Cat Husbandry: How to Groom Your Cat, Trim Nails, Get Scratching Posts, and Give Meds

The Pawsitive Post in Conversation by Companion Animal Psychology

In this episode we chat about how to groom your cat and how to deal with mats, as well as how to trim your cat’s nails. We discuss the many reasons why it’s important not to “declaw” your cat and how it’s really like an amputation. Scratching is a natural behavior for cats and we talk about the kind of post to provide to keep your cat happy.

We also discuss the tricky topic of how to give meds to your cats, including pilling, towel-wrapping, and tricks to make meds easier. Along the way we share stories about our own cats and of course a few tips for dogs as well.

At the end we chat about the books we’re reading.

Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy by Zazie Todd is available from all good bookstores.

All of the books mentioned in the episode are available from my Amazon store. https://www.amazon.com/shop/animalbookclub

The Paw Project: Cats’ paws need their claws

BC’s 2018 ban on declawing cats was good news for cats, study shows

What kind of scratching post do cats prefer?

Caring for a diabetic cat gets easier with time, study shows

How to give your cat an insulin injection (iCatCare)

How to train your cat to use an asthma inhaler

Teach any cat AeroKat (iCatCare)

How to clip your cat’s claws (iCatCare)

Two people giving a cat a pill (iCatCare)

Medicating tips and tricks (Fundamentally Feline)
Comfort cats in a towel wrap (Dr. Sophia Yin)
Fresh and Fearless: Basic Grooming Made Easy (Kristi Benson)
The Books

Kristi’s recommendation is Red, White and Royal Blue: A Novel by Casey McQuiston.

Zazie recommends Unbroken: My Fight for Survi

About the co-hosts:

Kristi Benson is an honours graduate of the prestigious Academy for Dog Trainers and has her PCBC-A from the Pet Professional Accreditation Board. She lives in beautiful northern British Columbia, where she helps dog guardians through online teaching and consultations. Kristi is on staff at the Academy for Dog Trainers, helping to shape the next generation of canine professionals. Kristi’s dogs are rescue sled dogs, mostly retired and thoroughly enjoying a good snooze in front of the woodstove.

Kristi Benson's website Facebook

Zazie Todd, PhD, is the award-winning author of Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. She is the creator of the popular blog, Companion Animal Psychology, and also has a column at Psychology Today. Todd lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband, one dog, and one cat.

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1. Cat Husbandry: How to Groom Your Cat, Trim Nails, Get Scratching Posts, and Give Meds (00:00:00)

2. Grooming cats (00:00:50)

3. Trimming cats' nails (00:08:57)

4. Don't declaw your cat (00:15:03)

5. Giving cats medication (00:18:21)

6. Books (00:31:32)