IS YOUR KITTY DRIVING YOU CRAZY?

No, you're not being singled out and picked on by your kitty. If it's any consolation, cats all over the world do these things everyday.

The feline mystique is what often attracts us to our cats in the first place and makes them so fun and interesting to live with. But it sure would be nice if we could understand them enough to stop them from piddling in our closet or jumping on our kitchen cabinets!

Let's look at the cat's incredible sense of smell. Scent plays a vital role in cat behavior and their sense of territory.

Kittens are born deaf and blind but their sense of smell is already sharp and working. Within one day of birth, they will lay claim to their own nipple and suckle from it exclusively just by its unique smell. A 3 week old kitten placed 3 feet away from his home base will be lost if he can't smell his way back, even though he can see his mother and brothers and sisters!

Kittens are extremely impressionable and if they do not experience, and become accustomed to, a variety of smells when they are small, they will have a difficult time adjusting to any changes in adulthood. The importance of early socialization with routine handling and care cannot be overemphasized. A part of the socialization process is assuring the cat that the experience in not overly traumatic. Likewise, if they associate a traumatic or painful experience with a particular scent, they will most likely react negatively every time they encounter that smell in adulthood.

We've all seen what happens after we've taken one of our cats to the vet and then return home with him. The cat is growled and hissed at, and occasionally attacked, by the other cats that stayed home. They don't recognize their friend because he smells different. It's as if a new and strange cat has walked right in and is trying to make himself at home!

Cats have scent glands that run along the tail, on each side of their forehead, on their lips, chin and on the underside of their front paws. They use these glands to scent mark their territory. Every time your cat passes by the kitchen chair or the sofa and rubs up against it, he is saying, "This is mine. This belongs here. I belong with these things." When your cat scratches your furniture or his scratching post, he is also leaving his scent there from the glands in his paws.

When your cat rubs up against you or his companion pets he does it for a scent exchange. While depositing his scent on you, he is also picking up your scent, which he will carefully lick and taste off his fur. (And we thought he was just grooming himself!)

Cats that are not socialized enough as kittens, such as being kept caged until sold, can react badly to changes in their environment and intrusions of unfamiliar smelling objects, people or animals. A new piece of furniture can be viewed as an invasion of their territory. Some cats will hide from it for days. Others will immediately rub up against it to scent mark it while some cats will feel so threatened that they will go to an extreme form of scent marking - urine marking.

Once a cat has urine marked, the scent must be immediately and thoroughly removed. We may clean it to our nose's satisfaction, but your cat and his keen nose will still be able to smell it. Remember that a cat's sense of smell is ultra sensitive. Your male cat may smell a female cat in heat from blocks away. The scent may come wafting in through an air conditioning duct or fireplace vent. If you move to a home where another cat has already left a strong scent, your cat may mark over those areas. Some cats will even attack their owner if they come home with the smell of another cat on his/her clothing!

Cats are territorial by nature and they identify their territory by scent. The more you can socialize your cat as a kitten, the less likely this problem will occur in adulthood. Keep this in mind when moving with your cat, boarding him, taking him to the vet or groomer, bringing home new furniture, or bringing home a new friend.

Try to make your cat feel as non-threatened as possible by using familiar scents. For example, before bringing in a new piece of furniture, rub it down with some of your cat's bedding or even your own bedding.

If you have a veterinary appointment and have more than one cat, take both cats even though only one will be treated. If one cat has a prolonged stay at the vets, have him groomed to wash away the peculiar smells of the hospital before bringing him home. In addition, rub kitty down with a towel, blanket or toy that your other cat has been in contact with recently.

When moving, you can help make the transition smoother for your cat by applying the same principle. Set up one room in
your new house to be as similar to kitty's favorite room in your other house with pieces of furniture or bedding he's used to. Bring kitty straight from your old house directly to this special room. Once he feels comfortable and the rest of your house is in order, then let him out.

If your new home had a cat living there, it's recommended that you have the carpets, drapes, etc. thoroughly cleaned before bringing your cat in or your kitty will spend the first few days of his new residency marking over the old scents with his own.

LIFE IS JUST SO STRESSFUL!

EAT--SLEEP--PLAY--EAT--SLEEP--PLAY!

I'VE GOT TO GET AWAY FROM THE JOB AND JUST RELAX SOMETIMES!

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IS YOUR KITTY DRIVING YOU CRAZY? Part 2