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- Frequently Asked Questions (FAQS);faqs.194
-
-
-
- If you have an indoor/outdoor cat, you will want to keep it indoors
- for about a month before you let it out. Cats have a homing instinct
- that takes about a month to "reset". If you let it out before this
- time, the cat may become disoriented and get lost, or make a beeline
- for the old home.
-
- E. Vacations.
-
- When you go on vacation or otherwise will be absent for some period of
- time, you must make provisions for your cat.
-
- It is a good idea, whichever solution you use, to inform your vet that
- you're on vacation and to take care of your cats in any case that
- comes up and you will settle the bill when you get back. Let the
- sitters know, too.
-
- 1. Leave at home
-
- In most cases, you will be able to leave your cat alone for three to
- four days with no supervision provided that it has an adequate supply
- of food and water. If your cat does not free-feed, this may not be at
- all possible.
-
- 2. Pet sitters
-
- Find a friend (or a company that provides this service) who will drop
- by your house at least once a day to feed it, water it, and generally
- check up and play with it. This is the least traumatic method for the
- cat since it will stay in familiar territory and has the added bonus
- of your house looking occupied. Check to make sure that the
- professional service you use is bonded, and interview the person
- beforehand. Check references that they supply.
-
- You can call the local humane society, animal rights groups or vets to
- find a recommended sitter. These groups can often recommend good
- sitters, and just as important, warn you off particular companies that
- have had complaints.
-
- 3. Kennels
-
- Experiences have ranged from good to satisfactory to terrible with
- kenneling cats. It will depend a good deal on your cat's personality
- and the kennel. Look for a kennel that is clean and is attentive to
- its boarders. Look for personnel that like playing and otherwise
- caring for animals. Be wary of kennels that are not clean and
- cheerful. Some have reported that their animals came home with
- diseases; check the kennel's policy regarding these matters. Some may
- involuntarily dip their clients; check for this also. Check for
- noise, too.
-
- 4. Take Cat With You
-
- See Travel.
-
- 5. Leave with Someone Else
-
- Find someone willing to take your cat in while you are gone. Your cat
- will have to stay somewhere new for a while, but this can be
- convenient, and especially if it always stays with that person while
- you're gone, its adjustment can be quick.
-
-
- VIII. OTHER TOPICS
-
- A. Removing Urine Odor.
-
- For fresh urine: clean the spot with any good carpet shampoo (Spot
- Shot is one). Then soak it with plain old club soda, leave it for
- about ten minutes and blot it up.
-
- If the urine has soaked the pad and the floor below that, it will be
- difficult to remove the odor regardless of what you use.
-
- To find spots if you're not sure where they are, get a UV lamp that
- has the filter built in (to eliminate any remnant visible light).
- Urine fluoresces in "black light." You can get them at hardware
- stores. There are also UV lamps in hobby stores and places that cater
- to spelunkers and rockhounds, but they're more expensive. The UV
- source is safe as long as you use the longwave lamp and not the
- shortwave lamp used for tanning.
-
- 1. Enzymatic products
-
- Products that remove odors: Nature's Miracle (carpet, has 800 number);
- Simple Solution (carpet and other items); Outright! (carpet); Resolve
- (carpet, perhaps other items); Odor Mute (originally for deskunking
- dogs, has other applications, leaves white residue, works on
- concrete). Odor Abolish, by Endosome Biologicals, may also be useful.
- These products use enzymes to break down the odor causing compounds in
- urine and feces, and are quite effective.
-
- When using enzymatic products, it is important to use freshly diluted
- enzymes, let it soak in as deeply as the urine has penetrated, and
- *keep the area warm and wet for 24 hours*. Chemical reactions,
- including enzymatic reactions, go faster at higher temperatures.
- Unfortunately, most enzymatic reactions don't do well much over 102F
- (38-39C)-- so not TOO hot. Try covering the area with towels soaked
- in plain water after applying the enzyme, then a shower curtain or
- other plastic over that to make sure the area stays moist.
