​You may be aware that plastic pet bowls and feeders are a breeding ground for germs, especially once they get scratched. These germs can cause cat acne or EGC (Eosinophilic Granuloma Complex) which is why it's recommended only using ceramic or stainless bowls for food and water.
Swapping to these bowl types is easy enough but what about those who have feeders for the long day at work or a night away or even for a welcome lie in :)

Easy no....? Simply buy smooth ceramic soap dishes, available in supermarkets. These ones fitted in a treat. I tried without the original tray but it left a gap when closed. By using the tray you can still place the ice pack underneath and it closes flush.

Stay tuned for my next installment when I show you how I adapt timed gravity pet feeders.

It's never easy dealing with a loss of a pet for us humans, they were a friend, a member of the family so much so that they were part of daily routines.
If you have a multi pet household like we do at Purrfectly Handmade, ours are all cats, then a loss within that group can make a big difference to the whole dynamic.
We've been in this position a few times and sadly last week we found ourselves facing this situation yet again with the sad loss of our eldest boy Salem.

So here are my tips to help you help your pets through the grieving process.

1. ​Don't change your daily rountine: Pets and especially cats don't like change so try and keep things as they were it will help them feel secure.
2. Don't clean through the house: After one loss I didn't know what to do with myself and cleaned the house from top to bottom but in doing so got rid of the scent of the cat we had lost, not realising that this unsettled the others left behind. Now when we've faced this I've left the cleaning so the scent of the lost cat slowly and natural disappears meaning the others gradually get used to the cat not being there anymore.
3. Do give lots of cuddles but space too: All pets will react differently to loss, some just carry on like nothings happened, others can be very quiet and worst case stop eating. Give lots of cuddles and reassurance if that's appropriate for your pet but also realise that sometimes they need space too to grieve just like we do.
4. Do think very carefully before rushing to get another pet: Like I said pets need time to grieve too and with a multi pet household it can take time for adjustments in the group to appear so introducing a new pet too soon could cause more problems than solves.

Recently we decided it would be nice to have memorial planters for our cats, a lasting memory that helps us.