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Modern domestic household pet cats come in many different colours, breeds and sizes as a result of their genetics and human breeding programmes. Cats have been known

to be companions for humans from as long ago as 7000BC. From archaeological studies in the Mediterranean on the island of Cyprus, a grave was found a few years ago containing the skeleton of a lady cuddling her cat. Scientists have concluded that this is the earliest known record of human-cat bonding which in modern day exists for a variety of medical benefits to humans. The psychological benefits to humans of living with a beloved pet include companionship, a feeling of being needed and less depression. The physical benefits include decreased blood pressure, reduced risk of a second heart attack and decreased triglyceride concentrations. Children who live and work with pets gain increased self-esteem, are happier at and do better in school and talk to their pets when they can’t or won’t talk to their parents or teachers. For these reasons alone pets are wonderful household companions.

Cats are Natural PredatorsCats big and small use body signals to communicate with

their human pet parents and kitty carers. Cats can’t verbally talk to us so it’s important that we learn to understand and decipher cat signals when they are trying to tell us what they want. Cats are

natural born predators made for a life of action stalking food prey to eat. In a natural outdoor setting an adult male cat would probably spend

around 12.5% of his time eating and to fulfil his body nutrition requirements needs to

hunt and kill about 12 mice/day. He would also sleep on average 12.5 hours per day, not at the same time as normal humans, with cats being active at dusk and dawn, similar times to their prey. So if you have

ever wondered why your cat wakes you up at 5.30am for attention or food it’s quite simply because his natural ‘body clock’ is telling him it’s time to stalk, kill and eat!

Boredom and HealthHowever, despite continued

advances in cat health care and wellness, according to an advanced study done in 2000 and reported in an Animal Welfare Journal, behaviour problems are still the most common cause of euthanasia in pet cats surrendered to animal welfare organisations in the USA.

So when we become cat guardians and keep our cats confined in our apartments 24/7 we are subjecting them to the possibility of extreme boredom unless we understand their needs, can communicate with them and provide a variety of toys, games and interaction to beat the ‘boredom pit’. Following are some tips on ‘boredom tricks’ to beat that ‘boredom pit’. By nature many of our household cats nowadays are content spending their life sleeping and eating, being lazy and getting fat by living on quick and easy-fed diets that as busy humans we provide…because it makes our life simpler. Unfortunately this leads to obesity and other health concerns including diabetes, arthritis and respiratory problems. Making cats work for their food is where to start. Allowing cats’ ad lib free access to a bowl of dry food should stop.

What You Should DoI recommend the use of making feeding more of a game and

in fact advocate that 100% of your cats’ food can be given this way. Instead of giving food in bowls to cats twice/day, use food dispensing toys and slow feeders. These have an added bonus of providing mental stimulation for our bored felines. Many commercial products exist like Buster Food Mazes and Twister Food Balls. However, it is important when selecting these that we teach our cats how to use the new games and toys. Creating multiple feeding stations around the home with just a small amount of food at each station simulating natural hunting and making your cat forage or climb to get them not only extends eating time, it relieves boredom and makes feeding time more fun too. Cardboard boxes and tubes, paper and towels or even your old clothes can be made suitable to hide food very cheaply around your home using your vertical space with the help of fixed shelves and perches as well as your floor.

Other boredom tricks include allowing your cat the opportunity to be able to look out your window, buy or make cat furniture with plenty of hides and scratch areas, use the herb ‘cat nip’ in toys or alone on surfaces (a new ‘Nip-Stick’ drives my cat wild!), get a pet DVD and have a feline movie night, play with

your cat with some of the many cat toys around which use feathers on the end of the stick, or lasers. These are great play

time props. Last but not least make time to socially interact by cuddling and talking with your cat every day.

Your cat will love you more that way too.

PetsTales2015 June Issue

二零一五年六月刊

Cat Specials 貓貓特輯

• Catsarenaturalpredators 貓是天生的捕食者

•Don’tjustletyourcatssleep! 不要只讓你的貓睡覺！

• Itisimportantthatyourcatshavesomethingtoplaywith

玩遊戲對於貓咪是很重要的

Making cats work for their food is where to start. Allowing cats’ ad lib free access to a bowl of dry food should stop.

