I am a first-time cat owner. My neighbor talked me into adopting an adorable little orange-and-white kitty (I named her Sansa), and I'm so glad she did. I didn't know what I was missing. Now I'm insanely curious about cats and want to know how to take good care of my cat. Can you recommend a cat book for me?
Congratulations on your new family member. As you've learned already, cats can be delightful, entertaining and enigmatic creatures. Scores of books have been written about them (a sure case of "so many books, so little time"), but a great one to start with is It's a Cat World ... You Just Live in It: Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Your Furry Feline by Justine A. Lee.
Lee, a Minnesota veterinarian who specializes in emergency and critical care, got her first pet cat after she graduated from veterinary college. She says she loves cats and dogs, but quickly realized that "nothing is more stress relieving than coming home after a long day at work to relax on the sofa draped in cat."
Like you, she became as curious as a cat about all things feline and began asking questions. She compiled the answers in It's a Cat World, which covers feline idiosyncrasies and behavior as well as health and care problems.
Written in a question-and-answer format, Lee's book allows you to easily navigate among topics so that you don't have to read the book from cover to cover to find out what you want to know at any particular time. A person who has never owned a cat might be overwhelmed with decisions such as which cat litter to use (clumping, nonclumping, clay, crystals or pellets, for example), be unsure about how to choose a veterinarian or wonder why the cat keeps attacking his ankles.
Lee answers those questions as well as explains why cats hiss, lick themselves and shed buckets of fur when stressed.
She is a consultant for the Animal Poison Control Center of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, so naturally her book contains a chapter on substances that are toxic to cats, among them acetaminophen, topical insecticides, liquid potpourri and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatories (such as ibuprofen and naproxen). She also covers plants that are bad for cats, such as lilies, narcissus, marijuana and cyclamen.
Living with a cat usually requires an owner to change aspects of his daily behavior, such as dropping used dental floss into an open trash container.
"Because cats are inquisitive in nature, your mint dental floss just became a really cool, cheap chew toy," Lee says.
Actually, it can be an expensive chew toy because stringy material -- like floss and Christmas tinsel -- can ball up, then get stuck in a cat's stomach and intestines, requiring thousands of dollars in surgery to remove.
It's a Cat World is a great compendium of information to access quickly, but you may find you want to know about specific topics, such as training (yes, cats are trainable). If that's the case, check out Naughty No More: Change Unwanted Behaviors Through Positive Reinforcement. In this book, feline behavior consultant Marilyn Krieger provides step-by-step instructions on using a clicker device and rewards to teach cats how to sit, not scratch furniture and stay off counters.
If you find yourself thinking about getting a second cat, feline behaviorist Pam Johnson-Bennett's Cat vs. Cat: Keeping Peace When You Have More Than One Cat can be an invaluable resource.
While a second cat might mean double the fun, it also can mean double trouble if the cats don't get along. Johnson-Bennett (also the author of Think Like a Cat) explains how to introduce a new cat into a household, plus addresses mealtime, litter box and territorial issues.
When you're reading, don't be surprised when your cat decides to take an interest or tries to sit on your book. As Lee explains in It's a Cat World, "Cats love to be the center of attention without actually being the center of attention."
Family on 04/06/2016