This is the Hissing Feline Podcast, a weekly program that is about everything cats. The Hissing Feline features experts and other cat aficionados who share their knowledge and perspectives about dealing with felines. From strays and feral to adoption, health, and cat psychology. We hope the topics give you helpful and interesting insight into the world of cats. Now, here is the host of the Hissing Feline, Clark Creer.
SPEAKER_00Welcome to this edition of the Hissing Feline, a podcast that is about everything cats. Joining me today is Emily Hall, founder of Kitty Cat Go, a company that specializes in cat enrichment, training, feline travels, and adventures. Emily is a certified cat trainer, host of the Kitty Cat Go Adventure Podcast, and educator of cat parents. Emily, it's great to have you as my guest today on the podcast.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I'm super excited to be here today. Thanks so much for having me.
SPEAKER_00You know, I thought uh I would start today's show with a pop quiz to test our listeners' perception of cats. Quiz. That's right. We're gonna start it. We're gonna start a quiz for the show today, but don't worry, there's no final grade. And yes, that's a really good thing. And all the answers are true false. So is everybody ready? I'm gonna give them to you in statement form. First, cats just lay around all day, sleep, and do not need exercise. Second, unlike dogs, cats are not trainable. And now here is the last question. Cats are low maintenance. Now it's time to check your answers, and Emily is going to give us some information that will help you better understand perception and maybe experience with cats. Emily, do cats need exercise?
SPEAKER_01Yes, absolutely. You know, I I liked your question about uh if cats are low maintenance because that is such a common misconception. People get a cat thinking, oh, well, you know, I don't have to take it for walks. It's way easier than a dog, but cats do need exercise, physical and mental exercise, and and they have all those hunting instincts that they need outlets for to act on those. So yeah, cats absolutely need exercise.
SPEAKER_00The the idea of exercise is part of cat enrichment. And I'm not sure how many of the listeners understand that. Could you explain what's involved in cat enrichment?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so uh enrichment is it encompasses a lot of uh different types of activities and and things you can do with your cat, but it's basically just meeting their needs. So um, you know, enrichment could be playing with your cats so that they can act on their hunting instincts and run and jump and climb. It could be providing them with uh scratching posts and hidey holes that they can go and nap in. It could be providing them with different types of treats so they can try out different flavors and different proteins, um, you know, basically just hitting on all of their five senses so that uh, you know, their brains and their bodies and everything are are getting the exercise that they need.
SPEAKER_00You were you're talking about why it's necessary for them to do that. I'll I'll give you an example. We've got two cats. And one, Maddie, is she's actually going to be five here this month. And she is talking about a cat that has a lot of energy. She is it. And she loves to oh, she loves to run, she loves to play. She's got a little toy mouse that if I toss it, she fetches, which is really a lot of fun. I'm not too concerned about her getting exercise, but we have a calico that loves to just take it easy and rest, and we've been trying to play with her more. Are there ways that people can get their cat to be a little more active around the house?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so you know, that's a that's a great point because just like people, cats have different personalities. You know, you've got the high-energy cats that are are easy to play with because they're always wanting to play, right? You sometimes you almost feel like you can't provide them with enough uh enough play. You know, I have one of those too. Um, and then there are the ones that um, like you said, are a little more laid back and and maybe don't seem like they want to play. Um, but different cats have different preferences in the types of play and the types of enrichment they they enjoy most. So um, you know, enrichment can a lot of times be experimentation, you know, trying different types of activities to see what gets your cat excited. So if you know you have a cat that is maybe not excited by a wand toy and doesn't really feel like running and jumping after that, you could try a snuffle mat, you know, like a little mat where you sprinkle some treats in and they have to sniff around and find the treats, or a food puzzle toy, or um clicker training is a really great form of enrichment as well. Um can be mentally uh engaging as well as physical. Um so you know, I think it it just it just requires some trial and error, you know, to find what excites your cat.
SPEAKER_00Your your website talks about outdoor activities and indoor enrichment. Let's let's talk about indoor enrichment because our cats are totally indoor cats. Uh, but we like to have them get experiences. How how can you uh better do that with uh with an indoor uh feline?
