Owner: Questions About Cats URL:http://www.catfactfiles.com Join Date: Mon, 13 Aug 2007 18:48:00 -0500 Rating:0 Site Description: This cat-owners' bible covers everything you need to know about caring for your pet from birth through to old age. Site statistics:Click here
Why Does My Cat Frequently Lick Itself? 2007-08-13 17:35:48 Cats love to groom themselves. A groomed fur coat and clean whiskers and paws can enhance a hunter’s ability to stalk in the shadows and undergrowth and surprise unsuspecting prey. However, grooming can become obsessive and compulsive in some cats that are suffering the effects of stress. Causes of stress include competition between home cats, aggression from neighbouring feral cats and trauma.
A way to solve 85% of your cat’s behavior problems — all documented in one unbelievable book…
Complete Cat Training - Veterinary Secrets Revealed (Recommended) Read more:Itself
What Is The Persian Cat? 2007-08-13 00:43:09 The Persian
cat we know today in all its various collour forms is one of the oldest pedigree breeds around. It also has one of the longest and bushiest coats among the long-haired group of cats. The incredible density of the Persian coat is due to the combination of a large amount of ‘down’ or fine hair, and long ‘guard’ hair. This characterstic makes them the softest-coated breed of pet cat. The dense coat also means that Persians are high maintenance, as they require constant grooming to prevent the fur from matting and knotting.
The Victorian Persian, or late 19th century white-coated cat, was originally crossed with an Angora type to produce the Persian long-haired cat. The earliest European and American forms were white with blue eyes. There were also a number of crosses with blue, cream and black long-haired varieties that produced the orange-eyed form. The two eye-colour forms were characterized separately just before the Second World War. Persian kitt
What Is The Van Pattern In Cats? 2007-08-10 16:41:01
The Van pattern denotes a white-coated cat with solid or tortoiseshell patches on its head and tail. The name is a reference to the Turkish Van cat, the ’swimming cat’ with which it is associated, but the pattern can also be seen in other breeds. Read more:Pattern
How Can I Encourage My Wandering Cat To Return Home? 2007-08-09 05:50:03 There are a number of strategies to try.
Enter your garden and name call (brightly) at regular intervals - every hour or more often. This is especially important in the early evening and beyond dusk. Do not be disheartened if your cat does not return immediately.
You can expand this action to the outer borders of the known territory - streets, gardens, woods and so on.
Clink a plate on the doorstep or ground outside at regular intervals - say, every two hours - and leave out a small morsel of strong-smelling food.
Do not stand and watch unless from a discreet position as your cat will be able to see you and this may deter its return.
If you own a garden shed or bench, you can use this space to entice your cat home. Set a cat carrier or strong cardboard box on its side (keep the flaps) with a worn item of your old clothing inside so that your cat will recognize your scent. Place the box in the open shed, underneath it or under the bench. Observe the following guidelines:
Do not use a Read more:Wandering
, Return
What Is The Best Type Of Food For My Cat? 2007-08-08 04:00:45 Owners of today’s domesticated cats have never had so much choice of foods to feed their pets. There are dried, tinned, semi-moist and fresh foods, together with a wide range of tasty food treats ranging from freeze-dried to fresh prawns, tuna and all types of meat. All of these foods have something to offer a healthy, active cat.
Low-cost foods may not contain the ideal balance between proteins, carbohydrates, bulk, vitamins and minerals, but they can sustain a cat. More expensive foods may offer the ideal dietary balance and the price usually generally indicates the amount of research and development that has gone into the product, as well as the freshness of the ingredients.
How Can I Tell When My Cat Is Ready To Give Birth? 2007-08-06 06:16:59 The queen’s breathing rate will increase and early occasional contractions can be seen rippling through her underbelly. This phase can take anything between 4 and 8 hours.
As the kittens, which are enclosed in individual fluid-filled birth sacs, travel towards and into the birth canal, the contractions increase until they are only seconds apart before the kittens begin to be expelled. This phase lasts between 20 minutes and 1 hour, but should not take no longer than 90 minutes.
