Tag: Cats

Were domestic cats brought to China over 5,000 years ago? Or were small cats domesticated in China at that time? There was no way of deciding between these two hypotheses until a team from the ‘Archéozoologie, Archéobotanique: Sociétés, Pratiques et Environnements’ laboratory (CNRS/MNHN), in collaboration with colleagues from the UK and China, succeeded in determining the species corresponding to cat remains found in agricultural settlements in China, dating from around 3500 BC. All the bones belong to the leopard cat, a distant relation of the western wildcat, from which all modern domestic cats are descended. The scientists have thus provided evidence that cats began to be domesticated in China earlier than 3,000 BC. This scenario is comparable to that which took place in the Near East and Egypt, where a relationship between humans and cats developed following the birth of agriculture. Their findings are published on 22 January 2016 in the journal PLOS ONE.

The cat is the most common domestic animal in the world today, with over 500 million individuals. All of today’s domestic cats descend from the African and Near Eastern form of the wildcat (Felis silvestris lybica). According to work published in 2004, humans and cats first started to form a close relationship in the Near East from 9000 to 7000 BC, following the birth of agriculture.

In 2001, researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing discovered cat bones in agricultural settlements in northern China (Shaanxi province) dating from around 3500 BC. Was this evidence of a relationship between small Chinese cats and humans in the fourth millennium BC in China? Or was it the result of the arrival in China of the first domestic cats from the Near East? There was no way of deciding between these two hypotheses without identifying the species to which the bones belonged. Although there are no less than four different forms of small cat in China, the subspecies from which modern cats are descended (Felis silvestris lybica) has never been recorded there.

To try to settle the question, a collaboration of scientists principally from CNRS, the French Natural History Museum (MNHN), the University of Aberdeen, the Chinese Academy of Social Science and the Shaanxi Provincial Institute of Archaeology undertook a geometric morphometric analysis, which, in the absence of ancient DNA, is the only way of differentiating the bones of such small cats, which have very similar morphologies whose differences are often imperceptible using conventional techniques. The scientists analyzed the mandibles of five cats from Shaanxi and Henan dating from 3500 to 2900 BC. Their work clearly determined that the bones all belonged to the leopard cat (Prionailurus bengalensis). Still very widespread in Eastern Asia today, this wildcat, which is a distant relation of the western wildcat (Felis silvestris lybica), is well-known for its propensity to frequent areas with a strong human presence. Just as in the Near East and Egypt, leopard cats were probably attracted into Chinese settlements by the proliferation of rodents who took advantage of grain stores.

These conclusions show that a process comparable to the one that took place in the Near East and in Egypt developed independently in China following the birth of agriculture in the eighth millennium BC. In China it was the leopard cat (P. bengalensis) and not the western wildcat (F. silvestris) that started to form a relationship with humans. Cat domestication was, at least in three regions of the world, therefore closely connected to the beginnings of agriculture.

Nevertheless, domestic cats in China today are not descended from the leopard cat but rather from its relation F. silvestris lybica. The latter therefore replaced the leopard cat in Chinese settlements after the end of the Neolithic. Did it arrive in China with the opening of the Silk Road, when the Roman and Han empires began to establish tenuous links between East and West? This is the next question that needs to be answered.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/  Science Daily

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/01/160125100118.htm  Original web page at Science Daily

Working with faculty members in mathematics and biology, a Duquesne University undergraduate has created the first computational model to track the size, location and nuisance of feral cat colonies. This issue concerns communities nationwide that hold some 70 to 100 million unhoused cats and kittens.

By the nuisance criteria, the traditional Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) method that diminishes hormone production and mating behaviors wins, hands down, over the Trap-Vasectomy-Hysterectomy-Return (TVHR) method that leaves hormone production intact, said Dr. Rachael Neilan, Duquesne assistant professor of mathematics.

Like other researchers, math, computer science and physics major Timothy Ireland started with a mathematical model based on differential equations, then developed an even more complex, agent-based computational program. This program allows for detailed inputs, such as ages and locations of individual cats, environmental conditions, newly abandoned felines and the use of TNR or TVHR. Each cat in the model has its own identity and behaviors, and the program unfolds something like a video game for felines.

