Articles of Interest

Anyone who spends much time around them knows that with all cats behavior can be a mystery to humans. We have a natural tendency to see cats behavior in terms of human behavior and many failures at cat control are because of making wrong assumption about a very different species.

Humans, unlike cats, are not pure carnivores or predators. Cats play, eat, and behave in the fashion that they do as a result of their history as living in the wild as hunters. Many people make the mistake of seeing feline behavior in human terms resulting in conflict. It would be silly to assume an elephant would behave in the same fashion as a bird, but many cat owners fully expect their pets to behave as humans do.

When dealing with discipline issues with your feline friend, physical discipline typically does not work and can cause your cat to react in an aggressive and hostile manner. Alternatively, using a sharp "No" and then removing the cat from the area consistently will be more effective. Most animals will respond better when they are awarded for positive behavior and admonished for bad behavior.

Sometimes cats act a little crazy, but a lot of these behaviors come from their instincts. When they spray urine, they are marking their territory and protecting their breeding group. Of course, people do not appreciate such behaviors. Training can work, but if you are not planning on breeding your cat the best choice is neutering.

If you are concerned about your cat scratching furniture or your pants, there are several products available for your feline friend. Cats work hard to keep their claws trim and sharp and need to be trained to only use scratching boxes or posts. Your veterinarian can assist you in selecting the best scratching products and toys to aid in protecting your furniture and clothing.

Cats will stalk prey and use them for entertainment like a toy after capture. Toys that are safe to bite or chew can often be treated with catnip. In this way it will help your cat play and get rid of some of their pent up energy. If your cat is an outdoors car, it will eventually bring home a fresh kill as a "gift". This is a cat's natural instinct and so it should never be punished as a result. Even indoor cats will treat you with such gifts as a bug or a mouse.

Before ever assuming that a cat is behaving badly, do some reading on their natural instincts and behavior so you understand how a cat thinks instead of how human expect a cat to think. There will always be a bit of that wild lion or tiger in your purring little puff ball so it is better to learn to work with their instincts rather than to pretend they don't exist.