-
- The enzymes in laundry products are the same as those in the expensive
- odor-killing products, but they cost less than 1/3 as much. They work
- just as well. Biz is one product. You'll find it in your grocery
- laundry section with the pre-soak laundry stuff. Remember, you have
- to SOAK the area and then cover it to keep it from drying out. The
- smelly area must be WET with the enzyme for 24 hours or more.
-
- 2. Launderable items
-
- On launderable items: put in the washing machine with a cup of vinegar
- and no detergent, then wash again as usual.
-
- 3. Concrete
-
- If you have concrete (eg, in the basement) into which urine has been
- soaked, this can be difficult to remove, as unsealed concrete is very
- porous. You will have to neutralize the urine and then seal the
- concrete properly. A specialty cleaning service is probably the best
- way to properly neutralize the urine in the concrete. Vinegars and
- other cleaners may help, but only temporarily. Odor Mute is reputed
- to work on concrete. Improving the ventilation may also help. In
- extreme cases, pouring another 1/4-1/2 inch layer of concrete over the
- original concrete will solve the problem.
-
- 4. Hardwood floors
-
- Hardwood floors that have been stained with urine can be difficult to
- clean. First treat with an enzyme-based product such as Nature's
- Miracle to remove the odor. You can find wood bleaches and stains at
- your hardware store: you may want to consult with one of the employees
- on what is available. You will need to remove any varnish or
- polyurethane from the area, sand it down a bit, bleach and/or stain
- it, and then apply the protective coat. There are also professional
- companies you can consult. In severely stained cases, you may have to
- replace the wood.
-
- B. Cat Owner Allergies.
-
- In general, keep the cats out of the bedroom. If cats can be trained
- to keep off the furniture, that also helps. Substances like Allerpet
- C can be used on cat's fur to dissolve some of the dander and protein
- from the saliva that people are allergic to. Long haired cats have
- more area to deposit their saliva on and they have to be brushed
- (putting more dander in the air), so short haired cats are better for
- people with allergies. Clean and vacuum often; groom and brush the
- cat (outside if possible) often so its hair-shedding around the house
- is minimized; and bathe the cat regularly.
-
- 1. Kinds of allergies
-
- Some people are simply allergic to new cats. This kind of allergy
- means that it will diminish with repeated exposure. Thus you will not
- be allergic to cats that you are exposed to regularly; and actually
- become allergic to your own cat if you're away from it for some time.
- Washing hands frequently helps with this type of allergy.
-
- Other people are allergic to the saliva on the cat's fur. A remedy
- for this is to bathe the cat once a month. No soap is needed, merely
- soak the cat thoroughly. Done on a monthly basis, it seems to keep
- the saliva levels down to a tolerable level. This was reported in a
- scientific journal somewhere; Cat Fancy covered it a few years ago.
- [exact reference?]
-
- You may be allergic to cat hair, in which case you may want to get one
- of the breeds of cats with short, little, or no hair. There is a
- hairless cat, the Sphynx, and there are breeds of cat which are
- entirely lacking in the kind of hair (cats have four kinds of hair)
- most people are allergic to. These are the Cornish Rex or Devon Rex
- breeds, and their fur is short and curly.
-
- You could go to an allergy specialist and get shots to help you with
- specific allergies. This can be expensive, but worth it, especially
- if you have other allergies as well. They'll test you for the things
- you're allergic to, and then give you periodic shots to help you
- develop an appropriate immunity to them.
-
- The magazine _New Woman_ (October 1992) has an interesting article
- about a cat-allergy vaccine. Catvax is being developed by the
- Immulogic Pharmaceutical Corporation (I.P.C.) in Cambridge,
- Massachusetts, and is now being tested on humans at Johns Hopkins
- University. Tests on animals indicate that Catvax is different from
- traditional cat-allergy shots in two ways. First, unlike conventional
- allergy therapy, which involves biweekly or weekly injections for up
- to a year, the vaccine may be able to completely prevent allergic
- reactions after just a few injections. Second, studies suggest that
- the vaccine will not produce allergic side effects, such as asthma,
- that traditional shots often do. I.P.C. hopes to complete its human
- studies and have the vaccine on the market by 1996 or 1997.
