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This is Jimmy. He's a 6-year old Burmese   My mom adopted him two years ago and he's been a great little cat so far, but this Christmas we're driving to visit family in Seattle and it's about a 2 day drive if you take it easy and we're bringing Jimmy. He's a former show cat so the travelling shouldn't affect him too much, hopefully. But the problem is that two people just joined the trip which makes it a full car AND Jimmy  Ordered a Kitty Holster for him and will have him wear it a lot before the trip and try to get him used to leashing a bit. But our plans were based on having 3 people on the car, not sure what to do with 5 in the car and barely any seat space for Jimmy to chill on when he's tired of sitting in laps or is getting cranky.The litterbox will be under the passenger seat and we plan on stopping at some rest stops to let him stretch out a bit (he's a 100% indoor cat but don't want to leave him cooped up in the car for two days  ).Any tips for long car trips with a cat to help it make easier? We were planning to use a leash in car to limit his movement so he wouldn't try to hide by the pedals or something but if the litterbox is at the front, the leash idea won't work out. Is this going to be as terrible I think it will be?
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Dec 9, 2010 03:58
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Abbeh posted:It bothers Ed when I grab hers, shake it vigorously and shout "fatty fatty fatty cat" but aside from that it doesn't affect her at all. That is what the bellyflap is for. It's in the constitution I think that we can do that. Tomato Soup posted:This is Jimmy. He's a 6-year old Burmese My cat likes to sit under the front seat, or between my legs on the floor with a blanket over them.
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Dec 9, 2010 04:25
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Holy poo poo, Pip has been an absolute little poo poo for the past two days. I mean hyper to the point where he's chasing invisible things and making me wonder if he's on acid or something. This goes on for hours and then he'll suddenly fall asleep like a cute little angel. I love him so much, but oh my God, this stage is exhausting. At least he's cute. 
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Dec 11, 2010 21:43
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Judging from the provided photo, your problem seems to be that you have a kitten in your house. Solution: Hide valuable breakable things for at least 1 year.
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Dec 11, 2010 22:58
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Due to an email from the pet sitting service that mom uses announcing that they still had availability during the Christmas, we've decided to leave Jimmy home but I've slowly been trying to convince mom to use the harness and leash that we ordered for the trip to train Jimmy to walk on a leash. She likes the idea and loves showing off Jimmy but is afraid that he'll become pushy about wanting to go outdoors. My old cat used to be an 100% indoors cat but then she went all Houndini and kept running outside every time we opened the front door and it was frankly getting annoying so we decided to let her become an indoor/outdoor cat and she basically just chilled in my neighbor's backyard or sat on fences but mom lives in an gated housing community with a feral cat population nearby and it's just not a good place for a house cat to go outdoors. She really doesn't want Jimmy to be constantly trying to escape to outside because it was such a pain when we had to deal with that with the old cat especially that it's a really bad idea for him to be outdoors on his own in this area. Right now, he just sees outside as that big room that the humans won't let him in so he's a little curious about what lies beyond the front door but not crazy. Has anybody else trained their indoor cats to walk and how did it turn out regarding their desire to go outdoors? I think she's gonna try do it anyway because she really likes showing Jimmy off and he's the first cat that she's owned in a while that's social even around strangers. But it'd be nice to alleviate some of her concerns.
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Dec 11, 2010 23:11
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Good day! Today, after months of consideration and preparation, I went to the local SPCA and adopted a cat. I now have a 1 year old spayed female domestic short hair. We spent some time playing with several cats at the shelter, and picked one that was affectionate and playful but not a biter, still young but past the kitten stage. As soon as she came home, she checked out every room in the place then promptly hid under the bed, where she has been for the past 8 hours. About how long can I reasonably expect her to hide, and is there anything I can do to make her more comfortable with her new home? Edit: Photos would be provided, but it's dark under the bed and the flash on my camera isnt working for some reason.
