Celebrating Christmas with music

album reviews

The holiday season brings with it a slew of festive records, with artists trying to cash in on celebrate the Yuletide joy. Here’s a look at some of the latest releases that tap into the spirit of the season with some merry tunes:

Everyday Is Christmas by Sia

Once you get over its grammatically questionable title – you can do it, I believe in you – you will find that Sia’s new album is, well, just as sloppy as its clunky title suggests. The singer has churned out a set of mostly mediocre songs with the help of American producer Greg Kurstin who has co-written this Christmas-themed record with the Australian songstress. With lyrics that seem like they were created after the songwriters listed all the Christmas tropes they could think of and then tried to stuff them into ten cheesy tracks, Everyday Is Christmas is a mixed bag of holiday cheer and seasonal clichés. A couple of ballads – like ‘Snowman’ and the pop gem ‘Underneath the Mistletoe’ – stand out and make good use of the singer’s emotive delivery. But elsewhere, the result is less impressive, ranging from well-meaning but too cutesy for its own good (‘Puppies Are Forever’) to boring (‘Sunshine’, ‘Underneath the Christmas Lights’) to downright grating (‘Ho Ho Ho’). Props to the prolific songwriter for coming up with original music instead of covering old Yuletide classics (like just about everyone else does), but ultimately, you probably won’t want to listen to this album “every day” through the holiday season because it is more “everyday” than you would’ve hoped.

Highlights: ‘Snowman’, ‘Underneath the Mistletoe’

Rating: 2.5 out of 5

You Make It Feel Like Christmas by Gwen Stefani

No Doubt’s 1997 cover of The Vandal’s ‘Oi to the World!’ was fun, energetic, and memorable … which are some of the many things that Gwen Stefani’s You Make It Feel Like Christmas is not. An album of “meh”-worthy holiday tunes, the record comprises of 12 songs – six originals, six covers – and fails to deliver anything exciting. The covers are unnecessary, the originals are unexceptional. Her faithful renditions of old favourites bring nothing new to classics like ‘Jingle Bells’, ‘Let It Snow’, ‘Silent Night’, and ‘White Christmas’; nor do they in any way surpass many of the countless other covers of these same Christmas staples. Her new songs – most of which only have a cursory link to the holidays – are middling pop ditties that seem more generic than festive. The title track, ‘You Make It Feel Like Christmas’, which features her boyfriend Blake Shelton, is a charming duet that will especially please fans of the couple. But on the whole the record lacks the energy and edge that could have elevated this material and made it memorable.

Highlights: ‘You Make It Feel Like Christmas’, ‘Under the Christmas Lights’

Rating: 2 out of 5

Twelve Tales of Christmas by Tom Chaplin

While his band takes a hiatus, Keane vocalist Tom Chaplin has released his second solo album, Twelve Tales of Christmas, a beautiful collection of gentle, melodic ditties that explore the sombre side of this potentially emotional holiday. There are eight original compositions in this set of 12, all beautiful but a tad too similar in tone and tempo. The four songs he has covered – ‘Walking in the Air’ by Howard Blake; ‘2000 Miles’ by The Pretenders; ‘River’ by Joni Mitchell; and ‘Stay Another Day’ by East 17 – are very well-chosen as the selection fits his voice and style nicely while reminding us of how beautiful the originals were. It may be a little too schmaltzy and gloomy, but this collection of soft rock tunes is still charming and comforting. Probably not the best record to soundtrack jolly festivities, but a lovely nod to the mellow notes many experience over the holiday season.

Highlights: ‘Midnight Mass’, ‘2000 Miles’, ‘River’, ‘For the Lost’

Rating: 3.5 out of 5

Christmas Christmas by Cheap Trick

So enthusiastic about releasing a Christmas record they decided to mention it twice in the title, Cheap Trick’s Christmas Christmas is the polar opposite of Tom Chaplin’s album – an energetic set of mostly up-tempo songs. All but three of the 12 tracks on this disc are covers, including the band’s take on Wizzard’s ‘I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday’, Slade’s ‘Merry Xmas Everybody’, Chuck Berry’s ‘Run Rudolph Run’, The Kinks’ ‘Father Christmas’, and The Ramones’ ‘Merry Christmas (I Don't Want to Fight Tonight)’. It’s a joyous collection of rock tunes that celebrates the cheer of Christmas with loud guitars and drums. Points docked for the heavy reliance on covers though, as the many familiar songs will leave you wishing the band had tried to come up with more material themselves.

