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Jasper would suckle and knead on a sherpa blanket I have when I first adopted him. I've noticed that if I put him on the blanket now, he no longer does it.
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May 1, 2023 15:01
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We've had our cat Affie for about 11 months now and kept her indoors, but have been meaning to get a leash and see if she wants to go outside. We finally managed to get her in one and brought her outside and she was just desparate to get back in to our house. There's not much point in keeping trying at this stage? She sometimes seems curious about the outside but she seemed pretty determined to return home.
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May 1, 2023 15:05
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I wouldn't force it but I also wouldn't necessarily give up right away. She might warm up to the idea with enough exposure. Cats are very routine bound and tend to get highly resistant to any changes to their environment. But if after a few more attempts she simply panics every time, you'll have to put the leash away for good.
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May 1, 2023 15:27
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Try letting her explore at her own pace. Instead of bringing her outside, put the leash on and open the door. You may have better luck if she can expand boundaries at her own pace. A lot of cats don't have the disposition for it though and there's nothing you can do about it. We got two cats from kittens and leash trained them in the same way, with the same opportunities to go outside and one loves it and the other cannot get back into the house fast enough so it's not really something you can train them out of.
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May 1, 2023 15:32
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Cats do their own thing. You can enable them and offer many different options, and I think that’s a good thing to do, but they’ll dive in on their own schedule. Offer her the option and disengage if she seems uninterested, and if a clear pattern emerges, follow it.
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May 1, 2023 16:07
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I put my second cat in a leash harness last weekend and after trying for a solid minute to write out of it she laid down and stared into the middle distance without purring or acknowledging my petting, so I took it off. Here she is, accepting death: 
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May 1, 2023 21:11
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That's incredibly normal. Eventually they'll realize their legs work again, try offering a treat that requires a small amount of movement.
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May 1, 2023 21:33
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I intended to try it again, I just wanted to ease her into it. Thanks for the advice though, I'll keep at it.
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May 1, 2023 21:50
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Yeah, IIRC they get disoriented with the presence of the harness on their back/torso because it disrupts their proprioception? It's a physical response that they need to attenuate to.
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May 1, 2023 21:51
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She went for a very small walk with it once already, and I'm going to keep trying to introduce her to it because hoo boy she could use a little more movement in her life.
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May 1, 2023 21:53
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So I've started bringing myself to sort through some of the cat stuff and put it into storage or give it away. I'm keeping some of Mel's favorite toys and things, but most of it is probably going to end up given away or more likely just thrown out. I am nowhere near getting another cat, not just emotionally but also I will be moving at least twice, maybe three times over the next calendar year and I wouldn't want to put a new pet through that, so there's no sense holding onto the big rear end cat tree or scratching post, among other things. Long story short, I have three completely unopened boxes of 24 packages each of wet food, specifically this stuff. Would anybody itt be interested? Would not be charging anything - not even shipping - just want to pay it forward to some kitties who will eat it instead of it ending up in the trash. Also for anybody else who has gone through something similar and was left with a bunch of cat stuff without a new cat in your immediate future: any suggestions besides the dumpster? Are there shelters or organizations that will even take used cat toys or cat furniture?
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May 1, 2023 22:12
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Sydin posted:Long story short, I have three completely unopened boxes of 24 packages each of wet food, specifically this stuff. Would anybody itt be interested? Would not be charging anything - not even shipping - just want to pay it forward to some kitties who will eat it instead of it ending up in the trash. Look for a cat rescue charity or humane society in your area, they're always looking for food donations.
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May 1, 2023 22:20
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Jack B Nimble posted:I put my second cat in a leash harness last weekend and after trying for a solid minute to write out of it she laid down and stared into the middle distance without purring or acknowledging my petting, so I took it off. It's so cute when they do that. Just wearing some collar or shirt that isn't even restrictive, and yet they flop down as if they'll never get up again. Poorly silly creatures.
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May 1, 2023 22:37
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Antivehicular posted:Yeah, IIRC they get disoriented with the presence of the harness on their back/torso because it disrupts their proprioception? It's a physical response that they need to attenuate to. It's this, quill couldn't even walk with a onesie on for a few days. She was fine with the harness but it didn't cover much of her.
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May 1, 2023 22:57
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Once my cat realised he could go outside and explore when he had the harness on he was a little tearaway
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May 2, 2023 07:24
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Rotten Red Rod posted:Look for a cat rescue charity or humane society in your area, they're always looking for food donations. I have like 8 cat trees of various sizes scattered around the place and I think I've only paid for one. The rest have all been picked up on curbs or by dumpsters. Nextdoor or similar is a good option to move bigger stuff like cat trees.
