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Quick Catnip Toys

As we approach the holidays I cannot forget the image from last year of a husband and wife dumping handfuls of cellophane wrapped cat toys into their grocery cart. Sure the toys were cute fishes and mice made of tinsel and lame fabric but realistic for a cat to play with through the winter they were not.

The cat cannot tell the difference between a felt mouse and a felt fish so let's forget about buying toys that we recognize. Felt toys or any toy made of non-woven fabric is going to fray and become tattered almost instantly during play. Also, stuffed toys are stuffed with fiberfill material which the cat can inhale or ingest. It is just cheaper to fill the toy with "plumping" than to fill it with catnip.

An easy way to make toys that kitty will enjoy is to cut strips of cotton fabric from old  shirts, pillow cases, or curtains.......any cotton fabric cut in one inch wide strips will do as long as the strips are at least 8 inches long.

Take individual fresh (not dry) catnip leaves and lay them next to each other to cover a strip of fabric. Roll the fabric, like a jelly roll with the leaves inside. Make as many of the rolls as it takes to fill a small cloth pocket. The pockets from shirts, skirts or even purses are easy to snip out.

Once the pocket is filled sew it closed. The toy is ready for kitty. Rolling the catnip releases the oils into the fabric so the herb will dry quickly and not mildew.

Play with Your Cat

If all work and no play made Jack a dull boy, all sleep and no  human interaction makes your cat fat and depressed. Play is important for cats because it mimics their hunting instinct and keeps their body and mind agile.

Too often though play is used to keep the cat occupied while cat parents are gone or to busy to be involved in their cat's life. Filling a grocery cart with toys for kitty indeed shows we will invest money in kitty but it fails to involve us in their lives. It is also dangerous for cats to play alone with toys that can become a strangulation or choking risk.

Reserving at least several fifteen minute play sessions with kitty will improve the human and animal bond and also help the cat to sleep through the night.

     When playing with kitty remember what is play to us may seem like ATTACK to the cat.

     Never chase the cat. They will think that you are a predictor. The cat needs to trust you not be afraid   of  you during play.

     Never wave your fingers or use toys that dangle from the fingers. Cats that swat at fingers in play soon do it all the time. This becomes a dangerous habit that is hard to break.

     Play with kitty using everyday items like paper bags and waded up newspaper. Play in graceful movements like the cat moves itself.

     Avoid all toys with stuffing, and small attached bells, buttons and other attached objects that cat can inhale or ingest.

And remember your attitude is important. You need the play session to relax as much as the cat needs it for excercise. The cat can sense if you feel the play session is a chore or is fun.


  

Quotes to Improve Our Role As Cat Parents

The good man is friend of all living things. -- Mahatma Gandhi

Everything that irritates us about others can lead us to an understanding of ourselves. -- Carl Jung


Children require guidance and sympathy  far more than instructions. -- Anne Sullivan

Compassion, in which all ethics must take root, can only attain its full breath and depth if it embraces all living creatures and does not limit itself to mankind. -- Albert Schweitzer

I am in favor of animal rights as well as human rights. That is the way of a whole human being. -- Abraham Lincoln

I f there is anything that we wish to change in the child, we should first examine it and see whether it is not something that could better be changed in ourselves.-- Carl Jung

Non-violence leads to the highest ethics, which is the goal of all evolution. Until we stop harming all other living beings, we are still savages. -- Thomas Edison

Until he extends his circle of compassion to include all living things, man will not find peace. -- Albert Schweitzer

The greatness of a nation can be judged by the way its animals are treated.. -- Mahatma Gandhi

Home Safety

With the American Veterinary Medical Association estimating that one in three homes own one or more cats there is bound to be a cat near your home improvement project or close by when a repair person visits.

Cats love routine and become frightened and confused when others change it. Cats are uncomfortable around the unfamiliar. Depending on the personality of the cat, a frustrated cat could hide in a deadly place like the clothes dryer or a terrified cat could streak out the door and become lost.

You might think that your cat can sleep through every disturbance caused by a home improvement project or worker that comes into your home, and while it is true that adult cats sleep 16 to 18 hours a day, their brain remains as active asleep as awake. From deep sleep cats will  respond immediately to external activity around them.

The Cat's Senses

We can hear lower frequencies than a cat but a cat can hear a higher range of sounds. A cat can hear sounds three times as high as humans.

Cats’ ears are proportioned and shaped to be extremely sensitive to sounds. The cats’ ears are large compared to its head size and the ears have the ability to move. Cats can rotate each ear independently 180 degrees, turning them to locate sound. The loud noises of construction or renovation are stressful, keeping the cat on constant alert.

