Is catnip safe for pregnant cats?
As a responsible cat owner, if your cat is pregnant, can you give them catnip?
The magic of catnip.
Many cat owners must have seen the power of catnip
On weekdays, the gentle and lovely kitten will indulge in a few “broken leaves” and show an “unspeakable” contrived gesture.
Why does catnip have such a magic power to attract our cats?
How do they affect cat behavior?
Is catnip safe?
is catnip bad for pregnant cats？
can nursing cats have catnip?
What Happens When Your Cat Consumes Too Much Catnip?
This article will walk you through the questions that will allow you to learn more about your cat.
What is catnip?
Catnip is a perennial herb of the mint family. This plant contains an essential oil called nepetalactone, which is what attracts our cats.
Past research has found that catnip can cause changes in the cat’s nervous system, and it’s considered a mild hallucinogen.
Cocaine in the cat world?
At present, there are a lot of catnip sold separately on the market, and there are also a lot of toys with catnip. Some companies also purify catnip and make products such as sprays.
Studies have found that nearly 50% of cats are interested in catnip. For these cats, catnip can produce a “cloudy” sense of pleasure, and this “detachment” usually lasts 5 to 15 minutes.
Tip: Kittens are usually not interested in catnip until they are sexually mature, which is about 6 months old.
Under the influence of this natural herb, cats will roll, scratch their heads or drool, and sometimes catnip will stimulate the cat’s aggressive desire, causing the otherwise quiet cat to fight with other cats. Such a sudden change in a cat’s behavior can indeed be amusing.
Does Catnip Affect Your Cat’s Health?
Maybe, maybe not, the jury is still out. However, some studies have found that if cats are exposed to catnip for a long time, it may cause damage to the cat’s intelligence.
Empiricism can tell us that nothing of any kind should be given to cats in large quantities over a long period of time. The same goes for catnip.
Catnip should be an occasional item, and we recommend giving your cat a little fresh catnip every two weeks or so.
About the Catnip ball toy
Toys with catnip added are also safer. Most cats will develop a sense of excitement with this type of toy, but this will slowly decrease as play time increases.
If your cat seems obsessed with a catnip toy, we recommend that you remove it after about 10-15 minutes of play. When playing, you should also know how to rest.
Is catnip safe for pregnant cats ? For some cats, the smell of catnip may be one of the most captivating and delightful scents in the world. Nepetalactone simply “fits” the cat’s olfactory receptors perfectly.
In fact, in addition to catnip, cats are often interested in the smell of honeysuckle, valerian root, and silver vine.
Not all cats like catnip
Is catnip safe for pregnant cats ? According to existing statistics, as many as half of cats do not respond to catnip. In fact, the extent to which cats respond to catnip has a lot to do with their parents. In other words, whether cats like catnip is actually related to its genetics.
Kittens rarely respond to catnip until 6 months of age. In other words, this joy is only understood by “adult” cats.
Even in some cats, catnip is a sedative rather than a stimulant. So, different cats may react to catnip in completely different ways.
Behavioral changes that catnip may cause.
In its simplest form, we’ll list the possible behavioral changes that catnip can cause in cats, and you can see if your cat exhibits these behaviors.
Behaviors that cats may experience when exposed to catnip include:
- Shaking his head, wagging his tail, rubbing his face against catnip, rolling frantically;
- Makes inexplicable sounds that seem completely out of control;
- show a very happy, very happy appearance;
- Some cats are more aggressive when exposed to catnip;
- Full of vitality, jumping up and down;
The “excited behavior” caused by catnip usually lasts 10 to 15 minutes. Most cats lose interest in catnip after 15 minutes, perhaps because cats have a self-regulating mechanism for the brief induced behaviors produced by catnip.
Can too much catnip harm a cat?
I think the answer to this question is actually quite simple, because no matter how good a thing is, excess can lead to the opposite effect. So excess catnip can also harm your cat.
When cats ingest catnip in large quantities, the most common symptoms they show are vomiting and diarrhea. Because cats have the ability to self-regulate, cats will not eat catnip too much if they are not forced to eat them.
So, most cats do not get seriously ill after eating catnip to some extent.
Excessive intake of catnip can also cause neurological symptoms such as hyperexcitability or depression. However, such neurological symptoms are usually short-lived. The neurological symptoms resolve in about 10 to 15 minutes.
Aggressive cats may be induced by catnip to aggravate their aggressive behavior. So if your cat is grumpy, catnip may not be a good choice for him.
Is catnip safe for pregnant cats ? Catnip can also affect a cat’s uterus, so we don’t recommend giving it to a pregnant female cat.
In conclusion.
Is catnip safe for pregnant cats ? Many cats love catnip, and many cats will show a state of “out of control” in the presence of catnip, and sometimes we are happy to see such a funny scene.
However, while making cats feel relaxed and happy, we also need to pay attention to the amount of catnip used. Because good things are good in moderation, and excessive amounts will lead to the result of “extremes turn into opposites”.
