| Cat Supplies Article |
The cat (Felis silvestris catus), also known as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from other felines, is a small carnivorous species of nocturnal mammal that is often valued by humans for its companionship and its ability to hunt vermin. It has been associated with humans for at least 9,500 years.
Cats are obligate carnivores, meaning they must ingest the flesh of other animals to survive. Where other carnivorous mammals like bears and dogs commonly add to their diets of meat with fruits, berries, roots, and honey when available, by contrast all cats instinctively feed almost solely on meat.
Similarly as with its teeth, a cat's digestive tract has become specialized over time to suit its diet, having shortened in length to only those segments of intestine best able to break down proteins and fats from animal flesh. The evolved trait severely limits the cat's ability to properly digest, metabolize, and absorb plant-derived or synthesized nutrients, as well as certain fatty acids. For example, cats cannot convert the pro-vitamin A abundant in plants, to make vitamin A. Also, a number of required nutrients are not sufficiently available in plant matter to begin with; one critical absence is taurine, a key amino sulfonic acid for eye health. Taurine deficiency can cause a condition called macular degeneration wherein the cat's retina slowly degenerates, eventually causing irreversible blindness.
Due to the above, most felines eat fairly little if any plantstuffs. Yet it is nevertheless quite common for a cat to occasionally supplement its carnivorous diet with small amounts of grass, leaves, shrubs, houseplants, or other plant matter anyway. One theory suggests this behaviour is to facilitate regurgitation if their digestion is upset; another is that it perhaps introduces fibre or trace minerals to the diet. In this context, caution is recommended for cat owners because some houseplants are harmful to cats. The leaves of the Easter Lily can cause permanent and life-threatening kidney damage to cats. Philodendron are also poisonous to cats. Cat Fancy has a full list of plants harmful to cats.
As an exception to the general rule, certain domesticated cats are known to like vegetables. This happenstance may inspire some vegetarian or vegan pet owners to encourage or even impose their own dietary preferences upon their cats, often using commercially-available cat foods supplemented with chemically-synthesized taurine and other added nutrients to address nutritional shortfalls. However, it remains arguable as to whether or not such a vegetarian diet can in fact meet a cat's dietary requirements.
Additionally, cats have been known to develop a fondness for prepared human foods, normally such entrees which are rich in proteins or fats. However, a diet consisting only of human food (even if high quality meat) is unlikely to contain the balanced nutrition required by the cat. Cats normally are good self-regulators of diet; however, unlimited access to food, or excessive human-food 'treats', will often lead to the cat becoming obese, particularly if it is older or more sedentary. This may lead to several health complications, such as diabetes, especially in neutered males. Such health conditions can be prevented through diet and exercise (playing), especially for cats living exclusively indoors.
Cats can be fussy eaters (which may be due in some way to the aforementioned mutation which caused their species to lose sugar-tasting ability). Unlike most mammals, cats can voluntarily starve themselves indefinitely despite being presented with palatable food, even a food which they had previously readily consumed. This can happen when the vomeronasal or Jacobson's organ becomes accustomed to a specific food, or if the cats are spoiled by their owners, in which case the cat will reject any food that does not fit the pattern it is expecting. It is also known for cats to merely become bored with their given food and decide to stop eating until they are tempted into eating again. Although it is extremely rare for a cat to deliberately starve itself to the point of injury, the sudden loss of weight can cause a fatal condition called hepatic lipidosis, a liver dysfunction which causes pathological loss of appetite and reinforces the starvation, which can lead to death within as little as 48 hours.
Some cats have a fondness for catnip, which is sensed by their olfactory systems. While they generally do not consume it, they will often roll in it, paw at it, and occasionally chew on it. The effect is usually relatively short, lasting for only a few minutes. After two hours or less, susceptible cats gain interest again. Several other species of plants (such as mint) cause this effect, to a lesser degree.
Cats can also develop pica. Pica is a condition in which animals chew or eat unusual things such as fabric, plastic or wool. In cats, this is mostly harmless as they do not digest most of it, but can be fatal or require surgical removal if a large amount of foreign material is ingested (for example, an entire sock). It tends to occur more often in Burmese, Oriental, Siamese and breeds with these in their ancestry.
