Facts About Cats' Eating Behavior

Knowing what to feed your cat can make the difference between a healthy and happy cat, and one that is malnourished and hard to control. There are several misconceptions when it comes to feeding cats, what they like, and what they should eat. Here are some of the most basic facts about cats' eating behavior.

· Cats don't eat fruits and vegetables. There are many individuals who believe that cats eat the same things as human beings. This is not true; in fact feeding a cat fruits and vegetables can make a cat ill. Many people believe that wild cats roam the outdoors eating fruits and vegetable types of foods. This is a misconception as most wild cats eat meat, which is what your cat should mostly eat.

CAT BREEDERS

· Most cats need at least 140g of mouse per day. This measures out to be at least 5 mice a day that cats need in order to meet their caloric intake requirement.

· Cats are carnivores. Cats live and thrive mainly off of an exclusive animal diet and don't need the same kind of nutrients that we do.

· Many researchers believe that cats can distinguish between the four different tastes; sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. Cats do not have a great attraction to sweet tastes.

· For the most part, cats enjoy eating things like fish, meats, and other proteins. Sometimes they can exhibit strange eating behaviors such as eating plants or green leafy vegetables they find lying around. Eating plants and greens makes cats vomit which can help get rid of hair balls in their throat. They will naturally eat grass in the wild to help with digestion so don't be too surprised when they start munching on house plants. They're just trying to find a substitute for grass.

· The key to good cat food is its nutritional content which should mimic nutritional composition of a "natural" diet for cats. The term natural refers to anything that they can catch and feed themselves. While supplemental food is sometimes needed, the natural foods are best for the health and diet of your cat. Cat food can sometimes be considered natural and contain no artificial ingredients, but it's not really a "natural" food in the same sense of what cats eat in the wild.

· A wild cat will instinctively know what they want and like to eat, while a domesticated cat does not. They are so used to being around people and "people" food that they don't really act like cats are supposed to act. As the owner of a cat it is your job to show them what kinds of foods they should be eating by providing for them. When owners don't provide the appropriate foods for their cats, it can lead to malnutrition and unhealthy eating habits.

· Cats can lose their appetite just as easily as an adult can lose theirs, and for various reasons. Loss of appetite can be a symptom of illness or something else. It's important to know your own cat's eating behaviors so you can properly assess the situation. Some cats will eat their meals quickly and others will eat slowly and are more reluctant eaters.

These are just some general eating behaviors that can be seen in most cat breeds, however in order to really assess the eating habits of your cat you need to pay close attention to them every time they eat. Watch to see if they eat slow, or fast, or what kinds of foods they prefer. Do they eat mice or just hunt them? Are they chewing on plants around the house? Every little thing can make a difference when it comes to eating patterns so watch carefully.

Facts About Cats' Eating Behavior

Visit http://www.litterboxroundup.com for more cat care tips, including all about cat breeds.

CAT BREEDERS

Cat Emergencies - Choking Or Eating Toxic Substances

It seems the younger the cat, the more likely it is that they will ingest something they shouldn't. My older cat wouldn't touch chocolate - very toxic to cats - but the younger one has yet to taste anything he doesn't like.

cat litter box

It also seems to be true - the same way that your car goes dead on the Sunday of a long weekend, or on a country road in the middle of nowhere - that your cats will only get themselves in some major life-threatening situation in the middle of the night, or after regular vet office hours, or when your car is out of commission.

CAT

Knowing how to help your cat right away can make all the difference.

Three things you should always have in your medicine kit:

3% Hydrogen Peroxide

Activated Charcoal

A dose syringe or plastic eyedropper.

Toxic Substances

If you know or suspect that your cat has eaten chocolate, chewed on your poinsettia, or ingested any other known toxin:

Call A Vet immediately.

If the suspected poison is not a caustic or petroleum product:

Start to induce vomiting.

Give your cat approximately 5 ml of 3% hydrogen peroxide every 5 minutes until the cat vomits.

Note: 1/4 oz = approx. 7 ml. A plastic eyedropper or dose syringe is the easiest, fastest way to get the liquid down it's throat. A small baster (as in turkey baster) will do the trick in an emergency.

After you've made your cat vomit, give it activated charcoal - it may absorb some of the toxin.

Caustics include dishwater detergent, drain cleaner, grease remover, lye, oven cleaner, battery acid, corn and callous remover.

Petroleum products include paint solvent, floor wax, and dry-cleaning solution.

Choking

You hear your cat coughing or gagging, pawing at its mouth, acting frantic. You know or suspect something is caught in its throat.

1. Open the cat's mouth by grabbing it's head so that the palm of your hand is over the cat's head, and your thumb and index finger are behind the canine teeth.

2. Tilt the cat's nose up and use the index finger of your other hand to open the mouth.

3. Put your finger on the lower teeth and gently push the jaw down.

This is not something you want to be doing for the very first time in an emergency situation. Practice on your cat now, so that if in the future you need to do this procedure, you will at least have an idea of how to do it and how your cat will react.

4. Look in the cat's mouth and remove object.

In most cases, this also means getting scratched and/or bitten.

PLEASE NOTE:If you see a piece of string, ribbon, thread, anything wrapped around the cats tongue.

DO NOT PULL ON IT OR TRY TO REMOVE IT.

You could very well do some serious damage to your cat.

GET IT TO A VET IMMEDIATELY.

If you see something embedded in the roof of the cat's mouth.

DO NOT TRY TO REMOVE IT GET IT TO A VET IMMEDIATELY.

5. If you cat struggles too much for you to see inside its mouth or if you cannot see or remove the object:

a. Pick your cat up by its hind legs so that it's hanging upside down.

b. Shake the cat

c. Slap the cat on the back while you're shaking it.

This may help to dislodge the object.

6. If your cat is too large or heavy for you to pick up.

a. Lay it on its side.

b. Put your palms behind the last rib on both sides of the cat's abdomen and press your palms together quickly 2-3 times

c. Repeat rapidly until object is dislodged.

d. Continue trying to dislodge object even if your cat loses consciousness.

7. If your cat loses consciousness, you should also start mouth to nose rescue breathing.

a. Make sure tongue is not blocking airway.

b. Close the cat's mouth

c. Breath into its nose - one breath every 3 seconds.

Cat Emergencies - Choking Or Eating Toxic Substances

My website: http://www.catsread2.info

My Blog: http://beautifulfelines.blogspot.com

CAT