Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Sometimes I pick my cat up by the scruff of the neck if I can't reach him properly. Will this cause problems?

ie Back pain or neck pain later on in life.
He's about 4-5 years old.
Answers:
no it wont harm your cat that is why vets vaccinate cats in the scruff of the neck as it does not hurt as much
as long as you dont pinch the skin that is the proper way to hold a cat or dog ask any vet
no theyre designed for than, not a good habit to form though, they dont much like it when theyre grown up
no. thats how mother cats pick up their kittens. i do that to my cat and she doesnt have any problems
no .. i don tink so coz all cat parents also hold their kittens like dat.
There are some useful tips here.
Grab them by the skin ,not by the bone or muscles..this is how the mother picks them up . It will not hurt him/her if you pick them up that way.
i don t like 2 c or do that but i believe that their mothers carrie them like that , so they should b ok !
If you're only grabbing his fur than it will not harm him.
no i do it all the time and they are 11 years old. just don't hold them that way for long as they don't like it for long periods.
you should support the rest of his body weight,not the best of things to do all the time
NO, cats pick up their kittens this way.
thats the proper way to pick up a cat.. shouldnt cause ne problems..
i would say no because thats what that extra skin is for but yeah if you keep picking your cat up the incorret way..take care of your beautiful cat
My dad says the older cats get if you pick them up like that it might hurt them. Kittens in other words newborns are used to the way there mom picks them up.
If you pull to hard you break the in the cat's neck.
The neck pain would come now. Because if it doesn't your cat will feel horrible.
It doesn't hurt them but as they grow into adults they don't much like it- I think because they really are completely helpless in that position. I used to have to bathe my cat like that and you could hear him in the next town.
It's ok for a kitten or small cat, but as cats get older and weigh more, this could be very uncomfortable. To pick it up and have all its body weight hanging from that skin is not a good idea, especially if the cat is overweight. If you have to bathe the cat or administer some meds, it's ok to restrain the cat by holding the skin of the neck, but only if the rest of the body is on an examination table or the floor. I don't think it's going to cause cumulative chronic problems such as back or neck pain, though.
Yes there are some good bits of advice but I would have to agree with KB the most. Cats need to be able to move their kittens around and by that they grab them by the scruff of the neck. A kittens does not weigh much but as it grows it (obviously) gets heavier and its not good to carry your cat like that. If you need to pick him up and cant do it any other way it is fine to grab him there. Again like others have said NOT the muscle or just the fur but a decent amount of skin. Of course not so much where the cat chokes. Pick him up and support him straight away. Also good to use when you need to restrain the cat ie when the vet is checking him out or when you checking something on him and he wont keep still. And no, it wont give him pain later on in life. Do it only when you have to, it is afterall uncomfortable for your cat.

No comments:

Post a Comment