Highlights: ‘Merry Christmas Darlings’, ‘I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday’, ‘Merry Xmas Everybody’, ‘Christmas Christmas’

Rating: 3 out of 5

Dear December by The Minus 5

Scott McCaughey and his many musical friends have come together for Dear December, a “fresh batch” of holiday songs. Powered by a host of guest appearances by artists including Ben Gibbard (Death Cab for Cutie), Colin Meloy (The Decemberists), M. Ward,  Kelly Hogan, Peter Buck (R.E.M.), and Mike Mills (R.E.M.), the album offers a well-crafted collection of Yuletide themed indie gems. There are tunes about Christmas, Hanukkah, and even New Year’s Eve in this 11-song set, each of which offers a different flavour. The wry ‘When Christmas Hurts You This Way’ and the Colin Meloy assisted ‘The Fourth Noel’ are among the album’s finest cuts. Using their pop smarts and characteristic wit, the rock collective have created a winsome record of enjoyable tunes, a merry companion for the festive season.

Highlights: ‘When Christmas Hurts You This Way’, ‘The Fourth Noel’, ‘I Still Believe in New Year's Eve’

Rating: 4 out of 5

- Sameen Amer

Instep Today, The News - 25th December, 2017 *

Warmth, wisdom, and wit from wonderful wordsmiths

the bookshelf

A look at the standout books published in 2017

Like every year, 2017 also gave us lots of touching, amusing, fascinating works published by amazing writers from all over the world. Here’s a look at some of the many (many) standout books that captured the attention of bibliophiles everywhere this year:

Fiction 

Origin by Dan Brown
Massively popular (and just as controversial) writer Dan Brown has become a household name around the globe on the back of the success of his Robert Langdon books. The Da Vinci Code (2003) – the second instalment in the series – remains one of the world’s best-selling novels. This year, the American author sent his most famous character on his fifth adventure in Origin, a mystery set in Spain that revolves around the death of one of Langdon’s former students turned famous futurist who was about to reveal a secret that would have changed science and religion forever.

Little Fires Everywhere by Celeste Ng
Three years after making a splash with her bestselling debut novel Everything I Never Told You (2014), Chinese-American author Celeste Ng published her second novel, Little Fires Everywhere, in 2017 to much critical praise. The story is centred on two families in the author’s hometown Shaker Heights, Ohio, where a custody battle over an adopted Chinese-American baby divides the neighbourhood.

Beartown: A Novel by Fredrik Backman
A Man Called Ove (2012) put Swedish writer Fredrik Backman on the literary map when it was published in English in 2013. His recent new offering was Beartown, an absorbing look at a small, ailing community that rests all its hopes on its junior ice hockey team winning a national tournament, but is left in shock as a scandal leaves the town in turmoil.

Into the Water by Paula Hawkins
Zimbabwe-born British author Paula Hawkins’ psychological thriller The Girl on the Train (2015) became the fastest-selling adult novel in history nearly two years ago. Her sixth novel, Into the Water, came out in 2017, and offered another dose of psychological suspense, as the death of a woman – whose body was found in the river – forces her sister to return to the place she had escaped and brings up old memories and secrets.

Artemis by Andy Weir
After dazzling us Earthlings with his novel about an astronaut stranded on Mars, sci-fi author Andy Weir took us to the Moon this year in Artemis, the story of a smuggler caught up in a conspiracy for control of a lunar colony, once again blending his science smarts with his wisecracking humour to produce another witty near-future thriller. The book is currently in the process of being turned into a movie, with the amazing Phil Lord and Christopher Miller developing and directing the project.

Turtles All the Way Down by John Green
The long-awaited seventh novel by The Fault in Our Stars (2012) writer John Green, titled Turtles All the Way Down, came out in 2017, and told the tale of a high school student who has multiple anxiety disorders and ends up searching for a fugitive billionaire. A film adaptation for this book is also in development.

