Pet Bucket Blog

The school year is beginning anew, and it’s an exciting time for children and parents alike. Kids get to see their school friends again, continuing to develop those treasured social bonds, and stuffing in some education here and there, while parents have the house back to themselves for a few months.  However, back to school time is not a big party for every family member. Pets, especially new pets, who aren’t used to spending much time alone can find themselves distraught with the lack of daily attention and company that they’ve become accustomed to over the summer months.  This can lead to all sorts of mischief, mayhem, and undesirable property damage. So considering the season, we’ve decided to revisit a timely subject and talk about dogs with separation anxiety. Separation anxiety is a serious condition for dogs that can cause a lot of suffering. As extremely social animals, pack life is vital to a dog’s mental and social wellbeing. Puppy separation anxiety can be especially severe, so it’s important to take cautionary measures to keep a young pup from suffering unnecessarily. If symptoms are ignored, you’ll be in for a great deal of expense and time spent cleaning up tantrum related messes. An anxious dog will try anything to get out of the house so they can find their owners. That means wrecking blinds, chewing walls, and other general mischief. To minimize a dog’s discomfort and prevent the expense involved in repairing chewed up baseboards, it can sometimes be necessary to take some precautionary measures. Here is a short list of preparations you can enact to keep your pet’s anxiety to a minimum. How to Help a Dog with Separation Anxiety Dogs suffer from separation anxiety because they get lonely without human interaction. There are a few methods to alleviate the mental suffering caused by separation anxiety. Leaving a radio on is one way to help the dog feel at ease. The presence of background noise can break up the unpleasantness of complete silence. But more than creating the illusion of human presence, the best thing you can do for your dog is give it some structure. This is puppy training 101, but the simple act of giving commands and rewarding good behavior reinforces every other measure that you can take with your dog. A simple yet effective technique for getting your dog used to you leaving and returning is to conduct mock excursions. This means getting ready to leave, perform your whole routine, suit up, put on your shoes, grab your keys/wallet/what have you, and walk out the door. Wait a few moments, and then return. Each time your perform this exercise, extend the amount of time between leaving and returning. This will reassure the dog that you will always come back. You also need to master the ritual of leaving and returning. In general, it’s not a great idea to make a big deal out of it. Don’t dramatize things by stopping, stooping, and showering your dog with affection. Get your things and get out of dodge. The same goes for returning. Come in and handle your business before acknowledging your dog’s welcoming onslaught of slobbery kisses. If this feels too cold, you’re welcome to leave with a parting word. Though this is mostly for your benefit, the dog doesn’t really mind if you forget to say goodbye, just so long as you come back and provide food, water, and lots of affection. You should also leave something for your dog to do while you’re away. My personal favorite is packing a toy full of peanut butter and letting the pup go to town. Though this is far from the only option available to you. If you try these various things, and nothing seems to help, it’s probably time to seek veterinary advice. If your dog isn’t responding to these different methods, it must be suffering from severe separation anxiety, and it will need to be addressed by stronger methods, best determined by a conversation between you and your vet. That’s all for now. Have fun at all the back to school functions and fall fun that accompany this busy season!  

