Keeping your cat healthy the natural way
August 7th 2009 22:21
There are many natural therapies you can use with your cat. You do have to be careful with some botanical preparations, as some herbs can be toxic to cats, but with careful consideration, you can enhance your cat’s wellbeing with some simple and easy adjunctive to his or her life.
Massage
Cats have muscles too, and these can get a bit tight or injured like ours can. Massage is such an individual pleasure, some cats respond well to little circular frictions and effleurage, while others prefer you to hold the sore or tight muscle with pressure until it releases. You know your cat best and as long as you respect your cat’s responses and don’t do anything they object strongly too, you are unlikely to hurt them with your hands. You only need to use enough pressure to obtain a release; you do not need the sort of deep tissue work of a sports massage therapist.
Areas to be aware of are your cat’s neck, I often find the neck and where it joins into the shoulder holds tension, as well as their back and the inside of their legs from jumping. If you massage your cat and get an extreme squeal or screech from your touch, don’t ignore this, it could mean he has suffered a serious injury and needs your vet to examine him.
There are many styles of massage from Swedish which is a light stroking, acupressure which stimulates or sedates acupuncture points, myofascial release which targets the matrix of the muscles with pressure, craniosacral technique which looks are getting holds to the head and spine. As you start to explore these techniques, never rush the time you spend massaging and you will find which technique, pressure or rhythm your own cat prefers. It will help strengthen a bond between you both.
Bach Flower Essences
They are very useful in helping clear emotional and behavioural issues. If your cat has disliked being touched for example when you have tried to massage him, the essence vervain is one you would give him daily, as well as putting on your hands while massaging. It is for the animal that does not like touch.
The most popular combination is Rescue Remedy. The essences in this mixture are combined to help with anxiety and shock. It is useful to give and more effective in little doses often, rather than relying on one large dose. You can give directly into your cat’s mouth, add to his drinking water, or place on your hands when you are touching him.
If he has an accident give every ten minutes until he settles. If you know there will be something scary happening in the neighbourhood like fireworks or a teenager’s party, give him 3 or 4 half hourly doses early that evening and monitor him for any signs of stress and dose as you feel the need after that.
A useful reference on a Bach Flowers is Emotional Healing for Cats by Stefan Ball and Judy Howard.
Aromatherapy
You will see a lot of discussion on the use of essential oils with cats if you do adventure onto the internet. One author I have found that is very responsible with her use of aromatherapy and cats is Kristen Leigh Bell in Holistic Aromatherapy for Animals: A Comprehensive Guide to the Use of Essential Oils & Hydrosols with Animals.
As an aromatherapist who would diffuse essential oils throughout the house daily, she noticed over time her cats slowly become tired and lethargic. She had her veterinarian do a blood test and found their liver and kidney function had been affected.
They could not isolate a cause, but Kristen suspected the use of essential oils in her house, so she stopped burning essential oils in the areas of common use with her cats. After three months when they appeared to be back to their normal selves so she had them retested and found their enzymes levels had returned to normal. For me, this was enough of an insight to be careful with the use of aromatherapy with your cats.
Cats cannot tolerate essentials oils. If you have a passion for aromatherapy and wish to use with your cat, the newer stream that uses the by-product water hydrosols is one considered safe.
Herbs
This modality you have to be careful with too. Herbs for Pets by Gregory L. Tilford is one book for any small animal owner. It is important with any internal natural therapy you give your cat; you do it with the supervision of your holistic veterinarian.
For example calendula that is a herb that is very useful for many conditions can be harmful to your cats because of the Salicylates contained within it. These won’t hurt a human, but they could result in death of your cat.
If you do choose to use herbs with your cat, do not give them in conjunction with your veterinarian’s medications, there are often conflicts in the activity of both and again could simply nullify each others actions or set up an antagonistic response in the body that could be harmful to your cat. Because of how cats metabolise herbs such as valerian you may get a different response. In humans it is sedative but can be very stimulating to your cat.
Some safe herbs for cats include
HAWTHORN (Crataegus species) - a cardiovascular tonic in daily care of older animals
NETTLE (Urtica species) - an excellent addition to food for cats who need extra trace minerals and vitamins in their diet
COUCHGRASS (Agropyron repens) - an excellent tonic and disinfectant for the urinary tract
GINKGO (Ginkgo biloba) – for the effects of old age
CHAMOMILE (Anthemis noblis) – for muscle soreness, anxiety and upset digestive tracts.
Spiritual Kinesiology
There are many styles of kinesiology on offer. Spiritual kinesiology identifies ‘other people’s stuff’ that may have made your cat sick. It then uses energy to heal the cat and send back the thoughts and feelings to the person they belong to.
When an animal has not responded well to conventional approaches, this technique may help. Often our cats want to help us cope with challenges. For example, an owner concerned about how stressed her cat had become soon realised it was her anxiety from a traumatic relationship break up irritating her cat's skin. The practitioner was able to help the cat release the anxiety, and help the owner heal too. Sometimes a neighbour’s negative thought about your cat toileting in their garden may be upsetting your pet or making your cat act oddly. Unresolved behaviour issues in your cat could be traced back to your own thoughts or emotions of others.
Make sure you find a practitioner who is registered with the Australasian Spiritual Kinesiology Association Inc to get a process that truly gets to the core of the issue for you and your cat.
It is important to remember our cats are very special and we have a responsibility to care for them while they are sharing their lives with us. The suggestions in this article are not given to replace your veterinarian as they are always the first person to assist you with your cat’s health. This ensures you get an accurate diagnosis. If you are giving your animal any internal remedies, always inform your veterinarian when you are having your cat examined as these may affect how they assess your cat.
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