Good cat health care means finding the best pet insurance for your cat, researching what goes in your pet’s food dish, and ensuring your cat is getting the proper vitamins and nutrients. The second step is making sure they’re eating the proper amount.

One of the oldest documented cats in the U.S., Baby from Duluth, Minnesota, was allowed to eat what his owners ate. Baby lived to the reported age of 38 on a diet of steak, peas, olives, corn off the cob sans butter or salt, cheese, and some cat food for good measure.

Of course, vets may not recommend a diet of table scraps for housecats, but there might be something to be said about the variety in Baby’s diet.

As long as a cat isn’t overfed or given anything potentially harmful, a high-variety diet may help some cats stay excited about food, refrain from becoming picky eaters, and avoid pet health issues like allergies.

Remember: if a cat ever accidently ingests potentially toxic foods like grapes, raisins, tomatoes or onions, cat insurance will be your best friend, allowing you to go straight to the vet without worrying about the bottom line.

Some cat insurance companies also include wellness and routine care benefits in addition to accident and emergency benefits. For more information about cat and dog insurance, visit www.petsbest.com.

If you do have a picky cat, you’ll need to get him used to new foods slowly. Quickly changing from one food to another can cause cat illness symptoms like vomiting, diarrhea, and food refusal.

When changing a finicky cat from one food to another, plan on devoting one to two weeks to the process. Be sure to also include your vet in the process and consult her, should your cat display any odd behaviors.

When I worked at my local humane society, I witnessed as many different styles of adopting a cat as I saw different personalities and types of cats.

Some adopters left it up to fate. They would come in, look around for ten minutes, lock eyes with a certain kitty, and take it home. Others treated it more like buying a car. They would visit multiple cat rescue shelters, ask lots of questions about pet health and needs, and take a handful of cats out of their cages for a play or cuddle test drive.

The selection would only be made after inquiring about the return or exchange policy and cat insurance. Some ran a cat adoption like a beauty contest, picking the cutest cat they saw no matter what they were told about the cat.

My favorite adopters were the ones who had an idea of the type of cat that would best fit in their home. One young couple came in and seemed interested in a certain adolescent cat named Bruce. We made sure to inform the couple that Bruce was not of the laze-around, lap cat variety—he had a wild side. “That’s ok,” the woman assured me. “We like them with a little piss and vinegar.”

Keep your home in mind when adopting your next shelter cat. If you have very small children, an older, gentler cat who has experience with families might be a better match than a kitten. If you prefer solitude and quiet nights, there may be a shy cat hiding in the back of her cage, just waiting to be rescued by a kind soul. If your home sees a lot of visitors, a spunky tomcat might enjoy meeting all your friends.

Describe your home life to the shelter workers or volunteers and let them share with you the knowledge they have of the cats they work with every day. As much as they would love all the cats to find homes, it’s more important that each cat find the right home, so they don’t end up back where they started.

After selecting the perfect cat for you, it will be a good time to look into finding the best pet insurance for your cat. Cat insurance can be complex– so be sure to ask as many questions as you can about pet insurance plans and how they work. By doing this, you’re ensuring your kitty will be a healthy, happy new member of the family.

Your pet’s safety should be one of your top priorities. Did you know that there could be pet health dangers lurking in your home?

Another reason pet insurance is a good idea: according to the Pet Poison Helpline, there are several household toxins that you should be aware of to protect your pet.

Keep pet health a priority by keeping household toxins out of the reach of your pets. Here is a list of some common household items that are potentially poisonous to pets.

1. Human medications: Ingestion of human medications can be avoided by ensuring that the medication is kept out of the reach of pets. Human medications should never be given to pets.

2. Other pets’ medications: Pets should never be given medications prescribed for other pets. Dog flea and tick preventatives should never be used on cats as they can be fatal.

3. Household cleaners: Use caution when using chemicals and cleaners around your pets. Make sure pets are not near you when using these products. Keep toilet lids closed, especially if you use an automatic toilet bowl cleaner.

4. Rat & mouse poison: Avoid using rodenticides near pets. The toxins that are fatal to rodents can be fatal to your pets as well. Use live traps as a kinder and safer alternative.

5. Household plants: Avoid having household plants that are toxic to pets. Cats enjoy chewing on plants and can be easily poisoned by toxic plants.

Ingestion of any of these toxins is considered a medical emergency. If you think your pet may have ingested a toxic substance, call the Pet Poison Helpline poison control center at 800-213-6680 and contact your veterinarian immediately.

