Cat Q&A

IB Homegirl has something to say to her cheapskate boyfriend about Valentines Day! Funny cat video to send to your friends! Video by Daniel Wolfert and Bonnie Rogers. http://www.cutepicturesofcats.com

A home should never be without plants. In some cases however, the plants in your indoor pots and the ones in your garden could be the cause of illness or death in your pet cat. There are points therefore that you should remember to help prevent your cat from getting poisoned by plants.

Plants Toxic to Cats

Over a hundred listed cat toxic plants are listed online. Others estimate however, that the list of toxic plants could go well over 700. What is important is that you are able to easily identify a potential plant hazard. When ingested, cats will often become groggy, agitated and may vomit or have diarrhea. In severe cases, cats could die of plant poisoning.

Lilies, mistletoe, poinsettia, poison ivy, aloe vera, eucalyptus, ferns, chrysanthemum, daffodil, holly, jonquil and tulip are just some of the plants that are toxic to your cats. Certain plants may not be toxic by nature but they can be harmful to your cat if they have been sprayed with pesticide.

Why Cats Play with These Plants

Curious and playful, your cat would consider a big potted plant as a new item to explore. Cats also love to play with grass. If you keep your cat all day indoors, he may start to think of your plant as replacement grass. In some cases, cats may even use the soft inviting soil as a litter spot.

In the course of a cat’s play time therefore, he may either accidentally or intentionally nibble on your indoor plant.

Redecorating Ideas

Of course, it’s never easy to redecorate your home to make it cat-friendly. This is especially true if you have to cat-proof your garden too.

One solution for gardens with cat toxic plants is to keep sprinklers on a timer to drive your little explorer away. You may also want to consider putting up a fence around dangerous plants.

To keep your cats safe from indoor plants, provide a screened area for these plants. Sprinkling some cayenne powder also seems to be an effective deterrent for cats.

Other entertainment

Your cats are different from toddlers. It would therefore be harder for you to explain why they absolutely cannot have a bite of that fern. It is suggested that you offer your cat other activities to carefully divert his attention. You can offer him a grass patch or a scratching post. Make sure too that he has a variety of toys and regular outdoor playtime. In the long run however, the best solution to keep your cat safe from toxic plants is to monitor him.

Immediate Response

Respond immediately if you notice the symptoms of poisoning in your cat. Carefully inspect your cat’s mouth and remove plant leaves that may still be inside. As much as possible, do not attempt to come up with a solution on your own. The vet will know best what to do in poisoning situations.

When we have only one cat and she misses the litterbox, it can be hard to fix. When we have more than one cat in the house, it can be even harder.

Here’s a step-by-step guide to help stop litter box problems in a multi-cat home. first of all, act fast. A litter box problem that continues for a long time can become harder and harder to solve. Litter box mistakes can lead to territorial responses, and disturb the routines and hierarchies of your entire household.

Will Muffin still want to take her daily afternoon snooze on the couch if Tiger urinated there? She may find some other area, displacing more and more of your cats, and creating fighting and other dominance displays. If you put off solving the problem, hoping it will go away on its own, you may find it multiplying in your home.

Find the culprit. Before you even try to determine the “why,” figure out the “who.” If you catch it early enough, you can hopefully nail it down to one cat. Many people like to isolate each cat to determine which cat is causing the problem, but displacing one cat, even overnight, can sometimes lead to dominance displays in the others, as they claim undefended territory.

If you have new cats, or kittens reaching adulthood, you may want to visit the vet for help. Your veterinarian can prescribe fluoresce in for your cats, helping you to determine which urine stain(s) glow under an ultraviolet light.

Rule out a Veterinary Problem. Veterinary causes underlie many litter box problems, particularly in household with older cats or those with access to the outdoors. Urinary tract infections are one of many common causes, where the cat develops an aversion to the box as a painful place to be. Other health problems can also cause litterbox mistakes.

Worse, without visiting the veterinarian, your other cats may be at risk, which could cause the problem to multiply. No behavior techniques in the world will help a cat with a veterinary problem, so don’t skip the trip to the vet.

Observe the Behavior. If the vet rules out a health problem, I next recommend a brief observation period. It’s always very frustrating to the owner to let the cat continue his litter box mistakes, but it gives you the knowledge to attack the specific problem.

