Indoor Cats need Flea/Tick Prevention

 

Normally I treat my indoor / outdoor cats with Revolution.  This topical treatment provides protection against a range of parasites, including fleas, ear mites, worms and some types of ticks. However, my three senior cats do not go outside, the only time they get fresh air is by sitting on  our screened in sun porch.   When I found a tick on the indoor cats I knew that all cats needed protection against fleas and ticks.

(AI generated image created by Susang6) 

Cats with access to an outdoor cattery or screened in porch can still be exposed to fleas and ticks. Fleas can hitch a ride on clothing, shoes, or other pets, while ticks may find their way into the cattery or porch through small gaps in the screen or from other animals like our dog or our indoor / outdoor cats. While the risk is lower compared to cats roaming freely outdoors, it's not zero. 

My indoor senior cats get tropical Revolution treatment

Fleas and ticks can cause irritation, allergic reactions, and even transmit diseases.

If you are interested in learning more about flea and tick prevention treatments.  Here are the ones that I recommend. 

Revolution for cats is a topical treatment that provides protection against a range of parasites, including fleas, ear mites, and some types of ticks. For comprehensive tick prevention, you might want to consider products like Revolution Plus, Bravecto Topical, or Advantage Multi, as these are often recommended for tick control.

My veternarian recommends year-round flea and tick prevention for all cats, including those primarily indoors.  It's best to consult your veternarian to determine the most suitable treatment for your cat.

End of Life for 17-Year-Old Feral Cat

 The end of life has come for feral cat Lucy who has been in our care since 2008.  This feral cat was born in a limestone opening in a bluff in the woods by my home.   In her lifetime she had two small litters before being hunted and attacked by a wild animal who wanted her kittens.  Lucy fought off the wild animal that injured her and her one kitten.

2008 Lucy lying outside the garden shed with one of her kittens

2009 2nd litter  Lucy injured and brings kittens to my shed

Injured Lucy brought her two kittens to my garage where we trapped the nursing mother and all her kittens for medical care.  The cats needed medical care for 21 days and when they were released from the medical clinic Lucy had been spayed. 

All of Lucy's kittens were trapped, socialized, and adopted. Lucy could not be socialized so she was released to the colony that my husband and I oversaw.

Lucy the feral cat lived a very long life as the average age for a feral cat without human intervention is about two years.  Many feral cats that live in colonies that have human caretakers have lived 7 to 10 years.  

My husband and I take care of the cats in our colony and we watch them daily to make sure they are not sick or injured. We feed them and provide fresh water twice a day, in the rain, in the snow, or in the heat.   We also provide well-insulated cat houses and in the summer months, we have cooling mats for their houses.  But despite providing care to the cats many cats did not survive the feral cat lifestyle.   

I think Lucy the feral cat survived due to her camouflage coat, she could be lying on a rock and you would not see her.  She was very cautious and an excellent tree climber.

Lucy as a young adult cat lived in the woods adjacent to my home.  She took refuge in a thicket den which I located after a blizzard. She was snowed in and could not come to the feeding station so we took her food and water to her.

When Lucy was age 10  a red-tailed hawk airlifted Lucy and we were certain that her life had come to an end.  We did not see Lucy for a week but we had hope that she was still alive because we found a dead red-tailed hawk on the side of the hiking trail close to our home.  Lucy survived the hawk. 

 Then last spring while working in the yard and garden I heard a deer snorting in the front of my yard.  It was not a normal snort it was more of a warning. The doe deer had a fawn in hiding a few hundred yards from my side yard and I was worried that the fawn might be in danger.  I picked up my string trimmer and walked to where the warning was coming from.  On the edge of my property there is a rocky terrain with a steep drop off I saw Lucy the cat sleeping on top of a large rock that was about 6 feet off the ground and 30 feet away was a large adult coyote.

I quickly turned on my string trimmer and waved it above me to make look larger than life with a strange noise the coyote took off. The doe deer behind me took after the coyote and two other deer in the woods followed suit and chased the coyote out of our area.   Lucy slept through the entire episode she was age 16 and her response to danger had weakened.    

Here are a few photos of Lucy when she lived closer to our home 

We respect Lucy the feral cat and prepared her for winter with a wonderful insulated house that was donated by a friend of mine.   We set it up close to our side door and also set up a warming water bowl to keep her water from freezing. 

Lucy left the woods and did come to live close to our home.  She sunned herself on our patio chairs and made friends with a gray cat.  The two of them slept together, hung out together and the gray cat groomed Lucy.  

Other photos of Lucy 

             

Then in the winter of 2025, the weather was bitterly cold the temperature dipped to below 0 and there was snow.   Lucy and the gray cat spent 2 nights in the insulated cat shelter and on the 3^rd bitter cold night  Lucy the feral cat entered our house through our side door that was opened when my husband was bringing in groceries and she went and sat on the kitchen floor. 