As cats get older, they become more prone to feline health issues. Cat health care, especially in older cats, is important to catch diseases early. Catching a disease in its early stages can add years to your cat’s life.

It’s a good idea to have elderly cats examined every 6 months as opposed to once a year. Pet health can change drastically in just a few months. Having more frequent exams will allow your vet to keep a close eye on your cat’s weight. Common cat weight loss causes include feline hyperthyroidism and diabetes.

Feline hyperthyroidism is a disease that is cause by an overactive thyroid gland. The thyroid gland produces too much of the thyroid hormones. The increase in the thyroid hormone levels can cause weight loss, excessive hunger, increased thirst and even vomiting and diarrhea. When owning a cat, it is a good idea to compare pet insurance and select the best cat insurance for your cat.

There are three choices when it comes to treating hyperthyroidism:

1. The first choice is the administration of a daily medication to regulate the thyroid hormone levels. Additional blood tests will be needed to monitor the thyroid levels of the cat. Based on the bloodwork results, the vet will determine if the thyroid medication needs to be adjusted.

2. A second treatment choice is having the thyroid gland surgically removed. This procedure requires the cat to be in relatively good health in order for them to tolerate the anesthesia.

3. The third choice is having an injection that kills the tissue of the thyroid gland. This is the most costly treatment option and requires a stay in the hospital for several days.

Cat pet care is essential to ensure that your cat lives a long and healthy life. Annual check-ups will allow your veterinarian to keep track of the health of your cat. Preventative care should include vaccines, bloodwork and medications to prevent parasites. If your cat exhibits any cat illness symptoms, he should be checked out by your veterinarian as soon as possible.

Catching cat health care issues early is crucial in ensuring that your cat gets the treatment he needs. Due to the fact that many of the common diseases have similar cat illnesses symptoms, tests must be performed to diagnose and rule out other diseases. It is possible for a cat to have a primary disease and have a secondary disease that is caused by the primary disease. Treating cat illnesses quickly often allows the cat to recover more quickly.

Diagnosing diseases in cats begins with a thorough exam. Based on the findings on the exam and any symptoms that the cat exhibits, the veterinarian will determine which diagnostic tests need to be performed on the cat.

The most common tests used to diagnose diseases in cats are urinalysis and blood work. These tests check the function of organs and measure blood levels of various hormones in the blood. Other diagnostic tests that may be used include x-rays and ultrasounds. Make these diagnostic tests more affordable for your family by having your cat covered with a cat pet insurance.

Feeding kittens may need to be done as a supplement when a mother cat does not feed her kittens adequately. Bottle feeding kittens is usually needed when kittens have become orphaned or when the mother cat rejected a kitten. Kittens need to be bottle-fed for the first four weeks of life. Similar to human babies, newborn kittens need to be fed around the clock to ensure proper cat health care.

It’s important to feed kittens formula that is specially formulated for kittens. Kitten milk replacement can be found at your local pet store. The most common kitten milk replacement is KMR. When feeding newborn kittens, it is best to use a bottle made for kittens. These can be found in the store near the kitten milk replacement. The milk replacement comes in a liquid or powder form. The powdered form is mixed with water to make a liquid for feeding. The powder formulation is usually cheaper than the liquid formula. If you have to feed more than one kitten the powder formulation is a better choice. The water that is going to be mixed with the powder should be boiled and cooled before mixing with the powder.

Kittens should be fed every 2 to 3 hours. For newborn kittens, start with feeding the kitten 2 ounces and increase the amount as they grow. Refer to the milk replacement packaging for a feeding guide. Once a kitten reaches 4 weeks, it can be introduced to wet kitten food mixed with the kitten milk replacement. Once the kittens are able to eat the kitten food, and pet health is stable, wean kittens from the milk replacement.

Allergies are a common condition that affect cat health care. There are five main allergies in cats, and one of the highest-occurring allergies in cats is an allergic reaction to fleas.

A flea allergy is not an allergy to the actual flea, but an allergy to the saliva of the flea. The allergic reaction occurs when the flea injects its saliva into the cat through a bite. Flea control is essential in the cat pet care of cats with a flea allergy.

Once a flea-allergic cat is bitten by a flea, the allergic reaction begins. Cats will often lick, scratch and chew themselves to try and alleviate the irritation caused by the bite. The result of the consistent licking and scratching can cause hair loss, and if the irritation to the skin continues the cat can often develop other cat health care issues such as skin infection.

