Cat Behavior

Life as an indoor cat in Portland has its unique quirks and challenges. From limited outdoor views to dealing with Portland's famously gloomy weather, uncover the struggles of our feline friends and learn effective strategies to enrich their indoor life and keep them purring happily.

The well-fed house cat is an unmotivated and clumsy hunter. However, your cat still has the skills and instincts of a born predator. This shows up as play – stalking, pouncing, chasing anything that moves, and ambushing you or other companion animals are all feline ways of having a good time.

Cats are nocturnal animals. They usually spend most of their day sleeping, and their most active periods occur during the early evening and early morning hours. However this pattern is frequently altered, which can sometimes lead to unexpected results, and wild behaviors.

The well-fed house cat is an unmotivated and clumsy hunter. However, your cat still has the skills and instincts of a born predator. This shows up as play – stalking, pouncing, chasing anything that moves, and ambushing you or other companion animals are all feline ways of having a good time.

Overstimulation is the swatting or biting behavior that cats exhibit in response to too much petting. Oftentimes, cats who are easily overstimulated are friendly cats who will seek attention from people, but then strike out after a short period of petting. The cause of overstimulation is not known, but there are ways to reduce the incidences of biting and swatting.

Many people believe that cats are too independent or apathetic to respond to people's attempts to modify their behavior. But the failures people have experienced when attempting to alter their cat's behavior are not the fault of the cat. Rather, they are misunderstandings between humans and felines.

It is natural for cats to spend a lot of time sleeping. A cat will sleep an average of eighteen hours a day. It is natural for a cat to be lethargic after completing a meal. The modern domesticated cat is prone to lethargy primarily because the human caregiver overfeeds and under exercises her! Of course, there are other causes of cat lethargy.

There are many reasons why cats cry excessively. A healthy cat may cry a lot because of loneliness and boredom. An older cat will cry excessively because of illness or disorientation. A spoiled cat will cry incessantly because she is constantly rewarded, usually with food, every time she cries.