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Cythereal posted:Diagnosis: your cat is being a cat. Some do get very attached to certain people. Fair enough, I know "not all cats are alike" but just so used to my old one being mellow that having one that's actively trying to attach himself to me is a bit new.
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Aug 27, 2013 18:39
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Blinks posted:Meet Benjamin Cat He's beautiful, very similar to a cat I had some years back. I hope he gets better with no complications (and wipe his arse for him  No leaving with cling-ons).
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Aug 27, 2013 20:21
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Ratzap posted:He's beautiful, very similar to a cat I had some years back. I hope he gets better with no complications (and wipe his arse for him The cling-ons have been addressed, I chopped one out and wiped the rest. Well things were going smooth, until Arthur (existing cat) started hissing at me, my fiancee, doors (around the house) and the other cat (behind the bathroom door). I had high hopes for this being a piece of cake. He may have hissed at me, but he is curled up on the sofa next to me, so Arthur can't be all that pissed. He's really special to me as Arthur is my first 'proper' pet and I nursed him back to health when he was sick (fed him liquids by letting him lick drops of water off my fingers). I don't want him to fall out with me  To be honest, it's day one and things have been remarkabely chilled in the grand scheme of things. Benjamin Cat is lovely and relishes any sort of fuss and seems oblivious. I'll set up a supervised meet next week sometime I think.
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Aug 27, 2013 23:10
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My cat LOVES licking tape of any kind. Is this dangerous at all?
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Aug 27, 2013 23:19
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cletus42o posted:My cat LOVES licking tape of any kind. Is this dangerous at all? Probably safer than my cat, who INSISTS on licking anything that smells like, or may contain, or has been recently washed with bleach.
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Aug 27, 2013 23:47
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Coconut Indian posted:I found a single, dried up turd under my bed, which has about a foot of space between the floor and the boxspring. Is she making GBS threads merrily under my bed or has she just tired of her cat toys and decided to bat the ol poo log around? Could just be an idiot like my cat who gets poo stuck in his rear end and runs around the house yowling until it falls out or I catch him and pull it out with a paper towel. I occasionally find cat turds on the rug if it happens when I'm not around. Cats are dumb is what I'm saying.
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Aug 28, 2013 02:27
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Out of nowhere, my cat developed this bump that looked like a zit at the top of her ear (on the outside). I was freaking out thinking it was cancer, but my vet wasn't concerned at all. He said the bump is too small to biopsy, and he wasn't worried about it. The vet tech and him basically scrapped it off with their hands and cauterized it. He said not to be alarmed if it comes back, but to just keep an eye on it. I was told it could be removed, but right now it's not necessary. Anyone have any experience with something like this? I feel absolutely bizarre just leaving it on her. I've never had a cat that had a growth like this.
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Aug 28, 2013 04:33
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Coconut Indian posted:I found a single, dried up turd under my bed, which has about a foot of space between the floor and the boxspring. Is she making GBS threads merrily under my bed or has she just tired of her cat toys and decided to bat the ol poo log around? It's probably a hairball. Blinks posted:The cling-ons have been addressed, I chopped one out and wiped the rest. You probably need to wait more than "a couple days" before trying to introduce them face to face. Wait until Arthur starts being curious about what's in the bathroom, rather than hostile.
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Aug 28, 2013 04:50
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cletus42o posted:My cat LOVES licking tape of any kind. Is this dangerous at all?  My cat likes to lick plastic bags because
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Aug 28, 2013 09:12
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Yeah, my cats love to chew and lick plastic. It's the strangest thing.
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Aug 28, 2013 09:29
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So I've had a male kitten since May because I wanted to get my cat someone to bother other than me. Introductions went well back then, I have two litter boxes which they are both using, and everything seemed to be going well until roughly a month ago. The male kitten started trying to have relations with the female cat who wanted none of his advances. I resorted to keeping them in separate rooms when I could until the neuter date, but I couldn't always keep them in separate rooms. Somewhere in this time frame the kitten started chasing the cat out of the litter box whenever she went to use it, which has led to her pissing on my futon. The kitten has since been neutered so he's not trying to hump the cat anymore, but he still goes after her whenever he hears litter scratching sounds and I've tried putting the boxes in less visibly accessible places, but she's still pissing on the futon occasionally and I've poured a whole drat bottle of nature's cat piss stuff on the drat thing in the last few weeks. Last night I witnessed this behaviour myself, I was only speculating the cause before, but I was petting the kitten and the scritch scritch litter sound started up and his ears perked up and he tried to bolt over to her but I caught him and held him until she finished taking a poo poo. What can I do to get the kitten to leave the cat alone so she can piss in peace? I really don't want to have to keep them separated all the time because the bedroom gets ungodly hot during the day and that's the only place to put one of them. I also rather not get rid of the kitten just because he's an rear end in a top hat. Also nature's miracle is getting expensive at this rate.
