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us and share you thoughts and knowledge. Please be advised
that these answers are not answered by a veterinarian and should
not be considered veterinary advice.
Q. We
can only adopt one cat, we have many children, and we
desperately need a good mouser. The cat would be primarily
indoors, if not soley. Would male/female make any difference?
A. The
sex of your cat will not matter. When picking out a cat
you will want to take toys with you (toy mice, feather
toys, etc.) and play with him/her. Hold the toy steady
across the room from him/her, make it move a bit, then
let it sit again. Keep doing this to keep the cat's interest.
If he/she is very interested in the object and pounces
throughout your play time, then most likely they will be
attracted to the running mice. Although all cats love to
sleep, there are some that are just lazy and that is NOT
the kind of cat you would want.
A
well-fed, neutered/spayed cat makes a better mouser because
they hunt for fun rather than for survival. Make sure you
feed your cat quality cat food (Iams is a wonderful brand),
both dry and wet food. Depriving it of food will not help
your cause at all (I'm sure that was not your intention anyway
-- but the logic would be if you don't feed it regularly,
he/she will go looking for food). To get your cat spayed/neutered
for a lower price, go to www.SpayUSA.org and
request a voucher. They will send you a voucher that will
direct you to a lost cost clinic in your area. Both procedures
should cost under $100 with that voucher.
Q. My cat scratches her ears quite often, and also shakes her
head vigorously quite often. Does she have an ear infection?
A. Your cat definitely has a problem. Do
you notice any brownish build-up inside of her ears? If
so, then it's probably ear mites. You can read about
them here on our site: Parasites. They're
a serious problem and need to be taken care of. If you don't see
the build-up then it's probably some type of ear infection -- the vet will
need to give you antibiotics and possibly drops. Any type of ear
problem can lead to deafness if not taken care of immediately. Schedule
an appointment with your vet as soon as possible.
Q. Someone asked me why cats are afraid of water. Could
you help me explain this matter? Are they really afraid
of water?
A. I
don't really think that there is an answer to your question.
I can only provide what I know to provide a reasonable
guess. Wild cats, such as tigers, lions, and jaguars enjoy
water -- they generally live in warm climates and enjoy
cooling themselves in water. Other wild cats, such as snow
leopards, bobcats, and cougars generally live in cooler
climates and avoid water.
This is true with house cats, too -- some like water, some
don't. Because house cats don't need to deal with varying
temperatures, I think the issue that comes in with them is
control. Cats in general tend to be very independent creatures
and enjoy being in control. When forced into a bath, they
are put in a situation that they cannot escape from, making
them uncomfortable. After being given a bath they may associate
water with that feeling, therefore causing them to avoid
it at all costs. My cats enjoy drinking from a running tap
(in the sink and in the bathtub) and they don't mind sticking
their head past the curtain to peek at me when I'm showering,
but the minute I fill up the tub and put them in for a bath
two of them freak out while the third stands quietly. I've
heard of other cats that enjoy playing in water, so much
so that they will jump into the shower with their owner.
So I really don't think there is a clear-cut answer to your
question. I think it just depends on how the cat interprets
its experiences with water, and how it reacts to them later. |
