Curing Bad Cat Breath

Cat owners know for a fact that bad cat breath can be downright awful. It is not that much different from bad human breath, as both are caused by bacteria found in the mouth that breaks protein down and releases the sulfur compounds out into the air. Sulfur smells really bad on its own, which is why breath containing it smells bad as well. The bacterium that causes bad breath with cats is normally associated with a buildup of tartar around the teeth. Tartar is yellow in color, known as a coating of bacteria, food, and minerals.

To cure your cat from bad breath, you will need to remove the buildup of tartar. There are several cat foods out there that are designed to reduce the buildup of tartar, many containing enzymes that will literally dissolve it. You can also give your cat treats as well, as many of them will help eliminate and prevent tartar. If the buildup of tartar is bad, you may need to have your cat’s teeth professionally cleaned. Once the tartar has been removed, the bad breath will go away.

You may be able to clean the tartar off your cat’s teeth at home. There are several toothpastes available for pets, available in several different flavors. You will need to get a mechanical toothbrush, as the motion is very important for removing tartar buildup. Toothpastes that contain enzymes will dissolve tartar, helping to cure bad breath. If you start early with brushing your cat’s teeth, you can virtually eliminate any type of tartar buildup that will ultimately lead to bad breath.

Some bacteria that lead to tartar can be found in your cat’s diet. When you feed him, you should always make sure that the food he consumes does not contain a lot of bacteria. If you shop healthy and feed him only healthy foods, it can help his bad breath a great deal. When you give your pet a treat, make sure that the treat is designed to help with tartar. After your cat has finished eating, you can brush his teeth or rinse his mouth out. This way, you’ll get the bacteria out of his mouth before it has time to build up on his teeth.

Sometimes, cats may have a bad odor in their mouth that does not come from tartar or bad breath in general. In these rare cases, it can be either liver or kidney disease. If you notice bad breath and it is not tartar, you should take your cat to the vet. Even though it may be something to do with tartar, it is better to be safe than sorry. Your veterinarian can pinpoint the problem; let you know what the cause is - and how you should go about fixing it.

Cat Behavior : More Oddities

In my previous article on cat behavior, we discussed some interesting and unusual behavior displayed by the family of cats that live on my farm. That was only the beginning. These cats seem to delight in unexpected behavior. I thought I would share a few more gems with you.

There are three female cats on my farm. They consist of matriarch, Patch, and two of her daughters. There have been other female cats on the farm, but I have been able to find new homes for all of them. Cats, being solitary hunters, aren’t expected to show any kind of social hierarchy. My three female cats do have a definite hierarchy. The top cat is, of course, Patch. It's the two daughters that have been interesting. The older daughter, Calico, is from Patch's first litter she had on the farm. She is a sturdy, healthy calico that has not had any real problems. The second daughter is Little Girl. Little girl is a couple of years younger than Calico. She is the smallest cat on the farm. A black cat with flashy white markings, little girl is active and elegant.

Since her birth, Calico has been Patch's favorite daughter. Calico and patch hung out together much of the time. Patch even allowed Calico to help her with her kittens. When Patch wanted to go do something, Calico was right there to baby sit. Even when Patch was there, Calico was often right there with her. She could often be seen washing a kitten or even just providing a nice warm place for the little guy to sleep. When Little Girl arrived things continued quite awhile in the same way. Little Girl grew up and had her first litter of kittens. Calico, as occasionally happens with calico cats has turned out to be sterile. She has never had any kittens. Because of that, when little Girl had her kittens, Calico lost her favorite daughter status. With Little Girl's kittens, Patch became the doting grandmother. She was always helping Little Girl with her kittens. The two of then could often be see lying together, bathing the kittens or watching them play. Calico was banished. She was not allowed anywhere near those kittens or any other litter since.

