Keep up with important news about feline health, nutrition, and behavior, and other topics of interest to pet parents.
From the American Veterinary Medical Association It was recently brought to our attention that there are rumors circulating online about the existence of two new strains of canine distemper virus. These rumors are untrue. After consulting with two experts, Dr. Ed Dubovi (from Cornell) and Dr. Ron Schultz (from the University of Wisconsin), we...
Read more »
It’s definitely worth 2 minutes to watch this video of Jackon’s “life story” (but be prepared to adjust the sound after the obligatory loud and obnoxious commercial!). http://www.5min.com/Video/Youve-Got-Jackson-Galaxy-517266103
Read more »
We have long advocated play therapy as a way to prevent–and solve–a host of feline behavior problems, as well as a part of indoor enrichment for your cat’s mental and physical health. Now there’s another reason–longevity! In a fascinating article, ABC News ponders the question: “How could play — defined as “apparently purposeless activity...
Read more »
Word just in–Animal Planet will be having a special 8-hour marathon of Jackson Galaxy’s awesome show, “My Cat from Hell” TODAY!!! How he deals with these serious behavior problems is spectacular! If you haven’t been watching, now’s your chance to get caught up! The show starts at 1 pm ET/PT–so hurry and set that...
Read more »
Jackson Galaxy’s autobiography, Cat Daddy: How One Very Special Cat Fixed One Very Broken Man, is almost here! You can pre-order your copy (and more for gifts!) from Amazon.com here. Also, if you’re a fan of Jackson’s awesome show on Animal Planet, My Cat from Hell, you may be wondering how to acquire the great tools...
Read more »
The meeting of AAFCO’s Pet Food Committee (PFC) was held Wednesday afternoon, with a very busy agenda. This committee is responsible for updates to the model pet food regulations that form the de facto standards for commercial pet foods. Sure, it sounds dry and boring–and indeed the pace of change often seems to match...
Read more »
Little Big Cat is coming to you today from beautiful Reno, Nevada; I’m attending the mid-year meeting of AAFCO, the Association of American Feed Control Officials. If that organization sounds familiar, it’s because you’ve seen it on virtually every can, bag, roll, and every other form of commercial pet food you’ve ever bought. AAFCO...
Read more »
It’s that time again! Yes, the new TV season starts in just a few days, and with it come new episodes of Jackson Galaxy’s great show on Animal Planet, My Cat From Hell! Mark your calendar and set your DVR for January 7, 2012 at 8 PM EST on Animal Planet. The new season...
Read more »
The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) just published its new Guidelines for Responsible Pet Ownership (Journal of the AVMA, 2012 Jan 1;240(1):11-12), parting ways with the California VMA’s Golden Rules of Pet Ownership that it had previously endorsed. It’s interesting, and instructive, to compare the two. I’ve rearranged them so the most similar rules...
Read more »
After “pulling” nearly 4,000 cases of food from retail shelves since November 25, while denying that there was any serious problem, Procter & Gamble officially recalled one lot of Iams puppy food today. (Iams original cat food in 4, 6.8, and 20 lbs. bags were among the pulled products.) Here is their press release:...
Read more »
Fancy Feast is running a 24-hour poll on its Facebook page; auction proceeds benefit shelters. Please vote for Santa Paws Drive (or another, if they’re your favorite) – it’s such an awesome opportunity to be able to raise more money for the shelter animals! Click here to go to the voting page or copy...
Read more »
See below for 12/5/11 update listing 3,872 cases of 11 foods that were “not recalled.” Today we have two recall “rumors.” Neither is official, but both are potentially fatal. 1. Iams dry dog and cat food may be under a recall. It is as yet unconfirmed, although several watchdog groups have posted it. Thanks to...
Read more »
Every once in a while–just often enough to keep hope alive–justice prevails! (And no, I’m not referring to the duck hunter whose dog shot him in the butt!) In this beautiful example, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) finally had enough with Hill’s Science Diet pushing the envelope on exaggerated claims for its...
