Cats | Pet Lover Blog

Have you ever dreamed of living with a bobcat or having a pet tiger? You’re not alone, and many people share their lives responsibly and safely with such animals. My beloved companion is a African Serval, a very affectionate 33-pound spotted feline. However, this dream come true brings with it some very real challenges and responsibilities far beyond those facing the average pet owner.

A huge number of visitors to my exotic feline site are trying to make very important decisions. Should I get a exotic cat? Is this species the right fit for my family? Can I provide for one properly?

There are a number of things to take into consideration when deciding if exotic cat ownership is for you, and if the answer is yes, which species of exotic cat is suitable for your situation. They include:

• Your ability to make a lifetime committment to an animal who may cause you considerable headaches
• Your ability to be a responsible owner
• Local and Federal Laws
• Your financial ability to provide proper care and housing for the cat
• Your level of experience in working with animals
• Size of the cat
• Disposition of the cat
• Endangered Species Status

Owning an exotic cat requires a lifetime committment to a cat who may live to be 20 years old. If your circumstances change, the cat develops behaviors that are unacceptable to you, or you simply grow tired of caring for it, an exotic cat cannot simply be given over to your local humane society. Being placed in a new home is much more traumatic to an exotic cat than to most domestic animals and can cause a major change in their personality. In some cases, they may never accept a new owner. Qualified people willing to take in an adult exotic cat are hard to find, and no, the local zoo will not accept your cat. Large cats such as cougars and tigers are especially hard to place.

Everyone gets an animal with a certain dream in their minds about how that animal will behave, and some people cannot handle it if things turn out differently. For instance, if you want to own a tiger, you probably imagine being able to play with it and cuddle with it. That may happen; but if you undertake this responsibility you have to be prepared for the fact that you might not be able to so much as enter the cat’s enclosure safely, even if you raise him from a cub.

If you are interested in getting a small cat like a bobcat or a serval, you probably imagine sharing your household with it, as many people do. But what if that cat grows up to spray everything in sight?

If you’ve been researching the idea of owning an exotic cat, you’ve probably discovered how much conflicting information there is. Some sources seem to indicate that living with an exotic cat is no more challenging than feeding your pet goldfish. At the other end of the extreme spectrum, many sanctuaries and animal rights activists paint them as unmanageable creatures that no ordinary mortal could hope to deal with successfully. As is usually the case, the truth lies in a rational world between the two extremes. This site exists to provide realistic and balanced information.

Like all creatures, exotic cats are all individuals, and nobody can tell you exactly how your future cat will act. Generalizations can be made about the behavior of different species, but individual personalities and behavior traits vary widely. As a dog trainer, I have seen puppies with the perfect upbringing turn out dangerously aggressive, and severely abused dogs who were stable and friendly. I have met dangerous Golden Retrievers and unprovokable Pit Bulls. It’s the same with cats; you can generalize to a certain extent, but never count on those generalizations.

If you decide that you are serious about getting an exotic feline, one of the first things you need to do is learn the federal, state, county, and city laws regulating the ownership of the species you are considering in your area. Contarary to popular myth, exotic animal ownership is pretty heavily regulated. Laws and permit requirements vary widely from area to area, and owning exotic cats is banned altogether in many places.

The legal issues will become vastly more complicated if you are interested in owning a cat that is endangered. While it is not impossible, the additional laws and permits that you have to contend with makes owning an endangered cat an unrealistic goal for most people.

Owning an exotic cat means having to remain constantly aware of changing laws and of proposed legislation, and being prepared to fight for the continued right to own your beloved pet.

Owning an exotic cat can be quite expensive. You will need to take into consideration the cost of building a secure and spacious enclosure, feeding costs, veterinary costs, the initial purchase of the kitten, and incidental expenses which seem to crop up on a continual basis. The cost of owning a smaller cat such as a serval or bobcat is more likely to be affordable than that of owning a tiger or other large cat. When you get into the large cats you will find that your feeding and enclosure costs escalate dramatically.

