Kittens For Dummies

390 Pages·2003·7.58 MB·English

by  Dusty Rainbolt

®
Kittens For Dummies

by Dusty Rainbolt
Kittens For Dummies®
Published by
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Copyright © 2004 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Indianapolis, Indiana
Published simultaneously in Canada
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Library of Congress Control Number: 2003114615
ISBN: 978-0-7645-4150-6
Manufactured in the United States of America
15 14 13 12 11
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About the Author
Dusty Rainbolt became involved in kitten rescue in 1986 when she cared for
an abandoned pregnant cat. She found homes for Mom and the kittens but
kept her two favorites: Chani and Wretched. She had no idea that one act of
kindness would later bless her with a career writing about cats. She and her
husband, Weems, have been raising orphans ever since. In a small way they
also helped elevate the Turkish Van breed to championship status in the Cat
Fanciers’ Association.
Today, Dusty is a member of the Cat Writers’ Association. In addition to her
own cats, including Chani and Wretched (now both 17 years old), she cares
for a house full of foster kittens. She’s the cat product reviewer for Catnip,
the magazine published in coopera-tion with Tufts University School of
Veterinary Medicine. Her award-winning monthly column — “Dear Hobbes”
— written with a feline muse named Hobbes (who was one of Dusty’s bottle
babies), appears in City + Country Pets. She’s written for Cat Fancy,
CatsUSA, Whole Cat Journal, Cats Magazine, I Love Cats, and PetLife
among others. Her articles have won the CWA/ACFA Cat Safety Award, The
Purina Nutrition Award, and The Tidy Cat Behavior Award. Dusty’s
humorous science fiction novel, All The Marbles, which prominently features
a Turkish Van cat, was released in July 2003.
Dusty’s husband, Weems Smith Hutto, provided the photographs for this
book. His cat photos have appeared in Complete Kitten Care and The Purina
Encyclopedia of Cat Care by Amy D. Shojai; as well as The Guide to
Handraising Kittens by Susan Easterly. His pictures appear monthly in
Catnip. His photos have also been published in Whole Cat Journal, Cat
Fancy Magazine, Cats Magazine, and I Love Cats.
Dedication
To my sister, Margaret Rainbolt, who gave me my very reluctant first lesson
in Felinese; to Houston, my first cat — I still miss you; and to Chani and
Wretched, my first kittens and my first intoxicating taste of kitten rescue. To
Mary Hamilton, who stuck her neck out to save Chani and Wretched’s
mother. And finally, to Streamer, the Doberman pinscher who loved his baby
foster kittens.
Author’s Acknowledgments
There are so many people who contributed to this book. I first want to thank
Beth Adelman for recommending me, Natasha Graf for believing in me, Jill
Burke for walking me through the process, Alissa Schwipps for adopting me
and my book like I was always hers, Weems Hutto for his awesome photos,
Kathryn Born for her wonderful illustrations, Jennifer Bingham, my copy
editor, and Patricia A. Hague, DVM, for being a long-time source of
information and supporter of my writing. I’m delighted that you are my
technical editor.
Thanks also to Nicholas H. Dodman, DVM, PhD, director of the Behavior
Clinic at Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine; James R. Richards,
DVM, director of the Feline Health Center at Cornell University College of
Veterinary Medicine; and Jill A. Richardson, DVM, EVP, my veterinary
toxicologist.
Behavior specialists: Steve Aiken, Animal Behavior Consultants in Wichita,
Kansas; Peter Borchelt PhD, of Animal Behavior Consultant, Brooklyn, New
York; Lana Rich of The Catsultants; Pam Johnson-Bennett, author of Think
Like a Cat, dog trainer Brenda Keller; Karen Pryor, author of Clicker
Training for Cats; John C. Wright, PhD, professor of Psychology at Mercer
University.
Veterinarians: Edward Aycock, DVM, and Judy Johson, DVM, of Lewisville
North Animal Clinic; Kelly Gavin, DVM; Johnny D. Hoskins, DVM; Laura
LeVan, DVM; Robert J. Munger, DVM, DACVO; Cindy Ragoni, DVM;
Bonnie Shope, VMD; Granville C. Wright, DVM; Michele Yasson, DVM,
CVA, president of Holistic Veterinary Services in New York.
Rescue: Charlene Denney of Hunt County Humane Society; Louise Holton of
Alley Cat Rescue; Mary C. Hill of the Humane Society of Lewisville; Tamara
Kreuz-Foehring, author of the Stray Cat Handbook; Karen Moore; Kari
Winters, California Siamese Cat Rescue; Sondra York, former cat chair of
Animal Rescue League; Rachel Querry, Humane Society of the United
States.
Breeders: John J. McGongle and Pat Chapman of Caravanserai Turkish Van
Cats; Karen Hooker of Pairodoc Turkish Vans; Lee Brooke of Jeminai
Turkish Angoras; Lynn Nunn of Coonunnski, Maine Coons; Sally Bahner;
Maryjean Ballner, author of Cat Massage.
Liz Blackman, owner of 1-800-HELP4PETS; Karen & Cliff Heath; Lauren,
Kevin, and Jacquelyn; Allyson Lepinske; Krynda Lorberbaum; Amy D.
Shojai, author of Complete Kitten Care; Sandra L. Toney, author of Little
Book of Cat Tricks; Linda Kay Weber; Mary Woodruff.
Publisher’s Acknowledgments
We’re proud of this book; please send us your comments through our
Dummies online registration form located at www.dummies.com/register/.
Some of the people who helped bring this book to market include the
following:
Acquisitions, Editorial, and Media Development
Project Editors: Jill Burke and Alissa D. Schwipps
Acquisitions Editor: Natasha Graf
Copy Editor: Jennifer Bingham
Editorial Program Assistant: Holly Gastineau-Grimes
Technical Editor: Patricia A. Hague, DVM
Editorial Manager: Jennifer Ehrlich
Editorial Assistant: Elizabeth Rea
Cover Photo: Index Stock, 23 West 18th Street, 3rd Floor, New York, NY
10011
Cartoons: Rich Tennant, www.the5thwave.com
Production
Project Coordinators: Kristie Rees and Erin Smith