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Dec 11, 2010 23:16
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Every time I've moved to a new place with a cat or got a new cat, they always hid for the first few days until they got comfortable. I would let her be, but be sure she knows where the food/water and litterbox are and put some blankets around (especially where the sun hits) and if you have curtains or blinds, open them up in mornings to let some light through. Purchase some little toys if you haven't already, you can get packs of assorted balls/mice toys for cheap to find out which type she likes. My old cat went crazy for toy mice while Jimmy can't get enough of little tinsel balls.
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Dec 11, 2010 23:28
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She came out and explored a bit and got some treats for it, but I noticed she seems a little sniffly and sneezed a couple times. I know cats frequently get kitty colds and such in shelters, she's going to the vet for a checkup on monday, I'm wondering whether it's something that'll clear up quickly or a cause for concern, and if there's anything I can do about it until she sees the vet.
Well okay fucked around with this message at 01:13 on Dec 12, 2010 |
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Dec 12, 2010 01:11
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Soup: There are a few people here who've had success getting their cats on harnesses. Generally I think the idea is to acclimate them slowly and to always associate the harness with good things. Most cats hate having poo poo stuck to them/wrapped around them so he probably won't like the harness at first. (If he doesn't mind it you can probably just throw it on him and go outside but this probably won't happen) Put the harness on him, making sure it's adjusted correctly, and then give him lots of treats/positive attention/playtime so he sees the harness as a good thing or at least stops associating it with pure agony. Once he stops being freaked out by it maybe try for some outside time. You may or may not be able to get him to "walk" like a dog around the block, he'll probably be more interested in just wandering around and sniffing things and chewing on grass. Well okay: Eh, unless the cat looks REALLY miserable or stops eating or something it can probably wait until Monday. Even if the cat stops eating it's probably because she's stuffed up and can't smell. If that's the case try warming up the food so it is extra stinky. Also it's pretty normal for her to be freaked out and hidey for the first few days. It might be too late to get her out now but it's usually a good idea to just give the cat a room to themselves for the first few days where they can chill out and get used to the fact that they've been moved.
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Dec 12, 2010 08:33
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HondaCivet posted:If that's the case try warming up the food so it is extra stinky.
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Dec 13, 2010 18:19
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I think I won a major victory in the battle to keep my cats off the counters and wanted to share/check to see if anyone sees a problem with this. Back story:  Scrapper  Bono I have two cats; one is senior (Bono, 16 years old) and the other is a rambunctious young manx mix (Scrapper, 6 years old, going on 6 months young). I raised both cats to not go onto the counters and this worked very well for a very long time. Up until Scrap was deemed too heavy a few years back and we put him on a diet. At some point he figured out that he could find niblets on the counter and in the sink. I have waged a war with him since then. Of course the first thing I did was try to keep the sink and counters clean but that doesn't always happen. And it has become a nightly routine for him so he will hunt up there after we go to bed regardless of how clean it is. He got so used to it he will actually try to go up there even when we are up and in the room. I tried using Ssscat for a while and it sort of worked but the replacement parts/batteries are expensive. Sometimes he ignores it. Sometimes it malfunctions and doesn't even go off. Cat not deterred. I've tried putting flat pans of water out. That seemed to work but god it took a lot of effort to setup. I've even tried using a hand device (like a Nerf gun) that shoots a ball of air. It got Scrap off the counter but never deterred him. He'd just go back. drat manx cats are stubborn! Finally, I had this thought and I put it to the test. I put small strips of packing tape sticky side up along the edges of the counter. It didn't take much time to setup and was rather easy to clean up. I also found that they have some static charge to them so the tape will jump up when you move your hand over it. As soon as I turned off the lights I heard the tell tale sound of a cat trying to kick something off of his feet. After putting more tape down, Scrap did not try it all night and while I was at home, he didn't try all day. Mission accomplished? Almost. I left the house to run a quick errand. I came back, opened the door and both cats were sleeping peacefully together on the couch. I start getting their food ready and both stretch to get up. Then I hear that sound of kicking cat feet. I look up and Bono, the older cat, is walking very slowly from the couch, trying to nonchalantly kick tape off from each of his back legs. And I thought he knew better. My only question would be: does anyone think there might be a problem with this, health risk, etc.? inkblottime fucked around with this message at 02:55 on Dec 14, 2010 |
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Dec 14, 2010 02:52
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londerwost posted:cats and counters...
