英語聽力文摘 徘徊的小貓

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貓是一種地盤性的動物，它們喜歡在外面與別的貓劃分領地。公貓比母貓尤為如此——公貓的領地可能會是母貓領地的十倍。貓劃份地盤是與其自然天性有關的。對于一只野貓來說，占領的地盤越大，覓食的范圍就越廣，它生存的可能性就越大。雖然家養(yǎng)的貓已沒有必要這樣做了，但它們仍具有這種占領地盤的自然本能。如果你的貓受到了良好照顧并且生活的很快樂，那么這種本能就不會帶來太大的麻煩。家貓會在自己的住處周圍占領地盤，并用氣味、聲音、劃痕等標記。它們并不是嚴格按主人房產的邊界劃分領地的。領地之間有可能重疊，還會有貓聚會的公共場所。只要貓在其領地上占統(tǒng)治地位，它的領土范圍就不會變化。如果一只更強壯的貓來到了它的領地，經過一番對抗后，領地被重新劃分。如果同一個房子中有兩只貓，它們也會劃分領地。它們會在房間中占領不同的領地，而共同使用一些重要的地方，例如它們吃飯的地方。同樣它們也會爭奪領地。如果新領養(yǎng)一只貓，應讓它對周圍環(huán)境熟悉后再將它介紹給原有的貓。這樣它就不會因在一個陌生的環(huán)境中而感到自己處于劣勢。未去勢的公貓會噴射自己的尿液來標記領地，這會造成非常難聞的氣味。其他貓也會噴射尿液但不會那么頻繁，而且氣味也沒那么難聞。大多數(shù)人無法忍受貓在屋內噴射尿液，但當屋內養(yǎng)有多只貓并且它們要建立自己的社會等級時，或附近有一只新來的貓(或其他動物)時，這種情況也時有發(fā)生。

If you have an indoor cat, you may have noticed it doing an unusual thing. Just about the time you settle down for the night the cat will get up and leave the room. A little later it will walk back into the room, make its way around the walls, and go back out again. A little later, one more time around. What’s going on here?

Cats are very territorial animals. This is one reason why pet owners have their cats spayed: if they are not, they will mark up the house with a strong-smelling spray that lets other cats know “somebody lives here.” But even if you’re a cat who doesn’t spray, it’s still a good idea to take a walk around your territory and make sure no one else is moving in.

This is exactly what your cat is doing during these nightly round-the-house tours. Try following it, quietly, some time. Often you will find the cat walks through every room in the house, staying close to the walls, as if drawing a line around the outer perimeter of its domain. In the wild, the area inside this boundary would be hunted by this cat alone, unless someone else wanted to present a challenge for part of it.

Of course, if you have an outdoor cat you won’t see this activity, because its personal domain extends far out into the neighborhood. But you can be sure that about once a day, your cat walks all the way around its territory, doing battle with any invaders and generally keeping stock of things. It’s good to be king.