Treatment of the flea allergy will consist of keeping the cat on a flea preventative to keep fleas from biting him. Antibiotics may also be prescribed if the cat has a skin infection due to biting and scratching the skin. The house will also need to be treated for fleas to reduce the chance of the cat getting bitten by fleas in the future. If the cat goes outdoors, then the yard should be treated as well.

Having a cat with flea allergies is an ongoing battle. The cat’s allergies will usually be worse in the warmer months when there are more fleas present. Flea preventative should be a part of the health care for cats, both those with and without flea allergies, to prevent tapeworm infections and other conditions caused by fleas.

As a cat enters each stage of life, the care she requires changes. Cats are living longer now than they ever have.

According to Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, the percentage of cats over six years of age has nearly doubled in just over a decade, and there is every reason to expect that the “graying cat” population will continue to grow.

With aging cats comes increased risks for disease and illnesses. Having cat insurance for your cat from the time they are kittens can help you ensure they receive the veterinary care they need throughout their life.

Symptoms of diseases are often noticed by cat owners but are thought to be due to the cat aging. Some of the symptoms that owners dismiss are changes in the amount their cats are eating and drinking, changes in activity levels and changes in sleeping patterns. To keep older cats healthy, have your cat examined if they exhibit any changes in behavior or eating, drinking or sleeping patterns.

Take your senior cat to the veterinarian for more frequent check-ups. Older cats should be seen every 6 months to monitor their weight and to get a thorough exam. Any changes in your cat’s health will then be further evaluated. Having pet insurance for older cats can help offset the additional costs of pet health issues that come with aging.

Most dog owners are aware of pet health needs and the necessity of heartworm preventatives, but it’s also a good idea to talk to your veterinarian about cat heartworm prevention too.

Heartworms are becoming more and more prevalent in cats. The increase is likely due to the fact that testing for heartworm is not necessarily done as part of a routine annual visit. Because of this, the definitive number of cats with heartworm is widely unknown. Giving your cat a heartworm preventative should be a part of your cat pet care regimen.

Heartworms are transmitted to cats when an infected mosquito bites the cat. The mosquito injects the heartworm larvae into the cat, which eventually ends up in the cat’s heart. Approximately 6 months later, the larvae become adult worms and begin to release microfilaria, or immature heartworms.

Indoor cats are not immune to the disease. Approximately 25% of the cats diagnosed with heartworm are indoor cats. The cat illness symptoms of feline heartworms are inconsistent, which makes diagnosing the disease difficult. The most common signs that pet health has been compromised are rapid breathing and coughing. These symptoms are also common in other feline diseases.

Feline heartworms are diagnosed via blood tests. Currently there are no safe treatment options for feline heartworms. Any symptoms caused by the disease are treated to keep the animal comfortable until the heartworms die. The lifecycle of the heartworms is approximately 2 years. Cat health issues, like feline heartworms, can be avoided by giving your cat heartworm prevention.

Pets Best Insurance has a limited benefit for the testing of heartworms with its BestWellness plan—which can be added on to any illness and accident cat insurance policy for $22 per month.

For more information on what is covered under the BestWellness plan, or general information about health insurance for cats, visit www.petsbest.com.

Proctor & Gamble, the company that manufactures Iams brand pet foods, is recalling even more— this time, its Proactive Health Indoor Weight & Hairball cat food, The Greeley Tribune reports.

According to the source, the food, which is sold in blue, 6.8 pound bags is potentially contaminated with salmonella, which can be detrimental to pet health.

The news provider reports that any bags marked with a code date of 02304173 (B1-B6) and the UPC number 1901403921 should be immediately discarded.

This is one of three recalls the company has voluntarily alerted the public of in the past two months.

Although no salmonella-related illnesses have been reported for any of the three recalls, The New York Times has reported that the recalled products have the potential to be detrimental to both pet health and human health.

Proctor & Gamble has told Forbes that pet owners should wash their hands if they have direct contact with any of the recalled products, as it can be inadvertently passed to humans this way.

The news provider reports that pets who contract salmonella may display decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Symptoms in humans include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever.

If you believe your pet’s health has been affected by salmonella, visit your veterinarian immediately.

A full listing of recalled UPC codes can be found on the Iams.com website.

For more information, call P&G at 877-340-8823.