Now that summer is coming to a close, it’s time to to get back into your regular fitness regimen. With the help of the stunning Oriental, Kaze, our friends at Pets.com have some fitness tips to share with you and your cat.
Is your tabby getting thick in the midsection? Are chewing and swallowing her only exercises?
A cat’s sedentary lifestyle can often result in obesity, a condition which can lead to hip, back, shoulder or knee injuries, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, and heat stroke.
Apart from limiting your cat’s food intake, what else can you do to combat this problem? The answer is a simple one: kick your cat’s activity level up a notch by having her exercise on a daily basis.
Exercise? A cat? Sure. But not in the same way you might a dog. Your cat is a more independent creature, and must be motivated in different ways if she is to raise her level of activity.
Food is an effective motivator for teaching new behavior to a cat. Small treats can be used to get her moving. To raise your cat’s food drive, put her on a regular feeding schedule instead of free feeding or leaving food down all day. Doing so will program your cat to be hungry at specific times, a key in teaching her any new behavior.
So you’ve put your cat on a regular feeding schedule, and she’s famished at dinner time. What next? Put her hunger to work. The following are ways to get your cat moving prior to dinner time:
Stair Climbing
Get your cat to climb a flight or more of stairs several times each week by sporadically relocating her food dish. Place her meal at the top or bottom of a flight of stairs, depending on your home’s layout. To get to it, she must climb or descend. If she has trouble locating her dish, try moving it up just a few steps at first, eventually placing it as far away as possible.
Random Placement of Treats
Leave small treats in various locations around the home to condition her to explore more. Put one atop the fridge, one beneath the sofa and another beside your television. Eventually, searching will become a regular calorie-burning activity for her.
The Recall or ”Come”
Have you ever owned a cat who would rush to the kitchen upon hearing the whir of an electric can opener? Without knowing it, your cat had learned to come on cue. To teach your cat to ”Come,” try this:
Buy a child’s “clicker” toy or a clicker pet training tool. Next, with her close by, place her dinner down immediately after clicking the toy several times. Do this at each meal for two weeks. Then, with the cat in another room, try clicking the toy several times. The cat, now conditioned to think food is coming, should come running. When she does, reward her with a treat. Having her come on command will get her running whenever you want, in hopes of getting food. This of course burns calories.
These next activities use motivators other than food to get your cat moving:
Playing With Toys
Cats love to chase moving objects. You can get your cat moving by enticing her with various toys, including:
Teaser wands
Mouse toys
Balled-up newspaper
Wind-up toys
Toys suspended from a string
Balls
Feathers
The object is to keep your cat moving for at least 10 minutes. Have these sessions several times each day for best results.
Companionship
A great way to keep a cat active during the day is to provide her with company – like another cat. A willing feline partner will encourage play and stimulate her mind. They will romp and chase each other, keeping activity levels high.
Last week, I had the oppertoonity to werk out with sellebrity catterciser, Tara Brown. You mite have seen her on CNN reesintly, or you mite know her frum her website catworkout.com.
She filmed a speshul edishun of catworkout at Catster HQ, and I got to be in it! She led me and Moxie (the cat-like instrument on the right) in an exersize rooteen. Snuzzy and da grate Ted Rheingold helped out.
Now, before you deside to jump on the cattercising bandwagon, keep in mind the following:
Start slow and bild up to the advanst mooves you see us doing in the video. I watched the catworkout.com videos for weeks before I starred in this video.
Ware appropriate werkout clothing. Cuz the best part of werking out is gitting to pik out a kyoot outfit to ware.
Stay hydrated during yer werkout. And that duzn’t meen chugging toona joose. Drink the stuff that tastes like krap, cuz that’s the stuff that’s helthy for you.
Be shur to cool down after yer workout or you’ll git sore. I furgot this step, and boy, I cood barely walk the next morning!
There are times when I tote our 20-lb. tabby, Trip, up the stairs that I regret not having put on a hernia belt beforehand. Every time, it’s a mini-workout.
On Muscle Beach in southern California, Tara Brown has taken it one step further and incorporated her cat, Lucky Cat, into her fitness routine.
It all started when Lucky Cat would scurry between her feet whenever she used the barbells, and was all over her when Brown did her stretches and yoga.
