Thread: Question For The Cat Experts

Cats can become overstimulated and will bite as a result - a good example of this is when you are petting a cat, they seem to enjoy it for a bit, then they turn around and bite you.

What you need to do is, pet her for a few seconds, then stop. You want to stop before she feels the need to make you stop. If she starts to realize that you will pet her, then stop in a few seconds, she won't feel the need to bite you or tell you when to stop. Does this make any sense?

Same goes with holding her. Pick her up for a second or two, then put her straight back down, before she starts struggling to get away. Put her down, and praise her for letting you hold her for that brief amount of time.

By doing the petting and holding in very briefs periods, and stopping before she has to tell you to stop, you can slowly work your way up to petting her and holding her for longer periods of time.

Cat body language is pretty easy to read. When you see her tail start twitching, her ears turning back, or her whiskers laying back, you know she's getting ready to slap you. Watch her and you'll start to recognize that she sends you very clear body signals about she's about it do.

Also, some cats just like some people better than others. For example, Titus, my brown tabby, prefers women over men. He'll let women pet him, but won't let any man except my husband touch him. Sometimes you just can't change this. You can't force her to like you, but you can teach her to tolerate your petting and holding.

ok that really explains it. thanks a lot!

Burns, I have another cat question for you. Two of my three cats are pretty fat, and the third one isn't skinny. They share a can of tuna in the morning, I make it last two days, so 1/6 of a can per day per cat. They get hair-ball control light dry food, which I started putting out just for a little while in the morning, and a little while at night. They don't seem to eat much really. Controlling the dry food seemed to help them lose a little weight at first, but then they gained it back. It is probably lack of exercise because they don't go outside (much too dangerous here). Fox does run around like a crazy cat, and Minky and Skunky chase a laser light sometimes. I give them occasional treats, and Fox is a beggar so he gets some handouts that way.

I know it is dangerous to put a cat on an extreme diet. I worry about obesity related complications, but I really don't know what else to do. Oh, they are all like at least 9 or 10 years old. Do you think it is hopeless? Any more suggestions?

Moonbeam: This is just me not burns, and I'm no cat expert, but what you MIGHT want to consider doing, is taking your cats off the tuna, and put them on dried food... sounds like you already tried that, but:

DON'T, WHATEVER YOU DO, feed your cats major brand highly advertised dried foods like "Whiskers" or the like. Dunno what equivalent american brads are. Go to your local pet store, talk to a vet, and get a (more expensive) prescription food.

Major brand cat foods are full of "fillers" and don't contain anywhere near the nourishment of decent more expensive cat foods. Basically, since cats don't get the same nourishment, they end up eating more of the crap food, like hungry people will eat heaps of potato chips - they're not nourishing, so people eat more to fill themselves up.

The good brands here are "Hills Science Diet", and a few others. If you buy these, your cat will end up eating LESS because he or she gets more nourishment per bite. He or she will ALSO gain a sleeker, silkier coat, etc.

Make sure to give your cats an unboned, uncooked piece of red meat every now and then, every two weeks maybe, to chew on and exercise their teeth and digestive system a bit more.

Edit: Also, moonbeam and everybody els, DON'T feed your cat milk, even occaisionally - it's actually bad for them, despite the fact that they like it. Unless it's special made-for-cats milk, if you can get it, but, normal milk is a big no-no for cats. As for exercise, it's a toughie if you can't take your cats outside. I dunno how to help you there.

Originally Posted by Burns

Cats can become overstimulated and will bite as a result - a good example of this is when you are petting a cat, they seem to enjoy it for a bit, then they turn around and bite you.[/b]

Huh. My cat regularly bites me when I play with him, but I can usually tell the difference between a "Chomp I got your hand heheheh!"-Bite, and a "Oi! Enough of that now!"-Bite. I think it's just a matter of watching your cat and learning to interpret their body language.

Originally Posted by Moonbeam

Burns, I have another cat question for you. Two of my three cats are pretty fat, and the third one isn't skinny. They share a can of tuna in the morning, I make it last two days, so 1/6 of a can per day per cat. They get hair-ball control light dry food, which I started putting out just for a little while in the morning, and a little while at night. They don't seem to eat much really. Controlling the dry food seemed to help them lose a little weight at first, but then they gained it back. It is probably lack of exercise because they don't go outside (much too dangerous here). Fox does run around like a crazy cat, and Minky and Skunky chase a laser light sometimes. I give them occasional treats, and Fox is a beggar so he gets some handouts that way.

I know it is dangerous to put a cat on an extreme diet. I worry about obesity related complications, but I really don't know what else to do. Oh, they are all like at least 9 or 10 years old. Do you think it is hopeless? Any more suggestions?[/b]

Keeping cats trim and lean in a multi-cat household is very difficult (as I know from personal experience&#33. But there are a few guidelines to use to help with the weight problem.