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May 2, 2023 08:41
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We have wake up lights as our morning alarm. Now that it's spring and getting light earlier, poor kitty is confused and starts yelling angrily as soon as it's light out, wondering why we're not up. I do not like kitty alarm. Also, unrelated, please recommend your favorite water fountains and dry food auto-feeders! I just have one kitty but I felt like treating her and getting some upgrades. Harriet Carker fucked around with this message at 14:22 on May 2, 2023 |
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May 2, 2023 14:14
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I like the petkit autofeeders. I use a heavy earthenware glazed fountain because they learned how to push over the other one
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May 3, 2023 04:26
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Street cat rehabilitation update: when I got home last night, Twig let me pick her up and hold her against my shoulder in a legit snuggle/hug. This is something that I do with my partner's cat, but early on came to terms with probably never getting from Twig, so I was just silently bawling while I walked around the apartment holding her. She stopped purring and wriggled to get down after about a minute, but that beats the poo poo out of the immediate teeth and slaps I would have gotten before. Cats are good, friends. As a lifelong dog person, I wouldn't trade this little goblin for the world.  (She bit me twice while I was typing this, so she's still a little poo poo who doesn't know how to ask for play. But we are definitely moving in the right direction, and faster than I dared hope for)
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May 4, 2023 05:54
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Kitty has been sneezing like crazy for a few days now. No other symptoms of anything. Good appetite, no runoff from eyes or nose, plenty of energy. Anything I need to worry about?
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May 4, 2023 14:28
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How old is the cat? Does she go outside? Has anything else changed in your house? Is it pollen season where you are? Cats can get respiratory infections just like humans can, but they'd need to meet other cats for that. They can also get pollen or dust allergies just like humans. If the cat's eyes and nose are clear and she generally seems healthy, it's not an emergency. If it gets worse or doesn't stop in a few days I'd see a vet to check if it's something serious (or something not serious that can be easily treated). If it's a very young cat you only got recently, I'd go to the vet sooner. They can get some grisly cat diseases that start with sneezing, like FIV. pidan fucked around with this message at 14:36 on May 4, 2023 |
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May 4, 2023 14:34
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I’ve had her for two years and she’s three years old. Tested negative for FIV when we got her. She does not go outside or meet other cats ever. Spring is in full swing here so I guess it could be pollen?
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May 4, 2023 14:46
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Update on Jet. He’s mostly doing pretty well right now! His diarrhea was very bad and difficult to manage until I did a few things: - Stopped his antiemetic (it was only for a few days anyway) - Took him off the rabbit kibble and put him back on the fish kibble, then took him off the fish kibble entirely when he still had a lot of gut trouble - Started feeding him canned pumpkin and a little bit of psyllium husk, for fiber - Started giving him probiotics (not sure how effective these have been, yet) - Replaced his kibble with a bland diet of a minced chicken breast, plain white rice, canned pumpkin puree Since then, his energy, mood and playfulness are back to normal. I haven’t seen him vomit food, either (tho he did spit up a little, but that was basically nothing). He doesn’t seem to be in any obvious pain or discomfort. He hasn’t made any dire messes in and around the litter box (except when I spooked him by covering his poop for him  ), and cleanup is more reasonable now. So on the surface, he seems fine.That said, the litter box still gets used too often for #2 and what he passes is too soft and too small. His guts are still irritated, and the core problem isn’t fixed - it’s just easier to clean up after. I’m not satisfied until he passes normal looking turds exactly once per 24 hours. But it’s only been a day or two on the diet and supplements, so maybe that will change? Anyone try and heal their cat’s diarrhea with this approach? How long did it take for their litter box habits and production to return to normal? Is it reasonable to continue the bland diet for another day or two, and hope to see a return to normalcy soon? Or should I just skip all that and take the IBD/small cell lymphoma medicine nuclear option ASAP? Basically, how do I know this is really working?
