Archive for the 'Cat care' Category

Common Meanings of Cat Behavior

A lot of people think that cats work on their own agenda, not paying much attention to their owner – provided they have clean litter, food, and water. Cats can behave in odd manners at times, which can easily confuse their owners and make it really hard to determine what the cat wants. As much as cat behavior can be confusing, there are some ways that you can solve common cat behavior mysteries.

A common behavior that almost all cats do is push their heads into any type of object that will allow them to do it. You’ve probably seen your cat do this before, probably against table legs, TV stands, or another object. This can be noticed more when you have other people who own animals or those with allergies over at your house. When a cat notices this, he will rub his head against the person. In doing so, he will put a touch of saliva on the individual. In a cat’s mind, he owns what he puts his saliva on.

By putting his saliva on something, that object or person will have a familiar scent. Although this can be very annoying, you have to understand that other people in your home are seen as odd or weird to your cat. When a cat does this, he is simply trying to make the visitor belong. When he brushes up against them and puts his saliva on them, he is trying to put his scent on them – which in his mind will mean that they belong in his territory.

Even though marking someone or something with saliva is beneficial to the cat, saliva is one of the most common forms of pet allergies. When someone wipes the saliva off of them, the scent will be gone and the cat will go back and attempt to do it again. Even though it may appear that cats target those with allergies, cats are actually just trying to make the visitor belong at the house. If the guest simply cannot take the saliva, allow the cat to rub himself on their pants leg a few times. Normally, this is all takes for a cat to leave the person alone.

Those of you who an indoor cat should expect the cat to spend quite a bit of time lying near windows. During this time, you may hear your cat make very strange noises or weird movements. You shouldn’t fear though, as he is simply acting out his hunting instincts. Whether it’s another cat or object outside moving about, the cat will see it and simply go into his native hunting instinct.

As most already know, cats love to play. They love to played with, especially with toys. They will pounce on things on occasion, which should always be expected. If you try to prevent this type of behavior, your cat will take a very negative approach and you’ll end up with a lot of broken things in your home. You can always play with your cat using a string, as he will love to chase the string around the room.

The longer you own your cat, the more odd behavior you’ll see him exhibit. Cats behave in strange ways, although they always have a reason for behaving the way they do. If you can understand why your cat behaves like he does, you’ll have no problems keeping him healthy and happy. If you simply pay attention to your cat and the way he behaves at times – you’ll be able to understand him better than ever before.

About the author: We provide grooming for dogs and cats, and free pet grooming consultation services and free grooming tips by breeds! Our pet products include fashionable carriers, embroidered shirts, reversible raincoats, pet shoes, cotton dresses, pet food, pet carrier, dog ribbons, and other related pet products.
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Behavior Restrictions With Designer Cats

In recent years there has been an unfortunate move to accept novelty or, as they are sometimes called, designer cats. By choosing to select some of these animals as breeds (to the disadvantage of the animals) the health and welfare of the cats have been put in jeopardy, and the physical changes have not been -without behavioral cost. These changes have occurred mainly in two ways.

Selecting Extremes

The first is by gradual selection towards exaggerated extremes, in large part caused by awarding points for extremes at the show bench. This has produced the modern Persians fuller, flatter face, build and heavy coat. It has also formed the thin, snippy, contemporary Siamese.

The most exaggerated form of the flat-faced Persian is the Peke-faced Persian, although the ultra-types’ in Britain are not far behind. In veterinary terms they have maxillo-facial compression, with a predisposition towards respiratory, pharyngeal and eye diseases. The contorted passageways and change of build with the full coat make exertion less attractive to the cat. Persians generally are recognized as being more lethargic; while they can and do run and play on occasion, their activity profile is more sedentary. However, this activity reduction cannot be attributed fully to a long coat, for Northern longhairs such as the Maine Coon are active, with much patrolling activity over their territories.

The change from the traditional standard-shaped Siamese to the thinner form has produced more restlessly active cats. These modern Siamese are light in build, but they have also undergone a change in the shape of the skull, which has been extended and narrowed. However, there have also been suggestions that the behavior change may not be due entirely to build differences.

Radical Change

The second change in recent breeding practice has been a greater acceptance of radical appearance changes arising from mutations. A number of these are controversial, not least because of their behavior implications.

The Scottish Fold, with its ear deformity, must be out crossed to avoid horrific cartilage and bone deformations. The Fold’s ears are permanently flattened in a defensive look. The American Curl from California similarly has ears permanently distorted back which may seem to another cat to be signaling aggression. Even if they are not read in this way, the inability to move the ears deprives the cat of a major means of communication.

The American short-legged mutation called the Munch kin has been selected purely as a novelty. It cannot jump and climb in the normal way, and lacks the lithe balanced movements of other cats. Its grooming behavior is also restricted because of its short leg length. Normal behavior is similarly affected in the Sphinx. Its lack of fur affects its ability to control its temperature; consequently its free access to the outside world in cooler conditions should be curtailed.

About the author: James Liu has a social site for pets. Users can participate by uploading videos, forums, and posting comments on the forums. Find out more about his site at http://www.petclips.tv
Source: http://www.articlesbase.com

Curing Bad Cat Breath

Cat owners know for a fact that bad cat breath can be downright awful. It isn’t that much different from bad human breath, as both are caused by bacteria found in the mouth that breaks protein down and releases the sulfur compounds out into the air. Sulfur smells really bad on its own, which is why breath containing it smells bad as well. The bacterium that causes bad breath with cats is normally associated with a buildup of tartar around the teeth. Tartar is yellow in color, known as a coating of bacteria, food, and minerals.

To cure your cat from bad breath, you’ll need to remove the buildup of tartar. There are several cat foods out there that are designed to reduce the buildup of tartar, many containing enzymes that will literally dissolve it. You can also give your cat treats as well, as many of them will help eliminate and prevent tartar. If the buildup of tartar is bad, you may need to have your cat’s teeth professionally cleaned. Once the tartar has been removed, the bad breath will go away.

You may be able to clean the tartar off your cat’s teeth at home. There are several toothpastes available for pets, available in several different flavors. You’ll need to get a mechanical toothbrush, as the motion is very important for removing tartar buildup. Toothpastes that contain enzymes will dissolve tartar, helping to cure bad breath. If you start early with brushing your cat’s teeth, you can virtually eliminate any type of tartar buildup that will ultimately lead to bad breath.

Some bacteria that lead to tartar can be found in your cat’s diet. When you feed him, you should always make sure that the food he consumes doesn’t contain a lot of bacteria. If you shop healthy and feed him only healthy foods, it can help his bad breath a great deal. When you give your pet a treat, make sure that the treat is designed to help with tartar. After your cat has finished eating, you can brush his teeth or rinse his mouth out. This way, you’ll get the bacteria out of his mouth before it has time to build up on his teeth.

Sometimes, cats may have a bad odor in their mouth that doesn’t come from tartar or bad breath in general. In these rare cases, it can be either liver or kidney disease. If you notice bad breath and it isn’t tartar, you should take your cat to the vet. Even though it may be something to do with tartar, it’s better to be safe than sorry. Your veterinarian can pinpoint the problem, let you know what the cause is – and how you should go about fixing it.

About the author: We provide grooming for dogs and cats, and free pet grooming consultation services and free grooming tips by breeds! Our pet products include fashionable carriers, embroidered shirts, reversible raincoats, pet shoes, cotton dresses, pet food, pet carrier, dog ribbons, and other related pet products.
Source: http://www.articlesbase.com

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