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Do You Have A Harmonious Multiple-Cat Household?

ForbesAdvisor.com reports that of 86.9 million U.S. cat-owning households, more than 46.5 million own more than one cat. These multiple-cat households must have learned that to achieve feline harmony in their homes, they must make sure that there are enough resources and space for their cats. If your cats know they have options on where they can eat, sleep, play, and use the litter box, all the better. If the cats have only one option, expect territorial disputes and added stress among them.

Here are a few pointers on how to create and keep harmony in your multiple-cat household:

The first introduction of cats to each other should be gradual and free from stress. If possible, keep the new cat in a separate living area of your home, with their food, litter box, and toys. Your “incumbent cat(s)” will know about the new cat, but not have the stress of direct contact. After a few days, gradually allow your “incumbent” cat(s) to approach the new cat, keeping their contacts short and sweet. After a few more days, you will have achieved a successful introduction.
Our strongest recommendation: invest in vertical play spaces. Cat trees, shelves and window perches are ideal ways to give your cats privacy in an off-the-ground location. Cats like height, so vertical options are a purr-fect solution.
Your cats need outlets for exercising and scratching. Leave plenty of scratching devices around your home. Whether they are horizontal, vertical or slanted pads, they will protect your furniture as well as your sanity!
Give each of your cats a separate food bowl! If you have common water bowls, have several in different areas. A water fountain designed for multiple cats is a great way of managing this. Just make sure to keep the fountain and the water it holds both clean and fresh.
Keep as many litter boxes in your home as the number of cats then add one! One of the worst problems can arise when cats have to use the same box. Territorial issues may arise, causing them to “spray” the litter box, which signals to the other cats to stay away. No one needs to have cats using undesignated areas of the house. Once that “out-of-box” behavior starts, it’s hard to stop.
Finally, watch your cats’ interactions. Observe body language and catch an early warning signal so that you can diffuse any tension and avoid an out-and-out battle. One great technique for diffusing attention is to introduce a stimulating wand toy to immediately redirect their attention away from one another and onto the moving object at the end of the wand.

Congratulations on your growing feline family! May you and your cats enjoy many harmonious and joyous moments together throughout their nine lives!

I Want to Celebrate Cats!

I have loved cats since infancy. Or so my Mom used to say. My first cat was a jet black, sleek looking cat named Ebony. There’s a faded picture of my Mom lowering Ebony into the cradle to take a better look at me. I don’t know if Ebony was that impressed, but I’m sure that I was!

Since then, after years of living with Ebonys, Taffys, Lilys, Bogeys and Chesters, with countless moments of joy and of sadness (at their eventual loss), I am still crazy about cats. I was crazy about cats long before the internet’s love affair with them. In fact, I even opened a cat shop in 1998 and appointed a newly adopted tuxedo boy named Bogey as our official shop cat. (now, you can shop at my website, MyThreeCats.com)

My heart has expanded with each cat experience. So much so, that I couldn’t help sharing the passion. Today, I serve on the Board at FosterCat, Inc., a Pittsburgh based network of foster homes and volunteers who rescue and save cats’ lives every day.

Cats are so tuned into us that they know when we are energetic, happy, stressed, sick, exhausted or grieving. How many of you have experienced the comforting feeling of a cat tending to you while you lay in bed, sick or hurting? It’s pretty special, whether they decide to catnap beside you, or tap your face with their little paw to say, OK, I’m here. (Of course, LOL, they also use techniques to wake you up.)

The daily care giving time I have invested in my cats has been rewarded many times over with their unconditional companionship and affection. Only those who have owned cats (or should I say, have experienced being owned by them) will understand this.

Anatole France made this observation: “Until one has loved an animal a part of one’s soul remained unawakened.” I wholeheartedly agree.

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To Our Cat Loving Readers,

MyThreeCats.com goes beyond being an on line specialty cat boutique. Over the years, since the beginning of our business in 1998, we’ve helped advance the initiatives of numerous cat shelters and cat rescue organizations, as our resources permit.

You can help us continue the effort. We invite you to post your favorite cat rescue story (perhaps your own personal cat rescue story?) on our Facebook site, now through Friday, August 11th. Then shop now through August 11th at MyThreeCats.com and we’ll donate 5% of sales proceeds to Alley Cat Allies. Alley Cat Allies is a non-profit organization advocating the humane treatment of all cats.

A sincere thank you from us and of course, the cats.

Happy Shopping!!!

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Real Men Like Cats!

If you ask my husband Jim how he feels about Chester, our Maine Coon mixed breed male cat and Bandit, our female Tortoiseshell, he might likely respond with a resounding “Real men like cats!”

