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So, I'm getting a pair of older kittens(~6 mo.) from a foster/rescue. I've been warned that they (or some of their siblings) seem to enjoy unrolling & shredding the hell out of toilet paper. I intend to just put it away for now, but is there something which can be done to either break the habit, or to block them from the toilet paper while still leaving it on the holder?
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Nov 19, 2011 08:29
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For the person that recommended the pain pill, thanks  She seems more herself for a couple hours after the pill, and we have the surgery to remove all her teeth on tuesday. Hopefully she'll be ok after.
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Nov 19, 2011 09:51
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Aelia posted:So, I'm getting a pair of older kittens(~6 mo.) from a foster/rescue. I've been warned that they (or some of their siblings) seem to enjoy unrolling & shredding the hell out of toilet paper. I intend to just put it away for now, but is there something which can be done to either break the habit, or to block them from the toilet paper while still leaving it on the holder? Just get one of those covers that slips onto the roll, I think they carry them at Wal-mart and such. Keeps the cats from being able to paw at the roll, and a human just reaches under and pulls out the paper when needed. They're also good for baby proofing - my friend's toddler just LOVES unrolling TP all over the house. Our cats don't bother the toilet paper on the dispenser, they go after the stack of spares still in plastic and chew on them 
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Nov 19, 2011 16:08
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Aelia posted:So, I'm getting a pair of older kittens(~6 mo.) from a foster/rescue. I've been warned that they (or some of their siblings) seem to enjoy unrolling & shredding the hell out of toilet paper. I intend to just put it away for now, but is there something which can be done to either break the habit, or to block them from the toilet paper while still leaving it on the holder?
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Nov 19, 2011 16:42
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I've had very little exposure to cats, but I have been considering getting a cat and doing some research. I read the OP also. Learning that declawing is incredibly inhumane was surprising. I have some questions about scratching. 1. With softpaws and a scratching post(assuming I can get them to use them, reading articles on it now), would they still damage my furniture and walls? Even with a little bit of vinyl at the end of their claws, I would think they should be able to damage my couch pretty easily, no? Do softpaws cover the tip of the nail, or they basically cover the entire nail, making the end of their foot smooth? I don't even use my couch much, perhaps throwing a tarp or something over it is viable? Edit: Some more googling made it clear they cover the entire nail, so I doubt they could damage my couch by scratching, except through pressure. 2. I have no friends who have cats, it would be a poor idea to just adopt one, where can I get more information on I don't know, fostering a cat or something? 3. I cook on my stove top a lot. Need I worry that a cat might burn itself on it? 4. How much noise do cats make? I have an elderly neighbor with health problems, need I worry that they may keep them awake?
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Nov 19, 2011 17:43
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Diogines posted:I've had very little exposure to cats, but I have been considering getting a cat and doing some research. I read the OP also. 1. They might still damage your furniture. Some cats don't tolerate Soft Paws at all and chew them off. You can definitely encourage your cats to use scratching posts instead of your furniture, but be prepared for some damage to occur. 2. You could always start out fostering a cat and then decide to adopt it, but honestly it's not something you need crazy experience for since they're such common pets and all the info you need is easily accessible. Check with your local shelters and rescues to apply to be a foster. 3. There's a chance of this in any home, but I think it's negligible. I've never had a problem, and I primarily cook on my stovetop. 4. Varies from cat to cat. My cat vocalizes a bit when he hears a can of wet food being opened or wants attention when I get home from work, but there are some cats that meow all the time and some who don't meow at all.
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Nov 19, 2011 17:48
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RazorBunny posted:Just get one of those covers that slips onto the roll, I think they carry them at Wal-mart and such. Keeps the cats from being able to paw at the roll, and a human just reaches under and pulls out the paper when needed. They're also good for baby proofing - my friend's toddler just LOVES unrolling TP all over the house. Yeah, she says they like unraveling the toilet paper *and* shredding it, but she's not entirely sure it's them, since she's a foster, and has quite a few cats. I figured a toilet paper cover would be worth trying, but hadn't been able to find one for less than about $50 because it's "designer." Josh Lyman posted:Couldn't you just keep them out of the bathroom while you're using it and keep the bathroom door closed the rest of the time? It's a fairly small apartment and the bathroom is one of the most feasible places for a litterbox, so while that's an optional workaround, ideally I'd like to break the habit or find a way to keep them away from the toilet paper.
