In today's post we're going to talk about 5 steps to helping your cat live healthier for much longer.
Did you know the oldest living cat lives to 38 years old?
While most cat owners consider it normal for a cat to pass away between 11 and 15?
The reality is, this is like us humans all dropping dead around 50 and it's for several reasons I'll go into in this post.
As someone who runs a cat business, and also the owner of an amazing Bengal cat I am always on the look out for information that helps my boy stay healthy.
So what I've done is researched the 5 secrets of the longest living cats.
If you're like most cat parents, you probably already think you're doing well feeding your cat an appropriate diet that was perhaps recommended by the vets.
However, the truth is there's often LOTS we are doing wrong for out fur-babies and a lot more you could do to ensure they stay healthy for as long as possible.
Here are the 5 things the longest living cats have in common...
- Diet, Diet, Diet
Of course diet is synonymous with health. But what you probably didn't know is that 90% of commercial cat foods are essentially like us eating Mcdonalds every day.
They meet certain required "nutrients", but are far far from biologically appropriate. I won't name names, but most commercial pet foods are owned by greedy conglomerates who couldn't care less about your cat's health.
For an animal that is supposed to eat near 100% protein, with food being labeled as "chicken" only containing 4% actual chicken.
This is extremely common. So the first thing you should do is read the labels when buying cat food. Make sure they are actually high in the meat they are labeled as.
Picking a complete food is important, and I highly recommend you switch to a wet food diet or even a raw cat food diet for maximum nutrition benefits.
Dry kibble is literally the enemy. While recommended by vets all over the world, its a leading cause of kidney problems and Urinary Tract issues in felines.
The link between these has been shown countless times as feeding dry food leads to a chronically dehydrated cat.
For an article on top organic cat foods, read this. I highly recommend to avoid any of the kibbles, just stick with wet, raw and freeze-fried.
2. Clean Water
Cats are such finicky creatures and they tend not to drink water, ever! This is something you want to try to change as much as possible for a long living healthy cat.
Never give your cat tap water as it contains all sorts of contaminants. The contaminants in cat water are said to be safe for human consumption, not for cats although I would never drink tap water myself either.
To encourage your cat to drink more water, try using a cat water fountain.
As an eco-friendly company, we love Earth Day and hope you do whatever you can to make a difference.
3. Flea & Tick Treatments
I know, I know. Cats coming and infesting the home with fleas is one of the worst things ever.
However, I would highly recommend you to not use solutions like Revolution or Frontline. If you just go to Amazon and click on the 1 star reviews; you'll find endless reviews from people who said the product either killed their beloved pet or made it seriously ill.
These treatments are POISONS and while highly effective they can cause your fur babies serious harm. While most consider it a necessary evil, I would recommend trying some natural alternatives or flea collars.
Using these products multiple times a year will inevitably shorten your cat's life.
4. Vaccinations
In a small study done by a passionate cat owner on the longest living cats; one of the commonalities between them was few vaccinations.
Yes, vaccinations may be required for certain diseases cats can catch in the wild or to travel. I am not a Veterinarian so please do your own research. However.
Fewer vaccinations seem to lead to a healthier cat. Vaccines have many additional toxins in them and many people vaccinate their pets with 3+ vaccines every single year.
I recommend avoiding them more, but of course never illegally avoiding them for travel or for other health reasons required by your government. If your cat is an inside cat never leaving the home, I would suggest not to vaccinate them constantly with multiple vaccines every year. For a cat that never leaves the house they do more harm than good.
5. Supplementation
Out of the longest living healthiest cats, the biggest commonality was they had a really healthy natural diet, with lots of the right nutrients.
But with today's options for pet foods either being really expensive or poor quality a good supplement can make all the difference.
A high quality multivitamin or superfood supplement like our own we're releasing is a great idea. L-lysine and a dental chew to keep their teeth and gums healthy are also great additions to a healthy diet.
So, I hope you enjoyed this quick post on the 5 secrets of the longest living cats.
Thank you,
Holly Hudson