Exit West by Mohsin Hamid
A pair of young immigrants, displaced from their war ravaged country, went through magical doors while trying to find a place for themselves in the world in Exit West, Pakistani author Mohsin Hamid’s latest work, a treatise on the global refugee problem that generated much international interest for both the writer and his fourth novel. And – yes, you guessed it – this book will also head to the big screen soon, with Norwegian filmmaker Morten Tyldum attached to the project as the director.

Non-fiction

Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson
This year, Walter Isaacson – who has previously written several biographical bestsellers, including Einstein (2007) and Steve Jobs (2011) – turned his attention to one of the most fascinating polymaths of all time: Leonardo da Vinci. The book presents a very thorough look at the life and work of the Italian creative genius who came up with ideas that seemed way ahead of his time and produced some of the most famous paintings in history.

What Happened by Hillary Rodham Clinton
As the world tries to come to terms with Donald Trump’s electoral win and subsequent presidency, his 2016 opponent Hillary Clinton gave her account of the presidential race and how it panned out in her new book, What Happened. Divided into six main parts – ‘Perseverance’, ‘Competition’, ‘Sisterhood’, ‘Idealism and Realism’, ‘Frustration’, and ‘Resilience’ – What Happened shares the former first lady’s experience of the American presidential campaign and her analysis of why she lost the election.

Astrophysics for People in a Hurry by Neil deGrasse Tyson
The incomparable Neil deGrasse Tyson gave us a crash course in astrophysics in his latest book, Astrophysics for People in a Hurry. The bestseller made complex scientific concepts accessible to the layman, and sheds light on the mysteries of the universe, covering topics like the nature of space and time in witty, insightful, and easy-to-grasp chapters.

Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery by Scott Kelly
From March 2015 to March 2016, American astronaut Scott Kelly spent 342 consecutive days in space. The mission was part of a scientific research project aboard the International Space Station meant to study the health effects of long-term spaceflight, with changes in his body studied against his identical twin brother, former astronaut Mark Kelly, who stayed on Earth. He detailed his space adventure in the riveting memoir Endurance, a fascinating account of a very unusual experience.

Mythos: A Retelling of the Myths of Ancient Greece by Stephen Fry
British national treasure Stephen Fry beautifully retold old Greek myths in his 2017 book Mythos, an entertaining and knowledgeable take on the ancient world and how it sheds light on our own times. The writer has used his smarts and wit to recap the adventures of Greek figures, gods, and goddesses, like Apollo, Aphrodite, Hades, Hercules, and Pandora, retelling their tales for modern times.

Soonish: Ten Emerging Technologies That'll Improve and/or Ruin Everything by Kelly and Zach Weinersmith
What will the world be like in the future? No one really knows for sure, but that has never stopped many of us from trying to predict how things will go. That’s exactly what Kelly and Zach Weinersmith have done in Soonish. Putting together their intelligence and humour, the couple explored ten new technologies in their 2017 tome while predicting the impact these emerging fields could have on the world.

- S.A.

Us Magazine, The News - 22nd December, 2017 *

Coco - Pixar's triumphant return to form

movie review

Coco

Voice cast: Anthony Gonzalez, Gael García Bernal, Benjamin Bratt, Alanna Ubach, Renée Victor, Ana Ofelia Murguía, and Edward James Olmos

Director: Lee Unkrich
Tagline: The celebration of a lifetime

A string of wonderfully creative and thoroughly entertaining films in the ‘00s helped establish Pixar as an animation powerhouse that was creating some of the finest family-friendly movies of the decade. But the studio was unable to maintain its momentum as it developed a disappointing case of sequelitis. Instead of coming up with interesting new releases, the Disney subsidiary instead chose to build its franchises by revisiting its most popular ideas, making films that admittedly weren’t bad by any measure but simply lacked the imagination and spark that had made the studio’s best work so special.

With its latest release, Coco, Pixar has reclaimed its place atop the animation throne with a touching film that effortlessly tugs at the viewers’ heartstrings.

Toy Story 3 director Lee Unkrich helms the project that takes us to the fascinating lands of Mexico for a fantasy take on the region’s Day of the Dead holiday.

The protagonist is Miguel Rivera (voiced by Anthony Gonzalez), a 12-year-old boy who falls in love with music. The only complication? His family just happens to think that music is a curse!