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Aug 28, 2013 20:17
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duckfarts posted:
Aerofallosov posted:Yeah, my cats love to chew and lick plastic. It's the strangest thing. I was just more worried about the tape since presumably there's some crap on it that she ends up consuming. At least I can get sweet pictures of her with her tongue out.
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Aug 28, 2013 21:21
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So what's the most intelligent cat breed that we know of?
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Aug 29, 2013 04:47
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JustAwful posted:Day four - my cat is still locked up in the bathroom, he uses the litter box slightly more, but I've still caught him going on the floor and bathroom vanity, as well as walked into him sleeping in a pool of urine - so I'm assuming he's still pretty incontinent (no problems with feces though, he'll go in the litter for that) Hope your little dude gets better soon! Just wanted to post my experience... my guy also had a blockage and he spent 6 days!! at the vet with a catheter and baggie in the whole time. They said that there would be pain and inflammation that would make it hard for him to pee after they removed the catheter. I did notice he had dribbles and pee would just leak out too. Did they give you any medicine for him? Painkillers are supposed to help. I had to keep him locked up for a week or so to keep an eye on him and make sure he took his medicine / went pee. He would go in and out of the litterbox a lot and squat for a while too, often with no results. I also panicked and took him back to the e-vet like 3 times a day :P But they said pretty much the same thing to me which is just to wait and see. Do you have a followup checkup scheduled? Here's my buddy the first night back from the vet (all 4 legs got shaved for IVs! ):
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Aug 29, 2013 05:48
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Speedball posted:So what's the most intelligent cat breed that we know of? Bengal
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Aug 29, 2013 06:59
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Hi cat thread! Tonight we should be bringing home our two new furbabies, a pair of adult Siamese cats (mother and son) who needed rehoming. I had a quick question - though I'm sure I'll have more in time. Our house has 3 floors, bottom is living room/kitchen, 1st is 2 bedrooms a study and a bathroom, 2nd is an attic storage room/laundry room and a bedroom. When they first get here I'm planning to close doors to the study (which is actually atm a storage room because we've not gotten round to furnishing it properly yet), the guest room, bathroom, and the 2nd floor bedroom. I can't close off the main attic laundry room. This still gives them a fair bit of space to get around and explore, which I assume they will, and my first thought is "accidents" - I'm not sure where the best places to put litter boxes would be to keep them covered as they get used to the place. There's really not much space to put any litter box on the 1st floor since the hallway is small and they'll really just have access to our bedroom (which is fairly small and doesn't have a lot of space for a litter box to go down, but we could squeeze one in). Do you think it would it work for now to put one or two downstairs on the bottom floor, then one in the attic for when they go explore up there? I don't want to go totally overkill either. 
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Aug 29, 2013 07:15
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moerketid posted:Hi cat thread!
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Aug 29, 2013 07:19
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So, we have two cats and recently got a third. It's been a few weeks and we did the normal steps of isolating the new cat, letting them smell through the door, see each other through a gate, etc. It was going well so we let the new cat out and about. However, since letting him out the other two bully him and he is a bit terrified of them. I feel like if he would swat back when they tussle then they could get it out of their systems but instead when the other cats swipe at him or run toward him he bolts and hides somewhere. As a result, he just hides all day and as soon as he peaks his head out one of the other runs over to swat at him. It's not even malicious, really, as there's no hissing or anything. I think they are just curious or want to play. But I don't know what to do about the new little guy -- he is super terrified. I've been holding the new cat with me around the other cats and giving them treats when they are calm around each other. I've also been squirting the others when they pounce at the new cat but it doesn't seem to do any good -- is this the wrong move? What do you guys recommend?
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Aug 29, 2013 14:22
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I have a medical issue I'm interested in some advice on. One of our cats developed a fierce middle-ear infection and came down with vestibular ataxia - her inner ear was affected and it's messed up her sense of balance. She can't walk straight and falls over a lot. She's on antibiotics for the infection and seems to be getting a bit better. However, today she seems to have lost her hearing. I'm hoping it comes back as she heals, but I'm hoping others have dealt with this and have some insight into the healing process. Will she be likely to recover completely? Or will she have some long-term problems with balance and/or hearing? She's about 11 years old at the moment, and very strong and vigorous. Her appetite is good, but doesn't seem to like drinking.
