Ask a Vet!

[Karen]

I will ask!

[3Catcondo]

Thank you!

[Laura's Babies]

LOL! I got several for you to ask.... It's about Caramella. You know the story of how I got her, how young she was and I was the only Mom she ever knew.. She was my first time raising a infant kitten and it seems there was something I overlooked teaching her in re: potty training... She does not clean her butt after she goes and it really shows with that white fur of hers.. I try to clean her from time to time and she don't fight me about it but she makes a funny meowing noise when I do it... HOW do I teach her to clean herself at the age of 2 1/2 is she to old to be taught that?

Another question about her... Her tail annoys her! It is so funny. She will be calmly relaxing and flipping her tail all over the place... Suddenly, she spots that tail flopping all around her and she gets mad at it... She'll growel at it, slapping at it with her paw.....When it won't stop, she will really growl and attack it like it is attacking her. She has bitten her trail so hard she has let out a yelp more than once.. It is the funniest thing I ever saw and I've tried many times to video it but by the time I get the camera and turn it on, she is over it.... I have never seen a cat do this before.....she really gets MAD at her tail!! Anyone ever heard of that before?

[Karen]

Laura, I will ask those!

[krazyaboutkatz]

I've been wondering why some cats love to play in water even though they don't like taking baths. My kitten Rory loves to jump in the bathroom sink or kitchen sink after I've finished using it. He'll get his paws all wet and he'll also lick some of the water. He will also sometimes play in the water bowls and make a big mess. Why do cats sometimes put their toys in their water bowls?

Why does my cat Alani always want to shred any kind of paper, plastic bag, or cardboard product? If he sees a napkin lying around his eyes light up and he goes crazy. It's almost like it's catnip to him. I thought he would outgrow this but he'll be 3 on April 30th so I really doubt there's much chance of that.

Why do female cats seem to be more territorial than male cats? As you know, I now have 10 cats and both of my females still don't like their younger brothers and they only tolerate Sky. They need their space and seem to do better in a one on one situation with me as opposed to being in a group with me and the other cats. They love me but don't really want anything to do with their brothers.

My cat Pearl also loves to play with her tail. I don't think that she's ever bitten it or hurt herself while playing with it. I used to think that only dogs played with their tails. Maybe she's just bored.

[Karen]

Thanks everyone! We didn't get to all the questions but they answered the ones we did VERY thoroughly. Randi, I will need to send you the audio file, as there was too much for me to take notes on! Amy, they said Thundershirts are iffy for cats, they either work okay or are disastrous, it depends on the cat in question. But they would first try a Feliway diffuser and see if that will help ...

Laura, of Miss Caramella, they both recommended a "hygenic trim" around her backside, to make it easier to keep clean, and were actually concerned about her biting her own tail - I will email you the audio file as well, okay? They said it was more serious, from the sound of it, than just playing like it sounds like Pearl is doing, Tracy! They talked extensively about the ages kittens learn ceratin things, especially bottle babies, which was interesting.

They were very nice and talked a lot about the questions we did get to, and I even threw in Frito Feet at the end, and got an interesting answer (We only had a minute of time left)!

[Randi]

Thanks a lot, Karen, I will look forward to hear the audio file.