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Eggplant Wizard posted:We found a roach in my apartment last night (dead & torn apart, ty cats). Will putting traps/roach motels or whatever, cause the roaches (if god forbid there are anymore) to be poisonous for my cats? They don't usually eat bugs, just tear them up. The one last night was kind of eviscerated looking but definitely not much of it, if any, was eaten. It depends on the product. Roach motels are designed to trap roaches, so as long as you are careful to select trap products that don't contain poisons, it will be fine. I'm having a hard time too because I live in Florida and with the weather warming up, the roaches have decided it's time to make their appearance. With a cat and two ferrets I'm going to have to find an alternative to my gut instinct of POISON THOSE MOTHERFUCKERS.
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Mar 19, 2011 17:33
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I have to find a new place soon and I'm looking for a shared appartement with roommates that allow pets. The plan is to adopt two adult cats from the local shelter so that they won't be alone when I'm out. How large should the place be so that the two of them can be kept indoors all the time?
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Mar 21, 2011 19:23
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Cats really prefer more vertical space to more horizontal space, so I wouldn't worry much about the size of the apartment and instead make sure that you have cat trees and furniture that allow them to be up higher, so they can look down upon you in disdain from their lofty position. And race up and down the furniture/trees in the middle of the night.
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Mar 21, 2011 19:28
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If I do get an apartment that allows pets, I may only be able to have one cat. Is this too much of a problem?
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Mar 22, 2011 04:27
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Pollyanna posted:If I do get an apartment that allows pets, I may only be able to have one cat. Is this too much of a problem? Nothing wrong with one cat. PI just recommends getting two kittens if you're getting kittens because it helps them better socialize as well as wear themselves out. If you only want one cat, you could ask the shelter for a "one cat" cat or just an adult cat. Of course there's also nothing wrong with getting a single kitten either.  that felt really longwinded to say
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Mar 22, 2011 04:54
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Pollyanna posted:If I do get an apartment that allows pets, I may only be able to have one cat. Is this too much of a problem? Not really, two cats are recommended but millions do fine on their own.
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Mar 22, 2011 05:05
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Kerfuffle posted:Nothing wrong with one cat. PI just recommends getting two kittens if you're getting kittens because it helps them better socialize as well as wear themselves out. If you only want one cat, you could ask the shelter for a "one cat" cat or just an adult cat. Of course there's also nothing wrong with getting a single kitten either. Seconding shelter adult cat -- they can tell you at the shelter which cats tend to prefer being on their own, and everybody winds up happy. Kittens tend to do better with someone to play with but plenty of adults don't care for other cats at all. If you want one that's more kitten-y, at about a year old they still have a lot of crazy in them, plus they'd be cheaper to adopt and already neutered. Plus, the older they get, the harder it is for them to find homes, so you can rest assured you have saved a life.
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Mar 22, 2011 12:46
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I was going to take in my Boss's cat because she was basically a prisoner in her own house thanks to their new puppy. They offered to pay for her vet bills because they felt pretty terrible about the situation. She developed an infection and was taking a pill everyday. It started clearing up but one weekend she started going downhill again. They ended up have to put her down because there was nothing that could be done   She was a cute lil thing, really small for her age. I think she was about 6 or 7. She was lovin that railing. Well now I really want a cat, a coworker found me one that is a couple years old from a woman she knows. It isn't fixed though, is there anything wrong with having a cat fixed at that age? The woman claims it doesn't spray but I don't want to take any chances. I'd actually like to get two but I'm not sure if that's allowed in my apartment.
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Mar 22, 2011 14:10
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HandsomeBen posted:Well now I really want a cat, a coworker found me one that is a couple years old from a woman she knows. It isn't fixed though, is there anything wrong with having a cat fixed at that age? The woman claims it doesn't spray but I don't want to take any chances.  I dunno. Is the cat a male or a female? Maybe you could take him/her on a trial basis and if he/she sprays or causes problems, give him/her back? I mean, they're often okay, but I wouldn't rely on the testimony of someone who is trying to get rid of the cat.
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Mar 22, 2011 14:24
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Eggplant Wizard posted:
Male and that is what I'm worried about. She said that he goes in the first week of April for his shots and she is willing to wait until that is done. She doesn't sound like she's trying to be deceitful or anything. I do plan on going to check him out before I make a decision though. The only problem with a trial is I have to pay a $200 deposit to have a pet here and an additional $15 a month. I don't really feel like trying to cheat the system either because I was super lucky getting into this place and I'd like to stay here. Edit: I decided I'm going to check out a shelter close by instead. Also, Overkill? http://julietladieu.com/images/catTree/enormous_cat_Tree.jpg HandsomeBen fucked around with this message at 19:32 on Mar 22, 2011 |
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Mar 22, 2011 14:56
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Holy poo poo, I don't have the floorspace for that, and yet if I did, my cats would think they'd died and gone to kitty heaven.
