Hi, I’m Dr. Karyn! Read my introduction to learn more about me and meet my five funny cats: Clutch, Cyril, Alex, Zelda, and Zazzles.
With five cats in charge of my house, I have no doubts about my duty. Timely provision of food, water, and entertainment is expected, but there are times when I feel a bit like their dealer, with catnip being their drug of choice.
Statistically, only about 60% of cats respond to the intoxicating effects of catnip, and that figure is reflected in my household, with Alex, Cyril, and Zelda both attracted to and affected by catnip; Clutch and Zazzles have no interest in things. Zelda, in particular, would start meowing aggressively if it had been several days since her last ‘fix’, and the sound of the catnip tub being opened was met with equal, if not greater, enthusiasm. than the sound of the food container.
Recently, I was tasked with making some homemade cat toys, and the catnip crew was more than happy to help test them out.
But as I watch the wide-eyed antics of my drunk cats, I can’t help but wonder – am I enabling an addiction?
The Ins and Outs of Catnip
Catnip, also known by its scientific name, Nepeta Cataria, is a member of the mint family. These plants produce the chemical nepetalactone that repels insects, but attracts many of the cat’s persuasion. This chemical enters your cat’s pleasure center through a particularly sensitive olfactory organ located in the roof of their mouth, called the vomeronasal organ (VMO for short). If you’ve ever noticed your cat pulling a funny grimace when he sniffs something, it’s called the Flehmen’s response – or as we call it in my house, “stinky face” – where they pick up scents and pheromones in the VMO. From here, your cat can glean a tremendous amount of information about the world around them.
One of the more important pieces of information processed by the VMO is sex, such as the presence of competition or the receptivity of females. So the messages reaching your cat’s brain look like arousal, which certainly explains the very happy response! It’s a shame that only 60% of the cat population can enjoy it.
Can Cats OD on Catnip?
The catnip plant is not toxic to cats, but if they eat large amounts they can have some unpleasant gastrointestinal effects. I have never seen this in my cats.
I usually buy my catnip in bulk in a 1-ounce tub, which may not sound like much, but it’s the equivalent of 3-4 jars of weed, and it usually lasts a few months…unless the cats is penetrating the container.
So far, the only downside my cats have experienced with this treatment is some occasional eye irritation, a result of too aggressively rubbing their face on the carpet!
Am I enabling addicts?
apparently not. Although their ears burn when I open the drawer containing this intoxicating food, and opening the tub brings 60% of my cats ecstatically around my feet, they don’t spend the rest of the time in search of more, in a desperate. find their next ‘fix’. Although Zelda was a bit demanding if she thought it had been so long since her last dose, she wasn’t completely consumed by her need for the ‘nip.
And if I can provide some extra entertainment and enrichment in their lives, I will definitely do it. I just hope there’s a way for Clutch and Zazzles to experience the same happiness I see in Zelda, Alex, and Cyril’s glassy, dilated pupils!
