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Lord Windy posted:The first one was sedating Lucy and allowing the Vet to do some acupuncture along with x-rays to see if there might be a surgical option to help relieve pain. I wouldn't support the use of acupuncture. In humans, the only benefit is via the placebo effect, which you won't have with a cat. It could be just one more stressor and expense.
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Jun 14, 2013 12:43
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Glucosamine and Chondroitin Has worked out very well for my 14 year old cats, and they love the chewable treat version in a "holy poo poo give me more of those human, NOW" way. I mean only one cat really has movement problems but it has visibly improved his quality of life... and led to him murdering a teenage robin and bringing it as a murder present.
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Jun 14, 2013 14:30
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Dienes posted:I wouldn't support the use of acupuncture. In humans, the only benefit is via the placebo effect, which you won't have with a cat. It could be just one more stressor and expense. My mother is a vet and has been accredited with an acupuncture license for small animals. I can't remark on how effective it has been on cats since I can't remember any cases she's talked about that weren't about dogs, unfortunately. However, she has seen positive results in treating chronic pain. Not to mention more recent studies on humans have shown a marked difference between true and sham treatments when dealing with pain reduction. I wouldn't discount it entirely, but I also wouldn't consider trying it in isolation or as a first choice.
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Jun 14, 2013 14:32
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Topoisomerase posted:Well I guess if they just remove the cat's hips that will fix it! The idea was more that some vets get very comfortable with one treatment option, whereas other vets may be willing to try different routes.
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Jun 14, 2013 15:38
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Age - 12 Sex - Female Time Owned - Since birth. - Spayed Food Iams Proactive health - Mature and Senior Last vet visit- 6 months ago - She's an indoor cat when I'm home from school/outdoor when I'm not. - Other cats - her sister died 4 months ago. - No litter boxes - she goes outside for pooping etc. Her sister died a few months ago due to sudden and acute kidney failure, most likely due to the fact that they're both pretty inbred... Their grandmother is their great-grandmother etc., mostly due to the fact that my Grandmother loves cats and kept 10 at one point in her house. I was wondering if there was anything I should look out for in the way of problems that could affect her, due to a family history of kidney issues - her uncle also died of kidney failure a year ago. The vet has said that there's nothing wrong with her, but the same was said about her sister. I just want to know if I should be looking for anything so I can catch anything early!
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Jun 14, 2013 15:59
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^^chronic renal insufficiency is really common in old cats and it's pretty unlikely that the acute renal failure that the sister died of had anything to do with a congenital issue since the cat was 12 when it developed. Most likely the cat was in some type of low-grade subclinical renal disease state for a long time and something tipped her over the edge, or she got into some sort of toxin. So I wouldn't be too terribly concerned about it being a genetic thing. But it's a good idea to increase the frequency of physical exams to at least every 6-12 months in a geriatric cat, and it's a good idea to get some baseline bloodwork run periodically at that age as well. Pretty Pretty Pony posted:The idea was more that some vets get very comfortable with one treatment option, whereas other vets may be willing to try different routes. No jokes. No jokes allowed!
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Jun 14, 2013 19:17
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Age: Vet estimates 3-4 Sex: M How long have you had your cat?: Almost a year. He was a stray living under my aunt's porch for a few months. Is your cat spayed or neutered?: Yes What food do you use?: Meow Mix Seafood Medley When was your last vet visit?: When I got him, about a year ago. Is your cat indoors, outdoors, both?: Indoors How many pets in your household?: Just him How many litter boxes do you have?: One My cat was dicking around the house and looking out windows as per usual today. He came into my room to look out the window, eventually jumped down, meowed at me a couple of times (almost feeding time) and then sprayed on a fan I have on the floor. I made a loud noise so as to startle him and then put him in his Cat Room. Any idea why a cat would do this out of the blue? I know the FAQ gives tips on correcting this behavior if it's occurring regularly, but this is the first time he's done it to my knowledge and I'm not sure if further action is required or if I should just chalk it up as some weird fluke.
