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Message |
Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Tuesday, March 20, 2012 - 12:57 am 
He's a good guy. That came through loud and clear. And funny, too.
Oddly, just the day before I was explaining to someone how dogs have been domesticated SO much longer than cats, so it isn't fair to expect cats to be all domesticated in comparison to dogs.
And Jackson started out talking about that!
He says dogs evolved WITH humans.
Cats we didn't need around until we needed mousers. Then the Egyptians considered cats to be royalty.. Bastet, for instant. Cats were buried with people, embalmed.
Then in Europe when the plague hit, people were stupid and blamed the cats instead of the rats (and of course really the fleas) so they mass killed cats, which allowed the rats, and thus the fleas, to thrive and wipe out a big chunk of the population.
Then cats, especially black cats, were considered witches and killed off.. pretty much wiped out the 100% black cats, most will have a few white hairs.
Queen Victoria was pro cat.. and we tried to tame cats (lol).
That's a bit of my notes..
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Rieann
Member
08-26-2006
| Tuesday, March 20, 2012 - 1:44 am
Interesting post Seamonkey. I just discovered this show too. Jackson is truly "The Cat Whisperer".
Maybe I should post this in another thread, but two books about cats I highly recommend are:
'Homer's Odyssey' by Gwen Cooper- About a cat who had his eyes removed at three weeks old and how he transformed the author's life and never new he couldn't "see". He's amazing.
'Dewey: The Small Town Library Cat Who Touched The World' by Vicki Myron (her story is inspiring too)- He was dropped into the book drop at a small town library in Ohio, at three weeks old, and he ended up "running" the library for 19 years.
Here are some great links:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0jGpvvLmwbs
http://gwencooper.com/
You will fall in love with them.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Tuesday, March 20, 2012 - 1:51 am
Love Homer! I have read it and I know Julip and Bonzacat have read it, probably more..
Dewey sounds good but the kindle price is a bit high.
And a memorial video made me cry.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U1KG1ESMBec
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Rieann
Member
08-26-2006
| Tuesday, March 20, 2012 - 7:52 am
Sea-
Thanks for that other link on Dewey, I hadn't seen that one. I got choked up too. He was truly special.
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Mamabatsy
Member
08-05-2005
| Tuesday, March 20, 2012 - 8:26 am
If you like cats - something to watch when there's nothing on TV :
http://www.ustream.tv/ffrc
It's a rescue center in Ohio. She usually has between 80 and 100 cats. They adopt out many each week, but of course there are more coming in all the time. Right now they have 8 abandoned kittens (two separate litters) who need to be dropper fed every two hours. It also serves as a retirement home for aging cats. They have a separate facility for "problem" cats with issues. It would be fun to see Jackson go there and give an assessment.
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Dogdoc
Member
09-29-2001
| Tuesday, March 20, 2012 - 2:32 pm
I haven't seen the show but as far as urinary problems go:
1. Like Karuuna says 'Don't use a covered litter box.'
2. Use only unscented litter that is as dust free as possible. (Yesterday's News works well.) Cats have sensitive noses.
3. Use filtered water only. A Pur or Britta water pitcher works fine.
4. Clean the litter box frequently.
5. Have as many litter boxes as you have cats plus 1 extra box.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Tuesday, March 20, 2012 - 5:07 pm
I do all of that, but Katniss only used the downstairs box one time when she first arrived and since then she has always gone upstairs. So I may remove the downstairs box soon. But with Critter and Angelina I did have three boxes.
I did suggest that we put cams in Kitty Klubhouse and/or Meow Manor but I suppose that would require donors and of course if we get more money we like to be able to rescue more cats. We have a very active Third Chance program and have saved many cats and dogs that way.
Hmm not sure where all our rabbits come from.
And random critters.. like Saturday when I went to store my stuff there was a cute green frog there and a small lizard, maybe an iguana. Sometimes there will be chickens, or a fat rat, or a finch or parakeets, snakes.. we do adopt out birds sometimes but other critters go to the appropriate rescues.
http://www.cityofirvine.org/cityhall/cs/animalcare/
adopt_a_pet/available_pets_for_adoption.asp
Of course this doesn't show recent arrivals who are still being evaluated and are not available.
http://www.facebook.com/irvineanimalcarecenter
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Saturday, June 30, 2012 - 11:17 am
The new season of My Cat From Hell starts tonight at 8pm.. seems ike there is a mini marathon today too.
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Brenda1966
Member
07-02-2002
| Saturday, June 30, 2012 - 12:59 pm
My daughter is watching it now. She would love to have a cat, but she has allergies, so grandma's cat has to fill that void.
It's interesting to see how the cats are drawn to him.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Saturday, June 30, 2012 - 7:12 pm
I got to hear him speak and was in the front row and he's a very sweet man. But they do seem to sense something about him, for sure.
I have a bunch on my DVR now, but I was gone much of today and am now working on the LONG recording from Wimbledon today. Hopefully I can immerse myself in cats after that. If my own cat doesn't turn on her "from hell" switch.