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Aug 29, 2013 15:34
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Deteriorata posted:Will she be likely to recover completely? Or will she have some long-term problems with balance and/or hearing? She's about 11 years old at the moment, and very strong and vigorous. Her appetite is good, but doesn't seem to like drinking. I can't tell you about the medical implications, but I can tell you animals get over deafness really quickly. I had a ferret go deaf in his old age and it took me a while to even figure out if he was completely deaf (as opposed to just ignoring me) because he just kept on trucking like it weren't no thang.
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Aug 29, 2013 15:58
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Any cat people out there have any experience or tips for putting socks on a kitten? Benjamin's scabs from his operation have come off too early so they are bleeding a bit and he is scratching them. Our vet told us to put socks on him, but even the smallest of my daughters baby socks drop right off and we are reluctant to use elastic bands in case they are too tight. How are we meant to keep them on? Right now I feel I genuinely need to speak to Charlie Day right now.
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Aug 29, 2013 18:19
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Blinks posted:Any cat people out there have any experience or tips for putting socks on a kitten? Benjamin's scabs from his operation have come off too early so they are bleeding a bit and he is scratching them. Our vet told us to put socks on him, but even the smallest of my daughters baby socks drop right off and we are reluctant to use elastic bands in case they are too tight. They probably meant cut up a gym sock and make him wear it like a sweater. Where are the scabs?
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Aug 29, 2013 20:06
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Drink and Fight posted:They probably meant cut up a gym sock and make him wear it like a sweater. Where are the scabs? This ^^^ Looking back 1 page at the photos though, that's a tough spot to put something and make it stay there. Cut the toe off a sock and 2 holes in the sides at one end might work. Slide it over his head (he probably won't like that) the holes end first and get it all round his neck covering the scabs. Then get his legs through the side holes, should stop it coming off so easily. Good luck, squirmy cat awaits you 
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Aug 29, 2013 20:48
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Drink and Fight posted:They probably meant cut up a gym sock and make him wear it like a sweater. Where are the scabs? Thanks for the advice from yourself and Ratzap but the vet definitely meant kitten mittens as my mrs asked about cutting a hole in one to make a jumper and the vet laughed at her, explaining she actually meant that they would go on his legs. The vet said they couldn't put a cone there as that is the exact place where the contact would be made and it would aggravate the stitches and staples. The scabs are at the top and bottom of the wound that runs from under his jaw to his chest. Apparently they were left open as drainage holes for any fluid that would build up. In other news Arthur and Benjamin had their first two face to face meetings today. I know ive jumped the gun a bit but i genuinely thought they were ready. Initially they met through the window as Arthur was outside and Benjamin inside and there was no hissing. Then we let them in the same room together and there was a little hissing and then there was a lot of sniffing and a few paws were raised for a swipe but nothing came of it. Benjamin showed no awareness that Arthur wanted to be left alone and followed him around. Tonight when Arthur came in, they met again and there was only hissing when Benjamin got too near Arthur's food bowl. A huge success so far. I'm really pleased with both of them. Blinks fucked around with this message at 21:09 on Aug 29, 2013 |
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Aug 29, 2013 21:07
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Would he fit into a glove where the middle three fingers are cut off to make a hole for the head? I'm probably explaining it poorly but I'm visualizing a glove where his arms would go into the pinky and thumb and his head pokes out where the middle three fingers should be.
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Aug 29, 2013 21:18
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Blinks posted:Any cat people out there have any experience or tips for putting socks on a kitten? Benjamin's scabs from his operation have come off too early so they are bleeding a bit and he is scratching them. Our vet told us to put socks on him, but even the smallest of my daughters baby socks drop right off and we are reluctant to use elastic bands in case they are too tight. Vetwrap the top, just don't pull it super-tight.