-
- There is an informative article "When Humans Have Allergies: Ways to
- Tolerate Cat Allergies," in _Cats Magazine_, April 1992. The August
- 1992 issue of _Cat Fancy_ contains an informative article; the
- September 1992 issue will have a survey of people's experiences with
- allergies (what works for them).
-
- C. Cats and Water.
-
- There are breeds of cats with an affinity for water. There have been
- reports from rec.pets.cats readers about cats getting into showers
- with them; other anecdotes have been very entertaining to read.
-
- Most cats, whether or not they like to get wet, will be fascinated
- with watching water drip out of faucets or drain out of tubs, sinks,
- and toilets.
-
- Reports of cats drinking from the bottom of the shower, from the sink
- and other unlikely places are common. Some cats can be fussy
- about water; they seem to like it as fresh as possible, preferably
- still moving. You may be able to stop some of this behavior by
- changing the cat's water every day and moving it some distance away
- from the food dish. In general this habit will not hurt your cat,
- however unpleasant it may look to you. Toilet water drinking *should*
- be discouraged, but this is easily done by leaving the lid down.
-
- D. Indoor and Outdoor Cats
-
- 1. Pros and cons
-
- There are a good many arguments for keeping them inside. They will
- live longer since the chances of being hit by a car, hurt by other
- people or animals, or infected with contagious diseases from feral
- cats will be minimized. On the other hand, cats derive much pleasure
- from exploring around outside.
-
- 2. Compromises
-
- Often, a satisfactory compromise is to allow the cat out under
- supervision. This can be done by either letting them out into a
- fenced yard (although if you leave them out there, they will probably
- eventually climb the fence), or using a harness and leash. To use the
- latter, accustom them to the harness first, in the same way as a
- collar. Then accustom them to the leash by leaving it on for short
- periods of time. Then take them outside, and follow them where they
- go (do not try to take them "on a walk").
-
- 2. Pet doors
-
- Pet doors are a good solution for people tired of letting cats in and
- out. There are many kinds of doors, including those that fit into
- patio doors without requiring a hole cut through the wall or door.
-
- You may have trouble with other animals coming in the door, or want to
- let your dog but not your cat use the pet door. The solution is an
- electronic pet door. The door has a lock that is deactivated by a
- magnet that selected pets wear on their collar. Look under Pet
- Supplies in the yellow pages. If you can't get one locally, call
- "America's Pet Door Store" toll free at 1-800-826-2871 for a catalog.
-
- Electronic pet doors are installed much like a regular pet door, but
- you plug them in. The door itself needs a firmer push to open than
- most. A great feature is the 4-way lock. The lock can be set so the
- cat can 1) go both in and out 2) go in only - great if you want to
- catch them 3) out only 4) totally locked. Doors cost about
- US$80-US$90.
-
- E. Catching Feral Cats.
-
- On occasion, you may want to catch feral cats. They can be very
- difficult to catch. When it seems to be impossible, call your local
- humane society or SPCA to see if you can borrow a humane animal trap.
- Some places allow you to "check out" such traps, just like books from
- the library. A little food for bait, and you've got 'em.
-
- F. Finding A Home for a Cat.
-
- For whatever reason, you may need to find a home for a cat. List
- everywhere: newspaper, bulletin boards, computer bulletin boards,
- newsletters, anywhere you like. But limit sharply: don't adopt out if
- they don't meet standards. Minimal standards: will neuter as soon as
- the cat's old enough, committed to a 20 year responsibility, they have
- a home or apartment that permits pets, knowledgeable about cat health
- and behavior or committed to become so. Do charge a nominal fee, at
- least US$10, unless you know the adopter well; this keeps away those
- collecting animals for research. (You can donate all or part of the
- money to animal causes if you like.)