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Jun 15, 2013 01:33
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Pretend Squirrel posted:My cat was dicking around the house and looking out windows as per usual today. He came into my room to look out the window, eventually jumped down, meowed at me a couple of times (almost feeding time) and then sprayed on a fan I have on the floor. I made a loud noise so as to startle him and then put him in his Cat Room. Any idea why a cat would do this out of the blue? I know the FAQ gives tips on correcting this behavior if it's occurring regularly, but this is the first time he's done it to my knowledge and I'm not sure if further action is required or if I should just chalk it up as some weird fluke. I personally would chalk it up to a fluke, but just monitor him and see if he does it again, or you notice the pee elsewhere. Was his litter dirty? I used to live with a cat that would only use a clean one and would poop on our bed if uncleaned for a day.
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Jun 15, 2013 02:09
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leftover posted:I personally would chalk it up to a fluke, but just monitor him and see if he does it again, or you notice the pee elsewhere. Wasn't sparkling clean, but it wasn't filthy. I changed it shortly thereafter regardless though. Thanks for you input. I am a First Time Cat Owner.
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Jun 15, 2013 23:58
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This is the previously mentioned kitten my wife found. Her name is Peanut. My 3 year old tuxedo cat hates her, but it's only been 3 days now. 
whatspeakyou fucked around with this message at 02:33 on Jun 16, 2013 |
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Jun 16, 2013 02:29
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Should I be worried if my kitten's had diarrhoea for the last few days and it seems to be getting worse? A few days ago I noticed that while most of her poo poo was fine, some of it was soft and the ratio of okay to soft has been getting worse until today it was all pretty runny and disgusting. She's about 7 months old, spayed, eating fine, is just as active and friendly as usual and doesn't seem to be dehydrated if I pinch her skin (I've been putting extra water on her food just in case though). She's been eating the same brand of food for a couple of months now with no trouble past the transition period and I'm fairly certain she hasn't been eating anything else. Basically I don't want to take her to the vet if the vet's just going to charge me for the pleasure of telling me to wait it out, and she's not showing any signs that the internet tells me are serious (explosive diarrhoea, dehydration, changes in attitude etc) so I'm not sure how best to proceed.
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Jun 17, 2013 05:39
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I'm looking for advice to help combat having all my worldly possessions shredded or otherwise destroyed. Both my cats like to sharpen their claws. We have a huge 6ft cat tree and horizontal cat scratch pads, both of which they use all the time. I also trim their claws on a fairly regular basis. Both cats have always honed in on the couch corner as their favourite 'bad' place to scratch. This couch corner is hosed, we tried putting tape on it and it didn't work, and we've kind of sighed and accepted that having the odd area of furniture ruined is the price to pay for cat ownership. Except now Decoy has gone nuts and has started targeting other things. He has ripped huge holes in two of my tops, and the other day when my husband put on a tshirt there were huge claw-shaped shreds ripped out at the back - he targets washing drying on our a-frame line inside, or anything we accidentally leave on the floor (and has stolen things out of our laundry hamper too). The clothes thing we could sort of handle, but we came home today to find that he has shredded a leather bar stool. I don't even know what was going through his stupid brain but the stool is ruined and it will need to be replaced. We could handle it when he chose only one bad area to scratch, but now he's shredding all sorts of things and short of locking him in a bare room while we're at work, we don't know what to do. He's already ruined $300 worth of stuff, not counting the couch. Bitter apple spray isn't available here otherwise it would be on every single thing I own. It's not like we don't provide him with multiple acceptable areas to scratch, the little rear end in a top hat. I bought a clicker with the intent of training him - so far it's 'charged' so he knows it means treats but I haven't used it for training yet...should I be treating like hell when he scratches the cat tree? He's also running around like a loving lunatic from one end of the house to the other, but I think that's just because he's a cat.
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Jun 17, 2013 07:20
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I have an overly affectionate cat! She is very well behaved and healthy, but she demands petting ALL THE FREAKIN TIME. When I try to ignore her, she headbutts my hands/face. At first I found this to be cute, but now it's gotten a tad annoying. She's got crinkly toys and stuff so she's not bored. She either sleeps like a log or is incredibly demanding for human interaction. What can I do about it?