中文版請看後頁

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現今作寵物飼養的貓，因為基因和育種的緣故，有林林總總的顏色、品種和大小。早在公元前七千年，貓已是人類的伙伴。在幾年前於地中海地區-塞浦路斯的一個墓穴的考古研究中，發現了一具女子摟著貓兒的骸骨，科學家認為這是目前已知最早有紀錄的人貓情誼。事實上，與心愛寵物共居，好處

多多。心理上的好處包括有個伴兒、覺得被需要、較少患抑鬱症。對身體的好處包括降血壓、減少第二次心臟病發的風險、降低三酸甘油脂的濃度。孩童與寵物一起生活和工作，可增強自尊心，並且在學校有較佳的表現。當他們不能或不願同父母或老師交談時，可以向寵物傾吐。因此，寵物是極好的家庭伴侶。

貓貓是天生的捕食高手無論大貓或小貓，都用身體語言來與牠的主人溝通。由於貓咪不能用言辭表達思想，因

此我們要了解和辨認貓的身體語言，從而得悉牠們所想所要。貓天生是捕食性動物，一輩子都追蹤獵物捕食。野外的成年雄貓大概用百分之十二點五的時間進食，從而滿足牠身體的營養需求，則每天要捕食約十二隻老鼠。牠平均每日也要睡上十二個半小時，但就與正常人的作息時間相反，牠們在傍晚和黎明時最活躍。你可曾納悶為何貓咪總在清晨五點半喚醒你索食？就因為牠的生理時鐘告訴牠：「是時候了，獵食去吧!」

貓貓百無聊賴 容易患上疾病儘管貓的醫療保健服務持續提升，根據2000年一份動物福祉刊物的研究，美國大部分寵物貓被人道毀滅是因為行為問題的緣

故。所以，當我們成為貓主，把牠們朝夕關在居所內，牠們很可能會感到極度無聊——除非我們明白其需要，能與牠們溝通，給牠們各式各樣的玩具、遊戲、互動交流。以下我將會提供一些解悶建議。

為使生活輕鬆，忙碌的主人給寵物貓簡便快捷的食物，令現今很多寵物貓都滿足於一輩子吃吃睡睡，懶洋洋的使牠們變得肥胖起來。可惜，肥胖會增加患糖尿病、關節炎、呼吸道疾病等等的危險。

餵食當遊戲 為貓咪解悶究竟我們該如何著手解決問題？首先，要使貓咪以體力和智力運用來獲取食物。換言之，我們不應

再把乾糧放在碗內，讓貓可隨時輕易吃到。我建議使餵食變成遊戲，並主張所有貓糧都以這方法給予。利用餵食智能玩具和慢食盤，而不是每日兩次把食物放在碗內。還有一個額外的好處，那就是給無聊的貓咪帶來智力上的刺激。實際上有許多像食物迷宮、滾動遊戲食物球等的商品。不過，要謹記教貓咪如何玩玩具和使用遊戲道具啊！除此之外，你可以在家裡設置多個食物站，每站只擺放少量食物，藉以刺激貓兒天生的狩獵本性。而貓貓在搜索和攀爬的過程中，不僅延長貓咪用膳時間，也可消愁

解悶，亦令進餐時間變得更有趣。紙板盒、管子、紙張、毛巾，甚至你的舊衣裳都可以收藏食物，可以把它們散放在架子上、地面或高處。

其他解悶方法包括讓貓咪欣賞窗外、購買或自製可藏可抓的貓傢俱、把貓薄荷/貓草置入玩具內，又或放在地面或者家具面。一根「活力棒」，就令我的貓兒興奮若狂。取一張有關寵物的光碟，來一個貓科電影之夜。此外，羽毛逗貓棒、雷射光束玩具都是遊戲時間的好道具。最後但同樣重要的是，每天跟貓咪溝通，撫抱牠，對牠說話，那麼貓貓也會更愛你。

Species: Domestic short hairName: Bruno/ Duk Ngai Long (Single-eyed Dragon)Sex: MaleColour: TabbyAge: 4 months

品種：短毛家貓名字：獨眼龍性別：雄性顏色：虎斑年齡：四個月

Species: Domestic short hairName: Pa Chou Chu (Shy Pig)Sex: FemaleColour: TabbyAge: 6 months

品種：短毛家貓名字：怕醜豬性別：雌性顏色：虎斑年齡：六個月

Pets Central North Point 北角

Please call 2811 8907 for enquiries. Adoption procedures apply.

詳情請致電2811 8907安排領養申請手續

• Allowcatsto‘hunt’fortheirfood讓貓咪在家裡‘獵食’

我建議使餵食變成遊戲，並主張所有貓糧都以這方法給予

• Kittyisenjoyingits‘tree’shelter貓咪躲藏在牠的‘大樹‘裡

Pa Chou Chu (Shy Pig) is aptly named because of her shyness. She hides away from any object that resembles a camera. However, she is very kind and adorable

怕醜豬 ’貓’ 如其名，因為她十分害羞，見到照相機就會躲避，但她非常和善，格外可愛。

Remember Bruno? He was introduced in the last issue. Very unfortunately, Dr Anne was unable to adopt him in the end. His left eye is sick and now requires a surgery. He is waiting for a donation for the operation. 還記得Bruno嗎？他出現在上一期的PetsTales。很不幸地，Dr Anne因某些原因不能領養他。Bruno的左眼患病，正等待熱心人士捐款做手術。

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Waiting for a family...正等待新家庭...

