Pets bring us an unparalleled amount of love and affection, and can certainly contribute to a feeling of a warm and happy home; unless, they are feeling a little down in the dumps. See, we often feel so responsible for our pets happiness that it affects our own sense of self esteem and levels of contentment if we have a pet that’s feeling under the weather. In this article, we’re going to talk about cats, and look at three ways to ensure your cat is happy within your home environment.
Cats are known for being independent yet they have a strong emotional need for stability. Indeed, cats don’t respond well to sudden change as they value routine. Just like a child they need to know they have a warm, safe, and comfortable home environment to come back to after their little adventures; and a large part of this comes down to having a reliable source of comfort and tactile affection. The benefits of petting your cat, of course, extend to improvements in your own wellbeing. Stroking your pet, whether it’s a cat or a dog, has been shown to reduce blood pressure, lower stress, improve depression and elevate mood in humans. WebMD has more information about the health benefits of petting animals.
2. DIET AND NUTRITION
With such a wide array of cat food options the most important advice is to look beyond the marketing hype and focus on the ingredient list; as this way you can determine the nutritional value of the product.Cats have specific nutritional requirements as they are “obligate carnivores” meaning they need animal proteins to stay healthy. It’s therefore important they have food comprising predominantly of meat proteins. One thing you may notice is that some cats will eat grass, which may seem alarming, at first, but just like dogs that eat grass when they need to settle their stomach, cats eat grass to help with their digestion. Indeed, cat grass can help with common ailments like constipation and hairballs. Equally important to food is your cats need for water. Of course, some cats will be thirstier than others and if your cat doesn’t drink much fresh water it’s reassuring to remember that they are consuming water within their food (if it’s wet food that is).
The most obvious sign that your cat has fleas is when they start itching a lot. There are also the telltale signs on your body in the form of little red bumps that are often itchy. Prevention is better than cure when it comes to fleas, as treating an infestation, particularly if the fleas start hatching within your home can be a nightmare.It’s important to note that around 95% of fleas and flea eggs are likely to be in your home rather than on your cat. To rid your home of fleas, you will probably need to repeat the elimination process a couple of times, to ensure any dormant eggs that didn’t get treated first time around and have since hatched are taken care of. You'll also need to regularly treat for worms since these can cause significant health issues if left. Long hair cats particularly will need regular grooming, but even those with a regular length coat will benefit from being brushed. It will remove loose hair (so less on your clothes and around your house!) prevent furballs and is a nice bonding activity for you and your cat.