Read more »
Pet food. The truth about it is often hard to come by, especially because all the money and power are concentrated on making you, the consumer, believe that pet food companies know exactly how to make perfect food and are all about your pet’s health and well-being. Of course, we know that corporations are,...
Read more »
We want to wish all our friends (both with and without fur!) a wonderful, safe, and happy Thanksgiving! Remember, a little sharing is fine, but go easy on the treats, especially skin and other fatty parts for dogs, who are susceptible to pancreatitis from too much fat. Be sure to provide a quiet get-away...
Read more »
We are very proud that Little Big Cat won the coveted 2011 Muse Medallion Award for best website, from the Cat Writers’ Association. You may remember a few weeks back that, along with our good friends Ingrid King of the Conscious Cat and Mary Ann Love-Miller of Feline Express, we won a Certificate of...
Read more »
Recently, the nice people at Bissell asked if Little Big Cat would try this product. Since our little “stick” vacuum had just died, we accepted. This is a great little product: very lightweight, easy to use, and best of all–quiet enough to co-exist in the same room with the shyest cat without causing her to...
Read more »
And wouldn’t your cat love to get this for Christmas? So how to get one? It’s as easy as buying a Raffle Ticket! Our good friends at FloppyCats.com are offering this kitty-tested-and-approved Refined Feline Ball Bed as a prize for a fund-raising raffle. All proceeds (minus the shipping and handling of shipping the bed...
Read more »
A study was just published on the relative digestibility of different diets in cats. The researchers found that the raw-meat based diet (RB) and cooked meat diets (CB) were both better digested by cats than an extruded (dry kibble) food, even though the kibble started out higher in protein. Hill’s Science Diet did similar...
Read more »
Like so many vets, Dr. Becker at Mercola.com got it totally wrong in her column on constipation. It’s so frustrating to see veterinarians refer to hair and fur as “fiber.” Fur is made out of pure protein (keratin) and not a shred of fiber. Fiber is a complex carbohydrate that comes only from plants....
Read more »
Talk about a fantastic idea! The newly launched www.AdoptAShelter.com is an online community where pet lovers can shop at hundreds of well-known merchants and service providers to turn everyday purchases into contributions that directly benefit their animal shelters, humane organizations or rescue groups. Many local shelters, and national groups are already included, but if...
Read more »
Typhoid fever can be transmitted to humans by cat fleas, according to a report from the OC (Orange County, CA, of course!). Five cases have been documented just in the last three months. The Orange County Register reports: The disease, also known as endemic typhus, isn’t passed from person to person. Instead, it’s transmitted...
Read more »
Three cats in central Illinois have tested positive for Tularemia, also known as rabbit fever. According to the report in the local newspaper: Infected cats may have a high fever, mouth ulcers, depression, enlarged lymph nodes and behavioral changes that include not wanting to eat. Cats that have been outdoors and are showing these...
Read more »
Thanks to Mary Ellen at Angelscribe.com for this inbred — oops I mean in-bread — kitty!
Read more »
Animal Planet, which hosts our own Jackson Galaxy’s show, My Cat From Hell, has a statement on declawing in which they emphasize that declawing is a painful procedure with long-term negative consequences: http://animal.discovery.com/cat-guide/cat-care/cat-health/declawing-cat.html You can comment/Facebook at the bottom of the page. Let’s let Animal Planet know we appreciate their strong statement!
Read more »
Recall Release CLASS I RECALL FSIS-RC-071-2011 HEALTH RISK: HIGH Congressional and Public Affairs (202) 720-9113 Adam Tarr WASHINGTON, September 11, 2011 – Cargill Meat Solutions Corporation, a Springdale, Ark. establishment, is recalling approximately 185,000 pounds of ground turkey products that may be contaminated with a strain of Salmonella Heidelberg, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s...
Read more »
The Time online headline reads: “Glow-in-the-Dark Cats May Help Shed Light on AIDS.” Maia Szalavitz reports: “These glowing animals have been genetically engineered to make blood cells that are resistant to feline immunodeficiency virus, or FIV, the virus that causes feline AIDS. The study could give researchers insight into fighting AIDS in both humans...
