding illness, and you may miss the subtle signs of sickness.
There’s a lot to know about sharing […]
Sadly, kittens are at highest risk for feline panleukopenia virus (FPV). Even kittens who are vaccinated, if they are under four months old, are at risk due to interference from maternal antibodies. 50 to 100%% of unvaccinated cats die even with treatment. Illness in recovering cats lasts 5- 7 days.
Usual course of disease: Fever, […]
Flat chested kitten syndrome (FCKS) is a poorly understood, often serious condition that may develop in a matter of hours in a kitten less than ten days old. In kittens with FCKS, the muscles used in suckling and breathing cause a deformity of the chest, which results in discomfort and problems in suckling and […]
Although most dream of warm, relaxing summer days, every kitten foster knows that summer brings a flood of emaciated, infected and infested little souls. And with that, a roller coaster of emotions, medicines, wins and losses. Emrys’ would be no different.
July 23: My new challenge and love. He is named Emrys. I looked that […]
A parasite is an organism that lives in a host organism and gets its food from or at the expense of its host. Endoparasites are those that live in the tissues and organs of their host.
The most common endoparasites that live in the intestines of kittens include roundworms, hookworms and tapeworms. Coccidia are microscopic, […]
A parasite is an organism that lives in a host organism and gets its food from or at the expense of its host. Ectoparasites are those that live on the outside of its host. You may see endoparasites with your naked eye or the signs that they are present. For example, flea dirt, which […]
Scratching is normal cat behavior. Kittens begin to retract their claws at about 28 days of age and to scratch things by day 35. Scratching: conditions their claws by removing old nail sheaths; displays dominance and proclaims territory by scent marking with the glands on their front paws and visually marking with shredded matter […]
In part 3 of this 3-part series, we discuss grooming. In part 1, we discussed what hair is, types of hairs and how hair grows; in part 2 we discussed hair colors, patterns and lengths.
Kittens start grooming themselves when they are 4 weeks old. When they reach adulthood, cats will groom themselves 30-50 percent […]