SPEAKER_01Providing them with enrichment yes, enrichment for indoor cats. Yeah, well, um, you know, a lot of the activities I've mentioned, like the wand toys are definitely um really great for I mean, whether your cat gets indoor or outdoor access, uh wand toys are to me one of the best ways to provide your cat with enrichment because it can get them running and jumping, stretching and working their muscles in all the ways that they need to, and it also helps satisfy those hunting instincts that they have. Um, you know, because you can dangle the wand toy through a tunnel or under a blanket or something, and they can pounce and and just act on those hunting instincts. So wand toys definitely um are one of my top recommendations. And I'm also a really big fan of clicker training. Um, you know, I think people sometimes think clicker training like, oh, well, cats aren't trainable, like you like you mentioned on your truefalse quiz, but they absolutely are, and um it just takes finding the right motivation, and for most cats it's gonna be a favorite treat. And even if you don't have grand ideas of getting your cat to jump through hoops and do all kinds of fancy tricks, um, there are really simple games that you can play uh with a clicker, uh like leading them around, jumping on and off uh furniture and obstacles, um, so that they're getting some physical exercise. And, you know, even some simple behaviors like sit or um jumping over your leg, or you know, lots of fun little easy behaviors that you can train with your cat. Um, so one toys and clicker training, and definitely the scent-based activities like food puzzles. Um, I one of my favorite activities, scent activities I do with my cats, is I've got these Easter eggs and they have um like holes drilled in them, and I hide some treats inside the eggs and then hide the Easter eggs around my living room, and then the cats have to sniff them out and find the eggs, and they get then they get their treats. So those are my favorite types of enrichment activity.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that that sounds really interesting. Our cats love treats, so that would be a great way to get them active as well as rewarding them for finding the treats in the in the object then. Um how about outdoor activities? Um, it is it good to take, and we're gonna talk in a little bit about uh harness and leash training, but outdoor activities, is it good to get cats outside and experiencing their environment?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, absolutely. So um I I will previously with I am not a proponent of letting cats free roam um outdoors. Um if my if I'm giving my cats outdoor access, it's 100% controlled either on their catio, on a harness and leash, um, in a backpack or stroller or something like that. Um but giving your cat outdoor access is incredibly enriching because it kind of hits on all of the senses, right? There's all the sights and smells and sounds and even tastes all in one kind of. And um uh, you know, when cats are inside only, they they can be more prone to boredom, right? So, I mean, obviously there are cats, you know, you're providing them with plenty of indoor enrichment activities and it it can be fine, but um, the outside is just so enriching, you know, they can sit outside on the porch and watch the birds. And I think sometimes when people hear about going out on a harness and leash, they think, oh, my cat would never go hiking or never go camping, all these like big adventures. But outdoor adventures don't have to be um those big grand adventures, just going and sitting on the front porch or the backyard or you know, whatever, um those are incredibly enriching experiences. And while my cats do go hiking and things like that, 90% of the outdoor time that we do is just hanging out in the backyard together.
SPEAKER_00And exploration, as you were uh alluding to, is part of the cat's nature. So enabling them to do that will give them uh uh a better enrichment, uh will help them uh physically as well as mentally.
SPEAKER_01Right. Yeah, and the you know, change of scenery, they get to experience the changing temperatures, the sun, all of that. You know, it's it's a very, very enriching experience.
SPEAKER_00And my wife and I have noticed that now that the weather is decent and it's not freezing cold outside, we can we can open up our windows. Of course, they've got screens on them because we wanted the cats to get outside, but they love to sit in front of the open window. And and the smells and it they try to determine who's actually gonna see it sit on a little table with a uh mat here, you know, and it's like one will kick the other one off and the other one will do that. So the other one will go into the office because there's another one in there. But they they love this time of year when it's not too hot out and they can enjoy uh just the scents from the outside.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, absolutely. Open windows are um a really great way, especially if you've got a bird feeder or a birdbath nearby, so they can sit in that open window and watch the birds and inevitably the squirrels, because we all know the squirrels are really the big the big feeders.
SPEAKER_00Right, that's true. That is true. Yeah, and they like to watch, they like to watch the creatures run through the yard. Uh a couple of years, a couple of years ago, I couldn't figure out what our tabby was looking at out of the office window on a look out there, and a deer was coming through the yard. So I guess they get big creatures to look at. Wow. So yeah, she was thinking, what is that? That doesn't look like a squirrel to me. But uh anyway. Do you do you find that there are any differences in levels of desire or motivation for adventure based on cat breeds or personalities?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, um, just like you know, earlier we were talking about the different personalities and how cats can have different preferences for the types of indoor activities. The same goes for outdoors. You know, I've got um my husband and I, we have six cats. And um, I have one that wants to go outside every day. And uh I might not take him out on his harness and leash every day, but he at least gets to go out on the catio every day. Um and he is happy sitting out there all day long watching the birds and the squirrels. But we have a couple cats who hardly ever go out on the catio. Um, and you know, they I might take them out in the backyard every now and then, but it's not it's not their thing, you know. Um just like people, cats have different uh different preferences. And some cats will, you know, the high energy ones, like we were talking about high energy cats, um, really confident, sociable cats, those are gonna be the ones who might be more apt to wanting to go on those outdoor adventures because uh their personality just lends itself to that a little bit more.