Calico did not just lose kitten privileges. She was not even allowed to hang out with Patch anymore the way she used to. Poor Calico, she was very upset. She knew exactly who to blame for her predicament. Little Girl. Calico and Little Girl fought several times. Unfortunately for Calico, Patch would sometimes jump in on Little Girl's side and run her off. Calico was banished to hanging out with her brothers. It has been a couple of years since then. Little Girl is still favorite daughter. Calico's position has eased somewhat. Last summer, Little Girl allowed Calico to help her with her kittens once in awhile. Patch has allowed Calico to hang out with her again from time to time. Who knows? One day Calico may just be able to work herself back into her mother's good graces. Little Girl seems to think so. She watches Calico very carefully. If she thinks things are going too well for Calico, Little Girl will start a fight with her. Oh well, Life goes on.

It is not only the girls showing some interesting behavior. This past year two brown kittens were born. Thomas, a handsome cinnamon brown with lots of flashy white, was born in the spring. Pudge is solid brown without any white at all and was late summer. What is interesting about these two is that they are both fascinated by horses. We have three horses and every day you can find Thomas or Pudge (or both) strategically positioned to watch them. When I call the horses out of their pasture, often I find Thomas trotting in along with them. If I throw hay into their mangers I have to check before I throw. Quite often Thomas or Pudge will be sitting in the manger, ready for a close up study of the horse. When the horses are grazing, Thomas will creep along, nose to the ground until he's almost nose to nose with the horse. He will stay there for a few moments until the horse gently swings his nose at the kitten to push him out of the way. Pudge has recently developed a fascination with horse's tails. He will come right in behind the horse's heels and start playing with the tail. Fortunately for him, the horses have refrained from launching him into orbit.

Cats are funny and entertaining creatures aren't they. You just never seem to know what they are going to do next.

Cat Behavior

Cats are known as solitary animals. They do not hunt communally or share the spoils of a hunt. Sometimes cats with adjoining territories will get together for a pleasant evening grooming session, but on the whole they aren't the most social creatures with others of their kind. This general wisdom doesn't always seem to hold up.

My barn cats are a single family descended from a lone female who wandered onto our place one day and decided to stay. She and her children and grandchildren police the local rodent population. Their behavior does not always match the solitary hunter of common wisdom.

The original female, Patch, used to like to take her kittens for daytrips around the area. I have watched her bring her little brood back from wherever they have been in the evenings. One evening I watched her stop and sit down near the edge of a small, lightly used road running next to our farm. Two of her kittens stopped next to her. As she turned her head one way and then the other, carefully looking for traffic, the kittens mimicked her actions. The only one who did not was the little orange tiger who became distracted by a butterfly. Patch retrieved her wandering kitten and brought the whole family home. Walks are still a part of kitten lessons.

I recently watched Patch, her daughter and three of their kittens taking a walk around the boundaries of our farm. Patch and her daughter led the way. The two younger kittens were in the middle. The oldest kitten, not quite a year old brought up the rear. When one of the younger kittens stopped too long, he tried to move them along. If he could not then one of the mother cats would come back and get the little guy moving. I have wondered what this little jaunt was about. Possibly Patch was showing the newest members of her family where their territorial boundaries were?

Some of the most interesting behavior I have seen regards family member who were injured. One of Patches' sons is a big burley black and white adult tom. A very handsome and friendly boy, he unfortunately has a talent for trouble. One day he came limping heavily into the yard wailing at the top of his lungs. His mother and sisters raced up to him as fast as they could. While he continued to cry, Patch began washing his face and ears while his sisters lay down over top of him. They stayed that way for some time while I called the vet. I am happy to report that he recovered just fine with only a hitch in his giddy up to remember his adventure by.

Another of Patches sons, a brown and white tom just under a year old, got into a fight with his eldest brother. During the fight his foot was injured and began to swell. I found him limping along on three legs the following morning. I brought him onto our porch where I could keep a close eye on him and he could recover without further injuring his foot. While he was recuperating, various members of the family perched outside the porch windows, keeping him company.

These are just a few examples I have seen among my cats. Maybe they are unusual. I have certainly never seen cats act this way before. Or maybe, just maybe, cats are not such social isolates as everyone's always thought!