HowToDoThings.com Choosing a Cat & Cat Supplies

How To Choose an Earth-Friendly Pet Toy

Pam Wheelock — Mon, 03 Mar 2008 19:55:02 -0600

Loving our pets and caring about the earth go hand in hand. Luckily, pet-friendly toys are often earth-friendly. A toy containing environmentally friendly materials, made by a company dedicated to "greening" its production, is not a guarantee a pet toy will be healthy, but it is a step in the right direction. Here are 7 tips on choosing an earth-friendly and pet-safe toy.

How To Decide What Pet Is Right For You

JessRan — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 12:32:29 -0600

Selecting a new pet is a big decision for anyone. Remember anything you do will now impact the
life of another creature. Below are some things to think about before you decide to bring home any animal.

How To Give a Pet as a Gift

JessRan — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 11:24:10 -0600

Many people purchase pets as gifts with good intentions only to discover their new pet takes more time and care than anticipated or the recipient isn’t as thrilled as they’d hoped. Caged animals need daily handling to become loving members of the family. Puppies and kittens left in unfamiliar surroundings may get into more trouble or discover possible dangers in the home.

How To Grow Catnip

JessRan — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 11:13:51 -0600

Native to North America, this perennial can grow up to four feet high. The light green foliage is covered in a velvety down and produces small white or lavender flowers. Nepeta cataria is a member of the mint family and produces a strong lemony-mint fragrance found attractive to cats, bees, butterflies and some birds. Leaves can be dried for tea and cat use.

Garden planning. Catnip will grow in full sun or partial shade. The plants prefer an average, well-drained soil compared to the rich soil needed for some herbs. Catnip is a prolific grower and will often overpopulate small gardens. If this will be an issue, remember to put catnip in an area it will not overcrowd other plants. You can also place a separate barrier around your catnip crop.

How To Make a Sisal Rope Cat Scratching Post

flerper — Mon, 30 Jul 2007 07:32:06 -0500

First of all, you need to know that I have produced sisal rope scratching posts for over 20 years - thousands of them. This is to establish the fact that I had better know by now the in's and out's of this! One thing I've learned is that people will go to a store displaying one of my works, and will conclude that they could make one of these things themselves, using readily available materials. In their mind (and I guess in yours, too!), it's just a matter of getting a post, some rug & some rope, a flat panel for the base, and VOILA! A sisal scratcher is born. I regard you cat lovers to be handy, resourceful, and patient. You CAN do this. Just know that you will invest several hours of your valuable time and the money for the materials you don't have lying around the house. So take a moment and read a catman's advice to the do-it-yourself'er, and save yourself a little time and aggravation.

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How To Choose Cat Food

Staff468 — Fri, 16 Mar 2007 18:13:00 -0500

When you look into the eyes of your beloved cat, do you see the soul of a voracious, meat-eating hunter? You probably see a cute, fuzzy, lovable attention-glutton! But rest assured, your feline is a carnivore, wired to hunt and eat animals. Cats require meat in order to be healthy, and yet so many available cat foods emphasize grains and veggies. No wonder there's a cat obesity problem in our country, and that so many cats suffer digestive ailments.

How To Determine the Status of a Stray Cat

Staff468 — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 19:48:00 -0600

Stray cats are very common, and for a compassionate observer they pose a unique challenge. The challenge we often face as compassionate observers is figuring out whether the stray cat has merely wandered further than normal from a loving home, is truly lost, has been abandoned or is not really stray, but rather feral (never having been a pet). Before you take in a stray cat as your own, you must figure out the status of the stray cat. Here are some tips.

How To Adopt a Stray Cat

Staff468 — Fri, 02 Feb 2007 19:32:00 -0600

Ask many Americans how they found their beloved pet cat, and often you'll hear the familiar reply - "Our cat found us!" By some accounts, nearly half of all cat owners have gained their feline family members in this very way. Taking in a stray cat is a gesture of compassion that rewards you with a pet's loving devotion. Additionally, there is no more humane way for us to reduce the feral cat population; many stray cats haven't been spayed or neutered. Before adopting a stray cat, however, you should determine the status of the stray to make sure you aren't inadvertently adopting a pet who already has a family.

How To Buy Cat Toys

Theresa157 — Mon, 22 May 2006 07:45:00 -0500

Despite their reputation as lazy animals, cats need playtime. It's hard-wired into their basic instincts. Experts have observed that wild cats often play with their food (think small rodents and birds) before consuming it. Cats need things to pounce on, bat and bounce around to get their exercise and stay healthy. Playing helps with their mental and physical development, and allows them to bond with other cats in your household. In addition, if you have an indoor cat, playing will relieve boredom and stress.

Basic cat toys for cats include things that are small, easily moveable, and often make a jingling or shaking sound. You can buy cat toys just about everywhere including pet stores, discount department stores like Target and Wal-Mart, grocery stores, pharmacies such as Longs and Walgreen's, and possibly your vet's office.

The following are some tips for how to buy cat toys.

How To Build Cat Trees

Carrie122 — Sat, 06 May 2006 16:09:00 -0500

Cat trees are free-standing structures built specifically to satisfy a cat's desire to climb, scratch, claw, play and rest. Having a cat tree in your home gives your cats a place just for them, where they can use their claws and scratch to their hearts' content, saving your furniture from certain doom. Cat trees are pretty expensive to buy at pet stores or online, but with a bit of elbow grease and some easily found materials, you can build your cats a great structure that they'll love to use.

Designs

Before you begin building your cat tree, you'll have to choose a design. Hardware and pet stores sell planning sheets and books to use, or you can search online for pictures and plans.