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Nov 19, 2011 18:55
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Diogines posted:4. How much noise do cats make? I have an elderly neighbor with health problems, need I worry that they may keep them awake? The shelter will be able to tell you how noisy each cat is or isn't, because they'll be familiar with them. Just ask for a quiet one.
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Nov 19, 2011 21:24
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We have a ~6 month old Mackerel tabby that lives at our office. The kitten seems to like me a lot so my boss asked if I wanted to take her home on the weekends so she wouldn't be so bored all by herself. I was under the impression that cats/kittens do a lot of sleeping. For kittens i've read from 16-20 hours is normal a day. However, she does not sleep anywhere near that much. On Friday night I would estimate she got 5 hours of sleep at night and a few more hours during the during the day. Last night was better, she got around 8-9 hours. Even during the day she is constantly alert and awake it seems. Perhaps this is just because she is getting used to a new environment?
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Nov 20, 2011 17:30
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tronester posted:We have a ~6 month old Mackerel tabby that lives at our office. The kitten seems to like me a lot so my boss asked if I wanted to take her home on the weekends so she wouldn't be so bored all by herself. Probably. I mean, she's got a whole new place to explore and get used to. Eventually she'll start sleeping more but I don't remember any of my cats sleeping 16-20 hours a day when they were kittens. They sleep more now because they're lazy cats but still not anywhere near that amount. She'll do what she needs to until she feels comfortable in her new environment, I wouldn't worry.
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Nov 20, 2011 21:20
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Okay, my turn. I've got a 3 year old Retard the Wonder Cat (no seriously, she's mentally handicapped and has PTSD from a robbery) that has an issue with closed doors. She just doesn't like them. There is one door in particular (the door to the nursery) that is always closed. When we first got her at 4 weeks old, that room was the office and her domicile for a few weeks while she grew big enough not to be eaten by the other cats. For a couple weeks after we relocated the office, she cried incessantly for the door to be open but eventually stopped and never gave it a second thought. With the baby coming, I don't want the cats to be in the nursery and we've noticed that as we've been in and out of that room during preparations she seems to have rediscovered its entire existence and cries constantly. I've tried reassuring her, distracting her, letting her roam in the room to assure her the boogie man doesn't live there, you name it. She just won't stop. Its concerning because I don't see it ending as we will constantly be in and out of that room so its unlikely she'll forget about it again. I also don't want a very loud cat crying outside of the door when I'm trying to keep the kid asleep. Any ideas?
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Nov 21, 2011 04:20
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Hello, thread. Just over two weeks ago, I got the best birthday present ever, a little white and black kitten that we named Batman for his cape-and-mask pattern. He's wonderful and cuddly and happy and about 17 weeks old. Since I live in Sweden, I understand that food recommendations are a bit harder, but right now we have him on 1st Choice for kittens which he seems to like, though he only eats about a dl per day and weighed in at exactly 2 kilos at the vet last week. So, me and the vet talked about food after castration, which we're hopefully doing a month from now when I return him for his second vaccination, since he was too small last week. She wrote me a list of food she recommends for after castration. The problem is, all of them contain rice or wheat, and from what I've understood (from PI) carbs are bad for kitties. The one I use right now doesn't have carbs, but it wasn't one she recommended (though she didn't speak against it either). Should I listen to my vets recommendations or should I take the same brand only for castrated cats instead of kittens, if that brand doesn't contain carbs either?
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Nov 21, 2011 20:46
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benjai posted:The problem is, all of them contain rice or wheat, and from what I've understood (from PI) carbs are bad for kitties. The one I use right now doesn't have carbs, but it wasn't one she recommended (though she didn't speak against it either). Should I listen to my vets recommendations or should I take the same brand only for castrated cats instead of kittens, if that brand doesn't contain carbs either?
