I forgot to mention... even though you live in a nice city area it's always best to keep your cat indoors. Indoor cats have a far greater life expectancy. Cats who go outdoors are open to parasites, diseases, other hostile animals, and traffic. Keeping your cat inside is doing it a huge favour!
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Please help - Looking to Adopt!
- Thread starter naomik
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In case you aren't aware of it, honeysuckle will make your cat high, like catnip does.
Just in case you might not know.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
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I didn't know that about honeysuckle....hmmm. My cats don't like catnip, they simply don't respond to it. I even tried to get the catnip in a spray bottle and still....nada.
Ooo the honeysuckle thing reminded me you have to worry about poisonous stuff too like houseplants and things around the house they could eat or drink. You even have to worry about choking on things.
So remember that too if you end up getting a cat.
So remember that too if you end up getting a cat.
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It makes them very lovey is all- your cat will start rubbing all over the ground and you if you are near. They use it in toys- dried of course, but we have a honeysuckle bush on our land and during the summer the ferals go nuts near it. Some of my cats do not respond to catnip, but they love that honeysuckle bush!
How old are they? I think I've heard they dont respond untill after 6 months. Spica likes her scratching ball chaser toy better now. Shes constantly attacking it. She didnt before. I think the catnip has kicked in
One and a half for Toby and I'm going to guess fourteen for Howard (shelter cat, no real idea)
Maybe I'll try honeysuckle.
Not that I'm hellbent to get my cats high, lol.
Maybe I'll try honeysuckle.
Not that I'm hellbent to get my cats high, lol.
Well then I guess the 6month thing doesnt apply to your cats...hmm..
I've never tried it with mine they are all outside cats. If they like honeysuckle guess that explains mine's affinity for the fence row..a reason other than mice!! Crazy cats!
Hi and welcome Naomik
I have read through all the posts and can understand both sides. I hope you get the kitty of your dreams. I also think an older cat would be great - apart from not getting all the 'kitten' proofing to your home the older cats often get overlooked.
tulip
I have read through all the posts and can understand both sides. I hope you get the kitty of your dreams. I also think an older cat would be great - apart from not getting all the 'kitten' proofing to your home the older cats often get overlooked.
tulip
I think it is a very good idea to confine a cat to one room for the first few days in your home just until he gets used to being there. I think it is overwelming to let him roam the whole place the first day. After about two or three days allow him to roam the rest of the house and bring him back into the room at night to sleep, with the door closed (only if there is food and litter in that room, of course). I would do this for a few days and then eventually just give him free reign to the entire appartment. Eventually you can move the litter and food to a more sensible location. Just show the litter and food to the cat a few times after it is moved. The room you confined him to will likely remain his favorite room to be in because it was the room he was first exposed to.
I think that if you handle a kitten lots and are always kind to it it will grow up to be a kind cat (although there are always exceptions). I think that kids (kids that are taught to be kind to cats) help to make cats friendly and personable because they don't leave the cat alone and are constantly picking it up. Stray cats are wild and afraid of people because they have never been handled by humans. So the more you handle them, the tamer they are. (Let it go when it has had enough handling and wants to go though) Play with your cat lots and pet it and comfort it lots. Some people get cats and just feed it and change the litter. They don't bother to play with them and interact with them, then they aren't as personable. Most cats also love to be brushed daily. This helps cut down on shedding. As soon as we bring out the cat brush our cats comes running right over. He loves it. If you can get your cat to like being brushed this may help it to become a lap cat.
There are lots of good ideas to help a cat behave. For example to stop a cat from jumping up on the cupboards you can put double sided sticky tape up there or tinfoil. After the cat jumps up onto that a few times he will realize that it isn't a good idea to jump up there. Get a cat scratching post right away and show the cat the post often and encourage him to scratch it. If you catch him scratching something else, don't hit him, just say "No!" and show him the post again. Catnip on the post helps to encourage use. Cayane pepper under couch coushins I'm told discourages the cats to scratch the couch.
Those are the three main problems that I have ever had with a cat.. scratching furniture, jumping onto counters, and shedding.
