# Couple of Questions (British Shorthair)



## Cboy (Jul 26, 2012)

Well first of all my cat isnt the 'no sociable' kind of cat b/c he does let you stroke him and you can sit next to him.

however i would like to know how to get him to come over and jump up next to you, sit on your lap etc

Also he eats TONS!! never stops (almost every hour) he constantly moews for more food !! how can i stop this?

and stopping him from always clawing... not like he does it on purpose cause he only does it when you stroke him (i know he likes it cause he purrs) 

Anyway to fix any of this??

If you need to know ...

ive had him all his life (2 years???)
his mother always fought with him (don't know why)
his mother is also gone now
still did the things he did now when his mum was there

Thanks to anywon and will try and answer questions


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## spid (Nov 4, 2008)

Is he a full pedigree BSH? I just ask because you say you had his mum, and you don't come across as a breeder and many people confuse BSH with DSH (Domestic Short Hair) - the big question for this is do you know exactly who dad was and was he a full ped or a wandering male?

I ask because BSH can seem to be aloof and not want to sit on laps, it can be a bit of a breed trait. Having said that BSH coats are so lush I would imagine they get too hot sitting on a person and would rather sit next to one.

One the eating - when was he last wormed? What do you feed him and how much? If he is BSH they are a large chunky cat and they will need more food to sustain their frame.

However, many cats just aren't people cats and do their own thing and there isn't too much you can do to change that - just accept him for who he is.


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## jill3 (Feb 18, 2009)

We have had British short hair for 18 years and although they are very sociable they don't seem to be lap cats. They tend to sit next to you.
We had one that sat on our laps and one that did occasionally.
The two young ones rarely do it.
As for the food. Our Boy cat Archie is one year old and he eats for England.
I generally feed him on demand, i just give small portions. 
I think that they are not Adult until they are two years of age so your little one could be still growing. What are you feeding him on?
As for the clawing I am not sure what to suggest. Sometimes cats do this when they have left their mum too early.
Is the clawing like a needing or pounding on the carpet when you are stroking him?


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## jo-pop (May 27, 2011)

jill3 said:


> We have had British short hair for 18 years and although they are very sociable they don't seem to be lap cats. They tend to sit next to you.
> We had one that sat on our laps and one that did occasionally.
> The two young ones rarely do it.
> As for the food. Our Boy cat Archie is one year old and he eats for England.
> ...


My BSH never used to knead my lap, but has started doing it a few months ago. Seems strange he never did it before. He was with his mum till 16 weeks old so that can't be it.
They are not generally a lap cat as has previously been said. I think they get too hot.
Mine needs a lot of food too.


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## Cboy (Jul 26, 2012)

Hi guys thanks 

First... I have no idea wither or not he full pedigree because i only know his mum is a BSH but have no idea who the dad even is :/

Also he has been wormed lots and it seems to do nothing  he eats whiscars jelly pouches and barley even stops and we cant give him only a small amount b/c he keeps meowing till he gets the rest :/ however he isnt really fat but quite thin.

the clawing thing

he difinatly didnt leave his mum early (about 2 months ago she left) and also they didnt get along at all 

its like he constantly streches when you stroke him or look at him when hes lying down (basically giving him attention) 

Thanks


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## Munchkyns (May 11, 2012)

Well I'm no expert either, but I'll have a go.

All cats are different about coming to you for cuddles etc. I've always just let mine be & taken things on their terms. They will often jump up on the sofa next to me to have a sleep & tolerate a couple of strokes. If I persist however, they soon squeak & move away to find a bit of peace. However, when they are just waking up, they often come onto my lap for a cuddle..unless of course they have more important things to do like play or eat.

If you don't know who the dad is then he won't be pedigree, just a normal moggy, so could have any personality traits. Did you own the Mum when she had him?

The food: Well, I would assume he would want a full pouch anyway for each meal at two years old. It sounds to me as if he's not getting enough & is still hungry. Eating Whiskas is a bit like eating a McDonalds or Chinese. You're full initially but after an hour or so, you're hungry again. I think perhaps you should look at a more substantial pate type food like the Bozita cans or Animonda Carny which will do a better job of filling him up. You'll need to introduce any new foods very gradually though.

What have you used to worm him? If it's something like Bob Martins from the supermarket it's quite ineffective. I'd suggest something like Drontal. Better yet, Advocate, which is an all in one flea & worming treatment. You'll need to get this from a vet though.

As for the claws..well it seems he has to learn. If he claws you when you are stoking him just stop, say no, & walk away from him. When he doesn't use his claws, even for a split second, praise him madly...even give him a little treat. It will take time but eventually he should learn.


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## jo-pop (May 27, 2011)

Cboy said:


> Hi guys thanks
> 
> First... I have no idea wither or not he full pedigree because i only know his mum is a BSH but have no idea who the dad even is :/
> 
> ...


How much (in grams) do you give him per day. As a guide, my BSH would eat 400 - 600gm of high quality wet food per day when he was 6 months old. Does this sound about the same as yours? So really he needs to have about 5 or 6 pouches a day. Especially as Whiskas contains a lot of gravy or jelly, which does not fill them up.


