{"id":465,"date":"2022-08-25T17:45:14","date_gmt":"2022-08-25T17:45:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/?p=465"},"modified":"2022-08-25T17:45:14","modified_gmt":"2022-08-25T17:45:14","slug":"september-2022-newsletter","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/september-2022-newsletter\/","title":{"rendered":"September 2022 Newsletter"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What You Need to Know About Pet Insurance and Is It Worth It<\/strong><\/a>
What to Do When Your Cat Stops Grooming Himself<\/strong><\/a>
Small Pets You Can Have If You Can\u2019t Have a Dog or Cat <\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n


What You Need to Know About Pet Insurance and Is It Worth It<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

Have you ever wondered about pet insurance? Is it worth buying it? Does your pet qualify? What does it cover?
\nPet insurance may be a good idea, especially since the cost of veterinary care is going up. \u201cThat’s because of higher costs associated with the equipment, facilities and training required to provide these higher-quality services,\u201d according to the article, \u201cDo you need pet insurance?\u201d at American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). \u201cPet health insurance can help by offsetting some or most of the costs of diagnosing, treating and managing your pet\u2019s illness or injury.\u201d<\/p>\n

First do your own research on pet insurance and the various companies that offer the service. Here are some things to take into consideration, according to the AVMA article:<\/p>\n

\u2022\tResearch providers and make sure they let you know details, including any \u201climitations and exclusions\u201d when it comes to coverage that is routine or wellness, and emergency.
\n\u2022\tAre there add-on options, including dental care?
\n\u2022\tFind out about pre-existing conditions.
\n\u2022\tDoes the carrier cover all breeds of pet?
\n\u2022\tFind out about co-pays, deductibles and other fees.<\/p>\n

Pet insurance does have limits, according to the article, \u201cWhat Is Pet Insurance and How Does It Work?\u201d at ValuePenguin.<\/p>\n

You pay a monthly premium for pet health insurance, and if you have a sick pet or one who is injured, you basically pay the pet\u2019s bill upfront. Then you submit a claim to be reimbursed. You may also have a deductible while many policies also have a preexisting clause or one that excludes other things.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile the monthly premiums can add up to a few hundred dollars per year, the benefit of pet insurance is that cost will be less of a factor when deciding whether to go through with a major procedure,\u201d the ValuePenguin article said.<\/p>\n\n\n


What to Do When Your Cat Stops Grooming Himself<\/strong><\/a> <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

Just as with humans, you\u2019ll find pets slow down as they age. For cats, they may not only slow down, they will take more rest periods. You may also find they have more physical challenges.<\/p>\n

Oftentimes, older cats will stop grooming themselves, and there are reasons why. According to the article, \u201cMatted Fur and More: Grooming Your Senior Cat\u201d at PetMD.com, \u201cMany cats develop arthritis in their spine and hips, which makes the motion of grooming painful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Because of their pain, many cats cannot get to certain areas to groom themselves. So, there may be areas on their coat that then are messy and unkempt. Look out for the following signs:<\/p>\n

\u2022\tA cat who gets up more slowly
\n\u2022\tA cat who grooms himself less often
\n\u2022\tAccidents in the litter box
\n\u2022\tJumping less
\n\u2022\tLess activity<\/p>\n

You may have a very overweight senior cat, which also can make grooming more difficult. It can also lead to your cat getting more dandruff, unkempt fur, in addition to \u201ca buildup of urine or fecal material,\u201d the PetMD.com article said.<\/p>\n

According to the PetMD article, you can help by doing the following:<\/p>\n

\u2022\tBrush your cat and pet him.
\n\u2022\tClip your cat\u2019s nails.
\n\u2022\tSchedule veterinary vet visits.<\/p>\n

Sometimes a cat may have a matted back end, which is not only unpleasant but will stop your cat from grooming the area. \u201cCats with long fur are also in danger of getting tangles and mats more easily, and they may not be able to undo the matting on their own,\u201d according to the article, \u201cWhy Has My Cat Stopped Self-Grooming?\u201d at Cattime.com.<\/p>\n

If you can, have the fur around the area shaved lightly. Use your vet or groomer to help with this.<\/p>\n

Have your cat checked by your vet to ensure there are no other health issues.<\/p>\n\n\n


Small Pets You Can Have If You Can\u2019t Have a Dog or Cat <\/strong><\/a> <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

If you can\u2019t have a dog or cat at home, there are other, smaller animals you could bring home to make part of your family.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom bunnies to hedgehogs, there are many other critters that can make great pets and might be a good fit for you,\u201d according to the article, \u201cCan’t Have a Dog or Cat? 6 Pets to Consider\u201d at Vetstreet.com. The article offers some possibilities, including:<\/p>\n

\u2022\tRabbits: They are typically cuddly and friendly and they don\u2019t bark or make much noise. They are great for apartments. Do your research to learn all about rabbits before bringing one home.
\n\u2022\tGuinea Pigs: They are great with children and are affectionate. They are good indoor pets. \u201cThese typically friendly pets require attention, enrichment and exercise each day,\u201d the Vetstreet.com article said.
\n\u2022\tHedgehogs: These animals are not for everyone, the article said. You would need to spend a lot of time \u201cinteracting with and socializing one,\u201d the Vetstreet article said.
\n\u2022\tFerrets: They love to snuggle, play and entertain. They need exercise daily and need to be supervised when out of their cage.
\n\u2022\tBirds: You\u2019ll have to put in a lot of time and care if you bring a bird home. They also can be particularly messy and sometimes loud.
\n\u2022\tGoldfish: A bowl is too small! They need a large fish tank, about 20 gallons, and they need care and attention.<\/p>\n

Other pets to bring home include a hamster. They \u201care a cuddly, friendly, and inquisitive type of pet rodent,\u201d according to the article, \u201c7 Small Pets That Could Be Right for You\u201d at Everyday Health. You only need one since they are solitary animals.<\/p>\n

There are gerbils, who \u201ctend to be very clean pet rodents,\u201d the Everyday Health article said. Independent as well, gerbils can entertain themselves for a long time.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What You Need to Know About Pet Insurance and Is It Worth ItWhat to Do When Your Cat Stops Grooming HimselfSmall Pets You Can Have If You Can\u2019t Have a Dog or Cat What You Need to Know About Pet Insurance and Is It Worth It Have you ever wondered about pet insurance? Is it… Read more »<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=465"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":466,"href":"https:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/465\/revisions\/466"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=465"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=465"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.secondhomepetresort.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=465"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}