16 Aug
My diet hasn’t changed and I’ve never been much of a drinker, but lately I’ve had this insatiable thirst. Should I ‘be concerned.
Any sudden increase in thirst it a cause for concern. Sometimes the cause is obvious, like changing from moist to dry food, but when there are no known reasons, people should assume that something is wrong.
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2 Jul
Why do I prefer to make love to cushions rather than to other cats?
Probably because that’s all there is. Sexual behaviour in males does not necessarily rely upon either attaining puberty or experience. The female cat’s brain remains sexually ‘neutral’ until she reaches puberty, but tom cats, and most other male mammals for that matter, have brains that are ‘male’ from birth.
18 Jun
How will I know when I’m old enough and ready to mate?
Male cats undergo physical changes when they reach puberty. They develop thicker skin on their necks to protect them in cat fights. Although not as dramatic as a lion’s mane, cheek ruffs grow and these make the face look larger. Males grow bigger than females, in some instances very much bigger. A male Maine Coon, for example, might be double the weight of a typical female, reaching ten kilograms in size. Most easy to recognize, however, is the tang of urine. Male sex hormone turns normally banal, uninteresting urine into a blazing garden of pungent aromas. It’s so distinctive that even humans with their relatively unsophisticated noses readily detect when a tom cat has sexually matured. Once this has happened, any time is the right time to mate.
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2 May
If I must have a feline companion, which sex is best?
This answer varies with the circumstances in which cats find themselves. Let’s start with free-living town or farm cats. If cats eat, sleep and breed on their own, independent of people, they naturally divide up according to sex. Females club together, forming a segregated colony. They will care for each other’s young, even suckling them. They will allow their daughters to remain within the colony, but will drive away their sons when they reach puberty. Most of these males will create an informal alliance with each other, a feline brotherhood. Their degree of co-operation is at its most dramatic when they form a quiet line, waiting to mate with a female in season.
13 Apr
Recently I have become infested with fleas. They don’t bother me, but my people are annoyed because the fleas are biting them. How can I get rid of these little suckers?
Any cat that goes outdoors in warm weather is likely to come to contact with fleas. Many species of animals have their own personal variety of fleas. Birds have bird fleas, rabbits have rabbit fleas, dogs have dog fleas, but everybody has cat fleas. The nuisance with cat fleas is their proletarian attitude towards life. Although their preferred host is the cat, they are perfectly happy to dine on dogs and humans. In fact, dog and human fleas are quite uncommon. Almost all dog fleas are, technically, cat fleas.
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1 Apr
Will I choke on bones if I try to eat them?
The only bones to avoid are fishbones. They can stick in the back of the throat and cause a cat to choke.
Many books that cat people read say that cats should never de fed bones. Cats, of course, pay no attention to this silly advice. They never leave tidy piles of mouse and bird skeletons after a feast. Although most cats will pluck a feathered meal before consumption, and some will make abdominal incisions in mice, removing the gall bladder and intestines before eating, all the bones get swallowed. Continue Reading
29 Mar
I have an insatiable need to eat house plants. My human recently bought a spider plant and I denuded it in a week. Do I have what some cats call an addictive personality?
There might be a genuine addiction involved, but it would be a typical behaviour rather than a sign of a true personality disorder.
Although they are true carnivores, most cats will eat grass naturally. They eat it to help them to vomit, but also because they sometimes simply enjoy having a salad. Those that lead an outdoor life will develop preferences for certain grasses and will often favour succulent young grass to drier older forms. Indoor cats don’t have the advantage of choice, and this is when they turn to houseplants. Continue Reading
27 Mar
Why do I have this compulsion to caterwaul at night- It wakes all the humans
Because cats prefer the security of night, it is the most frequent time for them either to go looking for sex or to have it. Both events can be noisy.
When toms fight over territory, or have duels to see who mates with the receptive female, they can be surprisingly, loudly, fearsomely vocal. Considering their small size, cats produce loud shrieks and growls. Sleeping people seldom hear the preceding hisses, spits and growls, but when two toms enter combat their high pitched shrieks and war cries become the loudest noises of the night. Continue Reading
23 Mar
Why is it that I like some dogs but am scared out of my wits by others?
