[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by SmartCat

The balcony cats

I don't like cats.

But if they were to be as smart as yours and as tidy and disciplined too, there's no harm in trying to befriend an odd example or two.

However, there's also the danger of these intelligent creatures reflecting their master's traits; in which case my cats too will run the danger of being as dumb and potatoish as I am!

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by dailydriver

But if they were to be as smart as yours and as tidy and disciplined too, there's no harm in trying to befriend an odd example or two.

Tidyness of cats is legendary. Outdoor cats don't need litter box at all. Independent houses usually have a small garden area - so a kitten/cat will instinctively dig a small hole, do its business and cover it up with mud.



But yes, outdoor cats do come home bearing "gifts". But when you reprimand them a couple of times, they won't do that anymore. Anyway, we let the cats inside the house only under supervision. This one is bringing home food but not to the balcony. That's because after dark, the kittens spend most of their time running around on all that open space above the garage.

Regarding smartness/intelligence of cats, they are 'different' from dogs. For eg, if she wants to apologize for its behavior, it is so subtle, that you might miss it. Cats though are incredible problem solvers:

- She has figured out all sorts of ways to get inside the house, even if it via an open window on the first floor.
- Balcony has a magetic mosquito door. But she knows the exact point where she has to put her paw/claw and use just enough leverage to click open the magnetic door.
- To get to this balcony, it scales a 3 feet high ledge to get inside the metal grille. This vertical jump is impossible for the kittens. But for the kittens, she has taught them an alternate simpler path into the balcony. Something that even I had missed.

there's also the danger of these intelligent creatures reflecting their master's traits

By the way, the joke about cats being the master has some truth to it, especially if it is an adult. It actually starts with befriending process. It "rewards" you with its actions, step by step and slowly, after every encounter. The burly orange male cat I post about has a mind of his own.

So for a dog person, a cat's independent behavior might seem a bit odd.

[amol4184]

Originally Posted by SmartCat

But yes, outdoor cats do come home bearing "gifts". But when you reprimand them a couple of times, they won't do that anymore.

A stray cat we befriended started bringing these gifts which we would often find right in front the door or by the window. My mom immediately understood what is happening and with a disdain said your cats are doing it

One fine day as I was looking for the cat, she ran from under the car and jumped on a mango tree in the compound. Few seconds later she brought a dead garden lizard and dropped in front me. She had killed it earlier and hidden it in the tree - I think that was the most dog like thing/affectionate action that stray cat ever did and I was moved by her love.

After that for almost 2 years she would keep bringing gifts (mostly lizards but also rats and occasionally even pigeons) at least once a month. It stopped only when she vanished altogether. Not gonna lie, I missed her doing that despite the cleanup we had to later.

[spiritofmars]

Originally Posted by SmartCat

Meanwhile, I found a kitten food brand (made by Drools) that has 34% protein. Priced well too (Rs. 430 for 2.4 kgs)

Am in the same boat. I generally serve the one I have with a mix of 50% cat food and 50% crushed Parle G biscuits, and add a little water to the mix as wet food is more suitable for cats. I've heard they can have health problems from having only dry food as this is not their natural diet, but this is hearsay and I could be completely mistaken.

[Venkatesh.C]

As a dog person, I love watching cats in YouTube videos where the cats slap the living daylights out of dogs and snakes ! Their reflexes are out of this world!

There are enough cats around my house and they all look at me like they tolerate my existence for peace's sake and as if a slight hint of a wrong move will get me the same tight slap!

[Fuldagap]

Originally Posted by Venkatesh.C

As a dog person, I love watching cats in YouTube videos where the cats slap the living daylights out of dogs and snakes ! Their reflexes are out of this world!

There are enough cats around my house and they all look at me like they tolerate my existence for peace's sake and as if a slight hint of a wrong move will get me the same tight slap!

Whenever I see a cat slap a dog, I feel how humble the dog is not reciprocating it in the same manner. Not that dogs are afraid of cats. They hold themselves back so as not to harm the smaller animal. Like superman does with batman. Dogs are humbler, kinder and more understanding.

Cats are simply crazy! Their reflexes are indeed next level. Slapping even cobras and crocodiles. If, however, a cat were to do this with my dog even accidently, the cat would be no more in a matter of mere seconds. My dog plays with foxes, or so it seems. Foxes are approx half the size of my dog but yet manage to keep my dog panting while chasing each other, they are too witty for my dog.

Youtube dogs are too polite, trained and civilised. I wish my dog was too.

[Venkatesh.C]

Dogs and Cats am sure were human husbands and wives in their previous births.. just continuing their ususal business in this life and the cats' nine more.

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by SmartCat

Meanwhile, I found a kitten food brand (made by Drools) that has 34% protein.

I wouldn't place too much importance on that. Whiskas has 30% protein and vets do not recommend it at all. The quality of protein and the amount of grains also matters.

I feed N&D Farmina for my indoor cats (for comparison iirc it has close to 60% protein; more actually) and 0% grains. With the random fresh meat when possible. But for street cats, I guess Drools or Whiskas should be okay.

[coolmel]

Hi @SmartCat : PLS do NOT feed them Drools/Purepet/Meo. I am a community animal care taker & these foods are known to cause kidney stones/uti issues. If you are on a budget pick Apro otherwise choose Whiskas. Much safer and works out well in the long term. I mix 2kg Royal Canin Kitten/Fit 32 with a 20kg Whiskas and feed all my kitties. They love it. Loved your setup btw! Thank you for that. PLS get the kittens dewormed and vaccinated soonest before they turn 6 months. Both shots of Tricat will go a long way in preventing issues later on. Been on the other side of the fence and can't recommend it enough.

