09/23/2026
1️⃣ Cats in the wild spend up to half of their day hunting for food, and eat 10 to 20 small meals throughout a day. Feeding once or twice per day, or free feeding food they don't have to hunt for, is a very unnatural way for cats to live. Comment "cat" for my favorite links for food puzzle toys, so you can increase their mental stimulation at home and replicate hunting. Make sure you're following so I can DM you.
2️⃣ A cat who “suddenly” bites during petting often tried to give you warning signs first. Watch for things like ears rotating back, tail-tip twitching or increasingly forceful tail flicking, body tension, turning toward your hand, or moving away to improve communication.
3️⃣ A few minutes of carrier training can make veterinary visits easier. In one study, a few minutes of carrier training daily resulted in significantly less stress during the car ride, and their veterinary examinations. Leave the carrier out at home, toss treats inside, feed meals nearby or in it, and practice when you aren’t going to the vet.
4️⃣ As both predators and prey, cats may not advertise vulnerability the way we expect. Pain may look like jumping less or hesitating before jumping, taking stairs differently, decreased grooming, sleeping or hiding more, becoming less tolerant of touch, playing less, or changes in litter-box habits rather than obvious crying or limping.
5️⃣ Your cat needs yearly veterinary exams even when they seem perfectly healthy. Cats are very good at appearing normal while disease is developing. Routine examinations and age-appropriate screening such as bloodwork and urinalysis can identify abnormalities before an owner notices obvious signs. Diseases such as chronic kidney disease, hyperthyroidism, and diabetes mellitus may be detected through physical-exam findings and/or laboratory abnormalities before the changes at home are obvious.
Send this to a friend with a cat and save it so you can refer back to all the tips🐾 Well from more tips on how help your cat live a happier, healthier life.
