Here are five things that your cats won’t tell you but wants you to know

My love doesn’t come cheap

WE are supposed to be convenient pets. We are not noisy barkers, you don’t need to walk us and we manage our toilet trips very well as long as you provide us with a clean one. But convenient doesn’t mean inexpensive. Owning a cat costs an average of Rs20,000 a month which includes food, litter and medical bills. Make sure you can afford us!

Not going to tell you when I am sick

WHAT do we do when it feels good? Sleep. What do we do when it feels bad? Sleep. We are not pack animals, so to show signs of pain or weakness is to lose one’s territory or be predated upon.

It is hard to tell when we are not feeling well. You have to look for the following signs: Hiding away under the bed or another room, change in eating, drinking and playing patterns, watery eyes, nose or a limp. When in doubt, grab us and head to the vet.

My bad behaviour is your fault

WHEN your cat ignores his perfectly clean litter box in favour of the couch, or spends the night yowling at your bedroom door, etc. It is usually something that you did which has brought on this reaction. A shifting of our litter box or water dish to another spot, or hiding our toys somewhere or changing the menu from tuna to beef can prompt us to go berserk and we can do relieve ourselves outside the litter box as a way of claiming territory when we are not confident or make something else a scratching post or toy.

You are a cat person, but I’m not a human cat!

THE dream cat curls up in your lap, chasing laser toys and purrs when strangers touch it but in reality, this could be three different cats. We are very individual and personalities differ from one to the other. Some prefer to be lap cats, others love to sleep in hidey holes. We are like people and have our own likes and dislikes. We are easily tamed, but the wild side doesn’t go anywhere.

Cat food and what else?

WE love a serious bowl of solid cat chow but my friend Pixie also enjoys hot buttered toast, Joji likes plain cake and Minky loves bananas, mango and gulab jamans.

Generally, cats are more discerning eaters than dogs but they also been known to eat wool clothing, plastic, coins and threaded needles, all of which can damage their intestines and plants all of which cause serious harm.

Visit to the doc

OUR owners have to do much more than dog owners to take their pets to the vet. Dig and dust the carrier out, get the cat out from under the bed and then bear with all the singing during the car ride all before we even get to the vet’s.

We must be taken for check-ups every three months. The carrier should be kept handy and you can wear ear plugs or just ignore our yowling in the car.

Fat is bad for me too!

MY bag of crackers is just like your jar of cookies that you keep going back to. Snacks, too much of dry food and little or no exercise has the same effect on us cats as it does on humans. We need three healthy meals a day, lots of fresh water and exercise, otherwise we will get all sorts of heart, liver and kidney ailments too, which means medical bills that you will have to pay.