During the observation period, try to concentrate on the things in the environment that may be important to your cat, like litter boxes, food bowls, favorite places, the routines of the other cats and people in the home, etc. Start a journal where you record as much information as you can about every litterbox mistake, then look for links.

Does the cat always use the same room? Is it always on carpeting? Does it happen after meals, or at some other time of day? Are the other cats nearby? Did you have guests over? When you isolate the specific stimuli involved, it allows you greater control without making major changes in the environment that may upset the rest of the cats.

Break the Habit. Elimination sites are matters of preference, and when the cat gets into the routine of going to a certain location, you’ll need to prevent the behavior from recurring. Since the smell of declining urine is a signal for the cat to “reapply,” clean the accident site with a pet odor remover – perhaps multiple times to get past the cat’s sensitive nose.

Block off the area while the product does its work. Remote deterrents, that work whether you are around or not, will keep the cat from returning to the area whenever you aren’t standing guard. Double-sided tape or an upside-down plastic carpet runner, pointy feet up, can keep your cat from standing in the same area.

Cats also hate to be startled, so anything that can safely surprise the cat when he visits that area can help make the area less “cat-friendly.”

Make the current litter box more appealing. While you are preventing bad habits, make good habits more appealing. The litter box should be clean, have privacy, and in multi-cat homes, escapability is also important.

This simply means that the cat can see off a distance, so he won’t be ambushed in the box, or on his way there. Most cats prefer clumping, non-perfumed litter, but work with your individual cat to determine whether a box of a different size, shape, or litter would help.

Retrain the cats. If it doesn’t seem to help to address the individual factors in your journal, or your cat has never regularly used the litterbox, you may want to retrain the cat by himself.

Use this as a last resort, since removing the cat from the hierarchy may upset the routines of all the cats in the home. Keep the cat in a small, uncarpeted room, with a clean litterbox, food bowl, and toys in opposite corners. Pick up all rugs from the floor, so the only soft place to choose to eliminate will be the litterbox.

Visit the cat often, and clean the box regularly. I also recommend recording the times that the cat uses the box.

Many cats stick to a regular routine, so once you’ve determined when the cat is likely to use the box, you can let the cat out during low-risk times to maintain the hierarchy, and put him back in the room with the litter box during high risk periods. Repetition of successful use will increase the cat’s preference to the box.

General stress reduction. In some situations, it’s difficult to determine specific environmental triggers for a problem behavior. However, sometimes general stress reduction techniques will prove helpful, particularly in multi-cat homes.

For litter box problems that have arisen from territorial disputes, additional resources may reduce competition for resources.

Extra litter boxes and food bowls are always helpful, but remember that YOU are also an important resource, so give each cat as much attention as they could possibly want. Exercise can also help redirect cats energies. It can also help desensitize cats to each other, while they are praised for attacking a toy while the other cat watches.

Routines are also very important in multi-cat homes, particularly when older cats are involved. Scheduled feeding, petting and exercise periods at the same time and location every day can further reduce stress that may be contributing to the litter box problem.

Litter box problems in multi-cat homes can be difficult. However, caring responsible owners can have an advantage solving the problem with they use quick, decisive actions and apply solid behavioral techniques.

A few months ago we found a stray cat in our front yard we think its a rare breed called a california spangled how can i make sure i identified it right?
no i didnt ask her i guess i should. thnx
well the personality of the california spangled matches the personality of my cat
yeh it was a stray
It has blackish/gray spots and has black,grey,silver,brown,tan and a faw orange stripes here and there.

Anyone who owns a pet and especially a cat knows how difficult it is to be Cleaning Cat Urine everyday and to keep the house clean and smell-free for longer than a couple of hours. There are a lot of people who deal with the bad habits of their cats, because these cats are not house trained. On the other hand, cat owners may be having no alternative and they must leave their cats home alone for longer periods of time. This may stress the animals. Stress often leads them toward leaving their urine outside their litter box, on the carpets, furniture and even more awkward places, like cupboards and flower pots.

The most embarrassing thing in the world is having your friends or relatives over, in a house that stinks like cat urine, which is well known for its bad odor. The bad smell in cat urine comes from the bacteria it contains. Even if you clean the house with all kinds of detergents, the smell tends to persist longer than you could imagine.