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Jun 17, 2013 09:36
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GAY 4 ORGANS
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Organza Quiz posted:Should I be worried if my kitten's had diarrhoea for the last few days and it seems to be getting worse? A few days ago I noticed that while most of her poo poo was fine, some of it was soft and the ratio of okay to soft has been getting worse until today it was all pretty runny and disgusting. She's about 7 months old, spayed, eating fine, is just as active and friendly as usual and doesn't seem to be dehydrated if I pinch her skin (I've been putting extra water on her food just in case though). She's been eating the same brand of food for a couple of months now with no trouble past the transition period and I'm fairly certain she hasn't been eating anything else. Basically I don't want to take her to the vet if the vet's just going to charge me for the pleasure of telling me to wait it out, and she's not showing any signs that the internet tells me are serious (explosive diarrhoea, dehydration, changes in attitude etc) so I'm not sure how best to proceed. I would recommend a vet trip, as diarrhea for days at a time something I'd take myself to the doctor for. You might be able to call your vet ,or a vet around town, and describe the symptoms to see if they tell you to come in or not. You can give her small amounts of canned pumpkin (NOT pie filling, make sure it doesn't have spices) in the meantime to give her a little fiber to help. She is still relatively young, and from what I gather all kittens are notoriously horrific shitters. Totally anecdotal, but around that age I noticed my cats were still having bad poops, so I switched food brands and that seemed to help.
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Jun 17, 2013 13:16
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A SWEATY FATBEARD posted:I have an overly affectionate cat! She is very well behaved and healthy, but she demands petting ALL THE FREAKIN TIME. When I try to ignore her, she headbutts my hands/face. At first I found this to be cute, but now it's gotten a tad annoying. She's got crinkly toys and stuff so she's not bored. She either sleeps like a log or is incredibly demanding for human interaction. What can I do about it? As someone with an overly affectionate cat myself, I can tell you that there are only two options. If your cat is friendly to other cats, you can get her a buddy, and you may find she is happy to send all that affection his or her way. If your cat is like mine and can't stand other animals, you just have to deal with it. I recommend having guests over frequently so she puts that loving cat drool all over someone else. You have my sympathies. I only ever wanted an aloof, standoffish cat, and what I got was a cat-shaped dog.
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Jun 17, 2013 14:41
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For my overly attached cat, I just whip out the furminator or try to trim his nails. All of a sudden, I'm no fun to love on anymore.  Speaking of nail trimming, I've lost my old pair of trimmers and before I go out and buy a new one, does anyone have a recommended brand or style? I don't really like the guillotine but if they're easier to clip without nail splintering, I'll deal with it.
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Jun 17, 2013 17:34
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I've always had better luck with the scissor or plyer style as opposed to the guillotine ones, depending on how confident you are with the particular cat. Most of the plyer style ones have a claw protector that prevents you from going past the quick, but if you've got a chill cat that's not going to fight you, the scissor style might be easier. I can't remember what brands I use but I hope the info helps anyway!
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Jun 17, 2013 17:52
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A SWEATY FATBEARD posted:I have an overly affectionate cat! She is very well behaved and healthy, but she demands petting ALL THE FREAKIN TIME. When I try to ignore her, she headbutts my hands/face. At first I found this to be cute, but now it's gotten a tad annoying. She's got crinkly toys and stuff so she's not bored. She either sleeps like a log or is incredibly demanding for human interaction. What can I do about it? When you play with her, is it one long session, or several small sessions over the afternoon? When do you feed her, before bed or after waking up?
