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Feral_Shofixti posted:Also, catnip is generally not mentioned in the cat FAQs. I've known one cat that would run into another room whenever you opened it up, and I've known cats that would eat an entire bag in one go if left to their own devices. How much is too much? With good quality nip, just a little bit is a sufficient dose. About a teaspoonful will usually do the trick. Also, cats do not need to eat nip to get off, since they get their fun via olfactory input. Most cats will self-regulate with catnip. They'll eat some or roll in it until they're happy and then walk away. I'd guess that there are some that just don't know when to quit, though I haven't met one yet. About 30% or so of all cats are unaffected by catnip. Young kittens usually don't respond to catnip until they hit kitty puberty, and elderly cats sometimes lose interest in it. dee eight fucked around with this message at 00:10 on May 7, 2023 |
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Sep 5, 2009 06:33
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Fire In The Disco posted:d8, if you wanted to write up a little piece on what catnip is, how it works and how/when to use it, I'd be more than happy to add it to the OP. Sure. I'll try to get something together later tonight or tomorrow. edit: here ya go. Feel free to edit as you need to, and let me know if you have any questions/clarification. Catnip (nepeta cataria) is an herb in the mint family. It has a square-ish stem and lobate leaves that grow in pairs, one on each side of the stem. It grows to about 3 or 4 feet tall and ranges in color from a pale green to dark grayish green. Generally, the darker the leaves, the more potent the nip. The buds and flowers are the most potent part of the plant, though all parts including the stems are enjoyed by cats. Catnip flowers vary from white to blue to a light purple. (The flowers are cool, they look a lot like miniature orchids.) Catnip grows well in a wide variety of geographic regions and climatic conditions, though the best nip grows where days are hot and nights are cool and rain is relatively light. The stuff in catnip that makes cats crazy is a naturally occurring compound called nepetalactone. The compound most likely acts as an endorphin stimulator, so cats don't get 'high' so much as they get very happy. Cats get their buzz via olfactory input, so it is not necessary for them to eat it, though many cats do. A catnip stuffed toy will provide the same enjoyment for a cat as a bit of leaf to nibble. About 30% of all cats lack the catnip gene and are unaffected by it. Some estimates of the number non-reacting cats range up to 50%, but that seems a bit high in my personal experience. There is quite probably to be a link to sexual maturity and catnip reaction, so kittens generally don't react to it until they're about 6 months old or so. Senior citizen cats will sometimes lose interest also. Also, if your cat doesn't react to nip, try silvervine. Tangentally, on the subject of cat years/human years, one scale I found says the first year of a cat's life equals about 15 human years, the second equals about 9 years, and each subsequent year equals 4 human years. Cats enjoy fresh or dried catnip, though properly dried catnip seems to concentrate the nepetalactone and provide a bit more kick. Give your cat a large pinch (about a teaspoonful) on the floor, or sprikle it on a cat tree or scratching post, or serve it up in a paper grocery bag or box for added entertainment. The effects (purring, drooling, rolling, getting goofy) of catnip last for half an hour or so, sometimes longer depending on the individual cat. Humans can also enjoy catnip as tea. It has some mild medicinal properties and has been used to treat nervous insomnia, indigestion, and in a very weak tea to treat colic in infants. dee eight fucked around with this message at 22:24 on Apr 3, 2023 |
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Sep 5, 2009 16:38
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Number 169 posted:Does anyone know where to get quality catnip in NZ? I'd be buying from d8 except that shipping costs from the US are pretty ridiculous. I've only found catnip so far in toys, and I find the catnip loses its potency fast and the cat hides/loses the toys under the fridge/shelves/my desk/the bed/the sofa/etc. nearly as fast. I try to avoid any semblance of commerce in PI, so as not to piss off the mods, but I'll take a chance here. USPS says postage for a couple bags to NZ would be $4.60 edit: Take any sales/shipping questions to my SAmart thread please http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3153407 dee eight fucked around with this message at 17:25 on Sep 7, 2009 |
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Sep 7, 2009 17:15
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OatmealRaisin posted:My question is this: I have a few choices as far as adopting goes. I could go to the city animal shelter, or a privately-run no-kill shelter. Would either one be any better than the other? Splitting ethical/moral hairs here maybe, but the cats you don't adopt from the city shelter might be euthed. The cats you don't adopt from the no-kill shelter won't be. OatmealRaisin posted:Also, I really have no idea how to go about finding a good vet. I assume the shelters will be able to point me in the right direction?  Call every vet in town and ask them who is the second best vet in town. Go with the vet with the most 2nd place votes.
