HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: mverman@msus1.msus.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Nutty behavior in the litterbox!
Date: 28 Aug 92 02:57:18 -0600
Organization: Minnesota State University System

It is often difficult to redirect the cat to scratch somewhere else, 
especially if you expect him to do that in your absence.  One option is to get
a scatter rug -- one of those hardy bound remnants/samples -- to tack
over his preferred scratching area.  It can be cleaned or replaced
as needed, and may save you your damage deposit.

Some fastidious cats with good aim actually deposit their droppings into 
the depressions that they initially dig into the litter.  This is likely the
purpose of such preliminary digging for all cats.  Some are more successful
than others.

... Shu

mverman@msus1.bitnet

In article <1992Aug25.130711.3413@wam.umd.edu>, dovebar@wam.umd.edu (MDB) writes:
> Well, not *that* nutty.  As a new cat owner I often find myself 
> puzzling over the behavior of our very large and very mellow
> shorthair mutt.  I have a couple of questions that I hope some
> more experienced folks can answer:
> 
> 1)  When he uses his litterbox, he loves to dig both before and after
> he...ummm...uses it.  Afterwards, he's trying to bury whatever he's
> left, but beforehand, what is he trying to do?  Also, we had to get
> him a very large box (the kind with the filterizining cover) because
> he's roughly the size of a miniature horse (well, not quite *that* large).
> Even the large size plastic pan liners I've tried don't do the job - that
> is, they are a bit too small, and he's able to easily dislodge it 
> while he's kicking stuff around.  What results is litter and all
> manner of other things sliding between the liner and the box.
> Should I just use a huge lawn 'n leaf bag or something?
> 
> 2) He loves to stretch on the carpet in our apartment, which of
> course results in little ripping sounds.  There isn't necessarily
> any obvious damage, but he has ripped up one small section of
> carpet directly outside the bedroom door (generally when he's
> trying to wake me up for feeding time).  Would getting him
> a scratching post really help, or will he ignore it?  
> 
> I apologize if these questions have been addressed here many
> times before, but I am new to the group...
> 
> Thanks for any help!!!
>
From: martha@gvlf7-o.gvl.unisys.com (Martha Sherman)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Why Do Cats Sit on Paper?
Date: 4 Sep 92 12:29:27 GMT
Organization: Paramax Systems, Great Valley Labs, Paoli, Pa

In article <1992Sep3.171847.6850@gateway.novell.com> lyndap@Novell.COM (Lynda Peterson) writes:
In article <AedVOOS00WBO01a=tW@andrew.cmu.edu> cb30+@andrew.cmu.edu (Carol  
A. Buckner) writes:
>On 02-Sep-92 in Why Do Cats Sit on Paper?    
>user Karen Schneider@panix.co writes:
>This has probably been addressed before, but why is it that
>cats will zero in on the teensiest piece of paper and plop themselves
>down on top of it?  Not that I'm complaining--it's just that after
>twelves years with His Royal Highness I'd like an answer, and he's
>not forthcoming...
>

To give us humans something to ponder about in rec.pets.cats!   ;-)



Martha H. Sherman
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
I speak only for myself, and sometimes I even wonder about that...
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: alclark@RWASIC27.AUD.ALCATEL.COM (Amy L Clark)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: strange cat behavior
Date: 3 Sep 92 18:26:55 GMT

My siamese named Donchu behaves in a bizarre fashion sometimes.
When he is nervous, lonely, or suffering from a lack of attention
he sucks on the end of his tail as a baby would suck on a pacifier.
If he ever escaped outside and was lost, I could describe him as
the "siamese with the pointy tail" as he has sucked on his tail
for so long it is permanently pointed on the end.  It is also
slightly discolored at the end (did he suck the color out or
does he just have a particularly noxious cat slobber).  Anybody
else have a cat with this habit?  He doesn't do it when other
people are around-- only when I'm around or he and Baggy are
waiting for me to come home.

