D.C.S. – you must be getting bad shit. If you get it fresh, it makes a huge difference. I give the stuff to my cat before she has to travel; it mellows her out and traveling is nothing more than a groovy experience for her.
We grow it. (Might as well — it thrives here) Mostly I suspect that there are some cats just missing whatever it is that responds. Since several of ours are all various types of exotic cross (serval, for instance) it’s not all that hard to see how they might be atypical.
But mostly I think that the video deserved an N=5 study comment.
I second DC’s point. N = 4 cats, varying type and dosage of the stuff, and 1 cat will actually come running for “Nip-nip!”, two more enjoy but aren’t little addicts in training, and 1 couldn’t care less.
Owing to a culture of illicit gardening, today’s catnip is much much stronger than the ditch-nip that the (hep)cats were doing back in the 60s. It’s all just a game until fluffy leaps from the balcony. This is what killed Art Linkletter’s cat.
Two indoor cats. Huge catnip bush in garden. Not many cats in yard. Cut back catnip beast-plant in fall and placed in “yard recycle bin” and witnessed a cat rave in my driveway that night. Not sure if I am growing a hybrid or not but now I throw the cuttings into the neighbors yard!
Since catnip is totally out, as are many of the usual tricks (YOU try pushing a pill down the throat of a bad-tempered 9 kg male F1 Savannah!) we use valerian root extract [1]. Not only for vet visits, but was pretty near a lifesaver after we rescued him and he was so stressed out he was missing sleep and losing a lot of weight. The night we gave him the valerian you could watch him relax, and a few weeks on it got him settled in.
He’s still working on this “there may be some use for humans” thing but making progress.
[1] Found it searching the literature for feline antianxiolytics. Seems the stuff actually has controlled studies including dose/response and safe limits.
DrugMonkey 
January 26, 2013 at 3:53 am
The feline equivalent of banannadrine: lots of believers, but based on an N=5 study of unrelated felines, it has absolutely no effect.
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January 26, 2013 at 9:10 am
D.C.S. – you must be getting bad shit. If you get it fresh, it makes a huge difference. I give the stuff to my cat before she has to travel; it mellows her out and traveling is nothing more than a groovy experience for her.
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January 26, 2013 at 9:54 am
So we’re talking medicinal ‘nip, eeke?
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January 26, 2013 at 10:29 am
We grow it. (Might as well — it thrives here) Mostly I suspect that there are some cats just missing whatever it is that responds. Since several of ours are all various types of exotic cross (serval, for instance) it’s not all that hard to see how they might be atypical.
But mostly I think that the video deserved an N=5 study comment.
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January 26, 2013 at 1:56 pm
I second DC’s point. N = 4 cats, varying type and dosage of the stuff, and 1 cat will actually come running for “Nip-nip!”, two more enjoy but aren’t little addicts in training, and 1 couldn’t care less.
Not dissimilar to human reactions to pot, really…
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January 26, 2013 at 3:35 pm
DM – damn right. Good for trips to the vet, unless your cat is a mean drunk.
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January 27, 2013 at 6:46 am
Owing to a culture of illicit gardening, today’s catnip is much much stronger than the ditch-nip that the (hep)cats were doing back in the 60s. It’s all just a game until fluffy leaps from the balcony. This is what killed Art Linkletter’s cat.
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January 27, 2013 at 5:51 pm
Two indoor cats. Huge catnip bush in garden. Not many cats in yard. Cut back catnip beast-plant in fall and placed in “yard recycle bin” and witnessed a cat rave in my driveway that night. Not sure if I am growing a hybrid or not but now I throw the cuttings into the neighbors yard!
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January 28, 2013 at 6:02 am
WRT trips to the vet:
Since catnip is totally out, as are many of the usual tricks (YOU try pushing a pill down the throat of a bad-tempered 9 kg male F1 Savannah!) we use valerian root extract [1]. Not only for vet visits, but was pretty near a lifesaver after we rescued him and he was so stressed out he was missing sleep and losing a lot of weight. The night we gave him the valerian you could watch him relax, and a few weeks on it got him settled in.
He’s still working on this “there may be some use for humans” thing but making progress.
[1] Found it searching the literature for feline antianxiolytics. Seems the stuff actually has controlled studies including dose/response and safe limits.
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January 28, 2013 at 7:50 am
Anxiolytics or anti-anxiety meds. Not anti-anxiolytics.
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January 29, 2013 at 4:30 am
Thank you. I stand corrected. (Meanwhile, he’s lounging about quite calmly.)
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