A cat’s whiskers also recognize change. They can sense vibrations that humans can not feel.

And while a cat is good at detecting movement – they can detect motion too fast for our eyes to comprehend - they are relatively shortsighted and find it hard to focus on very slow movement.

Workers “smell” differently than the other members of the household, and their movements with steel-toed work boots and tools dangling from tool belts are too bewildering for a cat to comprehend.

Dangerous Encounters

• By nature cats are curious. They want to investigate what you are during even when you are gone. The proverb “Curiosity killed the cat,” is a sad truth when a cat jumps up on a stack of wood that overturns on them. Or when a cat pawing a box of tacks decides like a child to put them into their mouth and accidentally swallows a couple.
• There are hundreds of deadly encounters including electrocution from chewing dangling power cords, smashed paws from trying to catch the repetitive pounding hammer, and cuts from walking on box cutters and saw blades.
• Both solvent-based and water-based home improvement products including paints, sealants, and cleaning supplies, contain poisons. The cat can overturn a bucket or pick up the residue on their paws and become ill. Cats are fastidious about keeping clean. They will lick their paws and fur. And like a baby they have more surface area to their weight so poisoning can happen easily.
• The fist rule of toxicology is everything is toxic if enough of it is ingested. And products labeled as non-toxic are toxic in their concentrated form or in amounts over the testing threshold.
• Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) – compounds that off-gas toxic fumes are toxic. Most people are aware that harsh strippers and oil based paints that smell bad need proper air circulation during use, but half of the toxic fumes emitted by home improvement products have no odor to us but are capable of causing physical injury including respiratory, kidney and brain damage.
• Installing insulation or sanding are projects that require masks for humans and require that a cat not be near-by.
• Shrink wrap can be deadly. Plastic bags that carried home supplies are troublesome because to prevent them from sticking together they are sprayed during production with an animal fat or petroleum-based lubricants that cats find attractive.

Before a worker comes into your home or before a home improvement project begins, create a safe, enclosed, heated space, preferably a room, with windows where the cat can have peace and quiet. 

 

Obviously, don’t just dump the cat into the room minutes before a repair person arrives or you start working. Establish the room as the cat’s den several weeks before work begins by using the room together. This is particularly important with senior cats or cats that are new to the household. Both are more prone to displacement anxiety; familiarity reduces stress.

Cat-Proofing

Just as you would child-proof a room for a baby or toddler be sure to cat proof the room you turn into the cat’s den. Inspect the room regularly looking for dangers. Anticipate that the cat will do the unexpected and get themselves into predicaments.

Anything shiny is especially intriguing and dangerous to cats. Remove things like aluminum foil and cellophane. If the room has another use besides the cat’s den make sure everything is put away. Cats are keen observers so what you think is in-accessible or out of reach the cat can get at by watching you and imitating your actions. With trial and error a cat can open any cupboard, drawer or closet. Invest in and use child proof locks. Things like office supplies including paper clips and rubber bands, and sewing supplies like thread and needles end up inside cats rushed to emergency rooms everyday. Keep human treats like chocolates and raisins out of the room because they are toxic to cats.

Cats cannot sweat so make sure the cat room does not get too hot. If screens are in place, make sure they are secure and the cat cannot rip them or pop them out to escape.

Remove anything that dangles and can cause strangulation including drapery and electrical cords. Eliminate sharp objects including all glass objects that a cat can knock down and break. Cover electrical outlets. Omit houseplants: The foliage of some plants including dieffenbachia, African violets, and lilies are toxic as are some plant foods and all pesticides used on plants. (Substitute cat grass such as oat and wheat grass and catnip for houseplants.)

Put the cat’s food and water on the opposite side of the room from the litter box and make sure they can not be tipped over while the cat is exploring or playing.

Supply your cat with a high perch. Cats feel more secure when they can observe their surroundings from up high. Make sure that any climbing structure for the cat is durable and stable – that it will not tip over when the cat becomes Tarzan.

Consider a cat perch attached to a sunny window. Keep the cat entertained with a bird bath or bird feeder outside the closed window. And while cats like heat remember they cannot sweat and will overheat quickly if the room is too warm.

Visit your cat often doing the home improvement project to reassure them that you their guardian are around to love them.

Cat Grass

Even though cats are carnivores. Sooner or later every cat wants to eat some grass. Both wild and domestic cats graze on grass. They may like the taste or the crunch but they end up regurgitating the grass because they lack the digestive enzymes to break down fiber in vegetation. Regurgitation is good because it helps to eliminate hairballs and any other indigestible matter the cat may have eaten including the bones from fish, mice and birds.

