The Way of Cats

There’s something about a sleeping cat which fascinates us. Whether we want to cuddle them because they look so cute, or are drawn to see just how deeply they are sleeping by stroking a whisker or ticking the fur in their ears, we can be deeply tempted to disturb them.

We can soothe our conscience by realizing that sometimes cats do welcome our overtures while they are sleeping. We need to know where and why cats are sleeping to make this call.

If the cat is hanging out in the living room during a Lost marathon with our friends, the cat is looking for notice and interaction. They might not be up on the plot, they might not be drawn into the discussions of character development, but they are saying that, even asleep, they have an ear cocked for what might interest them, and are in the mood for the occasional stroke or directed question that will make them feel a part of the event.

If the cat has sought out the littlest used room in the house, with or without parking themselves under the bed, the cat is seeking deep sleep, and low input. If we encounter them there, and they aren’t doing any harm, we can tell them they are good and leave them alone. The cat has indicated they are “sleeping in,” and doesn’t particularly want any fussing right now.

Part of the puzzle is that cats do “cat nap.” They are capable of an indefinite drifting state where they are attuned for possible happy events, but are not on full alert, either. It’s always a compliment when a cat does their “drifting time” in a room with us. Sleeping on our lap or against our leg is what we rightly regard as serious closeness, and we often seek out such opportunities.

But a key way to maximize these “lap or leg” opportunities requires a commitment on our part. Put the drinkies and snackies close to hand, the remote nearby, and signal our “settling in” by tossing a throw across our lap or opening a book. If the cat is going to settle in, they want to settle in, not be constantly dumped off our lap or otherwise disturbed.

That’s because most cats are highly sensitive to our cues. If we are restless, only going to be sitting down for a little while, or ready to bounce up when our team scores, this is not the atmosphere the cat will regard as conducive to serious snuggling time. In the minds of many cats, it doesn’t matter why we are nudging them off our lap, whether it be checking the fridge or an urgent call of nature. We have nudged them off our lap, and they will wonder if we really meant it in the first place.

So if we want to cat to curl up with us, we should make the effort to not disturb them unduly. It’s a wonderful feeling to have a relaxed cat enjoying our affection, and returning it. But this isn’t a state to be rushed, or for us to get a charge and not return one to the cat. We might have been signaling to the cat all along that we won’t stay still long enough for either of us to get the most of this kind of contact. So the cat will choose a more stationary nap spot than our lap.

Where ever they might be, a cat choosing a nap spot in a room we occupy, especially a prominent and easily accessible one, is a cat declaring trust and affection. They will welcome non-dislodging activities as ear rubs, paw holding, or a couple of “hand hugs” because that’s why they are hanging out there. But we shouldn’t pull the cat out of bed for a quick cuddle and expect to put them back in the same way. The cats finely tuned body has already found the right configuration for itself. It’s disruptive to make them try to find it again.

Cats do spend two thirds of their life in some kind of sleep. We can expect a lot of our cat interaction to take place while they are in some form of it. Respecting the cat’s needs, while rejoicing in their decision to be near us, lets us connect with the cat when they are in their most relaxed and mellow moods.

By making our overtures in that same spirit, we know we are doing it in a way the cat will welcome.

Got here from a Link or Search?
There’s more to The Way of Cats than the article you are reading now. See my LATEST CAT ADVICE.

It’s not as sturdy or as clear as Mr. Spock’s efforts, but neither I nor my cats have had the benefit of Vulcan training. But we do Mind Meld. Face closeness is the ultimate cat compliment. Forehead to forehead contact expresses the cat’s desire for mind melding.

When I invite a mind meld, I put my hands behind my back and lead with my face. I am communicating trust. The cat will half close their eyes, let their ears relax, or even stretch out their neck to communicate their willingness to share this greatest of gestures.

Together, we press foreheads.

When I first brought our new kitten home, Dear Husband, who deals with a chronic illness, was still in bed. I peeked in to see that he was awake, and let the kitten get on the bed.

He marched up to Dear Husband and planted foreheads. He was communicating, as clearly as he could, that he wanted to be friends.

Cats will rub their faces on parts of our bodies, and let us pet their ears, chins, and faces. Follow their lead, express our own trust and relaxation, and we can achieve this kind of cat closeness.

This is not something that can be forced. Only invited.

Even cats who are hand shy, or dislike sitting on our laps, can express their true feelings with the Mind Meld. Approach them when they are lying on the bed, or sprawled on a favorite shelf. See if they are relaxed and communicating affection. Prime them with some “cat kisses,” the long, slow, blinks of friendship.

Then, with our hands behind our back to show we have no bad intentions, we bring our faces close to theirs. Even if they shy away, we will get closer and closer. Until we are as close as we can be.

When I mind meld with Mr. Bond, he makes special noises in his throat that I only get when we do this. That’s how special it is.

This is the prize winning Maine Coon, Wishin, from Blazers Cattery. Who obviously has a heart full of love.

Like my Maine Coon mix, RJ.

Got here from a Link or Search?
There’s more ways to get our cat to be affectionate in The Way of Cats than the article you are reading now. See all of my CAT AFFECTION posts.

Recent research indicates that tool use among animals is more widespread than we might think. The study I linked to did not mention cats. But those of us who live with cats know just how agile those paws can be.

see more crazy cat pics

Cats can turn doorknobs or faucets, open drawers, and pop open plastic containers. If we don’t want the catnip or fishy treats scattered all over the floor, we learn to keep them in screwtop containers.