Sometimes, this habit of your cat can really get on your nerves, but the affection that you have for it will make you find alternative methods of getting rid of the smell. Even if Cleaning Cat Urine is not a pleasant thing, most people will try to overlook it and find a solution. A good Cat Urine Remover is definitely not easy to find. Nowadays, most of the products available on the market work but not efficiently or not on a long-term basis.

Moreover, many of the products available are not safe for humans, animals and plants; they can cause cancer and pollute the environment, when they disintegrate. Cleaning Cat Urine is a common search on the internet; here, on remove-cat-urine-odor.com, Cat Urine Remover products or recommendations are available.

Even though you might find a Cat Urine Remover and get rid of the smell, this solves only half of the problem. As long as your cat still keeps peeing inside your house, you will always have to deal with this incredibly annoying situation. You need to un-train you cat to act like that, and make sure your pet uses the litter box instead. However, this may take a lot of patience and understanding of animal behavior. Take a closer look at your cat’s body language and try to figure out why it acts like that. Owning a pet is not an easy thing and the cat needs your care and attention, not only food and water.

The search for a proper Cat Urine Remover that actually works and keeps your home free of odor can take a long time and cost you a lot of money. Let’s not even mention the ruined carpets, the destroyed furniture and the plants that you need to throw away; what’s to say about friends who avoid coming over because they can’t stand the smell? Even you and your family members become stressed because of the stench and of the constant Cleaning Cat Urine tasks.

Some people practically hit the roof when dealing with their cat and the problems involved in taking care of it. Painfully, they decide to get rid of it. However, if children are involved, such a task becomes very difficult to complete. Children can get really attached to pets as adorable as cats are. So, instead of taking extreme measures, which can cause you pain, you should learn to interact with your cat, re-gain its trust, create a friendly and warm environment for both of you; try to find at least an hour a day to show the cat your affection. This might not improve its bad behaviors, but it can be a starting point in the development on a friendly basis of your relationship with the cat. Through hard work and tender love and care, you might discover in your pet new and interesting features that you haven’t noticed before due to lack of time or patience.

In the end, you need to arm yourself with patience and start improving you life quality and your cat’s as well by just informing yourself of the right way to act and approach the whole situation. In time you will be able to own a cat.

6 years ago, a stray cat had a litter of kittens under my neighbours hot tub deck. We took a medium-long haired grey one into our home, and I’ve always thought of it being a mix or a mut of some sort. I’ve just recently did some research, and he looks exactly like a Nebelung. I’m not sure if anyone knows any specific genetics about this breed? I read that they are quite rare and breeders usually charge $300+

I remember specifically there being a long haired black kitten and other short-haired kittens.

Here is a picture of my cat: http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v178/ms_lotr_freak/Pets/Grayson/IMG_0420.jpg?t=1192895011

Thanks!
I’m not sure about his mum, I believe something happened to her, because she was never around when the kittens were very young. I do remember a black shorthaired female being in the area months before.

It’s probably impossible to tell, since I don’t know the genetic traits of the parents. There’s an article on Wiki here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nebelung stating that two shorthaired cats did produce a cat similar to mine.
I live in a very rural area, so there are stray cats everywhere, if that means anything!

She is 15yrs. and a specific breed can anyone help?

A relatively new feline breed, Peterbald has emerged from Russia. It traces its origin to St. Petersburg in the mid nineteen nineties when a Don Sphynx male was crossed with an Oriental Shorthair female. The resulting litters contained kittens of an individual and distinct disposition. They had inherited attributes from both their parents and yet were unique in their appearance. Their breeding was thereafter started and the development continues to date. With time they are gaining gradual recognition by international registration bodies. However, it is one of the newest feline breeds and requires time before universal acceptance by cat fanciers is achieved.

Peterbalds have an elegant and slender physique. They are finely built and have a long and sleek body type. Head is triangular with bright almond-shaped eyes, well developed cheek bones and big high-set ears. Owing to a genetic transformation, Peterbalds have very short down hair in their coat. All fur colors and patterns are currently accepted. Tail and legs are thin yet strongly built. Overall appearance is that of a lean well muscled cat.