Miguel’s great-great-grandmother, Imelda, shunned music after her husband abandoned her and their young daughter, Coco, to pursue his aspirations of becoming a star. Now, decades later, Coco is an elderly woman stricken with dementia, and Miguel’s grandmother, Elena (Renée Victor), is enforcing a strict ban on music in the family.

Feathers are ruffled when Miguel – inspired by his musical idol, the late singer Ernesto de la Cruz (Benjamin Bratt) – decides to enter a talent competition that is being held on the Day of the Dead, a holiday when the dead visit their living relatives. Infuriated by his interest in music, Elena smashes her grandson’s guitar, which leads him to steal an instrument from Cruz’s tome in order to participate in the contest. But by stealing from the dead on a night dedicated to giving to the deceased, Miguel – along with his canine friend, a street dog named Dante – is transported into the Land of the Dead.

To return to the Land of the Living, Miguel has to undo the curse by getting his family’s blessing by sunrise. But when his ancestors attach a condition to their blessing that requires him to give up on his singing dreams, Miguel tries to find another way out of his predicament with the help of trickster Héctor (Gael García Bernal), and ends up on a journey that teaches him the importance of family, passion, and love.

Coco is a reminder of just how impressive Pixar can be when they create an imaginative, poignant project. The animation is terrific and full of interesting textures, designs, and details. The all-Latino voice cast delivers good performances throughout the film. The story is affecting and tactfully explores several difficult topics like aging and death. The ending is very touching; if you end up shedding an embarrassing amount of tears in the last half hour or so of the film then you definitely won’t be alone.

Despite its many strengths and merits though, Coco isn’t perfect. Nit-pickers will point out that the film is a little too long and slightly slow around the middle; its execution is a bit too chaotic at times; the film shares some similarities with The Book of Life (2014); and for a musical about the magic of music, the film could have definitely used some more songs.

But whatever minor criticisms you may come up with while watching it, you’ll probably forgive them by the end of the film as you reach for a box of tissue papers and wonder why Pixar enjoys turning you into an emotional wreck. This is a powerful, intense movie, and while it may be a little too dark for very young viewers, Coco manages to deliver lessons about identity and life in an entertaining way, and ultimately makes for very satisfying (and emotional) viewing.

Rating: 4 out of 5

- Sameen Amer

The Express Tribune Blogs - 15th December, 2017 *

New releases from music's old guard

album reviews

Artist: U2
Album: Songs of Experience ***1/2

One of the many (many) things that the Trump presidency has been blamed for is the delay in the release of U2’s fourteenth album, Songs of Experience. The Irish rock band had originally planned a 2016 release for the follow-up to 2014’s Songs of Innocence (which famously became a frontrunner for the “most deleted album in music history” title when it was forced upon iTunes users without their consent almost three years ago). But the shifting global political landscape inspired the band to rethink and revamp the material they had recorded for the project. The result is an album that is often politically charged and socially aware, yet surprisingly optimistic in tone.

With Jacknife Lee and Ryan Tedder primarily in charge of production, this 13-song set serves as a companion to its predecessor, and paints the picture of a band that is attempting to be current while searching for relevancy, yet unwilling to musically challenge themselves.

There are earnest sentiments (delivered through Bono’s unsubtle lyrics) and well-crafted melodies aplenty (which doesn’t come as a surprise since we already have nearly 40 years’ worth of evidence that this band knows how to come up with a memorable rock tune). And there are contributions by some of pop music’s current hit-makers – primarily Haim (who appear on ‘Lights of Home’), Lady Gaga (who provides backing vocals on the tepid ‘Summer of Love’), and Kendrick Lamar (who sounds powerful yet a little out of place at the intersection of ‘Get Out of Your Own Way’ and ‘American Soul’).

But the instruments here are often restrained, the inclination to experiment rarely realized. It’s all very competently done, but you can’t always feel the passion. Even with all the work that has gone into its making, Songs of Experience sounds like U2 on autopilot, and that ultimately serves as both its main merit and primary disappointment.

