How to Have a Happy Cat

Cat Social Behaviour 

By nature cats tend to be solitary  creatures unlike dogs. Cats can form  social groups although; one social group  may not get on with another. They are  territorial and are solitary animals,  although, due to their flexible social  organisation can tolerate other cats in  their territory. The more cats that live  with each other though, the more chance fighting between them might occur. 

Important Resources 

Because cats tend to like to be solitary, it  is advisable to treat them individually. This is to help prevent potential  behavioural problems, conflict and  fighting between cats over their most  important resources. Again, remember  that they are territorial and solitary  creatures. Therefore, it is important to  provide each of them with their own most  important resources that they need to  survive and maintain their well being.  These most important resources are food,  water, resting areas and litter trays.  

Litter Trays 

One of these important resources is the  litter tray. If you have more than one cat,  it is helpful to follow this simple rule on  how many litter trays to have in the  house; the rule is one litter tray per cat  plus one. So therefore, if you have three  cats, you will ideally need four litter  trays. This prevents any one cat guarding  the tray or ambushing another cat whilst  using the litter tray. These actions could  result in other cats developing potential  litter box aversions. Behavioural  problems can then manifest themselves in the form of soiling in inappropriate areas  of the house and inappropriate urination  and defecation occurring as a result. 

It is important to provide appropriate sites  for the litter boxes to go. Cats would like  a private and quiet place to go. Thus, it is  not suitable to have a litter tray in a busy  area of the house e.g. kitchen and  bathroom and hallways are unsuitable due  to lack of privacy from both humans and  other cats.  

Possible suggestions of where the litter  tray could go are under the stairs, behind  furniture, in corners of rooms that do not  have high volumes of traffic going  through them. Litter trays should also be  placed AWAY from their food, windows,  washing machines, tumble dryers and cat  flaps or cat entry points where other  potential intruders could ambush them  whilst they are vulnerable and could spy  on them making them uneasy about using  the litter tray.  

Resting Areas 

Your house is your cat’s core territory  where they need to feel safe and secure.  Thus, it is useful to provide them with  places that they are able to hide and seek  refuge if need be. Cats love high areas to  be nosy and to view their territory.  Therefore, providing them with high and  comfy places to sleep and watch the  world go by, will help them feel more  secure.  

Food 

One of the other important resources is  food. Cats prefer to eat away from other  cats, therefore remember not to put their  

food bowls next to each other. Place food  in different areas of the house and have  one more food bowl than necessary.  Apply the same rule to food bowls as  litter trays, to prevent guarding and  possessiveness. 

Scratching Posts 

In order to help cats to perform their  natural behavioural repertoires, it is  necessary for them to scratch. Scratching  is performed for several reasons. It can be  a form of communication to signify the  boundaries of that cat’s territory, to other  cats . Scratching also allows the cat to  perform stretching movements. Plus, it  also allows them to sharpen and condition  their claws.  

A scratching post serves these purposes.  Ensure the scratching post is next to doors  and cat’s entry and exit points. Remember  the scratching post serves as a mark to the  boundary of a cat’s territory. Have as  many scratching posts as possible. If the  cat does not use it at first, use the cat’s  scents to rub onto the scratching post (  use a cloth to rub against the cat’s cheeks  where pheromones are produced. Then  rub that same cloth onto the post). Ensure  the post is longer in length than the cat at  full stretch.  

Feliway Products 

Feliway diffusers are great to use. But what are they? Cats produce pheromones  that make themselves feel more  comfortable and settled in their  surroundings. They rub their faces against  things such as corners of doors, your legs,  and sides of furniture. They are  depositing their pheromones on these objects to make themselves feel more  comfortable with their surroundings. If  these facial deposits are disturbed in any  way they feel they need to either mark  them again or mark them more  prominently, such as spray with urine. 

These pheromone deposits could be  disturbed by new furniture being brought  in or by moving house, strangers or a  new baby being introduced into the  household. All these things are stressors  for your cat, which may make them mark  more prominently as mentioned above.  

Feliway diffusers help by producing a  synthetic version of this pheromone.  When they are plugged in they emit these  pheromones so the cat does not feel the  need to mark his/her territory quite so  prominently. You will not be able to  detect this pheromone or smell it.  

It is important to plug in the diffuser  where your cat resides, sleeps and eats so  that they can receive the best benefits  from it. Also ensure that the diffuser is  situated away from any doors or windows  to ensure it builds up enough pheromones  to work effectively.  

There are other related products in the  feliway range on the market that will help  your cat to settle into new surroundings  e.g. feliway spray which works in the  same fashion. However, it is particularly  useful when a feliway diffuser is not able  to be used especially when transporting  your cat in his/her basket! 

Toys and Play 

Toys and playing with your cat are  another great way of making your cat  more comfortable in their surroundings. It  also provides them with a form of  exercise and provides interaction between  yourself and your cat. 

Hunting toys help your cat to have an  outlet to be able to perform their natural  behaviours. Toys on rods are particularly  good to use as they mimic prey that the  cat can hunt down and catch.  

Puzzle feeders also help to provide a cat  with the ability to perform their natural  instincts of hunting for their food. It also  helps with mental stimulation and to  decrease the possibility of weight gain.  

If you feel that your cat is worried and needs some help, book a session with me now or get in touch.