If you've ever watched as a cat "flipped" over fresh catnip perhaps you've been struck with the question; "what causes Catnip to affect cats that way?" Catnip is easily an unusual phenomenon among cats, it has the ability to alter your cat's behavior like nothing else can. So what exactly is the presume for what scientists have coined as "the Catnip effect"?
Unfortunately for such inquisitive minds the exact presume of why Catnip affects cats in such a manner remains mostly a mystery. There is however much that we do know about Catnip and cats even if we don't have the greatest talk of exactly "why?" yet answered.
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The Science Stuff
Catnip is scientifically classified as Nepeta cataria and is a perennial herb from the mint house and is in fact also referred to as "Catmint". It is a plant indigenous to Europe but has been exported and is now found all over together with the United States and Canada.
The active ingredient in Catnip is an oil; Nepetalactone, which is found in the leaves of the plant. This is the presume you are able to find Catnip in a bottle or spray form in some pet stores.
Other Uses For Catnip
Catnip is not only good to stimulate performance in cats, it can also be used by humans as an herb for a corrective tea which may soothe toothaches, help against coughs, and may also perform as a sleep aid. Furthermore, Catnip can be used as an herb on salads or other foods as has been the case for centuries in France. Lately Catnip has also been garnering favor as a natural insect repellant rivaling the effectiveness of many store bought varieties of repellant.
Catnip and Kitty
Catnip affects roughly half of all cats. What determines whether or not a cat will react to Catnip is a genome that is inherited (or not inherited as the case may be) at birth. Kittens, regardless of whether or not they carry this genome, do not react to Catnip until reaching about 3 or 4 months of age and becoming sexually mature. Older cats are also more likely to have a diminished or non-existing reaction to Catnip, which leads scientists to believe that the Catnip supervene is based at least partially on sexuality and that the reaction may be something like an aphrodisiac. Further adding to this reliance is the similarity of a sexual pheromone found in the urine of the male cat to nepetalactone (the active product in Catnip).
Cats that can be traced to regions where Catnip is not indigenous appear to be unaffected by Catnip. The domesticated housecat is not the only cat that may be affected by Catnip. Larger cats can also be affected by the Catnip effect, felines such as the bobcat, lynx, tiger and even lion are known to react much the same way the coarse housecat would. It is inspiring to note that while Catnip can act as a stimulant when a cat sniffs it, it can conversely act as a relaxant if ingested. Therefore, you may see a different, nearly opposite supervene depending on whether your cat chooses to eat the Catnip you furnish for him/her or merely sniffs it (the latter being the more typical behavior).
How to Use Catnip With Your Cat
Catnip can prove to be a very useful tool for a few coarse problems with your cat. If you are lucky adequate to have a cat that does react comfortably to Catnip then here are a couple of ideas for you and your furry little friend.
Catnip and Lazy Cats:
Catnip can be used to get a lazy cat off his or her butt. Some cats are notoriously lazy, selecting to sleep much of their day away in a nice golden patch of sunlight on the living room carpet, only waking up to eat and acquire some principal attentiveness from their indulgent owners. If this sounds like your cat, you may soon see (if you haven't already) that your cat is becoming more and more round. This is ordinarily not a good thing. Catnip may be able to help. Presenting catnip to your cat encourages performance (of procedure in case,granted the cat sniffs rather than eats the herb).
Many adult cats will talk to Catnip in a manner that resembles their childlike kitten hyperactivity, jumping, playing and running nearby as if it was given an injection of kitty adrenaline, which in essence, is the case. The supervene of Catnip on a cat can last somewhere in the middle of two and fifteen minutes. If the latter is the case, then this is a decent amount of practice and will help keep your cat a little more svelte than without a Catnip treatment. Furthermore, if you leave the Catnip out for a few hours then your cat may return to the herb later (an hour or two after the supervene has worn off) and again react in an energetic fashion. So in this sense you may consider Catnip sort of like a kitty power drink.
Catnip and Cats That Scratch Furniture:
If you have a cat that seems bent on the destruction of your furniture then Catnip may again be able to come to the rescue. Cats can be frustratingly picky about just about anything under the sun together with where they want to edge their furniture destroying claws. It is not uncommon for a cat to damage or destroy a piece of furniture just because the owners ultimately gave up on trying to redirect their cat to the unused cat scratching post that set them back anywhere up to a hundred dollars and more. A good way to endeavor to change this frustrating and expensive behavior is to rub some Catnip or Catnip oil on a scratching post that you are attempting to get the cat to use. Introduce your cat to the newly "Catnipped" scratching post and see how he/she reacts. If all goes well, your cat will sniff and examine the post and then begin clawing at it. After a few times (you may have to re-Catnip the post) hopefully kitty will be trained to use the post rather than the sofa.
Using Catnip with manifold Cats
If you've never used Catnip before and you have more than one cat it is advisable to try it out individually on each cat before introducing it to all of your cats at the same time. The presume is because Catnip affects some cats in a negative manner causing the cat in demand to come to be aggressive rather than merely playful. Introducing it to your cats individually enables you to operate the situation and keep a cat that may react aggressively isolated from your other cats. This of procedure means avoiding a possible catfight that could supervene in broken furniture, hurt kitties (possibly requiring a vet visit), annoyed neighbors (and probably owners), or a mixture of all of the above.
Growing and holding Catnip
Growing your own Catnip can be rewarding as it can save you money, give you the delight of doing something yourself and ensuring that you all the time get fresh, high-quality Catnip for your cat. A word of caution however; the exact kitty reaction you want to grow your own Catnip is something to be wary of. If you plan on growing your Catnip out of doors and other cats can passage your Catnip orchad then be ready for unwelcome feline visitors. This may not be a problem for you personally, but cats are by nature territorial and if you have a cat that lives alone without the firm of other cats this could prove to be an area of stress for your cat. Even if you keep your cat inside at all times, your cat may get agitated if he/she looks out the window to see another cat frolicking in territory your cat considers his or her own. If you pick to grow your Catnip indoors, be right to keep it out of reach of kitty. Otherwise you'll likely have Fluffy jumping up on furniture even to the most out of the way place to get passage to the tempting herb. Cats are great jumpers and not easily known for respecting costly household knick-knacks. So if you do determine to grow it indoors for a cat that reacts to Catnip, be right to grow it in a place that your cat won't be able to passage it. A room that you all the time keep concluded to the cat is probably the best clarification for indoor grown Catnip.
If you do find that your cat reacts easily to Catnip you should be sure to use it sparingly so as not to dull the supervene which can be the supervene of overexposure. A good rule of thumb is to not treat your kitty more than once a week on median to Catnip.
Given all the inescapable effects that Catnip may have on your cat you owe it to yourself (and naturally your fluffy little ball of affection) to see how he/she reacts to this strange and well known herb. It will furnish enjoyment and practice for your cat and most likely an inspiring show for yourself as well. It's a win win situation.
Why Cats Flip For Catnip
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