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Aug 29, 2013 22:00
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I couldn't find a thread on it, so I was wondering if you guys had any tips on finding a lost cat? One of my cats has been gone for almost 4 days now, he is an indoor/outdoor cat, so him being gone over night and then being back in the morning is completely normal for him, but this is first time he's been gone for this length of time, and starting to worry. I've contacted the shelters around my area and the vets around my area to see if he's been brought in, and gave them contact information, a photo, and his tattoo number in case he is brought in, I've talked with neighbours if they've seen him, and if they do to bring him in and phone me, I've put up some lost cat posters, and I've put food and water at both front and back doors in case he does stop by again, and I've also been walking around the neighbourhood seeing if I can find him. I can't think of anything else to do, but I feel bad that I'm not doing anymore to find him And hey, if any of you happen to live around Fort Richmond/South Pointe in Winnipeg, Manitoba, here's a picture of my cat, Mickey, give me a PM or something if you find him 
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Aug 30, 2013 08:48
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Wellp, further to my earlier post, we now have our two kitties. Unfortunately they have come with some added unpleasant surprises. Both of them are underweight, very undersized and scared. They're a mother and son, with momma being 3 and son being 1 (still not named them), mother is a seal tortie point Siamese and son is a seal point. Mother has a pedigree, son doesn't, they're "modern type" meezers. That aside, when we went to collect them from the previous owner they had been kept shut in a room. The female was pretty okay, friendly enough, but the male was terrified of everything and tried to hide. I was informed that the son at least has been tortured by children when let outside, and later informed that one of the owner's dogs (a terrier thing) used to drag him across the living room floor in his mouth and shake him like a toy. He is TINY, barely larger than a kitten. At the moment I'm mostly just leaving them be, but I do worry they're not eating enough and that it's not good for them to hide. I "extracted" the female from the back of the TV unit and she spent a half hour on my lap, mostly calm enough (though tense) and purring a little, though when I picked up the boy a while later he was a lot more skittish than last night (where I had him on my lap for an hour or so) and just wanted to get away. I'm not sure of what balance to strike between giving them space and giving them some closeness, so for now I'll just need to wing it and see how it goes. At least our house is very quiet and calm with almost always someone here, so we have lots of time and a non-threatening space for them to "get better" in. moerketid fucked around with this message at 17:12 on Aug 30, 2013 |
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Aug 30, 2013 10:56
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"moerketid" posted:I'm not sure of what balance to strike between giving them space and giving them some closeness, so for now I'll just need to wing it and see how it goes. At least our house is very quiet and calm with almost always someone here, so we have lots of time and a non-threatening space for them to "get better" in. Your best bet is to stop the forced interactions and just sit and read in their room for an hour a day. When they get comfortable with you (may take a couple weeks or more), then you can start offering more low-pressure rewards- cat toys or treats. Then once you're established as the gateway to good things, you'll be much more likely to have a cat that comes running for affection.
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Aug 30, 2013 16:25
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CousinKevin posted:I couldn't find a thread on it, so I was wondering if you guys had any tips on finding a lost cat? Sounds like you're doing most of the thing that need to be done. You might also put out a favorite blanket or something that smells like you/home to help him find his way.
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Aug 30, 2013 18:05
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So meet Panda (She was named that way before I got her from a rescue, so no it wasn't me thinking "what can I call this cat that's as close to my SA username as possible?") She's an unknown amount over 1.5 years old (probably plus or minus 2 months). She seems like her frame is as big as it's ever going to get (tiny), but her body seems a bit large for it. She's right about 8 pounds, and the vet said her ideal weight would be somewhere in the neighborhood of 6 lbs. So I want to help her lose a little weight. She used to free-feed, and I've tried to get her to eat on a schedule. I've been trying to give her about 3/4 of 1/4 cup of her food 2x a day (I figure that's easier to visualize than saying 3/16 of a cup). The food has been Fromm Surf and Turf. Treats have been rare. One hiccup has been that about once a month my g/f and I go out of town, so I fill up the food bowl pretty high. Panda's used to free-feeding, so she doesn't pig out (if we tried that with our dog, he'd eat it all in a sitting and get bloat), but I think she might eat more than she needs anyway, so these periods have helped contribute to her weight problem. I've weighed the cost of a cat-sitter coming to give a precise amount, and it hasn't seemed worth it. I'm making a concerted effort to exercise her more, but I was wondering if anyone could also recommend a high-quality low-cal cat food, if there is such a thing.
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Aug 30, 2013 18:45
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Pander posted:I'm making a concerted effort to exercise her more, but I was wondering if anyone could also recommend a high-quality low-cal cat food, if there is such a thing. Senior cat food has less calories I think, mine are on it as they're both over 13 and rather tubby. It's stopped their weight gain for sure, ask a vet if it's appropriate to give senior food to a younger cat? You wouldn't want to get the nutritional balance too wrong. Also I;m thinking a good brand carb free biscuit would help. I give mine 'Orijen', canadian stuff - they seem to like it and it's carb free meaning no empty calories.
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Aug 30, 2013 22:10
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Pander posted:I'm making a concerted effort to exercise her more, but I was wondering if anyone could also recommend a high-quality low-cal cat food, if there is such a thing.
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Aug 31, 2013 08:51
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CousinKevin posted:I couldn't find a thread on it, so I was wondering if you guys had any tips on finding a lost cat? I know in the uk there is a website called the lost pet register, or something like that, maybe there is one local to you? Hope mickey has a safe return.