  Welcome back to the Petbucket blog’s discussion of pet obsessions. Last time we cited some statistics and anecdotes about the rising trends of pet obsessions. Today, we’ll be going forward with the conversation, and discussing the point at which pets go from being beloved companions to dangerous fixations. Dangerous Obsessive Behavior The only time an infatuation with one's pet can be classified as a pet obsession is when either the owner's or the animal’s mental/physical health is at risk as a direct result of the owner’s action or inaction. When this becomes the case, people are often negligent in regards to the pet’s (or their own) deteriorating state. Some examples of this kind of dangerous behavior are as follows: Preferring the company of a pet to that of a loved one, family member, or a close friend. Spoiling a pet to the point where it’s behaving in a destructive or inhospitable manner. Feeding the pet unhealthy foods because they "like it." An inability to recognize when an owner’s behavior is causing discomfort for a pet or surrounding humans. If owning a pet is alienating someone from the community around them, then they’re missing the point of pet ownership. Often people will feel that their pets are an acceptable alternative to regular social interaction, and truthfully it can be very thereputic. However, when the only source of affection in a perosn's life is coming from an animal, it’s simply not psychologically healthy behavior. In certain cases, a simple case of obsession can lead to much more extreme conduct. Animal Hoarding   This terrible and debilitating psychological disorder can have drastic consequences for the health of pet owners and the pets. Worst of all, the victims of this disease don’t realize that they’re doing anything wrong. They simply can’t recognize their own inability to care for all of the animals that they are keeping in captivity.     Gross cases of animal hoarding have been recorded where hundreds of cats or dogs have been confined in a single household with a very finite and enclosed space. Often animal hoarding is accompanied by symptoms of general Hoarding, in which people cannot bear to throw out any of their trash. So imagine if you will, a single split level home, with 89 cats living in it, entire rooms dedicated to rotting produce, and not a litter box in sight. Not exactly a pretty picture.   What to do? Unfortunately, when dealing with a psychological fixation of any kind, the only thing that will help is psychiatric assistance. This can be both costly and ineffective, which is not the best combination. Results with therapy for obsessions can vary quite wildly. And in the case of Animal Hoarding, the behavior is very likely linked to some deep seeded psychological trauma. Animal hoarders, when diagnosed, are almost never completely cleared of their conditions. It’s a lifelong obsession that must be continually combatted, and cases of full recoveries are very rare indeed.   If you ever notice anyone engaging in this sort of destructive behavior it’s very important that you seek to provide them with psychiatric assistance as soon as possible. You can help save dozens of animal lives, and help the person begin working toward their own recovery. And of course, if you see anyone obliviously endangering the health of their pets, you are obliged to take action.   That’s all for this week’s postings. Check back more for  helpful information about this and many other pet related topics. 

  You know what phrase drives me crazy? “Pets are people too.” No they’re not. They’re pets. Would you scold a person for taking food off of the table? Would you ever clean up a person’s feces from your living room floor, and then lovingly pat him or her on the head? Of course not. Don’t get me wrong, there’s a time and a place for pampering. Wanting to show your dog an inordinate amount of love and spoiling it rotten are fairly harmless vices. It’s the point at which you show them preferred treatment over humans that the line starts to blur. Pets are loving and valued companions but when you start treating them like people, you’ve crossed a line into crazy town. Yet never has this phenomenon been more common in today’s culture. Pet obsessed people are a dime a dozen and growing more prolific with every passing moment. Today we’ll look at this growing trend of the pet obsessed.   A perfect example of pet obsession that perhaps went a bit far happened recently in the news. A man saved his 9 year old Jack Russell Terrier from a sinking ship, swimming it safely to shore. Then he went back for his wife, whose safety line had apparently been snagged. Let that sink in a moment. I don’t know about all of you readers out there, but if I’d left my lady in a perilous position while paddling my pooch to safety, I’d be the one in peril when I went back for the second pickup. To be fair, the couple has declined to comment, so the extent of the danger the wife was in is somewhat unclear. Still, you can see the kind of mixed up level of priorities that pet obsession can create. Rising Trend of Human/Pet Involvement Now more than ever, pets are becoming major parts of a majority of households. According to a survey by Kelton Research, 81% of American pet owners think of their pets as full-fledged family members. 58% say that they are their pet’s mommies or daddies. As creepy as it is, I count myself among that 58%. And over half of Americans admit to talking more about their pets than they do about sex or politics. Politics I get, but more than sex? I’m glad I’m not part of that statistic. Another survey conducted by the American Pet Products Manufacturers Association said that pet ownership in America is also at an all-time high, with an estimated 71.1 million people owning either cats, dogs, or both. There is also a huge amount of money, over 41 billion dollars, being spent on pet products and healthcare on an annual basis. These numbers, while not particularly ominous on their own, do indicate a rising trend of care and treatment of pets within recent years. So at what point does some harmless pampering spin out of control to become potentially damaging or dangerous behavior? Check back next time to find out when a pet obsession crosses the line and becomes physically or socially damaging.  