-
- G. Dealing with Landlords.
-
- A number of landlords initially say "no pets" but change their minds
- when assured that the cat was well-behaved and assured of an extra
- damage deposit if necessary.
-
- Also, it seems like many landlords are more likely to approve of a cat
- if you make it a condition of signing the lease, rather than if you
- ask if it's OK to get one after you've already moved in, or if you try
- to sneak one in without asking.
-
- Try to prove that you are a responsible owner (photos of last house,
- references, vet records, etc.) to help win your case.
-
- For more ideas and tips, look up
- Dog Fancy, Volume 22, No. 8, August 1991, "Breaking Barriers:
- How to find an apartment that allows dogs," by Amanda Wray.
-
- H. Pet Insurance.
-
- In the August issue of Cat Fancy, there is an article discussing
- health maintenance plans for cats that is set up between your vet
- and yourself and then administrated by this HMO company. The
- company is called RLI Planned Services in Peoria, Illinois.
-
- The article included a sample plan. For $75 a year, your cat
- receives:
-
- BASIC HEALTH CARE:
- 1 physical exam, no charge
- 1 FVRCPC booster, no charge
- 1 Rabies booster, no charge
- 1 FeLV test, no charge
- 50% off FeLV series
- Fecal analysis, ear flush, worming, no charge
- 1 Pedicure, no charge
-
- MAJOR ELECTIVE PROCEDURES:
- Spay or Neuter, 40% off
- Declawing, 20% off
- Dental Prophylaxis, 50% off
- (anesthesia included)
-
- HEALTH SURVEY:
- Radiographs, 20% off
- EKG, 20% off
- Chemistry screen profile, 20% off
- Complete blood count, 20% off
-
- All other medical, surgical and hospital services (except
- prescriptions and diets) are 10% off.
-
- (All of these things are included in this HMO for $75/year.
- OR $125 for two years.)
-
- Here's the company's address:
- RLI Planned Services Inc.
- Dept. CF
- 9025 N. Lindbergh Drive
- Peoria, IL 61615
-
- The article says to ask your vet about this program. If he/she
- isn't familiar with it, they should contact the company and see
- about setting up the HMO plan.
-
- Vets also may be able to direct you to other pet insurance plans that
- they know about. You may want to consider that $100/year over an
- expected 15 to 20 year lifetime is $1500 to $2000. Plus whatever you
- have to pay for excluded costs, coverage limits, deductibles. Pet
- insurance will help with major medical problems such as FUS, cancer,
- etc, or emergency care. If your pet is basically healthy, you will
- pay about as much either way, for insurance or for preventative care
- that keeps it healthy.
-
-
- I. Cat Genetics and Coloring.
-
- A cat with patches of red and black is a tortoiseshell, or 'tortie'.
- Add white, and you get a calico. A tortoiseshell that is homozygous
- for the recessive 'dilution' gene is referred to as a blue-cream, and
- that's what color it is: patches of soft grey and cream. This is the
- same gene that turns black cats 'blue' (grey), and red cats cream. A
- blue-cream and white is generally referred to in the cat world as a
- dilute calico. The pattern of black/red or blue/cream can either be
- in big dramatic patches, brindling, or some of both. Having more
- white seems to encourage the formation of the big patches.
-
- Red in cats is a sex-linked color, carried on the X gene. Therefore,
- a male cat whose X carries red will be a red tabby. A female cat who
- carries one red and one non-red X will be a patched tabby, a
- tortoiseshell, or a calico (if she also has the dominant gene for
- white markings). A female cat who is homozygous for red (has it on
- both X genes) will be a red tabby. This is why you see more male red
- tabbies than females. This is ALSO why male calicos are so rare: you
- have to have two X genes to be a calico. Male calicos have genetic
- aberrations of various sorts, of which XXY is most common. While they
- are most commonly sterile, there *are* documented cases of fertile
- male calicos. However, the generalization that "all calicos/torties
- are female" is true 99.999 percent of the time.