———————————————————————-
Journalist and long-time cat lover Marc De Jong runs a popular website on cats and kitten care. For his easy-to-follow guidebook How To Take Care Of Your Pregnant Cat - he interviewed several award-winning breeders and specialized vets.
How Can I Stop My Cat Bullying Another Cat? 2007-08-04 05:09:06
It is possible to reduce competition and therefore aggression between cats by examining the aspects where the dispute arise. Research indicates that the main causes of continuing disputes between house cats is over access to owners and to areas in the inner home territory. When one cat is stroked or fussed by the owner, the other may feel its ownership of the human is being questioned. ‘Owner scents’ can be detected on the cat even if the activity has not been observed by the bullying cat. The cause of an act of aggression may have its roots in an action between the owner and the cat that occurred in the hours preceding the violence.
An owner who has competing cats in the same home should reduce petting and fussing, and offer enhanced security for the cats by installing extra bolt holes (boxes, igloos), plus more litter trays and scratching posts, to help combat territorial and ownership disputes.
It can be extremely disturbing for owners to see pets fight and aggression i
What Is The Somali Cat? 2007-08-03 04:01:17 This breed originated from long-haired kittens from Abyssiinian cat litters. It has a vibrant coat that shimmers due to each individual hair having multiple bands of colour. Named after the Somali African state adjacent to Ethiopia (formerly known as Abyssinia), the name indicates with the Abyssinian cat: the Somali cat is characterized as a medium- to long-haired form of the short-haired Abyssinian. This breed may actually share its roots with the Abyssinian, one of the oldest of all domesticated cats, originating from an ancient breed that now has many influences around the world.
Is It True That Cats Have Flexible Backbones? 2007-08-02 06:26:56
Yes, a cat has a rather unique skeleton. Not only does it have more vertebrae in its backbone than a human, but this defining physiology also continues into the tail to create an extended backbone structure.
A cat’s spine is made up of 30 vertebrae, excluding the 14-28 (depending on the breed) in the tail. These highly flexible vertebrae are divided between the neck (7), chest (13), back (7) and hip (3) and, alongside its strong muscular capabilities for jumping and propelling itself forward, help to make the cat dynamically sleek and fluid. As a result, cats are - in short bursts - one of the most balanced and fastest land predators on earth. Read more:Flexible
What Is A Cat Run? 2007-08-01 14:28:07 A cat run is an outdoor, free standing structure or pen, at first sight resembling an aviary. It provides a safe environment in which a cat or cats can enjoy the opportunity to explore and bask in the sunshine and fresh air, and provides peace of mind for you.
Cat runs are usually made up of netting panels on all sides, including the roof. Most cat runs are of a modest size and are either free-standing or attached directly to the rear of the house. The latter arrangement enables house cats to enter directly from an open window, door or cat flap. Larger cat runs are designed to house a number of cats and can cover the whole garden or yard space, creating a safe, enclosed territory for companion cats to enjoy.
Complete Cat Care For Everybody! Simple care tips that make your life easier, and your cat healthier.
What Is The Temperature Of A Healthy Cat? 2007-08-16 09:32:00 The temperature of a calm, healthy cat is 38-39°C (100-102°F). A cat’s temperature can be taken with a lubricated thermometer gently inserted into the rectum for about a minute. Lift the cat’s tail up at the base and insert the small thermometer, then wipe it clean before reading. Only take a cat’s temperature in this way if you are confident about handling and the procedure.
——————————————————————————————
Treat Your Pet At Home With Over 1000 At-home Pet Health Remedies: Keep Your Dog Or Cat Healthy, Extend Their Life And Save Money At The Vet! Veterinary Secrets Revealed! Read more:Temperature
What Does It Mean When Cats Are Described As ‘Territorial’? 2007-08-15 03:37:02 Territorial animals are those with a strong instinct to live within fixed land or aquatic boundaries. As small, solitary predators, cats have evolved to live within a fixed land space that is large enough to support them in terms of prey but modest enough for them to defend. In the wild, this territory is within a jungle, forest, rural or desert habitat. In these environments, wild males will compete with each other and attempt to mate aggressively with any sexually mature female cat that stays into their chosen territory.