Cats are less frightened of individual dogs they know than of other members of that species they have never met. The serious limiting condition here is that the kitten’s socialization period is very short, finishing when she is about seven to eight weeks old.
19 Mar
Why do people back away when I breathe on them- Is it because I dribble saliva?
Cat halitosis is quite offensive and is caused by bacteria multiplying in decaying food and infected gums. Cats normally keep their teeth and gums in good condition by chewing on skin and bones. They use their superbly shaped canine or eye teeth to inflict instantaneous death bites on rodents by quickly penetrating between vertebrae in the neck and severing the spinal cord. Their tiny incisors scrape bones, while the larger and sharper molars crush and tear.
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14 Mar
Why do I sometimes lash my tail, lower my head and growl at nothing?
It might be nothing to the human observer, but it is definitely something to the cat. First of all, it can be pain. If a cat feels sudden pain, whatever the source, instinctively she will act angry and growl. Even healthy young cats occasionally feel a twinge of pain in the intestines or in the urinary system, from tooth decay or from overfilled anal glands. Continue Reading
10 Mar
When I was in season recently I had sex with five tom cats. Which one is the father of my new litter of kittens.
No one knows. Promiscuity in cats is natural and possibly quite useful.
Take lions for example. Under normal circumstances the lion pride consists of a group of females and only one male, who has sole mating rights with his harem. But when that male is ultimately defeated and displaced by another male, the new one sets about ruthlessly killing the cubs sired by his predecessor. Infanticide means that all of the young will henceforth carry the genes of the new king.
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6 Mar
Why do I prefer drinking water from a dripping tap rather than from the water bowl that people kindly fill for me?
Simply because it is fun. Some people like to do the same, only they use the garden hose. Dogs do too. They enjoy the refreshing feeling of biting into water shooting from a hose. (Some big dogs prefer drinking from toilet bowls.)
4 Mar
My humans are moving. Should I go with them?
Probably. Because they are not pack animals, cats don’t form as dependent a relationship with people as dogs do. There are exceptions of course. The Oriental cats in particular – Siamese, Burmese, Tonkinese – are more likely to develop strong attachments to people than long-haired of Persian cats. Continue Reading
1 Mar
People worry that I’m going to smother their new baby. How can I convince them that human babies don’t interest me?
This is one of the greatest concerns that people have about cats. They worry that their cat will be jealous of the new baby and will try to scratch him or, more benignly, that she will find he is a convenient sleeping companion.
28 Feb
I am a grazer. Although I sometimes wolf down my meal at a single sitting, I prefer to come back frequently and eat little bits at a time. Do I eat this way because I am bored.
When food is plentiful, grazing is a normal way of eating. If cats are raised with food constantly available, they will eat small portions at a time throughout the day. Typically a cat will snack every couple of hours.
25 Feb
Skimmed milk is quite tasty, homogenized milk is delicious, and cream is heaven. My problem is that my owners think that drinking it gives me diarrhea and worms. How can this be true.
Natural cat mother’s milk is very rich, concentrated and has a much higher fat content that cow’s milk. In fact, it is closer to cream than to skimmed milk in consistency. Cats are opportunist feeders, and for many a bowl of milk is a deliciously nutritious reminder of mummy.
24 Feb
Sometimes I lick my hind legs and belly, swallowing all the fur and leaving my undercarriage almost bald. Are the causes the same as when I chew my back.
Sometimes, but there is another more important one. Cats have anal sacs located on either side of the anal opening, which discharge their perfume each time the cat passes droppings. The perfume acts as a daily newspaper for other cats, telling them where and even when the manufacturer of the perfume was last in the area, whether the cat was a male or female, and if female, whether she is in season.
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24 Feb
I’ve heard that cancer is not uncommon in older cats. I’ve also heard that it is now curable. Is that really true.
The incidence of cancers increases with age, and, yes, some are now treatable and some can be prevented.