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Jun 17, 2013 18:52
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More diarrheachat: Got a kitten as a gift (don't get me started), took it to the vet, vet estimates it was  4 loving weeks old. It's had diarrhea since we got it (the 10th), vet tested for "intestinal parasites", came back negative. Vet gave a can of Science Diet W/D and a jar of human baby food, said to feed them mixed to help the bowels. It got worse when feeding that stuff (Isn't Science Diet garbage? I don't get how slightly changing the nutrient percentages makes it not garbage), she's back on Wellness for Kittens, and still having constant diarrhea. Not dehydrated, no change in personality, plenty of energy. I called the vet Re: diarrhea and the tech/nurse/whoever answered that wasn't a vet suggested we pick up more W/D. I don't think that's going to help. I'm going to bring her back in to the vet, I guess, but I don't see what else is going to happen. Please help me. She gets bathed at least 2x a day from getting diarrhea on herself. I'm losing my poo poo. Is this just how it's gonna be with a drastically young kitten? Edit: Kittypic. 
lament.cfg fucked around with this message at 19:12 on Jun 17, 2013 |
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Jun 17, 2013 18:58
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I would feed kitty what the vet says. Its not the best brand, but that formula is made to be bland and gentle on Kitty's stomach. Ask the vet if its too young to give pumpkin to. Pure pumpkin can help with poo issues.
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Jun 17, 2013 19:10
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Dienes posted:When you play with her, is it one long session, or several small sessions over the afternoon? I let her initiate play time, but laser pointer time is usually reserved for the evening (better visibility of the dot). She likes to sit on my lap when I'm at the computer; she loves to be gently pet. I used to free-feed her dry food, but seeing that she wasn't all too interested in it, I've now switched to higher quality wet food which she wolfs down! I let her eat before bedtime and several times throughout the day, the dish is parked in the fridge in the meantime. I change the water in her bowl about three times a day. She actually drinks water from the bowl (I know that some cats are hard to motivate to drink from a dish) She is so gentle! Whenever we play-wrestle, she never nips or scratches my hands.
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Jun 17, 2013 20:47
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four lean hounds posted:She is still relatively young, and from what I gather all kittens are notoriously horrific shitters. Totally anecdotal, but around that age I noticed my cats were still having bad poops, so I switched food brands and that seemed to help. More poopchat: My kitten is 3 months old, and has long fur. This morning he had an entire bowel movement stuck to his behind, like it just dropped onto his butt and missed the litter. He was trying to drag his butt across the carpet to get it off. He's had a little poo stuck to him before, but this was massive! Is this normal?
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Jun 18, 2013 00:37
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All of my cats have been fully grown and already neutered before I adopted them. At what age can a kitten be neutered? Oh and pics and stuff:  
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Jun 18, 2013 03:52
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Yo diarrhea kitten haver: did the vet give her dewormer or is she too young? Chances are pretty good that she's got some kinda worms and I've never heard of a test for them unless you gave the vet a stool sample... Don't worry about feeding her garbage right now. Little baby kittens need calories especially and some corn isn't going to hurt her. And yes all kitten poo is nuclear so it's um probably not a worry so long as she's drinking enough water and maybe getting some wet food to ensure more water. Absolute Evil posted:All of my cats have been fully grown and already neutered before I adopted them. At what age can a kitten be neutered? Oh and pics and stuff: As early as 6 weeks I believe but it depends mainly on if they're big enough to anesthetize safely. That's something to schedule with your vet. 8-12 weeks is a fine age if they're big enough. Eggplant Wizard fucked around with this message at 04:02 on Jun 18, 2013 |
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Jun 18, 2013 04:00
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How come my cat eats so little? She is around 10-11 months old, and has a tiny body frame. Doesn't matter what kind of food I give her (she's currently on wet canned food), she laps up a couple bites from her dish and then goes into playful mode, forgetting about food. She's always in the mood for treats though. She pees and poops like a champ (edit: it's hard to believe that such a small animal can produce such enormous monster poops). How much food do your cats consume in a day? My kitty is really petite, probably weighs around 7, maybe 8 pounds - she's not skinny, just... small.  How do I motivate her to eat more?
A SWEATY FATBEARD fucked around with this message at 04:42 on Jun 18, 2013 |
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Jun 18, 2013 04:21
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Lemony Fresh posted:More poopchat: Normal...ish? You can always try clipping the hair around his butt so it doesn't happen as often. My mom's Maine Coon mix gets a full sanitary cut around her butt and groin because she gets litter and poop stuck in it.