My husband picked Lucy up she did not hiss, she did not snarl and he walked her to our enclosed side porch.   I set it up with a litter box, food, and water.  My husband brought in her insulated outdoor house. We also added an oil-filled space heater and a K&H self-warming cat mat.  Lucy lay down on the self-warming mat next to the heater.  

The gray cat that loves Lucy searched for her, he called out to her all night long and I feared that his distress calls would cause this cat to be hunted by coyote.  So, I trapped him and brought him into the room where I had Lucy. 

The gray cat was distressed but then Lucy picked up her head and he went to her and sniffed the gray cat relaxed.   United again, the gray cat groomed Lucy and then laid down next to her.  The gray cat will stay with Lucy until it’s her time to pass. Lucy is approximately 4 pounds and is eating and drinking very little.

Lucy enters the caregiver's home for end-of-life care

Lucy passed away on January 28th. at age 17. She had stopped eating and we took her to the veterinarian where we were told that she had cancer.  We euthanized her and buried her on the land where she was born.  

Lucy is the oldest living Feral Cat in history.  I have dedicated this blog to her as she was the first feral cat that we trapped and then cared for throughout her life.   Our hearts are broken and we will miss the feral cat that we called Lucy.

Why Cats Eat Grass

  

 

 

We have been taking care of a colony of outdoor cats for a long time and in that time, we have observed the cats eating grass.  The cats do not eat any type of grass they seem to know what grass is best.  After they consume the grass the cats’ vomit so I assumed the grass was to cure stomach upset.

 

outdoor cat eating grass

On other occasions the outdoor cats will eat grass and they do not vomit.  My veterinarian told me that grass is high in fiber and that it can help the cats with digestion and constipation. 

 

In addition to high fiber content, grass also contains folic acid.  Without enough folic acid, cats can develop anemia and a lack of oxygen.

 

cat grass I grew my cat likes it

When I learned this I decided to grow grass for my indoor cats so I bought the grass seed package and planter that was being sold at Pet Smart and Amazon.  What I noticed is that my cats really like grass.  They seem to like the taste.  I like the grass because the chlorophyll in the grass helps to keep their breath fresh.

 

Very easy to grow water once and seeds germinate

If you have indoor cats then its best to grow grass for them.  Its not wise to just let your cat outdoors to grass in your neighborhood because many lawns are treated with chemicals, pesticides, weed killers and those chemicals will hurt your cat. 

Teaching Rescued Cats to Use Scratching Post

 You would think that scratching a cat tree or post would be natural for a cat but when it comes to a rescued stray cat that has been out on the streets the scratching post is unfamiliar to them and you must teach rescued cats that the post is where they scratch not the side of the sofa or on the wall.

 

Stray cats are accustomed to scratching on tree trunks, not a sisal cat scratching post. 

Before you teach the cat how to use a scratching post you must shop for a cat tree or freestanding scratching post. Choose the right post for the cat's size (many scratching posts are created for small cats then there are posts for large cats). 

 

It’s a good idea to buy a few to set up in areas in your home where the cat frequents.  My rescued stray cat is a window dweller so I set up a cat tree with a scratching post in my laundry room and another one in the living room.

 

Many scratching posts come with a cat toy that dangles from the top.  This toy is a good way to divert your cat’s attention. However, a cat that has been rescued and has lived outdoors is not impressed with the dangling toy unless it is scented with catnip.  

Spray catnip on the toy and the scratching post. Give it a good catnip soaking.  Then watch your cat and as soon as they go to scratch your furniture pick them up and take them to the scratching post.  Gently place their paws on the side of the post.  At that time, they will smell the catnip and will naturally scratch and rub it all over the post or cat tree.

Praise the cat for being so good “What a good kitty, using the scratching post” Positive reinforcement goes a long way. 

Stock up on catnip spray because you will have to spray the scratching posts daily.  You will also have to continue to remove your cat from inappropriate scratching places until the cats learns that the post is where they need to scratch.

How to Keep Cats off Counters

 Whenever I am in the kitchen my kitties always want to be close to me so they will hop up onto the counters and lie down.  Know that I am not a fan of cats lying on my kitchen counters and know not to scold them and tell them that they are being bad because that would only frighten them and in their mind they just want to be close to me.  

Know that training the cats to stay off the counters is not easy but when you train with positive reinforcement your cat will learn to stay off the counters eventually.

 

The first thing you should do is make your kitchen counters unfriendly and uncomfortable.  Place double-sided sticky tape along the edge of the counters and where your cat likes to lie.  Cats really do not like the tape on their paws.

You can try to repel the cats from your counter by using scents that cats do not like.  Cats are very sensitive to citrus lemon lime and peppermint.  So spray your counters with the juice of a fresh lemon and lime, then spray peppermint on top of that.  These scents should repel cats from your kitchen counters. 