  Exotic pets come in two varieties: 1. Awesome and ill advised or...  2. Quirky and uncommon I’m talking about the difference between a razorback warthog, (pretty cool, but it will probably gore and eat you) and a ferret (aaaww! It got into my sock drawer, that’s adorable!) Last week, we covered the former and described some of the more carnivorous, crazy, and cringe inducing exotic animals that people will misguidedly try to domesticate. Today, we’re going to take a look at some of the cuter, more cuddly, and easy to coexist with animals in the same category.  So let’s not waste any time, and get straight to it with the top 5 exotic pets of the safe and friendly variety.     1. Fennec Foxes Now that’s more like it, a little dog like creature that can use a litter box, and has supremely adorable ears. Where do I sign? Seriously though these critters make excellent pets, and will fit into an enclosure fit for a large family of ferrets. They are desert dwelling creatures, usually weighing between 1.5 and 5 lbs. They’re easily trainable and similar to dogs in most respects. So go ahead and squeal with joy at the Fennec-y cuteness.     2. Hedgehogs So long as you don’t paint it blue and put a pair of sneakers on your hedgehog, it should make a pretty solid pet. If you do, it’s likely to develop super speed and make enemies with an egg shaped scientist. Hedgehogs are basically just spiny hamsters. They can learn a few commands through positive conditioning, but not at the level of a dog or cat. They’re cute and friendly so long as they’re handled with care. They’re shy little fellows so don’t be too aggressive in your interactions with it. Just be loving and comfortable, and watch its adorable personality unfold.     3. Potbelly Pigs While you shouldn’t expect it to either talk or be especially proficient at herding sheep, you might want to hold off on thinking of pigs only for their delicious meat… Mmm, bacon. These “miniature” pigs can grow to be around 125 pounds, and they are prone to obesity, so make sure to purchase a treadmill and a fishing pole with a carrot on it (fun for the whole family to enjoy!) They’re very smart animals and can be trained to perform a number of tricks. They can be kind of high maintenance though, so do your homework before deciding to bring one into your home.   4. Sugar Gliders Tiny. Flying. Freaking. Squirrels. Do you really need more explanation than that? These small airborne rodents will bond with you by sleeping in a pouch you can carry around your neck. This is probably my personal favorite on this list. And look at their faces (they're in the top picture)! Sugar Gliders are unbearably cute.     5. Wallabies I think I’ll get a farm, buy one of these, a Galapagos turtle, and a cow that’s been raised by wolves so that I can reenact scenes from Rocco’s modern life. Yes, it’s a good plan. These smaller cousins to the kangaroo aren’t nearly as dangerous and their bigger brethren, though they do need about as much room to run around. Don’t even consider owning wallabies if you haven’t got a large yard with a high fence.   That’s all for our list of awesomely exotic pets. Check back next time for more interesting and fun articles about your favorite furry companions. 

Keeping and training a strange or unique animal always sounds fun. I think everyone at one point or another during childhood thought it would be fun to raise a wolf pup, ride a zebra, or train a python to guard their house. No? Just me? Well, I had an overactive imagination. Either way, as an adult, I’ve come to realize the folly of this logic. Even potty training a domestic animal can be a challenge, how exactly to you get a chimpanzee to learn its way around a toilet? Yes large primates and anything that might get it in its head to tear off your limbs and beat you to death isn’t going to make the best animal companion. But not all exotic pets are dangerous beasts. Today’s post is a list of some of the best and worst uncommon animals you might consider domesticating. Dangerous or Difficult Pet Choices 1. Big cats- While you might think owning an ocelot is pretty cool-- and you’re right, it totally is—the fact remains that large felines look at you as a meal that provides other meals. When it comes to exotic pets, it’s best to avoid anything that can crush you with its jaws or cut your arteries into ribbons with their claws. Try not to look at Mike Tyson as a role model, and stick with your garden variety house kitties.   2. Large/poisonous snakes- Pythons are surprisingly popular pets. And they are interesting looking reptiles. They’re great conversation starters, and they hardly ever eat anyone you care about. Unfortunately, most of them do grow to at least 10 feet long. Which is more than enough space to fit you in their bellies. Consequently, when they get that big a lot of pet owners decide to dispose of them. Which is why they are currently battling out with alligators to see who will be the apex predator of the Florida Everglades. Cue low budget sci-fi movie franchise. 3.Wolf dogs-So in case you weren’t aware, Wolf dogs are dog/wolf hybrids, like White Fang or Balto. These noble Jack London character canines are truly beautiful, and truly terrifying. They are responsible for more deaths and injuries than any other breed except pit bull terriers and Rottweilers, both of whom are about 10 times as populous. They’re big, strong, vicious, difficult to train, and extremely independent and fierce. Not exactly a winning combination when it comes to families with children.   4.Scorpions- What kind of games are we playing here? You want a poisonous arachnid that looks like it was built for death as a pet? Have fun with that. Of course, not all breeds of scorpion can kill you, but every single one can ruin your day with a sting. This is the least dangerous on our list, but still plenty trouble for an underprepared pet owner. 5.Primates-So Chimpanzees get to be about 150 lbs when full grown. However, they probably have the strength of a 500 lb man. Also they like to attack the face, fingers, and genitals of anything that they feel is a threat. And don’t get me started on the hygiene issues. Oy vey. Smaller primates aren’t as dangerous, but are just as much trouble. They’re thieving, mischievous, and dirty. So if you want to keep your kitchen (and face) free of feces, I’d recommend getting a ferret.   As you can tell, there are plenty of difficult and dangerous animals in the exotic pet arena. However there are some completely appropriate choices as well. Check back next week for an exploration on the safer side of exotic pets. 