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Jun 18, 2013 04:24
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After having our current cat, Bock, for the last year and a half, we decided it was time to get her some kitty company. She tries to play with our dog Holly occasionally, but Holly is sort of  sometimes and just doesn't understand the cat at all.Drifter's about 12 weeks old, and from one of the surrounding small town's shelter via Petco.  We have him sequestered away in the Master bath for the next few days so that introductions can take place nice and slow, and he's super cuddly and playful so far (with a super loud little kitten purr). Bonus shot of Bock, on the new Amarkat tree: 
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Jun 18, 2013 05:01
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Tamarillo posted:I'm looking for advice to help combat having all my worldly possessions shredded or otherwise destroyed. Sorry about your situation. Besides exploring positive reinforcement, have you looked into trying soft claws? I have hand me down furniture that I'm not too worried about, but so far I haven't seen any of the cats use our furniture as scratching posts. Occasionally the carpet, but I give them a little shout and they scamper away. So here are some suggestions -Soft claws. I haven't tried them, but I've heard a lot of good things about them. They've got lots of good reviews on Amazon if that measure is worth anything to you. -Putting cardboard scratch pads and sisal posts in every room. Put them near places they like to scratch so they have an alternative. -If you catch them scratching, then give them a little smack. You can also just grab them and use their paws on things that are okay to scratch then pet them and treat them. I'm not a cat psychologist, but I resort to to stuff like that hoping it will work. -I think there might be other things than tape to use as a deterrent to scratching things. It might just be higher priced "anti-scratch" tape. -Dunno how your cat scratched upped a shirt, but I make sure all my drawers, closets, and everything else is closed and off limit to cats. -Besides little cat toys and a cat tree, try getting other toys like a rolling ball on enclosed track, a cat tunnel, more vertical space, or maybe just more cats??? Play more with your cat(s). They could just be acting out because they have so much energy. -Try telling your cat(s) that you're going to declaw them just to scare them. Once again, not a cat psychologist, but hey why not when you're desperate? -Get stuff that you don't mind if the cats shred or is something that cats can't shred. No more leather stuff, etc. That's all I can think of. Hope it helps.
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Jun 18, 2013 05:56
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Less-tiny kitten diarrhoea update: Woke up this morning to discover it had gotten to the almost entirely liquid stage and her kitten room was a disaster area, took her to the vet and got medicine to settle her stomach and that nice, bland science diet food (vet (and internet) suggested I give her chicken and rice but Pepper is one of those spoiled brat cats who doesn't understand what actual meat is, which is something I'm planning on working on later but now doesn't seem like the time to start on that). And the moral of the story is even though the kitten might be okay and would probably get over it by itself given time, go to the vet early or else you will have to pay for the vet AND spend a day cleaning kitten poo poo off everything in its room.
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Jun 18, 2013 07:03
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So this girl I'm kind of seeing has just adopted a kitten from the shelter, she already has a two year old cat. The older cat is unsurprisingly miffed by this development. Is the timeframe for acceptance around the same as the OP or does it differ with the modifier that is the kitten's rear end in a top hat factor?
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Jun 18, 2013 08:47
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Lofty132 posted:So this girl I'm kind of seeing has just adopted a kitten from the shelter, she already has a two year old cat. The older cat is unsurprisingly miffed by this development. Is the timeframe for acceptance around the same as the OP or does it differ with the modifier that is the kitten's rear end in a top hat factor?
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Jun 18, 2013 09:42
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Please help me, Pet Island, my cat is fat and itchy and I don't know what to do about it. More details: My cat is pretty drat fat. I would have put him on a diet months ago, but he's been exclusively in my mom's care while I was living in college dorms and she is in denial about his fatness and loves to feed him chicken and yogurt and whatever else he begs for. Because he is fat, he has become too inflexible to clean his whole body, so he has developed a patch of coarse fur and dry, flaky skin on his lower back and base of his tail. It's gotten really itchy and irritating for him recently and he constantly begs to be brushed and scratched for some relief.  I feel really sorry for my itchy cat and I was hoping to find a solution here. Obviously the real solution is to make him be less fat, and I will do that when he and I move into an apartment of our own in August, as my mother is an unstoppable cat-feeder and will be convinced that I'm starving him if I feed him less. But is there anything I can do in the meantime to soothe his skin? Cat lotion??? I've tried to brush and pet him extra thoroughly to spread the cat oils around but I really don't think it's helping.
