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I've done frozen treats (messy), and tried cooling mats (she laid down right next to it) but cats are way more well equipped to deal with the heat than I am. I brush Katya more often and wipe her down with a moist towel, other than that I just up their water intake by giving them wet food more often.
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Jun 25, 2021 07:38
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hello cat thread, I’m absolutely petrified I’m making the most irreparable traumatizing decision for my cats and I’d like some help. Me and my ex are semi going different ways. I’m just moving out of our shared apartment to another one a KM away, and we will see each other at least once a month if not more. We share four wonderful, amazing, loving cats together, two boys and two girls. My ex and I have a really solid friendship (we literally lived together after splitting for two years, we’re kind of siblings at this point) We’re going to try a split custody situation, as my new partner, who I am going to move to this new apartment with, has three cats. His cats are friendly with me, but are a bit older, with one being a senior. The plan is for my ex and I to have two of our cats at a time, either the boys or the girls, as the boys are litter mates and brothers, and the girls were adopted at the same time and closer to each other than they are to the boys. We’re thinking of switching off every month, give or take a few days so we can align schedules. I’m absolutely for this plan, but I am also quite scared that this will somehow not work. I do know that this will take some time for the cats to get used to, as cats hate the new until it’s old. The old apartment my ex is staying in, and will essentially serve as a “home base” for our four, and my partners cats will always stay at my new place. What I’m afraid of is… - the interval of every month switching is too short for adjustment - stress moving back and forth (which I’ll expect for the first year or so to be normal, along with getting into any carrier) - my partner’s cats. One is a senior and suffers no fools (but is very sweet), and my cats are 4-5 years old. The other two cats he has, one is very shy and jumpy, the other is a total mush and will likely warm up to my cats the quickest (as he’s still quite a young cat at heart) - my cats. They’re all fairly bonded to one another as a group, and we’re splitting them by gender as they’re closest to their “gender-mates” so to say. The boys I’m not seriously worried about, but my girls are a bit trickier. I have one half laPerm girl who is incredibly intelligent, vocal, and particular with who she is near to and when, cat wise (she’s fine with people). We have a nice huge catio area that she will likely enjoy in the new apartment, but I don’t want her scared, she usually acts out the most when she’s scared (hissing and swiping). My other girl, a chubby tuxedo sweetie, is very shy and only hisses with “new” cats (like when her sister came back from the vet), otherwise she keeps mainly to herself and occasionally her sister. I’m not worried for her as so much as she is her “sister’s keeper” so to say, and that stress could stress her out? - territory. we have three boys in this seven cat situation. One of my guys is particular about litter box cleanliness. The new apartment is considerably bigger than my old one, so physical space isn’t the issue, but I do dread finding mystery piss. I’m going to assume that yes, it’ll happen a few times, but eventually poo poo will even out. I’m afraid that I’m loving up somewhere with this cat custody situation. Is there anything I can do to ease this, or things to keep in mind for all seven of these wonderful, loving cats in my life? E: also said ex is a goon so lol there might be supplementary info I’m forgetting teen witch fucked around with this message at 09:31 on Jun 25, 2021 |
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Jun 25, 2021 09:29
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I respect what you're trying to do with this, but to be honest, this sounds really stressful for both the cats and you -- monthly handoffs seem like a lot of effort and commitment, and that timeframe seems to me like it'd be hard for the cats to really get acclimated, and I'm not sure that they have enough long-term memory that they'd be comfortable with both homes after a handoff cycle. I also imagine a weird revolving door of household cats would be stressful to your partner's three. (That said, I don't have first-hand experience, and people who do should correct me if I'm wrong.) Is there a practical issue with your ex keeping all four cats? My first suggestion would just be to keep all the cats living where they are (the four with your ex, the other three with you and your new partner) and have you visit to spend time with them, but if the ex can't keep all four at a time, it seems more sensible for you to just take one pair permanently, instead of repeatedly handing off.
