A cat must lose weight very slowly. Rapid weight loss can cause liver failure as the liver cannot process the fat fast enough. So if your cat is tipping the scales either weigh the cat yourself (baby scales are a great investment when you have small animals) or take the cat to the vet.

Once you know the cat’s weight your vet will tell you how many calories a day the cat should eat to slowly lose weight. Since we are not veterinarians we cannot advise you on this.

When you know how many calories your cat needs a day call the cat food company and ask how many calories are in their food. They usually are more than happy to tell you. If you are feeding raw look up meat in any calorie counting book for people.

If you have just one cat it’s easy. Feed two meals a day. Half of the portion in morning, and the other half at night.

If you have more than one cat here’s how we helped Tasha lose 3 pounds about 10 years ago: We picked a room in the house with a door that shuts to be her special dining room. We put her portion of food into TWO BOWLS! Ha! We could tell by the look in her eyes what she was thinking “oh boy, two bowls, twice as much!” Her bowls went into the special dining room, we picked her up and put her in the room and shut the door. Then we fed the other cats in the regular kitty dining room. After 30 minutes we collected their food bowls and washed them out. Then we collected Tasha’s food bowls and washed them out. No more food for any of the cats until the next meal.

It took awhile for all of the cats to realize that they needed to eat when the food appeared. After a few days Tasha figured out that she ate in a special room and she’d follow us at feeding time.

It took about a year for Tasha to lose the 3 pounds. Her vet was very pleased, and we could tell she felt a lot better. She continued to eat separately for a few more years until we felt that she no longer wanted to pig out on food.

One last thought: Before separating her from the others, Tasha used to gulp down her food, then clean up everyone else’s food bowls. But by putting her portion into 2 bowls after awhile she’d leave a few bits behind. Also, not having the competition in the kitty dining room was very relaxing to her she no longer gulped, she ate slowly.

When you have multiple cats each cat needs their own food bowl. Set them at least 3 feet apart for privacy and to minimize food competition.

When you notice your aging cat isn’t grooming or looks a bit greasy, especially near the tail, or you see dandruff, weight loss, and a bit of lethargy, get your kitty into the vet for testing. Because the kidneys are not functioning at 100% and toxins are building up – the cat feels “hung over” which is not a nice feeling.

Sub Q fluids will make your cat feel so good that most cats begin to associate the fluids with feeling better and won’t fight you (or your house call vet tech).

Think of it as The Daily Love Ritual: The time you spend with your cat giving fluids can be looked at as a time to express love. Pet and massage your cat. Lots of kisses and kind words. A ritual where you hang up the bag, insert a fresh needle, adjust the line, insert the needle, release the brake on the line to let the fluid flow. Stroke the cat, talk pretty to the cat. It can be a relaxing experience for you and the cat.

Finding a vet tech: Not everyone wants to administer the fluids themselves which is completely understandable, don’t feel like you must do this. Call every vet hospital around and ask for referrals and interview all of them. Select the one who’s got the most experience but who is also the kindest and has a gentle manner – this is very important. You cat needs to like this person a lot and gentle and loving is imperative. Our vet tech is practically family now!

Fluids, lines and needles: The costs of these necessary items can add up fast. Our favorite and least spendy sources are: Brico Medical Supply (www.bricomedicalsupplies.com) and Stat Medical Supplies (www.statmedical.com) You’ll need to fax them a copy of the prescription from your vet. Their prices for cases of fluids is very low, but shipping a case of fluids is costly due to weight, so for you East Coast people use Brico, West Coast people use Stat.

Needles: Most needles are now made in China (you know how we feel about that) and the quality can be iffy. The sharpness of the point can vary, and a dull needle causes pain. The only needles we use are Terumo brand. This is a Japanese brand of needle which has an ultra sharp point so that insertion is as painless as possible (our cats don’t flinch at all). We use 19 gauge which is usually just the right size for a cat – not to big, and not too small.

Warm up the fluid bag!: Warming up the fluid bag in a bowl of hot water will warm the liquid which makes the experience so much more comfortable for the cat. We do not recommend microwaving your fluid bags (or anything else). Usually the bag of fluid is a nice warm temperature after about 10 minutes.

 Administering the fluids: We find that picking up the cat and moving kitty to a place that’s convenient for our vet tech stresses the cat. Our vet tech goes to where the cat is (usually in a cat bed on the floor or on top of a people-bed). The fluids are suspended from a coat hanger which can then be hung from a window or door frame, bed post, top of a dresser (be creative!). You’ll see in the photo that we bent the ends of the coat hanger, this keeps the bag centered and balanced.