As Blue suggested, a high quality cat food is the way to go. Hill's Science Diet, Iams, and Eukanuba are the 3 high-quality foods of choice. Iams is the only once available at a grocery store, while Science Diet and Eukanuba are sold at pet stores only.

Most cats only require 1/2 cup dry food PER DAY. And this is if they don't receive anything else to eat during the day (i.e. canned food, treats, table scraps, etc). If you are feeding canned food or treats, the amount of dry food fed should be reduced.

We used to think that a dry-only diet was beneficial for the teeth so we'd recommend feeding mostly dry food. However, studies have been done and things have changed a bit since then. We now know that cats don't really chew their food a lot. If you've ever seen a cat regurgitate dry food just after eating it, you'll see whole kibble in the vomit. So they aren't getting as much benefit from the dry food as we once thought.

Also, dry food is extremely energy-dense and calorie-packed. Most cats on a dry-only diet will become overweight because of this - especially indoor-only cats who don't receive enough exercise. Cats fed a dry-only diet may eat their caloric needs for the dry, but they just don't feel full - so they continue to snack and overeat throughout the day, leading to obesity.

This is where canned food comes in. Canned food is about 80% water so it acts as a filler. They feel fuller and eat less calories. Canned food is also beneficial because cats don't drink as much water as dogs, and older cats are prone to renal (kidney) disease and other diseases which required fluid supplementation. By offering canned food early in life, you can increase moisture in the body, lowering the risk of urinary issues and renal disease. Also, if your cat develops one of these diseases, it will be easy to go to an all-canned diet since your cat will already be used to eating it.

As you rightly said, Moonbeam, we don't want cats to lose too much weight too quickly. It should be a slow, gradual weight loss over a period of several months. When I calculate diet worksheets for overweight cats, I aim for about a 2 pound weight loss in 8-12 months. If a cat loses weight too quickly, it puts stress on the liver and they can develop hepatic lipidosis (fatty liver disease), which is life-threatening.

Also, exercise is just as important in weight loss as decreased calorie intake. PM me your email address and I can send you some fun exercise ideas for indoor cats, and also some more information on obesity and weight control.

Thanks for the tips. I do feed them an expensive special food (Felidae, they also have Canidae for dogs). I know what they put in regular pet food (those meat by-products that include all kinds of disgusting things designed to spread prions, and road-kill, and rendered euthanized pets with drugs in their system, too gross to even touch the stuff). They don't eat much so it doesn't really cost that much, a bag lasts a long time. That's why I don't understand why they're so fat.

I didn't know that canned food may actually help, I thought it was more fattening. I have one problem, Minky is so spoiled she won't eat cat food, she wants regular tuna. She is not that fat tho. The other two will eat canned cat food. I will try that for them. I've seen them eat their kibble whole, and Skunky has a binging problem an then pukes up whole pieces. I will definitely add the canned and see if it helps.

Blue Meanie I will try giving them a little raw meat. Fox is always underfoot so I've tossed him things like that and he'll eat anything. I think Minky will think I'm crazy if I expect her to eat raw meat. I know they shouldn't have milk.

I've thought about trying to cook for them, like I do a lot for my dogs, but I know cats have certain special nutrient requirements and I'm afraid of causing a deficiency.

I wish they could get more exercise. Burns I would definitely like to have some ideas. They can't just depend on me shining the laser pointer for them to chase.

(PS: We have these little fake mice for them to play with, and they are always leaving them somewhere and scaring us, or guests. Also Minky will "catch" one and then stand over it, yowling her head off. I don't know if it is a cry of triumph over the "killing of the prey", or if she is calling us to join in the "feast of the mouse".)

Feed it some LSD

Nahhh. Just like pet it and shizzle. Can't really go wrong raising a cat as far as I know. Perhaps you can make it lazy, but who cares, that is fun.

you are useless.


Burns thanks for the info, I have a couple cats so I learned some stuff too.

who is useless?

I'm afraid that the pet food companies mentioned here do evil animal testing! Either by themselves, or they are owned by companies that do vivisection. Here is a least of companies and products you should avoid.
For more info search google or go to: http://www.buav.org/campaigns/petfood/facts.html

IAMS
Hills Science Diet
Nestlé Purina Petcare
Eukanuba
Pedigree
Friskies
Alpo
Bonio
Felix
Go Cat
Gourmet
Omega Complete
Proplan
Spillers
Vital Balance
Winalot
Masterfoods
Bounce
Cesar
Chappie
Frolic
James Wellbeloved
Katkins
Kitekat
Pal
Pedigree Chum
Royal Canin
Sheba
Techni-cal
Whiskas
Thomas rabbit food
Trill bird food

i dont get it why?