Cat territories overlap and several males may consider the same area to belong to them. At the point of encounter, the strongest of the two will successfully challenge for the &lsquo
;territorial rights’ and eventually chase off the rival. The smaller the area he has to defend, the better the chance of the cat being successful.
House cats consider their home, yard, and garden and surrounding boundary markers such as fences, walls, trees and any freestanding str
Should I Go For A Kitten Or An Adult Cat? 2007-08-19 11:21:46 There are pros and cons of both. Kitten
s are usually cute and appealing animals, but they do require a great deal of commitment in their early months. At 6 months old, maturing cats do not require quite the same level of attention as young kittens. Cats become fully mature at about 1 year old, although it has been said that cats love to play and never actually grow up - they just grow larger! The table (below) lists the pros and cons of acquiring a kitten or an adult cat.
CAT OR KITTEN?
Pros
Cons
Kitten
Very adaptable
Easier to socialize with humans.
Easier tto socialize with other house pets.
More likely to socialize with an existing adult cat.
Offers the fun of seeing its development from kitten to adult.
Easy to house train at an early age.
May not house train immediately.
Needs more interactive attention than an adult cat.
Needs regular feeds and ideally should not be left alone for long periods.
Not always adaptable to home and handling changes.
A Read more:Adult
Can Cats See Better Than Us? 2007-08-17 03:59:51 We possess the same binocular vision as cats. However, our eyes are placed laterally parallel on our oblong-shaped face, giving us a slightly reduced fixed field of vision when compared to that of cats. The eyes of a cat are placed marginally to either side of its narrow face. Our overlapping vision covers roughly 210 degrees whereas a cat’s is roughly285 degrees.
What Is The Temperature Of A Healthy Cat? 2007-08-16 09:32:00 The temperature of a calm, healthy cat is 38-39°C (100-102°F). A cat’s temperature can be taken with a lubricated thermometer gently inserted into the rectum for about a minute. Lift the cat’s tail up at the base and insert the small thermometer, then wipe it clean before reading. Only take a cat’s temperature in this way if you are confident about handling and the procedure.
——————————————————————————————
Treat Your Pet At Home With Over 1000 At-home Pet Health Remedies: Keep Your Dog Or Cat Healthy, Extend Their Life And Save Money At The Vet! Veterinary Secrets Revealed! Read more:Temperature
What Does It Mean When Cats Are Described As ‘Territorial’? 2007-08-15 03:37:02 Territorial animals are those with a strong instinct to live within fixed land or aquatic boundaries. As small, solitary predators, cats have evolved to live within a fixed land space that is large enough to support them in terms of prey but modest enough for them to defend. In the wild, this territory is within a jungle, forest, rural or desert habitat. In these environments, wild males will compete with each other and attempt to mate aggressively with any sexually mature female cat that stays into their chosen territory.
Cat territories overlap and several males may consider the same area to belong to them. At the point of encounter, the strongest of the two will successfully challenge for the &lsquo
;territorial rights’ and eventually chase off the rival. The smaller the area he has to defend, the better the chance of the cat being successful.
House cats consider their home, yard, and garden and surrounding boundary markers such as fences, walls, trees and any freestanding str
Why Does My Cat Frequently Lick Itself? 2007-08-13 17:35:48 Cats love to groom themselves. A groomed fur coat and clean whiskers and paws can enhance a hunter’s ability to stalk in the shadows and undergrowth and surprise unsuspecting prey. However, grooming can become obsessive and compulsive in some cats that are suffering the effects of stress. Causes of stress include competition between home cats, aggression from neighbouring feral cats and trauma.