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Nov 22, 2011 02:17
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Hi PI! I recently adopted a cat that belonged to a woman whose husband just plain couldn't stand to have him around any more. He (the cat, that is, not her husband) is all moved in and seems to be doing well. The one thing is, he's declawed (and was when she adopted him from the shelter)--and I've never had a declawed cat before, since I strongly object to the practice. He's indoor-only, of course, but what else could I possibly do to make sure that he is happy and healthy regardless? I've heard declawed cats can get problems with soreness in their joints and/or foot problems. What should I be watching for to make sure he's okay?
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Nov 22, 2011 03:09
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Pick posted:Hi PI! I recently adopted a cat that belonged to a woman whose husband just plain couldn't stand to have him around any more. He (the cat, that is, not her husband) is all moved in and seems to be doing well. The one thing is, he's declawed (and was when she adopted him from the shelter)--and I've never had a declawed cat before, since I strongly object to the practice. He's indoor-only, of course, but what else could I possibly do to make sure that he is happy and healthy regardless? I've heard declawed cats can get problems with soreness in their joints and/or foot problems. What should I be watching for to make sure he's okay? If he's been declawed for several years and doesn't show any signs of pain walking, he's probably fine. My cat was declawed by his original owners, and he's fine having his paws mushed around -- one of them is on my face right now, actually.  I'd say gingerly test the paws if you're really concerned about it, but I think (based on my observations) that the actual incidences of post-declawing pain (after the first few weeks) is slightly overstated as an argument against declawing. I abhor the practice myself, but there you have it.Also, as a note, when declawed cats knead you it is just so  . Mush feets.
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Nov 22, 2011 05:27
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Serella posted:Also, as a note, when declawed cats knead you it is just so . Not condoning the practice(the operation + cats sometimes get frustrated at not actually scratching), but just sayin'.
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Nov 22, 2011 07:28
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My roommates and I recently got a 6 month old male kitten named catbro. One of my roommates brought him home for fall break, and we have to introduce catbro to his golden/lab mix Harper. We've let them sniff each other through the door for the past couple days, and this evening we tried the leash method where the dog is held tight on a leash and you let the cat just investigate. Harper was really good and sat still the whole time, but as soon as I set catbro down, he immediately turned and slinked away quietly. I could tell he was really scared. Are we doing this wrong, or is it just going to take a couple of tries to get catbro curious enough to go sniff Harper?
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Nov 22, 2011 12:01
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Lawnie posted:catbro I don't have any experience with your situation, so I can't really help, but I just wanted to tell you that catbro is a fantastic name.
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Nov 22, 2011 12:18
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Lawnie posted:My roommates and I recently got a 6 month old male kitten named catbro. One of my roommates brought him home for fall break, and we have to introduce catbro to his golden/lab mix Harper. We've let them sniff each other through the door for the past couple days, and this evening we tried the leash method where the dog is held tight on a leash and you let the cat just investigate. Harper was really good and sat still the whole time, but as soon as I set catbro down, he immediately turned and slinked away quietly. I could tell he was really scared. Are we doing this wrong, or is it just going to take a couple of tries to get catbro curious enough to go sniff Harper? It's what you need.
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Nov 22, 2011 13:13
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How do you discourage a kitten from biting? Stormy is ~ 7 months old (vet figured) and while he is learning to keep his claws to himself, he has started giving me "love bites". As in, he won't bite while playing, but he will just...walk up to me, purring, and chomp me on the leg. Or, while I'm petting him, he'll just chomp down on my hand. The weirdness is how slow it is - sometimes, he'll look me straight in the eye and just close his chompers around my hand, squeezing til I say "ow!". It's very weird. I say "ow!" and move away every time he does it, but then, a few moments later, he's back, prr, prr, chomp. What gives?