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Dec 14, 2010 04:59
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Quick question about a hyperactive cat: I have a black DSH female, about a year and a half old, who will not stop begging for us to play with her. She needs our attention 24/7, and when she doesn't get it she starts to destroy things (like knocking over glass cups). I have plenty of toys for her, but she refuses to play by herself. Even playing with the other cats won't tire her. What should I do? I wish I could play with her more but 24/7 is a lot for that tiny cat to ask of us.
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Dec 14, 2010 16:54
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Pelafina posted:Quick question about a hyperactive cat: One of my cats loves wand toys and it doesn't take that long to get him from being super hyper to laying on his side on the kitchen floor practically panting. Do you wear her out really well when you play with her? If she has any toys she really goes nuts for you could give it a try.
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Dec 14, 2010 20:13
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Quick question regarding weight. Before anyone says anything, I've already been to a vet and he had no concrete answers for me. I have two cats, brother/sister. They are almost exactly 4 years old, aka they are just starting to lose interest in much physical activity and are more content to lay around. I have a male and female, the male is big in terms of frame, and is 14 pounds. He looks like around a 6 on the chart in the OP - he's not ideal, but he's not fat. He has, in fact, lost a bunch of weight through diet and has some loose skin, which MIGHT be why he still looks fatter than he is (he has a pooch, but it's not fat it's just loose skin that is, I guess, a side effect of gaining weight and also of neutering?). Anyway I'm not concerned about him, he's still active and plays and stuff. The female is the one I'm worried about. She's a smaller frame, and 16.6 pounds. The vet said she should lose weight or become an obese cat with health problems. She's like, a 7 or 8 in the OP chart. She has lost interest in playing (she watches, but just sits) that the vet said was just a 'symptom' of maturation. Here's the problem. He had no suggestions for me on how to get her to lose weight. I don't think I'm overfeeding - we give them 1 SMALL patte of wet food in the morning for them to split (and somehow, they do... weird I know). Other than that we leave their dry food topped off... one check in the AM with the wet food, one check at night. It's almost never empty, there's usually still some food left. We are currently feeding them Science Diet "Light" for weight control. We don't over-treat them, either, in fact treats are sort of rare these days. What can I do differently? Is there an effective weight-control dry food that comes in seafood flavor? Well okay posted:Good day! Today, after months of consideration and preparation, I went to the local SPCA and adopted a cat. I now have a 1 year old spayed female domestic short hair. We spent some time playing with several cats at the shelter, and picked one that was affectionate and playful but not a biter, still young but past the kitten stage. As soon as she came home, she checked out every room in the place then promptly hid under the bed, where she has been for the past 8 hours. About how long can I reasonably expect her to hide, and is there anything I can do to make her more comfortable with her new home? What will REALLY help is if you set up a "safe spot" for her. Did you get any of her blankets or anything from the shelter? If so I would make a bed or something out of them nearby, maybe in a small box or something, so she can go somewhere that smells like her. edit: A cat carrier in a corner of the room or something might help too, so she can run there when she gets scared. Myrddin Emrys fucked around with this message at 21:42 on Dec 14, 2010 |
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Dec 14, 2010 21:38
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Myrddin Emrys posted:I don't think I'm overfeeding - we give them 1 SMALL patte of wet food in the morning for them to split (and somehow, they do... weird I know). Other than that we leave their dry food topped off...  Food left in the bowl means you're giving too much food period.You need to measure their dry food. Also Science Diet "Light" is full of carbs, fillers, and assorted crap. Check out the nutrition megathread. They're more likely to lose weight on a high-protein, low-carbohydrate food than any "light" or "diet" food. Or just feed canned food only. But in whatever case, measure their food. You should be feeding less than what the bag/can recommends no matter what brand or type of food it is.