The greens supposedly added to cat food to meet a cat's desire for grass are merely a marketing ploy since heat processing destroys the greens beneficial enzymes and anti-oxidants. Many greens added to cat food are there as low cost filler (extender).

Indoor and outdoor cats should be provided with a personal pot of grass to prevent them from nibbling on toxic houseplants or weeds sprayed with herbicides.

Technically cat grass is the particular grass, Dactylis glomerata L. also called orchard grass and cocksfoot. But, the pots of cat grass sold at pet stores are usually wheat grass.

Any cereal grain – oat, rye, barely, wheat – will grow grass. Cat guardians should experiment: some cats prefer the grass from one grain over the other.

Getting Started

The Seed: Never buy the seed from a garden center. The grass seed from the garden center is often treated with chemicals (poisons). Instead buy the seed from the bulk food section of the grocery store or health store. It should cost less than a dollar a pound. You will need ¼ cup of seed to plant every 4 inch square pot. Consider one pot of grass per cat, per week.

The Pot: Select a clean study pot with drainage holes. The flimsy disposable pots that annuals are sold in will do if they are put into a heavier container to keep them upright when the cat starts nibbling on grass. When re-using pots, scrub them first and disinfect them in the sun.

The Soil: Avoid using soil from the garden because it is too heavy, does not drain well and because it is not sterilized the seeds would likely germinate than “damp-off” at the base. Instead make a potting mix of one-part sterilized potting soil (with no added fertilizer) to one-part composted steer manure.

Light: Like any plant the grass needs light to grow but because it is germinating and growing only for a short time (usually no longer than two weeks) it can grow without direct sunlight if no windowsill is available.

Planting

• Fill the pot to ¼ inch from the rim with the soil
• Saturate the soil with water
• In a single layer spread the seeds touching each other across the soil
• Cover the seeds with the soil mix and sprinkle with water

At 65-70 degrees the grass should take 7 to 9 days to reach 6 inches and be ready for kitty to nibble. At 10 inches tall the lanky grass bends over and becomes less attractive to cats. While the grass can be cut back (like cutting the lawn) to a couple of inches from the soil the edges of each blade where it was cut will have a dry brown scab and the regrowth will be tough.

While cats lack the enzymes to break down fibrous vegetable matter they may be able to extract some nutrients from young tender grass because it is less fibrous. The grass a cat is more likely to regurgitate is the tough re-growth.

Plant a new pot every 7 to 9 days and compost the old cat grass.

(An easy compost system for those who do not have a garden and just need a system to handle cat grass is to get three clean five-gallon buckets with lids from bakeries or restaurants (everything from pickles to cookie dough comes in them). Drill holes all over the lids. Water the overgrown pot of cat grass then remove the grass from the pot and break up the root ball. Toss the grass and dirt in one bucket. Keep doing this with every pot of overgrown cat grass until that bucket is half full. Then, do the same for the second bucket. When the second bucket is half-full, start breaking up the root balls and putting the overgrown cat grass into the third bucket. By this time the first bucket should be composted. And, while this is not a sterile potting mix in many cases it works fine to use to start growing the next pots of cat grass. This system saves money, making a self-contained cat grass operation.

A Vision for Cats

I have a dream. And, like Martin Luther King, Jr. I realize that my dream will never be achieved in my lifetime. Yet, like Martin, I have decided to articulate it and work toward it.

I envision a world where all cats have loving homes. I envision a world where all cats that need medical care receive free veterinary services. I envision a world where cats are respected for merely being cats.

I see a world where there is no animal abuse. I see a world where animal breeders are outlaws. I see a world where computers replace animals in medical research. I see a world where roadkill does not exist. I see a world where flesh is not eaten and fur is not worn.

This is my vision because I believe in the teachings of St. Francis of Assisi. The patron saint of animals wrote, “If you have men who will exclude any of God's creatures from the shelter of compassion and pity, you will have men who will deal likewise with their fellow men.”

We will get to my world by standing up for those who cannot stand upright. We will get to my world by offering a helping hand for those who have no fingers to grasp. We will get to my world by realizing that we were created to be different not to change each other but to better understand ourselves.

The cat is assertive, creative, instinctive and independent.

We are what we have been taught. We have been taught since kindergarten that there is one right answer, that we must go-along-to-get-along, and that our success is measured in dollars.

My world is dawning. Already, psychological studies show that having an attachment to a cat reduces depression and increases self-esteem. And, the physiological evidence maintains that those in a loving relationship with a cat have decreased blood pressure, the reduced  chance of a second heart attack and lower triglycerides.

