Cat Health - Regular Grooming and Parasites - Cat Health

REGULAR GROOMING AND CHECKING FOR PARASITES

Always brush and/or comb your cat.  It’s a good way to seal the bond between you and cats love it (well, usually).  It’s also very relaxing for you and a good stress buster.  It also gives you an opportunity to look closely at his coat for any signs of fleas, lice or ticks and you can also check for ear-mites at the same time.

Fleas are an unpleasant side effect of having cats, but can be kept at bay very easily these days.  Proprietary remedies are easily available from the Vets.  Some you just squeeze onto the cats neck once a month and some go into his food.  You shouldn’t see another flea or flea droppings.

Flea droppings are easily seen in and around your cats bedding.  They are little dark specs that look like coarse dust, they will turn red if you put them on a damp tissue.  If you see these, then you need to take action.  Go to your Vets and ask them about flea prevention.  If you don’t you could very easily be over-run with them.  They love to hide in thick pile carpets, bedding, upholstery and around radiators where they can breed undisturbed.  Pretty soon, you’ll find your ankles and legs with have little red, itchy lumps on them.  Yes, they’ve bitten you too and if you don’t do something quickly they’ll be biting everyone, even visitors.

The easiest way to get rid of such an infestation is to ring the Council and they should be able to send a pest control expert out to eradicate the nuisance, or tell you who to contact.  Make sure you ask about the possible harmful effects to your cat.   You can also buy sprays but without effective control for your cat they won’t be very beneficial.  But you must put some sort of control in place, otherwise it’ll happen again and again.

Regular washing of the cats bedding will also help, including the actual bed itself.

Some cats are allergic to flea bites.  They can cause itchiness and soreness on the cats skin.  He will be constantly under stress from them.

Lice are not as common as fleas but can be treated with grooming and insecticides.  You should be able to see a louse.  Your cat will be ‘itchy’.  Get advice, preferably from the Vet’s surgery about how to combat lice.

Ticks are more common in ‘country’ cats during the Summer and Autumn.  They can transmit diseases so should be dealt with immediately.  Don’t try to pull them off as the head will be left in the skin and a bad reaction may occur.  The tick must be dead before it can be removed.  Kill them with an insecticide that is safe for cats and then remove once dead by using tweezers.

If unsure about anything, then get in touch with the Vet’s surgery for advice.

Ear mites  are also parasites.  They are 8 legged, and live in and around your cats ears.  Brown wax will be seen inside the ear.  Cats that shake their heads and scratch their ears have probably got ear mites.  It’s worth mentioning that ear mites are contagious and if you have a multi cat household, all the other cats need checking as well.  Again ask your Vet for the appropriate treatment.

Worms

Roundworms can sometimes be vomited up and look like coiled elastic bands.  Kittens that have roundworms can look pot bellied and show signs of infection, such as sickness, diarrhoea, gas, lack of energy, slow growth rate and dull coat, what Vet’s generally call  ‘failure to thrive’.  Young animals can sometimes cough.  Or there can be no symptoms at all or only some symptoms. 

Tapeworms can be passed out in the faeces and get attached to the skin around the anus.  If you find tapeworm segments, about 5-8 mm long, take them to the Vet for identification (they need microscopic examination) then the Vet can prescribe the appropriate treatment.  Rural, hunting cats may be the most affected.

Cat owners can reduce the chances of infestation by:

•   cooking or freezing fish before feeding to their pet

•   preventing cats from hunting small rodents

•   keeping cats free from fleas and lice