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Jun 25, 2021 11:07
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Antivehicular posted:I respect what you're trying to do with this, but to be honest, this sounds really stressful for both the cats and you -- monthly handoffs seem like a lot of effort and commitment, and that timeframe seems to me like it'd be hard for the cats to really get acclimated, and I'm not sure that they have enough long-term memory that they'd be comfortable with both homes after a handoff cycle. I also imagine a weird revolving door of household cats would be stressful to your partner's three. (That said, I don't have first-hand experience, and people who do should correct me if I'm wrong.) It’s not a practical but emotional issue with my ex keeping all four cats: we raised them. I immigrated here and I got my cats, I’m honestly deeply emotionally tied to them. It’s purely selfish and it will be hard for me to let all four go, especially since they will be so close by. that honestly stings more. I could take all four, we have the space and the patience, but I’m not going to do that to my ex. The logistics of swapping cats is not a problem on my end, that is actually probably the easiest. We’re only a KM apart. Splitting them two and two is not idea but it is my plan b, but it’s a Sophie’s choice. We both deeply love these cats. I’m considering a longer period than a month, as that feels like the weakest part of the plan, and the part I’m most worried about. I know of a few people who have done similar and have read about others doing it. There’s an adjustment period of getting used to it, and then it’s fine, but I’m still worried. Honestly? It could just be anxiety and insecurity talking but these are pretty much the closest to kids I’ll ever have. teen witch fucked around with this message at 11:27 on Jun 25, 2021 |
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Jun 25, 2021 11:25
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I guess it depends on the cats involved and you could try it but it sounds really stressful for all cats involved. Cats don't like change and they don't have that long a memory. This thread is full of stories of cats taking ages to re-accept another cat who has just been at the vet for a couple of days, nevermind one that's been away for a month. It would be possibly more viable if there weren't already three cats permanently living in the house who would have to repeatedly get used to Intruders and then have them taken away again every other month.
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Jun 25, 2021 11:40
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Organza Quiz posted:I guess it depends on the cats involved and you could try it but it sounds really stressful for all cats involved. Cats don't like change and they don't have that long a memory. This thread is full of stories of cats taking ages to re-accept another cat who has just been at the vet for a couple of days, nevermind one that's been away for a month. It would be possibly more viable if there weren't already three cats permanently living in the house who would have to repeatedly get used to Intruders and then have them taken away again every other month. that’s a good point about memory, though with the one vet visit we’ve had they had a day or two of minor hissing and no drama, which is good…but it’s not the same. What I’m thinking might be best is to try it and see how it goes, but be ready for the worst (but also know that the worst might not happen). I’m thinking that once the (human) move is over, my anxieties will be better and I know my cats pick up when I’m anxious incredibly well. I need to keep it together because it’ll help them keep it together. I do know that two of my cats will probably be ok with split time a whole lot easier than the other two, and maybe those two just do it? I don’t know, but I’ve got a lot to think about, and I need to be open to other arrangements than swapping cats monthly. It might not be me losing all four cats. Thankfully as I’m working from home four days a week going forward, I can keep a closer eye regardless of what happens. Thanks thread
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Jun 25, 2021 12:26
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Yeah sorry it just seems like a really bad idea all around. I dunno what the alternative would be but moving them every month doesn’t seem like it’s going to end well for anyone.
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Jun 25, 2021 15:29
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just got my cat that flower water fountain to try to get him to drink more water, bless his little heart but he can't figure out what it's for
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Jun 25, 2021 16:08
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Jun 25, 2021 16:18
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Cats don't like change, basically. They'll get over it eventually but you'll be yanking them as they get settled and adjusted and then they start anew. I'd suggest taking a pair and making them your own, or leave them there (because you'll have three cats in your new home) and just visit a lot.
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Jun 25, 2021 16:23
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Are cat parks a thing? I think my cat wants to go outside but I don't trust him by himself and worry he is going to run somewhere i can't follow. Any ideas?
BigRed0427 fucked around with this message at 17:51 on Jun 25, 2021 |
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Jun 25, 2021 17:46
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BigRed0427 posted:Are cat parks a thing? I think my cat wants to go outside but I don't trust him by himself and worry he is going to run somewhere i can't follow. Any ideas? You mean on a leash right? Because if not that’s just a terrible idea.
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Jun 25, 2021 17:53
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Cat parks don't exist but if you go to normal parks at "off hours" you should do okay avoiding encounters with dogs. Dogs are usually fine with cats, but cats that have never seen a dog seem to react pretty badly.. they can't handle the in-your-face "let's play!" antics of a dog. Anything that gets too close too fast is gonna spook a cat. But if the cat doesn't tolerate a harness it's a non-starter. Figure that part out first.
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Jun 25, 2021 18:01
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teen witch posted:hello cat thread, I’m absolutely petrified I’m making the most irreparable traumatizing decision for my cats and I’d like some help. Friend, there was a post in your favorite thread (r/relationships:a teen witch subtitle) that basically covered this exact situation, and it truthfully really isn't good for the cats. You're gonna end up just confusing and stressing the heck out of them.