Because of his unique approach, Ireland presented his work at the Nov. 21 National Institute of Mathematical and Biological Synthesis undergraduate research symposium in Knoxville, Tenn. Ireland’s agent-based model, a cutting-edge technique in applied mathematics, drew much attention.

Ireland and Neilan worked closely with Dr. Becky Morrow, a veterinarian and assistant professor of biological sciences, and Dr. Lisa Ludvico, a DNA specialist and assistant professor of biological sciences, in the Bayer School of Natural and Environmental Sciences, who sought a scientific model for the most effective control strategies and provided the modelers with field-tested assumptions.

“You have to know the responses of feral cats to different environment cues — and how the cats interact with each other,” said Neilan, who received a Duquesne Faculty Development grant for the project. “The model is an elaborate computational and mathematical system built on biological assumptions and provides answers to important questions.”

The project started with community engagement as part of a class in differential equations. Students fed off the practical challenge of the project, Neilan said.

“This project illustrates the importance of studying math and how math can be used to solve a real-life problem,” Neilan said. “Students are excited to see their work result in something with practical meaning, especially when the results impact the local community.”

http://www.sciencedaily.com/  Science Daily

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2016/01/160116215422.htm  Original web page at Science Daily

Domestic cats do not generally see their owners as a focus of safety and security in the same way that dogs do, according to new research.

The study by animal behaviour specialists at the University of Lincoln, UK, shows that while dogs perceive their owners as a safe base, the relationship between people and their feline friends appears to be quite different.

While it is increasingly recognised that cats are more social and more capable of shared relationships than traditionally thought, this latest research shows that adult cats appear to be more autonomous — even in their social relationships — and not necessarily dependent on others to provide a sense of protection.

The research, published in the scientific journal PLOS ONE, was led by Professor Daniel Mills, Professor of Veterinary Behavioural Medicine at the University of Lincoln’s School of Life Sciences, along with Alice Potter — who studied as a postgraduate at Lincoln and now works with the Companion Animals Science Group at the RSPCA.

Professor Mills said: “The domestic cat has recently passed the dog as the most popular companion animal in Europe, with many seeing a cat as an ideal pet for owners who work long hours. Previous research has suggested that some cats show signs of separation anxiety when left alone by their owners, in the same way that dogs do, but the results of our study show that they are in fact much more independent than canine companions. It seems that what we interpret as separation anxiety might actually be signs of frustration.”

The Lincoln researchers carefully adapted the Ainsworth Strange Situation Test (SST), which has been widely used to demonstrate that the bond between young children or pet dogs with their primary carer can be categorised as a ‘secure attachment’ — where the carer is seen as a focus of safety and security in potentially threatening (or unfamiliar) environments.

The study observed the relationships between a number of cats and their owners, placing the pets in an unfamiliar environment together with their owner, with a stranger and also on their own. In varying scenarios, it assessed three different characteristics of attachment; the amount of contact sought by the cat, the level of passive behaviour, and signs of distress caused by the absence of the owner.

“Although our cats were more vocal when the owner rather than the stranger left them with the other individual, we didn’t see any additional evidence to suggest that the bond between a cat and its owner is one of secure attachment. This vocalisation might simply be a sign of frustration or learned response, since no other signs of attachment were reliably seen. In strange situations, attached individuals seek to stay close to their carer, show signs of distress when they are separated and demonstrate pleasure when their attachment figure returns, but these trends weren’t apparent during our research,” said Professor Mills.

“For pet dogs, their owners often represent a specific safe haven; however it is clear that domestic cats are much more autonomous when it comes to coping with unusual situations. Our findings don’t disagree with the notion that cats develop social preferences or close relationships, but they do show that these relationships do not appear to be typically based on a need for safety and security. As far as we could tell, the cats of owners who considered them to be highly attached did not differ from the others in this regard.”

