Catscapades

Have you ever heard of a clowder? That’s the correct term for a group of cats. Also used are cluster, clutter, destruction of cats and pounce of cats.

Of course there’s a litter of kittens and a colony of feral cats. So where did the odd and not very flattering term clowder come from? It’s thought that it originated in the middle east in the late 1700s and it describes a clotted mass.

And did you know that a clowder or colony of cats will have a hierarchy—a cat that ranks higher in the colony (or household, even). How do you tell which cat that is? The one that is most often rubbed on by the other cats. The cats know which one is boss and they continually remind him of his hierarchy by rubbing against him. The more the cat (or human) is rubbed on by another cat, the higher in the hierarchy the cat (or human) ranks.

This evening, you might have a competition with your spouse. Note which of you is most often head-butted and rubbed on by the household cats. It’s probably whoever is feeding them at the time.  Read more about this topic. https://www.certapet.com/clowder-group-of-cats/

This is not a topic any of us who adore animals, especially cats, wants to discuss, read about or know about. Yet the question and the concern exists. Evidently cats can contract the virus. Antibodies have been found in several cats in China after the huge outbreak. And there have been a few reports of cats, including some big cats, testing positive for the virus.

Because they don’t know enough about how the virus affects our pets, they’re recommending that we do not interact with them if we’re sick. It seems to me that at the very least, you could pass it to other family members by petting the cat.

So can cats catch the virus outside of the house? Certainly if your cat roams and digs around in trash containing contaminated food or leavings of any kind, or if someone with the virus interacts with them, it seems they could catch it or at least carry it back home. Another reason to keep your cats inside and close, right?

Here’s a site with more information about cats and covid.

https://www.webmd.com/lung/news/20200911/covid-19-may-strike-more-cats-than-believed

The calico cat is sometimes referred to as the peacock of cats and for good reason. Just look at the array of colors in their fur and some of them certainly strut their stuff.

Calico is not a breed, but a color. You’ll find tri-color cats in some cat breeds and whether the calico is a purebred Persian or born to a feral mom, tri-color cats are thought to have strong personalities. They’re generally smart, affectionate, and creative—yes, they can be a handful.

So what determines a calico? Over 99 percent of calico cats are female. A male calico is rare, indeed. I’ve never met one. A calico is 25-75 percent white with patches of black and orange or grey and cream.

There’s the standard calico with bold patches; the dilute calico; the cabby with patches of tabby markings; and some even have tortie patches. Some call the calico with tabby patches a caliby. Our kitten, Olivia, has a bold calico patched pattern, along with patches of tabby stripes and tortie patches. So does that make her a calitorby?

The calico cat is thought to have originated in Egypt and they have been worshiped over the years. The Egyptians worshiped them and in Japan they’re considered to bring good fortune. We’ve all seen the calico cat figurine clutching a gold coin and waving in Asian-owned businesses and for sale among Asian curios.

In America, the calico was chosen as the state cat of Maryland. Only two other states have state cats: Maine (the Maine coon) and Massachusetts (the tabby).

Here’s a weird fact. If you have a wart, rub it against the tail of a calico in May and it will go away.

Here’s a site showing photos of six types of calico cats including the rare male calico. Enjoy: https://excitedcats.com/different-types-of-calico-cats/

Do you have or have you ever had a calico? What are some of the interesting tricks or feats or personality traits your calico ever demonstrated? We’re chalking them up here with sweet and spicy Olivia.

Do you ever catch your cat just sitting across the room, on the coffee table in front of you, or on the floor at your feet just staring into your face? Does this make you uncomfortable? Do you wonder, what is she thinking? Is she sending me a thought-message? Is she trying to get my attention for some reason?

Well, your cat isn’t the only cat who does this and experts say thee are reasons for it. One is that the cat just wants to connect with you. If you stare back, you might see a slow blink. Be pleased as your cat is expressing her affection for you.

She may stare because she wants your attention. She’d like to jump up onto your lap—if only you’d put the other cat or the newspaper down. She might be hungry and she’s hoping you’ll notice her and feed her. She might be in the mood to play. Here’s a site that gives more details on that intriguing stare we get from our cat. I’m getting one from Olivia at this very moment. She’s on my lap resting her head on my arm as I type and staring up at me. Oh yes, she’s purring. My response? “I love you, too, Olivia.”

https://iheartcats.com/vets-explain-why-cats-stare-at-us-you-might-be-surprised

If you’ve adopted or rescued cats and you’re not the only person in your household, you know that, once the cat moves in, he will choose a favorite person. This person is who he’ll go to first for petting. He greets this person when they arrive home. He naps on or near him or her. He spends more time interacting with this chosen one than with anyone else—following him, watching him, sitting close by.

We tend to believe that a cat or a dog will make a stronger connection to the person who feeds him, but research shows this isn’t necessarily true. It takes more than food to develop a rapport with a cat. Think back about the cats in your household and who they have chosen as their person.

According to experts, generally a cat will choose a person who matches their personality. If the cat enjoys peace, calm, and quiet, he will avoid the more active family members. You might spend hours trying to express your adoration for this cat or kitten, yet he finds his comfort in your husband who, when home, is usually seated in front of the TV or computer. Don’t be surprised if you find your timid cat sound asleep on your husband’s chest during his afternoon nap.

Another reason why a cat might not connect with you is if you remind her of someone she knew before and didn’t get along with. You could be similar in size or stature to that person. You may be able to win this cat over, but it will most likely take a lot of patience and treats.