Highlights: ‘Lights of Home’, ‘Red Flag Day’, ‘The Showman (Little More Better)’, ‘Love Is Bigger Than Anything in Its Way’

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Artist: Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds
Album: Who Built the Moon? ****

The dissolution of British rock band Oasis may have left many of their fans broken hearted and yearning for a reunion, but the break has also given the warring Gallagher brothers a chance to pursue their own projects. Liam has been off doing his own thing (while incessantly slagging “rkid” for all his faux pas, real and perceived) and Noel has been making music with his High Flying Birds. Who Built the Moon?, the new album by the latter, catches the elder Gallagher sibling in a chipper mood, and we’re not complaining.

Infectious first single ‘Holy Mountain’ captures the up-tempo energy of the old Oasis B-side ‘Round Are Way’ and – say what you will about its lyrics – is catchy as hell (until some evil cretin mentions that it kinda sounds like Ricky Martin’s ‘She Bangs’ and ruins the song forever). The guitar pop of ‘She Taught Me How to Fly’ brims with joy. And the throwback goodness of the terrific ‘Black & White Sunshine’ is so R.E.M. reminiscent that it will leave you nostalgic for the American band’s heyday.

There are trumpets and cello and even tin whistle in the mix here in what is the most satisfying release by Noel’s solo outfit. Perhaps it is the influence of producer David Holmes – who has previously scored several Steven Soderbergh films – that makes this record so vibrant. Ultimately, Who Built the Moon? is a well-crafted record infused with psychedelic and glam influences that is thoroughly enjoyable. And while it may not attempt to reinvent the wheel, it does see the band traverse some interesting ground.

Highlights: ‘Fort Knox’, ‘Holy Mountain’, ‘It’s a Beautiful World’, ‘Black & White Sunshine’

- Sameen Amer

Instep, The News on Sunday - 10th December, 2017 *

The Mercy - an intriguing real-life story comes to the big screen

trailer review

In October 1968, amateur sailor Donald Crowhurst set out to compete in a non-stop, single-handed, round-the-world yacht race. Eight months later, the fascinatingly shocking details of his journey would come to light and end up causing a public sensation. Now, nearly half a century later, his story – just as intriguing today as it was almost 50 years ago – is being brought to the big screen in the upcoming British film The Mercy which comes out in February next year.

The official trailer for the movie shares a few scenes from this drama while shedding light on its overall narrative.

Colin Firth portrays the film’s protagonist, a struggling businessman who enters the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race, hoping to win the £5,000 prize by circumnavigating the world in a boat alone. But the Brit starts running into numerous problems soon after his voyage begins. An inexperienced seafarer in an inadequate vessel on a gruelling challenge, Crowhurst realizes that if he continues on his quest then he faces dire chances of survival, and if he turns back, he faces “certain ruin”.

The real-life story the movie is based on is fairly well known – Crowhurst has already been the subject of a number of books, documentaries, and films – so you may already know the choices he made in desperation and their consequences, but that doesn’t diminish how compelling the movie seems.

Director James Marsh – who has won numerous accolades for his Philippe Petit documentary Man on Wire (2008) and Stephen Hawking biopic The Theory of Everything (2014) – has already shown us how good he is at working with biographical material, so he seems like a very suitable choice to helm this vehicle. And from the glimpses we get of the film in the trailer, the movie certainly seems like it is well shot.

The cast, too, is very impressive. Firth is a safe bet in the lead role, and supporting him is the beautiful Rachel Weisz who portrays the protagonist’s wife; both these acclaimed actors seem terrific in their parts.

There is certainly enough talent attached to the project to make The Mercy look very promising. Plus the filmmakers have a very compelling story to work with. Hopefully they will be able to paint a nuanced portrait of Crowhurst, his predicament and eventual unravelling.

- Sameen Amer

The Express Tribune Blogs - 6th December, 2017 *

Gaga: Five Foot Two - a glimpse at the person behind the Lady Gaga persona

documentary review

Trying to stay in the limelight on the back of controversies and shock tactics may work in the short term, but this strategy doesn’t guarantee longevity for the career of an artist. It becomes progressively harder for the entertainer to capture the attention of an increasingly jaded audience, and the weaknesses of the performer’s material start to become more apparent as the novelty of their offbeat persona wears off.