The results of the study reveal that while cats might prefer to interact with their owner, they do not rely on them for reassurance when in an unfamiliar environment, and the researchers believe this is because of the nature of the species as a largely independent and solitary hunter.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/  Science Daily

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/09/150903081504.htm  Original web page at Science Daily

The summer months are dangerous for indoor cats. A large number of cats have accidents every year when they fall out of open windows or from balconies. Every year the University Clinic for Small Animals at the Vetmeduni Vienna treats about 70 to 80 cats that suffer from bone fractures or internal injuries after such accidents. These days, vets strongly recommend to keep windows closed or to secure windows in an appropriate way.

Cats have a very strong hunting instinct. Flying birds or insects outside an apartment can provoke a leap out of the window or the balcony. But also noise can frighten the animals and make them flee through the window. In some cases the animals slip off the window sill or lose balance. “Sometimes such a plunge has no consequences for the cats. But often they suffer serious injuries,” says Roswitha Steinbacher, vet at the Clinical Department for Anaesthesiology and Perioperative Intensive-Care Medicine at the Vetmeduni Vienna

“It’s not totally correct that cats always land on their feet,” says Steinbacher. “It mainly depends on the height of fall. If it is too low, the animals often hit the ground on the side of their body. When cats fall from very high, they can correct their body position and land on their feet, but often their legs can’t hold the bounce. Their joints are heavily bended, single bones break and the cat’s head and thorax hit the ground.”

The consequences of such a bounce can be significant. The cats often suffer lung injuries such as lung bleedings or bursting of lung tissue where the air leaks into the thorax. This life-threatening situation requires quick action. Other frequent injuries are broken legs, pelvis, jawbones and rips or traumatic brain injuries.

Even if there are no visible injuries after a plunge out of the window, the cat should undergo a check by a vet. Internal injuries can lead to a life-threatening situation even hours or days after the accident.

“Bone fractures and dislocations cause a severe pain for the animals. As a consequence, one or several surgeries can be necessary which might cause quite high costs for the keepers,” says Steinbacher.

According to a study by the Clinical Unit of Small Animal Surgery at the Vetmeduni Vienna in 2010, accidents are on average more frequent among younger cats than among older ones. Furthermore, male cats fall more often from very high. The study found that statistically June, July and August are the most dangerous months. The most frequent fractures are broken pelvis as well as broken forefoot and midfoot bones

Some patients get trapped in a tilted window. These dramatic situations often happen in the summer months. Cats slip into the window gap and get stuck while trying to reach the outside. Most of the time the animals get stuck with the back of their bodies. When trying to free themselves they slip even deeper into the gap. The blood supply in their rear legs gets clamped and vital organs are crushed. “Depending on the duration, being stuck in the window gap can lead to a life-threatening situation for cats,” Steinbacher explains

From about the second floor upwards, a plunge is dangerous for cats. Cat keepers in Austria are legally bound to protect their pets from a possible plunge out of windows or from balconies. There are suitable safeguards such as nets or grilles. Steinbacher emphasises: “Do not leave your cats alone when windows are tilted or open without appropriate safeguard. If an animal is injured after a plunge, see a vet immediately.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/  Science Daily

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/08/150805075737.htm  Original web page at Science Daily

A study by animal behavior expert John McGlone theorizes cats scratch more due to pheromones left behind from previous cat scratching.

Cats have long been some of the most independent and unpredictable animals on the planet. They were revered by Egyptian pharaohs and have been used as symbols by many cultures for their grace, elegance and demeanor. Predicting their behavior, however, has long been a mystery, one which scholars throughout the ages have studied. Figuring out what a cat wants, when it wants it and how it wants it has led to numerous theories and studies.

Now, one professor in the Texas Tech University College of Agricultural Sciences & Natural Resources may have unlocked the answer to at least part of what a cat is thinking when it comes to what that cat prefers to scratch.

John McGlone, a professor of animal welfare and animal behavior in the Department of Animal and Food Sciences, presented this week his study on cat scratchers, which scratchers cats preferred and why. His research was delivered during the 2015 Joint Annual Meeting (JAM) of the American Dairy Science Association (ASDA) and the American Society of Animal Science (ASAS) in Orlando, Florida.

Using kittens due to their playful nature more than adult cats, McGlone and his research team tested various cat scratchers to determine which one cats preferred. Knowing which cat scratcher kittens prefer will help people select effective cat scratchers. Cat owners want to direct cat scratching towards selected objects rather than having them scratch furniture, drapes and carpet.

