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Feline Insights Are The Cat's Meow

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By KRISTEN LEVINE, Tribune correspondent

Published: January 19, 2008

This year, I promised myself I would write more about cats. After all, they're the most popular pet on all fours, with 88 million of them living in U.S. homes (freshwater fish swim way ahead as the most popular at 142 million).

Dogs come in a close second at 75 million, but I surmise they have better publicists because they get most of the market's attention.

Cats, quite frankly, don't want that much exposure, and they don't need much stuff. Which is what makes them so cool!

They say dogs are checkers players, while cats play chess; dogs are straightforward, cats, complex; and while dogs are always eager to please, cats are eager to nap.

Let not this multifarious feline nature intimidate you. It's actually intriguing, and other kitty characteristics make cats fabulous companions.

Felines are relatively independent but still crave the love and companionship of humans. They're quiet, adaptable to smaller living spaces and can live exclusively indoors. Theirs is a relatively low-maintenance lifestyle.

Still, people have lots of misconceptions and curiosities about cats.

A friend recently adopted her first, without any research beforehand. She e-mailed me the following questions (some of which made me laugh) in an effort to begin to understand this new family member padding around her home.

If you are new to cat parenthood or perhaps just curious about your own cat IQ, check out these questions, with expert answers from veterinarian Donna Repeta at The Cat Hospital on Park Street in St. Petersburg.
Catnip - what makes some cats crazy for it? Is it safe? Addictive?

Catnip is a perennial herb belonging to the mint family. The active ingredient is nepetalactone, and it's mediated through special receptors that cats have in their olfactory system.
Catnip mimics the effect of a pheromone that causes a variety of behaviors, from face rubbing to head rolling, body rubbing, sniffing, chewing or head shaking.

Up to 30 percent of cats have no reaction to catnip, while others seem to go crazy for it.

There is no evidence of either addiction or harm being caused by catnip.

Hairballs - are they preventable? What can be used to treat them?

Being that cats are meticulous groomers, most will pass hairballs, and without any complications. Some cats, especially medium- and long-haired cats, can have difficulty passing them or pass them more frequently than they should.

Normal hairball vomiting should not occur more than one or two times a month.

Several preventative products are available. We recommend Purrge. It can be used either as needed or on a routine basis for cats prone to hairball problems.

Why is cow's milk not good for cats?

Cow's milk contains lactose, which cats cannot break down. For cats that love milk, a lactose-free product is available in pet supply stores.

Is declawing really an amputation of sorts? When should one consider declawing, and what is the best procedure?

The declaw procedure is an amputation of the first digit. Not all cats will scratch, and we encourage our clients to give their new cat or kitten a chance to be trained to use a scratching post before making the decision to have the surgical procedure.

There are alternatives to declawing, such as Soft Paws, which are plastic nail caps much like the artificial nails that women wear. The caps can be applied either in the office by the veterinary nurses or at home by the owners every six weeks.

With adult cats, we ask clients to consider declawing as a last resort. If it's an issue that could mean surrender of the cat, declawing is a service we need to offer.

If a client chooses to have their kitten declawed, we recommend that it be done at the same time as the spay or neuter to avoid consecutive anesthetic procedures.

We offer to do this procedure with a surgical laser, which we believe is the safest technique available.

Is there really such a thing as a hypoallergenic cat? Is there anything cat owners can do to reduce the dander?

No, there is not a truly hypoallergenic cat. The word "dander" can be very deceiving because people equate that with dandruff. The latter is an actual flake that you can see. Dander is a secretion from the cat's skin that can't be seen.

All cats secrete this very buoyant substance, some more than others. Dander can stay floating in the air for weeks and sticks to everything, kind of like a spider web.

Bathing your cat can help decrease the secretions. Air purifiers may also help reduce airborne dander.

What are the top five feline ailments that bring cats to a veterinary hospital?

1. Renal insufficiency/renal failure

2. Hyperthyroid disease

3. Diabetes mellitus

4. Pancreatitis

5. Behavior issues

And what is Repeta's best bit of health advice for cat owners?

"Generally, people wait too long to bring in a sick or injured cat," she says. "Cats are masters at hiding illness and injury and often, by the time we notice something is wrong, the problem has been going on for a long time."

Because it is more challenging to detect a cat's health problem, owners should place more value on annual visits to the veterinarian.

Only 3 percent of cat owners bring them in for yearly veterinary visits.

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