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Mar 23, 2011 05:50
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A dear friend of mine is one of the adoption volunteers at Petsmart. She's been looking for a couple of months for a cat just for me and we found one -- he got adopted last night before I could go verify that he was as awesome as she said. Great for the cat, sad for me. So today it's a trip to the shelter that she works through to meet some others and I'm bracing myself for the depression. I'm going to want to take them all, I know this, but I can't. I may possibly end up with two -- one of my neighbors has a pair -- but I think my place might be too small for that. I've lived in a smaller place with two cats but neither of them were happy about that and the last thing I want is to take a cat from a shelter and put it in a home it won't like. Anyway, no real point to this, more that I'm counting the last two hours before I go meet my potential new kitty-shaped roommate. Hopefully I'll be able to give a cat a new home where they'll be properly spoiled, like all cats should be. Wish me luck!
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Mar 23, 2011 22:20
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My boyfriend and I just adopted an older kitty from our landlady. He's as sweet as can be but I'm just a little worried as I don't see any signs of him having used his litter box yet. We just adopted him yesterday and all he's really done is hide under my boyfriend's desk. He'll peek out every now and then but otherwise, he just wants to stay there. Is this anything to be concerned about or is it just a matter of him needing time to get used to his new surroundings?
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Mar 23, 2011 22:21
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Mummy Brigade posted:Is this anything to be concerned about or is it just a matter of him needing time to get used to his new surroundings? Exactly this. Just leave him alone. Give him a quiet space with food/water/litterbox. He'll come out when he's ready.
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Mar 23, 2011 22:28
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Kerfuffle posted:Exactly this. Just leave him alone. Give him a quiet space with food/water/litterbox. He'll come out when he's ready. Yeah, I got back from picking my boyfriend up from school and noticed some litter around the entrance of the litterbox so it looks like he's using it. Of course, I've got another issue. The cat likes to hide underneath my boyfriend's recliner. Right now, we've got some boxes around the side and back to try and block the cat from getting in, but I'm still worried about him finding his way underneath the recliner and getting trapped/hurt. Any ideas as to what to do there?
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Mar 24, 2011 01:45
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Well, I was adopted! He's an approximately 3 year old black and white long haired kitty that obviously was someone's pet at one point (he was marked as a stray, they found him wandering and no one claimed him.) The name is coming, I think I have it figured out but I'm giving it a few days. In the meantime he is very sweet and very mellow and loves to be petted. Not the most graceful of creatures, but very gentle and right at home on the furniture without showing any interest in scratching it (he has a post anyway.) He basically follows me around, circles around my legs and headbutts me when he isn't rolling around. This is the first time I've ever adopted a cat that didn't need a few days of hiding. His only issue so far seems to be hearing the cats across the hall when the door is open -- he's not a fan and gave them a good long glare. Oh, and the hall closet is not allowed to be closed. Not at all. Ever. I have a feeling it will be a long night but it's for a good cause. My new friend will settle in, he has a comfy place to sleep that he's already given his approval to if he doesn't just curl up with me. Very happy I went down to see him, he's awesome
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Mar 24, 2011 04:44
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So, I recently adopted a kitten?/cat? from the Humane Society in my area. The kitty has been great! He's very friendly and just a great time to be around BUT there's just one thing...my allergies are going crazy. I lived with my parents' cats for 5 years with nary a problem. My last year living with them, they even got the same type of cat as I have now (male black cat) and I didn't have a problem. Details: Name:Ripley Age: 6 months Owned for: 2 weeks Neutered I currently feed him Purina kitty food He was checked up on at the Humane Society as of 2 weeks ago He's an indoor cat in a 1 bedroom apartment No other pets in the apartment There's one litter box (due to space) I have no plans to surrender this kitty but I'm curious as to what I can do minimize my reactions. I was wondering if anybody had advice or knowledge on allergies. I've been brushing him and vacuuming and doing what I can to keep his at a minimum in my environment. Do I just need to be around him more? Again, lived with cats for years without an allergic reaction.
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Mar 24, 2011 11:02
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Boywhiz88 posted:So, I recently adopted a kitten?/cat? from the Humane Society in my area. The kitty has been great! He's very friendly and just a great time to be around BUT there's just one thing...my allergies are going crazy. You're gonna want to check out this thread: http://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3387137 The OP isn't necessarily asking what you are, but there is lots of advice you can use.