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 | 1/4-POUND CAT DOG "oat GRASS" digestive track aid SEEDS
$9.50 |
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|  | PET Nail Clippers - Stainless Steel Free shipping USA*
$5.49 |
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 | Advantage for cats under 4kgs - 6 pack
$36.53 |
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|  | 3 HOLIDAY STUFFED CAT TOYS 100% to PET CHARITY
$2.75 |
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 | Cat Tree House Toy Bed Scratcher Post Furniture F07
$0.99 |
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|  | Armarkat Cat Tree Pet Furniture Condo Scratcher #A5801
$0.99 |
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 | HANDMADE CATNIP KICKER TOY
$2.00 |
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|  | The Window-Mounted Cat Porch 73770
$79.99 |
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 | Holiday Kitty Gift Sets (1104)
$25.00 |
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|  | Adjustable nylon cat collars wt bell--6$
$15.20 |
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 | 74" Cat Tree House Condo Scratcher Post Furniture F2038
$0.99 |
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|  | PETMATE DELUXE FRESH FLOW WATERING SYSTEM New in Box
$8.99 |
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 | Colorful Springs Thin 10 Pack
$1.79 |
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|  | fur mice cat toy LONG HAIR- pack of 50
$9.99 |
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20 BOGO FREE Purina Friskies Cat Treat Coupons $3.23/1!
$0.50 |
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|  | ADVANTAGE FOR CATS OVER 9 lbs 10 MONTH SUPPLY 4 6 8 12
$34.95 |
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 | ADVANTAGE IN BOX FOR CATS OVER 9 LBS 4 MONTH SUPPLY EPA
$39.99 |
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|  | NEW Booda 6 Pack Soft Bite Mice Cat Toy with Catnip
$1.99 |
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 | FRONTLINE PLUS flea control small dogs 0-22 lbs 6 dose
$17.95 |
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|  | NEW LITTERMAID ELITE MEGA LME9250 Automatic Litter Box
$75.00 |
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 | Petmate Small Pet Carrier/Taxi Pink-NWT (8897)
$8.50 |
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|  | Hip CAT COLLAR Christmas Gingerbread Men ADJUSTS 7-11"
$5.95 |
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 | PetSafe Self Cleaning Cat Litter Box, Electric, Kitty
$89.00 |
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|  | Petmate Litter Locker Plus-NIB (8898)
$13.50 |
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 | HANDMADE CATNIP KICKER TOY
$2.00 |
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|  | FRONTLINE PLUS FOR CATS NEW IN BOX 3 MONTH SUPPLY USA
$36.99 |
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 | small dogs FRONTLINE PLUS flea control 0-22 lbs 6 dose
$23.84 |
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|  | camo bed bone pattern bed new sealed hard to find
$3.00 |
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Nextar 1.5" LCD Screen Display
$0.99 |
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|  | Cats Rule Priscilla's Litter Pan Passion Pink
$5.99 |
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 | Armarkat Cat Tree Pet Furniture Condo Scratcher #B3001
$0.99 |
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|  | Pawprint Adjust Nylon cat collars wt bell (3)!
$7.58 |
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 | 55" Cat Tree Condo House Scratcher Pet Furniture bed-03
$59.99 |
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|  | ADVANTAGE CAT FLEA 10 MONTHS DOSES UP TO 9 POUNDS
$19.00 |
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 | Pet Door size small(cats to 15 lbs & dogs to 7 lbs) NEW
$0.99 |
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|  | CAT HOLIDAY WRAPPING PAPER, SO CUTE, MUST SEE!
$1.99 |
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 | CAT GRASS SEEDS - A MIX CATS LOVE - FREE SHIPPING
$3.00 |
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|  | 6 pcs adjust nylon cat collars wt bell@
$15.20 |
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 | 3 ORGANIC CATNIP KNOTS CAT TOY 100% to PET CHARITY
$3.50 |
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|  | ORGANIC WHEAT SEEDS - CAT GRASS - FREE SHIPPING
$3.00 |
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 | 8 Energizer ULTIMATE LITHIUM 8X AA Batteries *NEW*
$0.99 |
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|  | Program cats 4.6-9kgs - 6 pack
$29.02 |
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 | Armarkat Cat Tree Pet Furniture Condo Scratcher #A4201
$0.99 |
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|  | 6 WHOLESALE Wind Up Windup Fake Mouse Cat Dog Toy
$19.95 |
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*19 COUPONS HILLS SCIENCE DIET B3G1 FREE CAT FOOD+BONUS
$0.99 |
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|  | HANDMADE CATNIP MAT
$5.00 |
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 | PetSafe Cat Windoor - Removable Pet Door
$74.95 |
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|  | CAT GRASS SEEDS - A MIX CATS LOVE - FREE SHIPPING
$3.00 |
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 | 24 Christmas Mice Tumblers fleece roly Cat Toys grn/red
$14.99 |
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|  | ADVANTAGE FLEA CONTROL CATS OVER 9 lbs 5 MONTH SUPPLY 6
$18.99 |
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 | 100"-112" ADJ CAT TREE FURNITURE CONDO HOUSE SCRACHING
$0.99 |
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|  | Armarkat Cat Tree Pet Furniture Condo Scratcher #A8001
$0.99 |
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 | Cat Playpen Cage Midwest Model 130 With FREE BED !