-
- The reason red females are "uncommon" is that, statistically, the
- number of red males is equal to the number of tortoiseshell/calico,
- patched tabby, AND red females. Red males and tortie/calico/patched
- tabby females can be produced when only ONE parent has the red gene,
- but to produce a red female, you must cross a red male with a
- red/tortie/calico/patched tabby female. THAT is why red females are
- uncommon. But not "impossible", in the sense that a male calico is
- "impossible".
-
- A "solid red" cat will always display the tabby pattern (although it
- may be very slight or even undetectable without brushing the fur back
- to check). There's another gene at work which controls "agoutiness"
- (whether individual hairs are banded or solid). Cats who are
- non-agouti will not generally display the tabby pattern, except in red
- areas. The non-agouti gene does not affect phaeomelanin, the red
- pigment, so red cats always show their tabby pattern.
-
- The red gene "overrides" the solid gene, making the tabby pattern
- visible again. (And on other solid colors, you can sometimes notice
- the underlying stripes, especially in strong light.) Solid red cats
- at cat shows MAY or MAY NOT be genetically solid--they are (generally
- longhairs) bred for the "blurring" of the tabby pattern, producing a
- cat that doesn't have dramatic markings.
-
- Solid Tabby
- ----- -----
- black brown tabby
- blue blue tabby
- red red tabby
- cream cream tabby
- chocolate chocolate tabby
- cinnamon cinnamon tabby
- fawn fawn tabby
-
- The colors a calico will produce depend on the color of the sire. But
- at minimum, she can produce red and non-red sons, and patched
- tabby/tortoiseshell/calico daughters, as well as non-red daughters.
- Whether she will produce tabbies or not depends on the genetic makeup
- of the sire. And *any* of the kittens could have white markings, or
- not.
-
- Basic cat colors:
-
- Color Dilute form
- ----- -----------
- black blue (a grey color)
- chocolate lilac (a pale pinkish-grey)
- (chocolate is a recessive gene which changes black to brown)
- cinnamon fawn (a very pale pinkish-tan)
- (a light reddish brown, found mostly in Siamese and Abyssinians)
-
- red cream (ranges from yellowish to tannish or buff)
- (red and cream are sex-linked, on the X gene, and mask the previous
- colors. Actually, there's a separate shade of red/cream to match each
- of the previous colors, but it's hard to tell them apart, unless you're
- dealing with a tortoiseshell or patched tabby, which has the non-red
- areas to give you a hint.)
-
- white
- (Here we refer to the dominant form, which is masking over the previous
- colors. It has no dilution.)
-
- Everything else is a modifier!
-
- Modifier Dominant/Recessive
- -------- ------------------
- white spotting (paws, etc) dominant
- polydactyly (extra toes) dominant
- manx (taillessness) dominant
- silver (inhibits hair color at roots) dominant
- white locketing (small spots on chest and/or groin) recessive
- dilution (black->blue) recessive
- chocolate dilution recessive
- cinnamon dilution recessive
- bobtail (partial taillessness) recessive
- solid (no tabby markings) recessive
- long hair recessive
-
- Some genes are incompletely dominant to each other, and are part of a
- series. For example, the siamese/burmese genes, from most to least
- colored:
-
- Burmese/Siamese/blue-eyed white/pink-eyed white (albino)
-
- The coloring of the Burmese and the points of the Siamese is
- temperature sensitive. The cooler extremities of the Siamese are
- darker; a Burmese that has had a fever may grow in lighter fur for a
- while! Such changes are usually temporary, but may take some time to
- grow out.
