Monthly Archives: May 2015

PURR LOVE.

by Patty Pastor

9 ways cats show their love

Cats show their love in so many ways. Some are obvious and some are not. Some we find cute and some we find a little annoying. However our cats show us affection, each has its own unique ways of showing them.

Cats like to give presents

The cat brought you a gift. It may be a leaf, a branch, their favorite toy… or errr… a dead-something they caught outside. Cats are natural-born hunters and when they bring you a gift, they’re showing and offering you a token of their affection and love.

Sometimes other people’s cats bring you presents of love, too. One time, the across-the-hall neighbor’s cat brought me a giant dead rat as a token of affection. I was flattered.

Belly Rub

Most cats don’t expose their bellies and don’t like their bellies touched. Ever. One, because it makes them too vulnerable and two, they trust no one (at first). However, if your cat plops down and rolls over that means they trust you, feel protected by you and are completely comfortable around you.

One of my kitties plops down for belly rubs the minute I get home from work. Every day. The other one just stands there and watches. She has no idea what she’s missing.

The Kitty-Bunt

AKA: the head butt. Sometimes it’s soft and gentle and sometimes they butt you so hard, the phone gets knocked out of your hand while you’re texting. Cats do this while they’re relaxed and friendly to deposit facial pheromones on humans or objects to signal comfort, safety and possession with you.

 The Nibbler

Your cat may give you little love bites that don’t hurt and you barely feel while playing with you. These playful nibbles are signs of affection and their way of showing you attention.

It’s totally cute when my cats do this. Not so cute when the playful nibble turns into a MMA fight match with your arm.

Why are you following me?

Do your cats follow you around from room to room or run circles around your feet and rub your ankles while trying to make dinner? They’re showing their fondness and want to stay close. While it may not be the best moment, just roll with it. It’s another way of them showing love.

Making Biscuits

Kneading or as vets call it “making biscuits” is a cat instinct. For many cats, this kitten behavior developed as babies when nursing from their mothers, carries into adulthood for a number of reasons including showing contentment and love, a way of calming down if feeling anxious or to mark you or an object with the scent in their paw sweat glands.

Tip of the Tail

Your cat’s tail can indicate its mood—if content in the current situation, she’ll hold her tail out and loosely behind. If happy, she’ll hold her tail up high with a slight twitch or it will curl forward. If her tail is moving, twitching or wagging she’s showing interest. We’ve all seen this movement as Mr. and Ms. Kitty intensely watch a bird through the window.

The Purrfect Purr

It’s a cat-parents favorite sound. The purr. Cats purring=happiness all around.

Did you know that kittens start purring even before they open their eyes? They purr and rumble while nursing, a reassuring sound to mama cats.

Kisses. Kitty-Style

Eye contact is uncomfortable for cats. However, once they’ve made that connection of trust and lock eyes with you, they’ll show just how much they like you by blowing kisses, kitty-style. How to know if you’ve been kissed? Make eye contact with your kitty and slowly blink. If you see her slowly blinking, as well—you’ve been kitty-kissed! Try it again. Chances are they’ll give you more than one kiss.

 

What Causes Litter Box Odor And What’s The Best Way To Control It?

by Patty Pastor

Big Stinks Come In Little Packages.

For many of us, cleaning out the litter box is pretty much the hardest part of owning a kitty. And we’re always worried about an embarrassing ‘smelly cat house ’ situation when friends and family come over. Does my house smell like a litter box?

Here are some easy solutions for controlling and keeping that smelly cat odor out of your house and keeping everyone happy!

Clean your box daily.

The longer existing kitty business sits in the box, the more the odor will linger and take over your house. Cleaning the box twice a day is ideal—once in the morning and once in the evening. Most vets recommend at least 1-2 litter boxes per cat, 2-3 for 2 cats and so on.

Change out the litter at least once a week.

Although you’re doing the best you can to clean everything out of the litter box, there’s no way of getting it all. And after a while those left over bits start to smell and linger. Emptying the litter box once a week, washing it and the scooper with soap and warm water only (do not use chemicals, especially ammonia- based products), dry the box and fill with fresh litter. Try adding a ½ -1 cup of baking soda to each clean batch of litter and mix it around completely. This helps keep both the litter box and your house a little fresher.

Keep the litter box in a well-ventilated area and consider an air-purifier

Keep your litter box in an open, well-ventilated area, with space for them to move freely. While some prefer open litter boxes to covered ones because a closed box traps odors in, if you clean out the covered box twice a day, there should be no problem with smell. Another way to help with ventilation and odor- consider placing an air-purifier in the litter box area. However, do not place it too close to the box, as most kitties do not appreciate loud and/or humming noises near their box.