Cats Adopting Puppies

I read two stories on MSNBC today about mama cats who adopted puppies:

• A nursing mama cat in Pennsilvania took in the neighbor's pug puppy when the runt was rejected by its own mother. Hopefully, someone will bottle-feed the puppy because it'll get too big to get its nourishment from the mother cat; not to mention put her kittens at risk of not getting enough. But, this is a very heart-warming story of cross-species neighborly love with a cute photo.
• This one's a bit more odd: A woman in Brazil claims that her cat gave birth to both kittens and puppies! They're running tests on the "puppies," but I'm sure they'll turn out to be 100% dog. No doubt, like the first story, they're also neighborhood puppies adopted by this mama cat. To me, it's just interesting that this woman's claim that her cat was impregnated by a dog is not being dismissed out of hand as impossible. UPDATE: Tests prove puppies aren't part cat.

If you are thinking of a new puppy
then consider dog adoption while
you are choosing a dog before
buying from a pet shop.

Not just a stupid pet trick

Wheelchair-bound Gary Rosheisen of Columbus, Ohio, taught his cat Tommy a neat trick: How to dial 911 using the speed dial button on his telephone. This talented tabby may have come to his owner's rescue last week, when Rosheisen was found by police responding to an odd 911 call -- a call from the house had been made but no one was talking on the other end of the line. When the police got there they found Rosheisen had fallen from his wheelchair and was unable to make it to the phone, but Tommy was sitting right next to it.

What a good kitty!

In case you like me are thinking, "I wonder how I could teach my cat that trick," I think the real trick would seem to be to teach your cat to only push the 911 speed dial button when there was an emergency. Would missing your cat's regular tuna time constitute an emergency do you think? Or would you have to say something special to trigger the response? In our house you'd also have to teach the cat to find the cordless phone first -- this would come in handy even when we just can't find the phone to call for pizza. So as interesting as the AP story is, I still have a lot of lingering questions as to how Mr. Rosheisen managed to train his cat.

Table scraps can be deadly

MSNBC.com has a good article that every cat and dog owner should read. It outlines the different foods that can be poisonous to cats and dogs, and also has some tips about other holiday hazards to pets you should be careful of this time of year. Have a safe and happy holiday season!

Microchip your cat

After reading the comments on the post about An indoor cat is a safe cat it's obvious that some of us will have to agree to disagree about indoor vs. outdoor cats. However, I think it'd be really great if all the cat owners that let their cats run loose would at the very least "microchip" their cat. Then, when one of us animal lovers finds your pet and isn't sure if they have a home or not, we can track you down. The vet that took care of the adult cat that I mentioned in my earlier post, the one who showed up injured at my doorstep and required $300 in vet services, scanned the cat for a microchip but he didn't have one. If he did, we could have reunited him with his owner instead of finding him a new home. (And it would have saved his life if I had taken him to the pound instead of the vet.)

I've read several stories about owners reunited with their cats because of this new technology. Basically, your contact info is put on a microchip the size of a grain of rice and then injected under the skin of your cat. And unlike a traditional tag you put on a collar, this one won't come off. Just about any vet should be able to do this for you or know where you can get it done. I just watched a video on MSNBC.com about a cat that was reunited with his owner because of a microchip. The cat had somehow gotten 1600 miles away from his home!

A couple of companies with info on microchips for pets: 24PetWatch and Microchip Express.

Cats allergic to us?

I found a Reuters story on MSNBC that may explain why one of my Siamese cats wheezes sometimes even though my vet dismisses it as nothing: Cats may be allergic to humans or at least some of the stuff we expose them to like dust and cigarette smoke. We don't smoke, but maybe she's just allergic to us!

I can see veterinarians scrabbling to expand their industry now: Allergy tests for cats, allergy shots, allergy meds. Then, of course, cats would need special bedding and toys that are hypoallergenic and can be washed with special hypoallergenic soap. And naturally there should be special anti-dandruff shampoo for the humans in their lives and an anti-smoking campaign that asks people to quit smoking to protect the health of their pets. And I wouldn't be surprised if they find that certain cat litters are to blame for the allergies too.

Mmmm...well, for you entereprising souls out there, this may be the start of a whole new niche in the pet care market for products and services to be created. Get busy, make some money and help my Chloe kitty and others breathe easy!

An indoor cat is a safe cat

Looking over the news about cats can be really depressing because a huge percentage of stories are about cats being hurt. There's apparently a certain segment of the population who truly, inexplicably enjoys hurting, torturing and killing cats, including a few sociopathic boys in Liverpool who recently found it so amusing to have their dog tear apart a little girl's cat that they took video of it on a cell phone while laughing. And as upset as I am about this behavior, I'm just as upset by owners who think it's OK to let their cats roam the neighborhood freely knowing that all manner of dangers lurk outside waiting for them. If this cat had been kept indoors it would still be alive. Period. End of story. And, no, I don't want to hear about how unfair you think it is to keep cats locked up inside. If you want to let your cat out, modify the fence in your backyard or build an enclosure so they can hang out there without getting loose or get a leash and take your cat for a walk. They even have cat strollers, for pity's sake! The point is outdoor cats, even if they avoid crazy people, have to avoid cars, dogs, coyotes, cat fights, gopher poison, and the list goes on.

We have rescued two strays from our neighborhood in the last two weeks alone. (The pictures here are of them.) Both of them were obviously indoor cats at some point then put outside. One of them was a neutered declawed adult and lucky to have survived an attack by a dog or coyote. (The vet bill was about $300!) We found him a good home, then turned around and found a lost or abandoned kitten. The bottom line is that indoor cats live about 15 years, while outdoor cats if they are lucky live about 5 years. You do the math, and tell me if your cat's worth keeping around longer. Oh, well, I'm probably preaching to the choir. I'll get off my soap box now.

Post-Traumatic Stress in Pets

Unfortunately, reuniting pets with their owners (or finding new homes for them) is only the first step to getting things back to normal after a disaster like Hurricane Katrina. Like human victims, they'll be going through emotional trauma that requires extra care.

• Kim Campbell Thornton, MSNBC. 2005 SEP 15. Pets vulnerable to post-traumatic stress, too. MSNBC.com.

On a related note, Audubon Nature Institute's website reports that most of their animals survived Hurricane Katrina, but that they need donations to "feed, house and provide veterinary care for New Orleans’ rare and endangered wildlife." The Audubon Center for Research of Endangered Species are the researchers that have been cloning wildcats in order to ensure the survival of the species.

Cat's treatment may be cure for cancer

Is a cheap, common jet fuel additive, hydrazine sulfate, capable of curing cancer? It seems to have worked for a cat named Elwood who lived eight years longer than expected after being treated with it.

• Hart Seely. 2005 Aug 29. Does cat's drug offer a cure for cancer?. Post-Standard, Syracuse, NY, USA.

Plague in Pet Cats Links

Here are some links to stories and more information about how pet cats get the plague, things you can do to protect your cats and the recent cases of cats with plague:

• PLAGUE IN CATS
  A well-researched article about how cats get the plague, what the signs are, what the treatment for it is and how to avoid the disease in cats.
• State Health Department Issues Warning about Plague in Pet Cats
  California Department of Health's news release about recent cases of plague in cats.
  
• Cat owners warned about plague risk from wild rodents
  An AP story about the recent cases of plague in pet cats in California.