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Jun 25, 2021 18:08
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BigRed0427 posted:Are cat parks a thing? I think my cat wants to go outside but I don't trust him by himself and worry he is going to run somewhere i can't follow. Any ideas? I take mine to a cemetery with her harness and leash. It's a big quiet park environment with few humans or cars and rarely any dogs, ideal for cat hangout.
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Jun 25, 2021 18:59
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Will cats hunch over to poop? I'm building a platform to extend my back seat to the front and was going to slide the litterbox under it, but as is it's about 14 inches of clearance. With the litter box obviously it's a few inches less.. usually when I witness the act inside I break the intense eye contact first but notice that my cat is hover sitting but like straight spine up style sitting. I can easily build a bump up and give her a full foot or two if they need it because they wont use it if they arent comfortable. I've never seen her use the bathroom in the day but this is going to be a long drive and I want her to be comfortable. Thoughts? Call it good and she'll go if she needs to or make her the luxury 2 br car apartment she always dreamed of? CCC (current cat clearance) from litter to roof is 11 inches Harry Potter on Ice fucked around with this message at 19:33 on Jun 25, 2021 |
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Jun 25, 2021 19:19
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what do you do if a cat does not stop rubbing its dirty poo butt on your bed/chair/carpet/gf etc?
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Jun 25, 2021 20:27
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gowb posted:what do you do if a cat does not stop rubbing its dirty poo butt on your bed/chair/carpet/gf etc? About 8 years (and just as many pounds) ago, my cat Jackie was too fat to functionally be able to lick/clean her own butt in any manner whatsoever - it was pretty absurd, not to mention gross. I ultimately took to cleaning her butt myself, primarily because her method for cleaning her butt back then on her own was to literally drag/rub it on the floor when it got gross/itchy enough, so I figured... if I have to clean this up anyway, I'd better do it before she starts feeling inclined to rubbing it on things. So just about every other night, I'd take some paper towels and warm tap-water and cleaned her down there myself - it wasn't really all that bad, though her being mostly short-haired helped. It actually worked just fine and more or less solved the problem of her gross butt, and it wasn't anywhere near as gross as dealing with her rubbing it on stuff. I highly recommend exploring this as an option.
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Jun 25, 2021 21:25
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Wet wipes are my go-to when my long haired cat gets poop caught in his fur. I'll now likely get him regular baths at the groomers now that that worked out so well, too.
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Jun 25, 2021 21:48
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teen witch posted:Thanks thread Monthly handoffs are going to lead to anxious/freaked out cats who in a constant cycle of reintroduction and having no solid "territory" that they feel safe in. STRONGLY, STRONGLY advise not to do this to your cats. The cats at your new partners home also do not deserve to have a revolving door of strange cats invading their spaces and it's going to result in massive problems. Split them up or keep them together but cats need territory stability or they're going to be stressed and start doing stressed-cat behaviors. (Pissing on things, destructive scratching, overgrooming, litterbox guarding, sleeping in the litterbox, fighting,) I understand the situation sucks but you have to do what's right for the animals here and that means giving them a stable home and territory.
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Jun 25, 2021 21:57
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gowb posted:what do you do if a cat does not stop rubbing its dirty poo butt on your bed/chair/carpet/gf etc? If it's because of issues with long hair, buy a cheap beard trimmer and shave the bit around their butthole. As long as you keep the shortest guard on it you should be able to get it plenty short enough without any real risk of cutting them. If it's not because of their hair and more of age/fatness/etc leading to them not cleaning up properly, I'd probably just suck it up and hit them with a baby wipe every so often. teen witch posted:What I’m thinking might be best is to try it and see how it goes, but be ready for the worst (but also know that the worst might not happen). In addition to stressing out your four cats repeatedly on every move, this is also going to stress the hell out of the three cats at your new place, as they'll have a revolving parade of cats coming in and out of their territory all the time. There is no situation in which this shared cat custody thing works out to the benefit of the cats. Khizan fucked around with this message at 22:03 on Jun 25, 2021 |
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Jun 25, 2021 22:01