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Nov 22, 2011 16:34
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I'm going home for Christmas this year and planning to take my cat with us. He is ~4 years old, originally a rescue cat and then his first owners had to give him away due to allergies, so we took him in about a month ago. He hasn't met my sister's dog yet who is a giant 2 year old goldendoodle who is very well behaved but does get hyper and excited sometimes. They most likely will be travelling in the vehicle together, and it's an 8 hour drive or so. What's the best way to handle this? Should I introduce them beforehand? My apartment doesn't allow dogs, so they would have to be introduced at her place, which I'm scared will make him feel defensive because it's not his home. Also planning to get some cat xanax from the vet just in case he hates travelling.
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Nov 22, 2011 18:50
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CarrotFlowers posted:Also planning to get some cat xanax from the vet just in case he hates travelling. Does this really exist? Taking Grumples and Hat for a 3.5-hour drive at Christmas, maybe I could get them some.
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Nov 22, 2011 19:08
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marshmallard posted:Does this really exist? Taking Grumples and Hat for a 3.5-hour drive at Christmas, maybe I could get them some. I hope so! I had my hopes up, but now I'm not sure. I did some googling and some places said vets have some anti anxiety pills for things like travelling and other high stress situations, so that's what I'm banking on. My sister's vet used to tell her to give her cat children's gravol because she was a terrible traveller, but I'm not sure how good that is for them?
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Nov 22, 2011 20:52
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I used gravol for my cat and it seemed to work OK.
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Nov 22, 2011 23:18
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This will be my first holiday season with my kittens, so I have no idea about this, but is there much in the way of discounts on pet stuff? I'm thinking of getting a fancy covered litter box for the kitties, a poop shack, as it were.
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Nov 22, 2011 23:23
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marshmallard posted:Does this really exist? Taking Grumples and Hat for a 3.5-hour drive at Christmas, maybe I could get them some. Yes, but it's not "cat Xanax," it's actual Xanax (Alprazolam) just given in a smaller dose. But you'll want to do a test run to make sure your kitty doesn't suffer any adverse affects (sometimes it makes them freak out) before you have them in a car.
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Nov 22, 2011 23:24
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gently caress! I keep stepping on my kitten. I walk slowly and don't make any quick movements in general, but my little spaz of a cat always manages to get underfoot when she's trying to lead me to the kitchen. She let out a YOOOOAWR! and started licking the paw I stepped on. She's running around and playing, but every 90 seconds or so she'll hoist her paw in the air and lick it a few times. Fix yourself, kitty!
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Nov 23, 2011 04:23
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I'm thinking about helping my girlfriend adopt a cat as her christmas present. HEAR ME OUT, we're not idiots! She has one cat already, and has owned many cats. She loves cats. I quite like cats, but I haven't owned a cat for about 10 years. I used to love my kitty, who died at the age of 14 or so. This will not be a suprise kitten present, she's discussed wanting to get a friend for her cat Coco for around six months now and we will discuss the idea at length before we ever go near a shelter. Coco likes other animals and snuggles with friendly cats (she used to live in a house with two other cats, one died of old age and one belonged to a room mate who moved out, she has met other cats and seems to enjoy their company). Coco is about 9 years old. Coco is an inside cat and the new cat will be too. I am not "buying her a cat", I am going to offer to pay shelter adoption fees, vaccination, desexing, registration etc as her christmas present. She will select the cat and/or allow the cat to select her. The cat will not be jointly-owned. It will be her cat. Should we break up (which there is no sign of), then the cat goes with her. Have I missed anything that makes this a terrible idea? The offer, I mean. We might not end up doing it after discussing things, if there is a problem with adopting a cat (which I can't think of any reason for, but who knows what she'll think?) Edit: I guess it might be relevant that we live in Melbourne, Australia. Elector_Nerdlingen fucked around with this message at 01:49 on Nov 24, 2011 |
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Nov 24, 2011 01:46
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My cat had her surgery yesterday, and it was set as a combined tooth extraction/spaying since they could check everything out while she was under. She'll be left with a grand total of 2 teeth, and hopefully they don't become bad later  The weird thing was that they opened her up for the spaying, and found she was already spayed. When we took her in, she was a stray that everyone assumed was born outside. The vet put her at 7 months or so when we took her in, and she was really sick. There was no missing fur, so at the very least the surgery must have been weeks or months beforehand. She's not a TNR because there is no marking in the ear, and this is pretty much the only vet in Beijing that has a good TNR program as far as I know. Is it common for cats to be spayed really young? I'm trying to figure out the mentality of a person that spays a cat, and then abandons her soon after. Chinese pet culture is terrible.
