Cats

[7Deadly$ins]

So true. People always say that they have pet cats, but the truth is, cats have pet humans.

 

Unfortunately, my cat has taken a liking to biting and scratching me. He's fine when other people are around, but when they leave, and I try to pet him, he'll bite into my hand. It seems to be play-biting, but it can still hurt. Does anyone know a way to break him out of the habit?

If you think he thinks it's a game, try ignoring him for 3-5 minutes immediately after he does it.

[Cavedragon49990]

How do you tell the difference between purring and growling? Our kitten Widget is always making a sound that I can't make out...

 

~Cavey

[LADYDRAGONSKEEPER]

How do you tell the difference between purring and growling? Our kitten Widget is always making a sound that I can't make out...

 

It can be hard as cats can have different 'voices.'

 

Best bet would be to look at other signs, like body language. A growl will USUALLY be when they are angry. A purr happy or wanting comfort. Ocassionally you get a cat with a puppy like attitude that makes tougher noise when playing. MOST cats I know lead up to growling with a shrill angry whine like noise.

[LADYDRAGONSKEEPER]

Really silly question. I have had Mewlie spayed a couple weeks ago. (yay no more annoying heat cycle)

Unfortunatly I forgot to ask the vet how long before her tummy will be furry again. I've had males neutered but never a female spayed. And never any other reason to shave a cat. So how long before her fur grows back?

[Cavedragon49990]

It might take a few weeks. When we got Widget she had recently been spayed and her tummy was almost completely bald. She's been with us for about two weeks now and she's got black belly fur now, but you can clearly see the white if she flips over. Unfortunately she's still got that bump on the belly from spaying, and I hate it because I don't want to touch it while I'm rubbing her stomach. And I devised a way of knowing if your cat will pounce.

1. KNOW THE SIGNS. Widget tends to flip her right paw under herself while she's crouching. Your cat might not do this, though, so check his/her rump, Widget usually raises hers before she springs.

2. IS YOUR CAT DECLAWED? If you have a declawed cat, it might be a bit harder to tell if he/she will pounce. If you haven't declawed your cat (I will not like you if you declaw because that's like removing ten bones) then check if the claws are unsheathed. If so, the cat is probably posed to leap.

3. LOOK FOR WIDE EYES. Widget has never closed her eyes when she has pounced so far because she is concentrating.

And another note-since our kitten is napping I looked in her ear and there appears to be something like a small tuft of fur in there. How do we get it out?

 

If I had to be a pet, I would be a house cat. You can just laze around all day and when you meow people run over to see what you need.

 

~Cavey

Edited April 14, 2011 by Cavedragon49990

[Draco Knight]

I love cats. I've had a few in my life.

 

A creamy seal point Himalayan had to have been one of the best cats I've ever owned, he was the sweetest cat. Definitely a lap/cuddle kind of cat. Even though he was mine, my mom bought him for me(after months of searching for a breeder we were comfortable with), he was most assuredly my mother's cat. I was his second favorite, we were inseparable when my mom wasn't home, but the second she was in the house I was completely forgotten. We think someone stole him. <.< Good luck! He was fixed, ya jerk!

 

My current kitty is Ms. Eclipse. A grey torti, she hates to be held, meows incessantly for food(even when she actually does have food, but didn't check her bowl before assuming I didn't feed her), she does like to be stroked(on her terms, of course), and if you walk by a book shelf she happens to be lounging in be prepared to feel kitty claws sink into your tender leg flesh. She is the cat people meet, and decide they hate cats. The demanding, aloof, snotty kind of cat. That being said, I love her to death of course. My mom got her from a co-worker, the co-worker was going to take her to the humane society.

 

I'd like to get a flame point Ragdoll kitten...my mom and I agreed years ago we were going to buy sibling kittens. That's gone up in smoke in the last few weeks. We're getting conure parrots together instead. No more cats for me.

[toxicneon]

I <3 cats. We currently have 3 kittens and a mom in my dorm. SO cute! Kitten antics are so funny.

At home I have a huge white cat. His name is Jojo.

[aj20]

I like cats, I have three, and I think tigers are absolutely beautiful! It sucks how much of their home is being destroyed

[azila]

I love cats, especially Siamese and Persians. Though I've always been more of a dog person, there's just a special place in my heart for members of the feline family. They're just so secretive, yet powerful.

