Keep Your Cat Purring This Month

Keeping your cat happy and healthy is a year-round cause, but this month is dedicated to reminding you of the ways you can make your feline friends purr with delight.

Here are some tips on how to make your kitty feel extra special in honor of National Happy, Healthy Cat Month …

Treat Them to a New Toy: Cats are natural hunters, so you can’t go wrong with a squeaky mouse toy. (A homemade alternative is a paper origami mouse.) A scratch pad is also sure to please. Cats would even be happy if you saved empty cereal boxes for them to use during playtime! Rotating toys in and out can help maintain your cat’s excitement for their toys.

Keep Them Entertained: While toys certainly help in this department, there are plenty of other ways to engage your cat, such as turning on live streaming “cat TV,” which features footage of birds and squirrels. This is a good way to keep them focused and alleviate their anxiety when you’re away. Exercise wheels, cat trees and cat houses are good products for keeping them active as well. You could also install a window perch for them to hang out on while they conduct their neighborhood watch.

Combine Exercise with Diet: Feline obesity affects more than 50% of cats in the United States. To combat this issue, incorporate activity into your cat’s feeding time. This could include toys that release food as felines play with them or setting their food bowls in different areas of your home to allow for more exercise. Puzzle feeders offer an especially fun challenge for some of our kitties.

Maintain Cleanliness: Make sure you have plenty of clean litter boxes in different, low-traffic  areas throughout your home. The rule of thumb is to provide a litter box for each of your cats, plus one additional box. For example: If you have two cats, you’ll want three boxes set up to help prevent unhappy kitties and inappropriate elimination.

Take Them to the Vet: Cats tend to hide signs of illness or pain, so it’s extra-important to visit your vet regularly, as they can see through your cat’s secretive behavior with physical exams, diagnostic testing and early detection screening.

Call 317-516-5921 to schedule an appointment with us and learn more about how to keep your cat happy and healthy.