Originally Posted by dodobird

I'm afraid that the pet food companies mentioned here do evil animal testing! Either by themselves, or they are owned by companies that do vivisection. Here is a least of companies and products you should avoid.
For more info search google or go to: http://www.buav.org/campaigns/petfood/facts.html[/b]

HAHAHA!!!



Of course they do animal testing. They make food for animals! How the hell do you think anyone could make food for animals, without first actually feeding food to animals to see what they like, and how nutritious it is!

Animal testing for animal food has got nothing to do with inhumane animal testing like for human haircare products, or the like. Not giving your cats catfood that has been "tested" by feeding to other cats is just plain silly.

Yeah, I don't see cat-food makers testing something on dogs that will hurt them. I mean not like they are going to test how they react to battery acid, because they don't put that in their cat food.

Those cats and dogs have a life behind bars, but at least they have food (and pretty A-brand too, lol). If you care about dogs, and cats, care about the millions of cats and dogs without an owner. Especially in shitholes like Brazil there are often millions of dogs in one city.

Originally Posted by The

Make sure to give your cats an unboned, uncooked piece of red meat every now and then, every two weeks maybe, to chew on and exercise their teeth and digestive system a bit more.[/b]

I have to disagree. If you're feeding your cat a high-quality cat food, there is not reason to supplment raw meat. And your cat could possibly contract certain bacteria and parasites from raw meat - like toxoplasmosis (which, btw, is transmissible to humans in the same way, eating undercooked/raw meat). Also, it could cause GI upset resulting in vomiting and diarrhea. There's no reason to give it - cats get enough protein through their regular cat food.

Originally Posted by The

Edit: Also, moonbeam and everybody els, DON'T feed your cat milk, even occaisionally - it's actually bad for them, despite the fact that they like it. Unless it's special made-for-cats milk, if you can get it, but, normal milk is a big no-no for cats.[/b]

Cow's milk is not "bad" for cats, but most cats cannot digest the protein in cow's milk, therefore they have GI upset and diarrhea from it. So it's not a good idea to give cats saucers of milk for this reason, but it certainly doesn't have any toxic effects. I actually let Titus lick my cereal bowl every morning after I drink all the milk out of it (he licks the residue), with no ill effects. It depends more on the cat's sensitivity to it and how much you give.

Originally Posted by Burns

I have to disagree. If you're feeding your cat a high-quality cat food, there is not reason to supplment raw meat. And your cat could possibly contract certain bacteria and parasites from raw meat - like toxoplasmosis (which, btw, is transmissible to humans in the same way, eating undercooked/raw meat). Also, it could cause GI upset resulting in vomiting and diarrhea. There's no reason to give it - cats get enough protein through their regular cat food.[/b]

Hmmm. Okay, my vet told me otherwise, but, meh, maybe I got the wrong info or something. But as for contracting stuff, I ALWAYS have my steaks blue - only barely cooked - and I've never ever ever been sick from red meat in my life. From undercooked chicken, sure, but never from red meat. And when I'm cooking red meat, I'll always cut off a bit of raw red meat to chew on while I'm cooking.

Maybe it has to do with meats in different countries, and stuff? I dunno. All I know, is that I've never had any trouble from it.

Originally Posted by Burns

Cow's milk is not "bad" for cats, but most cats cannot digest the protein in cow's milk, therefore they have GI upset and diarrhea from it. So it's not a good idea to give cats saucers of milk for this reason, but it certainly doesn't have any toxic effects. I actually let Titus lick my cereal bowl every morning after I drink all the milk out of it (he licks the residue), with no ill effects. It depends more on the cat's sensitivity to it and how much you give.[/b]

Well, if it gives cats diarrhea, it IS bad for them, wouldn't you say? But if it's okay in small quantities, I might do the same with Taz and my bowl of cereal.

Originally Posted by The

Well, if it gives cats diarrhea, it IS bad for them, wouldn't you say?[/b]

heh, spicy Thai food may give you diarrhea but is not necessarily "bad" for you

Originally Posted by The

HAHAHA!!!
Of course they do animal testing. They make food for animals! How the hell do you think anyone could make food for animals, without first actually feeding food to animals to see what they like, and how nutritious it is!

Animal testing for animal food has got nothing to do with inhumane animal testing like for human haircare products, or the like. Not giving your cats catfood that has been "tested" by feeding to other cats is just plain silly.
[/b]

Originally Posted by The

Yeah, I don't see cat-food makers testing something on dogs that will hurt them. I mean not like they are going to test how they react to battery acid, because they don't put that in their cat food.

