Cat safety is very important, but what are some practical tips that can be used around the home each day?
It’s great you are reading this article as there are more safety hazzards than are easily noticed sometimes. Many sweet kitties die every year because of common mistakes that can easily be made. Sadly, sometimes a single unintended accident can end a cat’s life.
This post reviews of some of the more common ways to keep your loveable kitties safe, so let’s get started.
Keep Cats Safe By Turning Off The Dryer, Oven And Appliances While Gone
Dryers, ovens are exceptional appliances in the home.
While they are generally safe, it’s best not to leave them or other major appliances running while gone from the home. If lent or clothes or food were to catch fire, the house fire could easily kill the cats, dogs, birds and other aniamls in the house. Such a situation may be discovered sooner if someone is home. Just a few precious minutes could save your pet’s lives.
If a fire were to occur your animals are locked inside a burning house with no way to escape.
Please use caution by only using ovens, dryers and other appliances while you are home. While ovens and dryers are of great concern due to the heat they produce, other appliances can be fire hazards due to malfunction or electrical shorts.
Always Check The Washer, Dryer, Oven & Dishwasher For Cats Before Use
Please check for cats before closing and using appliances. If you are a pet owner your kitties life may depend on it.
Ever preheat your oven before opening it? Ever turn on the water to start filling the washer before opening the lid? Ever quickly throw clothes in the dryer and turn it on without looking closely? Ever close the open dishwasher and start it without thought? Almost everyone has.
It’s nothing intentionally done wrong. Most people do these things on a regular basis. Most of the time when this happens there aren’t any problems kitty problems either.
However, as you know, cats are curious creatures that like to explore unknown places. Sadly these places sometimes include your washer, dryer, oven, dishwasher or other appliances that have an opening that opens and closes.
It’s not uncommon for cats to even take naps in such places if they are ever opened. Sometimes these appliances are opened, then later without thought are closed. Then later again used after they appear to be closed and ready to use.
Similarly, please, please, please double check these appliances for cats thoroughly. Sometimes just a quick glance may miss your pet that’s trapped inside an appliance when it’s about to be used. These tragedies really do happen every day. Simply ask your veteranarian if you don’t believe it. Have you have you ever checked the dryer after unloading it and found clothes you didn’t the first time? If so, you probably can imagine how easy this can happen.
Double Check The Refrigerator & Closets Before Closing The Door
Another cat hazard is getting locked in refrigerators & closests without their owners knowing. Occassionally cats get excited, or hungry for food and will actually jump inside the refrigerator not knowing the dangers. It’s easy to close the unsuspecting kitty in these locations by accident.
The problem lies especially when the animal will be trapped in these locations for extended periods of time. If either of these scenarios seem unlikely please ask your local vet clinic if they have heard of this happening to cats in the last couple weeks and see what they say.
Please make sure to check closests and refrigerators frequently just to make sure no pets are shut inside.
Make Sure No Cat Tails Get Shut In Door Hinges
Door hinges and cats are a bad combination. Unfortnately, however, there is no way to secure your home without doors. Sometimes kitties walking around or hanging out near the entrance can get their tail caught in the hinge between the door and the frame.
Imagine how painful it would be to have your finger or arm crushed in a shut door until someone returns possibly many hours later. Especially if you had to stand the whole time unable to move. As you can image, this causes crisis level suffering to cats victim to this misfortunate accident. Sadly the cat will likely require medical attention and likely surgery once the cat is freed when someone comes home.
If you’ve ever seen a cat with a short or amputated tail you will know accidents like this are common, painful occurances that happen sometimes.
Similarly, cats sometimes play around the door and get claws stuck on the hinge mechanism, twisting their fingers. Cat fingers, paws, or arms can easily get caught in doors too.
Please be very careful and take a quick look to make sure there are no cats right by the hinge when closing the door. This can highly reduce the chances of this accident from occuring.