A major consideration is the size of the cat. Some species are smaller than a domestic cat, while others reach 500 pounds. The most common species to find in a pet household is the serval, which ranges fron roughly 18-40 pounds.

Owning a small cat is a more realistic goal for most people than a large cat such as a tiger. Large cats are very expensive to feed and house, heavily regulated by the federal government, and of course much more dangerous. Often keepers are unable to safely enter the enclosures of big cats once they mature. This does not mean that these animals are malicious, but a tiger or other big cat can easily injure you even in play. If you see yourself with a “pet” cat, start thinking small.

Cougars are an interesting compromise in size and temperament. They are actually classified as “small cats” even though most people think of them as a big cat. They are large cats and come with all of the duties, responsibilities, and cost of owning a big cat. However, they often have very gentle and affectionate natures; of all the large felines, they are probably the species that you are most likely to be able to have a “pet-like” relationship with after they mature. For those determined to own a big cat, I would reccommend a cougar over any other species, especially over a tiger.

Owning an exotic feline is not for someone who spends their time in fantasyland. If you are one of those pet owners who think their dog is soooo sweet that he could never, ever harm anyone, that all animals love you because you have a “special touch” with them, or that no animal will be dangerous as an adult if you “love it enough” or “raise it right,” you have no business owning an exotic cat.

You have to be able to objectively assess the safety of any decision you make, whether it involves handling your own cat, letting a family member or member of the public have contact with the cat, etc. You have to be able to say “I love Tigger with all of my heart and he loves me back, but I can tell from the playful look in his eye that if I walk into his enclosure now he might hurt me, so I choose not to.”

It is important to locate a good veterinarian who is willing to treat your exotic cat before you get one. It can sometimes be difficult to find a good, experienced vet who will be willing to treat exotics. Often, vets are uncomfortable around them or dissaprove of keeping them as pets and will therefore refuse to treat them. Many clinics also lack large enough equipment to handle larger felines like cougars or tigers. Veterinary costs for an exotic cat can be higher than those for a domestic animal, especially if your cat develops a serious problem and you are referred to a specialty clinic or university.

If you choose to own an exotic cat, you owe it to your cat and everyone else who owns exotics to be a responsible owner. What constitutes responsible ownership? Some of the criteria, in no particular order:

• Provides a ample, nutritious diet suitable to the species
• Provides ample housing for the cat to live in happily
• Provides shelter and protection from the elements
• Provides veterinary care as needed
• Purchases animals from an ethical and responsible breeder
• Does not neglect or abuse the animal
• Provides generally pleasant living conditions and has the cat’s feelings and best interests in mind
• Makes a good-faith effort to comply with all applicable laws
• Takes stringent precautions to prevent the escape of the cat
• Protects the cat from unauthorized contact or harrassment from members of the public
• Protects the safety of the public and visitors
• Makes a lifetime committment to caring for the cat

This article is written and copyrighted by Jessi Clark-White of www.exoticcatz.com. This article may be reproduced in its entirety only; permission is NOT granted to display editied versions. This article may not be used to support the ending of private ownership of exotic pets.

For more comprehensive information on exotic pets and their ownership, visit my website, http://www.exoticcatz.com. You can ask the author and other exotic pet owners questions at our online forum.

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All over the world, there is an ongoing cat overpopulation. Most anywhere, these cats are gathered and killed, sometimes, by very cruel means. In the United States alone, more than six million cats are put to death each year.

Some cities, however, embrace their cats like good fortune. In Rome, if a kitten is born on a Roman’s doorstep, by law it has the right to live on his property. Roman cats are just as famous as the Roman ruins where they mostly live. Old ladies called gattare feed and take care of these animals and the government sees to it that a vet visits them often to spay, neuter, and vaccinate them. The cats even have litter boxes here and there among the ruins. After all, Romans feel they owe to these cats whose ancestors, sometime during the antiquity, were brought over from Egypt to rid the city of rats.

