Cougar

Cat of the Month ~ September 2009

cougar

The Cougar ~ a ‘stalk & ambush’ predator
Image from the Oregon State University website

The Cougar is also known as puma, mountain lion, Catamount, or panther, depending on the region in which it is identified, is a mammal of the Felidae family (in other words it’s a Cat :yes: ahem..), native to the Americas.

This large, solitary creature has the greatest range of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere, extending from Yukon in Canada to the southern Andes of South America. An adaptable, generalist species, the cougar is found in every major American habitat type. It is the second heaviest cat in the American continents after the jaguar, and the fourth heaviest in the world, along with the leopard, after the tiger, lion, and jaguar, although it is most closely related to smaller felines.

The genus and species name is said to mean ‘a cat of one color’, describing the almost single colored coat. Coat colors range from tan to dark brown, depending on the region. Coat thickness also varies. Kittens are born with spotted coats as are lion cubs. They also have the distinguishing black face marks and tail tip. As the young cougar matures, it will lose it’s spots for an adult coat. Cougars range in size from five to eight feet long, and from about 60 to 225 lbs. Males are almost twice as large as females.

A capable stalk-and-ambush predator, the cougar pursues a wide variety of prey. Primary food sources include deer, elk, and bighorn sheep, as well as domestic cattle, horses, and sheep, but it also surprisingly hunts species as small as insects and rodents. Moreover, it prefers habitats with dense underbrush and rocky areas for stalking, but it can live in open areas.
Continue reading “Cougar”

Castle Castro Cats

Just got back from my summer holiday and (as usual) I took a few photos of some of the scenery and wildlife we happened upon…. and not surprisingly, some moggies were amongst the collection.

Photo of Castle Castro

Castle Castro
Old Skiathos town was founded here in 1538!

Castro or Castle Castro is the medieval town of Skiathos in Greece, which was built on a gigantic rock several hundred feet above sea level. Castro is situated in the northern part of this Greek island, and took us around an hour by boat to reach from the new capital of the island.

Castle Castro Cat
taking shade in the heat of the day.

Amongst the ruins stand some middle ages houses and at least three churches (I counted). High on the clifftop are stunning panoramic views of the Aegean sea which can be seen in the photographs above. A single cannon from those ‘days of pirates’ is still intact amongst the remains of the ruined town. Amazingly Castro was the old capital of this island from 1538 until 1829.
[teaserbreak]

Castro Cat at the ouzo table.

Set out on a table outside the highest church were a couple of little bottles of ouzo and some glasses. These, together with a tray of boiled sweets, were kindly provided by the church warden.

Word got round that this was free to drink and we didn’t want to disappoint did we!… Anyway a few minutes later several local moggies appeared which looked to be quite well fed and friendly.

[teaserbreak]
..and a couple more Skiathos moggies for good measure…

Sadly not all the cats and dogs we saw on the island were as well looked after as the Castro cats. I’ve provided a link below to the local cat (and dog) sanctuary on the island. This husband and wife team (Peter and Sharon Hewing) look after the islands unwanted strays and outcast domesticated animals all year round, but the end of the holiday season is a particularly difficult time!

Smudge

Hi everyone!

My name is Smudge and I am 1 year old.

Smudge

Smudge

I have a nice bunch of humans looking after me (well, O.K – spoiling me!) and I have a best friend next door called Izzy. We have loads of fun chasing each other but we do have to watch out for the cat who lives the other side of me. He is a mean dude called Pudding (glad he had a silly name – serves him right!)

My favourite pastime at the moment is catching frogs. I find it great fun, but my humans don’t seem so keen. What is wrong with them???

Going to put on a few pics so you can see what a looker I am.

Luv and miaws,

Smudge

Ten Tips for Cat safety

Here’s a serious one reader.

…a short list of dangers you can take steps to avoid (to protect your cat, or in fact any young child or pet) in and around the home. A lot of these items are a little obvious no no’s when you have a pet around, but it seems to me there’s no harm in reminding ourselves from time to time, wouldn’t you agree?

Ed.

Curious cats have been known to eat anything!

1. Be aware of the plants you have in your house and in your garden, if your cat is permitted outside (the American CFA advocates cats being kept indoors at all times). The ingestion of azalea, oleander, easter lily, or yew plant material by a cat could be fatal.

