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Conference misery::feline_v1

Title:	Meower Power is Valuing Differences
Notice:	FELINE_V1 is moving 1/11/94 5pm PST to MISERY
Moderator:	MISERY::VANZUYLEN_RO

Created:	Sun Feb 09 1986
Last Modified:	Tue Jan 11 1994
Last Successful Update:	Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:	5089
Total number of notes:	60366

4570.0. "Himalayan Care" by JGO::MAHAN (Jane Mahan@JGO) Mon Apr 22 1991 05:37

    I have just accessed this note for the first time and am impressed with
    the knowledge of cats in it, I hope someone can give me some advice.  I
    have a sweet himalyan cat.  He does have some problems though. 1. He
    had trouble for a while with using a litter box we finally have
    solved his base problem but the house still can smell of cat urine (it
    is in the carpets) although I have shampooed them the smell still
    remains are there any tips for getting rid of this smell?  2.  How
    do you bath them and care for their coats, even if we do manage to
    give him a bath his coat does not seem to show too much improvement,
    how do you get their coats to look soft and fluffy?  3.  The women
    I purchased him from told me to never let him out - well we started 
    out doing that but he loves being out and trys to escape at every
    opportunity and sometimes he gets out, we live in a quiet area and
    he stays in our garden but he is gets in trouble with other cats
    who come into our garden to the point where he had to be taken to
    the vet to have numerous stiches in his eye (we thought he might lose
    it) our other cats just hiss and posture but he seems to encourage real
    fighting - is this in their personality?  Do other cats dislike
    himalyans (he is not too popular with our other cats a siamese and a
    farm cat but they tolerate him).  
    
    He is very sweet to us and is not at all agressive to humans.
    
    Thanks for the advice.

T.R	Title	User	Personal Name	Date	Lines
4570.1		JUPITR::KAGNO	I'm51%Pussycat,49%Bitch-Don'tPush it!	`Mon Apr 22 1991 09:57`	19
	The Himalayan is not an agressive cat. For his safety, please do try to keep him inside. Many of the purebreds are not hardy enough to sustain the outdoors and can easily succomb to predators and disease that a "mutt" cat wouldn't. Why not try leash training your kitty, or making some sort of an enclosed area outdoors where he can still get fresh air but remain protected at the same time. I have a purebred Ragdoll cat who is trained to walk on a leash, and we take a walk almost every evening after work and on the weekends. As far as bathing, I have found that the best shampoo for Kelsey's coat is Dawn dishwashing detergent, or Fresh n' Clean by Lambert Kay. The Dawn takes the grease out of his coat and puts the fluffiness in. The Fresh n' Clean just smells so wonderful I almost always use it as a last shampoo. The key to bathing a cat is to rinse well, and when you think that all of the shampoo is out, rinse again. Any leftover residue will make the coat dull and could irritate a cat's sensitive skin. Good luck with your Himmie.
4570.2	neutered?	FORTSC::WILDE	why am I not yet a dragon?	`Mon Apr 22 1991 13:40`	14
	If he is not neutered, his aggression and terrtorial imperatives may be "softened" by neutering. Unless you are planning to breed, he simply doesn't need the "equpment" and neutering him will also make the urine smell much more manageable. I second the vote for controlled access to outside...either by leash or by getting an "outdoors when the weather is nice" large cage that can be wheeled outside into the garden....cats can enjoy outside while NOT getting into fights and NOT catching and eating critters who are carrying parasites.. Just be sure that the cat is secure when outside, whichever method you may choose. The primary way in which cats get FeLV and FIP is through fighting with infected cats. These diseases are both fatal and even vaccinations are not a guarentee that the cat is protected - some cats simply don't "take" the vaccine.
4570.3		TENAYA::KOLLING	Karen/Sweetie/Holly/Little Bit Ca.	`Mon Apr 22 1991 16:11`	3
	Try Nature's miracle or any other "enzyme cleaner" (sold in pet stores and dry cleaners) for the carpet.
4570.4	Thanks for the suggestions	JGO::MAHAN	Jane Mahan@JGO	`Tue Apr 23 1991 07:53`	4
	Thanks for the advice, I live in Holland so I hope I can find the products you have suggested. He is neutered so I'm surprised at his aggressive nature toward interlopers.
4570.5		USDEV3::NDC	Putiput Scottish Folds DTN:297-2313	`Tue Apr 23 1991 16:12`	7
	re: .2 - I think FIP is airborn, but FIV is definitely transmitted by a bite. I also vote for neutering and for controlled access to the outside. Many of my kitties are leash trained. Only problem is that they will pick up fleas.