Conference misery::feline_v1

	Well my cats go nutso over it. What in catnip makes a got go 
bonkers??? They look like they're on drugs... is it morally right to "drug" 
your cat to show them a good time???

/harry

    Neither of my cats care at all about catnip.  However, Nugget, who
    belongs to a friend, goes crazy over the stuff.  My friend grows
    catnip in his garden for Nugget, and has to grow it in a hardware-cloth
    cage so that Nugget can't get at it on his outdoor forays.  I guess
    it depends on the cat.   I think that the attraction of the stuff
    is that it has some chemical that is similar to some natual cat
    pheremone...but I'm not sure since my cats don't react to whatever
    it is anyhow, I have never worried much about what the chemical
    is.

    Perhaps Dublin is refusing to forgive you for the ultimate humiliation
    of having flea dipped him :^).  But more than likely, it was the
    quality (and quantity of the catnip in the mouse.  I started out
    buying the supermarket-type catnip, and catnip mice, etc., but found
    Honey wouldn't touch the stuff.  My vet told me that many brands, such
    as Hartz, were more sawdust than catnip, and that, coupled with
    the mouse fabric, minimized the enticing aroma catnip has.  When
    the catnip gets old (just like any herb) it looses its potency.
    Try a good catnip from an herb shop (I get mine at Pickety Place
    in Mason, NH) were you'll have a minimum of sawdust added.  Dublin
    may forgive you after all!
    
    BTW, when herbs are dried, their favors are much more potent, which
    might explain why some cats (like mine!) prefer dried to fresh.
                              
    Mary

Only about half of all cats care about catnip.  Schmedley couldn't care less.
(Too bad since I can get the stuff free - it grows wild at a friend's house
Stray cats seem to grow wild there, too.)  My sister's cat goes WILD over the
stuff.  I remember bringing a sprig of the wild stuff into her place and left
it on a table, her cat was sound asleep 2 rooms away.  Went outside for a
minute, and came back to see the cat sitting under the table directly under
the stuff HOWLING as if he wasn't fed in a month!  I am suprised he didn't
jump up and help himself!  For him, the tender end shoots get the biggest
rise.

To .0:  Save your money, and don't bother getting more of the stuff.  Your cat
isn't affected  Even if the mouse was old, and mostly sawdust, you should have
seen some reaction.

-Mike

    i've noticed over the years that almost no kittens and very few
    young cats have any interest in catnip.  most of them start to notice
    it (if it is being given to older cats) after they are grown or
    nearly so.  also, much like the effect of various drugs on humans,
    repeated exposure causes greater effect.  try "dr. daniels"; it
    is available in many pet stores in a small plastic container with
    a screw-on top.  expensive (for a cat treat), but we give very little
    and not very often, so it lasts a long time (especially since it
    is in an air tight container.

    
    THE REASON YOUR CAT DOES NOT RESPOND TO CATNIP IS QUITE SIMPLE. 
    HE WASN'T BORN WITH THE GENE WHICH ALLOWS HIM TO RESPOND TO IT.
     IT'S NOT ABNORMAL IN THE LEAST, AS ABOUT 30% OF THE CAT POPULATION
    IS DEVOID OF THIS GENE.
                   

    I tend to agree with an earlier note about the type of catnip. Perhaps
    it IS a problem with genes or lack of interest, but I have noticed that
    with my four cats it depends more on the catnip.  I have purchased
    catnip (not "catnip-SCENTED") toys that they have ignored.  As a
    result, I do not buy those same toys for them again. However, when I
    find catnip in a small burlap bag I buy it, since every other one of
    that type that I have bought has sent them into ecstasy.  I don't know
    if it is just one manufacturer that makes the toys this way, or if
    there have been several, but in the states I have lived in (California
    and Colorado) this has been my best bet.  I have also had good luck
    with catnip mice and with toys I have made myself with store-bought
    catnip.
    
    I also agree with the person who said that the cats become drugged
    on catnip.  I had a cat who, on Christmas, would open his present
    first, then would be "drunk" the rest of the night, using the toy
    as a pillow (he was out COLD.  A dog could have come in and he would
    not even have noticed).  Consequently, I am careful about WHEN my
    cats get to indulge.  I only bring it out occasionally, and at night
    since they only go out in the day.
    