Pets are cuddle fiends. They are attention hounds, quite literally, and all of their time is spent devising ways to retrieve pettings. If our rough hair tussling and soft scratches feel so good, how do you think they would react to medical massage? There is a lot of scientific support that therapeutic touch can have some surprising medicinal applications for pet health. So today we’ll examine some of the reasons you might want to splurge on a doggy day spa. Weight Loss Therapeutic touch has all sorts of medicinal effects on pets. Interestingly enough, studies show that superficial rubbing and pressure applied to a pet affects its autonomic nervous system. That is, the unconscious actions a pet’s body performs. Everything from the pumping of its heart tot the contractions of its stomach is positively affected by a touch. Medical massage can help your pet lose weight by tripping the nerves that signal to the brain that the stomach is full, thereby decreasing appetite. Another way medical massage helps your pet lose weight is by managing insulin levels in its blood stream. It also helps the pet’s stomach digest food more efficiently, by extracting more nutrients and increasing the rate and effectiveness of a pet’s peristalsis, (the movements your intestinal tract makes in order to move food through the digestive system).   It even contributes to the prevention of many digestive and intestinal difficulties. Touch therapy has been shown to decrease an animal’s chances of developing “Leaky Gut Syndrome,” a condition where the seals in between the cell walls of the stomach lining come undone. Pain Relief Just as a good rubdown can make you feel like a million bucks, a session of touch therapy for a pet can alleviate their pain. Therapeutic touch can reduce pain in several ways. Simply rubbing out the knots of accrued amino acidic buildup can make a joint more mobile. Releasing that acid helps keep a muscle from retaining tension and becoming sore. Medical massage can also reduce a pet’s inflammation, which can be a serious cause for concern, depending on the animal’s diet and lifestyle. It can also be good for spinal health, and that’s more important than most people think. Spinal columns transfer virtually every signal that the brain sends, it’s the body’s command superhighway. Incidentally, it’s a good idea to keep it from getting too twisted or tense. Surgical Rehab When pets are recovering from surgery, touch therapy is often a required rehabilitation exercise. This is because of its potency at increasing blood flow, and reducing stress. That’s an important element of pet message efficacy that might be easily overlooked. However, if your pet is in pain or under a lot of stress for some reason, a medical massage might do a world of good for both the pet’s mental and physical health. Pets our most loyal companions and they require a lot of upkeep sometimes. Perhaps the most attractive benefit of medical message for pets is its preventative benefits. So give pet massage a thought every once in a while. You might be saving some hefty medical costs down the line. 

  The animal kingdom is a funny place. It’s usually a dog eat dog world, but occasionally some very odd couples will end up forming, seemingly out of the blue. Strange bedfellows such as dolphins and dogs, goats and horses, dogs and lions, among many more allow humans to gain interesting insights into the inner workings of animal emotions and relationships. Today, the Petbucket blog will be examining some specific examples of Animal odd couples. Cheetah and Dog   Our first odd animal pairing is one of the most preposterously precious you’re ever likely to lay eyes on. The Labrador retriever, Mtani, has been raised since puppyhood alongside a superior alpha predator, Kasi the cheetah. Not only is Mtani never on the lunch menu, but they are nearly inseparable best buds. Busch Gardens’ animal trainers credit the similar styles of communications between dogs and cheetahs for this successful odd animal couple. Dogs bark and cheetahs chirp, they both growl, and each enjoys a good run around their shared enclosure. Zoologists and optimistic humanists alike point to this pairing as proof that as long as people focus on their commonalities we can overcome our differences. It’s a beautiful thought, but how does this kind of thought play out with two animals on opposite ends of the predator prey spectrum? Lioness and Oryx calf   In 2001, a Kenyan lioness decided it wanted to care for a lost Oryx calf. This is undoubtedly one of the strangest and saddest stories in all of animal kingdom history. The lioness adopted the calf and protected it for the better part of 5 weeks. She cared for the calf as if it was her own, but that wouldn’t quite cut it. The calf quickly deteriorated in health because it could not nurse from the lioness, nor was it allowed to graze out in the open, because the lioness wouldn’t let it out of her sight. Eventually the calf was killed and eaten by a large male lion. The heartbroken lioness looked on, refusing to engage the large male, but clearly distressed by the encounter. She went on to adopt 5 more calves after the first, but all of these relationships ended in a similar fashion. This story is often used to describe the severe effects that loneliness can have on an animal’s psyche, and the extremes that it can drive it to. Tortoise and Goose   Another animal odd couple coming out of Busch Gardens, a female Galapagos tortoise seems to have acquired a long term suitor in the form of a male Brant goose. This variety of goose mates for life, and refuses to leave the shell-bearing reptile’s side. Furthermore, it won’t let anyone else get too close. That means a permanent protector waddling about, warning of any potential danger, and warding off any other competition for the tortoise’s affections. If you’d like to know more about these and other strange animal odd couples, I’d suggest clicking the links in the headings. These are just three examples of the many surprises the animal kingdom has up its sleeves. 