21 Feb
I mind my own business and never interfere in what other cats are doing, so why do they all hiss and spit at me- I feel like a pariah.
A hierarchy develops in any quorum of cats. In a multiple cat household, for example, one cat will come to think to himself as boss cat and, by hissing, spitting, using aggressive body language and boxing, will lord it over the other cats. In most circumstances the others don’t squabble much and seldom fight with each other. They kowtow to the boss, Continue Reading
19 Feb
I am a Siamese. Each time I catch sight of the new cat my people have brought into the house I want to claw his eyes out. Why do I feel such rage?
Personality varies from cat to cat, but certain personality traits are more common in some breeds than in others. Siamese are more demonstrative with their emotions than most other breeds, and they are the breed least likely to accept feline strangers into their home.
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10 Feb
Are there any ways that I can get good care but avoid the expense to my humans?
First, prevention is frequently less costly than treatment. Secondly, insurance to cover the cost of treating illness or disease is usually available. Thirdly, when the chips are down and people genuinely can’t afford treatment, it is the rare veterinarian who will refuse to treat.
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8 Feb
How can I prevent other cats from using my cat flap?
Only with a padlock. If there is a brazen territorial cat in the vicinity and that cat considers both the outdoors and the indoors to be part of his territory, he will readily enter the house to eat food, chase cats or, worse, spray urine.
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29 Jan
I’ve heard stories that I have ESP and can use it to find my way home when I get lost. Is this true?
The unfortunate fact is that the vast majority of lost cats never find their way home. Yet stories persist of cats finding their way home over mountains, rivers and highways, and these stories are common throughout the world. There are two possible explanations.
18 Jan
Why do I prefer scratching the sofa to the exceedingly expensive scratching post that my people bought for me?
Cats scratch objects mainly for two reasons: to help manicure their nails; and to leave a scent mark.
The feel of texture of a surface is the most important physical attraction it has for a cat. Purpose-built scratching posts might look delightful to a human, but many just don’t feel right to cats. Cats like to extend their nails and then be able to drag them vertically down the material. Continue Reading
11 Feb
I try to aim straight but lately I seem just to miss my litter tray. Do you have any hints on how I can improve my sanitary habits.
Missing the tray is either a tray problem or a cat problem. The sides of the tray might not be high enough, so when the cat urinates he shoots over the edge. The tray might be too dirty. In this situation the cat hovers near the edge of the tray where the litter is cleaner to stand on, and shoots over the edge. Continue Reading
14 Feb
I think I’m a pretty good mother, but lately my kittens have been getting on my nerves. I find myself constantly shouting at them and disciplining them. What’s happening to me?
Just as people go through a stage where their children get on their nerves, mother cats do too. For people, this stage usually occurs when the children are between twelve and eighteen years old, but with cats it happens when the kittens are twelve to eighteen weeks old.
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16 Feb
What type of litter should I use?
People often choose litter according to their own preferences rather than the needs of their cat. The most important feature of litter is its feel. If a cat doesn’t like the texture of what she is standing on, she won’t use it to mess in. This doesn’t necessarily mean that cats prefer the texture of their litter to be as much like earth or sand as possible. Most enjoy those feelings underfoot but are equally happy with other substrates as well.
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17 Feb
Will my kitten’s father help me to raise my litter?
Don’t expect him to. Tom cats rarely show any interest in their kittens.
Some toms might hang around and, in a rather banal way, watch the birth. Even more rarely, some toms might give the odd lick, but this is the exception not the rule. Cats are old-fashioned feminists, so rather than counting on help from males, they help each other. Continue Reading
4 Sep
Will having a kitten for company help me in my bereavement?
Not straightaway. If a cat is grieving the loss of companionship, a new kitten simply isn’t a suitable replacement for that loss. The loss has been unique. Nothing can replace it. What can happen is that with time the grieving cat can form a relationship with another cat but that will happen only after new and different bonds develop.