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## JoeyTheCat (Jun 26, 2012)

Probably how friendly a cat is towards you depends on their temperament. My BSH does lie on my lap sometimes, but he prefers lying on the computer table (and keyboard  )

It's really no wonder that your cat is hungry from eating Whiskas. Have you ever read the ingredients?



> Ingredients:
> Grilled Meat
> Beef: Meat & meat by-products (incl. min. 4% Beef), Minerals.
> Chicken: Meat & meat by-products (incl. min. 4% Chicken), Minerals.
> ...


Compare this to Animonda Carny:



> Kangaroo: Meat and meat by-products [beef (78 %), kangaroo (20 %)], minerals
> Buffalo: Meat and meat by-products [beef (78 %), buffalo (20 %)], minerals
> Ostrich: Meat and meat by-products [beef (78 %), ostrich (20 %)], minerals
> 
> Great Deals on Cat Food only at zooplus!: Mixed sample pack Animonda Carny Exotic 24 x 85 g


Cats are complete carnivores and need meat to survive, so the higher meat content the better. Of course you could always mix in Whiskas with a higher quality food to make it last longer.


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

My 2 BSH were very affectionate and great lap sitters all their lives, but they were silvers and I believe they are noted for being more friendly generally than some of the other colours, blue in particular. 

With your cat having one BSH parent, it may have some BSH characteristics, or none at all, depending on which genes are dominant.. 

As you say your cat is hungry and thin then, as others have said, you are definitely not feeding him enough,, and should increase his allowance straight away. 

With my BSH when they reached adulthood, I fed them good sized meals 3 times a day, and if they asked for food between meals I fed them then as well. They were excellent at judging what food they needed and were never overweight. My 2 were very active, acrobatic outdoor cats, and therefore they got hungry a lot.

If your cats claws are catching on you or your clothes etc, then ask the vet to trim them for you, and show you how to do it safely yourself. Has the cat got enough scratching posts? 

My cats' claws used to get very long and sharp in the winter when they were indoors much more, and I used to need to clip them. In the summer they were outdoors so much, always climbing trees and fences, having a whale of a time, and their claws were quite blunt as a result.


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## Cookieandme (Dec 29, 2011)

My girl is very sociable and will follow me around the house but the only time she sits on me is late in the evening and when she wants to - its up to her. It would be lovely to be able to pick her up for a cuddle but that isn't going to happen. 

I do wish she wouldn't take more than half my bed though, I woke up about 3am the other morning and she was spread out on one of the pillows


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## JoeyTheCat (Jun 26, 2012)

Cookieandme said:


> My girl is very sociable and will follow me around the house


So does mine - same colour as your too. I didn't know the different colours of BSHs had different temperaments too.



Cookieandme said:


> I do wish she wouldn't take more than half my bed though, I woke up about 3am the other morning and she was spread out on one of the pillows


Joey does that too 

I have a double bed and my dog and my cat share it. It's surprising how often I end up on the edge of the bed having no duvet because all the space and the duvet are being hogged by Joey and Merlin


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## sabaturavv (Aug 6, 2012)

Hello! I'm new here. I'm from Ukraine, I do not speak English very good but I need advice. Please help me.

We have two british shorthair kittens. Both of them are males. One of them is orange and the other one is white (but he is not pure white color,more like cream or white/beige ). Where usually people sell the kittens in the U.S.?

Thank you !


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## spid (Nov 4, 2008)

I'm not really sure what you are asking? You want to know how to sell your two kittens in the US? I suppose normally you have such a fantastic reputation that the US buyers come looking for you and then you export with all the proper licenses. However, the majority of us are in the UK and I think the majority of the breeders on here don't export. They would also need to have an incredibly good pedigree from lines that people are looking for in order for anyone to spend that amount of money importing them - and as you don't even know the proper names of their colours I get a feeling you aren't a well established cattery running very prestigious lines.

You aren't actually allowed to advertise animals for sale (other than rescue with a donation) on this site so if that's what this is I suggest you pop over to Pets4homes and pop on a free advert.


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## jenny armour (Feb 28, 2010)

you have a red and a cream


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## rose (Apr 29, 2009)

They are very sweet!


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## Joanna114 (Jan 29, 2013)

What do people think about letting BSH outside? I live on a road and my last cat was killed on it, its a smallish road but used as a cut through so busy at times. Now the good weather my male neutered one year old seems interested in outside. The breeder seems to think that he would not go far and it would be ok to let him out when we are around, or start him on a harness, she also said the BSH don'e tend to roam?


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## gskinner123 (Mar 10, 2010)

Joanna114 said:


> she also said the BSH don'e tend to roam?


Unfortunately, you can't really generalise. In my experience of owning (and breeding) BSH they vary a lot in how intrepid they are. I think the most that can be said about them, as a breed, is that they often aren't particularly good/agile at scaling fence boundaries.. but even that is generalising. I know, for certain that, of my own cats, most would venture outside the garden were it not for the fact that they are constantly 'supervised' by me whenever they're outside. Whilst no, they're not as adventurous as some breeds, it's a bit of a myth that, as a breed, they tend not to roam.


