Has Your Cat Made You Mad?

[jomifl]

http://m.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/03/how-your-cat-is-making-you-crazy/308873/
Not new, but more informed.

[wolf63]

It seems to be taking its time in loading so I will read it later.

The more that scientists discover about cat behaviour the more devious and manipulative the little demons are found to be. If the Ed removed the swear filter I could write much more on the subject of felines.

[jomifl]

Wolf, it seems that the toxo. gondii parasite is using cats to control your mind. Pretty clever for a creature without a brain (the parasite not the cat).

[mccfluff]

she drives me absolutely batty, but not sure if she's made me mad, think i managed that by myself

[Slapshot]

Oh yes!!! our three are doing my head in.... but wouldn't change them for the world

[Buenchico]

I'm mad to look after five of them but I've no idea of the cause!

[ludwig]

// toxo. gondii parasite is using cats to control your mind //

I have started buying an awful lot of fresh tuna and cream lately.

[Prudie]

This is a conundrum - my two eat me out of house and home, claw, lick and purr at regular intervals all night long disturbing my sleep, go out the back door and run round to the front of the house and ask to be let in through a window maybe 4 times on the trot, cost loads in vet fees, make me worry when they won't come in, will love me unconditionally for about 3 minutes and then completely ignore me for hours and yet I couldn't live without them.

[gness]

For years I owned cats....well, they owned me....and I ran a cattery.....

Oh dear...... :-(

[Huderon]

Old news.

There were reports many years ago about a parasite which needs rats and cats to complete it's lifecycle. It modifies the brains of rats, making them take more risks, so increasing the chance that the rat will be caught and eaten by a cat.

If memory serves, a study of people who were into high risk sports or who behaved in other risky ways (speeding leading to accidents) also found the same parasite in a large number of them.

[jomifl]

That is why I didn't post it under 'news' Huderon.