Cats

[Boblobla]

Originally Posted by OilersBaby

im learning so much from this thread. im going to the shelter tomorrow. i have one more question..

Are there any indicators I should look for that might tell me it's going to be a good cat in terms of temperment when I first meet it? There are ways to tell with doggies......I need to learn about kitties!

When you are petting them in the shelter if they will let you lay them on their back and rub their stomach it is an indicator they are more submissive.

[OilersBaby]

do declawed cats behave differently? I just came back from the shelter and there was this one cat who is estimated to be 1 year and 4 months old. He is VERY cute...he's grey, almost silver in color. His breed is a Russian blue. Unfortunately poor kitty is declawed. I read somewhere that they behave differently when declawed because they dont have their claws to protect themselves? True or false?

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by OilersBaby

do declawed cats behave differently? I just came back from the shelter and there was this one cat who is estimated to be 1 year and 4 months old. He is VERY cute...he's grey, almost silver in color. His breed is a Russian blue. Unfortunately poor kitty is declawed. I read somewhere that they behave differently when declawed because they dont have their claws to protect themselves? True or false?

I think false. They still behave as if they had the claws. They'll swat at stuff and move their hands like their claws were still there. I think the issue is if you make them outdoor cats and then they become fearful and useless becauase they can't grip surfaces or fight back against neighborhood animals, especially other cats and dogs. If they are declawed, keep them indoors! Declawing isn't like spade/neutering, it doesn't kill their testoserones or something. It's just like amputating your fingertips (which is why it sucks for them). You still use your hands.

[OilersBaby]

ok 1 more question.....so longer haired cats get hairballs more often. does that mean they vomit it out? is it yucky to clean up or is it not a big deal at all?

[habernac]

Originally Posted by OilersBaby

ok 1 more question.....so longer haired cats get hairballs more often. does that mean they vomit it out? is it yucky to clean up or is it not a big deal at all?

Lots of hair will probably equal lots of barf. It doesn't bother me much and my two cats usually do it on the concrete rather than the carpet.

[OilersBaby]

Originally Posted by habernac

Lots of hair will probably equal lots of barf. It doesn't bother me much and my two cats usually do it on the concrete rather than the carpet.

how often does this happen?

[OilersBaby]

I am pretty sure Im going to get this cat from a cat rescue group..... He is a rescue from Hurricane Katrina. His family got displaced and rescuers from California got him. He's 5 years old and declawed (poor critter) but has the best temperment and can be left home alone for 8 or 9 hours and longer! ....and when he's home, he wants to be cuddled by you. Ill keep you guys posted on how it goes.

[habernac]

Originally Posted by OilersBaby

how often does this happen?

thankfully, not too often. If your cat will put up with it (mine won't), get a little brush and help them out with all that extra fur.

[Finner]

Originally Posted by OilersBaby

how often does this happen?

For hairballs, if you feed them the right type of food they may not ever throw up. Mine never have. By having a high quality food, it prevents shedding, and a poor coat.

It also depends how much your cat sheds. Our two nearly never do, as in you pick them up and hold them against a black shirt and there are only a couple hairs.

The more you brush them the less likely your cat will have loose hair when it licks itself, and as such would throw up less.

Read the ingredients and make sure that it is real meat and no bi products. Make sure when you read the ingredients it is all real, ie. Chicken, and other real meat, not corn glutenmeal, brewers rice and definitely no biproducts. Feeding both canned (say for dinner) and dry is also good, as the canned food is full of water which is especially good for male cats who can be prone to urinary problems.

Some good examples of food would be Natural Balance, Innova, Orijen, and Eagle Pack. Pretty much any independent pet store should have one of these. Try to stay away from the grocery store brands, ie. Whiskas, Friskies, etc. Its terrible for them and will make them fat and have a poor coat...which leads to more hairballs being thrown up.

In terms of behavior with declawed cats they can have psychological issues. Make sure to keep it indoors because they can't defend themselves. Also be very careful about getting another cat that hasn't been declawed because the declawed cat can get an inferiority complex. One other thing is that declawed cats may tend to bite more in play or to defend themselves as they don't have claws.

Good luck!

[Hack&Lube]

Originally Posted by OilersBaby

I am pretty sure Im going to get this cat from a cat rescue group..... He is a rescue from Hurricane Katrina. His family got displaced and rescuers from California got him. He's 5 years old and declawed (poor critter) but has the best temperment and can be left home alone for 8 or 9 hours and longer! ....and when he's home, he wants to be cuddled by you. Ill keep you guys posted on how it goes.

You have to remember to take plenty of pictures so we can see!!!

Youtube videos as well if possible. Cats that WANT to be cuddled are sometimes rare, good job finding one.

My friend has a female cat named Barley that just doesn't like most people and runs away from you. I miss Barley even though she treats me like dirt. I guess that's why I like cats. They are like girls.

[Drunk Skunk]

Originally Posted by OilersBaby

I am pretty sure Im going to get this cat from a cat rescue group..... He is a rescue from Hurricane Katrina. His family got displaced and rescuers from California got him. He's 5 years old and declawed (poor critter) but has the best temperment and can be left home alone for 8 or 9 hours and longer! ....and when he's home, he wants to be cuddled by you. Ill keep you guys posted on how it goes.