Amy Clark
(who found out yesterday that Baggy will play with my boyfriend
 by chasing my boyfriend up and down the hall)
From: crystal@glia.biostr.washington.edu (Crystal)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Sable Burmese question
Date: 30 Aug 92 20:09:42 GMT
Organization: University of Washington

In <cosulliv.714414717@sfu.ca> cosulliv@fraser.sfu.ca (Christina Marie O'Sullivan) writes:

>My eight year old Sable Burmese Bali is going grey!  His fur is now
>specked with flecks of grey at the tips!  Is this normal for Sable
>Burmese, or is he so convinced he's human that he ages like one?

>Another question: he has a "necklace" of markings, light brown 
>"highlights" if you will.  The breeder told us that he was from
>a subdivision of Sable Burmese called "Memchaz."  Is there any
>truth to this?  Is it a penalty in cat showing?

Depends on the association you show him in.  Check a recent copy of the
Breed Standards for your association.  Your breeder, or another in the 
area should have a copy if they are serious about improving the breed and
not just selling kittens for money.

Crystal
  ;>
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Peace Lilly -- poisonous?
Date: 26 Aug 92 21:07:00 -0500
Organization: University of Northern Iowa

In article <1992Aug25.151619.28455@news.cs.indiana.edu>, "angela allen" <angie@moose.cs.indiana.edu> writes:
> cgregory@suna7.cs.uiuc.edu (Christine Gregory) writes:
> I just bought a fairly comprehensive houseplant book, to go with the
> first-aid-for-pets book that I bought for the poison-plants list. Both
> books list plants by their scientific names --- very important for
> accuracy. If anyone needs help identifying their houseplants to check
> against a list, I'll see what I can find for you in the book. Just
> can't wait to get those ASCII representations of leaf shapes!

                  probably foolhardy ;-)
Or I'll make the /offer of id'ing houseplants if you'll send me at least
two leaves attached to a piece of stem, and a flower.  Put these
in the phone book for a couple of days until they are dry, scotch
tape the dried plant parts to a piece of heavy cardboard, like the
back of a tablet, and mail them to me.  If your plant isn't currently
flowering, please include a description of the flowers, and when it
usually blooms.  If it's never flowered, tell me that too.

You can mail the specimens to me at:

Kay Klier
Director of the Herbarium
Biology Dept
University of Northern Iowa
Cedar Falls, IA 50614-0421.

Please include an email address so I can let you know what it is!
(And please, warn me before you send me 100 different plants!)

Kay
Organization: Penn State University
Date: Thu, 27 Aug 1992 11:22:10 EDT
From: <KAJ2@psuvm.psu.edu>
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: kitties have to be siblings?

Hi it's my first post......
My husband and I are looking to get two kitties.  They'll be our firsts.  My qu
estion is this...we want two kitties to keep each other company and I've read
that they should be the same gender, but do they also have to be siblings?

The animal shelters in our area don't have any siblings, and circumstances
dictate that we get them soon so I don't know as I want to wait until a pair of
kitties become available.  Help?  Anyone have any experience with this?

Thanks, Karen.
Newsgroups: rec.pets,alt.best.of.internet
From: megm@sco.COM (Meg McRoberts)
Subject: stupid warnings (was Re: Jonny Cat Litter / Ferrets)
Organization: The Santa Cruz Operation, Inc.
Date: Wed, 26 Aug 1992 06:47:18 GMT


have you ever noticed that those cardboard sun shades
you put in your windshield include a warning not to
drive with the shield in place?
From: dhoward@doffice.Corp.Sun.COM (Dave Howard)
Newsgroups: rec.pets
Subject: Boarding Dogs
Date: 31 Aug 1992 21:00:03 GMT
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Inc.
Distribution: world
Reply-To: dhoward@doffice.Corp.Sun.COM
NNTP-Posting-Host: doffice.corp.sun.com


Does anyone have a suggestion/recommendation for boarding
a dog for 5 days in the bay area?  I have a Border Collie 
who requires a lot of running space and fresh air.  
I am looking in the Palo Alto/Mt View area.