-
- All cats (even those homozygous for solid) have a tabby pattern. There
- are different tabby patterns, from most to least dominant:
-
- Mackerel/Classic/Ticked. The spotted tabby pattern is thought to be a
- variant of the Mackerel pattern, not genetically distinct, but the
- jury is not yet in.
-
- Smokes and Chinchillas. This is the combination of the expression of
- the silver gene (a dominant), and the gene for solid color (a
- recessive). Other modifiers account for whether the cat is a referred
- to as a smoke, a shaded, or a chinchilla. From most to least colored:
- a "smoke" has white roots, a "shaded" has about half and half white
- and color along the length of the hair, and a "chinchilla" has color
- only on the very tips of the hair. If the cat is a tabby instead of a
- solid color, that is a silver tabby. And if the base color is not
- black, that would be added to the name as well: blue-cream smoke, red
- silver tabby, etc.
-
-
- J. Bathing a Cat.
-
- You should not ordinarily need to bath a cat. Cats are normally very
- good about cleaning themselves, and for most cats, that's all the
- bathing they will ever need. Reasons for giving them a bath are:
-
- - The cat has got something poisonous on its fur,
- - It doesn't take care of its coat as normal cats do,
- - You are allergic and need to bathe it to keep allergens down,
- - The cat is a show cat and about to be shown,
- - You are giving it a flea, tick, or lice dip,
- - It is unusually dirty for some reason (perhaps bad weather).
-
- If you just trimmed your cat's claws, now is a good time. Having
- someone help you hold the cat definitely helps.
-
- If your cat is long haired, groom it *before* bathing it. Water will
- just tighten any mats already in the coat.
-
- Get everything ready. Warm water, selected bathing place (you might
- consider the kitchen sink as being easier on your back and
- facilitating control of the cat). Having water already in the tub or
- sink reduces the potential terror to the cat at the sound and sight of
- the water coming out of the faucet. Put a towel or rubber mat on the
- bottom of the tub or sink to give your cat something to sink its claws
- into. If you have spray attachments, either to the sink or the tub,
- those will help you soak the cat efficiently. You want to use soap
- formulated for cat skin, as human-type soaps will remove all the
- essential oils and leave the cat's skin dried out and susceptible to
- flea infestations or skin breakouts. There are some soaps formulated
- for allergic pet owners. Use sparingly and rinse well after working
- through coat.
-
- To dry the cat, towel dry first. You can try hair dryers on low
- settings depending on your cat's tolerance. Otherwise, keep them
- inside until they are fully dry. If your cat is longhaird, you will
- want to groom it as the coat drys. Give the cat a treat after the
- bath, this may help them tolerate the process.
-
- If the problem is greasy skin, you may wish to try a dry cat shampoo
- instead.
-
- If you are attempting to remove grease, oil, or other petroleum
- products from your cat's fur, try using Dawn brand detergent first to
- remove it, and follow up with a cat shampoo. Dawn is used by
- volunteers who clean up birds after oil spills.
-
-
- K. Cat Safety in the House.
-
- Besides some of the more obvious things like electrical cords, here
- are some other things to watch out for:
-
- * Recliner chairs. Many cats will go underneath these chairs as a
- hiding or resting place. Cats that are caught in the mechanism
- when the chair is opened or closed can be seriously injured or
- killed.
-
- * The dryer. Many cats find the small enclosed space with warm
- clothing especially inviting. Check your dryer before turning it
- on; your cat can be killed this way. A little aversion therapy:
- if you see your cat slip in, close the door and bang on the top of
- the dryer for a few seconds. Let the cat back out.
-
- * Drapery and blind cords. Most cats love to play with the cords;
- unfortunately it is easy for cats to be entangled and
- strangulated. Coil the cords up to the top of the window and pin
- it there with a clothes pin or clip.
-
- * Bags with handles. Cats can become stuck in the handles and
- panic. If this happens when you are not at home, the cat may
- injure or kill itself. Keep such bags out of reach of the cats,
- or cut their handles off.
