Signs of a Stressed-out Cat

You’ve probably heard the phrase "hair-pulling moment" in reference to stressful situations, but did you know that cats sometimes compulsively pull out their fur when they feel anxious? "Stress is a very big deal because it has a profound effect on all aspects of animals’ experience," says Patricia B. McConnell, Ph.D., a certified applied animal behaviorist.

Read more

How to Live With Your Crepuscular Cat

Dawn breaks as you burrow under the covers and feel the familiar tap-tap-tap of a paw on your cheek. You could use a couple of more hours of sleep, but your cat wants your undivided attention without delay. Fast-forward to later in the day when you return home from work, school or other late-afternoon activities with just enough energy left to operate the TV remote. And yet, there’s your furry friend again, ready to play.

Read more

How and Why Cats Purr

Did you know that, like vibrating piano strings, the sounds and vibrations your purring cat emits are in perfect musical harmony with each other? Those positive vibrations form the basis of one of the most soothing and pleasurable means of communication in the entire animal kingdom. Usually, your cat is telling you, "I’m feeling good."

Read more

What to Do With a Demanding Kitty

Cats have a reputation of being loners, but try telling that to owners whose feline follows them around like a shadow. Some domestic cats even become so attached to their humans that they crave nonstop attention. If "Mrrrrooooow! Mrrrrrrow! Mrrrrow!" followed by a friendly, yet forceful, head butt, have ever altered your plans, you might share your home with such a devoted, needy pet.

Read more

Good Litter Box Manners

Cats are extraordinarily fastidious creatures. Outdoors they tend to urinate and defecate in relatively open and previously unused areas. Unless they are "marking"-deliberately depositing the scent of their urine or feces as a chemical "autograph" for other cats-they carefully cover their waste and move on.

Read more

Curing Cat Cabin Fever

The winter months influence us in subtle ways. The relative lack of daylight and persistent cold have a way of dampening our activity level as well as our mood. Our pets are also influenced by the climate of deep winter-possibly mirroring our own changes. And, like us, they may start to feel restless and bored. It’s kitty cabin fever.

Read more

The Meaning of Meow

"Meow!" As cat owners, we hear it every day, often many times a day. But what does it mean? Well according to Dr. Nicholas Nicastro, we understand its meaning more clearly than we might think. Nicastro wrote his PhD thesis in psychology at Cornell University on humans’ ability to understand the meows of cats.

Read more

Cats and Babies Can Coexist

Cat shelters often take in cats cast out when the owner is expecting a first baby. Many couples have a cat for many years before starting a family, but reject the cat once a baby is due. You usually prepare for the birth of a baby once the pregnancy is confirmed; you should extend this preparation to your cat.

Read more

Do Cats Have Emotions?

"Emotion" is the term we use for feelings, some of which are instinctive and some of which are learned from those around us as we conform to society’s expectations and norms. Human emotions range from "primitive" feelings such as disgust, rage, fear and lust to "complex" emotions compassion and jealousy.

Read more

Can Cats Talk?

Can cats talk? Many cat owners would like to think so and some even claim that their cats speak a number of recognizable words. A Brazilian cat takes claims one step further by apparently being able to sing a number of well known songs while the Fortean Times carried a report of a cat which speaks several words in Turkish and suggested, with tongue firmly in cheek, that the reason many owners cannot understand their cats is because the cats are speaking Turkish. But before cat-owners rush out for phrase books, are these cats really speaking or are their owners just talking turkey?

Read more