HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: M22280@mwvm.mitre.org
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Enough!
Date: 15 Sep 92 17:19:01 GMT
Organization: The MITRE Corporation, McLean VA 22102

In article <1992Sep14.200021.5604@evolving.com>
mmf@evolving.com (Mark Frazier) writes:
 
>david@master.uchicago.edu writes:
>:
>: Are you really serious about giving them up because they keep you up ?
>: If they are that disruptive, why not just close the door to you bedroom ?
>:
>
>You've never tried this with a part-siamese cat, have you? Mr. Schnookums
>is part siamese. When we close the door to the bedroom, he "rattles" it.
>He knocks on it. Occasionally, he takes a full run down the hallway and
>body slams it. Sometimes this gets the door open!
>
>MMF
 
Hey, our cat, Dude (yes, Dude's a she!!  We named her before we checked...)
knows how to open doors.  We have those kind with the horizontal handle.
First she starts pawing at the door, sitting up on her hind legs (like when
a dog begs).  Then she jumps up and wraps her paws around the handle and as
gravity is pulling her down, she pulls down on the handle...and opens door.
We have locked the door in the past, but she keeps trying throughout the
night.  Not only do I worry that she may break a paw, but it makes the most
horrible noise, with her body banging on the door.
 
We also had to remove all the door stops from the bottom of the doors.  We
had the spring kind and in the middle of the night she'd stick her paw under
the door and twang the spring.  She loved that sound...would do it all night
long...
 
Ah, enough of my silly cat stories...
 
Linda, sleepy Stephen and Dude the lucky black cat!
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: lmc1@iscp.bellcore.com (Lori McGrail)
Subject: Re: strange cat behavior
Organization: Bellcore
Distribution: usa
Date: Fri, 4 Sep 92 14:12:27 GMT


 In article <9209031826.AA00489@rwasic27.aud.alcatel.com>, alclark@RWASIC27.AUD.ALCATEL.COM (Amy L Clark) writes:
|> 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)


I had a white long-haired kitten (appropriately named Snoball) who
would suck on his tail. Luckily he wasn't easily embarrassed since
he was a beautifule white cat with the tip of his tail brown.
He was famous at the vets for being the cat who sucked his tail.

We tried for a while putting lemon juice on it so that when he sucked
on it he would get a bad taste. Finally, he just grew out of it.

                      Lori, Binky, and Nermal (the cutest kitten)
From: mverman@msus1.msus.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Cat-compatible plants (FAQ?) 
Date: 4 Sep 92 16:16:24 -0600
Organization: Minnesota State University System

In article <1992Sep3.215813.11943@pellns.alleg.edu>, dblackbu@carr11.alleg.edu (David Blackburn) writes:
> Here's one that is not (completely) answered in the rec.pets.cats FAQ #1,  
> recently posted. 
> My two cats, Max & Moki (4-yr-old domestic shorts) early in their  
> kittenhood murdered, by eating and by dumping, all my plants. (spider,  
> Aloe vera, Jade mostly). Now I want to try again with plants as I plan to  
> live with my SO and her large variety of plants. The boys have cuddled  
> their way past her (mild) allergies, but I worry they will wear out their  
> welcome if they kill all the plants. 
>>get to the point<
> So, I want to get some plants that can defend themselves without injuring  
> my babies. The FAQ #1 listed _poisonous_ plants, but what I'm looking for  
> are plants that will DETER any meddling. Thus I'm thinking about really  
> spiny cacti, (cactuses), or better yet some plants that taste bad but  
> aren't dangerous to them. The goal here is to break them of plant-meddling  
> before I  bring lots of new and yummy plants into the house. And, in case  
> I'm not picky enough yet, they should also be hardy enough to stand up to  
> my brown thumb. 
> Any suggestions are very welcome, by post or by e-mail. 
> 
> Dave Blackburn, dblackbu@alleg.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: mmilicevic@spike.psc.scarolina.edu
Subject: THE BEST CAT-BOOK
Reply-To: mmilicevic@spike.psc.scarolina.edu
Organization: Univ of S Carolina College of Sci and Math
Date: Sat, 12 Sep 92 05:22:02 GMT

I read so far the best book about cats by Antira Fraiser "The New Natural
Cat" (Dutton Book). There are some amazing things that I never thought of
like how rediculous are litter scupers and why there is absolutely no need
for them. How to feed cats and what to feed them, and so many other things
that I did not know. I highly recomend this book to any cat owner.