2. When cleaning your house, never allow your cat access to the area where cleaning agents are used or stored. Cleaning agents have a variety of properties; from those that could just irritate the gastrointestinal tract to those that have a corrosive action and can chemically burn the sensitive mucous membranes of the mouth, esophagus, and stomach.

3. When using rat or mouse baits, ant or other insect traps, or snail and slug baits, place the products in areas that are inaccessible to your cats. Most baits contain sweet smelling inert ingredients, which can be very attractive to your cat.

4. Never give your cat any medications unless under the directions of veterinarian. Many medications that are used safely in humans can be deadly when used inappropriately. One extra strength acetominophen tablet (500mg) can kill a fully grown domestic cat.

5. Keep all prescription and over the counter drugs out of reach of your cats. Pain killers, cold medicines, anti-cancer drugs, antidepressants, and diet pills are common examples of human medication that could be potentially lethal even in small dosages. Only one half of a 200mg naproxen tablet could cause stomach ulcers in cats.

6. Never leave chocolates unattended. Approximately one half ounce of baking chocolate per pound body weight or less can cause clinical signs of toxicity.

7. Many common household items have been shown to be lethal in certain species, including felines. Miscellaneous items that are highly toxic even in low quantities include pennies (high concentration of zinc), mothballs (contain naphthalene or paradichlorobenzene – one or two balls can be life threatening in most species), potpourri oils, fabric softener sheets, automatic dish detergents (contain cationic detergents which could cause corrosive lesions), batteries (contain acids or alkali which can also cause corrosive lesions), homemade play dough (contains high quantity of salt), winter heat source agents like hand or foot warmers (contain high levels of iron), cigarettes, coffee grounds, and alcoholic drinks.

8. All automotive products such as oil, petrol, and antifreeze should be stored in areas away from cat access. As little as one teaspoon of antifreeze (ethylene glycol) can be deadly in a seven pound cat.

9. Before buying or using flea products on your cat or in your household, contact your veterinarian to discuss what types of flea products she/he would recommend for your pet. Read ALL information before using a product on your cat or in your home. Always follow label instructions. When a product is labeled “for use in dogs only” this means that the product should NEVER be applied to cats. When using a house spray, make sure to remove all cats from the area for the time period specified on the container.

10. When treating your lawn or garden with fertilizers, herbicides, or insecticides, always keep your cats away from the area until the area dries completely. Discuss usage of products with the manufacturer of the products to be used. Always store such products in an area that will ensure no cat exposure.

Original article by Jill A. Richardson, DVM – https://www.cfa.org
[Veterinary Poison Information Specialist ASPCA/National Animal Poison Control Center]

Casper the bus riding cat

Casper the cat has been catching the same bus every day for four years.

Casper boards the 10.55am service in Plymouth, southwest England, for its entire 17 kilometer journey, before returning home about an hour later.

The 12-year-old pet has become such a regular traveler on the Number 3 bus that all the bus drivers on the route have been told to make sure he does not miss his stop.

Casper’s owner Susan Finden said she was stunned when she first learned about the cat’s daily jaunt. “Casper has always disappeared for hours at a time but I never understood where he was going” she told Britain’s Telegraph newspaper…

Ms Finden chose Casper as a pet from a rescue centre in 2002… “I called him Casper because he had a habit of vanishing like a ghost, but then some of the drivers told me he had been catching the bus.”

Ms Finden, 65, went on to say… “the cat probably got the idea by watching other passengers at a bus stop outside my home. He sits patiently in the queue and is as good as gold. Casper is quite quick for his age so he when the bus arrives he just hops on before the doors close”

A First Bus spokesman said: “The drivers all check he’s on the bus and that he gets back safely … We wouldn’t sell a cat a Rover ticket… but in cat years he’s an OAP so he’d get a free bus pass anyway.”

Link to a video of Casper riding the bus.

Sadly, Casper passed away in March 2010. Here is a link to our remembrance of this wonderful cat. God keep you Casper.

Cat classifications

Here are some of the cat classifications I’ve found whilst looking at the different breeds and ‘house cats’. There are probably many others. Please comment with any new classification you may have heard of and I’ll add it in

“American Keuda”
An emerging breed of cat. The Keuda is under active development, however it has already become semi-standardized. If it were recognized by a major cat registry, it would probably be classified as a “Provisional” breed, but the desired characters are not entirely developed and/or stable).