Peterbalds are still quite recent as a breed and not much is known about their health and the presence of any hereditary recurring medical conditions in them. They have an oriental look and are bred variously to Siamese, Orientals and Russian Blues to maintain genetic diversity and incorporate desirable attributes into their gene pool.

Owing to their short fur, Peterbalds are prone to losing heat quickly in winter and thus should be kept indoors. They have a very rapid metabolic rate and eat more and heal faster from their injuries than most other cats. Friendly and active animals, they adjust well to all members of a household. They shed little and don’t require excessive grooming. Not overly vocal or demanding, the graceful Peterbalds are very calm and adoring by nature.

My cat drinking milk from a glass

In the next few paragraphs, we will explore new ideas and thoughts that may help you achieve your goal and decide what is best for you when choosing toys for your cats.

Toys for girl cats and boys:

When the mouse is away, cats play. And cats have the tendency to both play hard and play soft. Toys are to cats the same as toys are to dogs. It helps fight the boredom experienced by these pets as well as gives our feline friends the opportunity to practice and use their natural inclination to chase and hunt for prey. It also gives the cat owner that great chance to play with their pets, an experience that will aid in bonding their relationship.

But what toys are best for cats? The following are tips and helpful advice to get that perfect toy for the cat owners perfect pets.

Play safe:

The good thing about cats is that they can play ball inside the house and the owners will never know it. Still, there may be things inside the house that cats could find attractive yet might actually endanger their health and safety. Houses must be cat-friendly. As much as possible, take away any string, yarn, needles, rubber bands or other objects that could easily be swallowed by cats. These things could be lethal to cats. Do not let them play with these articles no matter how cute they may appear to be.

Play soft:

Choose soft toys that can easily be machine-washed. It is best that the toys chosen to be played with by cats are also the toys marked as safe to be played with by children below three years old. Toys such as these usually contain fillings that are not hazardous. Also, avoid giving cats toys that are hard and rigid, these types do not appeal to them that much.

Know your cat, know their toy:

It is best that one also familiarize themselves with your cat. Doing so helps in ones selection of the kind of plaything that best serves the size of ones cat – the kind of activity the cat likes and its unique preferences. Know the environment in which the cat likes to spend its time the most.

Choose active toys:

Toys that are great to play with for cats are usually the round plastic ones (such as rings from shower curtains, plastic balls, golf balls, balls used in ping-pong) as these give cats the opportunity to chase and paw around. They could also carry these in their mouths, make sure though that these are big enough they cannot be swallowed but not so large that they cannot carry them in their mouths.

Choose active play:

Balls can be placed inside bath tubs filled with water. Watch as cats frolic and play on and around the toy. It is just as enjoyable to the cat as it is fun for the cat owner. Another added feature that could be placed on balls are bells. One not only sees how cats play, one could also listen and take pleasure in the playful sound

.

Another simple yet effective plaything for cats is a paper bag. Use paper bags that do not have handles. These bags are good for pouncing around. Cats hide in them too. As much as possible, avoid the plastic ones as cats have the tendency to chew these and they may eat the plastic. This is not good.

Toys with tails:

Cats like playing with soft toy animals – specially the ones that have tails. They either bite them, paw them or chase these little stuffed toys around. It is best if these toys are as big or as small as the cats playing them.

Toys with catnip:

Catnip is sometimes used as stuffing for toys that are soft. Putting catnip in such playthings make the toys more enjoyable to carry, kick and throw around. More importantly, it is safe for cats to chew on, roll around in, or eat.

It is okay for owners to place catnip on carpeted floors, or (to make clean-up easy) on towels. There are now catnip oils that can be placed on carpets, and they usually stay there. Cats detect these too. Although small cats, specifically kittens who are younger than six months have shown a certain kind of immunity to catnip.

All in all, it is best that cat owners define what kind of toy should be played by their cats. It is advisable that different kinds of toys be given on certain days, and that displaying all toys simultaneously may not be a good idea. Cats can easily tire of seeing the same fluffy toy animal again and again. Variety always works best. However if cats show a certain liking to a specific toy, let them play with it, or sleep with it – whichever they like. In closing, it will benefit you to seek out other resources on this topic if you feel that you don’t yet have a firm understanding of the subject matter.