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Sep 8, 2009 00:46
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OatmealRaisin posted:I have sort of a general cat question from watching my little guys have their kitten fights. Why is it cats do that butt wiggle before they pounce? Is it like a balance thing? It might be a traction thing. I'm only guessing, but maybe predators like to make sure their back paws are firmly planted before they make that devastating leap and attack.
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Oct 1, 2009 08:14
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multigl posted:Neither of us has ever taken care of cats before, where do we start? On page 1 of this thread
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Oct 7, 2009 20:05
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BLOG KING posted:Are there any "cat safe" houseplants? I'd love some green stuff in my place, but I don't want to poison my cat if he decides to munch on it. Yeah, I got some 'cat safe' plants for ya. Alternately, there are some grasses and stuff that you can grow inside specificly for cats. Wheat grass, lemon grass, etc. There was a thread a while back about it, but it's probably archived by now.
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Oct 21, 2009 00:53
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geetee posted:I don't know about BLOG KING, but I'm looking for something more decorative that will probably get mangled, but was really meant to just look pretty Kitty grasses might be enough of a distraction so that the pretty stuff won't get mangled. Depends on your cat's temperment, I guess.
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Oct 21, 2009 01:14
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geetee posted:The "might" is the scary part I certainly don't mean 'get toxic stuff' and use grass as a decoy. Sorry if it sounded otherwise.
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Oct 21, 2009 21:07
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Rev. Bleech_ posted:It's November, so I'm pleading for advice on one thing here: how the hell do you keep two very curious/psychotic kittens from attacking a christmas tree? You can't. You can only try to minimize the chaos. I've got fabric ornaments for the bottom branches, lots of unbreakable stuff, but it hasn't been an issue here for a few years. Pooky is gettig sedate in her old age. Skip the tinsel, it looks nasty in a litter box and even worse on an x-ray. Mind things like the hooks for hanging ornaments, foofy angel hair type stuff, and anything that a kitten might want to play with/chew on. A ceiling hook and some heavy duty fishing line will help prevent a crash if the kitties decide to scale it. Good luck.
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Nov 3, 2009 07:57
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rear end Crackers! posted:Kitty There are a lot of good reasons to spay/neuter, not the least of which is your fertile kitty womb is making the shelter too loving crowded.* I'll let the pros weigh in on health/other reasons and suggest that a spay/neuter section be added to the FAQ. *Not yours, specificly, I'm making a joke.
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Nov 8, 2009 19:50
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Xerin posted:Any holiday cat advice? Tree setup tips, things that are common around the holiday but really bad for cats? I put up a 5 foot tall tree today and placed all the ornaments off the base of the tree, but I'm curious if there is more I should do to prevent him from trying to climb it and crash it to the ground. Set a hook in the ceiling and secure the tree with some heavy fishing line. No tinsel or flocking. Unbreakable/soft fabric ornaments. Use yarn or something similar to secure ornaments, not metal hooks. Don't use chemical stuff in the tree water just in case. I'm sure there are other things to add about holiday hazards for kittys, somebody else jump in here?
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Nov 27, 2009 22:36
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Fearian posted:Recently my two cats have been enamoured with a piece of thin chain - its their only and favourite toy. If it makes a rattle noise while they bat it around, maybe dingle balls would be worth a try. Alternately, 
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Dec 17, 2009 20:31
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Kerfuffle posted:Natasha is the only acceptable name. Natasha Fatale.
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Dec 20, 2009 16:49
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shaitan posted:
Most likely no danger, but if it eases your mind, give the fountains a good scrubbing with a mild bleach solution or something equally sanitizing followed by thorough rinsing.
