Cat responds to catnip and knows that it drives cats insane, causing them to rub, cheval, chew, and lick it viciously.
Although it is commonly considered that this plant and its Asian relative, silvervine, are intoxicating to cats, this may not be the case.
Researchers discovered that when cats destroy catnip, substantially larger levels of powerful insect repellents are released, implying that the cats' activity protects them from pests.
What do catnips to cats?
(Photo : MARIS SISEVIC/AFP via Getty Images)
Catnip and silvervine had such a widespread effect on cats that lead author Masao Miyazaki, an animal behavior researcher at Iwate University, had to figure out what was going on.
He claims that there are sequences in the popular musical Cats when a cat uses catnip powder to intoxicate another cat. Miyazaki started his career in veterinary medicine, where he got fascinated by how pheromones affect companion animals' natural behaviors.
Catnip and silvervine leaves contain the iridoids nepetalactol and nepetalactone, which defend the plants against pests. Miyazaki collaborated with scientists at Nagoya University to investigate how cats' behavior affected the chemicals emitted by plants.
Physical injury to silvervine by cats encouraged the quick release of complete iridoids, according to the findings.
Not only were more iridoids released, but the makeup of those that were released altered in ways that seemed to favor the cats.
According to Miyazaki, nepetalactol accounts for over 90% of total iridoids in healthy leaves, but this lowers to around 45 percent in damaged leaves while other iridoids considerably rise.
The altered iridoid mixture matching damaged leaves resulted in a much longer response in cats.
These compounds have previously been shown to effectively repel Aedes albopictus mosquitos by Miyazaki and his colleagues.
Researchers have now discovered that when cats touch, roll, lick, and chew the plants, the repellent characteristics become much more powerful.
At low concentrations, the diversity of iridoids in damaged silver vine leaves makes it more mosquito repellant.
Read more: A Cat's Drug: What Makes Catnips Work
The intensity of cats to catnip toys
Your kitty pal's susceptibility to this relative to basil and oregano is determined by heredity. One in every two cats has a sensitivity to the plant, as per Pet MD.
However, you won't know if your kitten is one of them until he or she is 3 to 6 months old.
The appeal of catnip lies in its volatile oil, notably one molecule called nepetalactone.
It just takes one or two sniffs of the wonderful oil found in catnip's leaves, stems, and seeds for vulnerable felines to be licking, gnawing, and rolling head-over-tail in kitty joy.
The type of catnip people use will influence the intensity of the kitty's responsiveness to toys and training.
Catnip sprays, which don't contain enough nepetalactone to appeal to most felines, aren't as popular as dried or fresh catnip.
Cats have an additional smell organ called the vomeronasal gland at the roof of their mouth. Smells collected in the nose and mouth are sent to the brain through this pathway.
Nepetalactone is an oil found in the leaves of the catnip plant that can trigger behavioral changes in cats. To be exposed to this chemical, a cat must sniff catnip.
Catnip mimics feline sex hormones, thus cats who consume it exhibit behaviors that are similar to those of a female cat in heat (although both male and female cats can experience the effects).
Related article: Cats Imitate Owners' Habits, Says Study
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