Understanding Your Cat and his body language

Although cats are generally not as good as understanding us as dogs are, they have to ability to communicate well with cats and other animals. Dogs are able to read cats, and cats can read dogs, and most do better at reading body language than humans do. Learning to understand the different verbal and body language signs that cats exhibit, and you may well be able put yourself on their level of communication.

Eyes

The eyes of a cat react automatically to light conditions, as the pupils narrow to thin slits in bright sunlight, and grow to large, black circles in darkness. Beyond those automatic reactions, your cat actually shows his emotional state in his eyes. When your cat's eyes are opened wide, but not so wide that he looks startled, this suggests that he is relaxed, but interested. If his eyes are wide open and his pupils are large, this suggests fear. A stalking cat has eyes that are open and intensely focused. A cat who narrows his eyes and focuses his pupils might be ready to lash out, so beware.

Voice

Although similar to other cats, every one develops a voice uniquely their own. Cats have a wide range of sounds to let you know their emotional state, and here are the more common ones:

- Meows: Cats manage to get a lot of variety from a couple of basic sounds. They vary them by holding certain parts of the sound out longer or shorter, depending on the cat. In due time, you will grow accustomed to the different variations of your cat's meows and what they mean.

- Purring: This is basically the feline equivalent to a smile. Content cats will purr, but so do ones that are hurt, injured, or frightened.

- Chattering: If a cat gets excited about the possibility of a kill, or in a male, the possibility of mating, you might hear a rapid clacking of teeth.

- Caterwauling: This is the multi- octave yowl you hear when two cats are about to start fighting. This happens often when two cats contest territory, or when mating season begins in the spring.

- Growling: This is like the caterwaul, but without the up- and- down yowl. This is the sign of an angry or frightened cat, and often includes spitting and hissing.

- Screaming: This is a cry of intense pain, which hopefully you will never hear from your cat.

Ears

Cats have ears similar to satellite dishes, where they point them in the direction of sounds. The ears of a relaxed cat are up and to the side, but moving to hear various sounds. A cat that is stalking turns both of his ears straight forward, and able to hear the slightest noise from a mouse or other creature. If frightened, a cat's ears are facing to the sides. And if his ears are flattened out, this is a cat who is ready to lash out in aggression or defense.

Tail

The tail of a cat is one the best indicators of his emotions. A tail up and flipped forward over the back is a happy, friendly cat. An uncertain cat has a tail that is puffed out and held low, or even tucked under his body, and moving side to side. If stalking, the tail is held low and stiff, except for some twitching at the end. Unlike a dog, a cat with a wagging tail is a sign of an agitated cat, and usually comes right before a hiss and possible aggression.

Greg has been writing articles for nearly 4 years. His newest interest is in home remodeling. Please visit his latest website that discusses home remodeling products such as modern pendant light and the best in contemporary pendant lighting and related products that every home needs for that extra design touch.

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How Your Cat Marks His Territory

Having the correct "smell environment" is very important to your cat. He engages in various kinds of marking behaviors to give everything in his world his own scent, including you. Here are some of a cat's scent-marking behaviors:

Grooming:

There are many reasons your cat likes to groom himself so much, but one of them is he is marking his scent. Your cat will cover every inch of his body with his own saliva. His saliva contains his favorite scent, which is himself.

Rubbing:

At the base of his hair follicles, your cat has structures called sebaceous glands. These glands produce sebum, a substance that coats the fir for protection, and deposits scent on objects in the cat's environment. These glands are the most numerous around your cat's face, including the chin, lips, and under the eyelids. They are also at the top of the tail base, and near the anus and sex organs. When a cat rubs his head, or any other part of his body, he is depositing this sebum and its scent on everything he touches. Human noses can not detect this scent, which is probably just as well.

Scratching and Clawing:

If your cat digs his claws into a scratching post (or couch), he is not intending to be destructive. That scratching keeps his claws in shape by removing the outer layer of material and keeping the claw tips sharp. This scratching also allows your cat to get in a good healthy stretch. As a cat scratches, the pads of his feet come in contact with whatever he is scratching. That motion leaves behind scent from the glands in his feet.

Spraying:

Although humans generally do not mind being marked with sebum as our cats rubs against us, we do not approve at all when a cat uses another territorial behavior, which is spraying urine. Even though any cat may spray, it is usually done by unneutered male cats. They feel especially driven to mark their territory with pungent urine. Cats will back up to objects (and even people) and let fly with a spray.

Here are a couple of final thoughts when it comes to your cat wanting to "smell right" all of the time:Cats will often groom themselves right after being petted. This is so they can cover your scent with theirs. Your cat will will often pay special attention to you right after you get out of the shower. He will remark you with rubbing to his scent back on you. This lets everyone know you are "his."

Greg has been writing articles for nearly 4 years. His newest interest is in home remodeling. Please visit his latest website that discusses home remodeling products such as modern pendant light and the best in contemporary pendant lighting and related products that every home needs for that extra design touch.