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Jun 18, 2013 10:00
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flavor effigy posted:Please help me, Pet Island, my cat is fat and itchy and I don't know what to do about it.
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Jun 18, 2013 10:05
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Full disclosure: I am well aware I am a lovely cat owner, and I feel awful. - Age: 7 years - Sex: Male - How long have you had your cat?: 7 years - Is your cat spayed or neutered?: Yes - What food do you use?: Purina U/R - When was your last vet visit?: ~6 months ago - Is your cat indoors, outdoors, both?: Indoors - How many pets in your household?: 3 cats and 1 dog - How many litter boxes do you have?: 2 I don't know what to do with this cat. A little over a year ago Kit seemed off in the afternoon, and his off-ness rapidly progressed to him laying on the floor, yowling in misery. Trip to the e-vet confirmed it was urinary blockage with struvite crystals, and I could only afford the bare minimum to get him unblocked and keep him stable over the weekend until I could get him to the normal vet. That e-vet bill is still sitting on my credit card. The vet put him on the prescription food, which is keeping him free of noteworthy crystal development and blockages, which is great. It's not stopping his numerous other behavioral problems. I can't keep him off the counters, and he's now figured out how to knock over the trash. He still pisses in inappropriate places occasionally (and this does pre-date his blockage), and enzymatic cleaners don't seem to make a difference. Cat Attract litter does work, but doesn't stop the behavior entirely. He meows loudly and claws at doors. He's started fighting with my 14 year old cat, who is physically healthy but showing signs of mental decline. I know from experience he also fights other adult cats pretty badly. We have tried him on kitty Prozac and it fixed most of his problems by virtue of the fact he was sleeping almost constantly. I had to wake him for meals. It wasn't a good option for him. In August I'm moving for school. I'll have two other roommates, one of which has a cat...which I'm predicting won't go well. I'm spending over $40/month for his special food, because he's a big guy. I can't afford to keep having him checked for crystals and if he does block again, there is no way I can afford to do anything for him. I'm living with my parents now and they occasionally threaten to kick him outside (as do I), but I doubt my roommates are going to be as understanding. The landlord, even less so. I know his issues should be fixable, but I don't have the money or time to do it with a full time school schedule and soon-to-be two jobs, plus two other special needs pets. I don't think I can take care of him properly and I don't know what else to do with him. He's a big oaf, super loving, very tolerant, wants to be on you, waves his paw when he wants attention. He's a super charming guy...but who wants a middle-age cat with his issues? Technically if I have to give him up, he's supposed to be surrendered to the rescue he came from. They folded and merged with another rescue that requires a surrender fee of several hundred dollars, depending on the cat and how adoptable it is. Please give me some ideas, PI. I don't want to see him put down just because I can't offer him anything better. 
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Jun 18, 2013 10:14
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Eggplant Wizard posted:Yo diarrhea kitten haver: did the vet give her dewormer or is she too young? Chances are pretty good that she's got some kinda worms and I've never heard of a test for them unless you gave the vet a stool sample... I thought I mentioned that, whoops. She is now ~5 weeks, and she did get dewormer from the vet on the 11th, despite us not getting back the stool test results until the 13th, so it was precautionary. She's still eating/drinking/being an annoying kitten -- I called the vet last night, described the problems (including a small amount of blood visible in the stool now), and they suggested we pick up some I/D instead of W/D, and mix in Iams dry food. My girlfriend is heading there this morning to pick up the I/D. The vet said we'll see how that goes for a few days and then re-evaluate. Edit: Talked to the vet more when I stopped by. He gave us an antibiotic (iirc) to treat Giardia, in case she has it. Recheck with him in a few days, he said she should get better quick.