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Nov 24, 2011 04:10
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AlphaDog posted:Have I missed anything that makes this a terrible idea? The offer, I mean. We might not end up doing it after discussing things, if there is a problem with adopting a cat (which I can't think of any reason for, but who knows what she'll think?) Nope, sounds like you've thought this out well. If she ends up not wanting another cat maybe consider just donating that money to the shelter?
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Nov 24, 2011 04:20
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Dilber posted:Is it common for cats to be spayed really young? I'm trying to figure out the mentality of a person that spays a cat, and then abandons her soon after. Chinese pet culture is terrible. If you live near a university or other place where a lot of people live in apartments and have to move or travel very frequently, it is indeed fairly common for people to get pets and then abandon them relatively soon afterwards because a) their apartment never allowed them in the first place or b) they're moving elsewhere and don't want to put forth the effort to try to take the animal with them or at the very least responsibly rehome it. It is sadly not unique to China or any other country; it happens regularly in the USA as well. Craigslist around here is absolutely full of animals less than a year old that people are trying to get rid of, and I know (too many) people who acquired cats through basically inheriting them when they moved into a house/duplex where the last occupants just left theirs behind.
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Nov 24, 2011 04:21
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Kerfuffle posted:Nope, sounds like you've thought this out well. I haven't brought it up yet, but she just messaged me about potentially adopting a kitten that her brother's friend is trying to find a home for. So if she does that, I'll pay for the spey/neuter and vaccinations. I already give regularly to the RSPCA and the NSW Ferret Welfare Society, so I don't really have spare funds for more animal charities I found a really nice looking shelter, and I might end up with a cat of my own in 6 months or so, depending on what happens in that time. If anyone has any stories about this place I'd like to hear them: http://www.ingridshaven.net.au/
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Nov 24, 2011 05:21
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Topoisomerase posted:If you live near a university or other place where a lot of people live in apartments and have to move or travel very frequently, it is indeed fairly common for people to get pets and then abandon them relatively soon afterwards because a) their apartment never allowed them in the first place or b) they're moving elsewhere and don't want to put forth the effort to try to take the animal with them or at the very least responsibly rehome it. We got our cat through craigslist free with a litter box, toys, food, litter, a collar, and a scratching post. He was also already fixed and chipped. I live in a college town, and tons of people are giving away cats they can't keep for one reason or another. In our case, the owner's boyfriend despised catbro so she was desperate to get rid of him. Lucky us I suppose. Also, catbro and the dog he's staying with have gotten along together great after a little time. So that small piece of advice obviously worked.
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Nov 24, 2011 05:23
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Ugh, so it looks like one of my cats wasn't getting fat, she just has a crazy roundworm infestation. She threw them up, I read online that means it's bad. I'm going to try to take both of them to a walk-in clinic tomorrow. This explains where all the horrible cat farts were coming from I guess. I read that with bad infestations they can get intestinal blockage. Both cats seem as active and happy as ever. How would I tell if they're having problems? Is this something the vet can tell when I take them in?
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Nov 24, 2011 18:35
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Adopted my cat last night! She spent the majority of the night hiding in the carrier or behind some plastic shelves, I know this because I couldn't sleep and checked on her every 2 hours to see if she had eaten. Sometime around 4am I finally slept and she decided to relocate to under my bed where she is right now. I moved her food/water in there. I'll take explosion prevention pictures once she is out and about.
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Nov 25, 2011 15:32
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Schroedinger posted:Ugh, so it looks like one of my cats wasn't getting fat, she just has a crazy roundworm infestation. She threw them up, I read online that means it's bad.