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Hi, folks. I have three cats (littermates, all 5 years old): George, Henry, and Emily. Since they were kittens, George and Henry (but especially Henry) loved to sit in my lap, and Henry still loves to come snuggle with me. At first, Emily preferred to sit next to me in my chair (or, rather, let me sit next to her in her chair). But a couple of years ago, Emily randomly started wanting to sit in my lap. Around the same time, George stopped sitting in my lap. But it doesn't seem like it's because he stopped wanting to. Instead, he'll do this thing where he'll come and sit on the arm of the chair, and lean over to put his front paws on my leg as if he's going to step down and sit in my lap. Sometimes he will sit for about half a second and then get off. Other times, he kneads my leg for a couple of seconds and then uses my leg as a springboard and jumps to the other arm of the chair. He'll sometimes come curl up next to me, but even if I make room for him when he's doing the above, he'll just stare at the empty spot. I have found that if I move over so that "my" spot is empty, sometimes he'll sit there. If I'm lying on my bed he'll still come and stretch out on my stomach, so coupled with the above behavior it seems like he still wants to sit on me somehow. My ex had an older, overweight, female cat that hated to sit in anyone's lap, but would allow him to put her in a box and set that on his lap. He said he thought she felt unstable. I thought maybe George was feeling the same way. He's not really overweight, but he and his brother are both pretty big, with long bodies and long legs. But while Henry seems perfectly comfortable to lounge anywhere, no matter how contorted he is, maybe George feels like he's outgrown my lap? Obviously, I'd love for him to come sit on my lap, but I'm fine if he doesn't want to, because my first concern is his comfort. But it seems like he desperately wants to sit in my lap, and I don't know how to accommodate him. Any suggestions? Also, here is George:  And, for good measure, here is Henry:  and Emily: 
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Jun 27, 2021 17:26
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Ehhhhhh, that honestly sounds like cat being cat. My girl cat will not sit on my lap. She'll sit on or near me, and if I'm in bed she'll absolutely knead my chest and lie on me. In fact she's here at my desk right now as I'm typing this up, rubbing all over me, kneading my lap and steadfastly refusing to sit on me. Sometimes their behavior changes for no apparent reason and you can make it as enticing as you want, but the how and whys are something that we often can't know with certainty. Size might matter, but my girl cat has nothing on her big chonk brother, who's twice (!) her weight and has zero problems forcing himself into my tiny lap, making me cradle him like some oversized toddler.
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Jun 27, 2021 18:25
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Every cat is a weird unique goblin. One of my cats will ride on my shoulders, but won't get on the couch or bed, except on very rare occasions when none of the other cats are around. One of my cats is utterly obsessed with being in my lap, but not my wife's, but when sleeping, will only cuddle with her. The third is aloof but will regularly hop in my lap when I'm watching TV, and meow at us when we're outside. Cats be cats. Let them just be cats and do what they like.
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Jun 27, 2021 18:51
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Our AC went out yesterday so it's currently 86 degrees in this apartment it sucks and I hate it. I've put ice in their water and plan to wait until the rental office opens tomorrow to see what their eta on a new unit is before looking into bugging out. I don't want to that at all but my partner seems adamant that the heat will kill us all. But the prospect of packing the cats, some food, a litter box, and some litter just seems like an unfun time
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Jun 27, 2021 18:55
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Len posted:Our AC went out yesterday so it's currently 86 degrees in this apartment it sucks and I hate it. I've put ice in their water and plan to wait until the rental office opens tomorrow to see what their eta on a new unit is before looking into bugging out. I live in a country where AC is not a thing and we get a few days per year of 86+ weather. I promise you can survive. Keep the windows open during the evening/night/morning when it's cooler, close them as soon as the temperature starts rising and keep your curtains/blinds closed too. Use a normal fan to keep air moving, try putting a bucket of ice in front of the fan. Wet towels for bedtime are a godsend. Your cats will be fine, maybe put some extra water in their food if you're worried.
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Jun 27, 2021 19:11
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Yeah my cats have survived much hotter weather just fine. They just napped more.
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Jun 27, 2021 19:20
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I agree with all of you but she was actually in tears this morning when I said I wasn't leaving Pretty sure they're both just laying and waiting for us to go back to work
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Jun 27, 2021 19:25
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Len posted:Our AC went out yesterday so it's currently 86 degrees in this apartment it sucks and I hate it. I've put ice in their water and plan to wait until the rental office opens tomorrow to see what their eta on a new unit is before looking into bugging out. Are you in the Pacific northwest? If so, it's going to get much hotter than 86 and bugging out is not a bad idea. If 86 is the high, that seems less dire.
