Keep up with important news about feline health, nutrition, and behavior, and other topics of interest to pet parents.

Cat Wellness Consultations with Dr. Jean

Dr. Jean is now offering integrative health and wellness "cat coaching" by Zoom or phone. Dr. Jean is a feline veterinarian with more than 30 years of experience in holistic and conventional medicine. I take a heart-centered, holistic approach through a science-based lens (my left brain insists!). Many decades of having and working with cats allow me to see the world from their perspective. I design wellness protocols that work with the unique feline nature, rather than seeing every symptom or behavior as an evil adversary, the way modern medicine does. ...

2024-12-30T19:28:55-07:00September 17th, 2024|
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Science Proves that Raw Diet Beats Kibble

Thanks to our good friend Dr. Karen Becker over at Mercola.com for this excellent article! Story at-a-glance Big Pet Food wants you to believe your dog is no longer a carnivore and can “thrive” on a diet high in starch A 2013 study is often used by processed pet food advocates as “proof” dogs are no longer meat-eaters. All the study actually proves is that a dog’s body has some capacity to adapt to the food it eats Just because a minority of dogs do fine on starch-rich diets doesn’t ...

2018-05-23T22:37:39-07:00May 26th, 2018|
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Top 10 Cat Medical Conditions – And How to Prevent Them!

Veterinary Practice News publishes an annual "Top Medical Conditions in Cats," based on insurance claims made to pet health insurance companies. For 2017, the list includes:  1. Bladder or urinary tract problems (aka feline  cystitis, FIC, or FLUTD  2. Periodontitis/Dental disease  3. Chronic kidney disease  4. Vomiting        5. Hyperthyroidism   6. Diabetes  7. Diarrhea  8. Lymphoma  9. Upper respiratory infection per cat 10. Allergic dermatitis One notable addition to the list this year was lymphoma, a cancer of the lymph glands, which are all over the body. This cancer ...

2017-11-28T02:51:22-07:00November 28th, 2017|
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Little Big Cat Wins 2011 Muse Medallion Award!

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 Excellence. Then those 3 sites competed for the Big One -- the Muse Medallion -- and we are so honored that Little Big Cat was chosen the winner among all the amazing competition! Little Big Cat ...

2011-11-28T10:20:52-07:00November 24th, 2011|
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GMO Kittens Bred for Research

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 and cats. While humans cannot get infected with FIV — and cats don't get sick from HIV — understanding how the viruses work in different species could lead to better treatments and methods of prevention. HIV, ...

2017-03-23T15:10:43-07:00September 13th, 2011|
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Pets’ Top “Complaints”

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 had 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. Payne says our pets would rather not deal with the nausea associated with some medications. Instead, she says pets prefer natural remedies. 2. Animals don’t need to say ‘I Love You.’ According to Payne, animals say ...

2023-11-07T22:43:55-07:00August 12th, 2011|
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Swimming cats!

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 the pool, either by swimming to the steps, or climbing out on the side (probably impossible for declawed cats). Otherwise they could swim until they become exhausted, and ultimately drown. Click on the photo to watch ...

2011-08-08T09:06:25-07:00August 4th, 2011|
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Plants that clean the air (from Mercola)

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 Toxic Phalaenopsis (orchid) Non-toxic English Ivy Very Toxic Parlor Ivy (Philodendron) Toxic African Violet Non-toxic Christmas Cactus Non-toxic Yellow Goddess (Amaryllis) Toxic Garlic Vine (Ajos sacha) Not reported Peace Lily Toxic I could not find any ...

2012-07-03T07:10:05-07:00July 21st, 2011|
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Consumer Reports giving bad pet advice — again!

For decades, Consumer Reports was THE place to go for product reviews and advice on big purchases. But when they enter the area of pet care, they consistently give very bad advice. Their product-review algorithm simply falls apart when applied to living, breathing beings. Example: "get the cheapest pet food at the cheapest store, there's no difference between that and the high-dollar foods." Well, we know that's absolutely false, and that ingredient quality makes all the difference in your pet's health. Science proves it, experience proves it. Or as they ...

2017-03-23T15:23:05-07:00July 13th, 2011|
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Spaying & Neutering Saves Lives

A very well-written article in the Seattle Post Intelligencer reveals that aggressive spay-neuter programs have dramatically decreased the killing of pets simply because they are unwanted. From a ghastly high of 20 million pets per year in the 1960s, and an improved but still unacceptable level of 8-10 million by 2000, it is estimated today that only 4 million pets will be euthanized in shelters this year. However, 4 million is still a heck of a lot of pets--way too many, of course! But the drop is even more impressive when you figure ...

2017-03-23T15:25:26-07:00July 6th, 2011|
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ASPCA’s tips for a safe 4th of July for your pets

The ASPCA Poison Control Center offers the following pet safety tips for 4th of July -- we agree! Never leave alcoholic drinks unattended where pets can reach them. Alcoholic beverages have the potential to poison pets. If ingested, the animal could become very intoxicated and weak, severely depressed or could go into a coma. Death from respiratory failure is also a possibility in severe cases. Do not apply any sunscreen or insect repellent product to your pet that is not labeled specifically for use on animals. Ingestion of sunscreen products ...

2012-07-03T07:12:08-07:00July 1st, 2011|
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People without Pets

There was a great article in the Huffington Post this week about people who choose not to have pets. The writer, Joan Liebmann, wondered if and how people without pets differ from those who do. Her research turned up some very interesting information! For one thing, there are way more people with pets than without: a recent survey found that 62% of homes have pets (the data actually comes, not from the AVMA, but from the American Pet Products Association, who conducts an annual survey) It also turns out that ...

2012-07-03T07:15:00-07:00June 16th, 2011|
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Guidelines for Safe Handling of Cats

Cats get less veterinary care than dogs. That's an established fact. A study published in 2008 in the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association found that: Cats get significantly less attention and veterinary medical care from their owners than dogs. Dog owners took their pets to a veterinarian more than twice as often as cat owners. Dog owners more often sought vaccinations, physical check-ups and preventive dental care. In households that own both dogs and cats, more than 30% of cats don't see a veterinarian annually, compared with only ...

2017-02-21T18:39:06-07:00June 16th, 2011|
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Animal lovers choose pets over money and politics

A survey of 1500 pet guardians conducted by PetMD found that 90% of pet "owners" would choose their animal companions over money in a divorce, and 56% would not vote for a presidential candidate who was perceived not to like pets. They would also buy products from a company that supports an animal-related charity rather than one that doesn't, given similar product quality and price. Most wouldn't date a non-animal-lover. On the down side, about 12% of pet lovers worry about veterinary expenses, and 25% worry that their pet will ...

2012-07-03T07:15:32-07:00June 14th, 2011|
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It’s Adopt-a-Cat Month!

June is Adopt-a-Cat month! It's also the start of kitten season, when tens of thousands of unintended and unwanted kittens will be dumped at shelters. People think, "Oh, kittens are so cute, they'll be adopted." But the sad truth is that there just aren't enough homes available, and shelters everywhere will euthanize litter after litter of sweet, friendly, adorable kittens for the next 6 months or more. The good news is that sharing your home, life, and love with one or more feline friends has many benefits for you, as ...

2011-06-01T11:50:32-07:00June 1st, 2011|
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Copyright © 2023. Jean Hofve DVM and Little Big Cat, Inc. All rights reserved.
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