Catnip Advice

lordguinny

lordguinny

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O.G.
May 16, 2006
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#1
So I introduced my 1 year old Persian to Catnip today. It came in the bag with his medicine. I put about 1/2 palm full into a sock and let him bat it around for 2 minutes. He went crazy! My normally docile cat was snorting and acting like he was a coke addict!

I was nervous it might harm him so I took it away. I tried to google Catnip and see if there is any advice on 1) how much is too much 2) how long can I let him play with it and 3) is it safe to ingest. I actually found very vague answers.

I put it away and now he's terrorizing me by following me around and meowing like a crazy man! I almost wish I never introduced him to it because I like to spoil him and I feel like I might make him sick if I give him too much.

Advice?:confused1:
 
#2
Catnip is a funny thing, some cats go crazy and some couldn't care less. But don't worry about it--it's harmless. Whenever I get a new catnip toy for my babiesI just toss it onto the floor and let them play with it. I've never seen any ill effects at all.
 
#4
Catnip is basically a herb that has some hallucination effect to cats. I never myself heard how much is too much... But don't give catnip where you cat can fall and injur him/herself. That kind of warning... It is safe to ingest, too. I hear some give to cats to entice appetite, etc. I would not worry too much. You can train and give it as a treat. My cats go crazy, too!
 
#5
I guess it's probably safe stuff, but my cats just aren't interested in it. Everytime I take one of my cat to the groomers, she gives me a little pouch of it as a treat for him, but he dosen't care.

I don't have any educated information about cat nip, but if your cat seems excessively interested in it and follows you around asking for more, you might not want to indulge him with it anymore. After a couple of days he might forget all about it.
 
#6
My cats go crazy over it for a while, and then they get bored with it.

They used to claw the furniture, so we would take loose catnip and rub it in their scratching post and that makes them focus on the post instead of the furniture.
 
#8
Is your cat fixed? Catnip isn't actually any sort of drug, it just mimics a pheromone that certain cats react to. My male cats never showed an interest in it until they were neutered, but my female kitty has always loved it. It's perfectly safe to ingest. Let your baby go crazy! Maybe take it out of the sock, and spread it on the carpet or his kitty bed if he has one. I think cats like to roll around in it, so maybe that would keep him from freaking out.
 
#9
My 3 kitties :heart: :heart: :heart: catnip:party: All I have to do is shake the container and the almost knock me over to get the "drugs". My 12 year old 20+ pound Siamese, who doesn't do much except eat, sleep & poop is the first one by my side when he hears the container move. I have read lots on the stuff and there is no way for them to OD or suffer any permanent physical effects. They get high,:tispy: they eat :popcorn: and then they all sleep:sleepy: like they have smoked some good weed.

It is really fun to rub a teaspoon in between your hands to get the scent active, then you rub the kitty's coat with your hands, they just rolllll all over the floor. They love it and it is so fun to watch them enjoy themselves.:roflmfao:
 
#10
My cats love catnip, but one of my friends has told me that her cats are oblivious to it. I toss a few pinches on the rug and the cats love to roll around in it. They also like to eat it and I haven't noticed any ill efects.
 
#11
I'm sure your cat will be fine! Cat nip really is pretty harmless.
A little off topic, but I once served it to my family in spaghetti sauce by accident!!! I had potted herbs on my deck, mostly italian herbs and also some catnip I was growing for my kitties. While talking on the phone, I grabbed a bunch of herbs tore them up and threw them in my sauce before realizing what I had done. THey LOVED my sauce that night! I eventually confessed the secret ingredient!
 
#12
sellmysoul said:
I'm sure your cat will be fine! Cat nip really is pretty harmless.
A little off topic, but I once served it to my family in spaghetti sauce by accident!!! I had potted herbs on my deck, mostly italian herbs and also some catnip I was growing for my kitties. While talking on the phone, I grabbed a bunch of herbs tore them up and threw them in my sauce before realizing what I had done. THey LOVED my sauce that night! I eventually confessed the secret ingredient!
Click to expand...

LMAO. That is SO hilarious!!! :roflmfao: I'll have to try it sometime. Guinness (my kitty) calmed down after a bit. After reading all of your wonderful advice I gave him some more today. This time I just put a pinch of it on the rug and he rolled arounds, snorted at it and munched on it for awhile. He acts very paronoid that I'm going to take it away. It's actually very amusing now that I know it is perfectly safe. Thank you everyone. :wlae: I love the PF! :heart:
 
#13
When me and my boyf got our first pussycat, we bought the catnip in a spray can and he sprayed it all over her scratchpost (while I was upstairs) and when my little girl sniffed it she just layed on the floor not moving....My boyf and his mate pooped their pants as they thought the worse and were trying to get her to move, and she wouldn't! When they heard me coming down the stairs they were panicking so much telling her to wake up - and she did! I'm guessing it was bocz it was her first experience with catnip and he did say he sprayed alot!
Intresting point tho - he didn't tell me straight away...

Since then I have had no probelms but we only use the dried herbs nowadays and my gang (I have 3 girls and a very big boy!) know where I keep it! They always try to pinch it, but they become very territorial with it!

Once I bought the actual plant and left it outside on the porch we had cats outside the house all night!
 
#14
I tried to give my two (newly adopted female cats who are 1 and 3 years old) some catnip yesterday and they don't care for it at all. I followed the instructions on the bag, grab a pinch and rub it between your finger tips to release the aroma and put it on the ground. No interest at all! I wasn't sure if age had to do with anything? (I'm a newbie and dunno much about caring for cats yet). I want to go back to PetSmart and return it for my $2 and use that money toward some other treats instead or even a toy! I hope they'll let me return it...
 
#15
robynbenz said:
They get high,:tispy: they eat :popcorn: and then they all sleep:sleepy: like they have smoked some good weed.
Click to expand...


:nuts: thats exactly what primus does. but we call him an angry stoner bc he gets nippy when hes high!

but another side story....we got the bf's cat a true nepeta plant and we'd give him a leaf every now and then and hed go CRAZY over it. one day we gave him a leaf, went out, and came back to find the WHOLE PLANT gone! dirt all over the floor, a sleeping cat, and just a stick of what was left of a fairly large plant :roflmfao: we now stick to the dry stuff.
 
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