Love and Kindness: Kisses and chin scratches while the needle is in and fluids are flowing make all the difference. Gently massage the cat for relaxation and well being really help too (stay tuned for upcoming articles about acupressure massage for cats). The more you pour on the love the more the cat will learn to enjoy getting their fluids. Our’s purr!

Diet: Ok, this is going to be a hot potato of controversy. Most vets are saying that cats in any stage of renal failure must have low protein cat food. But our wholistic vets disagree. They say that our carnivorous friends need protein for brain function and to support all other body systems and functions. We were confused too, and therefore we bounced around feeding our cats low protein cat food, then not, and back again. Finally we opted for “what makes them happy and gives quality of life” and that’s protein. But this is purely subjective, ultimately it’s your decision. Do the research, there is a lot of it online.

Alternative Support: If you are fortunate enough to have a skilled veterinary acupuncturist in your area your cat will really benefit from treatments. Our cats get acupuncture, homeopathy, and herbs. Our vet is Dr. Cheryl Schwartz who’s book “Four Paws, Five Directions: Traditional Chinese Medicine for Cats and Dogs” is a MUST HAVE! You will learn how to do acupressure massage which you cat will love the feel of, and which will boost health exponentially. Cheryl does not do phone consultations nor does she reply to emails with questions. But if you email us or become a Facebook fan with very brief questions we will save them and in future newsletters publish her replies.

Daily Support: Cat Faeries Kidney Kitty helps support the kidney function and kidney meridian with Cat Faeries Kidney Kitty. Our own cats get it every day in their water bowl, even the youngest one who’s 3. Our oldest is 22. Kidney Kitty + Sub Q fluids has our oldest ones feeling pretty darned good and youthful.

As this news broadcast says, this will send a huge message to puppy mills and backyard breeders across the country!

We love West Hollywood because they were the first to ban declawing cats. Since then Los Angeles and San Francisco have done the same.

Please share this with your local mayors and city council. Let’s see this ban go nationwide!

Free with your order of Comfort Zone with Feliway Diffusers or Refills! Exclusively from Cat Faeries for our customers: Cute and handy monthly refill reminder stickers for your 2010 wall calendar or day planner. You’ll get 12 self-adhesive stickers – each is 1″ diameter (shown a bit larger in the picture).

Remembering when to change the refills for your Comfort Zone with Feliway diffusers isn’t easy. We hear from people all the time who will remember the first few months then they start to forget. Even we forget!

Now you’ll know exactly when to swap out an empty refill bottle and replace it with a new one. They even have our website address on them.

Happy New Year! You’ll just love how organized you are going to be this year.

Here’s our first blog post:

The citizens of the city named after St Francis are trying to convince the Board of Supervisors to ban the de-clawing of cats.  Can we do it?   Cat Faeries certainly hopes so!

At present only one city in the US has successfully banned the procedure which declaws cats.   Several years ago West Hollywood banned the cruel, painful, and unncessary amputation of a cat’s joints.

Santa Monica is “considering” a ban.   What’s up with the good people of this country?  Nearly every European nation has banned this horrible operation!   Why are we lagging behind?

Tragically, the San Francisco SPCA is no longer the cutting edge shelter it once was when it lead the way for the No Kill movement under the guidance of Richard Avanzino.  Under the direction of controversial Jan McHugh Smith they are refusing to support the ban!     Heck, with her at the helm, they are not even a No Kill shelter any longer!

People just do not realize that de-clawing a cat can cause the cat to be in life long pain.  De-clawed cats can be more prone to biting.  A cat without claws is defenseless.  De-clawed cats are often more inclined to not use their litter boxes.

Martha Stewart once had an episode of her TV show inside one of her homes.  The camera went to one of her sofas to reveal that the arms of the sofa had been shredded by her cats.  Martha chuckled and said something like “when you live with cats, you live with this.”  Now really folks, if Martha Stewart can live with a few shreds so can we mere mortals!

But what if you can’t live with a shredded sofa arm?  Trim the cat’s nails!  It’s beyond easy once you get the hang of it.  Your veterinarian or a vet tech can show you how.  In a matter of minutes you’ll be as good at it as they are.

You can purchase professional cat nail clippers or use the straight edge toe clippers you probably already own!   Trim your cat’s nails every 10-14 days and everyone is happy!

San Francisco is where Cat Faeries lives and works.  We are actively getting petitions signed, and we will make a formal statement before the Board of Supervisors.  And we will keep you posted about the ban.  Please see if you can be a pioneer  and get de-clawing banned in your community!

Are you a San Francisco resident who wants a petition?  Email us and we’ll send you one as an attachment.  We need it mailed back to our PO Box by October 15, 2009.  Not a resident?  Send us a letter and we’ll include it with the petitions?   Cat Faeries, PO Box 31885, San Francisco, CA 94131.

