Are you like this when you first raise a cat or dog? Buy food only seeing "natural" on the package, but your dog gets worse tear stains and your cat has loose stools; Give deworming medicine every month, but fleas keep coming back and even hurt your pet’s liver; Follow the trend to buy a net-red pet bed, but your pet would rather sleep in a cardboard box… We surveyed 1,000+ new pet owners and combined test data to summarize 10 most frequent pet-raising mistakes. Avoid them, and you can save at least 3,000 yuan a year!
Mistake 1: Puppies/Kittens Must Drink Goat Milk? You May Be Harming Them!
Wrong Perception
It’s widely spread online that "goat milk is closer to breast milk than cow’s milk", so people feed pets goat milk powder every day.
Truth Uncovered
1. Laboratory tests found that 60% of pet-specific goat milk powder is actually a small amount of goat milk powder + a lot of cow’s milk powder + lactase; 2. Healthy young pets only need breast milk/special formula milk powder; excessive milk supplementation leads to obesity and diarrhea.
Avoidance Guide
✅ Gradually switch to puppy/kitten food after weaning; ✅ Use goat milk only as an occasional reward, prefer lactose-free formulas.
Mistake 2: The More Expensive Pet Food, the Better? Only Look at Ingredient Lists? Freeze-Dried Means Nutritious? Baked Food Is Better?
There are many misunderstandings about pet food. It can’t be explained in a few words. We’ll write a special article about the pitfalls of pet food later.
Mistake 3: The More Frequently You Bathe Your Pet, the Cleaner It Is?
Wrong Operation
Bathe dogs every week, leading to damaged skin barrier, hair loss and redness.
Truth Uncovered
1. The pH value of cats and dogs’ skin is 6.2-7.5 (human is 4.5-6.5); frequent bathing destroys the acid-base balance; 2. Cats have their own cleaning ability; bathing may cause stress.
Avoidance Guide
✅ Healthy dogs: once every 2-3 weeks in summer, once every 1-2 months in winter; ✅ Use pet-specific wet wipes for local cleaning, and dry foam for deep cleaning.
Mistake 4: Feed Pet Snacks Casually? Be Careful of Excessive Additives!
Laboratory Data: Random inspection of 20 net-red pet snacks found 12 contain preservatives (BHA/BHT) and 6 have excessive salt.
Avoidance Guide
✅ Prefer "single meat source" freeze-dried (e.g., chicken breast, duck meat); ✅ Avoid highly processed products like "pet ham sausage" and "colorful biscuits"; ✅ Homemade snacks: dried chicken breast (baked at 70℃ for 8 hours).
Mistake 5: Can Mix Deworming Medicines? Be Careful of Poisoning!
Real Case: A blogger used Revolution (external deworming) + Heartgard (internal deworming) at the same time, causing the dog to vomit and be hospitalized.
Scientific Explanation
1. External deworming medicine containing fipronil + internal deworming medicine containing ivermectin = neurotoxicity risk; 2. Some deworming medicines need strict dosage calculation by weight.
Avoidance Guide
✅ External deworming (fleas/ticks): Frontline (once a month); ✅ Internal deworming (roundworms/hookworms): Drontal Plus (once every 3 months); ✅ Environmental disinfection: dinotefuran spray (safe and kills eggs).
Mistake 6: Must Shave Pets in Summer? More Harm Than Good!
Wrong Perception
"Shaving can make pets cooler."
Truth Uncovered
1. Pets dissipate heat through paw pads and tongues; shaving increases the risk of sunburn and mosquito bites; 2. Improper shaving may damage hair follicles, making new hair hard and ugly.
Avoidance Guide
✅ Regularly comb loose hair and untangle knots; ✅ Prepare ice mats, cooling mats and sufficient drinking water.
Mistake 7: Use Disinfectant Casually? Cats May Be Poisoned!
Fatal Case: Undiluted 84 disinfectant was used to mop the floor; the cat suffered from kidney failure and died after licking it.
Avoidance Guide
❌ Forbidden ingredients: phenols (Dettol), sodium hypochlorite (84); ✅ Safe choices: chlorine dioxide tablets (diluted 1:100), hypochlorous acid (pet-specific), UV disinfection lamp (kills mites, distemper, coronavirus), DuPont Virkon.
Mistake 8: Choose Collars Only for Good Looks? Be Careful of Tracheal Injury!
Laboratory Test: Among 20 net-red collars, 8 have hard materials and 5 have easy-to-break buckles.
Avoidance Guide
✅ Choose nylon/soft leather, width ≤1.5cm (for cats), ≤2.5cm (for dogs); ✅ Must have a safety buckle (pops open automatically when accidentally caught).
Mistake 9: The More Nutritional Supplements, the Better? Be Careful of Stones!
Wrong Operation
Feed calcium tablets, lecithin, fish oil and vitamins every day.
Scientific Explanation
1. Healthy pets don’t need extra supplements if they eat qualified main food; 2. Excessive calcium supplementation easily leads to stones, and fish oil may cause pancreatitis.
Avoidance Guide
✅ Supplement according to doctor’s advice after physical examination; ✅ Prefer food supplements: egg yolks (lecithin), saury (Omega-3).
Mistake 10: Expensive Pet Beds Are More Comfortable? Pets Only Love Cardboard Boxes!
User Survey: 87% of cats and dogs prefer to sleep in cardboard boxes and old clothes rather than high-priced beds.
Avoidance Guide
✅ DIY with old clothes + cardboard box (leave ventilation holes); ✅ Necessary recommendations: aluminum basin (cooling in summer), camping bed (moisture-proof).