 

I actually have a cat, an American Shorthair named Koi. Even though she's had her ups and downs (more of the downs recently), she's still a happy, healthy little cat. She's not exactly a lap cat, but she's fairly affectionate, and will lay at your feet as you sleep. She is an EXTREMELY loud purrer, and loves to eat literally anything that you put in front of her, as long as it's in the meat family.

[NakedSchnitzelFace]

I wish I had a cat XP

 

I love them so much.

 

My great aunt has this HUGE fluffy black cat and his fur must be about 2 inches long and and always fluffed out. His name is Jojo. And he is about as big as... I don't know what I should compare him to. I could never measure him but he looks to be about 2-3 feet long, nose to butt.

 

HE'S SO BEAUTIFUL AND FLUFFY

 

"IT'S SO FLUFFY I'M GONNA DIE!"

 

[Mulux]

We have a couple of ginger cats, both females who don't like each other & attack each other every opportunity. Amber is very affectionate with me, she's very fluffy. Sabrina is affectionate towards my other half, she's kind of scrawny but sooo adorable and I get jealous when she won't come to me

 

<3 cats

 

BUT I just seen this, not sure if true

 

A pet cat has found fame in Yangshan, eastern China's Jiangsu Province, after gaving birth to a puppy.

 

Story is here

 

http://news.myjoyonline.com/lighternews/201104/64277.asp

[lightbird]

http://news.myjoyonline.com/lighternews/201104/64277.asp

Cats can't give birth to dogs, and it's already mentioned in the article.

 

So how long before her fur grows back?

 

I remember that it took at least several months for my spayed girl's tummy fur to grow long enough until I couldn't tell that it had been shaved.

[Mulux]

Cats can't give birth to dogs, and it's already mentioned in the article.

 

 

Meh, she didn't witness the birth, neither did the person making the claim so it may be true. Using science to make it a fact, maybe it was gods work? LOL

 

I'm wondering why the person who made the claim would say something like that and find them difficult to doubt, although I do doubt it! Would she do it just to become *famous* for a day? I'd like to think not.

 

These kind of stories intruigue me, it would be great if some of them were true and still none believed it

[TikindiDragon]

No one believes it because it isn't geneticaly possible. Really. If they can't do it in a lab it's not going to happen 'accidently' in the wild now is it?

 

The most likely explaination is that given in the story - the mother cat lost a kitten, and 'found' a replacement from another group of babies nearby. It's perfectly possible for a cat to foster a puppy, but the only way she'd ever be able to give birth to one is if she'd been emplanted with canine embryos in a lab (and even then I imgaine her body would reject them).

[Mulux]

No one believes it because it isn't geneticaly possible. Really. If they can't do it in a lab it's not going to happen 'accidently' in the wild now is it?

 

The most likely explaination is that given in the story - the mother cat lost a kitten, and 'found' a replacement from another group of babies nearby. It's perfectly possible for a cat to foster a puppy, but the only way she'd ever be able to give birth to one is if she'd been emplanted with canine embryos in a lab (and even then I imgaine her body would reject them).

It's quite remarkable there were puppies nearby of the same age as the kittens and no one noticed any missing. The mother dog wouldn't have been happy for a cat, as smart as cats are, to sneak in and walk off with one of her puppies It does seem most logical explanation though, still because we're not used to hearing of things like this so often/at all. If that cat can do it again with witnesses is only way I would believe it 100%

 

 

I have just been playing hide & seek with one of our cats, Sabrina too. She chases me around the house and finds me where I hide, sometimes attacks my feet but then runs away until I find her then she chases me around the house again and won't let me pet her

[Rascal1414]

Cats are great. I love cats especially the wild ones. When I go to the zoo the best place for me to go is the Wild Cat area and I will try to get a picture of every one I can. My favorite is the White Tiger as they have such beautiful fur.

[Alpha Gryph]

Noooot a cat fan. All the cats that I've experienced have been the same, they don't want to be handled and just kinda lurk around the house in the shadows. Where's the fun in having a pet like that? >.=.0 I'm definitely more of a dog person.