Thanks for your help.

-Dave Howard





Newsgroups: rec.pets
From: beezer@cc.utah.edu (BEEZER)
Subject: [QUESTION]:  FEEDING ADULT 'PREYING MANTIS'
News-Software: VAX/VMS VNEWS 1.4-b1  
Organization: Salt Lick, UT
Date:  2 Sep 1992 12:27 MST  

_____________________________________________________________________

My school days had me on occassion, feeding the classroom's Preying
Mantis.  Well, just found an adult one on the dashboard of my car...
But I don't recall what/how to feed it.

Look forward to some info.

[ I'll be letting it go in 24 hours from this post if no response.]


Most appreciated,

-andy
_____________________________________________________________________
Newsgroups: rec.pets
From: shodapp@eos.ncsu.edu (SUSAN  HODAPP)
Subject: Re: ferret bitting
Originator: shodapp@c50024-349rd.ie.ncsu.edu
Reply-To: shodapp@eos.ncsu.edu (SUSAN  HODAPP)
Organization: North Carolina State University, Project Eos
Distribution: usa
Date: Tue, 1 Sep 1992 02:07:03 GMT


|> From: bkowal@aludra.usc.edu (Brian A. Kowal)|> 

 
|> Any first-timer advice would be great.  I want to be kind to the
|> little guy, but the bitting could become dangerous... especially if
|> someone else is holding him.  I really doubt that lightly bopping him
|> on the nose is going to stop it.  Of course, it might be his age.
|> 

If you are worried about someone dropping him, I would not worry so much.  
I was very worried about my ferret, Beepers, but she has proved me wrong
that she can take a nasty fall.  I live on the third floor of a house, and 
have the stairs to my room block off.  But, the stairs have railings that
a little ferret can get through.  Well, she got courageous and decided to 
fly out of the railings and flew down the other stairs and landed on the 
first floor.  She bounced once, looked at me watching t.v., shook her head
and bounced over to me in the typical "nothing to it" ferret fashion.  I was
really worried, and took her to a vet student nearby who checked her out and
o.k.ed her fitness.  That was over a week ago and she is still fine.  
Now the stairs are blocked off, but she still takes a lot more than you think
that she can.  

Susan and the infamous flying ferret Beepers.
Newsgroups: rec.pets
From: RS_NUSSLEBR@APPSTATE.EDU (*Bob Nussle)
Subject: Baby Bunny problems
Organization: APPALACHIAN STATE UNIVERSITY
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1992 14:24:29 GMT
X-News-Reader: VMS NEWS 1.23

Hello out there.  The header pretty much says it all -- I've got some babies
in trouble.  They are about two and a half weeks old (a couple of days makes
a big difference right now), and the doe has rejected the entire litter.  This
happened yesterday, and while they are all eating and drinking and such on
their own, I need some help on exactly what to be feeding them -- I've never
had to deal with this problem before.

The doe was throwing her feed out all the time for a while, both before and
after the babies were born, and as a result lost a lot of weight.  This is 
not her first litter, but was not intended to happen (she was scheduled to be
spayed, but nature, in the form of a faulty door latch intervened one
afternoon....  anyway, now the doe is pretty much refusing to eat at all.  I've
offered her rabbit pellets, which she doesn't seem to touch.  She's got whole
wheat bread, which she nibbles and sits on.  She's had calf manna supplement
since the breeding, and that's all she eats consistently.  She's been offered
greens of all variety, Grape Nuts cereal, raisins, and even milk -- she doesn't
seem interested in any of it.  Unfortunately, the local vets don't have much in
the way of helpful suggestions to make, and I'm running out of ideas at this
point.  The problem shouldn't be hairballs -- she's had papaya tablets every
day
of her life, anywhere from two to six, depending on whether or not she's
molting, and that's the only other thing besides calf manna she's interested
in.  