MLADEN
From: cwaite@opal.tufts.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Cat dancers...
Date: 11 Sep 92 14:49:13 GMT
Organization: Tufts University - Medford, MA

Cat dancers are great toys that consist of a long thin flexible wire with very
small rolls of cardboard on the ends.  Dragging one across the floor or
bouncing one in the air is VERY enticing to kitties;  most cats I know just
love them, and they are the most popular toy at the vets where I sometimes
work.  While they work best with people power, some cats will drag them around
or play with them if one end is fastened in a drawer or around a doorknob.
You should be able to find them at pet stores or at some vets.
From: klier@iscsvax.uni.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Are humans able to get fleas? 
Date: 12 Sep 92 09:31:49 -0500
Organization: University of Northern Iowa

In article <1992Sep11.142715.10098@cs.mun.ca>, delphine@garfield.cs.mun.ca (Delphine Au) writes:
> I have a cat, and he has fleas.  I can see them.  They are
> tiny, about the size of a pin head, and they jump very high
> and far.
> 
> I have tried many things to get rid of them, but doesn't work.
> 
> My question is: Would I be able to catch these fleas?
> 

Catch?  As in catching a cold?  Or as in catching flies?  You may be able
to _capture_ some fleas, but if you're asking if you can expect fleas to
take up residence in your hair, the answer is no.  Fleas spend very
little time on the host animal (your cat), and will aggressively bite 
another species (you) only if they are starving.  However, your carpets
and furniture are probably loaded with fleas by now, and you'll need to
control them.  Pick up the flea and tick FAQ from news.answers.

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI
From: feldman@flash.crd.ge.com (Sandra F Feldman)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: cat tricks
Date: 10 Sep 92 16:34:20 GMT
Organization: GE Corporate R&D Center

I thought I'd share some of the sillier tricks my cats have been doing lately:

Pooky-go-round and Turbo-Pooky:
Pooky is our new kitten.  She's about 4 months, and we've only had her for about
1 month.  Like the other cats, she loves the cat dancer.  But, she hasn't really
figured out that it works on human power.  If you give her the cat dancer, she
will pick up one end in her mouth.  Then, she sees the other end, and she wants
that end too.  If the wire is very curvy, the second end tends to curve behind
her, and when she tries to jump on it, it flips around and she runs in circles.
It's even more fun than chasing her tail.  If the wire is straight (we have a
full assortment of cat dancers in various states of abuse) and the second end
is in front of her, she will try to chase it.  I can only imagine what she must
be thinking, "It always stays just in front of me, no matter how fast I go.  This
thing must be smart!"  She will attempt to run faster and faster, trying to
catch the second end.  Eventually she gets going as fast as she can, and skids
to a stop only to avoid head on collisions with the wall.

Pepper-the-guard-cat:
We have windows along the front and back of the house, but none on the sides.
Whenever Pepper sees one of the neighbors' outdoor cats, he goes from window
to window, following the cat, to make sure it doesn't dare think it is one of
the "inside" cats.  This usually works, since he can pretty much see as far as
(what he considers) the edge of our property.  On a few occasions, he's wanted
a side window to follow the cat's movements.  Since we don't have one, instead
he will go and inspect our glassed-in fireplace!  I guess he figures it's just
as much a window as the others.

Sandy
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: schumach@convex.com (Richard A. Schumacher)
Subject: Re: Deaf cat in bathtub.
Organization: CONVEX Computer Corporation, Richardson, Tx., USA
Distribution: usa
Date: Wed, 16 Sep 1992 00:27:49 GMT
X-Disclaimer: This message was written by a user at CONVEX Computer
              Corp. The opinions expressed are those of the user and
              not necessarily those of CONVEX.

Deaf cat likes being vacuumed? Maybe he enjoyed the vibration? Perhaps
he wasn't entirely deaf.
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: poirier@ellerbe.rtp.dg.com (Charles Poirier)
Subject: Re: Running (Cat) Hooves
Date: Thu, 10 Sep 92 22:51:05 GMT
Distribution: usa
Organization: Data General Corporation, RTP, NC.

In article <gef_Z2u00UhWE1wV9y@andrew.cmu.edu> "Susan R. Wagner" <sw39+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes:
>>Does anyone notice that when their cats race through the house playing,
>>they sound like a herd of elephants?
> 
>The neighbors below must think I have human children with all the noise!

When I lived in an apartment with two cats, the downstairs neighbor
complained to me about all the "furniture moving" I was doing!  Nope,
just holding cat races.