    To end, I would suggest to try again.  It can be a wonderful treat
    (for you AND for the cat).
    
                  Carol

  	I have two cats - my tortoishell(SCRUMPY) is 4 months old 
  	and she goes wild for catnip, whilst my 3 month old ginger
  	tom(CIDER) looks on in amazement, convinced that SCRUMPY
  	is just about ready for a straight jacket,as he can see
  	no reason for any of her antics.
  	How can I explain to CIDER that it's probabally just in
  	her genes???????
  
  				Heather
  
  
  	

    In reference to cats and catnip - I've never met a cat that liked
    the stuff for more than a few minutes.  My cats love to play with
    a good old rabbit's foot - preferably purple in color!!  Next time
    spend your hard earned dollar on one of these instead...
    
    ams

    A number of years ago, there was a paper in the journal of the American
    Association for the Advancement of Science on the effects of catnip.
     According to the paper, the active essential oil is something the
    plant grows as a natural protective against insects (something of
    a repellant).  It just happens to intoxicate cats (who often roll
    in it, which, if it _does_ repel insects, would also be beneficial
    to the cats).  Of my three cats, only two like it.
    
    For many unaltered males, it acts as a _powerful_ aphrodesiac, so
    be careful whom you administer it to [ this only works for cats.
    Sorry. :-)]. 
    
    About 25 years ago, a television show of the time, _Zoo Parade_,
    placed several _bales_ of catnip in a moat/island arrangement in
    the Chicago Zoo where there were four tigers.  Two couldn't have
    cared less; one was mildly interested; the last one want as crazy
    as most housecats would.
    
    Interesting (and amusing) experiment.
    
    Steve Kallis, Jr.
    

    I have only had one cat that went nuts over catnip - and she used
    to roll in my mint as well. She got a very weird glassey eyed
    look from both.  (when she died we burried her under the mint and
    it grows beautifully - I regard it as her sprit come back.)
    Recently my daughter got some cat nip for our cats. Two of them
    like it enough to play with a toy filled with it. We offered it
    to our newest cat and she clawed my arm in egarness to get at the
    stuff. (guess I'll be more careful in the future!)(ouch!)
    Bonnie                                                     

Our cats have always enjoyed catnip, and they recently lost their
last stuffed mouse (it is probably under a sofa somewhere) so we
got them a new one, of a different brand.

No interest at all.  We sniffed it and could detect no catnip
smell.  The mouse felt too soft, and we suspected that it was
mostly cotton, and maybe the catnip (if any) was old.

Rather than throw it out (it was well made), we performed some
surgery and opened one seam.  We removed the apparantly worn-
out catnip and some of the cotton and replaced it with a few
tablespoons from our sealed plastic bag of known good stuff.

The seam was resewn and we gave it to Penny.  She showed her
usual interest, and plays with it as much as she did the old one.

    All the cats I ever had loved catnip.  But one cat in particular
    liked - Peppermint!  I used to buy peppermint tea bags (I am a herb
    tea freak) and one day I took a tea bag out and left in on the table
    to go get the hot water....well my cat actually jumped on the table
    and started going nuts and the next thing i knew my tea bag was
    being batted around the house.....so instead of buying catnip I
    just gave him a peppermint teabag.  Of course I threw it away after
    he was done since I didn't want him to tear open the bag and start
    eating the stuff.....but I thought cats only liked catnip until
    this happened.  And yes pickity place in Mason, NH is a great source
    for all kinds of herbs.
    
    P.S.  Heard around that catnip isn't really good for your cat....not
    sure if this is rumor or not.  

    Re .15:
    
    Catnip is sometimes called "catmint."  The two plants have similarities
    in aromatics.
    
    Steve Kallis, jr.

    I had one cat that absolutely *loved* my mint plants. She would
    go out a roll in my herb bed and get absolutley drunk.
    Catnip is a member is the mint family. Like all other mints it can
    be distinguished by its square stems and aromatic leaves.