SPEAKER_00Yeah. And cats are trainable. You work with harness and leash training. Is there an age when someone should start that type of training, or should it be when they're younger, or is there a specific age that people are should be looking at for those things?
SPEAKER_01I would say anytime. It's never too early, it's never too late. Um, I have trained my own cats at various ages. I've I our newest cat that we just adopted last summer, he just turned a year old. I started harness training him uh pretty much right when we adopted him and brought him home. Um, but uh one of our cats, I didn't train him until he was 10. Um he loved it. Uh he ended up being a a hiker. He loved the catio going out in the backyard, all the things. So um I think it comes down more to the cat's personality than their age. I think a lot of times people think, oh, well, I it's too late for my cat. I didn't start when they were a kitten. And uh I always like to encourage people that it's never too late because your cat might surprise you. My 10-year-old cat, um, when we trained him, when he was younger, when we adopted him as a kitten, um, I mean, granted, I am better at training now than I was then. Uh, that was about 14 years ago. Um, he did not take to the harness training then. And I just gave up and didn't try again. And then at 10, I tried again and he loved it and took to it really quickly. So again, I think anytime.
SPEAKER_00All right. I'm Clark Greer. You're listening to the Hissing Feline podcast. After our break, guest Emily Hall of Kitty Cat Go and I will visit about car travels with cats and taking your cats into the great outdoors. Please stay with us.
SPEAKER_03Hi, everybody. My name is Sherry Dean Harmley, and I'm the author of the Prescott Family Chronicles. Book five in the series, and the truth shall set you free, recently became available on Amazon. Madison Prescott was a young woman who was trapped into a false sense of guilt over the death of a very dear friend. Her uncle Johnny Prescott was a man who believed a lie his entire life until a special letter came by, and he found out that the truth really did set him free. I hope you'll visit my author website, stparmalayauthor.com, or check out my books on Amazon. Thanks so much for your support. Bye for now.
SPEAKER_00I'm back with more of the Hissing Feline podcast. I'm your host, Clark Beer, with today's guest, Emily Hall, founder of Kitty Cat Go. Our final quiz question asked whether cats are low maintenance. Your website notes that meeting a cat's needs for higher potential includes both mental and physical activities, and you mentioned that a little earlier in the uh program today. One way to do that is through adventures and exploration, and that can include taking cats on road trips. What types of tips do you have for people who would like to do that?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so road tripping uh definitely has some, I guess, prerequisites that go with it. So the first being uh carrier training. Um I I am a big proponent of keeping cats safe and secure in a carrier when traveling in the car for their own safety, for your safety, for the safety of everybody else on the road. Uh better safe than sorry is definitely my motto when it comes to that kind of thing. So um some cats are not big fans of the carrier, so it might require some training to get them used to it, but it absolutely is possible. Um, and then also getting cats used to the car. Uh car training um, you know, can involve letting them just explore around in the car when it's parked and uh working up towards driving down the road, you know. It's uh all very gradual small steps, but carrier training and car training are the two um important prerequisites for road trips for sure.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, certainly. And I've read other places that it's really important to put a cat in a carrier, not just to let it wander around the car. It's also it's not good for the driver if it gets in the way or something like that. So yeah, you really do have to think about safety on those types of things. We had we had a cat that we got when she was a kitten, she lived to be almost 21. She was a wonderful traveler. She would be in the carrier and she'd just go to sleep when we were gonna like when we were moving or something. Uh our calico, if we take her to the vet, which is not very far away from us, she gets really meowy. And are there are there things that I guess that's just the animal, but are there things that people can do that will help to kind of alleviate those? It's obvious, obviously, a lot of stress and things associated with that.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, so a lot of times, well, a lot of cats, the only time they leave the house when they're in the car is when they're going to the bed.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that's that's ours.
SPEAKER_01Hopefully, isn't very often, right? So um, if you practice more often, that can help a lot, you know, even if it's just taking a ride around the block, um, or down, I mean, even smaller than that, backing out of the driveway and back in again, you know, these small little baby steps and practicing those and getting your cat acclimated to being in the car, and of course, giving them lots of treats through the experience.
SPEAKER_00So, treats are a good thing for the cats, they love treats.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And they're also, you know, if a cat is is really stressed out about riding in the car, you can talk to your vet about um some medications that will help to keep them a little more calm during during car rides.
