To find out more just click on the link below
| Interesting facts and trivia about cats |
Some Interesting facts and trivia about cats According to tests made at the Institute for the Study of Animal Problems in Washington D.C., dogs and cats, like people, are either right-handed or left-handed; that is, they favor either their right or left paws. Harmful plants to kittensAlfalfa Almond (pits of) Aloe Vera Amaryllis Apple seeds Apple Leaf Crouton Apricot (pits of) Arrowgrass Asparagus Fern Autumn Crocus Avocado (fruit and pit) Azalea Baby's Breath Baneberry Bayonet Beargrass Belladonna Bittersweet Black Eyed Susan Black Locust Bleeding Heart Bloodroot Bluebonnet Braching Ivy Buddist Pine Burning Bush Buttercup Cactus Candelabra Caladium Calla Lily Castor Bean Charming Cherry (pits, seeds and wilting leaves) Laurel Chinaberry Chinese Evergreen Christmas Rose Cornflower Cornstalk Plant Crown Of Thorns Cutleaf Daffodil Daphne Datura Death Camas Devil's Ivy Dragon Tree Dumb Cane Easter lily Eggplant Elderberry Elephant Ear Emerald Feather English Ivy Evergreen Ferns Four O' Clock Foxglove Fruit Salad Plant Geranium German Lily Giant Dumb Cane Glacier Ivy Golden Golden Glow Golden Pothooks Heartland Hemlock Poison Hemlock Water Henbane ricane Plant Hyacinth Hydrangea Indian Rubber Plant Indian Tobacco Iris Iris Ivy Jack In the Pulpit Japanese Show Lily Java Beans Jerusalem cherry Jonquil Jungle Trumpets Madagascar Dragon Tree Marble Queen Marigold Marijuana Mescal Bear Mexican Breadfruit Mistletoe Mock Orange Moonseed Morning Glory Mountain Laurel Mushrooms Narcissus Needlepoint Ivy Nephytis Nightshade Oleander Onion Oriental Lily Peace Lily Peach(pits and wilting leaves) Pencil Cactus Philodendron Pimpernel Plumosa Fern Poinsettia Poison Ivy Poison Oak Pokeweed Poppy Potato Pothos Precatory Bean Primrose Privet, Common Tansy Mustard Taro Vine Tiger Lily Tobacco Tomato Plant (green fruit, stem and leaves) Tree Philodendron Tropic Snow Tulip Tung Tree Virginia Creeper Weeping Fig Wild Call Wisteria Yew Japanese Yew English Yew Western Yew American Yew Dental InformationStudies show that 70 percent of cats show signs of gum disease by age three. Symptoms include yellow and brown buildup of tartar along the gum-line, red inflamed gums and persistent bad breath. Feline DietsEach cat will have their own taste, this is just one of our ways to annoy you. Make sure our food is approved by the local Veterinary Association (it will be stamped with a seal on bag or can). Ask your vet about many good brands are not registered yet. What types of food do we need? Well, on each can or bag of pet food there should be a label saying for kittens, adult cats, seniors, and overweight cats too. Lately some of the better brands have put out kibbles and wet food for fur ball control, tarter control, and for urinary tract problems. **Changing food may not cure a problem, it may just prevent further damage. Medical Info and VaccinesAdult cats should receive a yearly checkup and booster as part of their health maintenance program. Many people think that indoor only cats need no vaccination. Unfortunately, most feline diseases are airborne, or can be carried in on clothing and shoes with ease. The regular or usual vaccines every cat should have is the Distemper-Rhino-Calici and Pneumonitis combination, and this vaccine will be given to both kittens and adult cats. Fleas and Ticks factsHow To Prevent Fleas Flea infestation is one of the most common health problem in dogs and cats. Almost every dog and cat will become infested with fleas at some time during their life. These tiny, almost-invisible pests are much more than an annoyance. They make life miserable by disrupting your household with a vicious cycle of biting and scratching. Fleas don't just make your pet itchy, they can actually make him/her quite ill. Be aware of how fleas can irritate your pet! It might be difficult to see fleas, but they certainly can make their presence felt, especially to your pet. Prevent the effects of fleas with regular use of a flea preventative and killer such as Frontline, Advantage and more available at your local vet practice. Description: The female is 2.5 mm long, and the male is slightly smaller. When infestations are very heavy, the accumulations of grayish larvae and white eggs give the sleeping quarters of cats a "salt-and-pepper" appearance that easily identifies the infestation. Flea pupae have the ability to lie dormant for very long periods, and are believed to be "awakened" by vibration and carbon dioxide from exhaled breath. An infested house which has lain unoccupied for some time may carry a ready-made flea infestation for new incoming occupiers. Fleas can jump vertically for 5 or 6 inches [about 15 cm], and can attach themselves to skin or clothing. How To Prevent TicksTicks are second only to mosquitoes throughout the world in transmitting infectious disease to humans and animals, including