Cats

Posted by Darlene Cheek

Most kittens open their eyes somewhere between a week and ten days old. Some wait as long as a couple of weeks, especially with breeds that are slow to mature, but anything longer than ten days should be closely monitored. For most kittens, their eyes will simply begin to peek at you at around a week old. Within a day or two of that, their eyes will open completely.

There are times when a kitten’s eyes aren’t opening properly, and you will need to intervene. If the kitten’s eyes aren’t open by ten days old, simply take a warm, wet rag and place it on the kitten’s eyes for a moment, but be very gentle. Do this three or four times a day. If the kitten doesn’t have some type of infection, this will normally allow their eyes to open within a couple of days.

If, however, you see signs of crustiness, oozing, puss, or swelling, you should contact your veterinarian right away. Or, if it takes longer than 2 weeks and the kitten’s eyes simply haven’t opened. It is very important to never try to force the kitten’s eyes open, as you can do a lot of damage. Also, never apply ointment or any type of antibiotic to the eye of a young kitten without veterinarian consent.

If you have any questions about your kitten, please feel free to stop by Kitten Question and Answer!

Posted by Darlene Cheek

The latest email in my inbox appears to be a cry for help. The writer’s poor, dear mother has passed away, leaving the only thing she loved in the world behind – her cats. These cats also have kittens, and all need to be found homes, as in the writer’s grief, they simply can’t care for the cats. The only thing that will heal their heart is finding the perfect homes for the kitties that their mother devoted her life to. So please, if you can help, all of these cats and kittens are being sold very cheaply, at a steal really. Won’t you help?

And of course, all of this is a lie. There were a dozen of these fraudulent emails in my inbox, sent from a variety of different email addresses. Correspondence with this lady again requests that perhaps I could just pay shipping for the kittens, in advance of course, and they’d be shipped straight to my door.

Reputable people do not send unsolicited emails requesting that you buy their kittens. Responsible people screen ALL perspective adoptive kitten parents and do not need to beg folks to take their kittens. Please beware and be safe! Identity theft stems from things like this, and you can never be too careful. Not to mention having your heart broken because you are waiting for a kitten that will never come.

Posted by Darlene Cheek

I was forwarded a copy of an email that was supposedly a letter written by a woman who says that her cat perished due to a cat litter container accident. I’ve done some research and can’t find any information on this but thought that it was important to pass along. The lady says that her cats were playing around the litter container, which was still partly full. The cats managed to get the lid open. One cat jumped inside, the other cat jumped on top of the container closing the lid, and the cat inside suffocated.

If I were one of the Myth Busters, I’d say this story is plausible. I thought it was also interesting that as I was shopping for my kitty litter last week, which normally comes in just such a plastic container with a flip top lid, that the container design has changed. The lid on my regular cat litter is now completely removable. This lends more truth the story, I think!

So if you do have any of the old style flip top containers around your house, you should get rid of them right away! And remember to take them to the recycling center, and help your kitty do their part to help the environment.

Posted by Darlene Cheek

The Animal Rescue Site states that, “…some 27 million animals are given to shelters in the U.S. every year. Over 10 million animals are put to death every year in the U.S.” Their website is dedicated to helping provide food and care to animals in the care of rescue workers. You can help feed hungry animals by visiting the website once each day and clicking on the purple “Click Here to Give – It’s Free!” button.

They also have an online store with quite an array of fun pet related items, and part of the proceeds goes to help animals. Another special they had going was that every order over $20 would vaccinate one cat or dog, so it is helpful to check the site from time to time for special programs that help in different ways.

Every little bit we can do makes a difference! In the site’s first year alone, they provided over 22.9 million bowls of food to needy animals. Make sure you check out other free ways to help, and spread the word about this program to everyone you know!

Posted by Darlene Cheek

No doubt we are all aware of and concerned about the pet population. Cats in particular are at high risk due to their ability to reproduce rapidly. It is heartbreaking to look at the numbers of felines put to death every day. Rescue workers put amazing amounts of time and effort into saving as many cats as they can, and though the work is appreciated, in all honestly, it will never be enough to save every cat born into our world.

So am I encouraging others to get into breeding? Absolutely not! I have a twofold purpose behind the series of articles on breeding. First, I hope that those looking for a quick way to make a buck while working from home will see that breeding cats is not a business, and in all probability, will never clear a profit. I hope to show how much time, work, and money is involved in breeding so that those who don’t have a true passion for their breed will choose not begin breeding.

On the other hand, there are those who will begin breeding regardless, and I believe it is best that they are knowledgeable of the entire breeding process so that they can do the best job possible. An uninformed new breeder causes problems not only for their cats, but also for the families that adopt their kittens, which ultimately puts cats in shelters. Teaching new breeders can save lives!

Feel free to stop by the forum and share your thoughts!

Posted by Darlene Cheek

There may come a time, whether you are a breeder, a rescue worker, or simply have a pregnant cat, that you need to tube feed a litter of kittens. This is a tricky technique but may be the only hope for saving kittens if their mother has passed away or is sick, or if she didn’t make milk or just won’t feed her kittens. It is also a good procedure to know if you ever need to supplemental feed an at-risk kitten or one that is struggling to gain weight.