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Dec 14, 2010 21:45
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Crooked Booty posted:You don't think you're overfeeding, and you're giving them more dry food than they care to eat? Fair enough, when the fatty doesn't get food in the bowl, though, she chews all the cables in the house.
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Dec 14, 2010 22:31
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Buy cord protectors or have fat cats.
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Dec 14, 2010 22:36
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Crooked Booty posted:Buy cord protectors or have fat cats. She ate the cord protectors. I'm going to risk it, I was just saying. I also think I was screwing up ferret food maintenance with cats (ferrets typically don't overeat as a rule).
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Dec 14, 2010 22:55
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Myrddin Emrys posted:She ate the cord protectors. And many cats do not overeat either. In fact, I think a vast majority of people I know free feed their cats with no problem. But then some cats come along like your girl who require something different. So, it's time to try a feeding schedule, or just deal with her being fat.
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Dec 15, 2010 01:04
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Last year at the vet, Chairman Meow was 3.5 pounds, Fidel Catstro was 3. Now, Chairman Meow is 7, Fidel is 16. Woah.
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Dec 15, 2010 03:08
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Rev. Bleech_ posted:Last year at the vet, Chairman Meow was 3.5 pounds, Fidel Catstro was 3. Get a cat named Fulgencio Batista to keep Your chubby cat busy.
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Dec 15, 2010 03:50
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ChairmanMeow posted:Get a cat named Fulgencio Batista to keep Your chubby cat busy. You mean Fulgencio Catista  The vet says he doesn't actually show signs of being overweight, he's just dense (in more ways than one) and pretty large for his age. Overweight or no, I'm still gonna squeal "fat buddy!" and grab his flaps every chance I get.
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Dec 15, 2010 04:38
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Rev. Bleech_ posted:You mean Fulgencio Catista Speaking of dense cats, I think Æsa is made of lead. I've started calling her Pb. Fake Edit: I just googled Pb to make sure I was using it right, and OMG it stands for Plumbum! I think Æsa has another new nickname! 
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Dec 15, 2010 05:01
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Fire In The Disco posted:And many cats do not overeat either. In fact, I think a vast majority of people I know free feed their cats with no problem. But then some cats come along like your girl who require something different. So, it's time to try a feeding schedule, or just deal with her being fat. I definitely don't want to deal with her being fat, I want her to be healthy. I've already switched brands of food today (today was volunteer day at PetSmart so it was convenient). Using the nutrition thread as guidance I got Blue Buffalo (the highest thing on the list they actually sold) and am weaning them both onto that food instead. I got a scoop, too, so it should be easy to stick to a schedule. Thanks for the help and advice.
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Dec 15, 2010 05:16
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Abbeh posted:It bothers Ed when I grab hers, shake it vigorously and shout "fatty fatty fatty cat" but aside from that it doesn't affect her at all.  I thought I was the only one who did this. Sully will tolerate it for a couple shakes, then gets mad. He really hates it when I cradle him in my arms and shake his fat. edit: except instead of "fatty cat" its "pig pig pig!!" Both cats now come whenever I yell "piggies?!" double edit: My vet says Sully, at 12.5lbs, is "athletic." There isn't a drat thing "athletic" about Sully unless wet food or a laser pointer is involved. ladyweapon fucked around with this message at 09:39 on Dec 15, 2010 |
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Dec 15, 2010 09:36
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Oh, by the way, my 1 1/2 year old Baxter had his second hip replacement a couple weeks ago. He's going in to have the sutures removed today (even though he ate most of them off already). He seems to be a much happier cat now that his hips aren't disintegrating, but we now refer to him as ANDROID KITTY. (We should totally rename him. Is Professor Charles Xavier too long?)
manekineko fucked around with this message at 13:49 on Dec 15, 2010 |
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Dec 15, 2010 13:37
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Why not just call him "The Professor"? Poor guy, I hope he's feeling better soon. That's a hell of a surgery for such a young cat.
