Feline Human BondWritten by chetan gupta
Continued from page 1 published in newspaper, in August 2000, a cat named Jessie saved her owner Margaret Hayward's life by jumping up and down on her owner's bed in order to wake her when home caught fire. A cat named Scarlett of New York ran into a burning house five times in order to save her kittens. Some cats can protect their owner from thieves. A cat of UK actually alerted his owners to a real burglar by running up and down stairs hissing and growling. A cat saved her kittens from a burning building. For any information about adventures of some extraordinary cats like bravery and homing instinct visit website www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/excats/cats.html or website www.pbs.org/nature/excats. Cats are thought to protect humans from bad evils. Farmers and shopkeepers keep cats to protect food grains from rats as well as to prevent diseases like Plague which are spread by rats. Butchers, bakers, grocers, bookstore owners as well as restaurant owners and stationary store owners domesticate cats in order to keep their premises free of rats and mice. Due to lack of cats, two thirds of European human population died of Plague in past. Cats have been credited with the ability to predict earthquakes. Cats can hear ultrasonic waves. Cats become intensely agitated before major earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and severe electrical storms. In many cases, cats have been observed desperately trying to escape from inside buildings prior to an earthquake. Cats and kittens are very photogenic and can be easily be used to advertise any product like greeting cards, milk products, candy boxes, calendars, toys and food. Cat's sense of hearing is one of highest in animal kingdom. Cat's sense of hearing is greater than human beings. The anatomy of cat is very similar to human beings. The Egyptian word for cat is Mau. Cats were even worshipped as feline goddess Bast or feline goddess Bastet or feline goddess Pasht in ancient Egypt for more than two thousand years. The Feline goddess Bastet had body of a woman and head of a cat. The goddess Bastet was associated with fertility, motherhood, grace and beauty. It was believed that goddess Bastet controlled fertility of man and beast, cured illness and watched over souls of dead. The largest temple of goddess Bastet was built in ancient city of Bubastis about 4500 years ago. Aelurus, an Egyptian cat god, represented moon. In ancient Egypt, if a house caught fire, rule went like this, save pet cats first and humans second. In ancient Egypt, a person killing a cat was punishable by death. In ancient Egypt, after death of cats, they were mummified and decorated, some with rock crystal. The dead bodies of cats were then wrapped in rich bandages of various colours. The mummified rats and saucers of milk were kept near cats. The faces of cats were covered by masks on which nose, eyes, ears and whiskers were evident. The mummified cats were then placed in boxes made of wood or bronze. These boxes were then placed in cat tombs or pyramids. In ancient Egypt, cat mummies outnumbered human mummies. In an ancient capital city of Egypt, more than 300000 cat mummies were found in 1890. The Egyptians believed that their gods took on appearance of cats in order to pass down orders and omens. If a pet cat in ancient Egypt died, then all family members used to shave their eyebrows as a sign of sorrow. If a pet cat in ancient Egypt died, then entire family went into elaborate mourning with chanting and pounding of chests as an outward sign of grief. The Egyptians believed that divinities assumed semblance of a cat, and so high prists decreed divine orders and omens of future according to its behaviour. The Egyptians considered that that cat's unblinking gaze gave it powers to seek out truth and to see into afterlife. The ancient Egyptians used cats not only as hunters of mice but also as catchers of fish as well. The Egyptian Sun god Ra was believed to assume form of a tomcat each night for his battle with serpent of darkness. According to Roman Mythology, Diana roman goddess of hunting angered giants by taking a cat form. In India cats were mentioned in Sanskrit writings around 100 B.C.. The Indian epics Ramayana and Mahabharata, of about 500 B.C., both contain stories about cats. The Indians at time of Ramayana and Mahabharata worshipped a feline goddess of maternity called Sasti and for decades Hindus were obliged to take responsibility for feeding at least one cat. In India cats often played an important part in religious or occult ceremonies. Cats have ability to predict earthquakes. Cats have barometric sensitivity or sixth sense. Cats can forewarn us of coming storm, coming rainfall and change in atmosphere. There is a popular notion that states when a cat licks its paw or puts it in its ear, it is a sign of rain or a change in atmosphere. Many legends, folklore, myths and superstitions are associated with cats. Cats appear in mythology of ancient Greece and Rome. Cats are commonly mentioned in fairy tales, folklore and legends of many countries. Some people thought that witches could change themselves into cats. Today, people in ,many societies believe that cats bring good fortune. Many people find cats mysterious because they move swiftly and silently and because their eyes seem to glow in dark. Some people believe that a black cat crossing path of a person means bad luck. Some people think that cats possess magical powers while some people think cats as extraterrestrial creatures. Some people think that cats have ability to predict future. All cats are believed to have nine lives. In parts of UK , a cat washing its face with water is said to foretell rain. In UK and Scotland, a black cat crossing path of a person means good luck. In America, white cats are thought to bring good luck. The Russian Blue breed of cats is considered lucky in Russia. Black cats in particular have long been regarded as having occult powers and as being familiars of witches. White cats are thought to bring good luck in USA. The famous cats in cartoon include Tom, Garfield, Felix, Krazy kat, Top cat, Sylvester, Courageous cat, Pink Panther, Cheshire cat and Azrael.

