Provision of veterinary services should be funded along the lines of the best human healthcare systems

Veterinary healthcare should mirror human healthcare hybrid systems

A cursory investigation will tell you that dogs are taken to the vets much more than cats and cats are not taken to the vets enough. Cat owners resist taking their cat to the vet. I am one of those cat owners. It is not about money for me but the hassle. But vets …

Read more

What is worse, a cat bite or a cat scratch?

Claw and teeth of cat

Starting with the presumption that the scratch and bite are of about equal severity, to answer the question the title I think we have to look at two things: The frequency with which bacteria is transferred from cats to people through their teeth compared to through their claws and; The ‘potency’ of the bacteria …

Read more

Marmite reduces anxiety and makes you a better cat caregiver

Vitamin B6 in Marmite helps reduce anxiety

In this article I am focusing on the human rather than the cat. When a cat caregiver feels better, they are going to be a better cat caregiver. When a cat caregiver is irritable and fed up it will clearly affect the quality of their caregiving. Pretty obvious but I want to start off …

Read more

Law should require a license to keep more than 6 cats in a home

NEW BEDFORD FIRE DEPARTMENT FACEBOOK PHOTO

There is a story today from Massachusetts, USA which convinces me that if a person wants to keep a large number of cats in their home a license should be mandatory. I have set the limit at 6 max. but it could a number between 5 and 10 ,I think. In the story a …

Read more

Stray cats are diseased but humans aren’t. Discuss.

Dirty stray kitten being bathed and accepting it

There is a perception among some people that stray cats are diseased and can transmit infections to people. I’m reminded of this by a woman in Hong Kong, Icy Song, who runs into stray cats on her way to Lingnan University. She comments as follows: Although I feel pity for the stray cats, I …

Read more

Woman isolated during lockdown with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome finds comfort in her cat companions

NEWS AND OPINION: It is a time to praise the domestic cat for comforting vulnerable people who during extensive coronavirus pandemic lockdowns have been left isolated through no fault of their own. This is a time when the domestic cat has really proved their value to society. Fuchsia Carter Fuchsia, aged 35, lives in …

Read more

In Korea an outbreak of human toxoplasmosis was caused by ingesting food contaminated with Toxoplasma gondii

Toxoplasma gondii protozoan

This is a recently published study on how prevalent the disease called toxoplasmosis is in Korean cats and dogs. It appears to have been carried out because of an outbreak of human toxoplasmosis which has been put down to eating food contaminated with Toxoplasma gondii. This is the most common way a person is …

Read more

Are cat and dog owners healthier than others?

Do pets improve our health?

Are cat and dog owners healthier than others? The conclusion of a 42,000 people survey in California 1 is that ‘there is no evidence of a positive impact of pet ownership per se on the general health [of the participants]’. In other words pets don’t improve your health. Other factors have an impact it …

Read more

follow it link and logo
Note: Some older videos on this page were hosted on Vimeo. That account has now been retired, so a few video blocks may appear blank. Thanks for understanding — there’s still plenty of cat content to enjoy!