$99.99 |
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|  | CHEAP 8 MONTH SUPPLY OF FRONTLINE PLUS FOR CATS
$19.00 |
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 | ORGANIC WHEAT SEEDS - CAT GRASS - FREE SHIPPING
$3.00 |
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|  | CATNIP SEEDS - CATS LOVE IT!!!!!!!! - FREE SHIPPING
$2.50 |
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 | Advantage for cats over 4kgs - 6 pack
$38.80 |
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| Norstar Meridian M7100 Office Phones
$0.99 |
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 | ADVANTAGE IN BOX FOR CATS OVER 9 LBS 6 MONTH SUPPLY EPA
$55.99 |
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|  | Smart Scoop Litter Box Spray Gift Set-NIB (8891)
$2.00 |
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 | ADVANTAGE FLEA CATS UNDER 9 lbs 10 MONTH SUPPLY 1 4 6 8
$18.99 |
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|  | Advantage for cats under 4kgs - 4 pack
$25.04 |
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 | TERRIFIC FRESH PET AREA DEODORIZER/AIR PURIFIER - NIB
$9.99 |
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|  | Cat Tree House Toy Bed Scratcher Post Furniture F18
$9.99 |
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 | Adams Flea and Tick Shampoo 6 oz
$0.99 |
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|  | 94" Cat Tree Condo House Scratcher Pet Furniture bed-09
$109.99 |
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 | ADVANTAGE FLEA CONTROL KIT ALL SIZES dogs cats SAVE!!!!
$23.75 |
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|  | Beastie Bands snowmen Christmas red cat kitten collar
$5.99 |
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 | SALE 16 MONTH SUPPLY OF FRONTLINE PLUS FOR CATS
$36.00 |
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|  | 96"-109" ADJ CAT TREE FURNITURE CONDO HOUSE SCRACHING
$0.99 |
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 | Armarkat Cat Tree Pet Furniture Condo Scratcher #A4301
$0.99 |
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|  | 18 Fancy Feast Gourmet cans cat food 1.00/24 coupons
$0.99 |
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 | Handsewn Cat Nip Feather Cat Toys (1049)
$3.00 |
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| 20 $1.00/4 Friskies Selects Indoor Can Cat food Coupons
$0.55 |
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 | Vera Bradley Blue Pet Porter/Carrier for Cat or dog
$15.00 |
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|  | Armarkat Cat Tree Pet Furniture Condo Scratcher #B6802
$0.99 |
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 | FRONTLINE PLUS CAT 6 MONTHS FREE SHIPPING
$32.95 |
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|  | *** Killer Bud *** Catnip Kitty Drugs - The Catnip King
$4.99 |
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 | Littermaid Elite Mega LME9000MB Automatic Litter Box
$134.95 |
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|  | ADVANTAGE CAT FLEA 5 MONTHS DOSES OVER 9 POUNDS
$19.00 |
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 | .005 PET SCRATCH TOWER - CAT FERRET HOME -5 HUGE LEVELS
$16.99 |
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|  | 55" Cat Tree Condo House Scratcher Pet Furniture bed-03
$59.99 |
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 | ADVANTAGE BOX FOR CATS UNDER 9 LBS 4 MONTH SUPPLY EPA 6
$38.99 |
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|  | "HUGE" Cat Tree Toy House Scratcher Post Furniture FC01
$9.99 |
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 | CatIt Pet Water Fountain with mat,extra filters &dishes
$19.99 |
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|  | Bling doggie collar black pink bone rhinestones
$2.99 |
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 | Program for cats up to 4.5kgs - 6 pack
$26.92 |
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|  | Program for cats up to 4.5kgs - 6 pack
$26.92 |
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 | Flashing Cat Ball
$2.21 |
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|  | 55" Cat Tree Condo House Scratcher Pet Furniture bed-05
$59.99 |
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 | Armarkat Cat Tree Pet Furniture Condo Scratcher #A7101
$0.99 |
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|  | 73" Cat Tree Condo House Scratcher Pet Furniture bed-08
$99.99 |
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 | ORGANIC CATNIP CAT TOY HANDMADE 100% to PET CHARITY
$2.65 |
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|  | 38" Cat Tree House Condo Scratcher Post Furniture F38
$0.99 |
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 | .094 PET TENT CARRIER - BLUE - CAT ON CLOUD DESIGN NEW
$0.99 |
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|  | 45" Cat Tree House Toy Bed Scratcher Post Furniture F05
$0.99 |
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 | K&H Thermo Heated Kitty Cat Bed 16" x 16" x 6"
$44.99 |
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|  | CATNIP SEEDS - CATS LOVE IT!!!!!!!! - FREE SHIPPING
$2.50 |
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 | Littermaid Litter Maid Cat Box LM800 Bonus RAMP
$38.75 |
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|  | ***SET OF (3) USED FELIWAY COMFORT ZONE DIFFUSERS***
$14.99 |
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