Brown’s own mother often exercised with her cats and LC’s behavior convinced Brown that she should do the same.
“I like to use light weights anyway for the bicep curls and twists, so I use my cat,” Brown said. She’s quick to point out that it’s not just a workout, but a way to bond with LC.
Lucky Cat sits on Brown’s lap during yoga sessions and intently watches birds flying nearby. When Brown does leg lunges, stomach crunches and abdominal twists, Lucky Cat comes along for the ride. Brown twists side to side to work her abs, with added weight — her cat perched on her shoulders. Lucky Cat emits an occasional meow and flicks her tail. Their weekly exercises are chronicled on Brown’s blog, catworkout.com.
“You’re using the cat as a weight, so you can do biceps, abs and they’re getting attention,” Brown said. “Obviously if the cat gets cranky, don’t stress them out or anything. They’ll let you know if they’re ticked off. That’s when you need to stop.”
If your pussycat is pudgy, your workout can be designed help work your cat out as well.
Celebrity trainer Gunnar Peterson, who has trained actresses JLo and Cameron Diaz, has produced workout videos for people and their pets. He suggests tying a toy around dumbbells, so when you do bicep curls, the cat will chase the toy.
Brown exercises Lucky Cat with a laser pointer and Silly String.
Catworkout.com is an international operation. Check it out en français:
Even if your cat doesn’t help you become fit, furry friends still produce therapeutic benefits for people. Studies have shown that pets have a calming effect and soothe people who suffer from depression and loneliness.
If, like me, you didn’t manage to finish writing all of your New Year’s resolutions, how about pledging to be a better cat owner? I’ve rounded up advice from Catster and the Catster Cat Blogs to make it easy for you!
HEALTH
Know the major health concerns for cats. If you know what symptoms to look for, you can get your cat to the vet before the health problem requires an expensive emergency visit.
Select a good vet, if you don’t have one already. I’ve heard stories from cat owners who aren’t entirely comfortable with their vets, but they feel “funny” about switching. Your cat deserves high quality care, and you should always feel that your vet is providing it. If you don’t — even if you can’t quite put your finger on the reason — switch vets. Read some tips on how to select a vet.
Watch health trends and discuss your cat’s health with others. So, your cat has been diagnosed with a health problem. You’ve had a great consultation with your vet, but what do you do after you bring Fluffy home? You might find it helpful to talk to cat owners who are dealing with the same health issues that you are. Sometimes you just need comfort and support, sometimes you need tips on administering care — whatever you need, you’ll probably find it here.
Groom your cat regularly. A grooming a day keeps the hair balls — and vet visits — away. It’s the purrfect opportunity to bond with your cat, and to check for fleas, ticks, lumps and tender spots.
Know how to choose a diet for your cat, and modify it if necessary. If you’re lucky enough to have more than one cat, they could each have different dietary needs.
If you don’t have cat, adopting one is the way to go. Especially now: with the increase in layoffs and foreclosures, more cats than ever before are being abandoned at local shelters. Better yet, adopt two! They’ll keep each other company and are less likely to engage in destructive boredom-induced behaviors.
Find out more about fostering a kitty. Not ready to make a long-term commitment to a new cat? Fostering is a win-win. Shelters are bursting at the seams, and foster parents socialize and care for cats that might otherwise have to be euthanized.
Is your tabby getting thick in the midsection? Are chewing and swallowing her only exercises?
Get your cat to climb a flight or more of stairs several times each week by sporadically relocating her food dish. Place her meal at the top or bottom of a flight of stairs, depending on your home’s layout. To get to it, she must climb or descend. If she has trouble locating her dish, try moving it up just a few steps at first, eventually placing it as far away as possible.
Hey evrybuddy, Skeezix heer.
Lucky Cat sits on Brown’s lap during yoga sessions and intently watches birds flying nearby. When Brown does leg lunges, stomach crunches and abdominal twists, Lucky Cat comes along for the ride. Brown twists side to side to work her abs, with added weight — her cat perched on her shoulders. Lucky Cat emits an occasional meow and flicks her tail. Their weekly exercises are chronicled on Brown’s blog, 
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