Cats have a lot of stereotypes surrounding them. They’re considered curious, mischievous, mystical, and even regal. However, everyone is familiar with a feline that’s been characterized as skittish or easily spooked. Cats are very independent creatures, and can sometimes be mistaken for fearful. But there are occasional cases where a cat is genuinely aghast at whatever is going on around it. They are small and fragile, if not somewhat resourceful, creatures. What can be done in such a scenario, where a scaredy cat is unsociable to the point of concern? Today’s post will discuss some different strategies for dealing with a frightened cat, and making it feel more at home in its own skin. Why is my cat scared? There are many reasons why cats develop a fearful disposition. It can be the result of past trauma at the hands of a human or another animal, a disruption in its regular routine, even pain and illness can have an adverse effect on a feline’s mentality. Cats also don’t like continuous loud noises, and cluttered or dirty environments. An overabundance of accompanying animals can cause a lot of stress-related fear. This can be exacerbated if the cat doesn’t get along well with the other animals. Another reason they could have developed new and abnormal signs of fearfulness is being exposed or moved to a new environment to which they’re unaccustomed. Any number of factors could be contributed to a cat’s fearful demeanor, but what you really need to know is what to do about it. How to Give Cats Courage     Cats feel safe in enclosed spaces. Additionally, elevated areas can also seem like a safe haven. To make a scared cat feel more comfortable, set up a covered cave for them to retreat to. Line it with soft bedding and partially cover the entrance so that the cat will feel safely obscured inside. In the same vein of thought, you can purchase a cat tower for the cat to lie on top of. Giving a scared cat a place to hide is a good strategy for making it feel more comfortable, but the eventual goal is to get it to enjoy your company. So you’ll need to interact with the cat. Though because of their finicky nature and fearful disposition, this can be somewhat complicated. You’ll have to go slowly, and let the cat take the lead on interacting. Try to coax it into playing with a toy, fishing pole toys work great for this. It gives you some distance, while still allowing you to interact. You can also frequently feed your feline with its preferred brand of cat treats. This along with regular meal times will go a long way in building the bond between the two of you. Most of the time when dealing with a scared cat they won’t take the treat directly from you, and you’ll have to leave it sitting for them. However, after some time has passed and you’ve built some trust you can try hand-feeding. The trick is to do this incrementally, try watching the cat eat from a distance, and get a little closer each time. If you can patiently follow these guidelines while still giving your cat the space it needs to adjust, and eliminate any of the outlying stress factors that might be causing a fear response in your cat, then you’ll definitely succeed in socializing your scaredy cat into a fearless feline.   