The team then used that preferred scratcher to determine what causes kittens to spend more time scratching. The experimental evidence suggested kittens deposit pheromones from scratching and from their fur. The thinking is cats are attracted by pheromones, chemicals excreted or secreted by animals that trigger a social response in members of the same species.

“We are hypothesizing that kittens are responding to pheromones on the cardboard scratchers and the next kitten that comes in experiences the scratcher smell of other kittens’ odor and it makes them scratch more,” McGlone said. “We will be able to direct cat scratching towards preferred objects and away from household objects like furniture.”

Before McGlone and his team could get to why cats scratch certain scratchers more, they had to go back further to determine which scratchers cats preferred in the first place. A walk through the local pet store will reveal dozens of products for cats. The only problem is there is no real research or consumer-driven information that indicates which product is the best buy.

“If you’re buying a car, you can look up how it performs in fair government tests, what the miles per gallon is for any car,” McGlone said. “If that’s your criteria for buying a car, you can get one with really good gas mileage. If you pick up a piece of food at the store you can see what’s in it. But you go to a pet store, you can hardly get any information on anything they are selling. So we began to evaluate this in our study to see if we could increase or decrease cat scratching.”

McGlone purchased several types of scratchers — flat, rope, hemp and tower scratchers as well as making some of their own, utilizing cardboard, carpet and bubble wrap. Some scratchers were vertical, some were horizontal on the ground and some were on raised platforms. The idea was to test as many types of scratchers as possible.

An evaluation also had to be done on which cats to use, adult or kittens. Kittens, unsurprisingly, were more playful and active than adult cats. While it is thought that adult cats can be manipulated to become more playful when fed dried catnip, as sold in stores, they determined catnip applied to the scratchers did not change the rate of scratching.

From there, kittens were placed into a controlled environment with different types of scratchers and observed to determine which scratcher they preferred. After all the testing was done, the results showed kittens preferred the cardboard scratcher in the shape of an ‘S’ over all other scratchers.

“Nobody’s done any sort of official approval for cat scratchers,” McGlone said. “This was an opportunity to answer these questions and help people and animals.” Now that McGlone had the right type of scratcher and the right kittens, he tested what made cats use the scratcher longer.

“We do know when a cat grooms itself, it licks the hair all over its body, its paws included,” McGlone said. “We know a cat is continually applying its scent on itself, and cat hair is a much more potent stimulator of scratching than is catnip, for example. That cat hair contains pheromones.”

One at a time, kittens were placed in a controlled environment meant to simulate a normal living room, with a couch, drapes, carpet and the ‘S’ scratcher along with a human being to both record the kitten’s activity and place the kitten on the scratcher if it wandered off. The first test determined that kittens preferred an older ‘S’ scratcher to a newer one, which strengthened the hypothesis regarding cat hair and pheromones. But it didn’t completely validate the hypothesis.

In the next test, researchers applied different objects to the scratchers to see if they induced scratching. The researchers used hair from an adult cat, ground catnip and catnip oil, applying each to a separate scratcher.

Catnip oil had some effect, but overwhelmingly, kittens preferred the scratcher with cat hair on it. Also, researchers discovered that a kitten will scratch a new scratcher for a certain amount of time, then each subsequent kitten that scratches that scratcher will do so for increasing time lengths.

McGlone said the theory of cats being territorial doesn’t hold up because kittens have no sense of territory. They’re just playing. “Odors do strange things to animals,” McGlone said. “It makes them eat more, it makes them more sexually active and it makes them play more.”

The next step, McGlone said, is determining exactly which pheromone affects behavior. They are doing organic chemistry and animal behavior work to identify the molecules involved, and once that is determined, that pheromone can be applied to scratchers to induce play and keep drapes and furniture safe.

“Kittens might stay away from an adult male cat,” McGlone said. “Maybe we can use pheromones to stop cats from scratching the couch, or maybe if they’re so interested in the cat scratcher they’ll forget about the couch. There’s more than one way to get this goal accomplished.”

