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Showing posts from June, 2021

Do mother cats need more food?

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Yes, lactating mother cats do need more food because their energy requirements increase by about 50% during pregnancy. Their energy requirements soar during lactation. Cat's milk contains about 40% more energy than cow's or goat's milk.  Mother nurses her kittens two of which are black. Photo: Wikipedia Commons. Caption: A one year old pure white cat nursing four kittens in a cardboard box behind a warm TV. Expectant mother cats usually seek a warm, dark place for giving birth to their kittens. Picture taken in Beaumont, Alberta, Canada in 1986. Name of Mother: Sugar (March 8, 1985 - August 26, 2004) Names of Kittens: Channel 3, Channel 5, Cable 8, Circuit Overload (May 4, 1986 - ) In order to produce milk which is so energy-dense, the cat has to ingest that energy i.e. they have to increase their energy consumption considerably. And even after her kittens have reduced their milk consumption, a cat's energy demands remain 50% above her usual needs until she replaces the

My new kitten's first encounter with the big ball of flame in the sky

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I love this description from a Reddit.com user: u/Sava333.  Domestic cats are sunworshippers. We know it. This little juvenile cat has discovered that there is a place in the home where the sun shines and he has occupied that space. He is sunning himself. I would expect him to be there again in the future from time-to-time. Why do domestic cats like the sun so much? Because they are domesticated North African wildcats. You can imagine that there is quite a lot of sun in the places where these cats live, such as in and around Syria which, incidentally, is the place where the original domestic cats came into existence, it is believed . Photo: Reddit.com user: u/Sava333.  The 'sun and domestic cats' is quite a big topic actually. The sun can cause cancer in the ear flaps of stray and feral cats. You might have seen it: white cats with their ear flaps amputated . The thin covering of fur on the ear flaps does not protect the skin and cartilage below and so the ultraviolet light

Brighton Cat Killer: harrowing accounts by cat owners of their stabbed cats

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The Brighton Cat Killer. Guilty as charged. Steve Bouquet. On two other pages I have written about Steve Bouquet who is the alleged Brighton Cat Killer currently on trial for the serial "murders" of 9 domestic cats in and around Brighton and for causing serious injury to 7 more. You can read about the story by clicking this link . His basic modus operandi was to walk down streets at night, befriend domestic cats and then stab them violently. He was caught on CCTV which led to his arrest. They also found the weapon he used to allegedly kill the cats and on the blade of the weapon was feline DNA. It was a Leatherman tool. One of the cats allegedly stabbed by Bouquet. I don't have her name. The news media got it wrong so I have deleted the name. Photo: The Sun. In this post I would like briefly to look at the story from the perspective of the cats' owners. It's remarkable that the law in the UK still regards these cats as chattels i.e. inanimate possessions and

Smell of sardines motivates 4-week-old kittens to climb out of deep drain

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The enticing smell of tinned sardines enticed two tiny, four-week-old kittens out of a labyrinth of drains to the surface after they had run away and hidden. Sue Lewis from a nearby charity, The Scratching Post , said: "We basically soaked a net in juice from a sardine tin, wedged one end under something heavy and then fed the sardine-smelling netting through the drains." The drain down which the kittens plunged. Photo: The Scratching Post. She remarked that "It was an absolute miracle they managed to do that". She means that it's amazing that these tiny four-week-old kittens were able to climb up this netting out of a hole in the ground. She also said: "They are so tiny, no bigger than the palm of your hand. They've been without milk for 48 hours and we really thought they were going to die. It was heartbreaking to hear their cries." At one time they tried playing the sounds of a mother calling her young but it didn't work. The Essex Fire serv

Cat almost died from pancytopenia after eating cat food linked to urgent recall

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This is an example of a cat who fell ill after eating one of a raft of pet food products manufactured by Fold Hill Food and sold at the UK's Pets at Home and Sainsbury's. There has been well publicized recall . If you click on the links below you will be taken to a list of the foods concerned. This may not be a comprehensive list because there may be subsequent products affected. I would ask you, therefore, to please do some follow-up research if you happen to bump into this webpage. Pets at Home Recall Fact Sheet June 16, 2021 Product Recall Sainsbury's Hypoallergenic food FOLD HILL FOODS LTD IS RECALLING A NUMBER OF PRODUCTS IT MANUFACTURES ON BEHALF OF SELECTED PARTNER BRANDS . In this instance, a tabby cat with his own Instagram page called CharlieBoy Stubbs was apparently perfectly healthy one day but he suddenly fell very ill. His owners, Gary and Yasmin, use one of the foods concerned as his regular diet and I think the photograph below from his Instagram p