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May 4, 2023 17:00
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If nothing else, this thread is great for making me feel grateful for Twig's bathroom habits. An almost worrying level of pee regularity (she loves her water fountain), extremely large and sturdy logs, and always in the box. I'll happily take love bites that are a bit too frequent/intense in exchange for that. Speaking of fountains... Harriet Carker posted:please recommend your favorite water fountains and dry food auto-feeders! I just have one kitty but I felt like treating her and getting some upgrades. I just went with Wirecutter's recommendations and picked up this auto-feeder and this water fountain, and they've worked out great. She loves the fountain, and the feeder's simplicity makes it pretty impossible for her to break into or flip. It looks and functions like one of those boring wedge Battlebots that exploit having a low center of gravity. It also uses compartments that you fill yourself (and program the intervals at which it rotates through them), so you have pretty tight portion and schedule control. Apparently the ones with a big hopper that measure it out themselves tend to vary wildly in how much they dispense, and almost always erred on the high side in testing, which adds up to kitty weight gain.  Also, they're easier to knock over and break into if you have a little food psycho like my ex's cat.Edit: Whatever fountain you get, I do recommend actually cleaning it and replacing the filter at their recommended intervals (we clean it once a week and replace the filter once a month). A lot of times those suggestions are bullshit, but in this case I have seen firsthand what happens if you don't. Since it's now something I have to do every week and can't put off, the fact that the Catit is relatively easy to break down and clean has made me appreciate it almost as much as Twig. I don't know how it compares to other models in that regard, but I've heard people say they stopped using fountains because cleaning was a bitch, and this one really isn't bad. Unsinkabear fucked around with this message at 18:08 on May 4, 2023 |
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May 4, 2023 17:46
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Unsinkabear posted:If nothing else, this thread is great for making me feel grateful for Twig's bathroom habits. An almost worrying level of pee regularity (she loves her water fountain), extremely large and sturdy logs, and always in the box. I'll happily take love bites that are a bit too frequent/intense in exchange for that. +1 on the Catit flower fountain. It's quiet, everyone seems to like it and the little window on the side is convenient for keeping track of the fill level. Only thing it's missing for me is an open reservoir so the water could be accessible if the power goes out, but that's something that will be shared by almost all smaller fountains.
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May 4, 2023 19:30
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True, that's another thing I forgot to mention. It's extremely quiet... until the water runs low, at which point it becomes louder. For me this was an undocumented feature, because it makes it impossible to be a bad cat dad and forget to refill it. Every time I walk into the kitchen I get an audible reminder.
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May 4, 2023 19:43
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I have this water fountain: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0BKG7VT9Y and this replacement faucet https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B088882XLJ so the water comes out more like a sink faucet. One of my cats seems to really like it.
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May 4, 2023 19:57
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We bought the Catit fountain that’s shaped like a cat since it was what our local pet store had in stock. It seems fine? Our cats use it, there’s a small reservoir on top if the power were to go out, there’s a window and a light indicator if it runs low. We do clean it often because our cats love to dip their fluffy manes into it.  This thing: https://www.amazon.com/Catit-Drinking-Fountain-Running-Water/dp/B095PZ8ZXZ What features do people look for in fountains? I see a lot of ceramic recommendations but not sure what the advantage is.
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May 4, 2023 21:15
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I have this one https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0037NKDSG/, which I like because there are no uncleanable or difficult-to-clean bits except the pump itself. However, the open top does mean that cats who like to play can splash water all over the place. It lives in a cafeteria tray to catch splashes.
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May 4, 2023 22:07
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Pollyanna posted:Update on Jet. He’s mostly doing pretty well right now! His diarrhea was very bad and difficult to manage until I did a few things: Well, I more or less have my answer! It only sort of works. The bland diet plus fiber makes the mess more manageable, but the irritation continues, and it’s been long enough that I don’t think the change in diet has any effect on his ability to heal. It really seems like this is a medical issue at this point, not a dietary one. His chemo should come in today, but from what I can tell, that still takes a week or two to really have an effect. In the meantime, I need litter box help. The problem as of now boils down to these points, spoilered because haha poopie: - poops multiple times a day - poops are malformed if not outright liquid - clay litter absolutely sucks, both in general and for handling diarrhea - box is apparently too small to contain all his poop even though it’s fuckin jumbo size - box has no high walls so if he misses, oh no!!!! - he loves to throw clay litter around and that is an even worse combo with the squirts Until the core problem can be addressed, I need cat litter and a litter box that can handle this. The litter box is on the way, but I still need a better litter than clay. Feline Pine doesn’t really work for sopping up soft and liquidy stool, but IME it still does a better job than clay litter overall, and the tracking/scattering problem is almost nonexistent. Is there a heavy duty litter like Feline Pine that can handle gastrointestinal problems? A clumping clay litter outright will not work. It doesn’t have to be for a sifting box, either.