Lyme Disease, Ehrlichiosis, Babesiosis. Due to the serious potentially life-threatening nature of these diseases, they are very important when they occur. If your pet is bitten by a tick, the results can be fatal. Your pet's risk of contracting these diseases can be reduced by regularly using a tick preventative to kill and repel ticks which can be purchased at your local Vets practice. Cat Trivia  French researchers claim that the domestic cat has a vocal range of as many as sixty notes, from a gentle purr to growls of varying intensity to the howl that sometimes annoys the neighbors. The cat's skeleton is quite close to that of the human, but it's lack of a shoulder blade allows freedom of movement of the foreleg, which can be turned in almost any direction and a cat also has around 290 bones and 517 separate muscles. Cats are the only four-footed animal, with the exception of camels and giraffes, that walk by moving their front and hind legs first on one side and then the other. Only four cats really roar: lions, tigers, leopards and jaguars. A cat's teeth, from newborn kitten to the largest lion, are the most awesome weapons in the mammal kingdom They are very sharp, and finely serrated like a knife. The curved, pointed canines are set in the cat's jaw so that the molars fit together with their sides intact, like a pair of scissors, rather than tooth to tooth, as is the case with humans and most other mammals. With powerful leg muscles, especially in their hind legs, the domestic cat has been known to reach running speeds of up to twenty-five miles an hour. A frightened cat can run up to 30 mph -- while the fastest human can only run up to 27.89 mph. Both female and male cats reach puberty at approximately six months of age,. Males will act more territorial, disappear for days and "spray" their scent. Females will lower themselves close to the ground and meow as if in pain when they go into heat. Domestic cats spend about 70% of their day sleeping and 15% of the day grooming. Non-pedigree cats generally live longer than pedigree cats. Cats were domesticated about 3,000 B.C. in Egypt. Cats were brought to the Americas by colonists to protect their granaries and as pets. As settlers moved inland, cats accompanied them. "Polydactyl" means "many toes." Perhaps the most famous polydactyl cats were those raised by Ernest Hemingway, who had over 60 of these big-pawed charmers at his home in Key West, descendants of a 6-toed cat given him by a sea-faring captain. It is a common belief that cats are colour blind. However, studies have shown that cats can distinguish between red and green; red and blue; red and gray; green and blue; green and gray; blue and gray; yellow and blue, and yellow and gray. The top two rows of a cat's whiskers can move independently of the lower two rows. This allows maximum perception of the cat's immediate surroundings. The lightness of a feline's tread can be attributed to the fact that they walk on their toes--the soles of their feet rarely touch the ground. The pillow-like balls of their paws allow them to prowl noiselessly in the wild. Cats out number dogs by millions as house pets. The Uk has about 10 million pet cats, One startling piece of research found there were 226 cats per square kilometre in Bristol. In the US, there are about sixty million. In the US, thirty seven percent of houses have at least one pet cat. In the UK, about twenty five percent of houses have at least one pet cat. In Australia, twenty six percent of houses have at least one pet cat. There are about five hundred million pet cats in the world. The earliest ancestor of the cat was the miacis, which lived over fifty five million years ago. The miacis had a long body and tail, short legs and looked somewhat like a weasel. The ancestor of all domestic cats is African wild cat. All domestic cats are members of same species, Felis Catus. Other small members of cat family include the European wild cat, Kodkod, Pampas cat, Geoffroy's cat, Tiger cat, Puma, Ocelot, Bobcat, Jaguarundi, Margay, Andean mountain cat, Leopard cat, Jungle cat, Fishing cat, Pallas's cat, Rusty-spotted cat, Marbled cat, Bay cat, Iriomote cat, Temminck's golden cat, Flat-headed cat, Chinese desert cat, Sand cat, Caracal, African wild cat, Serval, African golden cat and Black-footed cat. There are about forty different species of wild cat. The sand cat found mainly in Africa burrows into the sand to protect itself from the heat of the sun during the day. Many wild cats also live in caves. The fishing cat found in India and Pakistan finds most of its prey in the water. The fishing cat is an excellent swimmer and catches fish, frogs and reptiles to feeds on. Cats are one of the oldest mammals on the earth. African wild cats were found in fossil form as early as thirty eight million years ago. The average life span of a cat is twelve years, this can vary with health, diet and breed. |