SPEAKER_00Now, people can take cats into the, I call it the great outdoors. They're actually doing something like camping, going to sit locations that might be really unfamiliar. I would imagine there's safety and environmental issues if somebody wants to do that.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, absolutely. Um, if I'm gonna take my cats somewhere that we've never been before, I always like to first confirm that cats are allowed. Um, because as of today, uh taking cats out places is not super popular, right? When people think pet-friendly locations, um it people are usually thinking about dogs. And I've definitely run into instances where a location said they were pet friendly, but when I inquired about cats, they were like, oh well no, cats are not allowed. They really just meant it was dog friendly. So that's always the first step, making sure that wherever you're wanting to go, it's pet or it's cat friendly, because even some campgrounds and things like that might not allow cats. Um, and then scoping it out to make sure that there's not anything that might be dangerous or potentially stressful uh for your cat.
SPEAKER_02Right.
SPEAKER_01Um, it could be you know, a lot of dogs present. Um, even if your cat is comfortable with dogs, there might be plenty of dogs there who don't like cats. Um you don't want to put your cat in some sort of situation, obviously, that's that's gonna be dangerous. So um scoping it out and making sure that it's gonna be a safe and comfortable environment is is a big thing.
SPEAKER_00Yes. Uh you your website also talks about seasonal opportunities where you could uh you could take a cat on an adventure. Are there specific times of year and locations that might be good for the animal?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, well, here in Georgia, um the fall and the spring are definitely um the best times for taking my cats out. It gets so hot here. Uh so we avoid summer outings. You know, we might go out in the backyard, uh, but we're not going hiking in the middle of the summer here in Georgia.
SPEAKER_02Right.
SPEAKER_01Um, but in the fall, it's really nice because there's, you know, maybe a fall festival or a pumpkin patch or um in the spring going to uh you know the local nursery with all the plants and flowers as they're blooming things like that um those would be probably my favorite seasonal type activities the uh the the the locations are uh important for the cats and uh just a little bit earlier you were talking about uh finding pet friendly uh places and when we moved it was my job to find hotels that were pet friendly but cat friendly and like you're mentioning sometimes they're thinking of dogs and I would actually call the hotel do you take cats or not that's that's a really a big consideration if somebody's going to be traveling long distance or uh maybe even moving. Yes yeah absolutely hotels are a big a big thing and also if you're going like the Airbnb route as well um always call and make sure because the last thing you want when you're on a road trip um is to get to your hotel where you've made your reservation only to find out that they don't actually allow cats and you get turned away and then you're having to find somewhere else to stay um on very short notice. So um always confirm that for sure.
SPEAKER_00Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Now Kitty Cat Go has several online training courses for some of the things we were talking about today what types what types of things do you offer there that people might be interested in at least checking into on your website yeah well I have a uh a cat enrichment video guide called your cat's playground um that I I in that course I teach about the five types of cat enrichment provide many ideas for each of those five types along with some video demonstrations of different games and activities that you can do with your cat um and I'll help you come up with an enrichment plan um to meet your cat's needs make sure they're getting the regular enrichment that they need and then I also have a harness and leash training course that will walk you through all the steps from choosing a harness all the way to introducing your cat to the outdoors and that's that's a video based course um and then I also have an online community uh called Trailblazers and yeah within that community we do monthly enrichment activities and challenges we have community zoom chats which is those are my one of my favorite parts about the community because everybody gets on it's really laid back and casual we people can ask questions talk about maybe a a struggle they're having with their cat and everybody shares and uh supports each other encourages each other it's it's a really fun it's a really fun group.
SPEAKER_00Yeah and and by maybe collaborating on some ideas one person might think of another an idea to help somebody else so it's it's really a good experience if somebody wants to get on and talk about what's going on with their particular situation with their cats.
SPEAKER_01Yeah absolutely the the conversations we have there run the gamut from you know maybe someone's going through the harness and leaf training process and they've run into a a roadblock or what type of cat litter we use or you know what our cat's favorite treats are.
SPEAKER_00Right. Yeah well this has been a really great episode of the hissing feline uh thank you so much Emily for joining me today on the show it's been really informative and as well as fun and when we're thinking back to the answers to the truefalse uh statements from earlier I hope people were able to kind of look at the perceptions of cats and things that cats can do. It's been very helpful today. Yeah well thank you Clark now if you're interested in learning more visit kittycatgo.com and you can go to the website it will give you all the information and costs and if you're interested in uh perhaps having some of the training or whatever then uh there's a form that you can complete and and you can kind of go from there. Please follow the Hissing Feline podcast and share the program with other cat lovers. Before we wrap up this episode I want to thank my producer and wife Georgia stop by again next week for another episode of the Hissing Feline and remember to keep curry content on the Hissing Feline podcast is for information and entertainment purposes only and is not intended to provide medical veterinary or legal advice.
SPEAKER_04Please consult your veterinarian and local and state authorities before dealing with feral and straight cats. Opinions expressed are those of the hosts and guests and not necessarily those of Duracio Cat Media LLC references to products or services do not imply an endorsement. All content is used with permission or under fair use