That’s the problem Stefani Germanotta found herself running into. After taking the music world by storm under the provocative guise of Lady Gaga, the American pop star started losing traction with each new record, receiving lukewarm reviews, weaker sales, and waning attention for her latter releases. The best way forward, logic dictated, was an image overhaul, so it didn’t come as a surprise when the singer chose to strip away the eccentric Gaga façade and present a more intimate visage for her new album, Joanne (2016).

It’s this latest phase in her career that is the subject of Gaga: Five Foot Two, a Netflix documentary that captures a glimpse of the singer’s personal and professional life as she makes and promotes Joanne.

The film shows Germanotta recording in the studio, primarily with producer Mark Ronson, creating the songs that would end up on her fifth album. The emotional story of the titular Joanna – her father’s sister who died of lupus at the age of 19 – is relayed in a touching segment of the documentary. We also see the singer making the ‘Perfect Illusion’ music video, promoting the new record, performing at the Democratic National Convention and at a birthday celebration for Tony Bennett, and preparing for her Super Bowl half-time show which took place earlier this year. The documentary also highlights her acting successes; her stint on American Horror Story and her upcoming movie A Star is Born are both mentioned in the film (although you don’t find out anything substantial about the latter project).

Alongside her musical and acting endeavours, Five Foot Two also offers a peek into Germanotta’s personal life, from her bond with her family to her loneliness following the disintegration of her relationship with ex-fiancé Taylor Kinney. But the most affecting part of the documentary is her struggle with severe pain, which is mentioned several times in the film. Throughout the documentary, Gaga is shown suffering from chronic pain which often leaves her in tears, as she struggles with spasms or gets treatment for the disease which seems to have been undiagnosed when Five Foot Two was being made but was later revealed to be fibromyalgia.

The documentary appears to have two primary aims: to showcase Germanotta’s vocal prowess as she embarks on this stripped-down segment of her musical journey and to humanize the artist. And while it succeeds to a certain degree on both counts, it doesn’t completely triumph on either level. As an artist, hearing the singer record in the studio leaves you with little doubt that she has one of the strongest voices among her peers, plus her piano playing skills are consistently impressive, but the songs she records are a tad underwhelming and not exactly her finest creations. As a person, we get to see a more vulnerable side of the performer which makes her seem more personable, but we don’t really get to know a lot about the singer. The film doesn’t explore her early life or career. Plus, it’s hard not to wonder how real and raw the documentary really is, especially when comments or scenes start to seem a little staged.

All in all, though director Chris Moukarbel has done a competent job capturing his subject’s busy schedule, her seemingly chaotic life, and the severe pain that she has been dealing with for years. The film is also an interesting showcase of the current stage of Germanotta’s career, which itself seems like a move in the right direction – albeit executed in a lacklustre way – for her as an artist who finally wants the focus to be on her talent instead of her antics. The documentary is primarily for little monsters or viewers who have some knowledge about the singer’s life and work; those who know nothing about her might feel a little lost as not everything is clearly spelled out or explained. Ultimately, you won’t walk away with a comprehensive understanding of the woman at its centre as Five Foot Two doesn’t shed light on much of her life and work, nor does it delve too deep into her thoughts and choices, but it does give you a fascinating look at Germanotta’s Joanne era and a glimpse at the person behind the Gaga persona.

- By Sameen Amer

Instep, The News on Sunday - 3rd December, 2017 *

Pet smart

vet wise

Animal lovers can sometimes stumble across a problem regarding their furry, feathered, or scaled friends that they can’t figure out the solution to. So we have asked veterinarian Dr. Faheem Ahmad to help our readers with their animal-related queries.

Taking care of stray cats

Question: The interview of vet Dr. Faheem was really good.  I have a few questions for him. First, I want to say that we don’t have good and reliable pet shops and vet clinics in Karachi, and that is why we have to go to ordinary vet clinics for medicines and vaccines when my cats get sick. My cats are strays. I picked them from the street when they were born. Their mother disappeared after some time. They are playful. They are around 6 months old.
Here are my queries:
1. How do I find out if my cat is sick? What symptoms should I look out for? Sometimes I don’t understand.
2. My friends say that the person who keeps pets should also get some medical treatment to protect themselves from germs. What sort of treatment is that? Can you briefly talk about it and who to talk to about it – the vet or a general doctor?
3. Is it safe to keep stray cats? What should I keep in mind while cleaning them? They jump a lot when you throw water on them so I soak a piece of towel in Dettol water and wipe their body. I know it is not enough.
4. What sort of food should I feed my cats? I give them milk, chicken liver, chicken meat, and also chichare. I have seen cat food in the supermarket but I have no idea what to buy.
Thank you so much. I look forward to seeing the answers to my questions. – Farah Sikandar, Karachi

