by Nomi Berger
 
With the approach of Halloween, many cat owners may be tempted to put costumes on their fine feline friends. But should they?
 
Before slipping your cherished companion into something she may detest and you may regret, consider the following:
 
Kitty’s particular purr-sonality
 
Like their canine counterparts, some cats have outgoing personalities with a need to meet every guest you greet to the parties you host, coupled with an insatiable desire for affection. If yours is one of these, fun loving and fearless, then she may be an ideal candidate for a costume.
 
If, on the other paw, yours is sensitive and skittish, one who shies away from too much human contact and becomes over-stimulated all too easily, don’t increase her anxiety by adding a costume to the confusion.
 
Kitty’s point of view
 
If you start putting a costume on your cat and she resists, cease and desist! Not only do cats use their eyes to “view” the world, they also use their ears, nose and whiskers, tails, paws and fur to both sense that world and interact with it. A costume severely limits those abilities, thereby contributing to her extreme discomfort and increased feelings of insecurity.
 
Kitty’s best costume
 
If yours is an outgoing and easygoing social butterfly, undaunted by the challenge of dressing up to the nines, ensure, nonetheless, that the costume you choose is feline friendly. Never select an outfit designed for a dog since they’re more constrictive. Look for one that’s looser, one that won’t make your cat feel either uncomfortable or overwhelmed.
 
For the less adventurous but still game kitty, forego the costume altogether and opt for a festive bow tie instead. It may be a whisper of an outfit, but a whiskered face never looked cuter than when highlighted by a Halloween-themed bow tie.
 
Whatever the costume your cat wears, never leave her alone in it. She can, all too easily if unintentionally, get twisted up inside it. Even a hat can be dangerous if it slides down over her face.
 
To be safe, never sorry, monitor your festive feline closely, capture her cuteness for posterity -- and social media -- swiftly, then remove her costume and allow her to scamper back to her unadorned but still adorable kitty cat life.

by Nomi Berger
 
It’s an open secret that cats ENJOY playing with ribbon. In fact, anything resembling a ribbon – be it string, yarn or twine, shoelaces, tinsel or rubber bands – is a cause for kitty cat celebration.
 
There is, however, a fine line between safe play and unsafe play. Interacting with your cat by teasing her with a ribbon that she can bat at is both safe and fun, while watching as she chases a ribbon provides her with both physical exercise and mental stimulation.
 
On the other hand, permitting kitty to play with a ribbon without supervision is NOT safe. Although most cats may simply bat at and possibly chew on the ribbon, some will actually ingest it -- with potentially deadly consequences.
 
The reason: the sandpaper-like texture of a cat’s tongue due to the tiny barbs on its surface. While useful for such activities as grooming and consuming prey in the wild, the direction of the barbs prevent them from spitting anything out, forcing them to swallow it instead. So if your cat has the end of a ribbon caught on her tongue, she will have to swallow the entire ribbon. 
 
The results: if the piece is small enough, your cat may pass it or vomit it back up. If long or thick, part of it can lodge in your cat’s GI tract while the rest tries to pass through, causing a life-threatening condition known as gastrointestinal obstruction.
 
As your cat’s intestinal tract tries to move along the trapped ribbon, the intestine bunches up. This can lead to a loss of blood supply to tissue in the area of the “bunching”, causing that tissue to die. In extreme cases, the intestine can work so hard that it rips, allowing GI waste to pour into the abdominal cavity. This is a true surgical emergency. The longer your cat has that ribbon lodged in her GI tract, the greater the risk, and yet the procedure to remove it is considered equally risky.
 
If you suspect that your cat has eaten a ribbon, contact your vet immediately. You may be asked to monitor her for a few hours to see if it passes naturally or you may be told to come in to have her x-rayed and a course of treatment determined.
 
The key then, is both supervision and prevention, when it comes to kitties and ribbons. Never allow your cat to play with a ribbon (or any ribbon-like object) on her own. If you have any ribbon toys that you use when playing with her, ensure they’re securely stored whenever you’re not home. And be especially vigilant during holidays and other festivities when seductive streamers and tempting tinsel abound.