Mainly, though -- I'm concerned about the litter, and need suggestions on what
to feed them and such.  Right now, they are getting various overly healthy,
non-sugared breakfast cereal, bread, and ground up pellets.  Hay they aren't
trying to eat -- these babies are tiny.  I have also offered them condensed
milk mixed with evaporated milk -- sugar for quick energy, especially when I
realized that they were not being fed by the doe.  They like it, but it's a
terrible mess.  They do seem to be able to urinate and such on their own, but
a wash cloth and some patience don't hurt the process...

If anyone out there can offer any ideas, I'm open to almost anything.  Specific
questions I don't have -- I don't know enough about hand-raising baby bunnies
to know what to ask.  Any advice will be appreciated. And please, no flames
about the awfullness of letting rabbits breed -- the problem now is saving the
rabbits I have, after which I will consider the notion of how to find homes
for them when they've managed to survive the troubles they have now.

Thanks,

Kim
(rs_nusslebr@alf.appstate.edu)
From: ar12@quads.uchicago.edu (Richard Nixon)
Newsgroups: rec.pets
Subject: Ferrets & 'Putty 'Tats
Date: 28 Aug 92 15:46:49 GMT
Article-I.D.: midway.1992Aug28.154649.24678
Reply-To: ar12@midway.uchicago.edu
Organization: University of Chicago Computing Organizations

Well, my new room-mate moved in this week with a 1yr old cat, Monk. These
past couple days we've been trying to acquaint Monk with my 1 1/2 yr old
male ferret, Gizmo. First introduction went something like this:
    Gizmo: Makes a bee line for Monk
    Monk: Runs like hell and seeks shelter on the window ledge out of
          ferret reach.
 
the second attempt went as follows:
 
    Gizmo: oblivious to Monk, more interested in newly arrived packages.
    Monk: Observes crazy ferret from a respectful distance.
    Gizmo: Bored of packages, rediscovers Monk, trots over for a sniff
    Monk: backs off
    Gizmo: not to be deterred, persists in an aggresively curious fashion
    Monk: evidently unsure of Gizmo's intentions, lifts a paw, and swats
          Gizmo on the head
    Gizmo: no pain, probably thinking "HE WANTS TO PLAY!", and begins
           "The Ferret Dance"- hopping around, feining attacks at Monk,
           mouth open and gets distracted as he bounces right into a
           wall whereupon he spins around in the ferret classic- "Ok,
           who's responsible?" 
    Monk: Observing once again, but now with a "get off the drugs, ferret"
          expression.
 
The rest of the encounter went wuch the same. Their interaction consists
of Monk swatting Gizmo, Gizmo "attacking" Monk, and so on. What concerns
me is that Monk is not only about 3x Gizmo's size, but also is not de-clawed
and should she really get irritated by my oblivious ferret (who by the way
never knows where the fun stops) there's little doubt that she'd obliterate him.They've only had a about four supervised encounters so far so it's a bit early
to expect them to be acquainted. How long should it take? Also, note that
Monk's swatting Gizmo doesn't seem to be a form of play, but rather
a 'defensive' reaction against an overly aggresively curious ferret who's
intentions are being misinterpreted.    
    Anyway, if anyone out there has experience with ferret-cat introductions,
please let me know. Also of pertinence is the fact that neither animal has
any experience with anything other than humans.
Thanks,
Andre
From: Jim_Sollows@mindlink.bc.ca (Jim Sollows)
Newsgroups: rec.pets
Subject: Re: Rabbit toenail clipping?
Date: 3 Sep 92 01:13:22 GMT
Organization: MIND LINK! - British Columbia, Canada
Distribution: world

Our bunny gets her nails clipped regularly. It's a easy task...although she
dosn't particularly enjoy it. We use a common dog nail trimmer and clip the end
off the nail. Remember don't cut too close to the Quick (the thin blood vessel
visible in the nail) or your bunny may have reason to not like nail trimming.
If you aren't comfortable with the procedure get your vet to show you how.