I am owner and webmaster of website http://www.catswelfare.org.I am working in SPCA Mumbai,India for the past seven years.I am also a cat dentist.
| | Cat Care, Cat Products and Cat DiseasesWritten by chetan gupta
Continued from page 1 behaviour, appetite, a different way of walking, resting in different positions, excessive restlessness, disinterest in things that it normally likes, spontaneous fasting, vomiting, eating grass or plants and licking and wetting its wounds with saliva. When a stray cat is sick or wounded, it attempts to cure itself. The sick or wounded cat will go to a quiet spot and use its saliva as a good ointment for all ills. But for infectious illness, neither saliva nor individual resilience will help. When a cat is ill, cat unhappily accepts medicines, but often prefers to search for itself in garden, field or forest for correct herbs that it instinctively knows to be necessary to cure itself. Often acting as its own veterinarian, cat proves to be right. Cats are subject to gum diseases and to dental carries. The skin of cat, composed of dermis and epidermis, regenerates and fights off infection quickly. Cats should have their teeth cleaned by veterinarian or cat dentist. The ears of cat should be properly cleaned by a cat doctor or veterinarian. Cats require combing for removal of mats and tangles. The nails of cat should also be trimmed by cat doctor or veterinarian. Bone cancer also occur in cats. Older cats mainly die due to cancer. Deficiency of Taurine can cause blindness and heart disease in cats. Cats cannot be feed on milk because milk can cause Dirrhoea in cats. Cats must be feed on cheese, egg yolk, milk products like cheese and ice cream, boneless fish, prawn, Lobster, sea food, chicken, meat, liver, brain, cod liver oil, chicken soup, mutton soup and vegetables. The cat tongue's taste buds prefer salty and sour tastes, more than sweetness and bitterness. Cats and kittens can quickly recognize flavors. A one day old kitten can distinguish a salty liquid from a bland one. Lack of nutrition can damage development of brain of a cat. Many common household plants and many outdoor plants are poisonous to cats. The common plants which are poisonous to cats are Castor Bean, Lily-of-the-valley, Christmas tree, Oleander, Pine tree, Azalea, Primrose, Hydrangea, Mistletoe, Cherry and Rhododendron. Flowers such as Hyacinth, Honeysuckle, Amaryllis, Iris and Daffodils are also poisonous to cats. Cats love plants and they like to eat plants. Eating plants can cause vomiting, liver failure, seizures and even death in cats. In case of cats, plants are second most common toxins. Grooming of a cat minimizes formation of Hairballs. Cats are not able to properly digest milk. Cats need fat in their diet because their bodies are not able to synthesize fat. Cats need five times more protein in their diet as compared to dogs and hence a pet cat should not be feed on Dog food. Aspirin is poisonous to cats. Chocolates are also poisonous to cats. People who are allergic to cats are actually allergic to cat saliva or to cat dander. Many books on cat care are available at http://www.amazon.com/. Cats have three blood group types A, B and AB just like human beings. There are many specialized cat hospitals in USA and other countries.

I am owner and webmaster of website http://www.catswelfare.org.I am working in SPCA Mumbai for the past seven years.I am also a cat dentist.
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