CCR Feline Research Center

At the Cowboy Cat Ranch (CCR) Feline Research Center we study all things related to cats. We currently focus on (i) feline olfaction, specifically the response of Felidae to cat-attracting plants, (ii) evidence-based veterinary medicine, and (iii) cat well-being, stress and pain. 

(i) We are fascinated by olfaction. Of all the senses, it is the least understood. We do not know what the relationship is between the structure of an odorant and its perceived smell. Cats respond to a small number of plants in an apparently blissful way. In the West catnip is the best known plant able to elicit this response in cats. Therefore the response is referred to as the "catnip response". However, there are a couple of other plants with similar effects, such as Tatarian honeysuckle, valerian, Indian nettle and silver vine. In the East, people are more familiar with matatabi or silver vine. 

Our research aims to better understand the "catnip response". It is unknown why this behavior is only seen in cats. Furthermore, we do not know why cats respond the way they do. Is there a biological reason for it or is the response serendipitous? We suspect genetic variation or mutations may explain why some cats do not respond to cat-attracting plants. However, the olfactory receptor or receptors bound by the cat-attracting volatiles emitted by these plants have not been identified. 

(ii) We are passionate about evidence-based veterinary medicine. Just like humans, cats (and other non-human animals) deserve to receive the best treatment available. Too often veterinarians do not use peer-reviewed scientific articles as their (main) source of information when making decisions. Instead, consulting with colleagues or industry, reading veterinary magazines, and searching Google are common practices. Having access to systematic reviews (an authoritative article objectively summarizing and evaluation all scientific evidence on a topic) can greatly help veterinarians in making better informed decisions. Unfortunately, the number of systematic reviews for non-human animal care is extremely limited and most veterinary clinics do not have access to scientific articles that are not published open access. We research a variety of topics in feline medicine, often after personal experiences, and aim to publish systematic reviews in open access journals to help improve the quality of the treatment in the veterinary clinic. 

(iii) We just started a research project that aims to better determine if domestic cats are in pain or stressed. If you are interested in joining us, please send an email to Sebastiaan Bol (bol@cowboycatranch.org).

Since 2015, Sebastiaan and Evelien used more than $8,230 of their personal money to facilitate the research published in 2015, 2017, 2022 and 2023. A detailed overview of all expenses can be found here. The article processing charges for the BMC Biology paper ($1,595 after a 50% discount) were kindly paid by our collaborator Dr. Gavin Flematti.