Another way to keep cats off your counters is to distract your cat by buying them a cat tree and spraying that tree with catnip. The tree will then be more desirable than the kitchen counter.  Set the tree up in an area where the cat can still see you in the kitchen.  This will satisfy their need to be close to you

 

Set up a cat room that is away from the kitchen.  In the room have a cat tree, toys, food water, a litter box, cozy beds, and a window.  When it's time for you to cook then it's time for your kitty to have a time out in the cat room.  When you are finished with kitchen duties you can let your cat out of the room.

About Outdoor Cat Hyperthermia

  

Yesterday on my Facebook page there was a discussion and apparently, some people think that during the winter season, snow will keep cats hydrated.  I let them know that snow is toxic to cats and that ingesting snow when the temperature outdoors is below freezing (32 degrees Fahrenheit) puts cats at risk of hyperthermia.

 

It's not safe for your cat to eat snow because of the waste chemicals in the snow.  The other reason is that when a cat eats snow, that snow will lower the cat's core temperature making the cat feel colder and putting the cat at risk of hyperthermia.

When the temperature is below freezing and the cat has no outdoor shelter they are at risk for hyperthermia.

 Hyperthermia is a serious health condition that can become life-threatening if your cat cannot restore its core body temperature this occurs in cold climates, where the outdoor temperature is bitterly cold and temperature is not warming up.  Hyperthermia occurs when your cat's core temperature remains below normal for an extended period.

If you suspect a cat is suffering hypothermia; symptoms to watch for are cold skin, shivering, slow heartbeat, no motion, or pale gums. Many times a cat just sitting in the snow on a bitter cold day is a sign that the cat is suffering hyperthermia and you must take that cat to the veterinarian immediately.  

 

Age Matters When Adopting a Cat

  

In the past, I rescued a litter of six kittens that were abandoned at the side of the road  We were able to find homes for two of the six kittens but ended up adopting the remaining four. 

Four of the six kittens that we rescued
 

All of the kittens were the same age and it was fun to watch them grow, play, and take care of each other but when they were older it was heartbreaking.

 

Sibling cats sleeping together 

We learned the hard way that it's best to adopt cats that are different ages rather than all the same age.  

This past December we had to say goodbye to three of our cats who all passed away within a month.  I think the loss of a sibling was just too much for our littermates and that the sadness escalated their failing health.

The cats were elderly (age 18) and we knew that they were all end of life but they were part of our family and the passing of a cat, a beloved cat still hurts. 

Both my husband and I decided that age does matter when adopting a cat and that it's best to have multiple cats that are not the same age.  

We are thinking of adopting a kitten and an adult cat age 4 or 5 along with a senior cat since they always need homes for older cats at the shelter.   The difference in age matters to us as we do not want cats that are the same age for fear that they will all become elderly at the same time and all will go to the rainbow bridge one after another just like what occurred with us the month before Christmas. 

Keep Cats Cool in Summer with Fans

This past summer the heat was extreme with no rain in over a month.   Many of the feral and stray cats did come into our yard to drink water from the many bowls and a few went into our air-conditioned shed.  Other cats tried to keep cool by lying on our patio chairs.  But when the the shade was a heat index of 90 degrees we did take steps to provide these cats with powerful air circulation from an industrial fan. 

Here is a photo of the fan that we set up for the cat.

We bought an industrial large fan from Lowes home improvement store and set the fan up so that it was five feet away from where the cat was lying.  The large fan did provide the cat with a steady stream of air and hopefully, it blew the hot air away from the cat. 

We have taken care of this feral cat since 2008 and think she is set in her ways and does not want to go into the shed where the air conditioner is.  Maybe afraid of the other cats or afraid of the window unit as they are noisy.

The cat stayed in the chair and only left the area with the breeze from the fan to get a drink of water.   She came back to where the fan was and seemed to enjoy the steady breeze.

Setting the fan five feet away from the cat was good as we tried to be closer and the stronger breeze did scare her.   

Trapped Feral Tomcat for TNR

 In the summer a stray cat went into our garage and a few weeks later she had a kitten. We took care of the mother cat and her kitten and planned to trap both after the kitten was weaned. We would then do TNR for veterinarian care, sterilization, and release.

Our timetable was to get all of this accomplished by the first week of September.  But those plans went south when the 2022 inflation hit and the cost of living was too expensive and we could not afford to pay for the veterinarian care that was needed.

Normally I use the monies I earn from selling my product designs online at my Zazzle store but sales were not enough for the veterinarian care that was needed.  I  turned to my husband for support for my cat's cause.  

I communicated with our veterinarian about what was going on as they had expected me to bring in the cats for medical care.  To my surprise, they worked with me on the costs for FeLV and FIV tests, vaccines including rabies, and sterilization and I am happy to say that the feral tomcat was trapped for TNR.