Read more »
Only two weeks from the last dire warnings about the “new” bird flu, we now have a new swine flu! One child in Indiana, and three children who attended a Pennsylvania fair, were diagnosed with a virus related to H1N1 swine flu. Two of the children had been vaccinated for swine flu. According to...
Read more »
September is “Happy Cat Month”! The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) has produced a pretty good video introduction to cat care–and it doesn’t even promote declawing (whew!). There are a lot of cute cats in this video!
Read more »
The veterinarian that writes for Dr. Joseph Mercola (www.mercola.com), Karen Becker DVM, has a regular e-newsletter she sends around. Sometimes the information is valuable; it is nearly always sensationalized; but often it’s just dead wrong. Here are her latest gaffs in a discussion about what to look for in a pet food. A whole...
Read more »
An interesting article at Southampton.patch.com cites animal communicator Patty Payne and the top five “shocking” things she’s heard from pets. I have no doubt about #3; two of my cats have a running feud and I’m sure they’ve said some pretty rude things to each other! According to Ms. Payne: 1. Animals are holistic....
Read more »
When I was in California in March, I was interviewed by Robert Scott Bell, who has a radio show on Natural News Radio (from the NaturalNews Network). We covered a whole lot of ground in an hour! Program Description: Doctor of veterinary medicine Jean Hofve joins me for a candid conversation about pet ailments, pet...
Read more »
Our good friend, Mary Ellen at AngelScribe.com, is featured in a video interview about her 5 swimming cats! She had been worried that they might get loose and fall in the pool, but no worries…the feline’s amazing instincts include dog-paddling! However, it is very important to show your cat how to get out of...
Read more »
World’s Best Cat Litter is sponsoring it’s fourth round of litter giveaways to animal shelters! Just click here or visit http://www.givelitter.com/ to vote! Here’s the 411 about it: GIVELITTER™ LAUNCHES INITIATIVE TO DONATE LITTER TO ANIMAL SHELTERS ACROSS THE COUNTRY Feline Enthusiasts To Vote Online and Help Donations Grow Muscatine, Iowa – August 1,...
Read more »
This week, Jackson Galaxy, TV star, Cat Daddy, behaviorist extraordinaire (and my best bro’), answers a Brit’s question about declawing! (It’s illegal in the UK and dozens of other countries.) If you are looking for info on just about any aspect of declawing, from the many humane alternatives to the scientific evidence of harm,...
Read more »
St. Louis, Missouri, July 29, 2011 . . . Nestlé Purina PetCare Company (NPPC) is voluntarily recalling a limited number of 3.5- and 7-pound bags of its Purina ONE Vibrant Maturity 7+ Dry Cat Food from a single production run and shipped to customers in 12 states in December 2010. This is being done...
Read more »
This morning brought us an amazing story about a courageous police dog named Shadow, who took a bullet to the face during a standoff with an armed suspect. Sadly, his handler, Officer Brent Long, was killed, but the story of Shadow’s survival is definitely worth reading. It also provides a glimpse into the cutting-edge...
Read more »
If you haven’t checked out Jackson Galaxy’s great weekly video blog, you owe it to yourself to spend a few minutes learning a little something new about cats! This week’s Q&A discusses pica (chewing on things-that-aren’t-food), socializing feral cats, and animal grief. Previous weeks’s sessions are also available at JacksonGalaxy.com!
Read more »
Pet product maker Sergeant’s has instituted a “voluntary return-exchange” program on its topical products containing fipronil-methoprene (including FIPROGUARD™ Plus, Pronyl OTC™ Plus, EctoAdvance™, Spectra Sure™ and Prefurred™). As a long legal battle progresses, the move was made because Seargent’s products appear to violate patents held by Merial for its popular spot-on product, Frontline®. This...
Read more »
One of the items posted in Dr. Joseph Mercola’s newsletter this morning was pushing his special air filter, which is fine, but he also mentioned that many plants are good at pulling toxins out of the air. Unfortunately, several of the plants listed are toxic to cats. Plant Toxicity Feston Rose Non-toxic Devil’s Ivy...
Read more »