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Sunshyne4u
Member
06-16-2003
| Saturday, June 30, 2012 - 7:13 pm
cats are smart and clean. was going to post basically the same as dogdoc did LOL
i think a lot depends on the TYPE of litter a person uses too. My cats prefer a 2 inch layer of clay litter and will faithfully use it until the top darkens.....a few days to a week.Of course i take the kitty pepperonis out and flush /when smelly i chuck the whole thing/ wash with Boiling water and baking soda.
the "worlds best"corn cat litter is nicer for me. Its scoopable and i keep that litterbox by the bthroom door for easy scooping to toilet.
cats are smart.when I first moved here, they would come sit and stare at me when on the toilet. next thing I know, they are Peeing on the floor beside me when I went there. they MUst be able to smell!!!
so i moved a box there.
They both prefer to be outside...and will pace at door. SO i have another one RIGHT THERE at the door. IF i go on a daytrip and leavethem locked in house, that box goes RIGHT infront of door where they sit to go out.
YES i agree.Most cat/ dog problems are OWNEr related.
sometimes is breed or Illness related as well
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Catfat
Member
02-27-2002
| Saturday, June 30, 2012 - 9:14 pm
I once had a cat who taught herself to use a regular person toilet to go poop, don't know where she went pee, she never used the litter box, so it must have been the toilet,
She never learned to use toilet paper, though.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Sunday, July 01, 2012 - 12:09 am
I use clumping litter (would never flush the stuff though) and about 4 inches of litter in a BIG rubbermaid tub, scoop 2-3 times a day.. usually there is nothing there one of those times.
She likes to chew on toilet paper. Any paper.
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Cindylouwho
Member
01-27-2009
| Sunday, July 01, 2012 - 12:12 pm
Catfat, I had a cat who peed on the toilet her whole life. One night my daughter and I (who lived alone in the apartment) were getting read to go go sleep and we heard someone peeing in the bathroom. We looked at each other with raised eyebrows, then peeked in to see Spider relieving herself. She just started doing it out of the blue and did it until she died years later.
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Goddessatlaw
Member
07-19-2002
| Sunday, July 01, 2012 - 12:50 pm
Dude, I would totally start believing in alien life at that point.
My cat Max flushes the toilet for us when we're through using it, and even that freaks me out. Then again he's the one who's figured out how to open doors and turn on faucets. He's scary-smart.
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Dipo
Member
04-23-2002
| Sunday, July 01, 2012 - 3:15 pm
What is the issue with a covered litter box? I have one box that while not covered is in one of those big crate looking things so that it is not so obivous that it contains a litter box.
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Dogdoc
Member
09-29-2001
| Sunday, July 01, 2012 - 4:55 pm
Some cats refuse to have a bowel movement in a covered box, presumably because it stinks.
In a covered box there is no place for the smell to go.
Also, you shouldn't use Lysol or other strong cleaning agent to clean the litter box. It can be bad for their paws and noses.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Sunday, July 01, 2012 - 5:23 pm
I prefer a large and deep box with no cover for my cat.. and the two before her. Since they all used them, I assume they feel the same.
I would think the top would make it like using a portosan type f portable, except with a lower roof and without the space below the butt..
Cats are so scent oriented.
At the shelter anything too big for a dishwasher and not machine washable is pressure hosed with disinfectant and water and then sun dried outside and aired out. But they have a LOT of litter pans, of course.
I watched the old shows I'd recorded last night and today and the new show too..
Fun to see how often he uses the wand with the tiny mouse, though it was also strange to see that his mouse still had a tail. Katniss has dispatched with the tail almost immediately with each of the two she's had.
I have to go to the shelter tomorrow evening for a meeting and will go earlier to play with cats and I have my fingers crossed that they still have a Da Bird wand toy for sale there.. I think we need one of those,too.
Also in one of the older episodes, Jackson brought in a tall scratcher with a red perch on top.. I have two of those with no perches and they are fabulous scratchers.. lets most adult cats stand up to scratch. She also plays King Kong and climbs it ;)
Two of the older eps showed wooden beds clamped to desks.. we also have one of those upstairs clamped to a perch in the window and it was great for Critter when she got very old and fell off the perch in a deep sleep.. the sides of the box kept her in place. Katniss likes it too.
Katniss is definitely one cat who needs vigorous playtime before she gets her last meal and we go to bed.. but even then she is likely to pounce on my feet when I'm dead asleep. Still working on that.
The nail covers... I read up on them, but you have to trim back the nails first and THEN glue them on one by one and hold them a certain length of time. Not sure how that would go over.
Of course those bottles you see in Jackson's guitar cases contain his cat essences and he told us when he spoke that he uses some of them on virtually every cat, but he isn't allowed to mention that on the show.
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Karuuna
Board Administrator
08-30-2000
| Sunday, July 01, 2012 - 6:23 pm
according to Jackson, covered boxes make cats (especially in multi cat households) feel trapped, and they may spray outside the boxes to mark the litter boxes as their own.