Yes all cats shed, but good health, good food, and regular brushing and vaccuuming can help cut down on the problem. Get a cat post that the cat can sleep on and look out the window from, they love that and will get most of their hair on the cat post where they sleep, rather than on your couch and clothes. Cats in your bed seems like a good idea, but it can get anoying at times. My cat loves to lay on my head and she puts her nose in my ear and purs so loud that she keeps me awake. It is cute for about the first minute or so, after that, it is just anoying. Our other cat lays between our legs and then you feel like you can't move all night because you might squish the cat.
I think that if you handle a kitten lots and are always kind to it it will grow up to be a kind cat (although there are always exceptions). I think that kids (kids that are taught to be kind to cats) help to make cats friendly and personable because they don't leave the cat alone and are constantly picking it up. Stray cats are wild and afraid of people because they have never been handled by humans. So the more you handle them, the tamer they are. (Let it go when it has had enough handling and wants to go though) Play with your cat lots and pet it and comfort it lots. Some people get cats and just feed it and change the litter. They don't bother to play with them and interact with them, then they aren't as personable. Most cats also love to be brushed daily. This helps cut down on shedding. As soon as we bring out the cat brush our cats comes running right over. He loves it. If you can get your cat to like being brushed this may help it to become a lap cat.
There are lots of good ideas to help a cat behave. For example to stop a cat from jumping up on the cupboards you can put double sided sticky tape up there or tinfoil. After the cat jumps up onto that a few times he will realize that it isn't a good idea to jump up there. Get a cat scratching post right away and show the cat the post often and encourage him to scratch it. If you catch him scratching something else, don't hit him, just say "No!" and show him the post again. Catnip on the post helps to encourage use. Cayane pepper under couch coushins I'm told discourages the cats to scratch the couch.
Those are the three main problems that I have ever had with a cat.. scratching furniture, jumping onto counters, and shedding.
Yes all cats shed, but good health, good food, and regular brushing and vaccuuming can help cut down on the problem. Get a cat post that the cat can sleep on and look out the window from, they love that and will get most of their hair on the cat post where they sleep, rather than on your couch and clothes. Cats in your bed seems like a good idea, but it can get anoying at times. My cat loves to lay on my head and she puts her nose in my ear and purs so loud that she keeps me awake. It is cute for about the first minute or so, after that, it is just anoying. Our other cat lays between our legs and then you feel like you can't move all night because you might squish the cat.
Naomi,
Welcome to The Cat Site! I have just one cat, Maximillian. I adopted him as a kitten and I did not know what to expect as I have never had a pet on my own before (we had cats when I was growing up, but I didn't take care of them).
Max was very cuddly at the Humane Society and he is still cuddly to this day. He is three now and I adopted him at 3 months. I will tell you that kittens are a lot of work and you can expect sleepless nights. As in all babies, they don't sleep through the night. I asked my friend one day, "Am I ever going to be able to sleep through the night again?" However, by the time he was 8-9 months old he was sleeping through the night and he sleeps every night in bed with me.
P.S. He is a huge bed hog!
Max loves to be in the same room as I am. I have a two bedroom house and he just follows me from one room to the other. He especially likes to follow me into the bathroom (Most cats love to follow you into the bathroom).
I scoop his litter every other day. Even though I have only one cat, I use the clumping litter for multiple cats. It doesn't track through the house like regular litter does. That is one thing I wasn't prepared for - the litter sticks to their toes and hence it get tracked through the house. Note: White linoleum kitchen floor was not a good idea.
As for shedding, Max is a short haired cat tabby and he does shed. Stock up on sticky rollers. They are cheap and work great! I have long hair and I shed right along with Max.
Max is not crazy about water, except drinking it. It is OK, because cats are very clean animals. He always smells so good!
Adopting Max is one of the most rewarding things I've ever done. He shows unconditional love. Before Max, I have never had to take care of anyone or anything. Yes, he is demanding, but as with anyone you love, taking care of him is a joy. My vet knows that I'm a very nervous mommy and I call him a lot, but he is very patient with me. I would have a hard time if anything ever were to happen to my furbaby.
As for being a little cold, so many of these people have worked with feral cats or cats that have been abused. I know they have seen terrible treatment of these beatiful and magestic animals. They just want you to go into the adoption of a cat with your eyes wide open.
Good luck to you.
Nora
Welcome to The Cat Site! I have just one cat, Maximillian. I adopted him as a kitten and I did not know what to expect as I have never had a pet on my own before (we had cats when I was growing up, but I didn't take care of them).