A way to solve 85% of your cat’s behavior problems — all documented in one unbelievable book…
Complete Cat Training - Veterinary Secrets Revealed (Recommended) Read more:Itself
What Is The Persian Cat? 2007-08-13 00:43:09 The Persian
cat we know today in all its various collour forms is one of the oldest pedigree breeds around. It also has one of the longest and bushiest coats among the long-haired group of cats. The incredible density of the Persian coat is due to the combination of a large amount of ‘down’ or fine hair, and long ‘guard’ hair. This characterstic makes them the softest-coated breed of pet cat. The dense coat also means that Persians are high maintenance, as they require constant grooming to prevent the fur from matting and knotting.
The Victorian Persian, or late 19th century white-coated cat, was originally crossed with an Angora type to produce the Persian long-haired cat. The earliest European and American forms were white with blue eyes. There were also a number of crosses with blue, cream and black long-haired varieties that produced the orange-eyed form. The two eye-colour forms were characterized separately just before the Second World War. Persian kitt
What Is The Van Pattern In Cats? 2007-08-10 16:41:01
The Van pattern denotes a white-coated cat with solid or tortoiseshell patches on its head and tail. The name is a reference to the Turkish Van cat, the ’swimming cat’ with which it is associated, but the pattern can also be seen in other breeds. Read more:Pattern
How Can I Encourage My Wandering Cat To Return Home? 2007-08-09 05:50:03 There are a number of strategies to try.
Enter your garden and name call (brightly) at regular intervals - every hour or more often. This is especially important in the early evening and beyond dusk. Do not be disheartened if your cat does not return immediately.
You can expand this action to the outer borders of the known territory - streets, gardens, woods and so on.
Clink a plate on the doorstep or ground outside at regular intervals - say, every two hours - and leave out a small morsel of strong-smelling food.
Do not stand and watch unless from a discreet position as your cat will be able to see you and this may deter its return.
If you own a garden shed or bench, you can use this space to entice your cat home. Set a cat carrier or strong cardboard box on its side (keep the flaps) with a worn item of your old clothing inside so that your cat will recognize your scent. Place the box in the open shed, underneath it or under the bench. Observe the following guidelines:
Do not use a Read more:Wandering
, Return
What Is The Best Type Of Food For My Cat? 2007-08-08 04:00:45 Owners of today’s domesticated cats have never had so much choice of foods to feed their pets. There are dried, tinned, semi-moist and fresh foods, together with a wide range of tasty food treats ranging from freeze-dried to fresh prawns, tuna and all types of meat. All of these foods have something to offer a healthy, active cat.
Low-cost foods may not contain the ideal balance between proteins, carbohydrates, bulk, vitamins and minerals, but they can sustain a cat. More expensive foods may offer the ideal dietary balance and the price usually generally indicates the amount of research and development that has gone into the product, as well as the freshness of the ingredients.
How Can I Tell When My Cat Is Ready To Give Birth? 2007-08-06 06:16:59 The queen’s breathing rate will increase and early occasional contractions can be seen rippling through her underbelly. This phase can take anything between 4 and 8 hours.
As the kittens, which are enclosed in individual fluid-filled birth sacs, travel towards and into the birth canal, the contractions increase until they are only seconds apart before the kittens begin to be expelled. This phase lasts between 20 minutes and 1 hour, but should not take no longer than 90 minutes.
———————————————————————-
Journalist and long-time cat lover Marc De Jong runs a popular website on cats and kitten care. For his easy-to-follow guidebook How To Take Care Of Your Pregnant Cat - he interviewed several award-winning breeders and specialized vets.
