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If you want to crank the catnip up to max, get some matatabi sticks (Actinidia polygama - also goes by the name "silver vine"). I originally picked some up when I lived in Japan. My cat goes insane over these and will claw and chew the bark while rolling around like a maniac. Please hold on to them tightly so your cat doesn't actually choke on them. The last batch I got was from Ebay for like $1 with free shipping internationally and 
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Oct 15, 2016 22:30
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neonbregna posted:Please get tested for the toxoplasmosis. PM me if you need help covering this cost. I thought that was only a concern for pregnancies?
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Oct 15, 2016 22:38
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neonbregna posted:I think I am getting ready to make a terrible decision and get a cat. The one caveat I kind of have is I want to be able to take it for a walk. I know this almost certainly means no matter what cat I end up getting it will definitely murder me in my sleep for trying to leash it. That being said what is the goon hive mind consensus on cat types that will tolerate and enjoy being leashed? No real answers to that, this seems to be down to cat personalities. if you're really desperate: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4mS-F4k4TnY
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Oct 15, 2016 22:41
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Ratzap posted:I thought that was only a concern for pregnancies? That is what our feline overlords want you to believe. Smashthecatstate
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Oct 15, 2016 22:52
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I've discovered that when my one cat James eats, after tearing through his food like there's no tomorrow, he's started pushing his brother aside and eating his food too. Since I've noticed, when I remember, I watch them while they eat and stop James from getting at Wolfgang's food. Is there anything else I can do, other than just babysit them while they eat?
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Oct 16, 2016 00:00
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Hyperlynx posted:I've discovered that when my one cat James eats, after tearing through his food like there's no tomorrow, he's started pushing his brother aside and eating his food too. I put our cats' food in different places, so they (and I) know whose is whose.
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Oct 16, 2016 00:03
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^ Yeah, I have a similar issue (food motivated cat vs borderline anorexic, sick kitty) and the best thing I found was to place their food far away from each other. Sometimes I'll feed one in the bathroom while I take a shower so I have total control and I'm not just, like, hovering over sick kitty. You don't want to let this thievery continue, and negative reinforcement really doesn't work with cats. Plus positive reinforcement is often, uh, reinforced by giving treats, so unless you want one fat hog it's better to separate. My solution for other times: Feed fatty cat. Bring sick kitty's food over to where I am sitting. Feed him there. Fatty generally forgets that 'the grass is always greener' and attends to his dish, and seems to eat a little slower. Once he's done I guard sick kitty while fatty glowers in the shadows givin' himself a bath. Once sick kitty is done I take away his food so fatty doesn't get it, and give it back to him later while fatty is elsewhere. It's annoying, but once I got into the rhythm it's just habit. btw none of my cats are fat, Bones just really wants to be 
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Oct 16, 2016 00:40
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My girlfriend’s 14-year old cat Emma has been peeing on the bed with alarming frequency. We’ve read a bunch of articles and made a lot of adjustments, but nothing seems to be doing the trick. Some background: Emma has diabetes, which the vet said could mostly be controlled through a diet change. She was on Fancy Feast wet food but now is on dry Purina Pro Plan DM. A urinalysis showed otherwise no medical issues. We’ve tried getting a bigger litter box, changing litter brands (went from Tidy Cat scented to World’s Best Cat Litter unscented), removing the box’s lid, and moving the box to a more accessible spot but no dice. She used to pee on the rug (which has been disposed of) but now pees on the bed. We’ve tried coating the bed in foil (no luck, she just pees on top of the foil), soaking the mattress with Nature’s Miracle after every accident and even tried apple cider vinegar, but again nothing seems to deter her. Does anybody have any suggestions? We realize that giving her up might be the best option for Emma since we can’t seem to meet her needs, but we would like to do everything in our power to keep our little orange fuzzball. My girlfriend is moving apartments in a month, and we’re not sure if the move would be an opportunity to work on the issue from square one or if it would just exacerbate the issue.