Bengal kitten doesn't understand water in a glass

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The title to the video is "Curious Cat Examines Glass of Water". It is slightly misleading. It seems clear to me that the Bengal kitten does not understand that this is water. He knows water but when it is in a glass, he is unsure about it. This is because he is young and learning. He prods, pokes and sniffs it to test it. It is quite cute. It does tell us too that sometimes the reason why cats prod water is to test it.  Bengal cat checks out water in a glass as he is unsure. Screenshot. Some people think that cats drink better from clear bowls. Cats are poor drinkers because of their wild cat inheritance which is why dry cat food is problematic. Cats get a lot of their water from prey animals. The mouse is 70% water. Dry cat food does not replicate normal prey. Cats don't compensate sufficiently by drinking more water and become dehydrated. Note : This is a video from another website. Sometimes they are deleted at source which stops them working on this site. If that

Do domestic cats have a hierarchy?

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Within a social group of domestic cats there may be a single dominant male or female but there is little ranking below this individual (Linda P Case in The Cat, It's Behavior & Health ). And, group-living cats "lack distinct dominance hierarchies" (Irene Rochlitz in The Welfare of Cats). On these two counts, domestic cats do not have a hierarchy. This is incomplete opposition to the article about domestic cat hierarchal structures on the catster.com website where they say that there is such a structure. I believe that they are incorrect. I have never read about such a genuine hierarchal structure in multi-cat homes and within cat colonies. Domestic cats don't have hierarchies. Image: Pixabay. To be clear, a hierarchy is a system in which members of an organisation or society are ranked according to relative status and authority. One dominant individual does not create a hierarchy. And a dominant cat is one which is typically the most aggressive in a social gro

Developing human-cat routines over years

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Although like many others I realise that routines are very important in a domestic cat's life, it was only this morning that it dawned on me that I have developed these routines to the point where my cat predicts my movements and desires. He does things before I ask him to because he understands the routines that exist between us. Gabriel in my garden years ago. Photo: MikeB You achieve these routines by being with your cat every day all day over a period of many years. Further, the human has to have a set routine in life as many retired people have incidentally, integrated into which are the routines and lifestyle of your cat. Eventually your cat understands what you will do next and pre-empts it. I will give two examples which apply to me but each person and their cat will have their own examples which are just as valid. It is harder for full-time office workers to develop these routines. For retired people it happens naturally. But you have to be a concerned cat guardian. Sit

The role of anal sacs in the domestic cat

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Last night, at about midnight my cat came onto my bed. He smelled horribly and the smell could only have been from the fluid produced by his anal sacs. The fluid is described as foul-smelling and is similar to the secretions produced by a skunk. I would not describe it as that bad to be perfectly honest but it is strong smelling.  Gabriel keeping cool by resting on a book. Photo: MikeB Just before he arrived on my bed there was a loud noise outside and the sound of his cat flap closing. I noticed three foxes in the back garden. They were young foxes and their mother was I believe in attendance but I could not see her. It appears that my cat had to navigate through these foxes to get into his home and in doing so felt insecure and deposited faeces as a marker within his territory. The fluid from anal sacs is channelled into faeces when scent marking through a small duct which opens just inside the anus. In fact, I think as he arrived on my bed, he wanted to deposit more faeces within

Gluconeogenesis in cats

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I'm referring to domestic cats and the process called gluconeogenesis. What is it? All animals including the domestic cat require glucose, which is a simple carbohydrate. It is essential in terms of the cat's metabolism and glucose fuels the brain. Cats do not appear to be able to tolerate a high-carbohydrate diet but they still need glucose. Because they are obligate carnivores, they don't get it from dietary sources of carbohydrate. And therefore, it is produced through the process called gluconeogenesis which is the metabolic process in which the cat produces glucose. The glucose is released into the bloodstream to be carried to the body's tissues. "Metabolic pathways in the liver and kidneys use other nutrients to produce glucose through a process called gluconeogenesis" - Linda P Case: The Cat. It's Behaviour Nutrition & Health. It is said that cats are in a constant state of  gluconeogenesis because of their unique diet. Breakdown of the word. &

Lizard wants to mate with his cat buddy. She doesn't understand.

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The title sounds implausible. However, when you watch this short video you see the lizard head-bobbing towards his cat companion. The lizard's name is Rick and the cat's name is Kitten". I don't know if Kitten is female but I think that she is. They were both adopted from a rescue centre and they have been together for eight years according to their human caretakers. They live in Howell, Michigan, USA. And the video was made on January 28, 2021. Lizard proposes to cat buddy and wants sex. She does not understand. You see Rick insistently head-bobbing in close proximity to Kitten. My research indicates that that means that a male lizard wants to mate with a female lizard. It can also be a sign of dominance and aggression but this is inapplicable in this instance because they are buddies (my interpretation). So, we are left with the conclusion that Rick wants to have sex with his cat companion who does not understand lizard language and therefore cannot respond in the