Newsgroups: rec.pets
From: exuptr@exu.ericsson.se (Patrick I Taylor)
Newsgroups: rec.pets
Subject: Re: Jonny Cat Litter / Ferrets
Date: 25 Aug 92 13:52:21 GMT
Organization: Ericsson Network Systems, Inc.

In article <1992Aug24.165624.14900@BofA.com> dan@BofA.com (Dan Brockman) writes:
		
>In article <oqnrak8@fido.asd.sgi.com> jaques@drbob.corp.sgi.com writes:
>>Hardware Dos and Don'ts
>>...
>>Do not...
>>o dangle the mouse by its cable or throw mouse at co-workers.

If I were a mouse, I wouldn't want to be dangled by my cable either.

 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
    "This must be Thursday.  I never could get the hang of Thursdays"
                                                       - D Adams
  - Patrick Taylor
    Ericsson Network Systems
    exuptr@exu.ericsson.se                       "Don't let the .se fool you"
    alternately, exuptr@ZGNews.Lonestar.Org
Newsgroups: rec.pets
From: mstrange@alfred.carleton.ca (N E N Strangelove)
Subject: Rabbits and eye sight
Organization: Carleton University
Date: Fri, 4 Sep 1992 18:07:28 GMT

I thought I'd turn to my rec.pets friends for yet more rabbit
advice... 

I've often wonder how far\near rabbits can see. I know it seems that
Barley has very poor eyesight, only seeing things that are very close
[approx. 1' away] to her. Are all rabbits the same? Or is Barley just
different?

Cheers,

Natalie

Newsgroups: rec.pets
From: jpenovic@encore.com (Jan Penovich)
Subject: Bunny question update/thanks
Reply-To: jpenovic@encore.com
Organization: Encore Computer Corp., Fort Lauderdale FL
Date: Wed, 2 Sep 1992 12:18:52 GMT

I received many replies to my question about my bunny leaving
piles of fecal matter all over.  Because of the hurrican, we
were without power for several days after the storm.  When the
computers were finally back up, there were just too many
replies for me to individually answer.  I just want to thank
everyone for the information/thoughts you sent me.

Now for the update.  The bun has free access to the enclosed
patio area.  His cage is always left open.  Before the storm,
I brought him and his cage inside, and closed him up in it.
(Didn't want a bunny running loose in case windows/walls came
crashing in.)  After the storm passed and we had cleaned up
the patio area, I let him back out. He seemed a little
lethargic and maybe stunned by the couple days of changes in
his life.  I took him to the vet.  She said that he's a little
too fat (he's now on a diet), and she also gave him
antibiotics. He sucks those antibiotics down like they're
dessert. Anyway, a couple of days after starting to take the
antibiotics, he pretty much stopped leaving poops all over and
he started chasing the cat again.

Thanks again.  I knew I could count on the net.

********************************************************************

TTFN,    ___           *   jpenovic@encore.com
      / /   /  /\   /  *   jpenovic@gould.UUCP
     / /___/  /  \ /   *   {allegra,ucf-cs}!uflorida!gould!jpenovich
/___/ /   /  /    /    *   {uunet,sun,pur-ee}!gould!jpenovich
                       *   Encore Computer Corp., Ft. Lauderdale, FL
*********************************************************************

Newsgroups: rec.pets
From: shodapp@eos.ncsu.edu (SUSAN  HODAPP)
Subject: Biting ferret
Originator: shodapp@c00536-106ps.eos.ncsu.edu
Reply-To: shodapp@eos.ncsu.edu (SUSAN  HODAPP)
Organization: North Carolina State University, Project Eos
Date: Mon, 31 Aug 1992 17:55:17 GMT


