Happy Pets

Guppy; Millions Fish Poecilia(formerly Lebistes) reticu/ata Male 28-32 mm 1-1* in; females 65 mm 21 in. Trinidad : various waters. A well-known species. No two males are ever exactly alike; the females are much larger and do not share the males‘ rainbow colours. Genetic experimentation by hobbyists has resulted in many colours and finnage shapes becoming internationally recognized standards. Several specialist groups exist solely for the Guppy fancier. Serious breeders separate the sexes as soon as they are recognizable to prevent unwanted broods. Temperature: 24^°C (75^°F). Diet: all foods. Breeding: very prolific. Females should be given a separate, well-planted tank in which to give birth. (more…)

Unless you intend to breed from, or show, your cat, there is little that a pedigree feline can offer that a mongrel moggie can’t match. Just like people, every cat is a unique character, whether their lineage is uncertain or you can trace it back for many generations. Probably the only significant difference between purebreds like our Somali, Melchior, and crosspeds like his companion, Caspar, is that you can predict with reasonable accuracy how any kittens that a pedigree cat may have will look, especially if the other parent is of the some breed. And although it is often said that because moggies, unlike many pedigrees, aren’t inbred, their mixed gene pool makes them more resistant to disease and generally tougher, this claim hasn’t been scientifically substantiated (and in any case, many moggies are born into close-knit family groups). (more…)

A cat door not only benefits the cat, it brings peace of mind to the cat owner.

The hole should be cut in the bottom of the door on the lock- side so any framing will not interfere with the normal door operation. The door needs to be approximately 250x 250 mm or smaller, depending on the size of your cat. (more…)

Indeed, you can tell a lot by looking at a cat’s tail and ears: if its tail is vertical and its ears are pricked, the cat is feeling confident, and if the tip of its erect tail is kinked, it’s offering you a tentative greeting. When a cat turns its back on you and quivers its tail, it’s sending an unreserved, ‘Please acknowledge me’ plea that may well hark back to a kittenhood invitation to its mother to clean its nether regions. If a cat is becoming annoyed, however, it often indicates its frustration by swishing its tail from side to side and drawing back its ears, and if it becomes really irate, it will lash its tail as fast as it can and flatten its ears completely. (more…)

As well as controlling the essential functions of eating, drinking and breeding, in many respects the feline sense of smell can be said to be the engine that keeps cat society running smoothly, defining as it does the individual cat’s place within its feline (or feline—human) community, its relationship with other cats (or, in the case of a human household, surrogate cats) and the boundaries of its personal territory. (more…)

Whether it be an immobile peanut, a living victim or any other object that the cat considers worthy of more detailed exploration, the feline has an armoury of sensitive touch receptors at its clawtips - and not only there. You may have seen a curious cat tentatively patting an object –perhaps a new toy mouse — with its paw. Although it may look comical, the cat isn’t playing, but is instead conducting a serious investigation. After all, it doesn‘t yet know that this alien object is a toy — it doesn‘t show signs of life, but that doesn‘t mean that it won’t jump up and bite the cat on the nose. With caution being the watchword, the cat therefore extends a forepaw, keeping its vulnerable nose well away from the potential danger, and delicately touches the toy mouse. (more…)

Its hearing is the first sense that alerts the cat to potential prey when it is out hunting and, due to its genetic inheritance, the sounds that are most likely to signal the proximity of rodents, its favourite meal, are the ones to which it is the most attuned. And because rodents utter high- pitched squeaks, the upper frequencies of the sound range are those that the cat’s ears are especially adept at detecting, exceeding both dogs and humans in their sensitivity. Indeed, when you think that our detection of acoustic vibrations rises to around 20,000 hertz, and a cat’s to 50,000, we must be deaf to a cacophony of interesting sounds. (more…)

As we have seen, in the final stages of the hunt the cat uses its claws to pin down its prey and its teeth to administer the killing bite. In non-aggressive mode, the cat’s claws are retracted - or, more properly, sheathed - into the tips of its toe bones (the phalanges), both to prevent them from injuring itself or its friends and to preserve the sharpness of their points for, as every successful hunter or warrior knows, if you look after your weapons, when it comes to the crunch they’ll look after you. (more…)

Caspar and Mechior

Despite the devoted attention that they pay to ear-washing, sadly neither of our two cats seem to possess the power — or, perhaps, the inclination — to save us the bother of watering the garden on a sultry summer’s night. Caspar and Melchior will be putting in an occasional appearance to illustrate some of the choices and problems — as well as the pleasures — that all cat-owners inevitably face. I hope that sharing our experience of their habits and idiosyncrasies, as well as of the ailments that have afflicted them during the past twelve years and the care strategies that we have used (some successful, others less so), will prove useful to you. (more…)

Despite such Far Eastern reservations, about the cat’s exact intentions towards humanity, it is considered wise to hedge one’s bets and to treat cats with respect, as in Persia (Iran), where black cats are said to be jinns (spirits that assume feline form) or hemzads (individuals’ guardian ‘angels’). The world over, the cat’s mysterious, far-seeing eyes are considered to reveal its clairvoyant powers, as well as its agility and cunning ingenuity, just some of the characteristics for which it is respected as a totemic animal by many African and Native American peoples. (more…)