Diatomaceous Earth as a Natural Dewormer for Cats

Yikes!

Does your cat have worms?

Intestinal worms can infect just about any cat, but cats who live outdoors and hunt wild game are particularly susceptible to a worm infestation. Intestinal parasites may cause no symptoms in your cat, but some cats will present such unpleasant symptoms as weight loss, vomiting, and diarrhea. A natural and unpreventable problem, intestinal parasite infestation in cats has an equally natural solution - one that involves no chemicals or medicine and doesn’t demand a trip to the veterinarian.

Food-grade diatomaceous earth is a 100% natural, organic solution for internal pest infestation in cats.

What is diatomaceous earth and how does it work?

Diatomaceous earth is completely natural. It is formed from the remains of dead diatoms - these are microscopic single-celled algae. Once fossilized, all that remains of these tiny plants is their silica shells - which are easily crumbled into a very fine, slightly abrasive powder. The resulting powder is diatomaceous earth.

Diatomaceous earth attacks worms in a completely mechanical, non-chemical way. The fine powder, when greatly magnified, resembles shards of glass in structure, which is the secret to its strength. While food-grade diatomaceous earth is completely safe for ingestion by fish, rodents, cats, dogs, larger animals, and humans, it is lethal to most insects. Diatomaceous earth particles penetrate the outer shell of an insect’s body like a tiny shard of glass. This damage to their protective outer layer will either dehydrate or cut up the bug, leading to its death.

Taken internally, diatomaceous earth is effective for killing intestinal parasites like roundworms, whipworms, pinworms, tapeworms, and hookworms.

How can I use diatomaceous earth as a natural dewormer for my cat?

Diatomaceous earth is easy to administer. Mix the fine powder into your cat’s food. It’s relatively tasteless and is easy to incorporate into any type of cat food. Our cats eat diatomaceous earth daily as a supplement mixed into their wet food, and there’s never been a complaint!

We recommend about half of a teaspoon for smaller cats and kittens, and a teaspoon per day for larger adult cats - those weighing over about six pounds.

Continue to feed your cat diatomaceous earth daily for at least a month. Adult worms should be eliminated in within a week, while it will take longer to kill hatching eggs.

What are the risks?

Like any powder like flour or cornstarch, it’s best to avoid inhaling large amounts of diatomaceous earth. If you have concerns about breathing in the dust or suffer from respiratory issues, make sure you handle diatomaceous earth packages gently and work with it in a ventilated area.

It is critical that you use only food-grade diatomaceous earth. Non-food-grade, or industrial, DE has a higher crystalline silica concentration, making it too abrasive to take internally. This type of diatomaceous earth is used for pool and fish tank filtration or to make dynamite. It is not safe for animals to ingest. Using the wrong kind of diatomaceous earth can be very damaging to your cat’s health, so make sure that you use only food-grade diatomaceous earth.

Ready to get rid of your cat's worms? Buy food-grade diatomaceous earth for your cat here:

Ten Tips for a Healthy Older Cat

Wessie is only two

As your cat ages, you're going to have to care for them slightly differently then you would a young cat.  Your cat will be slowing down a little, and without proper care, may develop health problems.  Here are 10 tips for having a healthy older cat.

Ten Tips For a Healthier Cat:

1. Loss of teeth- It is harder for the cat to chew, and it's possible for mouth bacteria to make its way into the cat's blood stream.  It's best if you made sure that your cat's dental health was good all of its life to prevent loss of teeth in the first place, but in the meantime, you can make eating easier for your cat by feeding it wet food, or dry food with a little water added in.  You can also try out using crunchy dental health treats, or investing in cat toothpaste and a cat toothbrush.  Try switching to a "complete" cat food, or if possible, feed them a food made especially for senior cats for a healthier diet.
   
   
2. Less Exercise- The cat will become less agile.  You can keep your cat in shape by playing with them daily, or at least once a week.
   
   
3. Stiff joints- Stiff joints will result in aching, and/or arthritis.  If your cat is licking its joints excessively, it may be a sign that your cat has stiff joints.  Your cat will be less likely to develop stiff joints if you play with your cat often.
   
   
4. Skin disease- When your cat has a skin disease it may be in pain, and have an awful itch.  There are many different types of skin diseases.  Some are caused by allergies, others are caused by bug bites or worms.  There are quite a few different treatments for skin diseases, depending on what the cause is.
   
   
5. More time sleeping- As your cat ages it will need more sleep, so give them a warm and comfortable place to nap.  Unfortunately, your cat will get less exercise, and will be prone to obesity.  Remember to have playtime with your cats, and they will get in some exercise.  You and your cat will also bond more if you play together.
   
   
6. Less acute hearing- The cat might not hear you calling, and may be easily frightened or surprised.  This may lead to a flighty cat, who is afraid of people.  Try not to sneak up behind your cat, and stay in a range that it won't surprise them if they see you.
   
   
7. Deteriorating eyesight- Your cat may develop cataracts, and may not notice their surroundings as much.  Make sure that you don't appear close up out the corner of their eye, and surprise them.
   
   
8. Thinner coat and loss of conditioning- A thinner coat will leave the cat less protected from cold, and other animals.  Loss of conditioning may cause dry skin, which can lead to skin disease.  This can be prevented by giving your cat a supplement in his/her food such as fish oil.  Be sure that the food you are feeding them is nutritionally complete and has enough omega-3 fatty acids.  You may notice that your cat is starting to look scruffy.  As cats age, they don't groom as much, so you may consider purchasing a cat brush so you can help out and keep your cat well groomed.  You'll also find less cat hair around the house if you keep them groomed!
   
