Sarnia Cat Sitter

16/01/2025

While caring for this sweet old gal due to a medical emergency with her mom, Clara became unexpectedly unwell herself.

Special thanks to Sarnia Veterinary Urgent Care for seeing us on short notice and getting Clara on her way to feeling better.

It's not often we deal with an emergency during another emergency. Thankfully, with the professional skills of our team and experience with medical emergencies, we were able to recognize the signs of Clara being unwell and jump immediately into action.

Whenever leaving your cats in the care of someone else, it is so important to discuss how to handle emergency procedures and have proper treatment authorization documented so that your cat can receive care. Without this, your cats life can be at risk.

10/01/2025

For the last two weeks, this egg carton has been my Izzy's preferred napping spot. What unusual places do you find your cats taking a snooze?

09/01/2025

All cats, especially those that display anxiety related behaviours such as psychogenic alopecia or over grooming, benefit from activities that promote mental stimulation and problem solving. Foraging for treats in a cardboard box with crumpled newspaper is a free and fun way to do this 🐈‍⬛🐈

08/01/2025

Does he not have the most perfect nose you have ever seen?!? 💙

02/01/2025

Right now, there is a lot of focus on the H5N1 (avian flu) virus in both the public health and veterinary medicine community. Although much more prevalent in the US (for now), it is important to note that the virus is killing otherwise healthy indoor domestic cats through contaminated raw meat and raw milk. Raw diet manufacturers are starting recalls as their foods have been linked to deaths, including brands sold in Canada.

At this time, there are some simple things that we can be doing - and should be doing regardless of H5N1 to keep our cats safe:

1. Do not feed a raw diet. There is no scientifically proven health benefit to raw diets (and I'm not open to debate about it)

2. Don't feed your cat raw milk. There is no reason to feed your cat any type of milk.

3. Keep your cat indoors at all times. This prevents your cat from eating contaminated birds and will likely stop your neighbours from hating you.

Dr. Weese, an infectious disease specialist at the Ontario Veterinary College, authors a very informative blog and is worth following if you like nerdy science stuff like I do 🙂🐈🐈‍⬛

Raw Pet Food Linked to Fatal H5N1 Influenza Infection in a Cat: Oregon By Scott Weese on December 25, 2024 Posted in Cats The Oregon Department of Health has issued a warning to pet owners about contaminated raw pet food after H5N1 avian influenza virus was detected in turkey-based raw (and frozen r...

31/12/2024

As we wrap up another year, we want to say a heartfelt thank you to all our wonderful clients (and their fabulous felines 🐱). Your trust in us to care for your furry family members means everything, and it’s been our joy to ensure your cats are happy, healthy, and loved while you’re away.

Thank you for letting us be a part of your cat’s life this year! We’re looking forward to many more snuggles, purrs, and playtimes in the year ahead.

26/12/2024

Christmas Day kept us so busy that we didn’t even notice that our scheduled post didn't run 🤦‍♀️

Here are just a few of the furry faces that we visited yesterday, making sure they were happy, healthy, and spoiled with love (.....and maybe a treat or two!). Thank you to all our wonderful clients for trusting us to care for your furry family members. We hope your Christmas was as joyful as the one we spent with your cats!

19/12/2024

Not cat related, but just wanted to show off this adorable picture of my dog taken at his grooming appointment with Cassie’s Dog Spa ❤️

17/12/2024

02/12/2024

Was it something I said? Feeling kinda judged 🤣

Former feral Gilbert actually loves everyone, especially if you have treats 💙

26/11/2024

Your cat is telling you much more than you know.

25/11/2024

Our amazing sitter Stacy has been fostering this sweet girl through her recovery. Anybody who has had a blind cat knows how incredible they are 🩷. I have met this sweetheart and she has lots of love to give.

25/11/2024

These ears! 😍

19/11/2024

Last month I had the pleasure of this handsome fellow and his brother staying with me for a couple of weeks 😍

We are booked for boarding until mid-February, but there is still time to register for our professional in-home care services for the holidays at www.sarniacatsitter.ca 🐈🎄🎉

14/11/2024

Please put those sq**rt bottles away. There are better ways to manage undesirable behaviours. What are you struggling with?

Shutting down behaviours through aversive methods such as loud noises (shakers, rattles, clapping, shouting), air sprays or water sprays, shock collars or physical punishment may certainly suppress behaviour in the short term, which can be very reinforcing for caregivers.🐾🐈🐕

However, what we MUST consider is what effects this may have in the long term.🌟🐾

Animals will learn that they can no longer use certain behaviours to communicate, relieve stress or show their emotional state.🐶😿

This in turn may lead to learned helplessness, reduced welfare and quality of life, or in some instances to physical disease such as Feline Idiopathic Cystitis.💔

So, before choosing the easier option of shutting down behaviour, please consider what this may do to your pet in the long run…🌟🐕🐈

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13/11/2024

Great idea!

12/11/2024

We made sure Zoey got lots of love and brushes ❤️

🐈 Register your cat for their perfect staycation experience at www.sarniacatsitter.ca

11/11/2024

I spent a few hours yesterday with these kittens being fostered through Caregivers of Petrolia Ferals. These spicy little nuggets are not yet comfortable with human contact, and their foster mom needed some help with medication administration. With LOTS of patience, gentle handling techniques, and positive reinforcement, these guys got their parasite treatment and their first head and cheek scratches 💕