I recently had my female ferret, Beepers, fixed (about a month ago).  
Before she was fixed she was not too much of a biter.  Now, though
she is horrendous, attacking everything that moves.  She never used
to bite at my feet, but has done so on numerous occasions.  We do
play quite rough together, and when she nips then, I scold her but
understand.  Now, she will nail me every time that I walk in the 
room.  She will even crawl between the sheets and the mattress to 
try and get my toes when I am sleeping.  I have tried the bitter
apple and scolding her more, but I am really interested in why
she is doing this so often now.  I thought she would calm down once
she was fixed.

I also have another question : Do ferrets fart?  I know this is strange,
but since she has been fixed, she has let out some gastrous odors that
stay on your clothing or where ever she does it.  I did not get her
descented, on the advice of my vet, and am thinking that could also
be the problem.  

Any help on the above problems would be greatly appreciated,
Thanks
Susan and Beepers
From: mikeb@nowaksg.chem.nd.edu (Michael George Buening)
Newsgroups: rec.pets
Subject: Re: Invisible fence info needed
Date: 3 Sep 92 18:35:04 GMT
Distribution: na
Organization: University of Notre Dame

In article <1992Sep2.155843.11413@nynexst.com> gittel@nynexst.com (Kathleen Gittel) writes:
>Yes, it works and it is certainly humane--I use invisible fencing
>for my 4 cats--yes, my cats.!
>
>One thing though--you still need to be home when they are using
>the fence, because it isn't perfect, and a highly motivated
>animal will run through the 12 feet of pulsating electrical shocks
>and suddenly be outside the protective fencing and get an
>electric shock every time it tries to come home.
>
>Also, the shock is hefty and at first your pet is going to be
>fairly horrified--but aversion is quickly learned.
>
>Good luck
>
>
>Kathy 

I was wondering about this myself.  It seems that if a highly motivated
animal can go through the fence and then not get back "in" once that
motivation is gone, then the fence is not that good.  I saw a house
that had two beautiful german shepards and as we walked by they began
to charge my wife and I.  The owner told us not to worry because they
had an invisible fence and when the dogs reached the edge of the yard
they stopped.  However, I wonder what would have happened if the owner
were not there and say I had something the dogs really wanted.  Would
they have stopped.  As long as that answer is only maybe, I'm not
convinced that the invisible fence is a very good option.  Just my
$0.01 worth.  I would like to hear more about these fences.

			--Michael Buening
			internet:mikeb@nowaksg.chem.nd.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets
Subject: Re:Parents,Children,& Pets (was "Re:Life Spans)
From: chelsea@oneb2.almanac.bc.ca
Date: Tue, 01 Sep 92 20:29:35 PDT
Organization: The Old Coot's (Spare) Almanac

hi, I'me 10 years old and I have had a lot pets.(right now I have a
rat and fish.)  In my house we have a rule:you have to take care of your
own pets or you won't have him any more. (sort of.)see,if I'me at a 
friends or don't have any money then sure, she'll feed,water and take
my rat,Mickey,out for exercise.  but if I just keep forgeting or am to
lazy to feed him then my mom will give him away.(only if it goes on for a 
long time.)I think that it is a good rule.-if i can't take care of him i 
can't have him.-

          chelsea

chelsea@oneb2.almanac.bc.ca (Chelsea Graham)
                  The Old Coot's Almanac
               Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada
                    Courtesy the old coot hisse'f!
Newsgroups: rec.pets
From: gittel@nynexst.com (Kathleen Gittel)
Subject: Re: Invisible fence info request results
Keywords: not so expensive
Organization: Nynex Science and Technology
Distribution: na
Date: Thu, 3 Sep 92 17:18:57 GMT

If you install the system yourself, the cost is 700 dollars in the NE
corridor

Kathy


Newsgroups: rec.pets