Unfortunately, not every city is as civilized as Rome and no public official ever makes a big issue of saving the lives of stray cats. In our country, stray cats are taken care off all right, but rather in a negative way, because the city officials do not want the cats as public nuisances endangering the health of the human population. Some humane rescue organizations, however, pick up these cats spay and neuter them and put them up for adoption.

Adoption is the right thing to do, if you want a cat in your life. When you adopt a cat or a kitten from an organization like your local shelter, SPCA, or another volunteer cat rescue operation, you are not only saving the life of that animal, but also, you are helping another animal to take its place in the shelter.

Adopting a kitten or a cat has its benefits. A kitten is a very cute animal and has more of a chance of getting adopted by other people. If you adopt an older cat, however, not only will you be saving is life and making space in the shelter for another animal, but also, you’ll find yourself with less work. As a plus, most adult cats that are put up for adoption are already housebroken, trained, and vaccinated. Also, an adult cat understands that the new owner is the one who saved its life and it looks up to him to form an unbreakable bond with him. Your adopted cat will probably be more loyal and loving than any pedigreed, store-bought pet.

If you want a pure-bred animal, most animal shelters–in addition to mixed breeds–may offer purebreds that have lost their owners to death or misfortune or have ended up with irresponsible owners. Some humane societies may even provide counseling in pet care and match you up with a cat who will meet your needs the best. For example, a less sprightly older cat that doesn’t need to be around children too much will be perfect as a friend for an older person, and a younger, livelier cat will love to be a member of a growing family.

If you cannot adopt a cat for any reason, you might decide to provide a foster home for a cat or two until their adoption by another person finalizes. Foster homes help rescue organizations greatly, since they provide extra shelter that the organizations cannot afford.

If you cannot do that, then, try to make a donation to a rescue organization in your area so the cats are spayed, neutered, and vaccinated. Usually, spayed and neutered cats will have their left ears slightly slit for identification.

If you adopt a cat, keep it indoors unless you have a fenced yard or a screened porch. Cats kept indoors live longer, are cleaner and more disease-free, and are not subject to attacks by other larger animals.

Wherever you adopt your cat from, remember that not only are you saving its life but also you are standing up for a creature that cannot defend itself. What else can be more humane and civilized than that?

This article has been submitted by Joy Cagil in affiliation with http://www.PetLovers.Com/ which is a site for Pet Forums.

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Arizona State University`s Mildcats program saves abandoned cats on campus and gets them ready for adoption by seeing to their health needs and neutering them and getting all the necessary shots. Mildcats is served by faculty, staff and students, who give generously of their time and resources for the love of cats.

Wild cats are not put up for adoption. They are trapped, neutered and released. This practice serves to reduce the wild population because the released cats return to their roles in the wild population where their interaction with the other cats does not produce offspring.

I got two cats from Mildcats. If you want to see them, pictures are posted on this website:

freewebs.com/krikokriko/index.htm

Mildcats is only one of many such organizations of cat lovers who hate to see them killed because of over-population. A national clearing house exists too. You can find a unit near you which will help you find a pet to adopt:

adopt-a-cat.1-800-save-a-pet.com

When you get a cat as a pet you should be sure that it is neutered. The world has more cats than can be taken care of. It is generally in the best interest of your cat to keep it indoors at all times. That prevents diseases and attacks which could lead to its death. Some people de-claw their cats. This is considered inhumane by most advocates of cat care. It is like cutting off the first digits of your fingers. It is painful and leaves the cat defenseless. It is cruel to do this just for your own convenience.

There is a product called soft-paws which is essentially plastic fingernails or claws which are glued on. They last about a month. Some people prefer that to clipping the points of the claws regularly. I clip my cats` claws just before feeding them their canned food for the day. When I pick up the clippers, they come-a-runnin`.

It is easy to find all sorts of information on cat care on the internet and at the library and bookstore. Consider saving a cat today, or at least contributing to those wonderful organizations saving cats everywhere.

Jack Wilson is a writer and artist from Los Angeles and Phoenix.

http://www.geocities.com/galimatio/jackwilson.html

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