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How to Get a Cat Out of a Tree

Traditionally thought of as a lazy-day activity for firefighters, rescuing a house cat that somehow winds up trapped in a tall tree presents quite a task for the uninitiated. By nature, cats are timid, instinctual creatures who quite intelligently treat anything unfamiliar as a threat. Typically a cat that is stuck high up in a tree is in a frightened state, and perhaps will find its own way down after some time has passed and it no longer senses any danger from the immediate environs. As such, the best 'first step' is to wait to see if the cat climbs down on its own.

In many cases, the cat will find itself too frightened to move after a few hours have passed, or may begin meowing continually - signaling that it might be trapped and is calling out for assistance in getting down. Two items that are useful in this case would be a ladder and cat food. Using the cat food first, try opening the can and leaving it underneath the tree to coax the cat down on its own power. If the cat refuses to come down even then, using a ladder is probably the best next solution to help the cat down on its own power. Place the ladder against the tree near the cat's location, and allow it to climb down by itself - climbing up to rescue a cat most likely would just frighten it more, possibly prompting the cat to climb even further up into the tree.

If the tree itself is not that high, and the cat simply refuses to climb down the ladder, it is recommended for a would-be cat rescuer to put on worker's gloves and heavy clothing before he or she attempts to climb up a ladder. The cat will most likely resist the rescue attempt, and lash out at anybody that climbs up after it. Try grabbing the cat by the nape of the neck, and bringing it down, after reassuring and calming the cat (to avoid any high-altitude accidents on the way back down!)

If none of these steps help at all, the last option is to call a humane society or animal shelter (do not call the local fire station!) These organizations will be able to help rescue the cat quickly and safely using trained professional animal handlers. Just be aware that this option may come with an incident report and possibly a fee (especially for repeated instances). Humane societies will most likely attempt to take custody of any cat they find has been abused in these situations as well, and may even file animal abuse charges against the owner in extreme cases.

Terry Mitchell is the owner and operator of Foxrater - http://www.foxrater.com - the web's top free insurance quote site. It allows people to enter their zip code and compare the rates of auto, homeowners, health, and life insurance companies doing business in their area.

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Toilet train for your cat

There are many advantages to having a cat which is toilet-trained. Once the cat learns to use the toilet, there will be no need for a litter box. That means less money spent on litter, less smell in the house, and, of course, less work (no more cleaning the litter box).

There are a few steps you can use to to help the cat make the switch from using a litter box to using the toilet. Before you even begin making the switch, help the cat become accustomed to the fact that the bathroom is now the place they should go to relieve themselves. In other words, the best chance of success comes if the cat is already used to going into the bathroom to use the litter box.

First, you need to find something called a litter bowl. Get a bowl, like a large mixing or salad bowl, that fits inside the bowl of your toilet. You might need to use a metal bowl which you can then shape (by bending and pounding) to fit. Set the bowl inside your toilet, and fill it with litter. (Obviously it helps if you've shut the water off to your toilet tank and flushed the toilet first.) Put the seat down, but not the lid. You may need to secure the lid in the upright position to keep the cat from knocking it down on themselves (and sealing the litter bowl shut, leading to accidents!) Remove the old litter box, as this bowl now becomes the cats litter box. Be very proactive about removing any clumps right away so the cat feels comfortable using it (they don't like messy boxes, and a messy bowl won't help).

Once the cat is accustomed to the litter bowl, the next step is to have the cat get used to standing on the seat, instead of in the sand. To do this, you need some heavy-duty cardboard, or a piece of plastic, strong enough to support the weight of your cat, and large enough to cover the bowl and toilet seat. Cut a small hole, about six inches in diameter, in the center of the cover. This lets the cat paw the sand, but won't let the cat actually sit in the litter when using it. The cat may miss a few times, but they are getting used to trying without sitting in the sand. Continue to remove the dirty litter, but do not refill it, as you want the level of the litter to get lower and lower to help make the next transition.

After the cat is consistently standing on the cover and going through the hole (or close to it), you are ready for the next phase. Continue to decrease the amount of litter until there is almost none. Then, on a day when you will be around all day, or better still, an entire weekend, fill the bowl with water instead. This stage is not pleasant for you or your cat, and it is the most difficult part of training the cat. However, just remember how close you are to saying goodbye to the litter box forever!

Once the cat is comfortable using the hole in the cover into the water in the bowl, you can remove the bowl completely. Then the cat is using the toilet itself, but still with the aid of standing on the platform you've made. At that point you can begin increasing the size of the hole, little by little. Make the hole an inch in diameter larger, and let the cat successfully use it. Then increase the size again. Repeat until the hole is almost the size of the bowl. At that point you can remove the cover altogether, and the cat should be using the toilet seat to stand on, going into the toilet. No more litter box changes, you can just flush the toilet. (And yes, you can actually train your cat to flush as well!)

Pamper your toilet-trained cat with a heated cat bed. Since you are removing the privacy and snug feeling of a litter box, provide a small, cozy bed, with a cat heating pad to help them stay warm. They will love it, and have a place to relax and snuggle. If they are using the toilet instead of the litter box, they deserve it!

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