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One day in January 2014, I saw her hiding in a dark corner of the clinic…Tarzan is a female domestic short hair cat who has been brought to our clinic by some

volunteers. I am not particularly sure about her past, but like most stray cats who first come to the clinic, she was always hiding towards the back of her cage, alarmed about her surroundings—without appetite, without rest—all I could see were two yellow eyes glowing in the dark. Different from other cats, though, Tarzan was very ferocious: no colleagues could get close to her. As soon as anyone walks past her cage, she makes a horrifyingly sonorous roar. I tried to play with her using some cat toys, but she instantly assaulted me with her razor-sharp claws. (Cats never doubt their superiority over humans anyway!) Days passed, but she never let her guard down, and because of this trait, no one was willing to adopt her. One day, I decided that I would bring this beast home and attempt to subdue her—purely due to my impulsiveness or stubbornness: although I have never kept a cat as fierce as her, I always thought that she had been misunderstood…

In the first month of her arrival, Tarzan only stayed in my room. Whenever she heard any sound she would hide in the corner. But she slowly got accustomed to the presence of human—on 26 January, I was finally able to touch her without getting hurt. It was like the scene in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, where in the cemetery, Voldemort could finally touch Harry Potter: “I can TOUCH you now!” I was like Voldemort, experiencing an emotion of extreme joy and satisfaction. Luckily, Tarzan didn’t groan like Harry Potter; rather, she kind of enjoyed my strokes.

I have been living with Tarzan for more than a year. Although she is not a furry friend who always listens to me, she would ‘meow’ at me whenever I get back from work, or sit quietly while I am

working at the desk, or be my sleeping partner, accompanying me every night.I believe that every animal is unique and has its own personality. If we do not spend enough

time and effort, we’ll never understand or appreciate them. Even though they may not understand our every action, I wholeheartedly believe that they can feel our love and care.

二零一四年一月的某天, 我在診所漆黑的一角遇上她...泰山是被義工帶到診所的一隻雌性本地短毛貓。她之前的經歷，我不大清楚。跟大部份流浪貓

一樣，她剛來的時候，總躲在籠內箱子的後方，不吃不喝不眠不休地警醒著，你永遠就只能在黑暗中看見一對黃色發光的眼睛。她與眾不同之處，是非常兇悍，基本上沒有同事能接近她，只要有人影在她的籠前晃過，她便會發出低沉的吼叫聲，我嘗試拿貓玩具棒去逗她，她馬上伸出鋒利的爪把我擊退。 (貓毫不懷疑自己的能力定贏過人類吧！) 日子一天一天過去，她沒有隨時間而「鬆懈」武裝，亦因為這樣的性格， 一直沒有人願意領養她。一天，我決定帶這野獸回家嘗試馴服她 – 純粹基於一點衝動和固執；雖然我沒有養過這麼兇的貓，我總覺得她是被誤解了...

泰山初到我家的一個月，基本上只在我的房間裡活動。起初, 她一聽到有聲音就避到角落，之後慢慢開始習慣｢人｣的存在，一月二十六日，我終於成功用手觸摸她而沒有受傷。這一幕猶如《哈利波特：火杯的考驗》中，佛地魔在墓地第一次觸摸哈利波特 – I can TOUCH you now! 我好像佛地魔般，感到無比的興奮和滿足；幸而她沒有像哈利那樣痛苦的咆哮，相反，她十分享受我的撫摸...

現在我和泰山生活已一年多，雖然她絕不是個聽聽話話溫溫柔柔的毛孩，然而每夜我下班回家，她總會喵喵喵和我打招呼，在書桌工作時她總靜靜地獃在我旁，睡覺時她總是我的「枕邊人」，陪我渡過很多個晚上。

我相信每一隻動物都是獨特、有個性的，如果不花時間和心機去體會和探索，我們永遠也不會明白他們。縱使他們不一定明白我們的一舉一動，但我深信他們會感受到我們付出的愛心。

Cats Tales 貓咪故事A cat story from our vet我們獸醫養貓咪的故事

Dr Wyborn Lau was born in Hong Kong. He graduated from University of Queensland in 2008, where he obtained a BVSc degree, with a special interest in feline medicine. He then moved on to complete

a Feline Medicine and Surgery internship at The Cat Clinic, Brisbane. He stayed at the cat clinic for another year as a feline practitioner after he completed the internship programme. Dr Lau went back to Hong Kong in 2011 and has been working in different small animal practices and joined Pets Central in April 2015. He is particularly interested in feline medicine and surgery.

He has two adorable cats: Zero and Rosie. During his spare time, Dr Wyborn would go fishing or just enjoy cooking nice food at home.

