Domestic cats are one of the most common pets found in our homes. They’re lovely, playful, and intelligent animals. As a result, this non-aggressive pet can quickly establish itself as an extension of our family. But then, just like humans and other animals, they’re vulnerable to infections and diseases such as common cold, flu, allergens, and respiratory issues.
Cats need our attention, care, and warmth, especially during the cold season. Lack of these may cause them to fall sick. Hence, it’s not out of place to consider buying a humidifier to keep your cats healthy and safe during the winter period as well as through all seasons during the year.
However, several pet owners doubt if the use of home humidifiers is as useful for cats as they are for humans. It’s noteworthy to mention that a humidifier can be of great help when you’re sick. It’s also of immense benefit during the winter season when the air is cold and dry. But the critical question is, “Are Humidifiers Good For Cats?”
The simple answer to the question mentioned above is yes! A humidifier can be beneficial to all pets, including cats. Similarly, this excellent device can help to alleviate dry and itchy skin during the winter season. Just as human skin gets cracked, itchy, and dry during the cold season, your cats can also experience such situations too.
Cats are much more vulnerable to cold or congestion than most pets such as dogs. However, the congestion tends to be more severe in kittens than in adult cats. This domestic pet will only eat, except they can smell their food. As a result, they will starve whenever they have a stuffy nose.
Hence providing the necessary home care for your cats not only keeps them more comfortable but also helps to speed up the rate of recovery when they’re sick. Although a poor little sick kitten can easily win your sympathy, you must be careful before adopting the pet. This is because a kitten afflicted with an upper respiratory tract (cat cold) infection as a baby can mean a relapse for the rest of its life.
Can Humidifiers Help Relieve Cat Asthma And Other Respiratory Diseases?
Americal Society For Prevention of Animal Cruelty Says, buying one of these units in your home can help relieve the asthma of your cat. It’s no secret that room humidifiers help to soothe respiratory diseases in humans as well as pets. You can enjoy having a cool humidifier in your room to keep the atmosphere comfortable while you sleep. Additionally, this machine will benefit not only you but also your pet if you have one.
As a cat owner, it’s essential to have an understanding of feline asthma. This will help you administer the proper care and treatment to help relieve the condition of your pet. You’re fully aware cats can have allergies just like humans. According to the ASPCA, feline asthma results from allergic bronchitis.
The symptoms include more obvious ones, such as wheezing, general weakness and lethargy, flushed mucus, and persistent coughing. Symptoms such as blue lips and gums, open mouth breathing, squatting with shoulders, extended neck, and rapid or difficulty breathing.
The environmental factors and overall cat health plays a significant role in the severity of the asthma attacks. Pets’ environment may hurt their asthma. Airborne allergens such as pollen, cigarette smoke, molds, and litter dust can aggravate your cat’s asthma. Also, extreme stress can affect not only the mental well being of your kitten but also its asthma.
Putting a humidifier in your home is useful because it will make it more comfortable for you and your pets. The ASPCA indicated that dry air aggravates asthma attacks. As a result, the use of a humidifier would be a great way to maintain optimum moisture levels for your furry pet.
Furthermore, the ASPCA and Pet Health and Care have noted that it is especially important to consider using a humidifier during the winter period. Because it’s noted when the air is drier, your cat is likely to be more vulnerable to more frequent and severe asthma attacks.
It’s advisable for pet owners to purchase a humidifier and exercise proper use of the device in their homes. A room humidifier can be beneficial for both humans and pets if used properly. But note that increasing the moisture levels in your home beyond optimal conditions can result in lethal consequences such as mold and bacteria growth.
This can cause health hazards and can significantly promote the symptoms of the sickness in your cat. Always be cautious by wiping all surfaces where condensation builds up and adjust the levels to maintain the best conditions for all your family members in your home.
How To Determine If Your Cat Need A Humidifier
It’s always prudent to know if your pet needs a humidifier before deciding to buy one. Firstly, you”II need to find out if your home is the cause of the allergies. Also, you need to know if your pets have dry skin, a running nose, or whether they sneeze a lot? Or are they allergic to certain things?
The problem can even be the level of humidity in your home. That’s to say if there’s static in your hair or you notice sparks when you place your hands on another person or object – or you have similar symptoms as your pet – then you need this device.
It’s common knowledge that a humidifier increases the moisture content in the air. The device can also help relieve congestion in your pets’ nasal passages, get rid of cold symptoms, allow them to breathe with ease, and make their skin fresher. A humidifier can also help you deal with bacteria and viruses since they spread rapidly in dry air.
Additionally, there are different types of humidifiers to choose from when looking to purchase the best appropriate device. For example, some houses come with central humidifiers that are already pre-installed. These can be found in your central A/C and heating system.
Other portable units like evaporative humidifiers will not heat the water to generate humidity; instead, it uses a fan to distribute it. Warm mist humidifiers, on the contrary, heat the water to create steam that will cool before it is released. Bacterial contamination with a warm mist humidifier is less likely than an evaporative humidifier.
You may also want to consider the ultrasonic humidifiers that use a metal looking diaphragm, which usually vibrates at frequencies levels considered high before generating water droplets that leak into the air. Furthermore, no heat is turned on, and they are known for being noiseless.
Are Humidifiers Safe For Cats?
You’ll have to choose between a humidifier that creates the cool mist and the one that forms the warm mist when trying to get one. The warm mist humidifier can be tempting if you live in cold regions. Also, warm steam will kill all harmful bacteria in the air.
When using the warm mist humidifiers, one has to be extremely careful because it can boil water, which can be hazardous to both humans and pets. That’s to say your cats can accidentally topple the machine and get themselves badly burned in the process. Keep it out of animal reach.
Consequently, the best humidifier for pets such as cats and dogs is the cool mist humidifier. You don’t have to worry about keeping this out of the animal reach. But then, you must also ensure to exercise some caution to avoid knocking water all over. These humidifiers also have a calming effect on you and your kittens because it’s extremely quiet in operation.
Precautions To Keep Your Cats Healthy
These are general tips to ensure your pet is in good health:
- Use the appropriate humidifier to add moisture in the air.
- Ensure to open the window as often as the stale air leaves the room.
- Ensure to keep your pets well hydrated and make sure they have a comfortable place to sleep.
- You can have your pets exercise with you when they are up for it.
- Ensure to seek the attention of a veterinary doctor whenever you notice any symptoms of ailments and strange behavior in your cats.
While a humidifier can help relieve symptoms, add humidity to the air or maintain the right humidity level, nothing is better than seeking the advice and treatment from a professional pet doctor who’s highly reliable and trustworthy.
Conclusion
So yes, is the right and short answer to; are humidifiers good for cats?
The truth is that humans and cats usually exhibit similar symptoms such as sneezing, cough, etc. So the use of a humidifier is beneficial to this feline because they can safely inhale the moisture produced by humidifiers. However, key safety measures need to be taken when using warm mist humidifiers in your homes.
Lastly, this type of humidifier produces hot steam and contains boiling water, which knocked over mistakenly by your pet can prove dangerous. It’s only wise to choose the cool mist humidifier in our homes, which is considered safer for humans and pets.