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Jun 27, 2021 20:45
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Sarern posted:Are you in the Pacific northwest? If so, it's going to get much hotter than 86 and bugging out is not a bad idea. If 86 is the high, that seems less dire. Northeast Ohio
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Jun 27, 2021 20:53
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One of our cats caught her first mouse ever today (3.5 years old) and she's strutting around like she's the biggest badass in history and it's hilarious. Keeps tackling our other cat too which is pretty out of character so I'm guessing she's just feeling overstimulated. Fortunately for us she doesn't actually know how to kill anything, she just smacked it around until it passed out from fear and we discovered what she was up to. So I scooped it into a pail and dumped it in the big field near the house. But she's still strutting and I can't stop laughing at her.
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Jun 28, 2021 03:31
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We have a whiteboard fully dedicated to tallying up the kills that each cat who has stayed at the Cat Ranch (there have been about 6 of them) have accrued over the 2 and a half years since my roommate Chad moved in here. The leader by FAR with about 50 mice, half a dozen squirrels and a few bunnies is Murfy, the lean and strong 16-pound Savannah Cat. I actually watched him devour almost the entirety of a mouse that had formerly been alive, and it was horrifying. When he started to crunch on the ribs and the intestines all spilled out, I kinda lost it. It made me glad, in a way, that Jackie's never been much of a hunter and I don't have to deal with that on a regular basis  Though there is something fascinating to me about how cats can be such heartless predators.
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Jun 28, 2021 03:58
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And that's why savannah cats are banned in Australia!
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Jun 28, 2021 04:08
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One of my cats WILL NOT sit on a lap that isn't covered by a blanket, and he doesn't give a gently caress about the weather either. In the winter I usually have a blanket over my feet anyway, but in the summer it's fuckin hot so instead he will basically have a tantrum until I grudgingly pull up the blanket and let him curl up. He's lucky he's cute, it's loving hot
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Jun 28, 2021 07:04
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My cats are weird with blankets too! I discovered a new blanket-preference the other day when I went to lie down on top of our duvet for a little nap, Katya inspected the situation and declared it unsatisfactory. so she scratched at the blanket where I was lying on it until I lifted it for her, but then refused to get under it until I crawled under too. Her mind works in mysterious ways sometimes. Kimchi just really enjoys when I drape one of my sofa blankets over the backrest so it creates a little tent, she's a simple creature who enjoys simple pleasures.
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Jun 28, 2021 07:33
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Pepper likes making nest/caves in blankets which let her be under and surrounded by blankets but still able to see out. She will NOT let me help make a nest, she must do it herself and if I try to assist it will just ruin it for her.
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Jun 28, 2021 07:41
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Harold loves laying against blankets and curtains and poo poo so they form a like, vertical hammock kinda thing, like he’ll mess with the curtains till they’re positioned so he can lay on the bottom part and his leaning pulls the part he isn’t laying on taut. 
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Jun 28, 2021 09:16
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Sarern posted:Are you in the Pacific northwest? If so, it's going to get much hotter than 86 and bugging out is not a bad idea. If 86 is the high, that seems less dire. I’m in PNW and fortunately brought my portable AC unit with me from my time in LA. One of my coworkers brought her cat to work today (she has a personal office with AC and a door) because he’s not been eating or drinking in the heat and threw up this morning.  He’s started eating in her office and he feels like a cloud.  I’ve been wiping my cat down with wet paper-towels, putting even more water in his wet food, gave him tuna juice (I know it’s not great on the reg but it was loving 115° outside and he’s a dumb idiot that barely drinks water) and SOMEHOW tricked him to lay down on a cooling mat. It’s cooled down now so we’re through the worst of it but man, gently caress global warming.
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Jun 29, 2021 05:16
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teen witch posted:hello cat thread, I’m absolutely petrified I’m making the most irreparable traumatizing decision for my cats and I’d like some help. The absolute best thing for the cats is for your ex to keep the four. the second best thing is for you to take a bonded pair and your ex to keep another. the third best is for you to keep all 7. the fourth best is to rehome all of them as a unit. Switching off monthly doesn't even make the list. It might work OK if you didn't have 3 other cats you were bringing into the picture and your four cats were easy going and adaptable to new places, but as it stands your four cats and your new partner's 3 cats are going to have to figure out territory and pecking order for a time every other month.
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Jun 29, 2021 15:35
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Hi cat thread. My wife found a kitten in the street. We have 3 dogs. The vet said he wasn't chipped, is 4 weeks old, isn't malnourished, and has cat fleas. I have never had a cat around before. What should I know? Kitten is currently in a bathroom with the door closed while the dogs sniff through the crack. He is curled up in a blanket and won't eat or drink water. 
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Jun 30, 2021 00:14
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