Keep Dangerous Plants, Food & Chemicals Away From Cats
Especially if you are a new cat owner, you may be unaware of the dangerous plants, foods, and deadly chemicals accessible to your pet. Some cats love plants & others don’t. Some enjoy foods they aren’t supposed to eat, others do. Poisonous chemicals are often used in cleaning that could kill your pet if they get on their paws, on their food, or in their water.
If your kitty ingests and harmful items the results could be lethal.
Every kitty guardian needs to know what foods, plants and chemicals are dangerous for their pets. There are so many safety hazzards this article covers that it would be highly recommeded to spend a few minutes researching what to avoid.
A few of the foods to be avoided by cats include chocolate, onions, garlic, and others.
Plants for cats to avoid are numerous as there are so many species. Fortunately, the ASPCA provides some pretty good lists on the topic that you can review for exsisting and new plants on your property. Simply do an online search for the phrase “ASPCA plants toxic to cats” to find these and other related resources.
Finally, poisons lethal to cats, dogs and other animals for cleaning need to be avoided when possible. There are many alternative products that are supposedly pet friendly alternatives, which are a step in the right direction. Regardless, precautions should always be taken to prohibit your animals from coming in contact with such products. Including chemicals that leave surface residues even after dry.
Check New Cats For Diseases
If you already have a cat and want to bring another cat home it’s a good idea to check it for diseases. FIV and Cat Leukemia are communicable diseases that the vet can test for. Often cats with these diseases live long happy lives. Regardless, it’s information you should know prior to putting an existing pet cat at risk of acquiring any type of disease.
One further note on FIV and Leukemia infected cats is that they need homes and love too. They often do especially well in homes where they are the only cat so there is no risk of infecting others. FIV and Cat Leukemia are not infectious to humans.
Keep Small And Sharp Objects Away From Cat Food And Water Bowls
Home life can often lend it’s self to challenges keeping dangerous objects out of cat water and food bowls. There are endless types of small or sharp objects that could be harmful to your kitty. Even worse is when such items find their way into a cat’s water or food bowls.
The cat may accidently bite or swallow such items which could cause broken teeth, choking, or other medical emergencies.
Just a few such small objects to protect from your cat’s food and water bowls or being otherwise eaten off the floor include:
-Ear rings
-Plastic beads
-Small plastic snap together toys and building blocks
-Toothpicks
-Sewing needles
-Heming pins
-Pine tree needles
It’s especially challenging for familes with young kids working on crafts that may have objects small enough for cats to swallow.
Please be on your best guard to keep kitty cat food and water bowls free of small harmful objects.
Keep Thread Away From Where Cats Can Eat it
As bizzare as it may sounds, there are cats that will actually eat thread as though it were a long spaghetti noodle. In such cases the cat will keep swallowing and swallowing the thread with the assumption that they will finally reach the end of it. Clearly the kitty runs into problems since thread spools can reach hundreds of feet in lenght.
The situation can become dangerous as if cats do eat the whole spool their will likely need surgery to remove the thread. Otherwise other food may not be able to reach their stomachs, or they may be filled with thread & unable to process it. In such situations there may not even be enough room for food. These and other health concerns that could possibly be lethal are reason for prevention.
Please keep thread spools in a sealable plastic sandwich bag to keep your kitty from harming them self.
Avoid Letting Cords Or Leashes Choke Cats
Long tangled cords can be a safety hazard to cats and other pets. Keeping long cords untangled can be challenging. Phone cords, printer cords, television cords, laptop cords. It seems long cords are everywhere, and they can be dangerous to your pets.
The primary danger of long cords is that your cat or dog accidentally choke or hang themselves. Neck leashes can pose similar threats under certain circumstances also. If there is a situation where your pet has a leash or other roped device that is tied down, it could be hazardous. If there’s a nearby object that the pet could jump over that requires longer slack than the leash length, the animal could accidentally hang it’s self. Especially if the cat or dog is unattended.
Another scenario would be if a cat jumps behind furniture where there are cords that do not touch the floor. If the cat gets a cord around it’s neck and is sandwiched between furniture and the wall there may not be enough room to wiggle free or escape.
