Ilda Rosa Veterinarian Professor, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária da Universidade de Lisboa Cats at home are increasing in Portuguese homes. They are excellent companions and adapt well to living in an apartment . Furthermore cats… Do not require going outdoor; Usually have a long life, on average longer than that of dogs; Are cheaper to maintain than dogs; Can stay home alone without disturbing anyone; Do not need as much time as dogs for education and training. Educating and training cats means respecting and taking advantage of characteristics and limitations of the specie s and adapting them to home life. For example, cats: Are animals that like habits for the place of waste: they must therefore have their own litter box, always in the same place in the house; They need to scratch to wear down their nails: they must have a surface for this purpose, so they won't use the sofa or other inconvenient places; They like to observe from above what is going on around them: if there is no furniture for this purpose, or if you don't want the cats to use it, then you have to provide a place where the cat can satisfy this need. What about the personality of cats? Cats have their own personality traits that must be known and respected : They are usually very independent; They have a good deal of self-confidence; They like dominate their territory and those who live there; As a rule, they do not mind obeying orders at all, but they do it because they want to and not to please anyone. Even so, cats are very good companions and often have special relationships with children, different even from those they have with the adults in the same family. And a good friendship with a cat promotes respect, empathy and responsibility , as long as the cat's personality and desires are considered. How to choose a cat If there are children at home and you want to have a cat, there are some criteria that can help, for example, preferring cats that: Are calm and are not disturbed by noise or changes in the domestic environment; Like to be cuddled and held; Are friendly and curious. The a ge of the cat is very important when there are children: It is always preferable to choose an older, calm and tolerant cat. And if he has had a good previous experience with children, even better; Choosing a kitten means taking time for education and training. Also, children are noisy, they may want to play with the kitten like a toy and the cat may not like it and react aggressively out of fear. Introducing cats and children Getting cats and children used to each other presence is the first step in a good relationship. For everyone's safety, supervision of all interactions between children and cats (or other species of companion animals) is imperative. In the initial interactions, let the cat smell the child, so that he memorizes the smell and gets used to the child presence: Safeguarding the child, the cat should be allowed to take the initiative to get near, and this should never be forced. When interacting, it must always be possible for the cat to run away and hide if it feels nervous or uncomfortable. These careful interactions must be repeated regularly to maintain harmony between the two. It should also be known that, in general, cats : Are afraid of loud sounds and noises; Do not like to be grabbed and picked up suddenly; Do not like having someone running after them; When they let someone pet them, this should always be done in a calm and gentle way and not in areas that cats don't like, such as: The abdomen area (belly); The head The tail. Cats should not be interacted with when they are: Eating or drinking; Sleeping; Using the litter box. Toys and games with the cat Toys for cats do not have to be expensive, they can be made at home and with different used and recycled materials : balls, cardboard boxes where they can hide, objects or surfaces to scratch serve the purpose. Games with cats should consider their hunting behavior and curiosity: Running after moving objects, whether or not they can grab them; Toys or ribbons hanging, anything they can chase and eventually grab; Games that make them climb to high places where they can observe what is going on around them. A good way to improve the interaction between a child and a cat is to teach the child to take care of the animal, if the age allows, involving them in tasks such as feeding or petting. The body language of cats Distinguishing when a cat is in the mood to play, wants to be held, or is afraid and does not even want to get close have to be taught as children when they grow and begin to understand. These are some signs that the cat is fed up with being held and wants to move away : Starts to squirm and want to escape; Gets excited, moan, growl or meow loudly; Turns the ears back and the hair volume seems to increase; Put the claws out; Dilates the pupils; Wagging the tip or the full tail. These are signs of a good reaction of a cat to a child : The animal eats, drinks, sleeps and maintains its normal daily activity; Remain relaxed and comfortable if the child is present. Whenever a cat seems reluctant to enter the place where the child is, does not want to be in its presence, hides or seems aggressive, these signs must be understood as unhappiness and lead to strategies to promote a good relationship or find alternatives. These are alarm signs before which the cat should not be bothered with interaction: Wagging tail; Hair bristling; Hissing and growling; Dilated pupils; Ears flattened or turned back or to the side; Lick the nose; Twitching or flipping the tip of the tail; Lick quickly any part of the body; Avoid the gaze. At these times, the cat must be left at ease so that stress will not increase and a safer future for the relationship is promoted.