For all cat parents here: Please use Prakrutik OR Beco Biodegradable garbage bags to dispose off waste litter. Unless you plan to compost it yourself, then use compostable bags, but otherwise the bio ones are just perfect. Been extensively testing the same for quite some time now. As cool as our felines are, cat poop contains the parasite T.Gondii. I have tested Presto, Eezee, Shalimar variants but these two come out trumps. Prakrutik has gone a mile ahead and have gotten ASTM certification as well. The Beco one has better perforation and cuts out easily. The amazing team at www.prakrutik.in have also shown test results. Having personally spoken to them & their work speaks for themselves. You can buy directly from them OR Amazon it.

Paw fives yall!

[SmartCat]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

I wouldn't place too much importance on that. Whiskas has 30% protein and vets do not recommend it at all. The quality of protein and the amount of grains also matters.

Guess so. Also perhaps some of that protein is actually coming from grains (corn, soya etc), rather than meat

But for street cats, I guess Drools or Whiskas should be okay.

Street cats supplement cat food with gourmet meals (rodents)

Originally Posted by coolmel

Hi @SmartCat : PLS do NOT feed them Drools/Purepet/Meo. I am a community animal care taker & these foods are known to cause kidney stones/uti issues. If you are on a budget pick Apro otherwise choose Whiskas.

wow, that's sad. I'm surprised we don't have a pet food safety authority in India (like FSSAI for human food).

Can you check KITEKAT brand I posted earlier? It is made by the maker of Whiskas (Mars International).

[coolmel]

Originally Posted by SmartCat

Guess so. Also perhaps some of that protein is actually coming from grains (corn, soya etc), rather than meat



Street cats supplement cat food with gourmet meals (rodents)



wow, that's sad. I'm surprised we don't have a pet food safety authority in India (like FSSAI for human food).

Can you check KITEKAT brand I posted earlier? It is made by the maker of Whiskas (Mars International).

We don't have which is why the entire pet food industry is non-regulated and is replete with new brands trying to make anything and everything. There is something named Good Dog and Good Cat which has now come up. I remember sampling the same and all the kids looked at me and said: Dad! What on earth is this??!! Look at the treats market, its HUGE & full of unnecessary garbage really. I have not tried Kitekat yet. I have used Smartheart Chicken Liver, Pedigree and Chappi with good effect. Yes its dog food but my streeties eat it lovingly! Also, be careful of encountering the infamous blue bug in food imported from Thailand. Its actually become quite notorious. Also check out Smartheart Gold. I have tried sample packs and its turned out great. I make a bhel puri by adding one wet pouch either Whiskas or Belotta to one big bowl of Whiskas tuna. They demolish it! Cats do get bored of the same flavour so it makes sense to give them two. Also, try giving real food as much possible. Nothing beats the same.

[pyrodrive]

Dry cat food has a lot of disadvantages if fed exclusively. Starting from runny stools, obesity to UTI, kidney stones etc.
But no harm in supplementing a mix diet with some dry/ wet food
My cats are primarily fed raw, entire chicken including the head and legs. the big males chew through the leg bones easily while the females take longer. This main meal is at night, apart from that they get a mix of dry kibble mixed with whiskas tuna pouches as a snack in the morning.. and by the way I have 17 cats, so please don't ask me about the costs ot feeding raw

Pics for reference. None are fat/ obese

[amol4184]

Since we are talking food, here's a curious observation I made w.r.t. my two pet cats (indoor). They don't react to meat smells whenever I cook chicken, mutton or fish at home which is regular affair in our household. They come and sniff and walk away without showing any interest. As such I never fed them any meat that we were having and stuck to their can food (which is chicken, salmon, turkey anyway).

Exactly opposite to this, the stray cats that we used to feed in India would go CRAZY if we had fish/mutton at home and would sit outside kitchen window expecting to be fed some meat goodies. A particularly feisty male cat would even demand vocally sitting by the door.

Now back to my pet cats. Last week we got Costco Rotisserie Chicken and everything changed.

For the very first time, my cats reacted to the chicken smell. One of them even meowed demanding to be fed, something he never does. The most "aggressive" demand by him is putting his paw on my legs. Seeing their new found interest in chicken, I pulled some meat without the outer layer and both ate it up immediately. I am not sure what's with the Rotisserie chicken but these two seem to enjoy it a lot!

[ninjatalli]

Originally Posted by amol4184

I am not sure what's with the Rotisserie chicken but these two seem to enjoy it a lot!

Cats remember the food they got access to as kittens. One of the cats I have had, loved (still loves) fresh green peas and corn. One of the buggers I have now loves fish, the other one goes crazy when chicken is in the house (both behave okayish with the other meat). Each of them had had access to those particular food(s) as kittens. The cats I had in the US never had much of a raw / cooked meat fetish as they never got any during their early days.

[amol4184]

Originally Posted by ninjatalli

Cats remember the food they got access to as kittens. One of the cats I have had, loved (still loves) fresh green peas and corn.

Ahh, that makes sense. The foster parent / shelter must have given shreds of Rotisserie as occasional treats. I gave them the pieces with least seasoning and salt (closest to bone) but little worried about giving more. It tastes so good, so I am guessing there are ingredients that are not good for cats.

As for vegetables, my cats like spinach and fenugreek! Its funny watching them chew spinach stems sideways like some old guy chewing on neem sticks.