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Aug 31, 2013 11:48
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I read the OP but next week I'll be getting a kitten, he will be joining my 2yo cat who is absolutely sweet to me and other people. I plan on isolating the kitten in my office while I work during the day and maybe having it sleep with me at night. I was just looking for any specific tips or tricks that folks might have for acclimating the two of em. I believe the older cat will be pretty cool with the kitten, but I'm not sure yet. Both are male, BTW, if that makes a difference.
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Aug 31, 2013 12:05
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Boywhiz88 posted:I read the OP but next week I'll be getting a kitten, he will be joining my 2yo cat who is absolutely sweet to me and other people. I plan on isolating the kitten in my office while I work during the day and maybe having it sleep with me at night. I was just looking for any specific tips or tricks that folks might have for acclimating the two of em. I believe the older cat will be pretty cool with the kitten, but I'm not sure yet. I've just been through this with Benjamin Cat (new kitten) and Arthur Cat (existing cat). I think I have been very lucky as both are now completely OK to hang out with each other unsupervised, aside from a few scuffles at night time. Its been amazing as to how quickly they have been introduced. Thanks for the advice from the folks here. We had the vet give us a blanket so Arthur could get used to the smell before Benjamin arrived. We also interchanged bedding and let them meet through a window (no element of danger for both cats). Oh and treat them massively with fuss or food whenever they are chilled around each other. It seemed to work for us.
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Aug 31, 2013 19:23
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Ktb posted:Have you tried feliway? It is a pheremone diffuser designed to help calm cats down but it doesn't work on all cats. I would be very careful about essential oils because some are fatally toxic to cats. Cats are missing an enzyme which breaks down certain chemicals and because of this they can't process some groups of essential oils (and the drugs based on them like aspirin.) I would highly recommend speaking to a vet before using any therapy or medicine that isn't specifically designed for cats. I went to my vet to look for stuff the other day and they didn't have Feliway (I'm in Australia) and the pheromone things they had in stock were made in China so I want to google the brands the have before I buy them because I'm wicked paranoid about chemicals with overseas provenance. You make a great point about oils. I know a couple are fine to use topically for cats in certain dilutions and I was meaning using oils in burners to calm her but, yeah, definitely, I'll rethink my genius strategy of maybe burning oils on my bedside chest while she snoozes next to my head. I'm sorry about your old buddy, it sounds like my girl is on the same road. She has a checkup in October so I'll make sure to save up some cash and remember to ask about preventative care for feline dementia if there is any. If there are prophylactic meds for catzheimers I don't mind paying unless they're useless or crazy expensive. She isn't at the stage where she yowls and has to be touched to be reassured or broken out of the yowling yet. Plus she's pretty drat physically healthy for 19, without much muscle wastage at all and only very mild arthritis, and she still keeps her routine well and remembers to troll properly (when I get home from work or play she yells at me for being away, demands food if it's dark outside and tries to trip me over until I pick her up and scritch the gently caress out of her cheeks. When my mum gets home from work Mittens does a poo poo like clockwork then flounces into the living room and sits in mum's favourite chair. It's masterful.), so she does have a few years left I think. We're about to have an horrific change of government so the bitch better stick around and be my comfort animal. Fruity Gordo fucked around with this message at 20:36 on Aug 31, 2013 |
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Aug 31, 2013 20:31
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They do have Feliway in Australia, scope out your pet stores.
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Sep 1, 2013 02:04
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Fruity Gordo posted:I went to my vet to look for stuff the other day and they didn't have Feliway (I'm in Australia) and the pheromone things they had in stock were made in China so I want to google the brands the have before I buy them because I'm wicked paranoid about chemicals with overseas provenance. I'm also in Australia and I get my Feliway from here. Costs 2/3 of what it does at the vet and for some reason it seems to last longer too.
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Sep 1, 2013 03:10
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I'm a new cat owner, recently my wife and I took in my mother in law's cat, but my wife has had cats her entire life. This cat is around 17 or 18 years old and is generally chill as hell and doesn't get excited over anything but feeding time. Last week we noticed she would freak out about something and run onto the rug and roll over and look up towards the ceiling fan like a bunch of UFOs are flying around the house! This happens at least once or twice a day and completely without warning. My wife said she thinks it might be seizures that's spooking her, as she had another cat develop similar behavior right before she died. She eats, sleeps, pees and poos as normally as I can tell. She likes her food and is generally comfortable in her surroundings. Any thoughts?
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Sep 1, 2013 07:13
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