It is already politically incorrect to refer to cat as a “pet.” They are a “companion” or “friend.” Likewise, “owning” a cat is now frowned on. A cat has a “guardian.”

And, across the country attorneys attempt to legally replace the definition of cats as property with the monetary value of a product with the new definition of a cat as a sentient being capable of an emotional relationship with others.

Victor Hugo wrote, “There is nothing like a dream to create the future.”

If I pursue my dream I may not reach it but it will come one day because as Martin Luther King, Jr. concluded, “Unconditional love will have the final word in reality.”

Paulette Rossi

Founder, Catink.org

Communication Between Cats and People

We know that when we want to make a point we can raise our voices, make extravagant gestures or move closer to the person we are talking to. When a cat wants to make a point they have to think outside of the box. When the cat eliminates outside of the litter box or sprays an upright surface to mark it, they are emphasizing what is on their minds.

Depending on how much the cat is loved they are either tossed out the door, never to be allowed to live in the house again or they are put in a crate and brought to the veterinarian. The vet will do tests, including checking if the cat has a bladder or kidney infection or a urinary blockage, to determine that the cat does not have a life threatening malady. Next the vet will ask the cat's guardian the personal questions, “Did you move the kitty litter pan? Did you buy a new type of litter? Did you buy a new style of litter pan? Do you need a new litter pan?

When those questions generate no solution the vet determines the cat has a behavioral problem. The number one reason cats are euthanized for behavioral problems is for eliminating outside of the box or for marking.

What a tragedy of missed communication on our part. The motivational speaker, Anthony Robbins maintains, “We must realize that we are all different in the way we perceive the world and use this understanding as a guide to our communication with others.”

What we took as inappropriate behavior was instinctively perfect communication by the cat.

The cat being territorial by nature must assert both their identity to other cats through the scent of their urine or feces and make us aware that they are frustrated and angry that their turf has been invaded or changed. Appreciating routine the cat will become upset when new animals, people or objects (furniture) invade their space. It is quite common for cats to eliminate on the guardians bed when a new partner moves into the house. This is not a bad cat but a cat who is worried that there will not be enough love to go around.

We do not speak catise and the cat does not speak English but we must be perceptive to the cat's actions to communicate with them. The management guru, Peter Drucker said, “The most important thing in communication is to hear what isn't being said.”

The stray cats we pick-up do not come with a guide book. Even when we adopt from a shelter we receive literature on what and when to feed the cat and a calender to schedule vaccinations but no language book.

We would not think of raising our children without a copy of Dr. Spock; we must not consider raising our cat without a handbook on their behavior.

We have for too long been told that cats are too mysterious to be understood or that that they are independent, aloof, loners that do want our attention.

Actually, cats are closer to us emotionally than any other companion animal. Like us they are complex beings that want to be loved, and appreciated on their terms in their space and time frame.

When we pause to “listen” to the cat's behavior we come closer to understanding their actions. The founder of Toastmasters International Ralph Smedley once said, “Understanding is the way to peace.” Communication is the way to harmony in the home with cat(s).

Growing Catnip From Seed

Every spring when I was in elementary school my mother would take me to the neighborhood garden center to buy a starter-pot of catnip, nepeta cataria. We would plant it in the herb garden in the afternoon and by morning it was gone. Well, not totally gone. Our three cats that were born with white beards, and cheeks had beards and cheeks stained green. They even smelled antiseptic like a cross between lemon and mint.

My mother would have saved money if she had read Philip Miller's The Gardener's Dictionary. In 1754 he wrote, “If you set it, the cats will eat it. If you sow it, the cats don't know it.”

Cats are attracted to the chemical nepetalactone in catnip. Cats can smell nepetalactone one part in a billion in the air. When the leaves are bruised in transplanting the herb the fragrance which cats equate with a sexual attractant is released. Not all cats roll in catnip and go into a hallucinogenic trance. To respond to catnip the cat must be at least six months old or sexually mature and have inherited the right genes. The response is an inherited “autosomal dominant trait.” It is estimated that 15 to 25 percent of all cats lack the trait and are immune to the scent. Even cats that re-act to catnip usually get “high” for less than 15 minutes. They will leave the catnip alone for a couple of hours and come back for a re-charge.

Why Grow Catnip?

Growing your own catnip is the only way to ensure your cats get good quality. When catnip toys are purchased you have no way of knowing how much catnip is used with the stuffing or if it is fresh. The pet-toy-product industry often responds more to price than quality. Toy-grade catnip even if it is certified organic is what is leftover after the best leaves go to the medicinal and tea market.

