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Garden Blog - Top Tropicals
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PeopleCats amid COVID-Cat-20
- Mark Twain -
While the whole world is suffering the virus attack, cats are no
exception. They do not get COVID-19, but they have their own coronavirus - a
respiratory condition that may become very dangerous for them. And although cat
coronavirus does not affect humans, we can transfer it to other cats
through our hands/petting, shared bowls and bedding, etc.
At TopTropicals, we had several cats sick with the flu and it took us a
long time and long hospital bills to bring them back to health! Below we are
sharing with you a few tips from our own experience that may help you fight and
treat cat coronavirus, that we call "Covid-Cat-20".
How to treat Cat Coronavirus
When cats get a flu/virus/cold, they suffer congestion, sneeze and cough. Just like us humans. But for cats, stuffed nose is much worse trouble, because they can't smell food = they won't eat it! In tough cases, they won't even drink any water. Due to specifics of cat metabolism, if a cat doesn't eat and/or drink for more than a couple of days, it may become life-threatening. It is not the virus that kills a cat, it is dehydration, lack of nutrition, and possible secondary infections.
- Vet. During Covid-19 lockdown, many animal hospitals are
closed, but if you are lucky to find a vet, it is wise to give the cat a
long-lasting shot of antibiotic. You can't treat a virus with antibiotic, but it will
prevent secondary infections (like pneumonia, etc.)
- Water is absolutely essential! Make sure your Cat drinks water. If
he (she) doesn't want to drink on his own, you need to give him water with a
syringe. As often as you can. Little by little. Or, ask a vet to put a
"water pouch" under cat's skin. This will save the cat from dehydration.
- Food is the main key! Your cat must eat a normal size portion per
day in order to fight the illness. Because he can't smell, it's possible he
won't eat on his own. Offer him a smelly, soft/wet food of room temperature or
slightly warmer: usually tuna works well. Get Salmon Oil and put on top of the food: it is smelly, plus a great
vitamin supplement.
- Hand-feeding. If congestion is bad, even a smelly tuna may not
help. Mix a spoonful of pate with some water and try to hand-feed this "soup" to
the cat either using syringe, or a small spoon. Little by little. Remember,
his nose is stuffed and he can't swallow and breath at the same time, so it
must be tiny bites. (Wrap the entire cat tightly in a large thick towel to
save yourself lots of scratching damage, leaving out just the face. Guaranteed,
he won't like the procedure and you will be surprised how strong he is for a
sick cat.)
- Supplements. For an extra nutrition support, you may use Critical nutrition food and other protein supplements. Consult your vet
and you may want to try the following aids: High Calorie Liquid or Gel
(easier to administer), HomeoPet Nose Relief (for de-congestion), Lysine
Soft Chews, and Mirataz ointment (to promote appetite).
- Rest. Keep the cat indoors, in a warm place, away from drafts.
Cover with a towel to make comfy. Keep lights dimmed. Change bedding, towels,
blankets at least daily to keep clean, get rid of germs and drooling
accidents.
- Quarantine from other cats, the cat coronavirus is super
catchy! Find that spare room. Bleach, soap, alcohol and Hand Sanitizer - are your friends now to maintain germ- and virus-free
environment.
- Mild cases. Some cats have mild symptoms (we've noticed that black
cats and tuxedo cats are more susceptible regardless of age). In this case,
do not panic - just give them time to recover. Lots of rest, privacy, and be
sure to monitor water/food intake!
- Tough cases. Most cats look lethargic when sick. At some point, if
within 3-4 days you don't see improvement and the coughing continues, you
need x-ray to rule out pneumonia.
Stay well and healthy, PeopleCats!
TopTropicals PeopleCat Club
Thank you everybody for supporting us in helping PeopleCat Community!
Make
your kind donation today and receive a surprise gift from us. Every little
bit helps! Thank you and God bless you and your pets!