Jim is among a growing number of men who don’t mind declaring their fondness for their companion cats. He even unabashedly posts videos and photos of them on our Instagram site.

History has revealed some famous men who also happened to bond with their cats.

Take Isaac Newton, for one, who discovered the laws of gravity and universal motion. During his studies at Cambridge University, this cat fan discovered that his cats were interrupting his studies by wanting in and out. Newton cut two holes in the door, one for the mother cat and one for her kittens. For being such a smart dude, he didn’t realize that the kittens would simply follow their mother through her hole.

Another famous cat guy, Mark Twain, had many quotes regarding his feline companions. One of his most famous was “if man could be crossed with the cat, it would improve man, but deteriorate the cat.”

There are many contemporary famous men who have also flaunted their love of cats. A small sampling of these cool guys (I say “cool”, because if they like cats, they are cool, and that is that) are: Ricky Gervais; Ian Somerhalder; John Hamm; and ex-President George W. Bush. Indeed, there is now a popular a cat dude by the name of Jackson Galaxy who has his own cat centric show, “Cat From Hell”, a weekly series showcasing Jackson’s innate talent for solving cat behavioral problems to create happier human/feline households.

It could be that this (great) trend of increasing male cat “literacy” is occurring because men have evolved to the point where they now feel comfortable admitting they prefer “cats” over “dogs”. Perhaps another contributing factor is the growing number of single men who have discovered that they like the companionship of a cat or two. Then, it could be that men like the “low maintenance” feature of cats over other types of pets. No matter what the reason, one thing is for sure: real men like cats!

How to be the best cat owner you can be

Guest Blogger: Jessica Brody –http://www.ourbestfriends.pet. Jessica enjoys writing about cats and dogs. See her blog for additional photos and posts).

A cat is a great pet who can be just as loving a companion as a dog. It’s important to know, however, that cats are not dogs. They react differently to situations, learn and “train” differently, and require differing approaches to care. Here are some tips for being a great cat owner.

Know how to properly feed your cat

Cats are carnivores, plain and simple. You can’t feed your cat a vegan diet and expect it to stay healthy.

“Money saved by buying cheap cat food will be spent hundreds of times over on veterinary care. Cats are obligate carnivores and need a good source of meat protein. They do not need large amounts of grain fillers, especially corn, which is a cheap source of protein used by many cat food manufacturer,” notes The Spruce.com.

Check your cat’s stool. If it appears too dry, you might want to switch to a wet food diet for a while or at least alternate between wet and dry food throughout the week.

And remember – don’t feed your cat milk, despite what all of the cartoons say. It can be harmful to them in many cases.

Make sure your cat gets enough exercise

It’s a myth that cats don’t need exercise. Sure, they don’t need as much as a dog – but cats that don’t exercise can develop a bevy of health problems, including heart disease and obesity.

… How do you ensure that your cat is getting enough exercise? The best way is to simply play with them for 15-30 minutes. If you have a fenced-in backyard, let them run around for a while. Make use of laser pointers. Your cat really will chase them for a long time. If your cat is suffering from obesity…talk to your vet about this more extreme exercise plan.

Give them a place to scratch

Cats will scratch. Like death and taxes, it’s a certainty of life. Make sure your cat has plenty of scratching posts to utilize. Never ever consider declawing a cat, even if they live indoors 100% of the time. It’s inhumane.

Ensure pet family cohesiveness

One of the biggest challenges cat owners face is making sure the cat gets along with the other household pets – usually a dog. It’s important to remember that dogs and cats socialize in different ways, so “training” your cat the same way you trained your dog is not likely to have an effect on their behavior.

What you need to do is be mindful of the energy of the animals in your household. “It’s your responsibility to keep the family balanced by keeping the dog at the highest level of calm-submissive behavior, allowing the cats to become calm-assertive in front of him,” notes famed trainer Cesar Millan.

If your cats are showing aggression toward each other, it’s a different story with a different set of solutions. First, you should never let cats work through their issues with fighting. It just doesn’t work like that for them.

“Never let the cats ‘fight it out.’ Cats don’t resolve their issues through fighting, and the fighting usually just gets worse. Interrupt aggression with a loud clap of your hands or spray from a water gun,” says the ASPCA.

Once you separate your cats just leave them alone. Don’t try to soothe them the way you might try to calm a dog. You can also try to separate your cats’ resources – food, water, and toys.

Do your research on proper cat care. There are a lot of myths out there about cats, and some of them can be harmful.

Photo Credit: Pixabay.com

(Editor’s Note: The opinions, beliefs and viewpoints expressed by guest bloggers on this web site do not necessarily reflect the opinions, beliefs and viewpoints of MyThreeCats.com or its staff.)