 

Although I do love my uncle's cat, Josie Lynn. She's always been a real good cat, real sweet. <3 I think she's fourteen or fifteen years old now, so I don't think she will last too much longer. =[

[MedievalMystic]

My poor cat! I think he's in for a trip to the vet. Nothing is wrong with him, he's a very healthy young cat, but he's a big hairball...super long, thick fur, and no matter how much we brush him(which he loves and get's into! )he get's mats, especially under his arms and on his belly. I can get most of them with scissors, and he's good and patient about it, but some of them are so close to the skin I'm afraid I'll get him with the scissors, so....he'll have to have his belly, and under his arms shaved! He's never been groomed by a professional, and I'm so afraid it's going to traumatize him, but I don't know what else to do! Even with brushing...and he rolls on his back to get his belly brushed!...he still get's the mats.

[Rascal1414]

My poor cat! I think he's in for a trip to the vet. Nothing is wrong with him, he's a very healthy young cat, but he's a big hairball...super long, thick fur, and no matter how much we brush him(which he loves and get's into! )he get's mats, especially under his arms and on his belly. I can get most of them with scissors, and he's good and patient about it, but some of them are so close to the skin I'm afraid I'll get him with the scissors, so....he'll have to have his belly, and under his arms shaved! He's never been groomed by a professional, and I'm so afraid it's going to traumatize him, but I don't know what else to do! Even with brushing...and he rolls on his back to get his belly brushed!...he still get's the mats.

You may have to start having him professionally groomed every couple weeks. I know someone that has several long haired cats and that is what she has to do.

[Agleka]

I absolutely love cats! We've always had at least one cat since I was six (I'm almost 18 now). Cats at home are considered members of the family...

We now have one cute orange disaster... His name's Harry. And he would do as much trouble as possible when he's home alone (which is every day from 7 AM to at least 2 PM).

And every evenig when I go to bed he jumps on my bed between the sheets right before I manage to do it.

I love his antics. He sometimes chases his tail like a dog. And speaks to it. And there's that stain on the wall - I think it's um... bug blood. Harry loves hunting/killing that stain - maybe it still smells like that bug to him, I don't know.

Btw, I think you all would love

. I sometimes have the feeling my cat fits perfectly in the role...

 

[Cavedragon49990]

Does anyone know how to discourage use of claws without declawing? Widget made so many wounds on my arms and legs...most of them are gone, but a few are like scars. They just stay there. I don't mind her biting because she's at a teething age, but I really hate the clawing.

And she loves going behind the computer, running back to where I am, and curling up in the space between the keyboard and monitor. Too cute.

 

~Cavey

[zephyr_123]

I think cats don't like the smell of oranges and will stay away from the smell, so if you put orange peels on furniture they will not claw that.

 

For scratching people, though... uh, I guess eat a lot of oranges so the smell stays on your hands? Ah, the problem would be that she might not want you to pet her... hmm...

[rainpeltstar]

Does anyone know how to discourage use of claws without declawing? Widget made so many wounds on my arms and legs...most of them are gone, but a few are like scars. They just stay there. I don't mind her biting because she's at a teething age, but I really hate the clawing.

And she loves going behind the computer, running back to where I am, and curling up in the space between the keyboard and monitor. Too cute.

 

~Cavey

Biting, if you need it.

This might help?

Found these articles on cat channel.

[TikindiDragon]

Does anyone know how to discourage use of claws without declawing? Widget made so many wounds on my arms and legs...most of them are gone, but a few are like scars. They just stay there. I don't mind her biting because she's at a teething age, but I really hate the clawing.

And she loves going behind the computer, running back to where I am, and curling up in the space between the keyboard and monitor. Too cute.

 

~Cavey

Ctas do udnerstand 'no. If every time they get a claw (or tooth - you should discourage that at this age or they'll do it when they're adults) into you then you should squeal rather loudly and then say "NO!" in a firm voice. Then refuse to have anything to do with the cat for a minute or so.

 

That said, if she's a kitten and you are getting the claw marks when she's trying to climb your leg and stuff, you just need to put them back on the floor, hold up a finger and say "No" in that firm voice.

 

It's also good to get them used to having their claws clipped at this age. Clipping the claws does no harm to the cat, but by taking the sarp points off them you'll make sure the cat can do less harm to you (and/or the furniture!).

[dreamgirl5]

I love cats!

my favourite cat species are snowshoes and snow leopards.

and I have one cat, but what is strange about her is that she gived a birth to 13 kitties once I know it sounds impossible, but its true