Stems and leaves that have been poorly dried (grey not green) have little aroma.but are often ground-up and sold to cat guardians.

Growing catnip from seed where it is intended to grow is easy only if you let it do what it does best – come up on its own terms. My mother may have failed with the plants but I failed by following the directions on the seed packs. The instructions say to lightly cover the seeds with dirt. But, think about how catnip comes up in the wild. It drops its seeds on the ground in Fall and they germinate when the temperature is right (around 65-70 F.degrees) in late spring or early summer. In nature no one lightly covered the seeds.

Catnip Bed

Catnip grows best in well-drained sandy loam. If clay soil is your yard amend the soil with lots of compost. As with most herbs it needs at least six hours of direct sunlight everyday. It is important to select a garden area that has been weed-free for several years. Catnip is a perennial. If the planting area is infested with weed seeds or roots the weeds will grow through the catnip destroying the plant crown.

Avoid augmenting the soil with synthetic fertilizers because they give plants a quick jolt of nutrients resulting in fast lush growth and herbs with reduced essential oils. Work in some composted steer manure just before the seeds are sown. When the plants are a foot tall side-dress with grass clippings on an annual basis. The grass clippings will supply nitrogen to the soil.

Just before sowing the seeds – and the seeds can be sown anytime, they know when to germinate – make a soil ridge or rim around the row to keep the seeds from washing away when it rains or they are watered. Keep the soil moist until the plants are well established, than deep-watering once a week should be sufficient in summer. The plants grow best when the plants are spaced 15 to 18 inches apart.

When temperatures drop to 20 degrees in winter the catnip will die-back but it is one of the first plants to re-appear in the garden when the temperature gets just above freezing. The crown of deep-green toothed elongated heart-shaped leaves that appear are frost tolerant. When the plant gets about six to eight inches tall start picking the leaf whirls above the first node to make the plants bush out. This can be done on a daily basis to give kitty a fresh daily treat.

As the season progresses the catnip will grow into a 2 to 3 foot tall bush with grey-green slightly downy leaves and spikes of tiny white flowers tipped with purple or pink. Just before the flowers open cut the catnip down to within 6 inches of the ground.to dry it. Waiting longer and all the plant's energy will go into producing the seeds and the leaves will have less essential oil.(Letting one plant go-to-seed is a great way to get more plants to keep the catnip bed young and vigorous.)

Drying Catnip

To successfully dry catnip find a clean, dry, dark place with cross ventilation or use a fan to move the air around. Avoid any room with high humidity like laundry rooms, bathrooms and kitchens. Pick the catnip in mid-morning after the dew has dried from the leaves. Picking it immediately after a rain or with dew on it makes it difficult to dry the herb without mildewing. Picking catnip in the heat of the day results in leaves that are losing essential oils to the warm air.

Tie several branches together to dry remembering that the less stems drying together the more air the branches receive and the faster the herbs will dry. Hang the bouquets upside down to dry. Every couple of days re-bundle the herbs moving the inside branches to the outside to keep mold from developing. The complete drying process should take about 7 to 9 days. If it takes longer the quality will suffer. This will be visibly noticeable with the leaves becoming grey or brown.

When the herb is “crisp” (dry) remove the leaves and store them whole. Crumbling the leaves should be avoided until the catnip is used because crumbling or pulverizing the herb releases the essential oil.

Nepetalactone in catnip is UV photosensitive – it is destroyed by light. Store the dry leaves in an airtight opaque container.. The best storage temperature is an even temperature somewhere between 50 and 70 degrees. Cookie and fruit-cake tins make good storage receptacles. Lacking those spray paint (make opaque) the outside walls of large glass jars with tight lids. Catnip should never be stored in plastic bags because cats can tear them open and suffocate in the process. And, all plastic including rigid containers are poor storage choices because plastic is permeable both absorbing the essential oil from the herb and giving off whatever previous essential oil the container had absorbed.

Catnip and Us

While catnip on us humans does not make us go into ecstasy the dry leaves are found in many “soothing” herbal tea blends and the fresh green leaves can be added to salads. Before tea was imported from the Orient, catnip tea was the most drunk tea in Europe.

And, rubbing some catnip leaves on ourselves might not be a bad idea the next time we go on picnic or camping. The essential oil of catnip has been found to be ten times more effective than the chemical DEET to repeal mosquitoes.

Catnip is as lovely as any ornamental in the garden. Being an herb its essential oils are good at keeping pests and disease away. Its flowers also attract bees and butterflies.