Whether there is a nearby swingset bar, or a piece of furniture, it could be a hazzard if they have a prohibitive leash or a long cord that chokes them.
Also, a tangled cord can result in another hazard. If a cat puts it’s paws through a tangled cord, then doesn’t lift it’s paw high enough after the step, a loop or knot could tighten around the paw as they pull forward. This could trap the cat which alone is bad as it may be trapped and go undetected. The animal could inflict great harm to it’s self if it panics trying to escape in desperation.
Zip strips and wire ties can help keep cords folded tightly without loops. Additionally, trying to limit long draping cords can help reduce risks to your pets.
Ensure All Cats And Other Pets Are Chipped And Collared
It’s a good idea to chip your kitty cat whether it lives indoor, outdoor, or both.
Cat’s turn up missing every day, and some of them can be reunited with their owners if identifyable by a chip or collar. Collars shouldn’t be too tight as it can choke the cat or become unconfortable. Collars shouldn’t be too loose either or they can come off. It’s good to have your cats both chiped and a collared to ensure maximum identification in the event they come up missing.
People are often reunited with their cats and dogs that they never thought would escape or go missing just because they had them chipped. Please chip your animals today.
Always Keep Garage Door Cracked In Cold Weather
Every year multitudes of animals freeze to death. In cold regions of the world cats like any other mamal can die from freezing. To make matters even more sad, it’s often completely avoidable. Simply caring for pets by providing basic warmth, shelter, food and water goes a long way. It’s sad that animals freeze, get frost bite, or suffer due to neglect.
If you live in a region that has cold weather in the Winter time you can help keep your cats safe from freezing. The simple act of keeping the garage door cracked open enough for your or other cold cats to come in can mean the difference of life and death. These animals struggle in harsh conditions, and some people let the pets under their watch freeze.
Putting some warm blankets for them to snuggle up in helps a lot. Consider providing a covered wooden or cardboard box with hay in it, and cut a hole large enough for the kitties to enter and exit the box. If you could provide a small heater to keep the garage warm that would even be better yet. Just don’t put the heater close to hay or anything else that will be a fire hazard.
Another option is to install a kitty door so your cat can come into your home instead of the garage to warm up.
Please help the animals you love by providing warmth, shelter, food and water. Letting the cat live indoors is an even better, warmer, and safer option for cats.
Thanks for loving the cats under your watch. Please keep them warm.
Keep Cat Strollers, Kennels And Cages Out Of Sunlight In Hot Weather
Many cats enjoy some visits outdoors. Keep in mind that cats have warm fur coats even during the hot seasons of the year. When bringing animals for a visit outdoors, kennels, cages, and strollers can let the animals enjoy the outdoors without escaping.
The problem to avoid in these situations is to ensure that the cats are not in the direct heat or sunlight without shade. If the cats are contained in a kennel, cage or stroller, they have no way to escape the sun and heat, and could overheat or kill them if it’s too extreme or for too long.
Ensure their kennel, cage or stroller is put in a shaded area. Also, make sure the front of the cage or stroller is not pointed directly at the sun, but in the opposite direction so they are shaded from the powerful radiating heat and sun beams. Don’t forget about your animal for hours while outdoors on a sunny day. Keep going out to check on them. If they are outside long enough for the shaded areas to move, relocate the animal so they are never outside of the shade.
It’s best not to leave the animal outside too long where it can overheat, or be forgotten about. It’s extremely easy to get distracted or busy and forget about a cat being outside. Setting a timer alarm on your phone or elsewhere can save your cat from overheating or dying in the sun. Set the alarm before the cat goes outside to ensure you don’t forget the alarm after bringing the cat outside.
Finally, make sure that while outdoors the cat has a water bowl to keep from overheating. Adding an ice cube to the water is a great idea too!