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Oct 16, 2016 02:35
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neonbregna posted:I think I am getting ready to make a terrible decision and get a cat. The one caveat I kind of have is I want to be able to take it for a walk. I know this almost certainly means no matter what cat I end up getting it will definitely murder me in my sleep for trying to leash it. That being said what is the goon hive mind consensus on cat types that will tolerate and enjoy being leashed? I don't know about particular cat breeds that would tolerate leashing better - I know people with burmeses that have had good results and the clingier more people oriented breeds probably tolerate it better but to be honest there's not nearly as much difference between cat breeds as there is with dogs. I do have some general leashing advice, from my experiences with my own cat. You'll need to be prepared to take it incredibly slow - start by just leaving the harness out, work up to draping it over them, then fastening it, then attaching the leash, then holding the leash etc. Expect this process to take weeks. Train a recall if you can - clicker training can really help with this. Also be prepared that they may never really enjoy it - my little guy is just always frustrated and scared on the leash because it restricts him so much. I actually mostly gave up because ultimately he didn't enjoy it, and now we just go for unleashed supervised outside time, but I'm lucky in that he will follow me anywhere, and my road is very quiet and kind of cat heaven. My friend on the other hand tried it out with her cat and had great success - he goes for a walk everyday now and absolutely loves it, so it's really going to depend on the individual cat and that is hard to predict. You might be better off starting with a kitten or young (~1 yr old) cat as they'll be more likely to accept it. Something really important to bear in mind is that they can freak the gently caress out if they get threatened by something because they can't get away - they'll run to the end of the leash then flip out because they can't go any further and turn into a ball of rage. You need to be incredibly vigilant of approaching dogs and people and have an avoidance strategy. I would not recommend this with a nervous cat. I'd also recommend early mornings or late in the evening, and only if you live on a quiet road. You're not going to be walking them like a dog, it's more a short jaunt to sniff some things and roll around a bit. Some people are incredibly lucky and get a cat that they can take anywhere but for the most part they're territorial animals that prefer to stay in the same area. Basically, if being able to take it for a walk is an absolute must, get a dog. If you're prepared to put a lot of effort in and run the risk of failing anyway, and you're ok with that, get a cat.
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Oct 16, 2016 03:18
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I bought a big bag of 30-odd assorted cat toys so I could figure out which ones Claudius enjoys most while introducing one every couple days or so. she found the bag  results: all balls with jangly bells in them, all mice, anything fluffy. Any combination of the three is a big winner. Fluffy yellow jangly ball is the fave today, and she plays fetch with it like a dog. The living room looks like a pre-K playpen.
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Oct 16, 2016 03:59
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Millions posted:Does anybody have any suggestions? We realize that giving her up might be the best option for Emma since we can’t seem to meet her needs, but we would like to do everything in our power to keep our little orange fuzzball. My girlfriend is moving apartments in a month, and we’re not sure if the move would be an opportunity to work on the issue from square one or if it would just exacerbate the issue. Did you see the vet specifically for the peeing issue? Was diabetes their only diagnosis?
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Oct 16, 2016 04:02
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Synthbuttrange posted:Did you see the vet specifically for the peeing issue? Was diabetes their only diagnosis? Yes to both, unfortunately that's all the information the vet was able to give.
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Oct 16, 2016 04:34
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Millions posted:Yes to both, unfortunately that's all the information the vet was able to give. Are you sure her diabetes is adequately controlled right now and that she doesn't have a UTI? A recheck is definitely in order.
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Oct 16, 2016 04:48
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Millions posted:
One of my cats used to pee inappropriately and getting a fountain, putting multiple water bowls out and multiple litter boxes cleared it up. Buffy had been to the vet many times for her issue and they didn't find anything most of the time. It seems that she had constant irritation that didn't have a measurable cause. Buffy hasn't peed outside of the box for a really long time now so there is hope for Emma. Have you tried more litter boxes and different types?
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Oct 16, 2016 05:44
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Vision impaired mother cat and one of her kittens are living with me since yesterday. They're still a little bit spooked, but the little one already wanted to be pet. He's a purring machine, especially when he wants milk from mommy. With his 12 weeks he shouldn't need it anymore, but it's still cute. Thanks for all the suggestions about blind cats when I asked. 