   
9. Poorer absorption and digestion- This causes a sensitive stomach, allergies, stiff joints, lethargy, slow healing, bloating, poor coat or skin, loose stool, and excessive shedding.  It sounds awful, but can be prevented easily.  Some advise feeding your cat fresh, high quality meat, fowl, and fish, along with the use of probiotics, digestive enzymes, lipids, and minerals.  You can also help out your cat's digestive system by adding high fiber foods to their diet.  A little bit of pumpkin should work well.
   
   
10. Obesity- Obesity can predispose cats to diabetes, Hepatic Lipidosis, and arthritis.  Once again, playing with your cat as exercise should help with obesity.  You may also want to put your cat on a diet to help it lose some weight.

Overall, give your cat a lot of love, and keep him/her comfortable in their older years.  Your cat will live longer, and stay healthy through their old age.

Feline UTI and Home Remedy

This information is not a replacement for veterinary care.  It is almost impossible to diagnose your cat at home.  Improper use of this information may actually worsen your cat's condition if you have incorrectly diagnosed.

Feline UTI. All pet owners worry when they see the signs of this fatal disease it their cat. But how do you know he really has it, and what do you do if he does? Read more, and find out.

Feline UTI (urinary tract infection) is a disease that many

cats have. It’s mostly found in neutered male cats. Since it is a fatal but highly treatable disease, you will want to know the signs so that you can treat it early. UTI shows up very quickly, one day your cat is fine, and the next he is blocked by crystals or bladder stones. Toxins will build up in the cat’s body, as the kidneys are no longer filtering bad things out of the cat’s system. If your cat isn't treated, it can die within 24 hours. Recognizing the signs and symptoms is easy. Some of the first symptoms are urinating outside of the litter box, straining to urinate, blood in the urine, excessive licking of the genitals, and crying in the litter box.

Some may just think that their cat has developed bad cat behaviors. This is because they may be urinating on the floor away from the litter box. The cause of this is that if the cat finds it painful to use the litter box, they may start to identify the box as the problem. In this case, they will avoid it, trying to escape the pain. If not quickly corrected, you may have a lot of trouble getting your cat to use his litter box again.

A cat’s bladder will usually feel like a slippery water balloon. However, when it has UTI, the bladder will more likely feel like a hard peach, as it is all full. Palpate your cat’s stomach, and see if it feels hard. Hopefully it will feel normal, and soft. Once in a while, the palpating actually releases the blockage.

UTI is usually treated by a vet. At the vet they will use a catheter to push the blockage out, or back into the bladder where it will dissolve. This is a painful operation for the cat. Because of the pain, anesthetic is given to the cat. Usually, the cat will be kept at the vets for a few days with a catheter attached to them to make sure that the cat doesn't have the blockage come back, or if you are on a budget, you can leave right after the operation is complete. These vet visits may cost up to around $4,000, so you might want to treat at home.

For this, I recommend apple cider vinegar. I used ACV along with Gimborn Uri Soothe for urinary tract health. After about five days of apple cider vinegar and Uri soothe treatment, Wessie is now urinating normally. It was low cost, around $10.08, while a visit to the vets can cost over a thousand dollars.

If you are trying to treat at home, here are some tips.

• When your cat has UTI, regularly scoop his box so that you can see any new urine that he has left.
• Make sure that the cat keeps hydrated, but that he doesn't have too much water, as he will then be in extreme discomfort if he is unable to release the pressure.
• Feed your cat his normal amount of wet food with a capful of ACV mixed in. If your cat usually has dry, switch to wet.
• You might want to find a urinary tract supplement like we did.

Here’s my story of Wessie’s UTI

I knew that Wessie had a problem when I saw him straining to urinate, and nothing came out. Immediately I thought of feline UTI, as Wessie is a neutered male.

I went to the Internet to find out what you can do for your cat when he has UTI. I searched for things that you can do to help a cat with UTI. Most resources advised going to the vet. Then, I came across a website that suggested feeding your cat apple cider vinegar. After reading the reviews on ACV (apple cider vinegar), I decided to try it to save my kitty’s life. Many people were satisfied with it, and very few said that it didn't work to help their cat.

I explored different websites to find additional advice, and decided to get Wessie some canned cat food. It turned out that cats that eat dry food are more likely to get UTI than wet food eaters, as they don’t get as much water.

We headed out to Petco to see if there was any kind of urinary health treatment for cats. We found Gimborn Uri Soothe, which is used for cat urinary tract support. Afterwards, we headed over to the grocery, and picked up our ACV and canned cat food. Later, we blended the recommended teaspoon of Uri soothe with Wessie’s new food, and put it out for him to eat. Over the day, we fed him food mixed with ACV, and found that Wessie was becoming slightly more successful with his urination. During the night, I left my bedroom door open so that Wessie had easy access to his litter box. Awakening in the night to check on him, I found out that he had used the litter box and made an almost normal sized urine cake. Then, as if to prove to me that he could go and actually make something, he proceeded to urinate in front of me, leaving about a golf ball sized puddle. That day he made more golf ball sized puddles, but occasionally was unable to urinate.

The next day, Wessie was making slightly smaller than normal puddles, and sometimes made a nice large normal sized one. After several days, Wessie is urinating normally, and has his regularly large puddles.