Those cats and dogs have a life behind bars, but at least they have food (and pretty A-brand too, lol). If you care about dogs, and cats, care about the millions of cats and dogs without an owner. Especially in shitholes like Brazil there are often millions of dogs in one city.
[/b]

You are both wrong.
1) Some of the pet food companies belong to larger companies that do testing for cosmetics. For example Iams belong to Procter & Gamble which is on of the most notorious company for torturing animals. Hills Pet Nutrition belong to Colgate Palmolive, which also torture animals for cosmetics.

2) It's not just a life behind bars ( as if that not enough ) it's a lot worse. Don't take my word for it, read about it, educate yourself, those animals SUFFER.

3) It turns out, that some of the pet food which is clean from animals testing is of the highest quality.
Example of such good companies: Naturediet, Burns Pet Nutrition, Pero, Evolution Diet, Yarrah Organic Petfood, Natural Life Pet Products, PetGuard Premium, Natural Balance.
I am not an expert on this, I just got this info by searching google, so it's possible that one of these companies that I recommended isn't as good as I said, so to be on the safe side do a little research yourself.

Originally Posted by Neruo

Yeah, I don't see cat-food makers testing something on dogs that will hurt them. I mean not like they are going to test how they react to battery acid, because they don't put that in their cat food.

Those cats and dogs have a life behind bars, but at least they have food (and pretty A-brand too, lol). If you care about dogs, and cats, care about the millions of cats and dogs without an owner. Especially in shitholes like Brazil there are often millions of dogs in one city.
[/b]

(Whoops forgot to put in what I was going to say.) I was going to agree with dodobird that many pet food companies actually do horrible research on cats and dogs, and not just the parent companies; the pet food divisions themselves torture animals. It is easy to find out about with a little research. But there are a lot of alternatives; companies that don't torture and also don't use disgusting ingredients (Felidae which I use happens to be the most affordable where I live).

But, still makes a lazy cat fat!

If you want to excersize your get and she don't go out, you can try something like that:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wvz0BFnWlAQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJ1MdN_CjMY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5Fg6KFcOsU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aVLdeIKZuM

But in my experience with anything you give the cat to play with, once the novelty is over they dump it...

Originally Posted by dodobird

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wvz0BFnWlAQ
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IJ1MdN_CjMY
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f5Fg6KFcOsU
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1aVLdeIKZuM[/b]

haha! ^^ those are great! Especially the last one!

Originally Posted by dodobird

But in my experience with anything you give the cat to play with, once the novelty is over they dump it...[/b]

That's why it's a good idea to take away the toy for a few weeks (hide it in a closet or something), then bring it back out. It's like a brand-new fun toy again! If you just let it sit out, the cat will definitely get bored of it.

Originally Posted by Burns

heh, spicy Thai food may give you diarrhea but is not necessarily "bad" for you [/b]

Well... TOO MUCH Thai food is bad for you, then.

Burns, how can I get my cats to stop puking all over my house?

For a while (Read: YEARS) I tolerated it, since I didn't have to clean it up all the time, but it's gotten a bit out of hand. They don't vomit all that much, but I doubt a month goes by without a new present from my cats.
My cats are both several years old each. One, (Milo) is somewhat older and is really, really fat. I don't mean "Aww, look at the pudgy kitty" fat, I mean "Holy Christ NO I DO NOT WANT TO HOLD IT" fat. The other, (Merlin) is a few years younger, is fed the same diet (Mostly dry food, some table scraps and treats) and is much slimmer. Is there any way to stop it?

Originally Posted by FreshBrains

Burns, how can I get my cats to stop puking all over my house?[/b]

What are they vomiting up? Undigested food? Digested food? Liquid? Foam? Bile?

If it's undigested food - meaning, it happens shortly after eating and you can usually see whole chunks of kibble in the vomit - then this is called regurgitation. Regurgitation is caused by eating too much at once, or by eating too fast. If your cat wolfs down the food, you can force him to eat slower by spreading the dry kibble flat (in a single-layer) on a plate (rather than in a mound in a bowl). This will mean the cat can only pick up a few kibbles at a time which forces him to eat slower. If you think it's because he's eating too much too quickly, reduce the portions fed at a time.

If it's digested food, liquid, foam or bile - this is true vomiting which is not normal and the cat should be examined by a veterinarian. It can be caused by countless conditions and diseases - which I cannot adequately address here.

As for the overweight cat situation - don't just leave food out all day long and allow the cats to free-feed. Feed measured out amounts of food twice a day for breakfast and dinner. Most cats only need 1/2 cup dry food per day. If you have multiple cats, you may have to separate them during feeding and pick up the bowls after a certain amount of time to prevent eating of another cat's food. Don't worry if the cats are snackers and don't eat a full meal in one sitting. If you start picking up the food after a certain amount of time and they don't get anything until the following meal, they will quickly learn to eat their fill accordingly. However, you don't want them to lose too much weight too quickly which stresses the liver (see my other post regarding this).

Thanks. It's regurgitation, then, so I'll try your idea.