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http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/07/150715113657.htm Original web page at Science Daily

A variety of day-to-day events — from conflicts with other cats to changes in their daily routine — can cause cats to become stressed. This can trigger a number of behavioural changes and be detrimental to their welfare.

A group of veterinarians from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, in Spain, have published a review in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery that discusses how stress manifests in cats and describes strategies that can be used to prevent or reduce it.

Stress can lead to a range of behavioural changes. In some cats, stress inhibits normal behaviour; for example, reducing exploratory behaviour or affiliative behaviours such as social grooming (allogrooming). Such cats may hide away for long periods of time and the owners may be unaware that their cat is stressed. Other cats may show more obvious signs of stress, such as increased urine marking and compulsive disorders such as over-grooming. Behavioural problems such as these can negatively affect the human-cat relationship, potentially leading to the relinquishment or euthanasia of a cat. Regardless of how cats display signs of stress, it has a detrimental effect on their welfare and can also increase the incidence of disease. Minimising or eliminating stress is thus important.

There is a range of strategies that can help to prevent or reduce stress. Within the review, a three-phase reintroduction protocol for reducing conflict between cats in a household is described; examples of environmental enrichment for improving welfare by increasing the physical, social and temporal complexity of the environment are provided; and the use of a synthetic analogue of the feline facial pheromone is recommended. As stress is also dependent on the temperament of a cat, breeding and husbandry strategies that help a cat to develop a well-balanced temperament are also suggested to be very useful.

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http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/06/150622092508.htm  Original web page at Science Daily

According to research published today in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery by veterinary clinicians at the University of Lisbon and a clinic in the nearby town of Barreiro in Portugal, music is likewise beneficial for cats in the surgical environment. But not all music is equal in this respect — cats, it seems, benefit most from classical music. Lead author, Miguel Carreira, explains: ‘In the surgical theatres at the faculty where I teach and at the private veterinary medical centre where I spend my time operating, environmental music is always present, and is an important element in promoting a sense of wellbeing in the team, the animals, and their owners. Different music genres affect individuals in different ways. During consultations I have noticed, for example, that most cats like classical music, particularly George Handel compositions, and become more calm, confident and tolerant throughout the clinical evaluation. After reading about the influence of music on physiological parameters in humans, I decided to design a study protocol to investigate whether music could have any physiological effects on my surgical patients.’

The clinicians studied 12 female pet cats undergoing surgery for neutering, and recorded their respiratory rate and pupil diameter at various points to gauge their depth of anaesthesia. The cats, which had been fitted with headphones, were meanwhile exposed to 2 minutes of silence (as a control), followed randomly by 2 minutes each of Barber’s ‘Adagio for Strings (Opus 11)’, Natalie Imbruglia’s ‘Thorn’ and AC/DC’s ‘Thunderstruck’. The results showed that the cats were in a more relaxed state (as determined by their lower values for respiratory rate and pupil diameter) under the influence of classical music, with the pop music producing intermediate values. By contrast, the heavy metal music produced the highest values, indicating ‘a more stressful situation’. The clinicians conclude that the use of certain music genres in the surgical theatre may allow a decrease in the dose of anaesthetic agent required, in turn reducing the risk of undesirable side effects and thus promoting patient safety.

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http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/03/150330122530.htm Original web page at Science Daily

Despite conservation efforts, news on how Iberian lynx (Lynx pardinus) are hit by vehicles on Spanish roads has been reported. The status of the most endangered felid in the world is hardly improved by the continual ‘incursions’ into its territory.. Ever-shrinking and broken-up habitats affect the future of the lynx. To assess the situation of the Iberian lynx and other felid species that live in the wild on our planet, a team of Brazilian and Spanish scientists has reviewed the scientific literature that exists on the main threat for these mammals: the loss and fragmentation of their habitats. The results have been published in the scientific journal Oryx. Although many scientific studies are produced (last January, for example, 60,000 scientific articles were published), researchers could only find a total of 162 studies which evaluated threats affecting felids.

“These figures clearly indicate that in general there is a lack of knowledge on this topic, which especially affects felid conservation. Without proper scientific knowledge it is hard to set up effective conservation strategies,” declares Francisco Palomares, one of the authors of the study and researcher for the department of Conservation Biology at the Doñana Biological Station (CSIC). According to the new study, the main reasons for the limited information on the effect of habitat loss and fragmentation for felid conservation are “the lack of both financing for research and communication between managers and researchers,” highlights Palomares.