“Bi-colour”
The bi-colour cat has white fur mixed with fur of other colors, an example would be black or cream. They come in different patterns. These range from color on the crown of the head and the tail only, or a solid color with a small mark of another color.

“Domestic longhaired”
The domestic longhaired cat (domestic longhair)is a term used to describe a cat with medium or long hair that is not a pedigreed member of a recognized breed. Domesticated longhairs appear in all standard cat colours including cream, tortie, smoke etc.

“Domestic shorthaired”
The domestic shorthaired cat (domestic shorthair),is a term used to describe a shorthaired cat that does not have a pedigree or belong to a recognized cat breed. The domesticated shorthair should not be counted as an American shorthair. Domesticated shorthaired cats are found in a wide range of colours. They also show a wide range of physical behaviors and, as a result, domesticated shorthairs in different countries look different in body shape and size.

“Dwarf”
This is a domesticated cat breed which has mutated to dwarfism due to a genetics.The Munchkin is the founding breed of the chondrodysplastic cat.

“Farm”
Farm cats are also called barn cats, these cats are kept primarily for catching smaller vermin found on farms and ranches. otherwise the vermin would eat and/or contaminate the farmer’s crops. They are often semi-wild, and caution should be used around them.

“Feral”
This cat is unowned and untamed, it is not domesticated. Feral cats may be born in the wild and never socialized. They should not be confused with the wildcat which are not descended from domestic cats.

“Maltese”
This is a name that is often given to any cat, whose fur is either completely, or primarily, gray or blue,and not pedigree. Many with such colouration inhabit the island of Malta, which may have given rise to the name.

“Moggy”
This is a British term for a domestic cat, it is also used to call a mongrel or mixed-breed cat. Because of this mixed ancestry and free-breeding, a moggy can either be very healthy, or, sickly.

“Odd-eyed”
This is a cat with one blue eye and one green eye or yellow or brown eye. It is a cat form of complete heterochromia. This is a condition that occurs in some other animals also. The condition most often affects white colored cats.

“Polydactyl”
A cat with a congenital physical deformity,it may have more than the usual number of toes on one or all of its paws. this is due to a genetic mutation. In animals including humans, polydactyly is the anatomical abnormality of having more than the usual number of toes or fingers.

“Smoke”
Is the name given to the cat colour in which the bottom eighth of each hair is white or creamy-white, with the rest of the hair being a solid colour. Smokes will look solid coloured until they move, then the white undercoat becomes visible. It is mostly found in pedigreed cats.

“Squitten”
This is a word derived from the words squirrel and kitten, it is a term used to describe a cat with unusually short forelegs or unusually long hindlegs that resembles a squirrel. Sometimes the term kangaroo cat is used; this derives from a 1953 specimen known as the Stalingrad Kangaroo Cat.

“Tabby”
This is a cat with a distinctive coat that features dots,stripes or swirling patterns. Tabbies are not a breed of cat, in fact, the tabby pattern is a naturally occurring feature that may be the original colouration of the domestic cat’s ancestors. Tabby colour is found in many breeds of cat, as well as among the general ‘moggy’. The tabby usually has an “M” mark on its forehead.The word comes from French ‘tabis’ and in medieval Latin ‘attabi’. The initial origin of the word seems to be from Baghdad where a type of striped silk was made that was later used to describe cats.

“Tortoiseshell”
This beauty has a coat coloring with patches of black,red and chocolate, or cinnamon. They are sometimes called ‘torties’.The term “tortoiseshell” is typically reserved for cats with coats that have relatively few or no white markings. Those that are largely white with red and black patches are described as tortoiseshell-and-white or calico.

“Black”
It is called a felid the fur is uniformly all black.It is not a particular breed of cat and may be mixed. The all-black pigmentation is equal in both male and female cats. The black color is of benefit to a cat hunting at night. They can camouflage in the darkness. In Western history, black cats have often been looked upon as a symbol of evil omens: in other cultures they are considered to be good omens. cat-categories continued.

Of all the carnivores, cats are the most highly adapted for hunting and devouring their prey. All cats have short muzzles,rounded heads, large eyes, and sensitive whiskers. Their ears are erect and pointed. They have short jaws and long canine teeth. Cats have five toes on the front feet and four on the rear feet. The ends of the toes bear sharp, strong, curved claws. The claws are completely retractile, being withdrawn into protective sheaths when not in use.