Many people think cats are asocial, but in fact they are very social animals. They bond with other cats in their house or neighborhood, their owners, even other pets like dogs and birds. They communicate to each other and us a variety of ways.

A keen sense of smell is important in cat communication. When her human returns home, a cat carefully sniffs then proceeds to rub her face against owner's legs. She is placing her scent on you, marking you as her territory. As you have gone through your day, scent molecules have attached to your clothing. Your cat must mark you again to cover up those other smells.

Cats also communicate through body language. Your cat's posture, gestures, facial expressions, tail, ear and whisker position can all be aan indication of how your cat is feeling.

A bristling tail held straight up, or one that thrashes back and forth are warnings. If a cat is feeling defensive, tail is usually arched. Hissing and backing away with ears flat against head are other defensive poses. You can tell a lot about a cat's state of being from its eyes. Wide, dilated eyes communicate anger or fear. A contented cat slowly blinks its eyes, or keeps them half-closed.

The term cattery originally referred to a facility that kept and bred colonies of cats. Today, term is being used to describe a sort of pet playpen. A home cattery is an enclosed, outdoor area in which a pet cat can bask in sun or exercise. The site can be a lawn, a porch or an apartment balcony, and a variety of building plans can be found on Internet. The important ingredients of a cattery are size, security and access.

How big to build depends on activity level of your cat and amount of space available. If you have an acrobatic cat living in your apartment, you might try to build a structure taller than it is wide, with several ledges for her to jump around on. If your cat is more sedentary and you have a large yard, you might create a cattery that has one or two shelves, but has cat grass and catnip planted inside to provide sensory stimulation.