Is It True White Cats With Blue Or Odd-Coloured Eyes Are Prone To Deafness? 2007-08-26 07:46:03 There is a recessive gene influence in white-long and short-haired cats that leads to inherited deafness - but not always. Experts commonly suggest that deafness in white cats is indicated by those with blue or odd-coloured eyes. Read more:White
, Coloured
Are There Large And Small Breeds From Which To Choose? 2007-08-25 08:50:42 Cat breeds do not really vary greatly in adult size in the way that dog breeds do. However, a diminutive, short-haired cat would appear miniature alongside an overweight, chunky-bodied, long-haired Persian cat, for example. Lengthy fur and a muscualr body considerably increase the outline shape of a cat. Read more:Small
Do Cats Live In Groups In The Wild? 2007-09-22 09:13:55 The answer is ‘not usually’. In spite of this, there are instances where cats - normally solitary, territorial predators - will congregate together to form unnatural groups. This is often the case when feral cat groups live in an area where there is a high cat population but limited source of prey. Obviously behaving against type, these cats may congregate around waste-disposal grounds hoping for food scraps, or in urban streets or derelict buildings where they are being artificially fed.
Natural aggression is often significantly reduced among large groups of cats. This may be due to the numbers being so high that it is impossible for dominant cats to asset themselves over individual. In this situation, the bullied cat can more easily retreat and become lost in the group. Read more:Groups
How Often Should I Clean Out My Cat’s Bowls? 2007-09-18 05:43:14 You should clean out your cat’s feed bowl and rinse it in warm water on a daily basis. Cats are clean animals and can appear almost phobic about odors that suggest food has deteriorated. Water bowls should be cleaned out every few days, depending on the quantity of water that the cat has consumed. Read more:Often
, Clean
, Bowls
What Is The Ragdoll Cat? 2007-09-17 14:14:39
The earliest record of the ragdoll is open to some speculation, because it was said to have originated from a mis-mated Californian Persian queen. The supposed charm of the blue-eyed Ragdoll is that it naturally becomes limp when handled. This characterstic has mythically been attributed to the litter mother giving birth after suffering a broken pelvis in a road traffic accident. There are three basic coat patterns in the Ragdoll - bicolor (white plus another colour), colour-point and mitted (mitten-like white front feet) - with colour types including seal, blue, chocolate and lilac.
Ragdoll Cat Secrets - Pet Owners Guide: For everything you’ve ever wanted to know about the best cat breed in the world, the Ragdoll cat. If you are interested in having a happy, healthy, and well-behaved Ragdoll cat you really owe it to yourself to get this book.
Can Old Cats Suffer From Arthritis, Like Humans? 2007-09-16 17:47:54 All vertebrate animals, including humans and cats, experience a decline in overall physical health alongside the normal aging process. One result of this can be osteological (bone) deterioration and disease, like arthritis. Many life factors contribute to the speed of the aging process, including early socialization, environmental issues, diet and life experience. A cat that has had a difficult time during its early socialization, been exposed to stress and eaten a less than adequate diet early in its development will be less equipped to fight off the effects of aging. A cat that has battled against the things a hard life can expose it to will show more physical wear and tear than a home cat that has enjoyed a privileged and protected lifestyle. Read more:Arthritis
When Should I Allow My Kitten To Go Outside For The First Time? 2007-09-08 06:41:48 First of all, your kitten must be given all the necessary vaccinations. After this, you can allow supervised excursions into the immediate garden or yard territory. Make the initial explorations brief and interactive, with food treats and clicker training, so that a positive association is made with the outside world. In any case, an adventurous kitten will probably already have been crying to make a visit outdoors, especially if it has caught a tantalizing glimpse of other cats through the patio doors. Read more:Allow
, Kitten
, Outside
, First
Will Neutering My Cat Stop Indoor ‘Toilet Problems’? 2007-09-05 13:25:09 Unfortunately, neutering a cat will not have any effect on the causes of indoor spraying and problem toilet behaviour. Almost all cats under treatment with behaviourists are house pets and they are usually neutered at around 6 months. This is done at this age to prevent the developing toms and queens from performing spraying or urine- and faeces-marking behaviours, and the behaviours becoming habitualized.
The main advantage to neutering (and the reason to have it done) is to stop cats breeding through accidental matings; preventing habitualization of spraying is a secondary advantage. However, just because a cat has been neutered this does not mean that it will not develop the insecurities that can perhaps lead to indoor toileting. Read more:lsquo
, Toilet
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