Cat Ear Mite Treatment

There is a natural cat ear mite treatment that I think you should try if you live in North America. It is not cheap but it is natural. Personally, I don't like using insecticides and chemicals on my cats because they are potentially dangerous. Ear mites make a cat depressed as they are extremely uncomfortable causing secondary infections.


Feline Ear Clear Drops for Cat Ear Mites - $32.95
Retail Price: $42.95
You Save: $10.00
from: Pet Wellbeing Inc.

Pet Wellbeing Inc. say that they use natural products, herbs of the highest quality. The product does not require a consultation with a vet before use as it is completely safe. It acts as a natural antibiotic and as a disinfectant. However, you will need to be sure that your cat has ear mites. That is an important point and a vet's input may be required.

The ears should be cleaned first. I would advise that you ask your vet about how to do that as you can get it badly wrong and make things worse. Don't push debris and dirt into the ear.

If you want the more conventional chemical treatments: Nolvamite, Mitaclear (both USA) are two examples. See also: cat ear mites.

Stridor in Cats

A stridor is a harsh high-pitched raspy sound that is produced by air passing through a narrowed larynx. It is also referred to as "croupy breathing".  If it happens suddenly it is probably caused by a foreign body in the cat's larynx or swollen throat. Foreign bodies in the larynx can be serious and also cause choking and gagging. Emergency veterinary treatment is required.

What is a tortoiseshell cat?

ANSWER: A cat with a coat that is made up of red (orange) and black patches. The cat is nearly always female because the genes for red and black fur are carried on the X chromosome. A tortoiseshell cat can be a random bred cat, a feral cat or a purebred cat. It describes a coat type not a ca breed. There are no breeds that are just have tortoiseshell coats. There are breeds that are just grey, however.



"Calico cat" is a USA term meaning a tortoiseshell and white cat. Calico cats are also female. The most popular coat type for the Japanese bobtail cat is a calico or a tri-color cat: orange, black and white.

Taxonomy of Domestic Cats

The domestic cat is classified as Felis silvestris catus by the authors of Wild Cats of the World, Mel and Fiona Sunquist. You might see different version of its taxonomic classification because taxonomy of the wildcats has been a bit fraught with argument and difficulty. In fact the current position is that there are five subspecies of wildcat and the domestic cat is not one of them. The five are the African wildcat, Southern African wildcat, European wildcat, Asiatic wildcat and Chinese desert cat. The domestic cat is a domesticated African wildcat (also called a Near Eastern wildcat). But it happened 9,500 years ago it is thought. The behavior and appearance of the domestic cat is now different to the wildcat although there are great similarities.

The full classification is:

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Felidae
Genus: Felis
Species: Felis silvestris
Subspecies: Felis silvestris catus

Is the Canada lynx endangered?

No, the Canada lynx is not considered endangered. You may dispute this assessment by the IUCN Red List^TM. It is the experts who work on behalf of the Red List who make the classification. The Red List's purpose is to "determine the relative risk of extinction" of the world's species. They classify the Canada lynx as "Least Concern". This means it is considered to be "widespread and abundant". It is the lowest (softest) classification in terms of risk of extinction. Where do they get the population numbers from? Trappers? The Red List says that the population is stable. The assessment has not altered since 1996.