Cats Protection reveals top tips for cat owners during lockdown

Cats Protection has received 3,039 calls to its National Information Line during April, with around 10 per cent of those citing Covid-19 as the primary reason for the call and many more featuring the virus as part of the discussion.

The advice, which can be found on the charity’s Coronavirus advice hub www.cats.org.uk/coronavirus or downloaded and kept or printed from www.cats.org.uk/media/4443/cats-and-coronavirus-visual-guide.jpg reminds cat owners of the following:

Neutering your cat

With many vets avoiding non-urgent operations at the moment, including neutering, the charity advises keeping new unneutered cats and kittens indoors.

The advice also features the reminder that a female cat can become pregnant from four months old and therefore separating unneutered male and female cats within the same premises, including siblings, will help prevent unwanted kittens.

Going to the vet

Many veterinary surgeries have new procedures in place to assist with social distancing.

It is advisable to contact your vet in advance rather than taking your cat straight to them as they will be able to advise you of their protocol before you travel.

If you are shielded or self-isolating you will need to arrange for a family member or friend to take your cat to the vet for you.

Be prepared

In the event of an emergency or situation where you may not be able to care for your cat, a family member or friend can act as a ‘cat advocate’ to help minimise stressful decisions.

Local authorities have a duty of care and therefore having your cat advocate’s details to-hand would help facilitate the best care for your cat if you are not present or able to cope.

Keep your cat calm

The current situation can be as strange for cats whose routine may have been disrupted by having more people around the house at different times or they may be being kept inside more.

Cats Protection advises that unusual behaviour from your kitty may be as a result of stress.

Cats do not respond to punishment, it will only make them more stressed; instead provide them with plenty of entertainment such as puzzle feeders or fishing-rod toys and always ensure they have quiet places to hide.

More ideas and information can be found at www.cats.org.uk/behaviour.

Finally the charity reminds people that Feline Coronavirus (FCov) is a common contagious virus that does not affect other animals or people and is not associated with the disease Covid-19.

Anyone wishing to find out more about Cats Protection’s work, should visit www.cats.org.uk.

For any cat related advice or emergency care during the Covid-19 outbreak please visit www.cats.org.uk/coronavirus or call the charity’s central National Information Line on 03000 121212.

A message from the Editor, Gary Shipton:

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news, I am asking you to please purchase a copy of our newspapers.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspapers.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

Stay safe, and best wishes.