I have five cats, four of which were adopted from Abandoned Pet Rescue, so I consider myself somewhat of an expert when it comes to understanding cat behavior. Cats’ territorial instincts date back to their wild ancestors when they had to defend their hunting ground and living space. Territory to a cat is more than just a physical space. It includes scent marking (face grease on the woodwork) and body language communications indicating ownership. I have a 2500-sq. ft. house and my cats own and patrol every inch of it. I wish I could get them to take over the payment, insurance, taxes and utilities!
But, as you all know, I digress, so back to the subject. If you own more than one cat, they may display some territorial disputes as far as sleeping places and scratching post ownership. This could lead to stress-related health issues. Understanding this behavior is vital to having a harmonious multi-cat household. I’m lucky in this respect. All my cats get along most of the time, with only an occasional paw-in-face episode. They share food bowls, water fountain, sleeping space and litter boxes. Sleeping space is my bed, where everyone has her own place to sleep. This makes it easier for them to gang up on me at 4:30 a.m. to feed them. You’re probably thinking, “has she really spoiled her cats that bad?” to which I must answer they’re rotten all the way to the bone! All my girls have been spayed, which reduces the territorial behavior. You may still have to provide individual sleeping quarters and litter boxes to keep the peace at your house.
Have you ever watched your cat stare into an empty corner, under the furniture or up at the ceiling? This is really creepy and begs the question, can cats see ghosts or beings that the human eye can’t detect? This really gets disconcerting when you open your eyes in the morning to discover them staring at you! Lord only knows, but one thing for certain—your cat has senses that are much stronger than yours. Science has not figured out whether cats can see into a realm beyond the one we know, and we may never know. The one thing we do know is that cats can see, smell and hear things well beyond the realm of human comprehension and abilities.
A cat’s sense of smell is about 40 times stronger than a human’s. All the LumeDeo in the world would not hide your B.O. from your cat. Their night vision is absolutely incredible too, thanks to a reflective tissue in their eyes called the tapetum lucidum. Their hearing is better than yours too. I have no doubt that they can hear a palmetto bug walking across the floor.
Cats have only about 500 taste buds on their tongues compared to a humans’ 9000. This is why smell is the most important part of food selection. This is probably why they prefer the stinky wet “fishy” foods to dry kibble. So, if you wondered why Miss Kitty turned her nose up at that special expensive food you bought for a special occasion, it’s probably because it didn’t pass the smell test.
Whatever their idiosyncrasies, I couldn’t imagine life without my Katzenjammer Kids. I could not love them more if I had given birth to them.
Allie
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