劉醫生出生於香港，2008年於昆士蘭大學畢業，並取得獸醫學士學位，並對貓科醫學有特別興趣。其後，他在布里斯本的一間貓咪診所(The Cat Clinic)進行貓科醫學和外科手術實習。劉醫生完成實習後，再多花了一年的時間，在診所為貓隻提供治療。醫生於2011年回到香港，並在不同的小動物醫院工作；在2015年4月他加入了Pets Central。劉醫生對於貓科醫學和外科手術有特別的興趣。他養了兩隻可愛的貓咪，名叫Zero和Rosie。在工餘的時間，劉醫生喜歡釣魚和烹飪。

Dr Wyborn Lau, BVScTseung Kwan O Hospital

Welcome to our family!歡迎來到我們的家庭！

Tarzan and Me 泰山與我

• Ourfirstcontact我們第一次接觸

• Tarzanexaminingthespigot

正在檢查水喉的泰山

Dr Stephanie ChoiEnglish translation: Timothy Chan

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Like us on our Facebook Page!讚我們的主頁！

Mongkok Hospital • 24 Hours Nursing Care 九龍旺角上海街488號順明大廈1樓及2樓 Tel: (852) 2309 21391/F & 2/F, Sun Ming Bldg., 484-488 Shanghai Street, Mongkok, Kln Fax: (852) 2309 2149

North Point Hospital • 24 Hours Nursing Care香港北角渣華道66號地下 Tel: (852) 2811 8907G/F, 66 Java Road, North Point, H.K. Fax: (852) 2811 8957

Sai Kung Hospital • 8am-7pm Daily新界西貢宜春街66號4號舖 Tel: (852) 2792 0833Shop 4, 66 Yi Chun Street, Sai Kung, N.T. Fax: (852) 2792 9113

Tseung Kwan O Hospital • Mon to Fri: 10am-8pm Sat & Sun: 9:30am-7:30pm 新界將軍澳將軍澳中心B01A號舖 Tel: (852) 2244 6684Shop B01A, Park Central, Tseung Kwan O, N.T. Fax: (852) 2244 6502

Pets Central Mobile Vet Clinic 流動寵物醫療車珀麗灣 Park Island(Wed & Fri) 2pm-8pm Tel: (852) 6223 09032nd & 4th Sun of Each Month: 10am-4pm

錦綉花園 Fairview Park(Tue & Sat) 10am-7pm

Hospitals • Retail • Home Delivery • Grooming

Juvenile Doggy Basic Etiquette Training Class will be held in Pets Central Mongkok, co-organised with Trainers from ‘Dog Artists’. Lessons in Chinese. Target age: 6 to 12 months-old dogs.For enquiry or registration, please call 2309 2139.Pets Central 旺角舉辦幼犬基礎禮儀班，由‘爆炸猛男團隊’中文教學。透過課堂，你的愛犬將會學到基本指令；愛犬不受控制的情況將會改善。歡迎6個月至12個月大幼犬參加，現在接受報名。查詢或報名, 歡迎致電2309 2139 。

Juvenile Doggy Basic Etiquette Training Class

Puppy Classes幼犬班

Puppy Classes in Pets Central Mongkok are scheduled for June. Your puppies will meet new friends and you receive basic obedience training, with commannds such as ‘stay’, ‘sit’ and ‘drop’. Disease prevention skills will also be taught. Lessons in English (with Chinese translation).For dogs between 8-14 weeks of age. For enquiry or registration, please call 2309 2139.Pets Central 旺角將會舉辦幼犬班，用英語教學（有即時傳譯）。透過課堂，你的愛犬將會學到基本服從訓練，社交禮儀，及預防疾病技巧。你的幼犬亦會認識到新朋友。歡迎8至14週的幼犬參加。查詢或報名, 歡迎致電2309 2139

Mongkok 旺角Mongkok 旺角

byDog Artists爆炸猛男團隊

byPets Central Mongkok 旺角

幼犬基礎禮儀班

$100 (Pets Central Clients 會員)$200 (Non- Pets Central Clients 非會員)

No charge 學費全免5, 12 July 2015 (Sunday)七月五和十二日 （星期天）

Starts from June, every Thursday由六月份起，逢星期四 19:30-20:30

10:30-12:00

www.pets-central.com

Our website:我們的網頁：

Pets Central

Editor:編輯：Timothy Chan

For Pets Central Clients only 只供會員參加

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Pets Central Recycle BagPets Central 環保袋

1,000 points for 1 bag以1000分換領1個

Reward Points 積分計劃

Or purchase at HKD10/ bag或以港幣10元購買一個

Pets Central UmbrellaPets Central 雨傘

1,000 points + HKD50 for 1 umbrella以1000分 + 港幣50元換購一把