Saturday, 07 April, 2012 06:18 Last Updated on Saturday, 07 April, 2012 06:18
My friend the feline is oftentimes treated as a second-class citizen when up against the popular canine.
Dogs play fetch, go for walks, ride in cars with their heads out the window and even go to happy hour to mingle with their buddies.
Cats, confined to their homes, rarely make an appearance anywhere but the kitchen counter and couch.
But I have noticed a change in the world of pets since January. I have watched as new products and philosophies replace the cat complacency of the past. The blase world of the indoor cat is on its way out.
En route to Las Vegas for the National Association of Professional Pet Sitters Annual Conference, I perused the popular publication, SkyMall, out of boredom and curiosity. (As you may know, SkyMall boasts a generous catalog of all things practical and sometimes awe-inspiring.)
After leafing through the housewares and travel gadgets, I turned to the pet section. I had seen most of the offerings before ? dog crates disguised as end tables, sophisticated dog bowls, orthopedic pet beds, specialty cat scratchers and portable dog hydration systems.
Unimpressed, I almost put the magazine away when something caught my eye. I gasped. I was shocked and hopeful all at the same time.
Before my very eyes was a kit that promised to teach a cat to use the toilet in as little as eight weeks. Yes, a kitty toilet training kit. A human toilet. Could this be real? No. This only happened in the movies.
But it is real and pretty straightforward. It offered different-sized panels that are seemingly placed over the toilet seat. The cat starts by using the smallest opening and slowly but surely progresses to the point where he is doing his business in the toilet without the risk of falling in and without the help of the panels. Wow.
Only a day later, a cat trainer and expert discussed on common cat behavior during the NAPPS conference. Serendipitously, one of my fellow pet sitters posed the question that I had been pondering throughout her presentation.
?Do you train cats to use the toilet?? she asked.
Our presenter was taken aback by the question. She may have been offended. ?No. I do not believe that cats should be taught to use the toilet,? she curtly responded.
It was clear: The pet expert disagreed with a practice that was, unbeknownst to me, becoming quite common.
She didn?t convince me. I mean, litter boxes are disgusting. If you can train your cat to use the toilet, then why not try? Then you can say goodbye to the litter box, scooper and cloud of filthy talc that inevitably surrounds you anytime you?re near that nasty thing. Hygienic harmony, I thought. How wonderful!
I was still considering the possibilities when a staff member of mine emailed to report on a new client meeting. Right there among the typical text ? about the humans, their pets, keys, etc. ? were the words, ?They don?t have a litter box, they trained the cat to use the toilet.?
What? One of our clients trained their cat to use the toilet? I almost called the client to find out how it went, what technique they used and how in the world they motivated their cat to do such a thing. Instead, considering it was after 9 p.m., I just sat back and smiled.
It was then that I realized that cat people are starting a revolution. They are working to improve the quality of their cats? lives and their relationships with them.
Cat parents are staking a claim in the once overlooked cat product market and, among other things, are teaching their cats to use the toilet. Rumor has it that some cat people are even teaching their cats to flush.
Take that, dog people!
Alexandria resident Isabel Alvarez owns The Wag Pack, a professional pet services company. The National Association of Professional Pet Sitters recently named?The Wag Pack its business?of the year.
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