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#71
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#72
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wrote in message oups.com... Dr.Carla,DVM wrote: Oh and before I get off my soap box, I forgot, indoor only cats don't need vaccinations unless they spend time at kennels, etc. Vaccinations in cats have been shown to cause VASTS (vaccine associated soft tissue sarcomas) or tumors. Its not clear yet which part of the vaccines are causing this terrible outcome. There is a new safer rabies shot for cats, ask your vet about it next time you go for vaccinations. What about indoor-only cats and obesity? That can't be very healthy. Obesity has *nothing* to do with whether the cat is an indoor or free-roaming outdoor cat. Feline obesity is a result of overfeeding and failure to provide exercise for the cat- IOW, its the *owner's* fault. |
#73
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wrote in message ups.com... Phil P. wrote: wrote in message oups.com... It seems natural for a cat to want to venture outside, and to me it's cruel to keep them inside (unless they're not interested). Its a cultural thing. Most (60%) cat owners in the U.S. feel that its cruel to expose cats to the stress and dangers outside of a safe home. An outdoor cat lives a more stressful life than an indoor cat. If you know a little about cats, and if you're sensitive to your cat's needs, you can provide your cat with a rich, happy, healthy, and safe life indoors. Phil My wife and I adopted a neighborhood stray about 2 years ago. He loves the outdoors. For him, stress would be being locked up inside. I have two former ferals that I trapped who adapted perfectly to an indoor life. How well a cat adapts to indoor living depends largely on the age at which she was trapped and the method used in the transition. I suppose we're lucky that whatever dangers and risks a cat faces outside, ours had learned to avoid them before we took him in. It is just amazing to watch him climb 40 feet up a tree, or chase a squirrel across the yard (he's only ever caught one once, that we have seen). But the best part is, he will only "go to the bathroom" outside, so we never have to worry about maintaining a litter box! :-) How do you know if your cat has a potentially fatal urinary tract obstruction, UTI , straining or painful urination or defecation or constipation or diarrhea if you can't physically *observe* your cat's elimination behavior? Litterbox behavior and products are often warning signs of internal disease. |
#74
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"Ivor Jones" wrote in message ... "Phil P." wrote in message "Ivor Jones" wrote in message ... For my part, if I were unable to allow a cat outdoors through risk of predators or any other reason, I simply wouldn't have a cat. That's not practical or even realistic in the USA because that mentality would result in millions upon millions of homeless cats and a 10 times increase in shelter killings. Something else we don't do here. That's a myth that has been fostered by the government to promote a sterling image of a 'cat-loving' nation. - The UK has an overpopulation problem, also, and *certainly* does use kill-shelters. |
#75
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None of my cats are obese.
Actually the only obese cat I owned was the outdoor one that died of Feline Leukemia |
#76
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Reasons why cats scratch trees or furniture (according to established animal
behaviorists): 1. Removal of outer nail sheaths (cats will scratch even if they are declawed before they have any experience with scratching) 2. Leaving scents (between digits and on pads there are glands which leave scents) 3. Exercise (stretching) In feral cats groups, scratching has been observed more often in the presence of others than when alone leading to a hypothesis that scratching was done more for marking and investigation than for actual sharpening. Cats which are scratching to remove outer sheaths can be successfully curtailed in many instances by trimming their nails manually on a regular basis. The use of nail sheaths has also been successful. One additional approach which helps to deter unwanted furniture scratching is removal of evidence. It has been noted that a cat will scratch again where it observes that a scratch has already been made. Therefore repairing scratch marks will help to keep the cat from seeing this piece of furniture as a scratching post. Declawing to eliminate this natural behavior is an elective mutilation and a very controversial subject. Some veterinarians will outright object to the surgery. An alternative surgery involves disengaging (cutting) the tendon that engages the claws. It is still surgery and still requires anesthesia and all its risks and the owner will need to trim the cats claws on a regular basis. However, there is the argument that it is preferable to declaw an animal than to have it killed for this natural but destructive behavior. All owners should be aware that onychectomy (declawing) is not removal of a nail but removal of an entire joint of every digit and that there are complications (albeit rare) including anesthetic risks, infection, uncontrolled bleeding, aversion to clay litter, unwillingness to have feet manipulated or bear weight on feet. Recent studies measuring force applied to a declawed paw have revealed that pain/discomfort persists at least 12 days post surgery. Cats which scratch to leave scents and exercise are more difficult to control. It is important to observe whether a cat prefers horizontal or vertical scratching. This way you can provide an appropriate place for them to scratch which will be appealing to them. Positive reinforcement when a cat scratches at an appropriate place is one key to deterring inappropriate behavior. In addition, a bell placed on the collar of a cat will not only alert the owner to where the cat is scratching but will signal when a cat is scratching in an inappropriate place. When a cat is seen at the inappropriate place they should immediately be redirected to an appropriate scratching area and rewarded when they begin to scratch the proper place be it a scratching post (vertical) or a log (horizontal). A reward can be praise, petting or treat. Some behaviorists believe that negative reinforcement will also deter scratching at inappropriate areas. The most minimal level of negativity is preferred; voice, water. Startle the cat, don't terrify it. One problem remains; when you are not at home, there is no reinforcement at all. One additional approach which helps to deter unwanted furniture scratching is removal of evidence. |