Max was very cuddly at the Humane Society and he is still cuddly to this day. He is three now and I adopted him at 3 months. I will tell you that kittens are a lot of work and you can expect sleepless nights. As in all babies, they don't sleep through the night. I asked my friend one day, "Am I ever going to be able to sleep through the night again?" However, by the time he was 8-9 months old he was sleeping through the night and he sleeps every night in bed with me.
P.S. He is a huge bed hog!
Max loves to be in the same room as I am. I have a two bedroom house and he just follows me from one room to the other. He especially likes to follow me into the bathroom (Most cats love to follow you into the bathroom).
I scoop his litter every other day. Even though I have only one cat, I use the clumping litter for multiple cats. It doesn't track through the house like regular litter does. That is one thing I wasn't prepared for - the litter sticks to their toes and hence it get tracked through the house. Note: White linoleum kitchen floor was not a good idea.
As for shedding, Max is a short haired cat tabby and he does shed. Stock up on sticky rollers. They are cheap and work great! I have long hair and I shed right along with Max.
Max is not crazy about water, except drinking it. It is OK, because cats are very clean animals. He always smells so good!
Adopting Max is one of the most rewarding things I've ever done. He shows unconditional love. Before Max, I have never had to take care of anyone or anything. Yes, he is demanding, but as with anyone you love, taking care of him is a joy. My vet knows that I'm a very nervous mommy and I call him a lot, but he is very patient with me. I would have a hard time if anything ever were to happen to my furbaby.
As for being a little cold, so many of these people have worked with feral cats or cats that have been abused. I know they have seen terrible treatment of these beatiful and magestic animals. They just want you to go into the adoption of a cat with your eyes wide open.
Good luck to you.
Nora
Cats are beautiful creatures, and I am proud to have Clyde, and just adopted a little girl named "Little Bit". I couldn't be happier, and I let them adapt to me at their leisure and pace and don't put any demands on them.
Clyde
Clyde
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Thank you for bearing in mind that the primary mission of our site and boards is the welfare of cats. It is through the contributions of all of us that new members learn some of the things we have learned. I have edited this thread (after discussion among the mods) to exclude any references that were leading to making the thread become out of control. In general, I salute all of you for abiding by the rules for posting that we have here.
Thanks, Deb.
This thread was making me a little bit uncomfortable when I was reading it yesterday. I opted not to partake in the replies for fear of saying something offensive or rude (or to get in the middle of a heated argument).
I can see how emotions can really heat up here. . . . and how easy it is for the "tone of voice" in the computer world can be heard so differently by so many people. I learned my lesson the hard way while sending e-mails at work a few years ago . . . . to be ever so careful and polite. It's so easy to generate an e-mail war if you don't.
This thread was making me a little bit uncomfortable when I was reading it yesterday. I opted not to partake in the replies for fear of saying something offensive or rude (or to get in the middle of a heated argument).
I can see how emotions can really heat up here. . . . and how easy it is for the "tone of voice" in the computer world can be heard so differently by so many people. I learned my lesson the hard way while sending e-mails at work a few years ago . . . . to be ever so careful and polite. It's so easy to generate an e-mail war if you don't.
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ALl right, aside from all of the hot button issues, I think that there are interesting questions posed here. NaomiK would like a cat that fits her ideal, which, as far as I know, is not really consistent with the nature of cats.
So, is it possible to teach a cat to stay in one room, to not shed, to not jump on the bed, to like water, as she asked? And she also made the point that living in her home, even with these restrictions, would be better than the alternative.
What do you think? Can to teach a cat to behave in a very un-cat-like way? Is it really worth the effort? Is this a better life for a cat?
My advice for NaomiK would be something like this. If you are determined that a cat must behave in this specific way, then be prepared for failure, because you are likely to get a cat that will not do all of these things, despite your best efforts. What will you do then?
And you have a wonderful thought, to rescue a pet, but why not choose a different animal, lots and lots of animals need to be rescued, why choose a cat, that is really not suited to the kind of life you describe. Why not rescue a small dog, which might be much easier to teach.
So, is it possible to teach a cat to stay in one room, to not shed, to not jump on the bed, to like water, as she asked? And she also made the point that living in her home, even with these restrictions, would be better than the alternative.
What do you think? Can to teach a cat to behave in a very un-cat-like way? Is it really worth the effort? Is this a better life for a cat?