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Jan 17, 2010 02:18
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You rang? Anyway, for quality catnip the drying process is key. I've had catnip in an unsealed container that was about 5 or more years old and it still had plenty of kick. Badly dried catnip will turn brown, avoid anything that isn't a nice green color. At the moment, my supply is practically non-existant but there's a guy from Minnesota who's offering catnip bud in SAmart. edit: Catnip FAQ: What is catnip, and why do cats like it so much? Catnip (nepeta cataria) is an herb in the mint family. It contains a compound called nepatalactone which is most likely an endorphin stimulator. Cats get their buzz through olfactory input, so they don't have to eat it to enjoy it. How much catnip should I give my cat? A little will suffice, like a teaspoonfull or a mound about as big as a quarter. For extra fun, serve it up in paper bag or cardboard box. My cat doesn't like catnip. That's a statement, not a question. Okay, why doesn't my cat like catnip? About 10% of all cats lack the catnip gene and miss out on the fun. Young kittens, up to about 4-6 months are often unaffected and elderly cats will sometimes lose interest. Alternately, you may have only tried lovely corporate catnip that wasn't grown and dried with care to preserve quality. Should I refridgerate it or something? Nah. My secret drying process keeps it potent for years. Just store it in a jar or tin or other catproof container to keep your cat from making a big mess. Can I smoke this stuff? I wouldn't. dee eight fucked around with this message at 00:28 on Jul 15, 2010 |
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Jul 15, 2010 00:07
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Rekkit posted:Our 3 year old cat wants to eat grass pretty badly. She is an indoor cat but before we adopted her she was allowed to go outside for a couple of hours so I guess she sort of has that instinct in her. We have a few plastic shrubs for decoration and she tries her best to chew on them. We're tired of fixing them and that plastic can't be good for her so we'll get some real plants/shrubs for decoration. Wheat grass and oat grass, as Meow Cadet said, is fine for cats to nibble. Also lemon grass is good. I don't recommend growing catnip indoors that is cat accessible 24/7 unless you have a high tolerance for cleaning up after the cats rape the hell out of a pot and scatter dirt everywhere. I'm not 100% certain on the following, so a grain of salt: I've heard that cats like to eat grass to facilitate puking up hairballs.
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Jan 22, 2011 04:48
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Astro Cake posted:My cats eat catnip. What the gently caress? CALL THE VET RIGHT NOW! OMG! or don't, it's not a big deal. Some cats eat it, some roll in it, some pack tyte bowls. dee eight fucked around with this message at 20:57 on Jul 20, 2011 |
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Jul 20, 2011 20:55
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hog wizard posted:Is there any kind of industrial strength spray bottle that doesn't require me to pull the trigger on it 3-4 times before it starts spraying? I was thinking of using those compressed air cans, but they don't reach anything further than 2 feet. I'm assuming you need this to keep your cats from doing bad cat stuff. Compressed air is a very bad idea anyway, since it could potentially injure the cat. As for spraying water, try a low end super soaker type toy maybe, or just a collection of dollar store squirt guns until you find one that shoots first time every time.
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Aug 1, 2011 18:53
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jerkstore77 posted:How long does a catnip "high" last? From about 30 minutes up to several hours, depending on the cat and dosage. It's quite possible that your cat got endorphin flooded and now associates hangin out with you with that wonderful feeling. Also, it may take a while for kitty to 'reset' before enjoying nip again.
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Oct 12, 2011 02:38
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jrr posted:the windows in the basement are really high and I don't think the cats will be able to get up there. A simple fix: Put a platform at the window (piece of plywood, a couple shelf brackets) and a carpeted ramp up to it. Your kitties will thank you for it.
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Nov 12, 2011 18:52
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Skiddish is when a cat tries to make a high speed turn on the hardwood floor.
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Dec 29, 2011 03:22
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My (and Pooky's) favorite litter is a brand called Premium Choice. Seems like a generic level kinda thing, but it clumps well and is not terribly dusty, and best of all, it's relatively cheap.
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Apr 6, 2012 01:30
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