-
- * Stove tops. Gas or electrical stoves can present problems. One
- preventive measure is to obtain burner covers, available for both
- kinds. Most cats will stay away from anything that is actively
- hot, but you may wish to train them away from the stove by
- spraying with water, or trying other measures used to keep cats
- off the counters.
-
-
- L. Pet Identification
-
- Every cat should wear ID tags. A "strangleproof" or "breakaway" cat
- collar with elastic section is safest; tags attached with small
- keyrings won't fall off and get lost.
-
- When a kitten gets a new collar, it should be put on tighter than
- usual until she/he gets used to it. You should be able to slip 1 or 2
- fingers under the collar, but it shouldn't be loose enough for the
- kitten to get its jaw hooked. Of course, this means the kitten also
- won't be able to get the collar over its head if it gets caught on
- something, so you need to supervise more closely - especially outside.
- Kittens grow fast, so you need to check the fit often. Once the kitty
- is quite used to the collar and no longer tries to play with it or get
- it off, you can loosen it up a bit. It usually doesn't take very long
- for a kitten to get used to a collar.
-
- Commonest way to get the tag: mail order services that advertise at
- pet shops and vet waiting rooms. Prices go from $3 to $8 per tag.
- The cat's name is the least important thing on the tag. The most
- important is your name and phone number. Home address and work number
- are desirable. Some areas offer cat licensing; consider it as another
- way of getting a tag. Another alternative is to write the name and
- phone number on a flea collar or on a cloth collar. Don't forget to
- update the information on the tag when you move! Tabby Tags offer a
- way to attach information to the cat's collar without dangling tags.
- Inquire at Tabby Tags, 4546 El Camino Real, B-10, Suite 340, Los
- Altos, CA 94022
-
- ID's should be worn for the following reasons:
- * In case the cat, even an indoors one, gets lost or strays.
- * If your cat is injured outside and a kind stranger takes it to the
- vet, the vet is more likely to treat the cat if it has tags.
- * People won't think your cat is a stray and take it home and keep it.
- * Let your neighbors know whose cat is whose, and what their names are.
-
- You can get your cat tattooed in the ear or the leg and register the
- tattoo number with a national registry. The basic problem with this
- approach is that few people will look for a tattoo and know where to
- call. Vets, though, usually know about this. Microchips are being
- increasingly used, but you need a scanner to be able to read this
- (although vets and animal shelters will check for these).
-
- If you have found a stray cat that you are not sure is really stray,
- put a plastic collar on it and write your phone number and any
- message on it. If it has an owner, the owner may call you or at
- least remove the collar.
-
- M. Do All Cats Purr?
-
- Most domestic cats purr. But do the big ones? Most people say not,
- but from _The Big Cat_:
-
- "Assertions have been widely made that the roaring cats above are
- not able to purr, assertions that have now been disproven. George
- B. Schaller reports purring in the lion, tiger, and leopard, as well
- as in the cheetah, but remarks that in the lion the sound is
- produced only during exhalation and appears to be a much less common
- vocalization than in the domestic cat [160]. Snow leopards purr,
- like the house cat, during both exhalation and inhalation [60].
- Others have reported that tame, young adult tigers, leopards,
- jaguars, and cheetahs purr in response to petting. Finally, purring
- has even been reported in five species of viverrids, as well as
- suckling black bear cubs and nursing spotted hyenas [36]. These
- observations are interesting when compared with Gustave Peters'
- comment that there is still some question about the occurrence of
- purring, in a strictly defined sense, in the wild cats [178]. He
- questions whether the noise identified as a purr from the big cats
- is pthe same in detail and manner of production as the purr of a
- domestic cat. Of the seven large cats he studied (he did not
- consider the cheetah), he observed true purring only in the puma,
- but considered it probable that snow leopards and clouoded leopards
- also purr. Thus there is still some doubt about the distribution of
-