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scullycat - 22 Sep 2005 13:42 GMT

Hi all,
Just adopted a 3yr.old from a shelter; and need to learn about caring for
cats. Is there a website or a book you recommend. A few ques. I have are:
1. Her fur is not shiny, and she has dry skin- do I bathe her
2. What about cat insurance? Does it cover well care and shots, or just
illlnesses
thanks for any input. Haven't been a cat owner in a long time.

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Chris - 22 Sep 2005 14:25 GMT

Good for you for adopting her!
1) Coat has everything to do with diet... the better her diet the shinier
her coat... I would emphasize good quality canned food with just a little
dry food. Also, try brushing her to get the loose hair of. I wouldn't
bathe her as that might dry out the skin even more.

2) I checked on cat insurance and it just didn't seem worth the price but
you have to judge that yourself....

> Hi all,
> Just adopted a 3yr.old from a shelter; and need to learn about caring for
[quoted text clipped - 3 lines]
> illlnesses
> thanks for any input. Haven't been a cat owner in a long time.

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Ollie Clark - 22 Sep 2005 15:10 GMT

> Hi all,
> Just adopted a 3yr.old from a shelter; and need to learn about caring for
> cats. Is there a website or a book you recommend. A few ques. I have are:
> 1. Her fur is not shiny, and she has dry skin- do I bathe her

Not unless you fancy being covered in scratches and water, no! :-) Coat
and skin reflect diet so make sure you're giving a good food. It may just
be that she wasn't eating properly in the shelter and will recover soon.

> 2. What about cat insurance? Does it cover well care and shots, or just
> illlnesses

No, it won't cover routine treatment (check-ups, vaccines, spaying etc.).
Also quite a lot of pet insurance will not pay for treatment for a single
condition for more than a year which could be a bit of a problem if she
gets, say, diabetes. Make sure you check the smallprint. You want the
policy to cover illness indefinitely and make sure the maximum for one
illness and total costs is sufficiently high.

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scullycat - 22 Sep 2005 15:30 GMT

What about brushing teeth?

>> Hi all,
>> Just adopted a 3yr.old from a shelter; and need to learn about caring for
[quoted text clipped - 14 lines]
> policy to cover illness indefinitely and make sure the maximum for one
> illness and total costs is sufficiently high.

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Karen - 22 Sep 2005 15:58 GMT

My vet says you really only have to wrap a little gauze around your finger
and rub down the outsides of the teeth about once a week. It's the plaque
building up between the cheek and gum that is a real culprit. The cats rough
tough will take care of the inside.

> What about brushing teeth?
> >> Hi all,
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
> > policy to cover illness indefinitely and make sure the maximum for one
> > illness and total costs is sufficiently high.

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scullycat - 22 Sep 2005 15:31 GMT

Plus, I used to feed my former cats dry food because of it's convienence. Is
that just as good as wet?

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Kiran - 22 Sep 2005 18:50 GMT

: Plus, I used to feed my former cats dry food because of it's
: convienence. Is that just as good as wet?

No. Canned is a lot better for their health. I feed mine mostly canned,
with 2-3 dry meals per week which works out to about 15% of their food,
when it is necessary and also to keep them used to eating every kind of
food. I strongly urge you to feed canned for at least one meal per day.
Don't free-feed, control the total caloric intake.

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