The neuter went well but aftercare was 3 days in the garage before we could release to the cat colony that is overseen by caretakers. 

My photo of a feral tomcat on the day we brought him back for aftercare. 

The feral cat recovered and was transported to another colony and released.  He is doing well and the caretakers named him Church because he looks like Stephen King's Pet Cemetary cat.

When Neighbors Don't Love Cats

 We have been providing insulated and waterproof shelters for the TNR cats that reside in the woods that is adjacent to our home. We have been caretakers since 1999 and honestly had no idea that neighbors were watching from afar and that they didn't love cats.

Recently we were made aware of the neighbor's concerns as animal control told me that all the cat houses had to be removed from the public woods and that I could only provide the shelters in my yard. (however, if the cats become a nuisance then I would have to remove the cat houses)  Animal control made me aware of a neighbor that was bothered by the cat houses and had reported me for providing a cat house in my yard (behind a privacy fence) and in the woods.

The cat houses could not be seen by the woods trail.  You would have to hike off the trail to find them.  I suppose they may have followed me one day when I went out to feed the colony of TNR cats.  The neighbor was not bothered by the cat feedings but certainly wanted the cat houses removed. 

Our weather can be brutal with extreme heat in the summer and bitter cold with snow in the winter. The cat houses may have saved the colony cats' life because they were insulated to keep cats cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter.

When neighbors don't love cats and put a stop to people that help cats, then they hurt cats by denying them shelter.   I know that going forward that I need to be more careful about what is said to neighbors and to change my time for feeding the colony cats as I don't know what the neighbors that do not like cats will do next. 

Here is a photo of what my outdoor cat shelters look like.  They are not cheap nor are they eyesores. Yes, I am angered at this neighbor for being so hateful toward the cats. 

The cat houses in the photos below are in my yard.  I bought 4 houses like this 2 for my yard and 2 for the woods cats.  These quality-made houses should not offend anyone. 

White Tomcat Gets Rescued and Forever Home

A month ago a stray aggressive white cat showed up in my yard. This tomcat was chasing my cats from their yard and fighting with other cats. At first I thought the cat might be sick, abandoned or a feral tomcat. I learned rather quickly that the cat was nuisance because there was a feral queen cat that was hanging out close to my home and this is what was instigating the cat brawls and the mating calls at all hours day and night.

Abandoned white tomcat looking sad after the neuter

I inquired to find out if any neighbors knew the cat owner. It was unanimous all said that the cat just showed up one day and was a fighter. Another neighbor said that “he has to be neutered as I saw him trying to stand up to a raccoon over a food bowl” My guess was that the cat was abandoned and was acting out due to that and because he was not neutered and that he was hungry and didn’t understand that a raccoon was danger.

Stray tomcat eating at the feeding station

When tomcats are abandoned, they are really lost, they don’t know how to find a safe shelter to sleep, food to eat, or clean water...all they know is that they need to fight off anything that gets in their way to find a queen cat to mate with.

Know that I watched this cat one day crying because it was raining, he did not have the good sense to go into one of my insulated and waterproof cat houses. This of course confirmed that he was an abandoned housecat. Of course, I tried to help the cat but it ran from me, but the poor thing never got out of the rain.

White cat trapped and going to the veterinarians for medical care

I let everyone know that I would trap the cat and take it in for neutering and vaccines and that I would try to find it a forever home. Trapping was not successful as the cat didn’t go into the trap. So my husband grabbed the cat carrier and set it on our patio with an open door and cat food in the back. The tomcat walked into the carrier and sat down.

The tomcat was tested for Feline Leukemia and Feline Immunodeficiency and both were negative. I was told that he was five years old, that he had ear mites, and that he needed to be wormed. The cat was neutered, received all of his vaccines, and treatment for mites and worms, and needed to stay 2 extra days at the animal hospital. Upon release, his paperwork said that he was vomiting dead worms and that he should be kept calm for the next 7 days.

The garage shelter has everything cats need even indoor/outdoor carpet

We released the white cat to our heated garage. The garage is carpeted, has cat beds, houses toys, and fresh food and water. Once the cat was in a home setting he calmed down and became a sweetheart.

The white cat is no longer aggressive and gets along with another cat in the shelter

The garage is cozy and warm for the stray cats this winter thanks to the many customers who bought from my Zazzle store.  I used the royalties from the product sales
to buy this window heater. 

(Pure white cats are fairly rare in the general cat population, as they require a gene that hides every other possible coat color and pattern in a cat's genetic makeup.)

The cat loves blankets, rolling around on the carpet, playing with toys and he accepted the other cats in the garage without any aggression. He has been recuperating for the last five days and in that time I have made contact with two pet adopters. 

This once abandoned tomcat will be adopted and will get another chance at being a housecat at his forever home.