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Mar 24, 2011 11:50
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Boywhiz88 posted:So, I recently adopted a kitten?/cat? from the Humane Society in my area. The kitty has been great! He's very friendly and just a great time to be around BUT there's just one thing...my allergies are going crazy. Zyrtec all day every day. (It's Ceterizine if you want the generic, I use Wal-Zyr with no problems.) Other than that, my main advice is 1- no cat on the bed, 2- wash your hands if you pet the cat/before eating and 3- do not touch your face. Oh and 4- if you cuddle the cat change your shirt. The things I do to love animals that are toxic to me. It does get better with time, I went from "well zyrtec lasts maybe 12 of the 24 hours it's supposed to" to a comfy one a day. I still get wheezy when I pet cats that are not my cats but mine can sit on my head and I'll be ok after a shower. Also your cat is in great danger of exploding if we don't see pics.
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Mar 24, 2011 15:50
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Boywhiz88 posted:So, I recently adopted a kitten?/cat? from the Humane Society in my area. The kitty has been great! He's very friendly and just a great time to be around BUT there's just one thing...my allergies are going crazy. Your allergies will probably settle down after a few weeks.
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Mar 24, 2011 15:53
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Thinkin about rescuing, y'all  I'm looking at rescuing an adult cat as early as August. Two questions: 1. One cat I'm looking at has no hind legs. Like none. She was born with one hind leg but it was crap and got jacked up so it was amputated. She's still highly mobile according to the shelter  Is there a point to getting a cat tree? (Tbh I wasn't planning on buying a cat tree but instead making one out of boxes and old towels and blankets if at all possible.) If she (somehow) manages to climb her way onto something high, will she be okay getting down on her own? How dangerous for her is it to have stairs in my house?2. I'm in the process of figuring out a general budget for cat care, like how much should I save up in advance, what are the recurring costs each month, all that. How long does a bag of food last for just one adult cat? How long for a bag of litter? I'm trying to put things in terms of $/month. e: Not really a kitten question, is it...My b. v  v
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Mar 24, 2011 19:55
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Well, if you're going to adopt a special needs animal you probably should put a decent amount aside (or at least have the option of a credit card.) E-vet visits can run a couple hundred to a couple thousand. I don't think saving 2k before you get a cat is really necessary, but just be aware things can go south in a hurry. Food wise I get a big bag of Blue Buffalo and a tub of tidy cats once a month and that covers 2 cats. I think they're about 25-35$ a month each, for food and litter. This will vary based on what food and litter you get, of course. If she can't climb a tree she will still need scratchers, there's a bunch of flat and inclined types that would be fine. I would baby gate stairs if she can't handle them, but that's going to depend on her. Cats LOOOOVE boxes though, making a ground level Cat Fort would be fine. Hell I do that for my spoiled kitties and they have legs!
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Mar 24, 2011 20:22
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Cool, thanks. The two-legged cat is just one on a list of many many prospectives, and of course I'm more likely to end up with a cat that adopts me rather than one I set out to meet and adopt. Cats always fuckin with my plans 
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Mar 24, 2011 20:31
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Is there anything in dryer sheets that would be appealing to a cat's appetite or is my cat just weird?
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Mar 24, 2011 20:41
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I'm going to be getting a two-bedroom apartment in the next month and adopting a shelter cat a couple months after that. This apartment is going to be completely carpeted aside from the kitchen and bathroom. I've read when introducing a cat to a new home it's a good idea to give them their own room for a little bit. I'm wondering if the second, smaller bedroom is a good candidate for this or if I would want something with a tile/linoleum floor in case she doesn't take a fancy to the box right away. A Curvy Goonette fucked around with this message at 21:35 on Mar 24, 2011 |
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Mar 24, 2011 21:33
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Trebuchet King posted:Is there anything in dryer sheets that would be appealing to a cat's appetite or is my cat just weird? It's not just you, there was a goon who had like a $2000 exploratory surgery to find a blockage, it was a dryer sheet.
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Mar 24, 2011 21:36
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Esmerelda posted:Oh, and the hall closet is not allowed to be closed. Not at all. Ever. My cat will wake me up in the night with his incessant pawing at the laundry room/closet door if I've left it closed. rear end in a top hat cats.
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Mar 25, 2011 04:43
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One of our cats does that too. And the basement door is his constant foe for no reason I can determine. The OP mentions wire chewing but doesn't really dwell on it. Our new cat (I mentioned him before, he was lonely in the isolation room apart from our two other cats - listening to the radio actually did help with that) has developed a terrible taste for wires. He has chewed through one already - fortunately a USB connection cable to a device that just turned off once it lost signal, and not a major power cable. But he likes to chew on everything - phone chargers, computer cords, video game cords, anything he can reach. It may be because he has that endless kitten energy still (about 1 year old) but he does play with the other cat, his toys, and I play with him with a laser pointer most nights. Is the bitter apple stuff the way to go? I am going to get some today but I was wondering if I should try something else in addition. Any tips? Sionak fucked around with this message at 14:47 on Mar 25, 2011 |
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Mar 25, 2011 14:40
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That should work.