lament.cfg fucked around with this message at 15:51 on Jun 18, 2013 |
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Jun 18, 2013 11:48
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August gives you some time to try things out, if you aren't at the end of your rope already. First, you are going to need 2 more litter boxes. For a cheaper-than-PetCo option, you can pick up Rubbermaid bins and cut entries into them. Don't get just 1. Having an excess of litter boxes + using an enzymatic cleaner to thoroughly clean soiled areas will hopefully fix the improper elimination issues before you move. If adding 2 boxes doesn't help right away, try adding Cat Attract again - just buy the litter additive and use a little bit at a time. Scoop the litter boxes at least once a day. Fortunately, with 4 boxes in the house, this will be much less horrible than what you're experiencing now with just 2. Adding the litter boxes may help reduce tension between the cats. For counters, go to Target/Wal-Mart/Home Depot or something and look in their drawer liner aisle. Pick up some basic contact paper. Cut it to the right size, lay it sticky-side-up on the counter where he usually jumps up, and tape down the edges with normal Scotch tape. You could also try aluminum foil. For clawing at doors, check out the Scratching at the Door section of the OP. For meowing... god help you. Sorry. And finally, for money... you need to follow BFC if you don't already. Get CareCredit if you haven't. Build up a savings account for vet bills, for both of your cats. Make a budget and lay out a plan to pay off your credit card, because having that debt for over a year isn't doing you any favors. I think you stand a really good chance of making this work, but you really need more advice from BFC than from PI right now. Mad Pino Rage posted:-If you catch them scratching, then give them a little smack. You can also just grab them and use their paws on things that are okay to scratch then pet them and treat them. I'm not a cat psychologist, but I resort to to stuff like that hoping it will work. Hell, some cats enjoy being smacked or just like any kind of attention at all, so it isn't effective at discouraging them. Cat smacking video.
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Jun 18, 2013 17:01
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A SWEATY FATBEARD posted:I have an overly affectionate cat! She is very well behaved and healthy, but she demands petting ALL THE FREAKIN TIME. When I try to ignore her, she headbutts my hands/face. At first I found this to be cute, but now it's gotten a tad annoying. She's got crinkly toys and stuff so she's not bored. She either sleeps like a log or is incredibly demanding for human interaction. What can I do about it? Serella posted:As someone with an overly affectionate cat myself, I can tell you that there are only two options. If your cat is friendly to other cats, you can get her a buddy, and you may find she is happy to send all that affection his or her way. If your cat is like mine and can't stand other animals, you just have to deal with it. I recommend having guests over frequently so she puts that loving cat drool all over someone else. I sort of have the same problem now. I adopted my cat off the street when she came up to me for petting, and she was all skin and bones so I nabbed her up. She grew up in a household with 3 other cats, so she was pretty well entertained, and didn't come to the humans for much affection/playing. I moved to Japan and had her come after me, and she wants my love and affection CONSTANTLY. Also play time. It's been about a month and I've had a bit of success. I bought her a cat tree, cat nip, crinkle toys, toys that hang, everything under the sun she can use herself. (we did not have this many options with the four cats, they kept each other entertained) I also make sure I play physically with her. The best game she loves is I tied a stuffed animal to a rope and use that to entice her, and when she finally pounces on it, I grab the toy and then play wrestle her with it. It saves my hands the grief of all her claws and mouth, and she gets to kick the poo poo out of it with human interaction. The playing is great, whenever she gets overstimulated she wants to bite and scratch me, but I yell "NO" and get up and walk away, and toss a toy at her. She's gotten the picture. So I got the playing out of the way, the other problem is when I was trying to go to sleep (posted all over this thread about it) she would demand love. She would come up on my chest (aww) purr, knead, and headbutt. I indulge this for about ten minutes, then I continously would push her to the side if she tried again. For the first week this did not work and me and the cat were not in great spirits "NO! *clap* *water bottle* *air can* *cat getting tossed out of bed for biting, etc etc*. I tried just ignoring her while in bed and pretending I was asleep when she was nuzzling me, trying to get me to the pet her. That got me a cat on my face. I was not amused. She's better now, and usually a few pushes get her to leave me alone and she curls at my feet. What I'm trying to say is, keep trying, it might just take time! Keep trying! My cat did not play well with the other cats so I don't think another is an option for me. Also mentioned in the first post is something I just recently started doing. If she's waking you up, wake her up when you catch her sleeping. I finally got her on my schedule with this advice and so it's usually I get home, feed her, make sure the waters good, shower, play with her, get into bed, give her love, and we both fall asleep fake edit: she's annoyed at me now as she's trying to sleep on the cat tree but I periodically clap or yell or put a toy in her face. Good times. feverish and oversexed fucked around with this message at 17:06 on Jun 18, 2013 |
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Jun 18, 2013 17:02
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duckfarts posted:Should be generally the same, but maybe add a week; kittens tend to not understand fear and will constantly pester others, which may annoy them. Either way, it will take time. Ok thanks, I shall keep you informed of developments. The older cat has already learned that running away from the kitten seems like a game.
