Caturday This and That

Hello, friends! My job threw me a couple of curveballs at be toward the end of this week, and now I have some extra family in town, so the time I've been devoting each day to finishing up and uploading my art pretty much disappeared the last couple of days. All that to say, we're here late today and only just for a moment, and we're unfortunately sharing a flashback doodle for both Caturday Art and the A to Z Challenge. Today's letter would have been H, and so we're sharing last year's "Halfway to Halloween" theme H, which was haunted house. Honestly, that could relate to this year's theme revolving around some weird stories I'm writing. Here you go.

I admittedly have two or three drawings in the works for the letter H in this year's A to Z theme, because I couldn't make up my mind. Whether it be tomorrow, this upcoming week, later in April, or in May, I will eventually share all three of those. No matter when our H doodles are shared, we will continue the normal progression of the alphabet on Monday.

Happy Caturday!

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Tip of the Day

 

Our parasite talk today is all about ticks. These nasty little guys can find their way onto your kitty or pup (or yourself) from wooded areas, shrubs, and tall grass. They can make their way into your yard, especially (though not limited to) if you live near a wooded or other similar area. This means that animals who go outdoors can always be at risk for ticks. Then again, it is not impossible for animals with limited outdoor activity to pick up a stray tick as well.

Ticks pose more danger than one. First, to put it simply, they suck your furbaby's blood. It would most likely take a good deal of time for a tick to cause anemia in their host, but this is still something to keep in mind. What's more, ticks can transfer dangerous, sometimes life-threatening diseases to a cat or dog (or human, or other animal). Lyme disease is one such disease, and it can cause swelling, pain, and arthritis in the joints. Another disease that ticks can transmit is Rocky Mountain spotted fever, which can result in fever as well as lameness, similarly to Lyme disease.

Obviously, for reasons such as those listed above, you certainly don't want ticks on your furbabies. Especially if your furbaby goes outdoors, and most especially if they visit areas with lots of trees and tall grass, the best way to protect them from ticks is by way of preventatives. There are indeed preventatives on the market that cover ticks, often while at the same time preventing against other parasites we've already discussed, such as fleas and intestinal worms. So, discuss these options with your veterinarian. Again, as we've said before, it is always safest to purchase quality products, such as those offered at your veterinarian's office.

We'll also take this time to note that, if you see a tick on your furbaby, don't just start pulling at it. Ticks can attach themselves, especially their heads, very securely to an animal's body. This means that if you pull on them, you might very well remove their bodies, all while leaving their blood-sucking heads still on your kitty or pup. For this reason, if you see a tick on your furbaby, assess the situation and determine if you know how to or are able to remove it safely and in its entirety. There are some tricks and even products, such as tweezers specifically designed for tick removal, that can assist in removing a tick completely. However, if you are not positive that you can manage this, as it is not always an easy thing, then contact a veterinarian and seek assistance in removal of the tick.

How about a bonus tidbit? Possums are known to be incredibly efficient tick-eaters. It has even been said that one single possum can consume over 5,000 ticks in one season. So, if you have possums in your yard, leave them be. They could very well keep that tick population down, leaving your furbaby and yourself safer for it.