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Nov 25, 2011 15:37
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The FAQ seems like mostly kitten stuff but: I have a four year old cat who I've had for about a month and a half, adopted from the MSPCA I volunteer at. When I got her, they said she was special because she's female and calico and extremely friendly. Apparently friendly female cats are rare and friendly female calico cats are even rarer. She loves everyone she's met, greets me at the door when I come home, purrs all the time and meows a lot, I think she gets bored and might like a playmate, or more interactive toys, but the only real problem I have with her is that she bites me. Not constantly, and it doesn’t seem like she's doing it to be a jerk (it's not like she comes up and starts attacking) but it's annoying. She'll just be sitting on my desk next to me and my laptop purring, getting petted occasionally, and then suddenly reach her cat face over and bite me. She'll also do it sometimes when she's sitting on my lap in bed or watching tv or something. Any advice? I've found a ton of sites on Google and they all say basically that I should say "No" firmly and then leave but I have been doing this every time it happens since I got her, and having my boyfriend do the same if she does it to him, but it doesn't seem to be having any effect. so I'm not sure what to do
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Nov 26, 2011 00:15
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ABFA00 posted:The FAQ seems like mostly kitten stuff but: I have a four year old cat who I've had for about a month and a half, adopted from the MSPCA I volunteer at. When I got her, they said she was special because she's female and calico and extremely friendly. Apparently friendly female cats are rare and friendly female calico cats are even rarer. She loves everyone she's met, greets me at the door when I come home, purrs all the time and meows a lot, I think she gets bored and might like a playmate, or more interactive toys, but the only real problem I have with her is that she bites me. Not constantly, and it doesn’t seem like she's doing it to be a jerk (it's not like she comes up and starts attacking) but it's annoying. She'll just be sitting on my desk next to me and my laptop purring, getting petted occasionally, and then suddenly reach her cat face over and bite me. She'll also do it sometimes when she's sitting on my lap in bed or watching tv or something. Sounds like overstimulation. Does she whip her tail back and forth before she bites? The easiest way to deal with it if it's predictable is to stop petting before she hits the limit and leave her alone. Move away from her or distract her with a toy. Trying to correct it after she gets overstimulated isn't really going to work that well.
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Nov 26, 2011 00:50
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ABFA00 posted:Any advice? I've found a ton of sites on Google and they all say basically that I should say "No" firmly and then leave but I have been doing this every time it happens since I got her, and having my boyfriend do the same if she does it to him, but it doesn't seem to be having any effect. so I'm not sure what to do Also your problem has been a common thing among most lady cats I've ever owned or met. Very low pet threshold. Sometimes cats like being with you, but not being pet.
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Nov 26, 2011 01:22
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Ok, so I've had my feral kittens for 2 weeks now and they're both socialized to the point that they get mad at me if I stop giving them attention for longer than 5 seconds. The problem I've run into now is fleas. Luckily I have them secluded from each other and my other cats but I'm still pretty worried. I have vet appointments for Monday so they can get a basic check-up. I'm not sure if they're old enough for any spot-on flea killers yet (I think they're just about 7-8 weeks) but I've read diatomaceous earth (food grade) is effective at killing fleas. Today I combed out 9 fleas from one kitten, and 6 from the other. Earlier I bathed them in warm water and Dawn because that's what I was recommended to do, but this seemed to have little to no effect. The kittens have been in the same rooms since I got them, and have never had contact with any other pets. I rigorously vacuumed and bought some flea spray for the clothes I've worn while in contact with the kittens. I had never even seen a flea on them until today, and I've had fairly regular and close contact with them for a solid week now. Is there anything else I can or should be doing? I've read I can use the diatomaceous earth in their food and bedding and fur to kill the fleas. What's the PI stance on spot-on pest control products? I've read claims these can have dangerous adverse effects on pets, but I've never experienced issues with any of the dogs or cats I've used these products on. I feel sort of stupid it took me this long to figure out they had fleas. Hope I caught it before it becomes a major problem.
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Nov 26, 2011 01:53
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