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People of TopTropicals. Chic of the Day: Easter Present from Klaksa
In our last newsletter Cat of the Day was Klaksa with her hunting habits and her love for birds...
While we are still sticking to the statement that "no birds were hurt in the process so far", she brought us an Easter Present! Yes, the Present is very much alive and super hungry. Klaksa did not tell us where she got it and how can we bring it back... So we are stuck with another duck! The previous version -
Duck Dobi, has been raised by Kristi from a little chic-duckling, and
after 2 years of ruling the Cat Community in our Garden center, Dobi finally left with her
boyfriend - without saying thank you or even good-bye!
The Duck Version 2.1 has been eating and pooping happily all day. Luckily
we found a person with a duck farm, and hopefully will get this baby a good
home soon!
TopTropicals PeopleCat Club
Thank you everybody for supporting us in helping PeopleCat Community!
Make
your kind donation today and receive a surprise gift from us. Thank you
and God bless you and your pets!
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PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: Klaksa, the Bird Purrrson
Klaksa is a tiny cat. She is almost 4 years old but she weighs only 6
pounds!
Klaksa considers herself a serious hunter. She spends her days chasing
birds on neighbors' roofs. With very little success though. However she never
gives up her dream to catch a Bird of Paradise.
In the meantime, she has been only catching the Birds of Paradise from our garden. No birds were hurt in the process so
far!
TopTropicals PeopleCat Club
Thank you everybody for supporting us in helping PeopleCat Community! Donations accepted from our website. Thank you and God bless you and your pets!
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PeopleCats of the World. Cats of the Day: Hemingway's six-toed cats
If the mountain won't come to Muhammad, then Muhammad must go to the mountain. For today's trip to Tropics we invited PeopleCats from the famous Hemingway House in Key West, Florida.
The Ernest Hemingway Home and Museum is home to approximately 40-50
polydactyl (six-toed) cats. Most cats have extra toes on their front feet and
sometimes on their back feet as well. Sometimes it looks as if they are wearing
mittens because they appear to have a thumb on their paw! All Hemingway cats
carry the polydactyl gene in their DNA, which means that the ones that have 4
and 5 toes can still mother or father six-toed kittens.
Ernest Hemingway was given a white six-toed cat by a ship’' captain and
some of the cats who live on the museum grounds are descendants of that
original cat, named Snow White. The trait can appear in any breed, Calicos,
Tabbies, Tortoise Shell. White, Black, etc. They vary in shapes, sizes, colors and
personalities.
Hemingway named all of his cats after famous people so they follow that
same tradition today. Cats are capable of learning and responding to their
names...
TopTropicals PeopleCat Club
Thank you everybody for supporting us in helping PeopleCat Community! Donations accepted from our website. Thank you and God bless you and your pets!
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PeopleCats of TopTropicals. Cat of the Day: Chief, Employee of the Month
"Can we get to normal World?"
If you visited TopTropicals Garden center, you've seen our Employee of the Month board in the office. And the picture on it... with our Chief, who is truly an irreplaceable member of our Shipping Crew. He is definitely the most responsible worker and reliable Chief Supervisor. This week, while greeting customers, he asked everybody to follow these simple rules that he established in the Nursery for everybody's safety during COVID-19 alert:
1. Yes, we are open! But If you want to browse the nursery, please call
for assistance at the gate and we will come over to help you.
2. Please NO CHILDREN on the property at this time. If you came with kids,
have them wait in your car while you are shopping. Chief can entertain
them!
3. Nursery is OPEN for browsing, limiting 2 customers at a time on the
premises.
4. If you know what plant(s) you want, just call us directly at our
customer service desk 239-771-8081 and we can bring those plants, for your
convenience, to the office or even to the gate.
Stay connected and we will get through this, all together, and we all will be just fine! So says Chief.
TopTropicals PeopleCat Club
Thank you everybody for supporting us in helping PeopleCat Community! Donations accepted from our website. Thank you and God bless you and your pets!