	Cheers,
	Charles Poirier
From: mverman@msus1.msus.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Cat-compatible plants (FAQ?)
Date: 4 Sep 92 16:35:40 -0600
Organization: Minnesota State University System

In article <1992Sep3.215813.11943@pellns.alleg.edu>, dblackbu@carr11.alleg.edu (David Blackburn) writes:
> Here's one that is not (completely) answered in the rec.pets.cats FAQ #1,  
> recently posted. 
> My two cats, Max & Moki (4-yr-old domestic shorts) early in their  
> kittenhood murdered, by eating and by dumping, all my plants. (spider,  
> Aloe vera, Jade mostly). Now I want to try again with plants as I plan to  
> live with my SO and her large variety of plants. The boys have cuddled  
> their way past her (mild) allergies, but I worry they will wear out their  
> welcome if they kill all the plants. 
>>get to the point<
> So, I want to get some plants that can defend themselves without injuring  
> my babies. The FAQ #1 listed _poisonous_ plants, but what I'm looking for  
> are plants that will DETER any meddling. Thus I'm thinking about really  
> spiny cacti, (cactuses), or better yet some plants that taste bad but  
> aren't dangerous to them. The goal here is to break them of plant-meddling  
> before I  bring lots of new and yummy plants into the house. And, in case  
> I'm not picky enough yet, they should also be hardy enough to stand up to  
> my brown thumb. 
> Any suggestions are very welcome, by post or by e-mail. 
> 
> Dave Blackburn, dblackbu@alleg.edu
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: david@master.uchicago.edu
Subject: Re: Possums and cats
Reply-To: das@voodoo.boeing.com
Organization: University of Chicago, Department of Anatomy
Date: Sat, 5 Sep 1992 22:24:44 GMT

In article <2978@voodoo.UUCP>, das@voodoo.boeing.com (Deb Schwartz) writes:
> Last night, as I was sitting in a friend's kitchen chatting, we saw a
> large possum walk up her back steps, help himself to the food she had out
> for her cat, then waddle off.  The whole time, her cat was crouched about
> 10 feet away, frozen, watching the whole thing.  My friend was rather
> freaked out, having never seen a possum before, but Seattle is overrun
> with wildlife, and I see them walking around the streets in my neighborhood
> at night all the time, and even sometimes during the day.  I never let my
> cats out at night, but I am wondering: are possums at all aggresive towards
> cats?  If a cat approached a possum, would the possum run, attack, or 
> 'play possum'?   I know all too well how racoons behave (when I was a kid a
> family cat was ripped up by a racoon, luckily the cat survived after
> considerable surgery), but don't know much about possums.              
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> Debbie Schwartz // das@voodoo.boeing.com  // or uunet!bcstec!voodoo!das 


	The possum probably wouldn't play possum, and if it decided to attack,
it could be bad news for your cat.  I don't think it would attack though 
without provocation.


					-David H.
From: young@serum.kodak.com
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Sparky has taurine deficiency?
Date: 15 Sep 92 15:47:27 GMT
Reply-To: young@serum.kodak.com
Organization: Clinical Diagnostics Division, Eastman Kodak Company
Originator: young@sasquatch

In article <14SEP199217221319@vax.sonoma.edu> connorm@vax.sonoma.edu (Michelle Connor) writes:
>
>Would someone please repost the symptoms of taurine deficiency?

	Without taurine cats will suffer from
	Central Retinal Degeneration (CRD).  Taurine is also
	important for regulating the heartbeat by controlling the
	amount of calcium entering the tissue.  A deficiency makes
	for a degenerative heart disease called Cilated
	Cardiomyopathy (DCM).  The heart muscle becomes enlarged
	hindering the hearts ability to pump efficiently.  If caught
	in time both this blindness and heart disease can be
	reversed.  Some cat foods in 1975 were implicated as not
	providing enough taurine (up to 50% is destroyed by the heat
	of cooking).


-Rich Young (These are not Kodak's opinions.)
From: gt1167b@prism.gatech.EDU (Christie Shackelford)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Naming cat behaviors
Date: 6 Sep 92 02:26:43 GMT
Organization: Georgia Institute of Technology

When I got Dixie from the Humane Society a few weeks ago and
got her home, I noticed that she had a funny way of running:
both back feet together, then front paws together.  I call it
the "bunny hop" because thats exactly what it looks like.  She
doesn't do it as much now, so it may have been just a phase.