Answer: Thanks for your compliments regarding my interview. Here are the answers to your questions:
1. Signs of illness: It’s very simple. Just look at the behaviour of the cat (if he’s dull or hyper), changes in the eyes (any discharge), dietary issues (he will stop eating if he’s ill), and also see the consistency of the faeces.
2. Precautions: Yes, you have to be careful, especially when the animal is suffering from any disease. In normal condition, some owners – not all – may suffer from allergy due to the cat’s fur; for that, you have to regularly brush the cats. Moreover, to avoid any serious infection from cats, vaccinate your cat from a reputed vet who will issue a proper vaccination card.
3. Cleaning: If the cat does not like bathing, then there is no need to bathe the cat regularly. Only bathe when it is required. Otherwise you can clean the cat with a wet towel. Don’t use Dettol. You can get some proper medicated shampoo from any reputed shop.
4. Diet: There are some pet food brands which are good, like Purina, NutraGold, Whiskas, Reflex, Acticlog – these are good from my practical experience. Otherwise you can give the cat chicken meat, preferably not raw. Don’t give liver [in a large quantity] to cats, as this is poisonous for cats.

Trying to pick a reliable vet

Question: The Vet to the Rescue cover story was very interesting. The veterinarian suggested that people should trust their vet, but there are so many instances of vets mistreating and mishandling animals, even losing animals in their care and seeming unconcerned about the death of animals they were treating, that it becomes hard to trust the life of an animal we love into the care of a relative stranger. How can I tell if the vet I am taking my pet to is reliable? Are there any qualities or qualifications that I should look for or ask them about? How, basically, do I find out which vet to trust (from the very few choices I have)? – Anon.

Answer: Frankly speaking, dealing with a pet is not an easy job. It is actually very difficult, as the animals don’t exactly tell you the problem. It is all about experience, knowledge, and Allah ki shifa. So for me, all the vets who are continually practicing are good. Moreover, most of the doctors have displayed their degrees online and at their clinic; you can always check their qualification before letting them treat your pet.

Helping a cat suffering from dietary issues

Question: I have read your article Vet to the Rescue and I really liked it. Actually, I also own a cat and for the past few months, my 1-year-old cat has been throwing up a few times a week, sometimes a few times a day. My vet has tested her blood, and changed her to a low residue food diet, but nothing seems to help. My cat has also chewed all the fur off her right shoulder blade. What should I do? Should I change vets and get a second opinion? We got another cat in December and had a baby in April. She acts fine otherwise. Please help! – Mamoona Khalid

Answer: The first thing is whether the cat is dewormed or not. If not, you should get her dewormed. Secondly, I would suggest that you change your cat’s diet to a reputable brand. Switch to a reputable diet, feeding her the exact quantity mentioned on the pack, and divide it into small portions given over the course of the day. You can apply an Elizabethan collar to stop her from eating fur, as fur can also be the main reason for an upset stomach. As far as changing the vet goes, you can, of course, get a second opinion.

Thanks to our readers who wrote in with their animal-related queries, and good luck taking care of your animal friends! For any further questions regarding animal care or the veterinary field, feel free to drop Us a line at sameenamer [at] hotmail [dot] com.

*****

Food you should not feed animals

Pet owners might be tempted to share a few bites of their meals with their animal companions, but that isn’t always a good idea. Similarly, leaving your snacks or medicine unattended could give your pet the chance to ingest something unsuitable for animals, which could have dire consequences for your pet. There are several food items and substances that may be safe for humans but could have adverse – even lethal – effects on animals.

Here are some such food items that you should not feed your cats and dogs:

• Alcohol
• Chocolate
• Coffee
• Caffeine
• Citrus
• Coconut
• Garlic
• Grapes
• Nuts
• Onion
• Salty snacks

- S.A.

Us Magazine, The News - 1st December, 2017 *