#77
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"Phil P." wrote in message ... wrote in message oups.com... Dr.Carla,DVM wrote: Oh and before I get off my soap box, I forgot, indoor only cats don't need vaccinations unless they spend time at kennels, etc. Vaccinations in cats have been shown to cause VASTS (vaccine associated soft tissue sarcomas) or tumors. Its not clear yet which part of the vaccines are causing this terrible outcome. There is a new safer rabies shot for cats, ask your vet about it next time you go for vaccinations. What about indoor-only cats and obesity? That can't be very healthy. Obesity has *nothing* to do with whether the cat is an indoor or free-roaming outdoor cat. Feline obesity is a result of overfeeding and failure to provide exercise for the cat- IOW, its the *owner's* fault. I have to agree. Our first cat after we moved in our house was a confirmed indoor/outdoor fat cat. She got plenty of exercise but we were feeding her grocery store food and going by the package directions for how much to give her. I plead ignorance because I had never heard of the premium foods that my guys get now. She passed at 13 of kidney failure at 13 lbs. She should have been a 10 lb. cat. -my fault. I've tried harder with subsequent kitties and feed them better quality food. |
#78
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wrote in message oups.com... Well I don't think we should have pets and keep them in prison if they don't want to stay in. Mine goes out in the summer and its safe, if it wasn't safe I guess I wouldn't have got a cat, I'd have got a goldfish. I'm glad it's safe for your cat to go out. So much easier for you. I just wish the people who have found a way to train their cats to stay away from traffic would tell the rest of us how to do it. How do you train your cat not to fight with a neighborhood cat and come home with wounds that can (and do) abscess and/or spread disease? You are really lucky that ALL of your neighbors love cats and have no objections to your guys wandering into their gardens to poop in their flower bed. Oh, you trained them to stay in your garden exclusively? Please enlighten me to your training method. Like I said much easier for me if I could let mine out. I would never again have to scoop a litter tray and would have more room in my living room without the cat tree. I wouldn't have to wash the curtains as often to get off the cat hair from them climbing on and off of the window sills etc etc. So if there is a training method to teach my cats to stay out of trouble outside I'd like to know about it. In the meantime I'll keep them inside where they won't tangle with the stray cats I've seen wandering the neighborhood, where I don't have to worry about whether they look both ways before crossing the street, don't have to worry about some of the children who are being raised by cat hating parents and don't have to worry about ****ing off the neighbors when my cat is in their garden using it as a litter box. W |
#79
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At our vets office there is a chart to track when your cat is obesed. My Nightshade is about 14 lbs but he is solid as a rock. Mostly "muscle". We live in a house where they can run up/down the stairs and through the house,too...So even though they are all over 10 lbs, I have not been told they were overwt. |
#80
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"Cheryl" wrote in message ... On Fri 19 Aug 2005 10:10:57p, wrote in rec.pets.cats.health+behav oups.com): snip I suppose we're lucky that whatever dangers and risks a cat faces outside, ours had learned to avoid them before we took him in. It is just amazing to watch him climb 40 feet up a tree, or chase a squirrel across the yard (he's only ever caught one once, that we have seen). But the best part is, he will only "go to the bathroom" outside, so we never have to worry about maintaining a litter box! :-) That really isn't "the best part" because you'll not have an early warning if something's wrong. Merely convenience for you. -- Cheryl Cheryl is exactly right. Outdoor "litter boxes" may be convenient for you, but you will have no warning if your cat develops a urinary tract infection -- something that can quickly progress to a very serious (and possibly fatal) problem. Moreover, you say that your cat has learned to avoid dangers and risks. That may be true, but it will take only one incident that your cat can't or doesn't avoid to change this whole picture -- car accident, encounter with another animal that is larger and more aggressive than your cat, human cruelty, etc. Your cat sees birds as prey and probably has killed many of them. Unfortunately, there are also animals that will see your cat as *their* prey. I sincerely hope none of those things ever occurs, but there is good reason why the average life span of an outdoor cat is so much shorter than that of an indoor cat. MaryL My cats -- Duffy: http://tinyurl.com/cslwf Holly: http://tinyurl.com/9t68o Duffy and Holly together: http://tinyurl.com/8b47e |
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