My advice for NaomiK would be something like this. If you are determined that a cat must behave in this specific way, then be prepared for failure, because you are likely to get a cat that will not do all of these things, despite your best efforts. What will you do then?
And you have a wonderful thought, to rescue a pet, but why not choose a different animal, lots and lots of animals need to be rescued, why choose a cat, that is really not suited to the kind of life you describe. Why not rescue a small dog, which might be much easier to teach.
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Is it possible to train a cat, yes. There is clicker training that helps in training cats to do agility courses:
http://www.catagility.org/courses.htm
In order to train a cat to stay in one room you would have to confine the cat in the room 24/7. The room would have to be very large, because you cannot place the litter pans and food and water near each other, to do so would court disaster to the health of that cat.
You would have to make certain that there was enough entertainment in that room for that cat to be happy. Cat condos, a bird feeder outside the window, lots of tubes and tunnels the cat could hide in, ramps on the wall so the cat could exercise would not be out of line.
Right now in email I am trying to help someone who *rescued* a cat from the shelter. The cat immediately went into the bedroom, hopped on the dresser and peed all over the surface, angering the owner. The cat is only 6 months old! The woman then went out and bought a small cage, placed the kitten in the cage with litter pan and water and food and the poor kitten is now crated 24/7 because of one incident! I have been trying to get this woman to seek vet assistance to clear up a potential health issue, as well as release the kitten from the crate- but so far she insists her training is working! GRRRR!
So the bottom line is- how we see and believe that cats should be treated, with respect, with the allowance that they are cats and they are mischievous, fun and onery- is not how others view these creatures. We can take our best advice and put it out there, hoping something will click and the person on the receiving end will understand our intentions are good and not evil, but bottom line is we cannot control the destiny of any cat except for the ones under our own care. I must have 8 cat beds, beautifully made, and only one bed is ever used on a semi-normal basis. Cats will sleep where they want, go to bed when they want, and we cannot stop inate behaviour from occurring without harming the cat in some fashion.
To those reading this, that want a push button cat, I wish you good luck, they just aren't out there- unless you want to buy the new robotic cat and wow all your friends!
http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html...sin=B00006782E
Ken's post says it best, and as many animals that he and Sandie have at home, my suggestion is to take his advice to heart. Love your cats unconditionally and celebrate the fact that they are cats in the first place! Don't try to change them from what God intended them to be.
http://www.catagility.org/courses.htm
In order to train a cat to stay in one room you would have to confine the cat in the room 24/7. The room would have to be very large, because you cannot place the litter pans and food and water near each other, to do so would court disaster to the health of that cat.
You would have to make certain that there was enough entertainment in that room for that cat to be happy. Cat condos, a bird feeder outside the window, lots of tubes and tunnels the cat could hide in, ramps on the wall so the cat could exercise would not be out of line.
Right now in email I am trying to help someone who *rescued* a cat from the shelter. The cat immediately went into the bedroom, hopped on the dresser and peed all over the surface, angering the owner. The cat is only 6 months old! The woman then went out and bought a small cage, placed the kitten in the cage with litter pan and water and food and the poor kitten is now crated 24/7 because of one incident! I have been trying to get this woman to seek vet assistance to clear up a potential health issue, as well as release the kitten from the crate- but so far she insists her training is working! GRRRR!
So the bottom line is- how we see and believe that cats should be treated, with respect, with the allowance that they are cats and they are mischievous, fun and onery- is not how others view these creatures. We can take our best advice and put it out there, hoping something will click and the person on the receiving end will understand our intentions are good and not evil, but bottom line is we cannot control the destiny of any cat except for the ones under our own care. I must have 8 cat beds, beautifully made, and only one bed is ever used on a semi-normal basis. Cats will sleep where they want, go to bed when they want, and we cannot stop inate behaviour from occurring without harming the cat in some fashion.
To those reading this, that want a push button cat, I wish you good luck, they just aren't out there- unless you want to buy the new robotic cat and wow all your friends!
http://www.target.com/gp/detail.html...sin=B00006782E
Ken's post says it best, and as many animals that he and Sandie have at home, my suggestion is to take his advice to heart. Love your cats unconditionally and celebrate the fact that they are cats in the first place! Don't try to change them from what God intended them to be.