Since this is the time of year when we are roasting turkeys, the grocery stores have lots of aluminum roasting pans for sale. If you look you’ll probably find one the length of your current litter box, but the sides will be lower. Try one! See if your cat likes it. See if its just as easy for you to clean and manage.

We have seen a few litter pans in the stores with lower sides, but they are not long enough for most cats to use comfortably. Try the roasting pan idea – they come in several sizes, you’ll find one that’s right! Its a pretty cheap experiment which could save you oodles of money in the long run, and your sanity. And the cat will be so much happier and in less pain.

But all that paper gift wrap. What a waste of paper. This year Cat Faeries behaviorist dusted off her sewing machine and put her very limited sewing skills to good use by making up lots of re-usable gift bags which are super easy to cut out and sew. She’s using a mix of old sheets, a few old dresses, hubby’s old shirts, and some new fabric (particularly yummy Japanese cotton in bold prints, or organic untreated cotton).

The gift bags are in lots of sizes to accommodate a wide range of gifts. In fact an assortment of bags make a great gift themselves. Here are some bag size ideas for you:

* very small – ideal size for an engagement ring or pretty earrings, or one cat toy,

* rectangular – for a bottle of wine or olive oil,

* square – to hold a book or two,

* medium – to hold an a bunch of cat toys, a few jars of homemade jam, a big jar of homemade bath salts,

* really big – for a hemp bathrobe. This size is probably big enough to use later for grocery shopping,

* super big – for really big gifts like a new computer. This size would be wonderful for future shopping trips when big items are bought or for packing clothes for a weekday getaway.

One of the reasons we like re-usable cloth gift bags is that many of our feline friends are tempted to chew on ribbons and bows. If swallowed they usually get barfed up, but that makes a huge mess for you to clean, and can scare the cat. But if chewed ribbon or bits of a bow do not get thrown up by the cat and starts to be digested serious or life threatening health problems can arise. There’s nothing festive about THAT!

So now we have two reasons to stop using all that paper, tape, and ribbon. You’ll cut down on waste and you’ll keep your cats healthy so that we all can enjoy another holiday season with fewer worries. Be happy knowing we have made one more step to green up our world and not be slaves to creeping consumerism. Ho Ho Ho – indeed!

* sudden fighting

* one cat is singled out and picked on

* new alliances are formed, old alliances end

* change in hierarchy

* blood in the litter box (get to the vet – QUICK!)

* eating less or eating much more

* vomiting after eating

* coughing, sneezing, wheezing

* sudden dislike of a once favorite food or treat

* withdrawing from affection

* hiding in closets

* sleeping longer hours, sleeping deeper

Sometimes it seems hard to keep on top of everything we want to be observant of. Its so important to slow down, do less, and spend more time with our furry loved ones. Serious illness can sometimes come from nowhere. But if you think back, there were probably signs, subtle for sure, but there were signs that something was going on. A shift. A change. Behavior changes which have little to do with personalities but all to do with health should be carefully examined and acted upon with the help of your veterinarian. If need be, consult with a veterinary internist.

In loving memory of Jacques Frost, September 18, 1994 – November 25, 2007.

If you see your cats staring at heater vents or closet doors, or if you see them going in and out of closets more often than usual betcha 10 catnip cupcakes that you’ve got mice either setting up residence or using your home as a highway from point A to point B. You could even have a rat or two.

A mouse in the house can cause

* sudden and unexplained fighting among cats.

* sudden and unexplained urinating or spraying near closets or heater vents by your cats.

* health worries of contracting the Hanta Virus from rodent droppings

There are many traps for mice available. We like the idea of “trap and release” using a humane trap – a great brand is Havahart. A good supplier of cat goods should have them, sometimes they’ll loan you one. For trapping rats . . .well, its tough and probably not safe to be so kind hearted – this is up to you. There’s a trap for rats which quickly and humanely electricutes them called The Rat Zapper.

Here’s a bait recipe that a friend who is a professional exterminator gave us for trapping rats. Rats are hip to the peanut butter thing so if that’s failed you in the past its because rats are very smart and evolve! (probably faster than some humans, but that’s another blog posting!)

Take a cookie and put a glob of peanut butter on it – think of the peanut butter as the glue which will hold the next two ingriedents: 1 macadamia nut and 1 small piece of black licorice. Rats may now be ho hum about peanut butter but the darlings cannot resist a mac nut or a piece of black licorice, so why not use both together! Insert this gourmet bait in the trap and voila, you’ve got em!

Warm wishes to all!