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Dipo
Member
04-23-2002
| Sunday, July 01, 2012 - 8:48 pm
Interesting. I guess the one I have is not really a covered box and it is sort of wicker on the sides so there aren't smells.
My cats like it, but it isn't their main box, which is a normal box in the bathroom.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Sunday, July 01, 2012 - 8:49 pm
The really bad one was a box there they rolled the box sideways and something inside trapped the poop, but as Jackson pointed out, then the entire inside of the box is coated with stink.
He also hates to add any cats who sit in their box all day, and even worse if it is covered. I know he worked when he was at a shelter to get the cats who were cowering in their boxes (and less likely to be adopted, thus more likely to be killed) out of those boxes. And he would train them to come to the front of a cage and stick their paws out, which DID get them adopted  .
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Sunshyne4u
Member
06-16-2003
| Monday, July 02, 2012 - 12:02 am
strangely, my old cat liked the covered box. Cause Whiskers would sometimes attack Booboo while she was trying to do her business.
Booboo loved being able to relax and not have to worry about being Leapt upon.
OH and Seamonkey, the Worlds Best Cat Litter is made to be Toilet flushable. Not septic safe tho, just city sewer safe.
http://www.worldsbestcatlitter.com/natural-formulas/quick-clumping-cat-litter/
i use the Plain stuff. NOT scented or multicat with additives
there is NO ODOR at all. I will fill up the box deeply and keep scooping until it is basically empty. I figure it takes a few weeks...and still no smell
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Monday, July 02, 2012 - 6:42 am
My two cats were raised with covered litter boxes (actually, two cats with one litter box; but replaced on a regular basis) and neither one eliminated where they weren't supposed to or sprayed. I always clean out the litter box twice a day unless I'm traveling (when my cat sitter cleans only once a day). Kassie is a digger, so there is probably 3-4 inches of clumping litter on the bottom. (Scooped into biodegradable doggie bags!) Both cats were spayed or neutered at an appropriate/early age.
I caught up on this series over the weekend, and I have to say, I think most of these people create their cats from hell. I mean, you have two cats and there is only one cat toy? What do you THINK they will play with? Or there are no cat beds in the house? There are no cat scratching posts or things for them to scratch on? What do you THINK they will do? Or not cleaning a litter box for a week? Really? Really????
Yeah, I'd be a PERSON from hell if that was how I was forced to live!
Half of what Jackson does is just common sense. And training the humans.
Some people really shouldn't be allowed to be pet owners. I mean, these people wouldn't be human owners, would they? They would go buy all sorts of books on how to take care of human babies, right? So why don't they learn how to take care of their feline babies?
Like the couple with the Bengal kitty. I have a very good friend who got two Bengals "because they are so gorgeous." She never bothered to find out anything about them. Nothing about how energetic they are. Nothing. And I have to tell you, for the first six months, every time I went to visit and that cat litter box hadn't been cleaned in two days, I told her I wouldn't visit again.
And oh yeah, if you regularly clip your cats' claws, you won't bleed quite so much. I've always clipped mine, pretty much every two weeks (as often as I get my own nails done). That way, when we played, I wouldn't walk away with scars. Costa could rabbit kick me all he wanted, and would usually not draw blood. When we played hide 'n seek, and he'd jump out and tap me, even if he'd forget and tap with a claw, he wouldn't mark me.
Kassie still gets treats, but I make her work for them. She doesn't do the hunt/catch/eat, but I make her chase/catch/eat her treats (Lean Treats). And she still has to work for other treats by sitting up on her hind legs, or sitting and high fiving. The only time she gets "free treats" is when she gets her pedicure!
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Costacat
Member
07-15-2000
| Monday, July 02, 2012 - 6:44 am
P.S. Sea, I used to say that Costa would turn his mouse toys into hamsters! And while Costa was clicker trained, Kassie really never was.
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Seamonkey
Moderator
09-07-2000
| Monday, July 02, 2012 - 8:48 am
I guess technically, we have tiny hamsters on the wands. Katniss is pretty hard on her toys.
I think some of these cats are difficult rescue cats and some are unfortunate choices.. like the Bengal.. gift with no research.. or the second sphynx.. kind of the same dumb decision I made to get a second cat for Critter after years of being a singleton
I went a bit long before I took Katniss in for her second nail clipping since the first time had been so traumatic, but second time I also fasted her (fed her her morning meal after we got back home) which made things easier.. and the tech was warned in advance and got one of the vets to help and at least there weren't yowls heard blocks away (or in the waiting room) though she did make it clear that she wasn't pleased to be restrained.
The plumbing is old here but even when I had my new condo one of my neighbors managed to clog her plumbing with supposedly flushable litter .. she did have four cats. I use an empty litter box .. used to fill up the food bags to take to the trash but Katniss likes shredding even the really tough food bags so her food is stored away in a metal container with a tight lid.
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