Keeping Floors & Furniture Well Lit So The Cat Isn’t Crushed
By nature, many cats have natural camoflage and blend in with their surrondings. Many cats happen to match your flooring, furniture or bedspreads, which puts them in danger. In such situations, good lighting could mean the difference between life and death for pets.
Even if you need to install an extra floor ram in a dark area where the animal blends in it could save it’s life. It’s all to easy to crush a cat by stepping on it while it’s asleep on the carpet, on furniture, or your bed. Sometimes they simply can’t be seen, especially in dark lighting.
Please light your house to help keep your pet safe.
Take Your Cat In For An Annual Veterinarian Checkup And Shots
While this safety tip is not in the home, it does affect the health of house cats whether indoor or outdoor. Rabies, distemper and other diseases, conditions and sicknesses afect many cats. Keeping your cats vaccinees current can help prevent deadly health problems and life limiting illnesses.
A good checkup at a vet can help keep an eye on your pet’s health and catch problems early. Sometimes an early diagnosis can help treat the cat before it’s too late.
If you haven’t scheduled a checkup this year, there’s no time like the present to begin.
Please schedule a vet checkup today if your kitty hasn’t had one recently.
Avoid Sitting On Cats
It’s so easy to not look for a cat before you sit somewhere. Even worse sometimes a cat hides under blankets or clothes and is not visible even when looking where you are about to sit. Many animals are crushed by their owners this way.
Please always look under clothes and blankets that you may be about to sit on. Whether on a chair or bed, your cat’s safety is at risk of being sat on. It may sound silly, but it is a legitimate threat that could take your cats life. Especially if you sit down quickly with heavy force.
It may sound like a joke, but its very much a threat to cats, so please look closely before sitting down. Please check even under blankets and clothes you may sit on.
Keep Cats Indoors To Increase Life Expenctancy And Prevent Diseases
Indoor cats have a far longer average life expectancy than outdoor cats. The averages don’t lie. Regardless, many people refuse to make their cats live indoors.
Outdoor cats may have more freedom, but they are also exposed to far more risks, dangers and diseases as well. There averages vary significantly, but can be estimated to be around 6 years for outdoor cats, and 17 years for indoor cats. In other words, by keeping your cat indoors your cat will live about 3 times as long as an outdoor cat.
Reduce Chances Of Heartworms
Mosquitos are carriers of heartworms. While heartworms infect cats less often than dogs, cases still occur daily.
If you value your feline companion’s life and health, please keep it indoors to reduce the risk of mosquitos, ticks and other disease carying insects. Outdoor cats have a far lower average life expectancy than indoor cats.
Don’t Let Cat Choke In Kennel
If your cat wears a collar, and tags, make sure the cat can not choke in a metal kennel. Ensure the tags and clips can not get caught on the metal kennel bars. Consider plastic kennels instead. Always inspect the kennels to ensure they do not pose a hazard to your kitty prior to use. It may sound far fetched, but this really can happen and should be taken seriously.
Conclusion
To read other ariticles on animal welfare please take a moment to look around and view other helpful articles!
There are such an overwhelming number of dangers that outdoor cats are exposed to that indoor cats do not face. The cost of a free lifestyle is a very short life. That’s not to say indoor cats are unhappy. Some are more content than others, but it keeps them safe from many physical threats and diseases that are redily experienced outside.
There are traffic threats, predator threats, cruel people, animal traps, serious injuries occur to far away to return home, disease threats, and many others.
Beyond the safety factor, sick outdoor cats often expand the spreading of infectious diseases to other outdoor cats they encounter. Sadly, outdoor cats flourish the speading of lethal diseases to cats such as FIV, and cat leukemia, and others as well.
There’s no reason that cat’s can’t have a taste of the outdoors from a kennel, stroller or cage. It may not be quite as exciting but could help a kitty live nearly 3 times as long as unrestrained outdoor cats.
Please help pet felines have long lovable lives as an indoor cats.
Thank you for reading this article. Please view our other interesting animal topics now!
-Randy / Animal Weekly
