CAT OWNERSHIP

Researchers recently discovered that upper respiratory infections in shelter cats can be dramatically decreased by doubling cage sizes and providing the cats with two compartments. Funded by the Morris Animal Foundation, the UC Davis team of researchers published their findings in the journal PLoS One.

We love our cats and would do most anything for them. Unfortunately, our pets leave quite a paw print on the environment. From adding litter to landfills, to polluting the water with unrecyclable plastics, we may unknowingly be contributing to this paw print. By making the right choices, however, there are ways to decrease this paw print and lessen the impact on the planet. It can be as simple as choosing a different type of litter or repurposing an old suitcase into a chic cat bed.

Among many other things, cats are appreciated for their colorful fur. When it appears that weve seen every shade imaginable, a cat of a different color shows up! Genetics is the key to this kaleidoscope of cat colors and patterns.

Many readers of Catnip followed my chronicle last winter of raising a litter of six newborn kittens (with a lot of help from their young mama, thank goodness!). All seven moved into their new homes by Christmas time, with the kittens at the ideal age of three months old.

Choosing the right cat or kitten to adopt is obviously a very important decision. Therefore, it is critical to choose a cat that suits your lifestyle and personality. Some people prefer living with a gregarious and playful cat, whereas others find the company of a placid, laid-back feline more enjoyable. Learning more about the various feline personality types -and how they develop - can help make it easier to find a cat that will bring a lot of joy into your home.

Kittens are rambunctious, delightful little balls of fluff who delight and entertain their owners for hours on end with their silly antics and mischievous behavior. But there is something very special about living with cats as they mature. We were extremely blessed to be able to share our lives with our beautiful and loving white Oriental Shorthair, Sir Hubble Pinkerton, for seventeen years.

Believe it or not, there was a time when cats were considered seniors when they reached the age of seven or eight years old. As a result of the major breakthroughs in veterinary care - along with the many advances in feline nutrition - cats are now considered elderly at twelve, seniors at age fourteen and geriatric at the age of fifteen. Today, some cats can even live up into the upper teens and into their twenties.

When you adopted your cat (or cats), did you have the opportunity to select her based on her age, personality or temperament? Over the years, I did choose a few adult cats from a shelter environment - and had the opportunity to make a choice of, say, a cuddly, interactive cat over a more fearful one.

Following the winter holidays and the New Year, theres that inevitable lull during the several months we wait for Spring to unfurl its green splendor. Thats a time I like to reflect on the many blessings I have in my life, including the affectionate, funny and loving cats that I live with.

This months Short Takes makes me particularly happy, and I really hope it sparks a trend in the animal welfare community. Researchers at the University of Georgia are matching senior citizens who live alone with shelter cats - to see if the relationship is helpful at making the person feel less lonely and with more purpose.

I am fostering an adolescent stray mother cat and her three kittens (I picked them up when the kittens were about one-week-old) and I fed her a high-quality wet cat food the first few days.

In a striking visual of the tenacious bond between pets and their human parents, Houston residents remained yards from the safety of the George R. Brown Convention Center during last summers Hurricane Harvey because they were not permitted inside with their cats and other companion animals.