April 4th, 2008 at 01:45pm
Under Cat Care+ Cat Owner+ Pet Behavior
By David P Lee
Cats are very interesting animals. They have certain behavioral
habits which, although confusing to their owners, have
explanatory reasons. One such act is purring. People wonder why
their pets purr – does it just mean they are happy or is there
more to it than that?
Why do cats purr
Cats communication using purring. A kitten and its mother will
purr as a sign of comfort and, after this, the kitten will
continue the behavior through its life. Cats usually purr when
something pleases them or when they feel safe and comfortable.
It is known also that an anxious cat or one at death’s door
might purr too, obviously for different reasons.
Purring is interesting because no one is really sure how the
cat’s body produces the sound. It might be because of blood
moving through the blood vessels. It might be because of soft
palate vibrations. Cat purring has been tested
electromyographically, to show the electrical activity in the
muscles of the cat. This could indicate that purring is caused
when the muscles of the larynx, containing the vocal chords, are
activated. the larynx partially closing, or glottis, could be
responsible for the purring sounds.
Face rubbing
Cats rub their chins, cheeks and bodies on everything. It might
feel good to them but that is not the primary reason for this
behavior. Cats have scent glands located on their lips, chins,
mouths and foreheads. They might rub against their owner as a
form of greeting or when trying to communicate something, such
as a request for food. Cats in a group will rub against one
another to swap their scents. Cats together have a ‘colony
scent’ which is useful for detecting intruders. If you bring a
cat back from the veterinarian, the other cats in the colony
might growl or hiss because of the unfamiliar scents on the
returned cat. Cats recognize one another largely through their
heightened sense of smell.
Why does my cat scratch things?
Cats like to scratch (or ‘strop’) all sorts of things.
Obviously you would prefer your cat to scratch a tree or its
scratching post rather than your best sofa. A cat deprived of a
tree or scratching post will strop its claws on whatever it can.
Scratching gets rid of loose nail sheath parts which cover the
growing claws. Cats also have scent glands located in their paws
and the act of scratching will leave the cat’s scent on whatever
they scratch, to mark it as part of the cat’s territory. If a
cat is declawed, it will still try to scratch at things, even
though they have no claws to sharpen. This could be inbuilt
habit or maybe the cat wants to leave its scent on the thing it
is scratching. Cat furniture gives your cat a personal item to
scratch on while saving your favorite furniture.
Why does my cat knead things?
Cats often knead your lap before they will lie down. In fact,
they often knead any surface they plan to lie down on. Kneading
is when a cat extends the claws on its front two paws and digs
them into the surface which an alternating rhythmic motion.
Kneading (also known as milk tread) is first used in kittenhood.
When a kitten is sucking at its mother’s teats, it extends its
legs and kneads the area around the teat. This makes the milk
flow out faster. Perhaps as adults, a cat continues this
behavior because it feels happy and safe and associates the
comfort and joy of lying on your lap with the happiness he
shared with his mother. Kneading can also be a sign of good cat
health .
About the Author: www.AceCatFurniture.com
Source: www.isnare.com
Permanent Link: www.isnare.com/?aid=171606&ca=Pets
By Fred
February 4th, 2008 at 12:54pm
Under Cat Care+ Cat Health+ Pet Care
By Nancy Wigal
Cat urine smell is one of the most powerful pet odors
imaginable. If you don’t scoop the cat litter box and dispose of
her waste, your kitty may deposit her waste all over your home.
This article gives you some advice on why you should quickly
remove kitty deposits from the cat litter box, and how it
encourages her from making your home her giant litter box.
Cats are fussy, clean creatures and they usually have high cat
litter box standards. You can help your cat maintain her good
litter box habits by developing one of your own - scooping her
deposits from the cat litter box as quickly as you discover
them. But, that’s only half the battle. If you keep the trash
can too close to the cat litter box, the smell may overwhelm
your cat and drive her away from her box.
Since cats have staff (us!), one of our jobs is to keep their
litter boxes very clean. If you develop the habit of checking
her cat litter box every time you pass by, and scoop out her
waste if you see it, this is a great partnership for maintaining
a wonderful relationship between you and your cat. She deposits,
you scoop, the box is clean again, and everyone’s happy.
Kitty sees a clean box every time she needs to relieve herself.
The urine clumps and other solid waste don’t lie in the box,
permeating your home with the odor.
The other critical part of this partnership is making certain
the scooped items aren’t in close proximity to the cat litter
box. Why? The smell is overwhelming to both you and kitty. Since
cats have a much keener sense of smell than you and I, she’s
going to get bowled over by the odor far earlier than you, and
she’ll find a fresher-smelling area to meet her litter box
needs. If that area doesn’t have a cat litter box handy, too bad
for you!
In order to keep The Cat happy, scoop out her production and
deposit it into a plastic bag. Wrap the bag tight, and select a
wastebasket that’s far enough away from the cat litter box not
to be noticeable by you and your cat. This might a neutral room
where the cat litter box isn’t located. Empty that wastebasket
early and often to keep that part of your home from smelling
like a litter box.
Even if you only have one cat, you may have more than one cat
litter box. There are many kitties who like to have one box for
liquid deposits, and another for solid waste. Here’s a good rule
of thumb for determining the minimum number of cat litter boxes
you need in your home:
“X” cats +1 = minimum number of cat litter boxes
Pretty easy, huh? If you have two cats, you need at least 3 cat
litter boxes.
So if you do have more than one cat litter box, you’ll need to
check all of them on a regular basis. Many cats evacuate their
bladder and bowels on a fairly regular basis, so you’ll get a
sense of the time of day and/or evening you need to make your
rounds. My cat Scout usually voids her bladder anytime between
4:30 AM - 5:30 AM. She usually passes solid waste about an hour
later. In the evening, she will urinate around 5:30 - 6:00PM,
with a feces sample shortly afterward.
By knowing the approximate schedule your cat uses the litter
box, you can plan your trips to check for scoopable products at
fairly regular times. Her box is always clean and up to her
standards. You can strategically position a waste can far away
enough from all cat litter boxes in your home to keep the smell
out of her cat litter box area, thus encouraging kitty to use
her box all the time.
About the Author: Nancy has successfully eliminated cat urine
odor from her home, and kept the kitty that caused it. The Cat
Urine Odor Advisor helps you save money and stop the damage in
your household by offering solutions that work together to
eliminate cat urine odor from your home.
www.cat-urine-odor-advisor.com Subscribe to the Cat Urine
Odor Solutions newsletter, and I’ll send you my free report
“Four Important Litter Box Basics For Your New Kitten.” Start
your new addition to the family off right, and never have a cat
urine odor problem! RSS feed:
quikonnex.com/channel/view/caturineodoradvisor
Source: www.isnare.com
Permanent Link: www.isnare.com/?aid=5149&ca=Pets
By Fred
