by Currie Jean

Created on: January 15, 2009

All cat-owners know that loving a cat means worrying about it. The best way to promote a long, healthy life for your cat lies in well-known methods of disease prevention. The following guidelines provide great ways to keep your cat from catching and suffering from diseases.

Regular Checkups

It's best for your cat if you choose a vet to visit regularly, rather than switching to a new one with every visit: this will make vet visits less scary. You should make a check-up appointment yearly for each cat.

In addition to considering the hours, location, pricing, and accessibility of veterinary clinics, talk to friends with pets, and find out who they recommend. You'll want a knowledgeable vet who respects your concern for your animal, can answer your questions, can make reliable health recommendations, gets along with your cat, and seems somewhat personable.

After talking with friends about their favorites, narrow down your list to the few vets that seem the best (up to three), and schedule a check-up with the most promising one. Make sure the office is clean and reasonably roomy, and find out if the vet is available in emergencies. If the first vet doesn't meet your standards, move down the list until you find the one that's right for you.

Vaccinations

Be sure to have your cat vaccinated. The first vaccinations are needed once kittens are weaned from their mother's milk, starting at three or four weeks of age, because they're then no longer protected from disease by her antibodies. Getting a series of booster vaccinations ensures the kitten will have its mother's antibodies replaced at the right time.

Later in life, cats should be given the FVRCP combo vaccination, which protects against: Feline Viral Rhinotracheitis, a contagious airborne upper respiratory infection; Calicivirus, another type of upper respiratory infection; and Panleukopenia, also known as 'feline distemper,' which is highly contagious among cats, and can cause death.

Cats should also be vaccinated against Feline Leukemia, Feline AIDS (an immunodeficiency virus, just as in humans), Feline Infectious Peritonitis, and Rabies.

Most cat diseases are transmitted through the saliva, and many are airborne, making them very contagious, so vaccinations are incredibly important for indoor and outdoor cats alike.

Spaying and Neutering

Cats that are neutered and spayed early in life (at around six months of age) are less likely to suffer gender- and pregnancy-related disease, including breast and genital cancers. Spayed

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