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## Cookieandme (Dec 29, 2011)

April has definitely "tested" my cat proofing and I have no doubt that she would be over the fence given the chance


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## chillminx (Nov 22, 2010)

As your road is used as a cut through at busy times and your last cat was killed on it, I really would not advise letting your BSH out unsupervised. From stories I have heard over time, including on this forum, BSH do not always seem to have great road sense.

Also, a road that is only busy sometimes is as bad if not worse, than a road that's always busy. Cats get used to the road being quiet, and walk back and forth across it freely. Then come the rush hour, a thoughtless driver comes tearing along, with no thought in his head except a burning desire to get home as quickly as possible, and the poor cat ambling across the road doesn't stand a chance of getting out of his way. 

I had 2 silver BSH previously, a male and a female. The female was happy to stay in my largish garden, but the male (neutered) often wandered off up the road several houses away, and regularly crossed the road to get to gardens and fields the other side. I live in a very quiet cul de sac, so luckily it was OK. If there had been any through traffic I would not have allowed him to roam. 

I would recommend catproofing your garden with special fencing cats cannot climb over (there is a sticky on the boards with useful information about this). It is not expensive (unless you have a huge garden). 

If this is not practical for some reason, then I'd start training him indoors with a harness and leash, and if he takes to it (not all cats do) you'd be able to take him out in the garden at busy times, but keep control of him. 

Please don't allow your cat to come and go as he pleases. If he won't accept a harness and leash, then keep him indoors at busy times, e.g. rush hour, as well as after dark, and only allow him out to roam when it is quiet. 

You could always build a cat run onto the house for him to use for fresh air at times when it is not safe to let him out to roam.


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## Joanna114 (Jan 29, 2013)

Hi and thanks for the reply, I have already got him a harness and he doesn't mind it. The main thing is not being able to open the back door without fear of him running off and I feel very mean as he miaows when we are outside. We may look at cat proofing the garden but by the way he has climbed curtains I think he would find a way out!!

Your are right about the road though, its 30 but everyone drives 40 - 50 despite me moaning to councils etc. Also some people just do not slow down for cats which i find really strange and awful


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## OrientalSlave (Jan 26, 2012)

Cboy said:


> Well first of all my cat isnt the 'no sociable' kind of cat b/c he does let you stroke him and you can sit next to him.
> 
> however i would like to know how to get him to come over and jump up next to you, sit on your lap etc
> 
> ...


Some cats (like some people) are simply not hugely sociable and there's not much you can do about it. You can try bribery with tit-bits, but the saying 'dogs have owners and cats have slaves' reflects the situation pretty well.

If he isn't putting weight on then he might be eating what he needs, but a vet check might be in order. You say you worm him but I don't think you mentioned what you use. Pet shop wormers are not wonderful, Drontal works against all worms in the UK and is available OTC or you can get Milbemax from the vets which is just as effective and very small so easier to get down. Also, what are you feeding him?

Scratching again is natural, both for claw maintenance and marking. Cats have scent glands in their feet and scratching leaves tiny hints of it behind. Does he scratch horizontal or vertical surfaces or both? If he uses vertical surfaces get a scratching post for him if you don't have one. It needs to be a good tall one that he can stretch right up for.

If he's a big cat you might need one as much as 3' high for that. A good post is solid (if it wobbles he probably won't use it) and has coir rope wrapped around. There are plenty on Zooplus. You also have to try to redirect his scratching to it. Spraying it with catnip might help, as might putting his paws on the post whenever he starts scratching.


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## Treaclesmum (Sep 26, 2011)

My blue BSH is very quiet and gentle and likes her own space, but she actually enjoys being picked up and cuddled! 

She loves her food too! She is almost 2 years old and still growing, they do grow for a few years (can be up to 5 years I think!) So they do eat alot!! 

She has an enclosure attached to the house which she is thoroughly enjoying! I would never let her roam free, she is often slow to move out of the way when inside the house, so I wouldn't risk her going anywhere near the road!!

She often chooses to sleep separately from the other 2 cats at night and I've realised she needs more sleep than them, she likes to sleep right through the night and is more relaxed the next morning!


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## Oneness (Apr 21, 2013)

Sniffy is a 7 year old BSH (pedigree) and l've had her for a year and half. When she first arrived she wouldn't sit on my lap but about 4 months ago she decided that it was the best place to be! However , she still doesn't like to be picked up.:001_tt1:


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## Aurelia (Apr 29, 2010)

Well I have 3 BSH and all of them adore being cuddled. In fact they love being on their backs in my arms and often fall asleep on me like that. They also sleep on me in bed :lol: Yes on me, not next to me or at me feet, on me. One sleeps under my chin stretched out, then the other two sleep in the crook of each arm with their head and paws on my tummy.

I think the way BSH's are in that respect is down to how they are raised from kittens. 

Not much point answering the rest of op's question as it's a very old thread.

But in answer to Joanna, no I wouldn't let a BSH out to roam. The comparison from moggy to BSH is great. BSH's are definitely not suited to outdoor life and the dangers that come with it. They aren't the most agile and would be more likely to see an approaching car and want to make friends with it rather than run from it.


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