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Dec 15, 2010 14:45
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Meow Cadet posted:Speaking of dense cats, I think Æsa is made of lead. I've started calling her Pb.
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Dec 15, 2010 17:59
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Recently switched my cat to Blue Buffalo and good lord it's making his litter box smell terrible. Does anybdoy have experience with how to keep litter box smell to a minimum? I'm using tidy cats currently.
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Dec 15, 2010 19:49
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The Pillowman posted:Recently switched my cat to Blue Buffalo and good lord it's making his litter box smell terrible. Does anybdoy have experience with how to keep litter box smell to a minimum? I'm using tidy cats currently. Scoop daily, and put a little fan in that room. I like Tidy Cats Power Blend (the dark blue label), but litter choice is between you and your cat. Meow Cadet fucked around with this message at 19:59 on Dec 15, 2010 |
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Dec 15, 2010 19:53
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The Pillowman posted:Recently switched my cat to Blue Buffalo and good lord it's making his litter box smell terrible. Does anybdoy have experience with how to keep litter box smell to a minimum? I'm using tidy cats currently. You could try Nature's Miracle; I hear that works pretty good. I use Worlds Best and the only time it ever gets stinky is when it's getting time to change the litter. It's pretty pricey, but the only smell coming from it is sweet, sweet corn!
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Dec 15, 2010 19:54
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I'm fostering a stray until Saturday (the first day I could get an appointment with the low-cost clinic). I have no idea if this cat has FIV or FLeuk. I should say it looks healthy, was groomed and has perfect teeth, and was most likely an indoor-only, "I'm sick of this cat, I'll dump it in a semi-rural area to go live on a farm hurrr" type of situation. We do not have a feral cat population and most strays and dumps don't survive the first night out here, between the highway and the coyote pack. I have an indoor-only cat who is not vaccinated against FLeuk and does not have FIV. The stray has been in the garage thanks to unseasonable warmth and has a warm bed, but we're supposed to get a cold snap. Would I be safe if I brought the stray into the laundry room and confined my cat to a non-adjacent room until Saturday? If I behave as though this stray has FIV and FLeuk (better safe than sorry), what cleaning should I do after she's adopted out and how exhaustive do I need to be, and how long should I keep my cat out of the laundry room until I can be sure there's no possible transmission?
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Dec 15, 2010 20:07
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The Pillowman posted:Recently switched my cat to Blue Buffalo and good lord it's making his litter box smell terrible. Does anybdoy have experience with how to keep litter box smell to a minimum? I'm using tidy cats currently. He'll probably go back to normal once his tummy gets accustomed to the food better. I can't guarantee it but it's pretty likely. AltoidsAddict posted:The stray has been in the garage thanks to unseasonable warmth and has a warm bed, but we're supposed to get a cold snap. Would I be safe if I brought the stray into the laundry room and confined my cat to a non-adjacent room until Saturday? If I behave as though this stray has FIV and FLeuk (better safe than sorry), what cleaning should I do after she's adopted out and how exhaustive do I need to be, and how long should I keep my cat out of the laundry room until I can be sure there's no possible transmission? FIV is pretty hard to transmit unless the cats are fighting so I wouldn't worry about that one too much. FeLV is easier but the chances are still pretty remote without direct contact of bodily fluids. I'd empty and clean out the stray's litter box and food dishes and wash its bedding but probably not much more than that unless the cat has an accident or something. I don't know if you gave the stray any toys but I probably wouldn't give them back to your cat without a good washing. Besides that I wouldn't really sweat it. You should probably be more worried about URIs or fleas or something but you didn't mention those so I assume the kitty seems clean?
