Children often experience death and grief for the first time when a beloved pet dies. Helping children through pet loss can be challenging for parents who are also coping with their own reaction to the loss. In Five Trees for Mina, Tony Lovitt sets out to help young readers and their parents deal with losing a pet.Continue Reading
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
There’s a reason why “scaredy cat” is such a common phrase. The list of things that can cause anxiety and stress in cats is pretty long, and can include loud noises, trips to the veterinarian, and moving to a new home. While most cats are initially wary of unfamiliar noises, people or events, they eventually adapt as they get used to the stimulus. However, some cats remain anxious.Continue Reading
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
You’ve come to know Sarah Chauncey through her compassionate writing about loss and grief here on The Conscious Cat over the past few years. After her heart-cat Hedda died in 2016, she wrote P.S. I Love You More Than Tuna, a beautifully illustrated and healing gift book that is available now.Continue Reading
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
Thunderstorms can be extremely stressful for cats. While cats may not show their fear in quite the same way as dogs (in severe cases of thunderstorm anxiety, panicking dogs have been known to destroy furniture, jump through windows or otherwise harm themselves during storms,) they may still become extremely anxious.
Behaviorists are not sure which part of the storm frightens pets the most Continue Reading
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
No matter how much time we get with our cats, it’s never long enough. 31-year-old Rubbles was with her human Michelle Heritage for more than half of Michelle’s life. Heritage credits Rubble’s long life with the fact that she never had children and treated him like he was her son. For more about Rubble, visit The Daily Mail.
If you missed any of the stories featured on the Conscious Cat this week, here’s a recap:Continue Reading
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
Coloring has been shown to be a major stress reliever. Studies show that the structured, rhythmic motion of coloring eases you into a meditative state, which allows you to push negative thoughts and worries out of your mind, and which induces a profound sense of relaxation. The benefits of yoga have been known to relieve stress for a very long time. We also know that simply being with a cat lowers our stress levels. So really, Cats Practicing Yoga offers you a triple dose of stress relief – and coloring is fun!Continue Reading
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
Silvervine is a plant native to the mountainous regions of eastern Asia. It has been used in Asia for centuries as a preventative health aid. In Japan and China, it has also been used as a cat stimulant. Cats react to silvervine similarly to how they do to catnip, with behaviors like rolling, chin and cheek rubbing, meowing, drooling and licking. Unlike catnip, which only affects about 50% of all cats, all cats appear to react to silvervine. Effects generally last from 5-30 minutes.Continue Reading
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
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Have you been doing a lot of cleaning and organizing lately? I’ve found that during these challenging times, cleaning out my closet or even just organizing one small drawer or shelf at a time has been very helpful in managing my anxiety. Sometimes, I just feel that I need to do something with my hands, and the gratification, especially for small projects, is pretty instant.Continue Reading
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
Welcome to our regular “Ask the Cat Doc With Dr. Lynn Bahr” segment! Once a month, Dr. Bahr answers as many of your questions as she can, and you can leave new questions for her in a comment.Continue Reading
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
Note: This article covers a recall that occurred in 2020. For up-to-date information on current pet food recalls, please visit the FDA’s recall website.
On July 3, 2020, the J. M. Smucker Company announced a voluntary recall of one lot of Natural Balance® Ultra Premium Chicken & Liver Paté Formula canned cat food due to health concerns likely associated with elevated levels of choline chloride.Continue Reading
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
Coconut oil has been big in human nutrition for quite some time. Widely marketed as a superfood, the unique combination of fatty acids in coconut oil may have anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties and boost the immune system. I’ve been getting a lot of questions about whether these benefits apply to cats as well. Continue Reading
Ingrid King is an award-winning author, former veterinary hospital manager, and veterinary journalist who is passionate about cats.
