Word: cats
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Dates: during 2000-2009
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...campaign is to get people off of dry food. The message of Cat Chat is: Think outside the bag. Dry food is kitty crack. It's addictive, and incredibly harmful to your cat. Of course, that goes counter to everything your vet tells you, and everything that advertising tells you. But when you start to feed cats wet food, their personalities will change, anywhere from 10% to 100%, toward affectionate and relaxed...
People have never been taught how to [attend to] a litter box properly. Cleanliness is next to godliness. People have never really been told that a litter box has to be kept squeaky clean. A cat is a very finicky creature. [If the litter box is dirty,] the cat will choose elsewhere. The other thing is the number of litter boxes: You need one per cat, plus one for the house ... When there are two cats, there [could be] territorial issues. By having multiple boxes, you make it more pleasant for them and you lower the chance of litter...
...make sure that the introduction is done well. As long as you don't have a prey-driven dog, or if you've raised them from puppy- and kittenhood so they view each other as family members, you're fine. You always want to make sure that the cats have somewhere to escape to, in case the dog or dogs get rowdy. So a good cat tree (or the back of a sofa) is always a good idea...
...There are some people who live in Idaho, next to a national park, who've called in: their cats will undoubtedly have been killed by something larger than themselves. They're a delicious snack, for anything from a hawk to a cougar to a raccoon. For [other cat owners,] the No. 1 killer of cats is cars. The average lifespan of an indoor-outdoor cat is seven years. The average lifespan of an indoor cat is 21 years. So that pretty much says it. Outside, you have feral cats carrying disease; you have dogs that attack; you have cars, cars...
What's your advice for someone who wants to get a new cat...