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Mar 25, 2011 14:48
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Serella posted:My cat will wake me up in the night with his incessant pawing at the laundry room/closet door if I've left it closed. rear end in a top hat cats. Sionak posted:Is the bitter apple stuff the way to go? I am going to get some today but I was wondering if I should try something else in addition. Any tips? The other one that was a chewer ended up growing out of it eventually. After he'd done some damage, of course.
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Mar 25, 2011 16:06
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Where in the Houston area can I take a stray/abandoned cat and be confident she won't be euthanized? Over the past couple of weeks I've noticed a young adult white cat (~1-3 years) hanging around my apartment complex. I suspect she's an abandoned pet because she's very affectionate, follows me around outside like a dog, and has tried to get inside my home on multiple occasions. However, she has no collar or tags or microchip. Taking her in is not an option. For one, I already have a cat that gets extremely stressed and anxious around other cats. For another, I can't afford it. I've already mentioned her to my friends and facebook-advertised her to everyone I know, but nobody is interested. I have looked for no-kill organizations in Houston, but it seems like they just rescue adoption-ready animals about to be euthanasized at the city shelter, and having worked at a shelter in the past I know that a lot of animals are destroyed before they even make it to the adoption list. I could just ignore her and let her be the wild cat on the complex, but she's tame enough that I suspect she's going to be run over sooner or later. Any suggestions?
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Mar 25, 2011 21:15
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Homeless Pet Placement League? http://www.hppl.org/ If you go on petfinder, and go to the website of the shelters listed in your area you can find quite a few no-kill shelters or foster organizations.
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Mar 26, 2011 03:09
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2508084 posted:Homeless Pet Placement League? http://www.hppl.org/ This. Also this: http://www.cap4pets.org/ They aren't specifically no kill that I can recall, but they have a very high adoption rate and also a weekend adoption program that would let you bring her up. They are very highly rated, and we had lots of good experiences referring people to them at the clinic where I worked. RheaConfused fucked around with this message at 03:57 on Mar 26, 2011 |
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Mar 26, 2011 03:51
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Soo. Posted about a new kitty a while back, he's starting to warm up to us a bit. For some reason he still spends most of his time in the closet. EXCEPT during the morning. He walks around the house or our bedroom and meows, and meows, and meows. This can occur any time from 5 am to 9 am. As far as I can tell he's fed and watered, litter box is clean. How can I cure him of this morning meow? I wouldn't mind an afternoon meow, please I just want to sleep in.
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Mar 27, 2011 15:00
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Oh, early Sunday morning visits to the e-vet! Oona was making noises like she was locked in a closet this morning and we tracked her down to the litter box She was definitely straining. She has a history of calcium ox crystals so off to the e-vet we went. She didn't have a bladder to give a sample, but we got fluids and buprenex and we'll take her in tomorrow to our regular vet, who we haven't met yet since we moved to Austin. The e-vet did know of the vet office where we came from in Houston and shared some friends with my old boss though, small world. Here's hoping for cystitis, which she also has a problem with. She eats c/d so I really hope it's not crystals. Luckily we went in knowing what we'd need since we've been through this a bunch of times before and we got out of there for under $200.
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Mar 27, 2011 23:44
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Who's your new vet? 
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Mar 27, 2011 23:48
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Reason posted:Soo. Posted about a new kitty a while back, he's starting to warm up to us a bit. For some reason he still spends most of his time in the closet. EXCEPT during the morning. He walks around the house or our bedroom and meows, and meows, and meows. This can occur any time from 5 am to 9 am. As far as I can tell he's fed and watered, litter box is clean. How can I cure him of this morning meow? I wouldn't mind an afternoon meow, please I just want to sleep in. I'm pretty sure the only way to get an afternoon meow instead of a morning meow, is to wake up super early, and take afternoon naps. The only other thing you could try, is just to wear out the cat before bedtime with an intense 20-30 minute play session, and wear that sucker out.
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Mar 28, 2011 00:35
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Crooked Booty posted:Who's your new vet? Dr. Kim Percival at the Cat Hospital of Austin. She did an internship with my clinic (the Cat Veterinary Clinic in Houston) and she also took care of the kitty of the parents of one of the vets I worked with and he really liked her. Why?
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Mar 28, 2011 00:49
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RheaConfused posted:Why? I've heard nothing but good things about Dr. Percival.
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Mar 28, 2011 01:18
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Crooked Booty posted:I figured you'd either go there or a certain clinic where I used to work, so I was just curious. Thanks! I did my research, and the fact that both of the vets I worked with recommended her (and they didn't know that they both knew her till we started talking about moving) sealed the deal.
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Mar 28, 2011 01:30
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