Quotations and Questions
Quotations
These are a few quotes from the book:
On the Impact of Adding a Cat on Your Life:
“Some of the changes will be emotional. You get to enjoy the companionship of the cat, but many shelter kitties may require extra love and patience, particularly at first as she adjusts to your home. Your lifestyle will change as well. Cat hair will end up on the furniture and a small furry life now will be depending on you for her very existence. If you are a jet setter, you no longer can just take off for a couple of weeks without considering the needs of your cat.
The bottom line is that when you get a cat, you will have to make adjustments to your routine, your housekeeping, and your schedule. It’s also important to consider the financial realities of pet ownership. Your cat will require food, medical care, and other necessities throughout her life.”
On Behavior Problems:
“Many times behavior problems in pets can be traced to changes in their home life. After all, they live there too. Major life events such as death, separation, or divorce cause a great deal of emotional distress and all of your pets pick up on it and become anxious. If people suddenly start shouting and arguing with one another, it has an effect on every creature in the house.”
On Kitty Aggression:
“When you play with a kitten, be sure to direct its play toward a toy. By always displacing the attention to the toy, you’ll probably never have a problem with kitty aggression in the first place. If the problem already exists in an adult cat, take the same approach. Anytime the cat goes for you, try to distract it with a favorite toy. ”
On Litterbox Problems:
“After your vet has ruled out any medical cause for the house soiling, it’s time to look at behavioral reasons. The first is sort of obvious: the cat hates the litter box for some reason. The reason may be that the litter box is gross because you never clean it. Cats have limits, so try cleaning the box more often. Also, if you have other pets, sometimes they will terrorize the cat, so kitty doesn’t want to visit the box. In that case, you need to get another box and make sure kitty can use it in peace. Otherwise, the cat may find another place that she likes better than where you have put the litter box.”
Book Excerpt
Use this link to download a PDF file that contains the table of contents and the first chapter (701K).
Suggested Media Questions for Susan Daffron
Here are a few sample interview questions, based on the content of the book:
1. Why should people adopt a cat from a shelter?
2. What are some of the most important supplies you’ll need when you adopt a cat?
3. What are some misconceptions about training cats?
4. What can people do to help shy cats?
5. When should you call in a behaviorist for assistance?
6. What problems have you solved with your own cats?