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24 Mar
In their culture fat is a negative. Because they treat cats as members of their human family, they apply the ‘fat is bad’ rule to their cats too. For a housebound feline it ain’t necessarily so. Continue Reading
23 Mar
The consequence is that if a cat is happy and content to be overweight, that condition is not overwhelmingly harmful. Humans have a mania about fatness. Continue Reading
22 Mar
On the negative side, fat lazy cats have a far higher incidence of urinary problems than lean ones. They are less agile and injure their joints more frequently. The ‘Catch 22’ of their lives is that as they get fatter, and therefore less active, several risk factors actually diminish.
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20 Mar
The cat most likely to run to fat is neutered, housebound naturally lazy and rather indolent. Housebound cats live much longer than their outdoor cousins. Similarly, neutered cats have longer lives than intact brethren, so although fat cats live long lives, there are other factors that also help to achieve longevity
19 Mar
Only ten per cent of cats are overweight, far fewer than the thirty per cent of dogs. And life expectancy does not seem to be shortened significantly for these overweight cats. But there are other problems. Continue Reading
18 Mar
I am one of those fat cats. I am quiet, sedentary, slothful, and happy the way I am. Sex doesn’t interest me after I had an operation when I was young. I weight twice as much as other cats with my bone structure. Honest. Is it really harmful to be overweight Continue Reading
18 Mar
Dry food is safe to feed young cats, but if mature cats switch to it people should watch carefully to make sure that their fluid intake is high enoug Continue Reading
17 Mar
They might like or even positively crave the taste of dry food but refuse to increase their water consumption. When this happens, their urine becomes more concentrated. Any crystals that might form in natural urine also concentrate, and this can lead to inflammation of the bladder wall and subsequent infection.
16 Mar
Drinking enough fluids is not a problem when cats eat dry food from kittenhood. They learn as youngsters to drink extra water or milk, which people should always provide. Once they have matured, however, some cats get very settled in their ways.
16 Mar
Canned cat food also contains about eighty per cent liquid, so when cats eat that they also satisfy their fluids requirements, but soft moist food is only thirty pet cent moisture and dry food is considerably less. When these foods are eaten, cats simply must drink more fluids to meet their body’s needs. Continue Reading
15 Mar
I love the crunch of dry cat food: it’s just like munching on succulent mouse bones. However, I’ve heard that eating it causes urinary problems. Are dry foods safe to eat?
In most instances they are, but there are some circumstances in which they should be avoided. Continue Reading
15 Mar
Just like humans, mice and birds are about eighty per cent liquid. When cats eat these natural prey, they get most of the daily liquid the need. That’s why some cats seldom drink anything. Continue Reading
14 Mar
When the cat has been using his indoor litter tray routinely for the three weeks, he can then be let outdoors each day, but only after he has emptied his bowels in the indoor tray. Continue Reading
13 Mar
Once the cat has used the litter tray, the ratio of earth to litter can gradually be changed, and the litter increased until it predominates. At the same time, all vestiges of the former outdoor latrine site should be removed thoroughly. Continue Reading
12 Mar
By bringing the outdoors indoors they can convince their cat to use his litter tray. At the same time, they should cover all indoor earth in plant pots with aluminium foil or other protection to prevent their house-restricted feline from toileting there.
11 Mar
Regardless of the logical reason for the cat’s behaviour, cat droppings in gardens offend most gardeners. People can compromise by doing two things. First, they should bring in soiled earth from the garden and mix it with the cat’s letter. Continue Reading
10 Mar
He always goes back to the same latrine site and only ever leaves his droppings there. When given the choice between using a litter tray covered in a granular substance or a familiar earth toilet, cats prefer the latter. Continue Reading
9 Mar
Earth is the natural substance that cats use for toileting. Typically, a cat chooses a specific toilet site, digs a small hole with his forepaws, passes his droppings in the hole, then fastidiously covers them up. Continue Reading
8 Mar
Although I have an indoor litter tray, I prefer to empty my bowels in my own garden. I always cover up my droppings but my human doesn’t understand. She locks me indoors. What can I do to convince her to let me out again? Continue Reading