-- 
Christie Shackelford
gt1167b@prism.gatech.edu
Meow!
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: dikig@ddsw1.mcs.com (Diki Gust)
Subject: Re: What kind of cats do I have?
Summary: How papers affect breed 
Organization: ddsw1.MCS.COM Contributor, Chicago, IL
Date: Wed, 9 Sep 1992 21:09:34 GMT

In article <crystal.715473113@glia> crystal@glia.biostr.washington.edu (Crystal) writes:
>In <1992Sep2.183911.28453@gateway.novell.com> lyndap@Novell.COM (Lynda Peterson) writes:
>
>>In article <4q0FqB4w165w@ailanth.UUCP> ailsa%ailanth.uucp@wang.com (Ailsa  
>>N.T. Murphy) writes:
>>> crystal@glia.biostr.washington.edu (Crystal) writes:
>>> 
>>> >
>>> > You have ordinary domestic felines of the household pet variety.   
>>Since there
>>> > are no papers for any of them, they cannot be of any specific breed.  
>>They may
>>> > look *similar* to a known breed, but to call them such would not be  
>>correct.
>>> >
============================================================
I recently saw a classified listing two prices for the same animal.  The
higher one with the papers, the lower one without.  Would that animal then
NOT be of it's breed if I bought it without papers?  And what would it be,
a look-alike?
Diki
==========================================================
>
>A breed name is merely a convenience.  But BECAUSE of the standards,
>when one mentions they are looking for a Siamese cat, they expect to 
>get a pale cat with dark extremites that looks a certain way - not a
>long haired Black and white bicolor (as one Veterinarian described a
>Balinese).
> 
>Therefore, to refer to your cat as a Maine Coon, without the papers to
>back up the  actual structure and pattern of the cat, you may have a
>tabby Persian-like cat or an Angora-like cat that does NOT fit the 
>description of a Maine Coon. 
> 
>Crystal
>  ;>


Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: dblackbu@carr11.alleg.edu (David Blackburn)
Subject: Re: Cat-compatible plants (FAQ?) (UPDATE)
Keywords: cacti, pepper, furniture
Organization: Allegheny College
Date: Mon, 14 Sep 1992 22:22:08 GMT

A response to my previous post says:
> I seem to recall reading that cactus plants (cacti?) are poisonous
> to cats if they eat them. Of course, who would want to bite something
> so spiny? 
> 
> Can anybody else comment on this? I've avoided cacti for this reason.

Uh-oh. I hope not. A couple people suggested I use black pepper in the  
soil to deter digging. I did wind up getting a cactus, with big  
mean-looking spikes, and put some freshly-ground pepper in the dirt. I put  
it on the floor originally, where it drew stares, and a quick sniff  
followed by a very odd expression! It has sat un-molested on the  
windowsill for 3 days now, with plenty of room for the guys to sit next to  
it (but not too close). The pepper worked so well I put some on my couch  
sides (known to cats as the Other scratching post) and it has not been  
molested either. Wish I'd thought of that before too much damage was done. 
I also bought a hanging fern, to be hung out of reach even of the 5 foot   
vertical leap of Air Moki. This drew more interest even with pepper, but  
then I misted it (using the Kitty Discipline tool :-) on a different  
setting) and that helped. It's still outside but will come in soon as it's  
getting colder. 
	To whoever is maintaining the FAQ list: I strongly suggest putting  
in the suggestion about using pepper to deter scratching/molesting of  
plants and furniture. This could save endless aggravation (plus $$) for  
people who can afford new furniture and don't want it wrecked. 
	Thanks to all who replied, by post and mail!

Dave

PS: Cat behavior, not seen in recent thread: Has anyone else seen "the  
ultimate kitty insult", scratching to bury an unwanted offering? It's  
hilarious, esp. since they will eat/play with the food/toy later. Moki  
also "buries" things like my coffee cup.
From: avi@rix.Corp.Sun.COM (Ann Adamcik)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Any help for a drooler?
Date: 15 Sep 1992 17:39:00 GMT
Organization: Sun Microsystems, Inc.
Distribution: world
Reply-To: avi@rix.Corp.Sun.COM
NNTP-Posting-Host: rix.corp.sun.com

In article 193h3kINNk8@usenet.INS.CWRU.Edu, ah881@cleveland.Freenet.Edu (Joyce Brabner) writes:
>
>About that drool....  Is THAT what it really is?  Because Phoebe
>seems to "drool" a bit, but it's always through her nose.  Anyone
>up on cat anatomy?  What gives? Does it when she's happy, too.
>-- 

Yeah - this is what Mango does!  When she's in her happy/cuddly/ready-to-go-to-
sleep mode, she marches up to my face, purrs loudly, and rubs her drippy wet snout
on my face (yuck...).   I pet her, but she acts like I'm not responding right 
and meows pitifully and licks my face, like she wants something else.  She finally
contents herself with a jawbone rub and falls asleep on my neck.

