Your Cat Has Stopped Jumping on the Counter. That’s Not Fussiness
Cats don’t limp, they edit. Reduced jumping is on a validated checklist for feline joint pain — and simply knowing what to look for doubles how often owners catch it.

Cats don’t limp, they edit. Reduced jumping is on a validated checklist for feline joint pain — and simply knowing what to look for doubles how often owners catch it.

Refusing to jump on furniture is a listed early sign of arthritis, not laziness. Why it starts younger than owners think, and when it’s a spinal emergency instead.

Paw licking is itch until proven otherwise. Why it peaks at night, why a normal-looking paw doesn’t rule out allergy, and when one paw means a grass seed.

A sleeping cat should breathe 15–30 times a minute. How to count it properly (not while she’s purring), why a rising rate is the earliest warning of feline heart disease, and the signs that mean go now.

Cornell puts one hairball every week or two in the not-unusual bracket. Beyond that, a hairball is just chronic vomiting with hair in it — and the cause is usually over-grooming or the gut, not the coat.

A cat who goes to the water bowl and then doesn’t drink isn’t usually being fussy. Nausea, kidney disease and mouth pain all leave thirst intact — plus the emergency you can’t wait on.

Dog panting at night with no clear cause? Here are the 7 most common reasons vets look for, the emergency red flags, and the 30-second breathing test to do at home.