Minister of Chance fucked around with this message at 11:35 on Oct 16, 2016 |
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Oct 16, 2016 11:30
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neonbregna posted:I think I am getting ready to make a terrible decision and get a cat. The one caveat I kind of have is I want to be able to take it for a walk. I know this almost certainly means no matter what cat I end up getting it will definitely murder me in my sleep for trying to leash it. That being said what is the goon hive mind consensus on cat types that will tolerate and enjoy being leashed? Even with the most easy going cat breed in the world, be prepared to look like an crazy person with a baby substitute, because your cat is not always going to want to walk, and cats that don't want to walk, don't walk. I have a bad back and my cats are heavy. So this is my pet stroller and this is an incredibly easy going breed of cat that took to the harness right away - asleep on top of the pet stroller.  That's a leather cat harness, not a dog collar btw. You can't see the back strap on it in the picture. Other than that, if the cat wants to walk, it does not necessarily want to walk where you do. I have some level of success getting mine to walk on routes they already know but they are going to stop and investigate basically everything. This Friday, that "basically everything" was the outdoor part of a cafe that had a bunch of furries hanging out there, tails and ears and all. She was drawn to the level of attention she was getting. No I don't have a picture of that. Somewhat regretting it now.
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Oct 16, 2016 13:40
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We've taken Scout for walks occasionally, and it works best when we let her lead the way. Within reason, obviously, we don't let her just go into the road or something, but if she wants to stop and sniff stuff, or sees something she wants to investigate, we let her.
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Oct 16, 2016 15:47
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It's started raining here and for some reason our cat is absolutely freaking out about it. We've had her for two years. She used to be a neighborhood stray until one night she cried to be let into our house and we adopted her, then she was mostly indoor with some outdoor in the backyard on occasion. Now in the last month she has been indoor only with the occasional protest but nothing major. Now that it's raining she's literally been circling the house howling and standing at the door to be let out in the rain non-stop. We even tried going out with her to see what would happen and all she does is walk around getting wet and crying and looking at us like she expects us to stop the water, then we bring her back and the cycle starts again. This is kinda driving us crazy, she is usually extremely well behaved, and she normally hates get wet but now she wants to be some kind of rain creature. Any idea what the heck is going on? Is she just stressed out by the rain and going nuts? Here's a pic so you can see the monster we are dealing with:
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Oct 16, 2016 17:27
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Minister of Chance posted:Vision impaired mother cat and one of her kittens are living with me since yesterday. They're still a little bit spooked, but the little one already wanted to be pet. They're adorable. Siamese or mixes thereof, looks like. Good on you for taking in a visually impaired old lady. 
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Oct 16, 2016 18:11
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Cythereal posted:They're adorable. Siamese or mixes thereof, looks like. Good on you for taking in a visually impaired old lady. She isn't really old, just 2 years. She has a genetic condition which leads to blindness. For now she can still see large objects and light and dark. Her kittens are only carriers because the breeder selected a stud which isn't are carrier. The breeder stopped breeding and didn't want to risk other people pairing her of with other carriers so she got castrated and I had only to pay the castration fee for her. The patch of fur missing on her front leg is from the operation.The little one was full price, but I think he's worth it. Both really love each other and are practically together all the time. To not only talk about them, but to ask something. How do I get them to use a second litter box? I have one in the bathroom and one in my bedroom. The breeder sat them both down in the open one in the bathroom and they are using it without problems. But the one in the bedroom is closed, has a flap and isn't being used. Should I remove the flap? If I do this can I later put it back, or not? I would prefer the flap, because I think it would contain the smell better. I scoop every day at least once, but I would prefer not having to get up at night. I'm a little smell sensitive and probably would have problems sleeping. Not to picture spam, but they are a little bit braver now so here's better picture of them The IPad Mini camera sucks, but they're getting scared if I reach for a real camera.
