Selecting Your Cat

    It's any superb time today! Nowadays is the evening you actually go out and about for you to come across your current new pal and
companion, your current new cat. Nonetheless where complete anyone get to help come across her? What will you'll want to seem
for? What exactly could you be advised to steer clear of? Let's take a look at every single question.

    Where complete I obtain my brand new kitten? Right now there are a large number of places where cats are
available for new homes. The local animal shelter is an excellent place to begin. They
always have a very good selection of cats and kittens to choose from. With so many
different breeds, sizes, colors, and ages to choose from you're almost sure to find a new
friend just waiting for you to come and pick her up. Farmers frequently have kittens that
are available to go to a new home. If you are interested in a particular breed of cat,
contact their registry. They should be able to direct you to a reputable breeder in your
area.

    Now that you have looked over the cats or kittens available, how do you select
right one for you? First and foremost, make sure the cat or kitten is healthy. Bright eyes,
shining coat and a lively manner are indicators of good health. Interact with the kitten or
cat. Does she hiss and pull away when you touch her or does she purr and rub her head
against your hand? Is she patient or happy to be picked up, or is she frantic to get away?
Does she walk away from people and sit down as far away as she can with her ears down
or does she hold her ground and let her curiosity draw her to the new person. It will
become obvious pretty quickly which kitten or cat will have the kind of personality that
you will enjoy. Avoid the cat or kitten with an ugly attitude or that shows poor health.
That will be the way to avoid heartbreak on down the road.

    Another thing that you should consider is yourself. What do I mean? I mean that
you should take stock of yourself. Most people are a sucker for kittens. Those little fluff
balls with their sweet faces are nearly impossible to resist. Do you have the time and
energy to deal with a lively kitten and her antics? (Oh, you mean I'm not supposed to
swing on the drapes?) Perhaps you would be more comfortable with an older cat who
already knows all about litter boxes and not climbing on top of the counter. A quiet adult
who will sit on your lap and purr while you watch your favorite show may be more your
speed. Be honest with yourself. You and your new cat will be much happier for it.

    Okay, you've assessed yourself and the kittens and cats available to you. You've
picked out your perfect new friend. On your way home think over what supplies you have
at home. Do you have everything you need? A litter box with nice fresh litter? Is there a
little scooper to clean her litter box with? A food dish and a water bowl? Do you have
good quality food for her? Is it the one she is already used to? No? Perhaps you might
want to stop and pick up a small bag of the one she's familiar with. It will be something
she already is aware in some sort of strange place along with may help the woman's become secure throughout her brand new
home faster. Begin blending your preferred food into her old one particular inside the on its way
days, eventually shifting her absolutely for you to her new food by the time the small bag comes to an end.

    There is much to consider when getting a new cat. Take your time. Make positive most
your formulations are made. You will end up on the way for you to a happy life for you along with
your fresh cat.
   

Guest Readers Cat Of The Week: Ollie

Name?

Ollie

Nicknames?

Ollie-boy, Boysie, Boysie Chops, Ching Chang Chollie, Ozley Bozley, Oliver (when in trouble)

Theme Tune?

Sexy Boy by AIR

Age?

3

Owners?

Zoe and Nathan 

Brief biography?

I lived with another family for a couple of years, running around being very manly and hunting a lot. But then it all changed earlier this year and I ended up in a lovely lady's rescue centre in South London. My humans came to visit and picked me straight away because, well, who could resist this handsome face?

Catchphrase?

Oh, were you using that?

Favourite Habits?

I like to pretend to dig very early in the morning, as if I'm preparing for a little wee. I know this wakes my humans out of fear that I'm actually going to do it. Then they're awake and feed me. Oh, and I’ll sit on any open laptop. Why would you work when you have me to look at?

What constitutes a perfect evening for you?

A quick runaround outside and then I’ll pose on the arm of the sofa. I'm pretty good looking, so everyone in the room gives me attention. If I'm looking exceptionally handsome, my humans sometimes reward me with a laser pen.

Favourite food?

I like all food apart from hummus and tomatoes. I once ate a bowl of cake icing when the girl human wasn't looking. That didn't go down too well, but did come up quite fantastically. But my humans clean up after me and I don't think they mind a bit of projectile vomit.

Defining moment of your life?

My first poo in the bath. God it was good. It made me feel so enlightened, so free. That's when I really found myself for the first time. I'm not sure my humans appreciate it as they've started keeping the door shut but I'm always on the look out and strike when they forget.

Any enemies?

Doris from upstairs. You can see why. 

If you could do one thing to make the world a better place for felines what would it be?

Dreamies vending machines.

If you could meet a celebrity who would it be and why?

Ryan Gosling. We could have a handsomeness competition. I'd win and then they'd make a colouring book of pictures of me instead.

Which one of the cats in Under The Paw and Talk To The Tail  would you like to be stuck in a lift with?

I'd like to hang out with Ralph. He looks good, and so do I, so we could create a new cat-boy-band and make the lady cats swoon.

A Year Of Roscoe

This was taken on the first day she arrived here last year. I think it's clear to see the love in her eyes for me and very obvious that she doesn't want to murder me with tiny knives at all.

How Kittens Learn to Hunt

Cats have been famous for hunting mice and rats for as long as cats and people
have been together. As strange as it may seem to some people, cats are not born knowing
how to hunt. It is a skill they learn from watching their mothers. If the mother cat is a
good hunter, then her kittens will learn to be good hunters. Interestingly, kittens seem to
learn the best from their mothers. They do not seem to learn as well or as quickly from
watching other adult cats.

    At about five or six weeks of age, a mother cat will begin teaching her kittens
how to hunt. At first she brings dead mice to the kittens. She will eat some of the mice in
front of the kittens. In this way she is showing them that mice are their prey and that they
are good to eat. As time goes on the kittens begin to play with the dead mice their mother
brings them. Before long the kittens are flinging the dead mice around and pouncing on
them. It's a good idea to stand clear of them when they're at this stage. You might get
smacked by a flying mouse if you don't!

    After awhile, the mother starts bringing mice that are still half alive and releases
them for the kittens to practice. Very soon the kittens are leaping on and flinging these
mice around as confidently as they did the previous dead ones their mother brought them.
Then, mother start bringing live, healthy mice and releases them for the kittens to practice
on. The first time the mother cat releases a live mouse, and it tries to run off, there's
immediate bedlam among the kittens. Wildly excited, the kittens flying around trying to
leap onto the running mouse zigging and zagging between them. If the mouse escapes the
kittens, the mother will usually swat it back into play.  By this time the kittens are so over
excited they're leaping at anything that moves. The mouse, a blade of grass, a blowing
leaf or even each other, are all fair game to the kittens. Not surprisingly, the mouse often
escapes during these early lessons.

                       As the lessons progress the kittens become more discriminating in their targets
and develop their skills in catching the quick and agile mice. These lessons don't always
go smoothly. One kitten got the surprise of her life when a large mouse she was chasing
suddenly sat up in front of her and began scolding her at the top of its' lungs. The mouse
was apparently so fed up with the whole business that it actually jumped at the kitten.
The startled kitten fell over backward and the mouse raced off to safety. Live and learn.

    Eventually, the mother cat will decide that the kittens are ready for their first real
hunt. She will take them out to a good location that she knows will have plenty of mice
for the kittens to practice on. She does not demonstrate her hunting technique to the
kittens. Instead, lets them develop their own unique styles on these hunting forays. Each
kitten discovers the techniques that work best for them. By the end of their lessons the
kittens have become fine mousers in their own right.