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Jun 18, 2013 18:04
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LoreOfSerpents posted:August gives you some time to try things out, if you aren't at the end of your rope already. Money is a big issue. I'm living with family, and if I were paying for all of Kit's expenses, it would take up a third of my income right now. I have financial aid coming, so finances will improve, but then I'll also have more bills to deal with. I'm a frequent lurker in BFC, but having next to no income really limits what I can do. My credit score is already Not Good and I've just taken out two student loans. Even if CareCredit would take me, I really don't want it. I've got over $800 of animal-related debt already and I can't take on more reasonably with what little income I have. Family will not allow additional litterboxes in the house, but the ones we have are scooped twice daily. The peeing isn't constant and doesn't seem to have any correlation to the cleanliness of the boxes. Just...sometimes he wants to pee in the laundry room or on a door or on the freezer. Family also doesn't want any "weird stuff" on the counters. I've suggested both these options before. If it were me living on my own, and I were the only one dealing with him, it would be less of an issue. But I can't afford to live on my own, and I really can't risk getting kicked out of a place. When I move I will have more flexibility with what I can do, assuming my roommates can be accommodating.
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Jun 18, 2013 20:12
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- Age 1.5 years PJ and roughly 7.5 Omega Red - Sex Both male - How long have you had your cat? 7 months - Is your cat spayed or neutered? both yes - What food do you use? right now blue buffalo in the shiny blue bag, used to be Evo but I can't find it anymore due to the recall - When was your last vet visit? about 5 months ago - Is your cat indoors, outdoors, both? indoors only - How many pets in your household? just my two boys - How many litter boxes do you have? 2, thinking of adding a 3rd My cats are gettin fatter the more I try to regulate how much they eat the more they amaze me with how smart they are. When i kept the food inder the kitchen sink, it took me a while to realize they were opening the cabinets and helping themselves while I was at work. I can live with them sometimes getting a few extra treats from the automatic feeder by them beating the crap out of it, but I am trying to make sure they don't get any fatter. Omega will not play at all he just wants to sit on my lap and watch Netflix and sleep next to me. PJ loves to play but he pretty much destroys any toy I get him and goes nuts by growling and pretty much "killing" whatever I try to play with him with. Basically a 15 minute play session with PJ is like 3 minutes of me getting him to jump around, and 12 minutes of me waiting for him to let go of the toy with his teeth so we can keep playing. PJ went nuts over the bird, but he destroyed it in less than 3 minutes. Omega just looks at any toy like whatever man, he won't even chase a laser pointer, dude is just total chill. I am looking for advice for a) finding ways to play with PJ without him murdering every toy in minutes, and for a way to continually play with him instead of needing to break until he lets go of the toy to try to continue to murder it. And b) finding a way to get Omega to actually show interest in jumping around to shed some of his weight. (They do play fight a bit, it has never gotten serious a few small growls and swipes, but almost instantly after they are grooming each other.). Edited for some clarity/more info. waah fucked around with this message at 21:01 on Jun 18, 2013 |
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Jun 18, 2013 20:47
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