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Oct 16, 2016 20:12
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Willie Tomg posted:I bought a big bag of 30-odd assorted cat toys so I could figure out which ones Claudius enjoys most while introducing one every couple days or so. Does she like the bag and play in it too? All my cats toys are in a box (they love boxes) in the lounge. When I hoover I toss everything back in and they rummage to find what they fancy playing with later. I've even seen Buffy putting things back into the box (and Oliver peeing in it, dirty old bugger - fresh box and toys get washed).
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Oct 17, 2016 00:34
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So what's the best way to bathe a large cat? I'd like to give him a good bath with shampoo and everything but Tibi is an imposing beast that I could place a saddle on, the rest of my other cats are tiny in comparison and easier to bathe, but him I'm not so sure.
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Oct 17, 2016 00:44
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Alteisen posted:So what's the best way to bathe a large cat? I'd like to give him a good bath with shampoo and everything but Tibi is an imposing beast that I could place a saddle on, the rest of my other cats are tiny in comparison and easier to bathe, but him I'm not so sure. a vet with tranquilizer
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Oct 17, 2016 03:52
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Alteisen posted:So what's the best way to bathe a large cat? I'd like to give him a good bath with shampoo and everything but Tibi is an imposing beast that I could place a saddle on, the rest of my other cats are tiny in comparison and easier to bathe, but him I'm not so sure. How come you need to bathe your cat(s)? They're generally self-bathing.
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Oct 17, 2016 04:16
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Hyperlynx posted:How come you need to bathe your cat(s)? They're generally self-bathing.  See that red poo poo? That's dust from storms in the sahara which blows all the way to my lovely island, it affects health obviously makes things dirtier, the cats can get pretty grimmy when we get a big cloud of that poo poo through, makes them scratch themselves a lot to so I try to give them a bath when its been real bad.
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Oct 17, 2016 04:44
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Anyone got any suggestions on how to make aquarium water unappealing to cats? One of my idiots just loves lapping at aquarium water.
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Oct 17, 2016 11:54
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Maybe invest in a "Ssscat"? I got one to keep my adorable idiots from trying to get into the cellar every time I open the door.
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Oct 17, 2016 12:52
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Tuna's life of space crime finally caught up to him, and he had to do his time in Space Jail.  If they made them with a little more room I'd be tempted to get one so I could take him along on bike rides; as it is while he was fine for a little bit, he started shifting around a lot before too long.
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Oct 17, 2016 17:33
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The Lord of Hats posted:Tuna's life of space crime finally caught up to him, and he had to do his time in Space Jail. Stay strong, Tuna. Space-jail can't cage what's in your space-heart. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=626pNZB8xXE Nobody knows you when you're meow-n and out 
MrSlam fucked around with this message at 18:20 on Oct 17, 2016 |
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Oct 17, 2016 18:18
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I'm looking for advice for getting an orphan stray kitten to stop biting us. While trying to hang out with her and get her accustomed to the other animals, the house, etc, she doesn't want to be held or pet and bites. She freaks out when we pick her up, claws us, bites, etc. Even while supporting her belly and bottom. There are times we would like to be able to pick her up for her safety, as we have 3 larger cats and 2 larger dogs in the house too, and the house is not kitten proofed. She bites us a lot. She purrs SO loudly as soon as we enter the room she's in, pet her, give her food, but sometimes she just attacks our hands and bites. All while purring. She has toys, she enjoys playing with them, but if we throw a toy for instance sometimes she might be more interested in attacking the hand that threw the ball than the ball. She's about 6 weeks old, had her about 2 weeks, and she did only eat canned food from my hands for the first week or so.