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May 5, 2023 15:18
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Milly's always used world's best litter. It's corn based and i vaguely remember it handling things fine the first year i had her when we were still figuring out her food problems and she had the stank rear end. Which jumbo box did you go with? I used this before I switched to the litter robot. The cats didnt like the flap but it can be folded up to get it out of the way. Its the biggest one I could find short of just using a big old plastic storage bin with a door cut into it, which would definitely be a cheaper option. https://www.chewy.com/catit-jumbo-hooded-cat-pan/dp/49789
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May 5, 2023 17:55
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Last night I got the poo poo scratched out of me after one of my cats sneezed and the other freaked out and though he was being attacked. I had my arm wrapped around him and I guess he thought I was the one trying to get him, because now he is avoiding me at the house. But the weird thing is, he will sit like 6 feet away from me and slow blink, but will run away as soon as I approach. It's almost like he feels guilty or something. I'm sure it will pass in a day or two but I wish I could tell him I'm not mad at him lol. I got scratched pretty bad on my arm and my nose, but it was literally a no fault kind of thing. Dude was just sleeping and got startled by his sister's sneeze.
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May 8, 2023 18:26
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Slow blink back, leave a hand out, and let Jumpy come to you? If he's uncertain of whether you're now a threat or not and you look right at him and walk towards him, you might be unwittingly reinforcing his fear.
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May 9, 2023 01:55
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He's over it now. He just hopped in my lap and started purring. He probably thought I was mad at him for last night lol.
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May 9, 2023 02:12
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Anyone have any hot tips for switching a picky cat to new food? My girlfriend and I are trying to upgrade her boy from Friskies -- in part because of the health benefits it would provide, but also because his shits are TOXIC -- and unsurprisingly, he would much rather continue eating Kitty McDonald's. We've been mixing the new food in with the old in very small amounts so far, but no matter how little of it is in there, he sniffs it out immediately and essentially goes on a hunger strike unless we offer 100% of the old stuff. Even with his preferred food, he just kinda pecks at it off and on throughout the day, so he doesn't seem terribly food-motivated in general -- and as a dog person, I'm used to highly food-driven animals that accept dietary changes with little to no drama, so the concept of my pet just refusing to eat is wild (and stressful!). Would love some more ideas to try 
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May 9, 2023 17:28
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RumbleFish posted:Anyone have any hot tips for switching a picky cat to new food? My girlfriend and I are trying to upgrade her boy from Friskies -- in part because of the health benefits it would provide, but also because his shits are TOXIC -- and unsurprisingly, he would much rather continue eating Kitty McDonald's. We've been mixing the new food in with the old in very small amounts so far, but no matter how little of it is in there, he sniffs it out immediately and essentially goes on a hunger strike unless we offer 100% of the old stuff. Even with his preferred food, he just kinda pecks at it off and on throughout the day, so he doesn't seem terribly food-motivated in general -- and as a dog person, I'm used to highly food-driven animals that accept dietary changes with little to no drama, so the concept of my pet just refusing to eat is wild (and stressful!). Would love some more ideas to try There are no health benefits to more expensive food. Friskies is fine. All pet food is regulated by the FDA to meet the full nutritional requirements of pets. Unless he is allergic to one of the ingredients, you will notice no difference with his health. Nevertheless, when he's hungry, he'll eat. Don't make a big deal about it, just put the food out and let him eat it when he's ready.
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May 9, 2023 17:35
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RumbleFish posted:Anyone have any hot tips for switching a picky cat to new food? My girlfriend and I are trying to upgrade her boy from Friskies -- in part because of the health benefits it would provide, but also because his shits are TOXIC -- and unsurprisingly, he would much rather continue eating Kitty McDonald's. We've been mixing the new food in with the old in very small amounts so far, but no matter how little of it is in there, he sniffs it out immediately and essentially goes on a hunger strike unless we offer 100% of the old stuff. Even with his preferred food, he just kinda pecks at it off and on throughout the day, so he doesn't seem terribly food-motivated in general -- and as a dog person, I'm used to highly food-driven animals that accept dietary changes with little to no drama, so the concept of my pet just refusing to eat is wild (and stressful!). Would love some more ideas to try Thing that worked best for us when we had a cat that got allergic to her food was to gradually mix it (and make sure it was stinky cause it wasn't she'd just pick around it lol)
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May 9, 2023 23:26
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Jet got his chemo in today. I’m reading up on the precautions and hoooly poo poo, I had no idea chemo drugs were so dangerous. This is doubly a concern when he has gastric issues and tends to make a mess in the litter box, plus the whole cat litter thing. Not that I wish to keep any of it around, but is it really that important to biohazard the gently caress out of his urine and feces? Sealed bags and all? It’s gonna be like this for the rest of his life…? 
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May 11, 2023 01:41
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In my experience it's smooth sailing after the series of treatment finishes, just keep vigilant on checkups if you feel suspicious about anything.
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May 11, 2023 01:52
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| # ? May 16, 2024 23:44 |
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How did you handle the litter box? What kind of litter did you use? Did your cat make any messes or anything difficult to clean? How did you handle tracking litter or anything?
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May 11, 2023 16:04
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