just what exactly is catnip, what does it do and is there an age limit

[greenbriar]

my baby kitty is only 11 weeks old

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

1. Your kitten probably is too young to be interested just yet.

"Until they are around three months old, cats are indifferent to catnip. And many cats--as many as half, says McDaniel--never develop catnip sensitivity. The sensitivity is inherited: A kitten with only one catnip-sensitive parent has a one-in-two chance of inheriting the catnip sensitivity, and a kitten whose parents both exhibit sensitivity has a three-in-four chance." More: http://pubs.acs.org/cen/whatstuff/83/8331catnip.html

[kedrys]

2. It's a relative of mint

It sends kitties on a roughly 15-minute psychedelic trip, wherein kitty acts lunatic and seems to have a great time. Predisposition to catnip is genetic, with about half of all cats being stoners while the other half couldn't care less. There are no side effects or long-term effects that I know of, but I'd wait til your kitty is a bit older (4-5 months) before I'd give him/her a taste.

:hi:

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

3. All three of my (unrelated) cats are stoners.

Nothing like a 'nip trip to brighten their day.

[kedrys]

5. All six of my (related) cats are stoners

Although the smallest one can take it or leave it, and doesn't act out as much as the others. She obviously enjoys it, though.

I get the little "50lb" canvas bags, the only thing I've found that they can't destroy in one sitting. I give everyone their own bag, fire up the camera, and watch the fun!

[SoxFan]

4. Fuzzy little crackheads

I picked up one of those "Kitty Can't Cope" catnip sacks at the store. It took the girls about 30 seconds to get into a fight over it. The weird thing is that they both wanted to flop on the floor and lick the bag, over and over and over...