Help Your Cat To Stay Health: Tips For New Owners

Let’s talk basics. To keep your cat healthy for most of the time, what you need to give your cat is shelter, food, and plenty of water. But all living things get sick from time to time, and your cat is no exception.

As a new cat owner, aim to give your cat the best food you can obtain. There’s filler food that is king of okay, but not that great. Then there is ideal food that is designed to keep your cat happy and healthy. If you take the time at the start to get your cat the best possible diet, it will pay dividends later.

When you have a new cat, and the cat is sick, don’t take any chances if you don’t know what’s wrong. Just go to a vet. While most of the ailments and sicknesses are minor, there are times when there might be a life-involving event that only a vet can fix. When you are an experienced cat owner, you get to know what to look for. Until then, seek professional advice when your cat is sick.

Cats can’t talk. But they have behavior that can guide you to what is wrong. If your cat is acting sluggish, laying around with lack of energy, and off their food, these are signs something is wrong. Looking at your cat’s coat is a good thing to watch. If the coat is dull, and the hair looks like its shedding, you should take note that something is wrong. A healthy cat has a shiny coat and hair that stays in place.

a woman sitting in a chair holding a cat — Photo: Pew Nguyen | Unsplash

You might find your cat has diarrhea and is vomiting. This is common with cats, even with basic sickness. But, if your cat seems to be doing either one of the two for more than 24 hours, you should contact your vet. Coughing might be caused by furballs, or because of an allergy. But if you and your cat are new to each other, you won’t know straight away what is the problem.

There are a bunch of diseases that cats can acquire, so you should make sure to have your cat vaccinated and keep the vaccinations up to date. For example, feline distemper is one of most terrible diseases a cat can get, yet it is actually quite easy to prevent. The disease can strike very quickly and an unvaccinated cat will struggle to survive without a prior vaccination.

Feline leukemia is another disease that is deadly for cats, but this also can be prevented through a proper vaccination regime. It’s not transmissable between humans, but it spreads like wildfire from cat to cat.

All cat owners have issues with worms. Cats that spend time outside contract more worm issues than inside cats. You can tell a cat that has worms by their lacklustre coat and lack of appetite. There are several types of worms, including ringworm and hookworm. Worms can come from fleas, lice, or even the organs of dead rats and squirrels that cats love to gnaw on. Sometimes the cat will digest the eggs which will later mature and attach themselves to the walls of the intestines. Some owners feed their cat garlic during feedings. The garlic can help to protect the cat against worms.

If you look after your cat with regular care, you might not have the stress and worry that comes from having a cat that is always sick. Make sure your cat has an ideal diet and doesn’t miss any scheduled checkups with the vet. If your cat gets proper vaccinations when required to get them, the chances are that your cat will be safe and avoid any harmful diseases.