Welcome to the daily event in my household known as cat racing. I have three cats but, two of them are highly competitive and have evolved into speed demons. I should have named them after race car drivers. They take chances. They are daring. I could sell tickets. These cats can be fast and love to see who is the fastest.
Caracal is one of the heaviest of the small cats and is a great athlete and runner. It’s unique tree climbing and jumping abilities set it apart from other wild felines. Named scientifically as Caracal Caracal it is also often called African or Persian Lynx owing to similarities in appearance with the lynx, though genetic research now suggests that it is more closely related to the Serval.
Questions for the environmental pet owner
1. Do you use biodegradable poop bags for your dog? ‘Normal’ carrier bag can take over 100 years to fully breakdown.
2. Do you pick up your dog’s faeces? Apart from the obvious fact that dog faeces look disgusting they can harbour disease and worms. They can contaminate grazing areas for other animals and damage the natural environment.
3. Do you use biodegradable cat litter? Cat litter is available in materials such as wood, paper and corn all of which break down.
Some 5000 years ago (recent studies say about 100.000 years ago, but who’s counting) a smart - and hungry - African Wildcat somewhere in (what was then) Upper Egypt made a clever observation. “These strange and mysterious bipeds seem to be very fond of grain”, he thought. “Biped collects lots of grain and keeps it in big baskets. Big baskets of grain attract lots of yummy mice! Biped doesn’t seem to like mice in his grain! I think I’ll adopt one of these strange bipeds and live in his house and EAT HIS MICE FOR HIM!”
Over 75% of our cats and dogs have passed middle age and are entering their “golden years”.
To call a cat old, one mustn’t consider chronological age, but rather physiological condition. Biological and chronological aging are not inexorably linked. Aging begins when the body’s systems start to slow down — when cells deteriorate faster than the body can repair them.
We think of it as a progressive decline in mental and physical functioning and appearance which is accompanied by an increase in susceptibility to chronic diseases. This is caused primarily by three factors: Genetic inheritance, declining hormone levels and oxidative stress.