We all know that dogs have certain proclivities in regards to their eating habits. Sometimes that can’t help but snack on the same meal twice. This causes a variety of very awkward problems for pet owners; the first that comes to mind is after a stinky meal they haven’t got a problem with licking your face. But bad breath and the ever present danger of contracting parasites are also concerns. Beyond that, it’s just plain gross, and not at all a desirable quality in a family pet. So why do dogs eat poop? And what can be done about the problem?  Causes of Copraphagy That confusing “C” word in the above heading is the official medical terminology for fecal feasting, and it sounds slightly more sterile, so it’s a more than a little preferable to other popular vernacular: e.g. crap snacking, turd tasting, or wolfing down waste. So we’ll refrain from that sort of language from here on out. Copraphagy in dogs is possibly a evolutionary remnant from their scavenging days as more wolf-like kinds of canines. It can also be a learned behavior. Where would dogs that eat poop pick up such a habit? From you. This is by way of misunderstanding your actions, of course. When a dog sees you cleaning up, it might mistake your intentions. Or perhaps you’ve scolded it in the past for committing a dumping on your duvet. Copraphagy might be their (not so) clever way of removing evidence of the crime.  It could also be that they saw another dog doing the deed and is imitating it. Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, after all.    Stop Your Dog From Eating Poop There are a few options for keeping dog breath to a healthier level of stench. You could treat your dog’s food with a chemical to make its stools less palatable. Commercial products such as 4-BID are available for this specific purpose. Or you could cut out the middle man and sprinkle some cayenne pepper on the stool directly. Of course, if you’re going to go to that much trouble, you might as well just pick up the offending fecal matter and throw it away. That, in fact, might be the easiest solution.  If you’ve got cats in the same household, you’ll want to limit your dog’s access to the litter box. This can be tricky if you have a dog the same size as the cats. Try putting in a baby gate, or something like it. So long as the cat can still get through without the dog being able to bypass it so easily. You could also try "Shaming": Whatever you do, don’t scold a dog that eats poop. It may associate the unwanted behavior with your attention. It’s like the old saying, that there’s no such thing as bad press. When it comes to a caretaker’s attention, dog’s may be willing to take a tongue lashing in order to be your focus for a few moments. In the end it will just take some effort, and perhaps a little creativity to break a cacography inclined animal. Until then, invest in breath mints.  

Here’s a frightening thought: your housecat is host to a parasite that can infect you, and in so doing affect your brain function, making you more impulsive, promiscuous, less attentive, less intelligent, and possibly suicidal. Sounds like something straight out of science fiction, but unfortunately this parasite is so pervasive that liberal estimates say that over 8 million Australians could be infected, along with upwards of 60 million Americans. Worldwide estimates of infection range into the billions. The disease is called Toxoplasma, and it starts in rats, goes to cats, and ends up inside your freaking brain, in what seems like a very demented spin on the circle of life. When a rat is infected with Toxoplasmosis it loses all aversion to the scent of cat urine, and in fact, becomes sexually aroused by the smell. It then seeks out areas filled with cat odors, and is predictably and promptly eaten by an unsuspecting feline. Cats are then similarly infected though their behavior remains largely unchanged, a whole laundry list of symptoms has been associated with the disease, including: Laziness Sadness High temperature Sudden reduction in weight Trouble breathing Reduced coordination Seizures Weakness Paralysis Nausea Loose bowels Reduced appetite And inflammation However, the really scary part is how often the disease goes unnoticed because of a lack of these symptoms. Humans can catch the disease by being in close contact with cat feces which is where the ocysts, that is to say the toxoplasmosis progeny, are released after reproduction occurs inside the feline’s intestinal tract. It’s also common to catch the disease when in contact with undercooked foods, and is much more prevalent in countries with a tradition of eating such fare, like Brazil for example, which is estimated to have 67% of its total population infected with the parasite. So I know this is supposed to be a pet blog, and we’re mainly concerned with pet issues here, but are you ready to hear some really scary facts about this parasite’s effects on human behavior? Toxoplasmosis affects the human brain’s fear center, causing a disdain for authority, less adherence to social folkways and mores, an increased risk of schizophrenia, an increased risk of dying in a motorcycle accident, higher rates of suicide among the infected, increased levels of sexual promiscuity among women, and higher frequencies of neuroticism in both sexes. Ironically enough, you’re also more likely to be good at Soccer. This psychotic protozoan is a major health concern for all of the above reasons, and is an excellent reminder to wash your hands after changing your cat litter and always before eating. Diagnosis for the disease is very difficult and not often undergone. It includes measuring t cell count in the blood stream as well as tracking the number of liver enzymes. Treatment is likewise not always recommended as the disease is only serious in patients with weak immune systems. This is true for humans and cats alike. When it is treated, there is a long list of drugs used to do so, but there is more available in the way of prevention than actual treatment. So there’s your daily dose of microscopic horror. Just remember, you’re not always in control of your actions. Sometimes nature plants a scary bodysnatching minute monster inside your brain to help you make stupid decisions.