Purrinlot Cattery has posted a complete step-by-step instruction guide on tube feeding kittens. There are also two video clips of an adorable kitten being tube fed. Watching an experienced breeder try a couple of times to get it just right shows why she recommends getting a vet to show you first hand if it is your first time.

I hope I never have to tube feed a kitten, but it eases my mind tremendously that I know how to do it! Emergencies happen, and it is best to be prepared. If you have or are expecting a litter of kittens, you might also enjoy “Caring for Newborn Kittens,” which will teach you everything you need to know about raising a litter from birth to four weeks old.

If any of you have questions, please feel free to drop our forum. You will find “Pregnant Cat Question and Answer” and “Kitten Question and Answer” very helpful!

Posted by Darlene Cheek

Did you know that the CFA had an online magazine? You don’t have to have a registered cat to enjoy all the e-zine has to offer, including information on cat breeds, feline health, the latest kitty news, and more. There’s even a classified section for those of you who may be looking for a kitten from a reputable breeder.

This month’s issue of Fanc-E-Mews has articles on the CFA/IAMS Cat Show that was held at Madison Square Garden, along with a cute cat and kid photo contest, a holiday shopping guide for your kitty, and a very helpful article on winter and holiday hazards to cats. Each edition of Fanc-E-Mews is packed with interesting and beneficial information! I highly recommend subscribing!

Speaking of the holidays, I hope all of you and your furry families have a wonderful holiday season! You’ve made it a wonderful year for us here at Cats, and I have enjoyed getting to know all of you! I wish you all the best in the coming new year!

Posted by Darlene Cheek

So I get an email yesterday morning asking if I was affiliated with another lady who was trying to sell the emailer a kitten. It seems Lady 1 posted an ad on Craig’s List looking for a kitten for Christmas. Lady 2 emailed her saying she had a kitten. After several emails back and forth, asking for phone numbers, kitten prices, and then pictures, Lady 2 produces the picture of a kitten and says that she was from a Tennessee Persians litter.

Fortunately, Lady 1 decides to Google “Tennessee Persians” and finds me through my website. She says Lady 2’s story is that she bought the kitten from me, but due to a change in jobs, she needs to find the kitten another home. She says she will give the kitten to Lady 1 for free if Lady 1 will just pay the $120 shipping costs.

Sure enough, the kitten in the picture was my Bella, and this was NOT the lady that adopted Bella. Lady 2 had simply stolen a picture from my website and was now trying to coerce money from people by selling a kitten she doesn’t even have! I am amazed at the lengths people will go to steal from you!

This week’s lesson? Be careful when purchasing kittens over the Internet. Research your breeder thoroughly! At least talk to them on the phone before sending any money. And report anyone who attempts to victimize you!

Posted by Darlene Cheek

My Jasmine is expecting! She is our lilac point Himalayan, and I have been patiently waiting for this time with her. I like to write my articles here at Cats on things that are currently going on here at home, things I’m researching, or the latest kitty news. But, I’ve already written a series of articles on Caring for Pregnant Cats and Raising Kittens, so I thought I’d do a series on Becoming a Pedigreed Cat Breeder.

For those of you who might be thinking of becoming a breeder, these articles will cover everything from Breeder Ethics to finding forever homes for your kittens. For the rest of you, I hope you’ll find these articles interesting, as they will give you an insider’s look at how a cattery is run and all the work it takes to breed and raise kittens. For such little things, kittens can certainly create a lot of work!

Running a cattery isn’t a full-time job, it’s a forever job. If you have seven cats, a queen that is due to deliver or nursing kittens, and ten litter boxes to empty every day, you can’t leave home for week’s vacation. You definitely can’t choose your working hours – your cats will choose them for you. And it’s not a paying gig. It is, however, very rewarding and fulfilling work, and I look forward to sharing it with you as we wait on our kittens to arrive!

Posted by Darlene Cheek

Though many cats stop breeding during the shortest, coldest days of the year, from around the first of November until the end of January in the United States, many remain unaffected by seasonal changes. This is proven by the number of kittens that are in need homes in the spring, many of these born to mothers that escaped the house during their first heat, became pregnant, and never found their way back home.

A feline pregnancy lasts about 63-65 days. If she breeds at the end of November, her kittens will be born towards the end of January, with those kittens going to their homes in March if they are adopted at eight weeks old. Considering that the months from March to June are the busiest months for births (and hopefully, but not nearly always, kitty adoptions), it is clear that cats are not all following “the rules.”

So this is just a gentle reminder that if your cat is older than four months of age, they should be spayed or neutered if you don’t want to have kittens in the spring. Don’t wait until spring because by then, your cat could very well already be pregnant. Cats can become pregnant on their very first heat cycle and at a very early age, as well. Many of the litters born each spring are to eight to ten month old cats, barely adults themselves.

Help control the pet population and keep your kitty safe. Have your cat spayed or neutered early!