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My Pet World: Stick with Shelter Contract and Skip Declawing Your Cat

By Steve Dale, Tribune Media Services on

A: It sounds like you're doing all the right things. It's likely good news that the veterinary neurologist couldn't determine the cause of Joseph's problems.

Dr. Susan Little, editor of the textbook "The Cat: Clinical Medicine and Management" (Elsevier, St. Louis, MO, 2012; $151), notes that you mention Joseph is alert and reasonably active. If he isn't confused and doesn't yowl overnight, it's unlikely that the problem is feline Alzheimer's (feline cognitive dysfunction syndrome).

If your veterinarian hasn't already done so, consider having your cat tested for low blood potassium and anemia, Little says. She adds that it may simply be Joseph is weak due to muscle wasting, which sometimes occurs in elderly people and pets. Unfortunately, they don't make walkers for cats.

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Q: One of our cats is a new mother. She's an inside/outside cat, but prefers to sleep indoors. Should we try to keep her kittens inside and basically make them "inside only" pets? By the way, we also have two caged birds, who sometimes leave their cage. Rascal is pretty good about them, knowing the birds are off limits. But what about the kittens? -- C.L., Concow, CA

A: It's a fact that cats live longer, healthier lives when they stay indoors. Certified cat behavior consultant Pam Johnson-Bennett, author of "Think Like a Cat" (Penguin Books, New York, NY, 2011; $18), says when cats never develop a taste for the outdoors, they're happy living inside. "The trick is to create a stimulating environment indoors," she notes.

You'll be a better neighbor by keeping your cats indoors, as well as a more responsible steward to the environment. Roaming cats may use your neighbor' gardens as toilets, and kill songbirds and other wildlife.

 

Create lots of places for the kittens to climb, hide and watch the world outside. Alleviate potential boredom by hiding treats in unexpected places (so the kitties have to "hunt" for them), and rotate toys, even creating your own -- everything from a mouse toy in an empty tissue box to a wine cork.

Johnson-Bennett does suggest having "Mom cat" spayed.

Further, she suggests moving your birds. Leaving them where they are is "an accident waiting to happen with the adult cats, and now, with unpredictable kittens, it's not a good idea. Cats are predators; birds are prey. Don't risk it. Keep the birds in a separate room when they're out of their cage. Even when the birds are in the cage, make sure it's in a place the cats can't reach. I worry about the safety of the birds, and also how stressful it may be for them to be stared at by cats, even if they mean no harm. Do the birds really know that?"

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Steve Dale welcomes questions/comments from readers. Although he can't answer all of them individually, he'll answer those of general interest in his column Send e-mail to PETWORLD(at)STEVE DALE.TV. Include your name, city and state. Steve's website is www.stevedalepetworld.com; he also hosts the nationally syndicated "Steve Dale's Pet World" and "The Pet Minute." He's also a contributing editor to USA Weekend.


(c) 2012 DISTRIBUTED BY TRIBUNE MEDIA SERVICES, INC.

 

 

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