Aloha to my friends who love cats!
First of all I would like to say Mahalo (thank you) so very much for the comments that were posted on my blog anonymously. I really appreciate the feedback, especially that my blog was useful to you all.
Way back when in 1997 when we brought home our first rescue, Scampers, she fit in our palm. She was the sole surviving member of the litter of cats at the boat yard where my husband worked. Every cat is very unique and the way we played with her, slept with her, and what we fed her as treats....well, it gave her some strange cat behavior!
Cats are naturally curious. They get into everything especially when they are kittens. Thus the saying, curiosity killed the cat. Good thing they have nine lives! We were renting a room in a large home, shared bathroom and kitchen while we established ourselves and saved enough money for our own place. The house manager told us we had to keep Scampers in our room, she couldn't roam the home freely. Our double bed took up most of the room so naturally Scampers slept with us. She ate, slept, played and did her "business" in that room and wasn't socialized with other cats, she was the "one!" So she thinks of herself as a person, not a cat. She will be 16 years old in September.
We gave her Hagen Das ice cream when we ate it. She would just stick her whole head into the pint sized carton and lick out every last drop. So today whenever we eat ice cream, or yogurt, she wants her share. She will sit at my feet and keep tapping me with her front paw, until she gets her due. Since she wasn't brought up with multiple cats, she never took much of a part in any of the other cats that were rescued after her. She stays aloof. Our second rescue, from a feral litter at my place of employment, was a tiny little guy with HUGE ears. We named him Rusty. He was a nasty little customer! Now he is a huge orange tabby, who takes care of the rest of the cats, except of course, Scampers, and is the Alpha male. She would hiss at him, but when you bring in a kitten, the older cat will let the kitten eat first. Eventually, the hissing stopped and they would play together and everyone was happy. This is true of all cats, the kittens will stand in the food bowl and eat their share, the older cats will allow them to finish before they eat.
Kittens should be handled at a young age, in order to gain your trust. Both Rusty and Scampers are used to grooming, having flea meds or collars applied, and are easy to handle. The younger kitties that after that, Rusty "mothered" them, and they are much harder to put on the flea collars, although they do love the grooming. Cats are social and my cats actually hug each other. Except, of course, Scampers because she is human! LOL!
Cats purr for many reasons. Pleasure is one. I had a friend who had never had a cat, and she got a kitten. She wanted to know what that strange sound was when her kitty purred! She thought something was wrong and was all worried. I reassured her that everything was fine and her cat was purring because it was happy. Cats do not like their bellies scratched as dogs do, and if you do this, you may get some claw in response. They like to have their throats rubbed, behind their ears, on the side of their face, and petting from head down the spine to the tail.
Kneading is common to all domestic cats. When in a state of ease they alternately push out and pull in their front paws, often alternating between right and left limbs. Some cats actually appear to "nurse" or suck on clothing or bedding during kneading. Some people believe "kneading" (other than being hell on your comforter, chair or pillows,) stimulate your cat and make it feel good, in the same manner as humans stretching. I learn a lot from my cats, I always stretch out after taking a cat nap.
I can't go into all cat behavior in one blog (obviously!) I will talk more on the subject to be sure. I know for a fact that cats communicate with each other or none of the strays would have ever made it past my American Pit Bull Terrier to the back yard, where I would feed the feral cats of the neighbor hood, and where kittens would pop out from under my house. Cats rub the side of their heads on the corner of an object to "mark" it as their turf. They are territorial and there is a social structure for each colony or pride of cats. Remember I said Rusty was our Alpha Male?
And Scampers is human, my husband and I are her Alpha's!
Thank you for reading! Please leave me your comments or suggestions and visit my web site at:
http://www.lindaz1homebiz.com
We gave her Hagen Das ice cream when we ate it. She would just stick her whole head into the pint sized carton and lick out every last drop. So today whenever we eat ice cream, or yogurt, she wants her share. She will sit at my feet and keep tapping me with her front paw, until she gets her due. Since she wasn't brought up with multiple cats, she never took much of a part in any of the other cats that were rescued after her. She stays aloof. Our second rescue, from a feral litter at my place of employment, was a tiny little guy with HUGE ears. We named him Rusty. He was a nasty little customer! Now he is a huge orange tabby, who takes care of the rest of the cats, except of course, Scampers, and is the Alpha male. She would hiss at him, but when you bring in a kitten, the older cat will let the kitten eat first. Eventually, the hissing stopped and they would play together and everyone was happy. This is true of all cats, the kittens will stand in the food bowl and eat their share, the older cats will allow them to finish before they eat.
Kittens should be handled at a young age, in order to gain your trust. Both Rusty and Scampers are used to grooming, having flea meds or collars applied, and are easy to handle. The younger kitties that after that, Rusty "mothered" them, and they are much harder to put on the flea collars, although they do love the grooming. Cats are social and my cats actually hug each other. Except, of course, Scampers because she is human! LOL!
Cats purr for many reasons. Pleasure is one. I had a friend who had never had a cat, and she got a kitten. She wanted to know what that strange sound was when her kitty purred! She thought something was wrong and was all worried. I reassured her that everything was fine and her cat was purring because it was happy. Cats do not like their bellies scratched as dogs do, and if you do this, you may get some claw in response. They like to have their throats rubbed, behind their ears, on the side of their face, and petting from head down the spine to the tail.
Kneading is common to all domestic cats. When in a state of ease they alternately push out and pull in their front paws, often alternating between right and left limbs. Some cats actually appear to "nurse" or suck on clothing or bedding during kneading. Some people believe "kneading" (other than being hell on your comforter, chair or pillows,) stimulate your cat and make it feel good, in the same manner as humans stretching. I learn a lot from my cats, I always stretch out after taking a cat nap.
I can't go into all cat behavior in one blog (obviously!) I will talk more on the subject to be sure. I know for a fact that cats communicate with each other or none of the strays would have ever made it past my American Pit Bull Terrier to the back yard, where I would feed the feral cats of the neighbor hood, and where kittens would pop out from under my house. Cats rub the side of their heads on the corner of an object to "mark" it as their turf. They are territorial and there is a social structure for each colony or pride of cats. Remember I said Rusty was our Alpha Male?
And Scampers is human, my husband and I are her Alpha's!
Thank you for reading! Please leave me your comments or suggestions and visit my web site at:
http://www.lindaz1homebiz.com
There is an awesome set of DVD's plus many bonuses of Ultimate Cat Behavior. Check it out for yourself. 100% money back guarantee!
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