I noticed that Mango does *exactly* the same thing with my other cat, Maggie,
who responds by licking Mango's head.  Mango then goes into a state that can
only be described as ecstasy - very still, eyes half-closed, purring like mad - 
then she goes to sleep.  

I've concluded that Mango wants me to lick her.  ;^>   Hmm, maybe kitten drool is 
a way to get mom to 'clean'?

-Ann

Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
From: pdsmith.mitre.org (Pat Smith)
Subject: Re: Cat loves being held upside down
Organization: The MITRE Corporation
Date: Tue, 8 Sep 1992 20:50:40 GMT

In article <1992Sep5.175325.11434@news2.cis.umn.edu>, toddl@county.lmt.mn.org (Todd Lehman) writes:
> 
> 
> Hi,
> 
> Oscar's favorite form of human contact seems to be when you hold him cradled
> in your arms upside-down on his back.  When he was a kitten, he would fall
> asleep like this; now that he's a full-grown 5-pound cat, he enjoys being
> walked around the apartment like this, taking in all the interesting details
> from a new perspective.
> 
> The amazing thing is that he lets me hold him high above my head with two
> hands supporting him, one at the base of the neck, one at his hips, while he
> comfortably lies there on his back, stretching his head downward to look
> around.  He'll do this for minutes.  I call him "pineapple upside-down cat."
> 
> Can I injure him by holding him like this? (Other than the obvious possibility
> that he may squiggle and fall?)  He *loves* it and has never made any attempt
> to get down, nor has he ever given any kind of hint that he is uncomfortable
> with the situation.
> 
> Carmen (his sister), on the other hand, has some kind of a built-in "up"
> detector, and becomes uncomfortable at even a 45 degree tilt (compared to
> Oscar's full 180).
> 
> We adopted these guys from the Animal Humane Society a few months ago, so
> we don't really know what breed(s) they are, but we think Oscar has a lot of
> Maine Coon in him, and Carmen looks a lot like a Bombay, if that makes any
> difference.
> 
> --
> Todd, Aileen, Woody, Carmen & Oscar
> toddl@county.lmt.mn.org
> 
>              __,--,__              \     |\.-./|        |\.-./|
>            / /O    O\ \             \\   |'a a`|        |/q|p\|
>           |  (  \/  )  |             \\ =(= v =)=      =(=/v\=)=
>          /|  \__/\__/  |\             \\ /\_^_/\        /\_^_/\
>         | |_/-.____.-\_| |             \|  \_/  |      | ,   , |
>         \__ | ,    , | __/              \ || || /      \ || || /-----.
>         (___|_|----|_|___)             (__||-||__)    (__||-||__)`---'
>                                           ^^ ^^          ^^ ^^
>                Woody                      Carmen         Oscar
> 
> 
Great pics.  Our Maine Coon loves being held like a baby too and is totally
trusting of us.  We can hold her head and hips and toss her about without
any worry on her part.  She requires several of these hugs per day and if
I am home all day, she constantly whines to be held like this. I often work at
the computer with her in my arms.  She also 
sleeps on her back alot and often between my husband and I - we keep her
stable.  She also loves belly rubs.  I think she thinks shes a dog.
From: jlc5f@poe.acc.Virginia.EDU (Jean L. Cooper)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats
Subject: Re: Should I get a second kitten?
Date: 8 Sep 92 17:52:39 GMT
Organization: University of Virginia

Lizzie (now 17 years old) was NOT happy when Rapunzel came
to live with us. (This was at least 13 years ago.)  It took
a while, but Lizzie and Rapunzel got really close, and when
'Punz died last year, Lizzie wandered around looking for her
for weeks.  I think it just depends on the cat and how you
approach it.
--
Jean L. Cooper    (BITNET: JLC5F@virginia.edu   CIS: 70253,1114)
"The true University of these days is a Collection of Books." 
                                           --Carlyle                        
Newsgroups: rec.pets.cats