The woman who took in of our new kitten, Olivia, is about my size and stature. She had to give Olivia and her siblings medicinal baths every other day for three weeks before we could bring her home, so she was very hands-on with the kitten. I saw a video of Olivia getting a treatment and the little thing was purring up a storm during her soapy massage.

Olivia came to us absolutely adoring being petted and scratched and, yes, massaged. And I’m pretty sure the reason why I am the chosen one in our household for Olivia is because of the easy transition for her from her former caregiver to me. I couldn’t have planned it better, since I so wanted an affectionate kitten who loves the human touch.

Here’s a site giving more information and ideas for helping a cat to warm up to you.

https://iheartcats.com/cats-like-humans-not-others/

Okay, I’m probably going to describe you when I suggest that you have more photos of your cat than anyone or anything else in your phone.

If you have a cat on your lap and you have to pee—you’re apt to hold off because you don’t want to disturb the cat.

You wash your hands after petting someone else’s cat so the scent of another cat doesn’t offend your cat.

You often leave the bathroom door open—in case your cat is looking for you.

You apologize to the cat when you have to leave the house.

You’re constantly talking to your cat.

You are reluctant to move a sleeping cat.

I passed the test—yes, I’m actually a crazy cat lady. If you’re still not sure, visit this site to read more of the telltale signs.

https://welovecatsandkittens.com/cat-pictures/20-signs-youre-crazy-cat-parent/

Surely you’ve noticed that cats have different shaped faces. Basically, there’s the round face, the triangle, and the square-shaped face. But did you know that you may be able to get a clue as to a kitten’s or a cat’s personality by the shape of her face?

What do we look at when we want to adopt or rescue? Maybe the color of the cat, body type, length of fur, how friendly the eyes look, her general attitude? The thing is that if you pay attention to the shape of the cat’s face when selecting one, everything else might fall into place. If at all possible, you’ll want to know the cat’s back story: where did she come from, what sort of stress has she endured, how was she treated, does she know people, or has she been on the streets her entire life?

Beyond that, the shape of the face can give you some insight into the cat’s personality because the face shape can hint at the cat’s ancestry.

A cat or kitten with a round face, for example, big round eyes, and a cobby body is most likely descended from a Burmese, Persian, or British shorthair. This cat is likely to be a sweet and affectionate companion.

The cat with a triangular shaped face is probably part Siamese or Cornish Rex, for example. This cat may be more talkative and active.

If you happen across a cat with a square face, she will probably be more dog-like and mellow much like the lovely Maine coon cat. Here’s a site with more information on choosing a cat based on her face shape

https://www.baxterboo.com/fun/a.cfm/do-feline-face-shapes-give-personality-cues

If you’re like me, you read every quirky, interesting, odd cat fact or story you stumble across. So you may enjoy this week’s blog posts. Today I’ll share some rather strange, fascinating, and obscure facts about cats. Be sure to hang around for the rest of the week’s posts because we’ll also cover how to choose the right cat by his face shape, signs that you are a crazy cat parent, why cats like some humans and not others, and the “cat stare” explained—finally. Why do they do that? On to the fun cat facts:

1: A cat’s brain is more similar to a computer than you might imagine. They can actually think for themselves—figure things out—which is probably why they seem aloof and why they won’t always do things the way we want them to. They have little minds of their own. And before we consider their brain small or with less capacity than ours. Here’s an interesting tidbit. The cat’s brain is 90% similar to ours.

2: A recent article in Scientific American reported that a cat’s brain can hold a thousand times more data than the average iPad with 64 gigabytes of storage, and that a cat can process data a million times faster. Wow! The next time I want to do some fact-checking, I’ll just ask the cat. Only thing is, a cat isn’t as cooperative as Alexa or Google.

3: In the 1870s the postmaster in a small town in Belgium tried to use cats to deliver the mail. Of course, you’re laughing, because of course this failed. Cats aren’t going to do anything that doesn’t directly suit them.

4: Cats have 20 muscles in their ears. Now you know how they can twitch and twist and fold and wiggle their ears so easily.

5: Cats can make around 100 different sounds. They can even mimic the sound of a human baby. I was helping out with a new set of twin infants in our family last week and was told that earlier they heard a baby crying in a back room. The twins were sweetly sleeping in the living room at the time. They went to investigate and discovered that it was their munchkin cat—yes, imitating the sound of the twins crying.

I hope you enjoyed this little round up of cat facts. Stay tuned the rest of the week for more interesting stuff about our favorite fur-pals.

My latest book, Something to Meow About, features cats dressing up. It’s a rather light story where the humans have fun dressing and photographing cats. It’s all for a good cause, of course, and no cat was harmed in the process.

Not everyone agrees with the concept of dressing a cat. Most cats are against it, too. However there are very forgiving cats that will allow their favorite small child to try doll clothes on him or tie a bonnet on her. But this activity isn’t strictly child-play. Clothing and accessories for animals is big business. Many department stores and pet stores carry pet apparel. Millions of people dress their pets for more than just Halloween, for example to the tune of around $350 million a year. Are you one of them?

Granted you see more dogs dressed than cats. Cats aren’t out and about with their people as often as dogs are. In fact have you ever seen a cat dressed up? I have at cat shows and conventions/conferences. There are also sites with cute cats wearing clothes. Check out these photos and I dare you not to smile. https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=dressing+cats&qpvt=dressing+cats&form=IGRE&first=1&scenario=ImageBasicHover

If you sew, you might be interested in entering the business and rake in some of those dollars we’re spending on jammies, ruffled skirts, tutus, and chic hats for our cats and dogs. Here’s a site designed to guide you in starting a pet apparel business.

https://www.thebalancecareers.com/how-to-start-a-pet-apparel-design-business-125527