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Oct 17, 2016 20:46
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pizzadog posted:I'm looking for advice for getting an orphan stray kitten to stop biting us. While trying to hang out with her and get her accustomed to the other animals, the house, etc, she doesn't want to be held or pet and bites. She freaks out when we pick her up, claws us, bites, etc. Even while supporting her belly and bottom. Unfortunately, some cats always hate being picked up. Every time I pick up one of my cats she doesn't bite or scratch or anything but she goes spread eagle and squirms to get out. What I've learned from her is that you just gotta let them decide when they want to be picked up, cuddled, etc. But this doesn't really help you does it? I mean the problem is that she's getting trampled by 5 other animals and needs to be moved out of the way. http://wvcats.com/biting_cat.htm This website says she's about to start learning 'cat behavior' at that age and it'd be most helpful if she weren't an orphan or had another littermate to pal around with. Again, that doesn't help you much unless you can be convinced to adopt another kitten. But it goes on to explain a few tips that might help out. But you already have 3 cats so I'm sure you know most of it. Sorry, I'm not very good at kittens 
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Oct 17, 2016 21:37
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pizzadog posted:I'm looking for advice for getting an orphan stray kitten to stop biting us. While trying to hang out with her and get her accustomed to the other animals, the house, etc, she doesn't want to be held or pet and bites. She freaks out when we pick her up, claws us, bites, etc. Even while supporting her belly and bottom.
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Oct 17, 2016 21:52
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pizzadog posted:I'm looking for advice for getting an orphan stray kitten to stop biting us. While trying to hang out with her and get her accustomed to the other animals, the house, etc, she doesn't want to be held or pet and bites. She freaks out when we pick her up, claws us, bites, etc. Even while supporting her belly and bottom. My usual technique is just to withhold attention when they bite or scratch. The learn pretty quickly that if they want pets and scritches, they can't bite. If she bites, go limp. Don't pull your hand away or she may take it as play. Once she lets go, gently withdraw your hand and ignore her for a few minutes. Repeat as necessary until the behavior is learned. I've also found that time helps. I've had cats that freak at being petted when new, but they gradually relax and eventually seek it out. Give her some space, and if she doesn't want to be picked up then don't pick her up. She'll come around eventually.
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Oct 17, 2016 22:20
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pizzadog posted:I'm looking for advice for getting an orphan stray kitten to stop biting us. While trying to hang out with her and get her accustomed to the other animals, the house, etc, she doesn't want to be held or pet and bites. She freaks out when we pick her up, claws us, bites, etc. Even while supporting her belly and bottom. If picking her up is a necessity, you could always try bribery. Find a food she loves she can lick off a finger and get one person to pick her up and another to hold the finger out. She'll probably never love it but it worked on my parent's monster of a stray cat enough that he will grudgingly allow picking up without trying to bite your face off anymore.
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Oct 17, 2016 22:39
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I'm legitimately starting to worry that Jackie has some compulsive over-grooming problem. Or is developing one. Lately, she's just been grooming, like... ALL the freaking time. She's always been an avid and proficient groomer, but it is just getting ridiculous, and honestly worrying me. It's not just that she's licking compulsively, she also like chews on her fur or something. It's something she'd do now and then (like when cleaning between her toes) but not often. And again, it's like she's just never stopping. As I type this, Jackie has been voraciously grooming and grooming and re-grooming non-stop. She doesn't even stop when I pet her! Anyway, she's not developing any bald spots yet (in part because her fur is so absurdly thick) and she also doesn't even seem to hack up hairballs. I can't find any sores either, but the way she's been downright chewing on the fur/skin of her legs and thighs and such, I can't imagine they won't develop. It's worrisome, because it honestly feels like things are going fairly well. But it could also be that having Sardine around really is just WAY too stressful for Jackie or something. I really don't know
kaworu fucked around with this message at 23:27 on Oct 17, 2016 |
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Oct 17, 2016 23:24
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I hate to suggest this, but I think you should call the vet and see what they think. I've heard over-grooming is a way for them to self-sooth. It could be stress but it could also be a sign that they don't feel right. On the one hand she's playing and eating and she doesn't flinch when you handle her (I assume) but on the other hand every symptom of pain in cats is also regular cat behavior. But I really hope that's not the case. I hope it's just Sardine stressing her out or her fussing over growing a winter coat.