North America and Europe generate the greatest amount of research on the effect of habitat loss on felids. However, in view of the lack of research in certain countries with less economic resources, the real effect of this threat is still unknown for 16 species of felids. This is the case for the Andean mountain cat (Leopardus jacobita), the Bornean bay cat (Pardofelis badia), the flat-headed cat (Prionailurus planiceps), and the fishing cat (Prionailurus viverrinus), in danger of extinction and for whom there are very few studies and conservation measures. Among those on which there is little scientific information is the Iberian lynx, the most threatened felid, and which is considered critically endangered according to the Red List of Threatened Species of the International Union for Conservation of Nature.

“However, in accordance with our review of scientific literature, it is a model species and exemplary in evaluating the effect of habitat loss and fragmentation,” the researcher points out, who adds that there is scientific data to help to develop successful conservation plans for the species. As the Iberian lynx lives in the Mediterranean scrubland, its habitat needs protecting. “As well as suitable vegetation, there must be significant rabbit populations,” adds Palomares. The lynx’s conservation strategy consists of connecting isolated populations through ecological corridors, but the information provided through local and regional population viability models for short and longer time periods also helps. The team of researchers highlights the need to tackle at least the following three areas of research for the rest of the felids: differentiating habitat loss from the effects of fragmentation using theoretical scenarios; selecting priority areas for conservation, and analysing the consequences of habitat loss. “Felid conservationists must start to design more theoretical projects and apply the new tools and methodologies available in research on landscape and wildlife,” concludes the study.

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http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/03/150325082039.htm  Original web page at Science Daily

Felines have a tremendous sense of smell and vision, but the new study by researchers at the University of Lincoln, UK, has for the first time investigated which sense they prefer to use under test conditions — and suggested sight may be more important than smell. A group of six cats were placed in a maze which had ‘decision’ points — and the cats had to choose which avenue they took based on their preference for using images or smell. They were simultaneously presented with two squares of paper, each containing a different visual and odour cue. One combination of stimuli indicated they would receive a food reward, whereas the other led to no reward. Once the cats had learned the rules of the game and received food rewards for correctly choosing either the visual stimulus or the olfactory stimulus, the researchers separated the cues (visual versus olfactory) to investigate whether the cats were using their eyes or nose to solve the task.

Four out of the six cats picked the visual cue, over the odour cue, to receive their food reward with only one cat preferring to use its nose and the sixth showing no preference. So it seems that when they had the choice, cats simply preferred the visual signals over the olfactory ones. The findings have now been published by the international journal Applied Animal Behaviour Science. Evy Mayes carried out the research at the University of Lincoln while she was studying for her Masters degree in feline behaviour and welfare. Evy, who is now working at Battersea Dogs & Cats Home, explained: “Up until now we really thought that the sense of smell would dominate how cats view their world, but we are now reconsidering this and also the implications of how we manage them. At Battersea Dogs & Cats Home we make sure that our cats are housed in the best possible environment — one that respects the cat and provides each individual with whatever it needs in order to help it adapt to a rehoming environment.

I was also particularly surprised by the speed at which the cats learned how to solve the task, which is very encouraging for future cat behaviour studies.” Professor Daniel Mills, who supervised the study and is based in the University of Lincoln’s School of Life Sciences, added: “We live in a complex world and use all of our senses to make sense of it. This is the first time we have asked cats how they operate rather than assumed this from what we know about their senses. Another important finding from this work is the individual variability — different cats had quite fixed preferences, and this may have important implications for their welfare. If there is a cat which has a strong preference for using its nose then simple changes in the smell of the environment might have a big impact on it, whereas, for others it may be insignificant. This work provides a unique insight into the important principles of attending to the needs of the individual rather than the population in general for good welfare.” Due to the small sample size, further investigation is required to infer a general preference for cats to use visual over olfactory stimuli when learning the location of food.

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http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2015/02/150226110403.htm  Original web page at Science Daily