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Dec 15, 2010 23:22
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HondaCivet posted:FIV is pretty hard to transmit unless the cats are fighting so I wouldn't worry about that one too much. FeLV is easier but the chances are still pretty remote without direct contact of bodily fluids. I'd empty and clean out the stray's litter box and food dishes and wash its bedding but probably not much more than that unless the cat has an accident or something. I don't know if you gave the stray any toys but I probably wouldn't give them back to your cat without a good washing. Besides that I wouldn't really sweat it. You should probably be more worried about URIs or fleas or something but you didn't mention those so I assume the kitty seems clean? Yeah, and fleas are pretty rare in Colorado especially after October. The stray wasn't underweight, hasn't had any suspicious discharge or symptoms, has been eliminating fine, I've groomed it and aside from dust and a little dandruff it doesn't seem to have fleas or ticks, and no "flea dirt" from what I can see either. (The flea I worry about in my area is the rodent flea, which carries the plague and can sometimes piggyback from an indoor-outdoor cat who's been poking around a prairie dog colony. There are a few cases of plague in people from this in our state every year.) All of the equipment we're using to care for her is going with her since her forever home is a first-time cat owner, who's been given a link to this thread and has seen how my husband and I run things with our pets. Good to know that I can bring her inside. I'll worry less!
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Dec 16, 2010 01:26
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Myrddin Emrys posted:I definitely don't want to deal with her being fat, I want her to be healthy. I've already switched brands of food today (today was volunteer day at PetSmart so it was convenient). Using the nutrition thread as guidance I got Blue Buffalo (the highest thing on the list they actually sold) and am weaning them both onto that food instead. I got a scoop, too, so it should be easy to stick to a schedule. Also, try splitting the food into several smaller meals. That way fatty cat feels like she's eating more because she's eating more frequently. My hog kitty gets three meals a day -- two moderate and one tiny -- and it stopped him from barfing from either hunger or binging.
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Dec 16, 2010 03:22
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Help! Sick kitty! It's a long story but a cat that we had presumed stray when we moved in but may be my neighbors (but still spends 1/3+ of nights in our house, and gets fed by us) appears to be sick. He has always had a bit of rough breathing but now it seems he is almost hickuping with every breath, he won't eat (even turkey) and has lost a LOT of weight (he was a fatty, now he's really thin). I went to the neighbors door this morning but they didn't answer. I don't know their hours. We are all really worried about the cat and don't know what might be wrong or how to proceed. If it's not the neighbors cat, I will take it and take care of it. If it is the neighbors cat, I will still take it to the vet and pay for its treatment if they don't have the money. If it's the neighbors cat and they just refuse to take it to the vet, they are losing their cat. Does that seem reasonable? Any guesses on what might be wrong with him? I'm going to keep monitoring the cat in my living room until towards the end of the business day but I would like to get him to the vet today. He is a nice cat. Also he is kind of old we think (we have no idea).
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Dec 16, 2010 18:54
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Hopefully you just went on and took him to the vet, but if not, get him there ASAP.
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Dec 17, 2010 00:36
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RheaConfused posted:Hopefully you just went on and took him to the vet, but if not, get him there ASAP. I finally found them a few hours after that post. The wife/mother said that he's just old, and that the he's already been to the vet. She couldn't tell me what specifically was wrong with him but I didn't press it. She said they don't really expect him to live through the holidays; he is 12 or 13 years old. I like him a lot, he is such a nice giant cat, it's too bad really. Also my dog really liked him and was really sweet to him after some time, and the cat would try to clean the dog.
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Dec 17, 2010 03:07
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Question about cat appetite: Kitty had decreased appetite and lethargy due to medication. She probably ate about half the calories she should have per day, and I had to hand feed her wet food to coax her to eat. I would bring her food every 4-6 hours and get her to eat a few mouthfuls. Now that the medication is done, for two weeks at least, her appetite didn't bounce back right away like I thought it would. She's somewhat more energetic, but the cat that used to lick the plate clean and then devour her kibble just licks at the wet food for a while before losing interest. I've tried heating it up, and mixing treats in (which she will always accept a few of). I'm still having to offer food many times a day. What sort of scheme should I use to get her back on track?
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Dec 17, 2010 03:53
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