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Oct 17, 2016 23:47
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Might be about time to take her to the vet anyway, just for her checkup and I think some of her vaccinations are expiring soon, I'm not sure. I think I'll be taking her this week, regardless. And she and Sardine really are getting along better, Sardine can walk into Jackie now and they can both sleep on opposite sides of the room with their eyes closed - that's a certain level of trust, I think. Thank god - she's stopped for now. I tried to interrupt her before and she started thumping her tail and giving me her "gently caress you" meow. Then we went downstairs and both got some food and we are back and now.... Well, she is grooming again a little, but on and off. I think she's trying to fall asleep. My take is that she's definitely doing it as a self-soothing strategy to calm herself down.. I know having Sardine around is stressful her. I mean, I've lived alone with this cat for 6 years - I know when she's stressed out and upset about something. The thing is, she had been doing really well for a while, and it *seems* like things have gotten better because there is no more loud hissing and chasing at all from Jackie, but Jackie also seems a little defeated and annoyed about the whole thing. I mean, I'm pretty sure she felt like everything was *perfect* with just her as the only cat and she'd been really, really happy that whole time she was an only cat - an absolutely PERFECT cat in every conceivable way, god knows I wrote enough on here about how perfectly well-behaved and friendly and docile she always was. She is just, SO not that way anymore.. If I'm being honest with myself she barely seems like the same cat sometimes. On the bright side she's been losing weight.
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Oct 18, 2016 00:07
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Deteriorata posted:My usual technique is just to withhold attention when they bite or scratch. The learn pretty quickly that if they want pets and scritches, they can't bite. The thing is she doesn't seem to want pets, but i definitely want to get her used to handling, in the hope she also becomes cuddly and affectionate as she gets less insanely playful. I let her play with our 6 month old kitten and they wrassled a lot, they get along well- he never cried out, but i think he is softly correcting her for her biting with a neck hold in his mouth - a couple times she did meow but he didn't seem to be hurting her just holding her. Does this seem normal? They both kick each other, and play with a feather toy together. it is unfortunate i have no others exactly her age to learn from but the other kitten i found her alone with was dead and she was on the doorstep. This is my first kitten foster, i have much more exp with puppies/dogs. What I have also started doing is petting her, and encouraging her to come up on my lap to get delicious canned kitten food from a spoon. She purrs almost all the time - from the time she sees us open the door to the spare room she's in, while she's eating, while she's playing. She seemed to purr even harder until very recently when you pet her especially her chin/neck, but that seems to be changing, perhaps as she gets older/stronger? She was really almost dead two weeks ago. here's a photo of the rascal, I had originally assumed she was a boy cuz orange, but she's a girl, anyway I had already named her Junkrat and it stuck 
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Oct 18, 2016 02:09
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pizzadog posted:The thing is she doesn't seem to want pets, but i definitely want to get her used to handling, in the hope she also becomes cuddly and affectionate as she gets less insanely playful. I let her play with our 6 month old kitten and they wrassled a lot, they get along well- he never cried out, but i think he is softly correcting her for her biting with a neck hold in his mouth - a couple times she did meow but he didn't seem to be hurting her just holding her. Does this seem normal? They both kick each other, and play with a feather toy together. it is unfortunate i have no others exactly her age to learn from but the other kitten i found her alone with was dead and she was on the doorstep. This is my first kitten foster, i have much more exp with puppies/dogs. You may be setting your expectations too high. She's a kitten, and kittens are rambunctious shitheads. She'll become an rear end in a top hat teenager in a few months. They start to settle down at about a year. Don't expect to act like a mature adult cat. Enjoy the craziness while it lasts.
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Oct 18, 2016 02:14
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Deteriorata posted:You may be setting your expectations too high. She's a kitten, and kittens are rambunctious shitheads. She'll become an rear end in a top hat teenager in a few months. They start to settle down at about a year. Okay, I'm sure I am maybe we got lucky with our recent kitten who was cuddly off the bat. She's going to get permanent home next month I just want to do as much socialization as i can with her while she's young. Edit: she joined the dogs in trying to steal our pizza off our dinner plates tonight she's really funny pizzadog fucked around with this message at 05:16 on Oct 18, 2016 |
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Oct 18, 2016 04:36
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