News: Cats

  Feline Lucy has lived through eight prime ministers, a handful of wars, and the rise of the technological generation. The years have taken their toll, and at 39 years old, Lucy the Tabby from Llanelli, South Wales, has gone deaf and has even more trouble than she used to getting up in the morning,…

Scientists claim they may have discovered the secret to a longer life – but so far the treatment is only suitable for pets. The potential cure for age is a drug which protects telomeres, sections of DNA long thought to be the key to the ageing process. However, the treatment is not yet considered safe…

Birds and cats are dying as many households turn to doing their own rat catching because councils have cut their pest control departments, leading to an increase in rat infestations – rat numbers are now up to an estimated 80 million. According to The Times,  Peter Crowden, chairman of the National Pest Technicians Association, said…

Savannah cats (right),  a hybrid created by mating domestic felines with servals, a species of African wildcat, are the latest must-have pet for status-conscious owners with money — and space — to spare. They cost up to £10,000, but demand is increasing. As many as 300 British owners now give homes to the mighty beasts,…

To coincide with the 2011 National Census, insurers Petplan asked the nation their own set of questions and have now revealed the Petplan Pet Census 2011 – the UK’s largest ever study of its kind. While the British people are already known to be a nation of animal lovers, the findings show that pets may…

Dutch police have created the world’s first official force dedicated to fighting crimes against animals. The 500-strong team is the pet project of the Party for the Animals, which has two MPs under the Netherlands’ proportional representation system. In 2008 Malaysian police rescued more than 1,200 protected animals, including monitor lizards and pythons, thought to…

A study of 2,000 homeowners shows that a significant minority feel constantly tormented by the animals their neighbours own. And 42% say they are upset by people living next door leaving their pets unattended for hours while they go to work. More than one in 20 homeowners say they have reported their neighbours to the…

Pet owners caught up in the massive Japanese earthquake are reported to have been alerted to the impending disaster by their cats and dogs. One Akita-owner in the Honshu region is reported as saying that his dog “did everything in his power” to get away from the disaster that was about to strike. He was…

A new cat has started work at 10 Downing Street after a rodent was spotted by live TV cameras twice in January 2011. Prime Minister David Cameron has agreed to taking on the cat after apparently talking to his two older children Nancy, 7, and Arthur, 4. The cat (above and right) is four-year-old tabby…

German Shepherd Mitzi is the first dog in the world to be fitted with a pioneering prosthetic ankle. The three-year-old had her rear right foot amputated after she was trampled by a horse. But now the bitch is back enjoying walks after being fitted with an artificial foot and ankle by vet Dr Noel Fitzpatrick,…