Cats are not known for making tools. We won’t see a cat fashioning their toys into a can opener. Though RJ, once he learned to play, was quite creative with his toys, known for stacking them two or three high before attacking. As his confidence grew, he relished the challenge.

Cats work with what is at hand, or should I say, at paw? They will activate an electric can opener to summon us, play hockey with the food dish so we know it’s empty, and leave their toys in our bed as a token of esteem.

Cats have been known to amuse themselves by making the DVD drawer go in and out, flip light switches, unbraid hair accessories, or carefully dissect a fake mouse. I once went into my bedroom to find my cat Myron had found a plastic pouch of my pantyhose, and had used his claw to pull little brown mushrooms out of the package. It looked really bizarre, and I figured it was ruined, but when I took them out, there wasn’t a run in them.

Cats came by their paw agility naturally, since keeping ahead of the small movements of their prey makes for successful hunting. In the home, cats will investigate anything that has to do with them, or just looks like something that would react in interesting ways if manipulated. Their keen interest in their environment, and how it can be rearranged to work better for them, keeps their paws active, and their minds, too.

We can keep ahead of the cat by being on the lookout for evidence that they have been playing with things that might get them in trouble. If they show more interest than is good for them, we should offer them toys of their own that can recreate the experience, without them hurting themselves, or our stuff.

We might think the only thing holding back our cats is their lack of thumbs. But even that is not true for all cats, as we see here.

Polydactyl cats have extra toes on one or more feet, and, as might be expected, they often can use these to their advantage. I’ve known polydactyl cats who play ball, catching it in their catcher’s mitt paws.

So who knows what the future might hold? All the more reason to get on good terms with the kitties now.

If we have “one click” turned on at Amazon, we might want to rethink that.

Got here from a Link or Search?
There’s more to raising and training a cat with The Way of Cats than the article you are reading now. See my CAT TRAINING TIPS.

It’s a sad fact that many of the kittens and cats we we take on will have missed in meal or three in their past. The “starving cat” presents both physical and emotional problems for their caretaker, but it is also a problem we can fix by feeding them, in the right way.

This is RJ, his first day home, at four and a half months. I suspect a lot of the people who saw him in the shelter did not realize he was as young, and as deprived, as he was, because he certainly doesn’t look like a kitten.

It’s when we realize he’s supposed to look like the picture at right (a kitten of the same breed at the same age) that we realize how long he’s been dealing with The Hungry Problem.

Of course, our first impulse is to feed them. This is a good impulse, and we should indulge it. We just need to watch our quality and quantity.

What to feed them is canned food.

Canned food is the best way to feed a starving cat or kitten. We don’t want to burden the cat’s system with food they can’t digest. Which would be grains.

Canned food has the 3-5% carbohydrate rate that scientists agree are what cats are designed to handle. Most dry cat foods are more than 30% carbohydrate. This should be avoided. In an established cat, it can lead to diabetes. In a starving cat, it can encourage the cat to eat more to get enough nutrients.

How to feed them is little and often.

High volumes of food does not help the starving cat’s digestion. It will put extra stress on a system at a time when it is least able to handle it. The goal should be a low carb diet, or Catkins, as it is becoming known.

Feeding canned food, offered single serving and often, is the best way to not only get high quailty ingredients into the cat, but it will also interact with their metabolism and turn off the clamoring alarm that tells the cat to eat. The cat will, when secure, slow down and relax. But not until they feel secure.

It doesn’t matter what the cat’s history may be, or what it seemed to be. If the cat ever had an time of worrying where the next meal would be coming from, this old anxiety can resurface in times of stress. So when rehabilitating a starving cat, make sure every step in the feeding chain is high grade and reassuring.

When our kitten started acting frantic, we discovered that food calmed him down. Hunger anxiety was prompting these bursts of disruptive activity. When a vet visit uncovered two baby molars that were being stubborn about coming out, we had them taken care of during his neutering operation. This let him eat more freely, and take advantage of the bowl of low carb dry food I leave out. Within two months his frantic edge went away, and he’s been known to leave food in the bowl.

It might seem irresponsible to NOT worry about the cat getting fat. But I consider it a secondary concern, because the consequences of trying to restrict the cat’s food, when the source of the cat’s anxiety is a lack of food, is both counterproductive and unnecessary.

It also defeats our main purpose, which is reassuring the cat that the food will keep coming. Trying to restrict food will only reawaken the cat’s anxiety, and interfere with training and affection. I’ve had cats who asked for food, then walked away. They didn’t want the food as much as they wanted the reassurance that it would come when they asked for it.

Just let the cat eat until they are acting more normal about food. They might get a little chubby, at first. But when feeding Catkins style, it is rare for cats to become overweight. Their body is now getting the correct signals that will let them know they’ve had enough. And they are not getting the grains they can’t digest, which their body can only turn into fat.

The Hungry Problem, when treated properly, then becomes a problem which solves itself. The happiness, and gratitude, that flows from our solving this problem for the cat makes us feel wonderful.

As well as the cat.

Got here from a Link or Search?
There’s more ways to care for our cat with The Way of Cats than the article you are reading now. See all of my posts on CAT CARE.