That translates to "He will lay on your face while you are sleeping and try to suffocate you."

You have been warned.

[BuzzardsWife]

Originally Posted by Displaced Flames fan

You might want to make sure none of your close friends or family are allergic to cats. I am, and let me tell you, it doesn't matter if the cat has been gone for a few years and the carpets shampooed a dozen times, I will still get sick. My reactions are usually approaching the dangerous level too...my lungs just close up.

It's important if you plan on having people stay with you at any time or want to have people over that may be allergic.

True! I used to have a boyfriend that would stay over and he would be up all night with his inhaler, almost dieing! It used to freak me out, I'd be sound asleep and hear his gasping for air would wake me up. I had a few friends that couldn't come to my house either. I thought if I vacuumed and dusted and kicked the cats out it would help, but it doesn't. You must be seriously allergic! Kind of scary actually. Do you have to ask everyone if they have a cat before you go over?

If you put a little vaseline/petroleum jelly (please no flavoured or coloured KY!!!) on the top of their paws so they can lick it, it acts as a lubricant to make the hairballs slide out the other end instead of barfing them out.
My one cat is just plain bulemic... she pukes after every meal... no hairball, just pukes. But for some reason she's fat...

[BuzzardsWife]

I don't have a problem with cats being declawed, I think of it as surgery, and we all recover from it. If it meant destroying a cat from a shelter or bringing it home and declawing it, the cat would probably rather be declawed. I can understand why some people have an issue though, we all have our different views. I think the idea of getting a bit older cat is a great idea, kittens are cute but not for long, and they destroy your house!

[BuzzardsWife]

Originally Posted by Puxlut

If you put a little vaseline/petroleum jelly (please no flavoured or coloured KY!!!) on the top of their paws so they can lick it, it acts as a lubricant to make the hairballs slide out the other end instead of barfing them out.
My one cat is just plain bulemic... she pukes after every meal... no hairball, just pukes. But for some reason she's fat...

Try giving her acidpopholus, (spelling is probably wrong). Just put some in her food. It should stop her from barfing.

[OilersBaby]

thanks you guys for all the tips! my husband and I are going to see her tonight. She is being fostered by one of the cat rescue groups, similar to the one you have in Calgary. If all goes well, we are going to bring her home on Sunday! It's actually a girl cat, not a boy cat as I previously thought because the website had the gender incorrect for some reason. Her name right now is Fluffy, but we're going to change it to Ashly as my husband thinks cats/dogs should have human names, not names like Fluffy or Fido.

[OilersBaby]

Originally Posted by FurnaceFace

Try this, looks to be in SJ and seems to have a similar approach.

http://www.towncats.org/meet.html

Someone give this person a RED SQUARE because that's where I found my cat! I'm looking at her tonight (she's being fostered by one of the volunteers. Her name on there is Hobbsie (she's an adult cat). Her foster home changed her name to Fluffy, and we're going to call her Ashly. Ah well, cats don't really seem to recognize their name anyways from what I've heard. But feel free to take a look at her on that website...the exact link is below! She's declawed, in the Adult Alley section, and her name on the website is Hobbsie.

http://www.towncats.org/kit_catboodle.htm#adult

[Bobblehead]

My cat's name is Fuzzball.

When I got it, I had been playing Ratched and Clank, on one character says something like, "How ya doin', Fuzzball". It was kind of funny, and since that cat is big (I think it has a bit of Maine Coon in him - he has 6 claws on each foot) and long haired the name seemed to fit.

[bigtmac19]

Originally Posted by OilersBaby

Someone give this person a RED SQUARE because that's where I found my cat! I'm looking at her tonight (she's being fostered by one of the volunteers. Her name on there is Hobbsie (she's an adult cat). Her foster home changed her name to Fluffy, and we're going to call her Ashly. Ah well, cats don't really seem to recognize their name anyways from what I've heard. But feel free to take a look at her on that website...the exact link is below! She's declawed, in the Adult Alley section, and her name on the website is Hobbsie.

http://www.towncats.org/kit_catboodle.htm#adult

Congrats OilersBaby, she is very pretty. I'm sure she will love her new home.

Our cat's name is Carmel, my son choose that name, because her one foot is carmel coloured. She's a tortiseshell.

[BlackEleven]

Originally Posted by Displaced Flames fan

You might want to make sure none of your close friends or family are allergic to cats. I am, and let me tell you, it doesn't matter if the cat has been gone for a few years and the carpets shampooed a dozen times, I will still get sick. My reactions are usually approaching the dangerous level too...my lungs just close up.

It's important if you plan on having people stay with you at any time or want to have people over that may be allergic.

This is very true. My girlfriend can't go anywhere where there is a cat. If we get invited over somewhere new, first question I have to ask is if they have a cat or have ever had one. If the answer is yes, we can't go.

One time a colleague of mine was having a dinner party and invited us over. I asked all the approriate cat questions, the answer was no, so we accepted. My girlfriend was complaining after 5 minutes that there was a cat somewhere but my friend kept swearing up and down there wasn't. She was a trooper and made it through dinner even though she was on the verge of death, but we had to leave right after. The next day he told me he was short on chairs so he'd asked a friend to bring some. It turned out the chairs were from a house with a cat which no one initially realized.