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We tried a few litter options and attempted to stick to the advice that says to put a bit of the new litter in with the old litter so I want to give you a word of caution DO NOT do this if you’re switching between clumping <> non-clumping, it sucked hard to scoop and clean. Putting the new litter in a separate box, while giving them access to their old litter until you see uptake, seems like a much better plan. If you run into them not even trying it, we also successfully took advice from this thread to stink up the new box with an existing kitty deposit / used litter to give them a clear signal what it’s for. Pollyanna posted:An update on Jet’s health! I’m glad Jet has you to care for him. I love seeing him pop up in the black cats thread. 
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Jan 4, 2024 07:01
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You could also try trimming their pawpad's fur to reduce the chances of things sticking.
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Jan 4, 2024 07:51
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What's a good way to discourage cats from breaking into stuff and stealing the contents? I've got several objects (a hat, some pieces of fabric, some small plastic bits from one of my son's toys) that my cats are absolutely obsessed with, to the point that they will do anything to get at them. I can't keep them in cardboard boxes (they destroy them) or drawers or cupboards (they can open them). If I put them up somewhere high they will start tearing things off the shelf trying to get up to them. I tried putting them in the top of my closet, but they figured out how to open the door and then climbed up my hanging shirts to get up to the shelf, which wasn't great for my shirts. I don't have the slightest idea how the cats even know where they are, forget why they are so obsessed - right now I'm just keep a weird assortment of objects in my locked display hutch, which is less than ideal but might be the best I can manage, but I was hoping folks had some other ideas for deterrents that might work.
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Jan 4, 2024 15:05
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Get child locks for your cupboards.
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Jan 4, 2024 15:26
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One of my cats decided she likes belly rubs while she eats, so she’ll sit by her bowl until you walk by, then she flips on her back and tries to eat upside-down while getting scratches. 🤷♂️
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Jan 4, 2024 15:56
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Organza Quiz posted:Get child locks for your cupboards. ... that is actually a really obvious idea, and I don't know why I didn't think about it, hah. Thanks!
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Jan 4, 2024 16:13
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GlyphGryph posted:... that is actually a really obvious idea, and I don't know why I didn't think about it, hah. Thanks! We had to get childproof locks for our pantry, one of our cats is OBSESSED with going in the pantry. He just likes to chill out in there for hours cause it's quiet and dark I suppose and he got really good at opening it. He still will walk over to try and open it periodically, but he's finally learned his old tricks don't work and it's on the top of the door with nowhere he can really jump from to get to it easily
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Jan 4, 2024 16:34
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we had to get locks for our fish tanks... my void cat decided he FUCKIN LOVES FISH FOOD.
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Jan 4, 2024 17:20
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Lanky Coconut Tree posted:You could also try trimming their pawpad's fur to reduce the chances of things sticking. he has very smooth socks so there isn't much to trim. his sister doesn't but she's less clumsy. also an alternative solution i was batting around seems to have been helping: i bought them a much larger litter box. they still had their medium sized one from when i first got them and the giant one helps for some reason. i was cleaning the old one about twice a day and it would still seem "full" as of about two weeks ago when this started happening so i think it was a volume issue. once they're adult sized i think i'll try the walnut or just get them an extra box. How! posted:One of my cats decided she likes belly rubs while she eats, so she’ll sit by her bowl until you walk by, then she flips on her back and tries to eat upside-down while getting scratches.  they're so loving weird
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Jan 4, 2024 17:34
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My little baby got a seroma, 12 days after her fixin'. So I've been cradling her and holding a hot compress on her belly. Never experienced this before, how common is it? Seems odd to happen so long after surgery. Any permanent effects?
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Jan 4, 2024 18:06
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kaom posted:I’m glad Jet has you to care for him. I love seeing him pop up in the black cats thread. I’m glad I’m here to care for him, too. Speaking of, he’s migrated to some bullshit GI and V/D symptoms because his chemo is delayed and won’t come in until next week  so he hasn’t been eating much recently and is in a terrible mood. Internal medicine vet prescribed some anti-nausea meds and appetite stimulants, so let’s hope those will keep him stable until next week…
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Jan 4, 2024 18:14
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Man we're having a surprisingly hard time integrating a couple cats that I thought would go better. We had an older cat that was very standoffish/loner, would hiss when someone else tried to initiate play, didn't reciprocate grooming attempts, etc... she passed away in the fall. The younger cat was the more confident, tried to initiate stalking/play behavior (and got hissed at for it), attempted to groom the older one, etc... she's about 5 now. We had an even older cat around when this one was just a kitten, and they got along great. So history of reasonable interactions with cats. However it's notable she's *terrified* of people other than us. If my parents visit she'll literally hide under a dresser all weekend. She hates being picked up or held/restrained at all. New cat is a boy a couple years younger (2-3) than the girl, very friendly with people, doesn't mind being picked up. Playful, wants to initiate play. No 'aggressive' behavior at all, zero hissing/growling, never gets his fur up. Sometimes if he walks past/near the girl, she'll just observe and he'll go on his way. But if he sticks around too long or runs at her, she hisses/runs/growls. If he runs after her it'll go on for a couple loops around the main floor until we break it up or she gets cornered and yowls at him. The girl recovers quickly when he moves on or is put back in a bedroom for the night, so she's not endlessly stressed. She just seems very worried about him coming after her to play whenever he's out. Which is rich considering she used to constantly stalk the older cat(s). But cats can be hypocrites too I suppose, she just wants to be the one in control/initiating and she's not right now. It seems like this is something that'll improve over time, but my main worries: A) Every time he chases her and she runs instead of standing up for herself, how much is that setting things back? B) Even though I WFH the amount of times we can be closely monitoring them is limited, which is going to restrict the time they are exposed to each other and mean he has to spend a lot of the day in a bedroom. C) Trying to 'tire him out' is a ridiculous proposition. People online will say dumb poo poo like "Play with him for 10-15 mins 2-3 times a day." Are you kidding me? Playing with him for less than 45 minutes just riles him up, and it lasts barely long enough for him to take a nap and he's ready to go. He's like a kitten even though he's over 2 y/o now. Plus another cat is waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay more interesting than toys, and the bedroom is really just where he sleeps, so he doesn't really want to play if we separate him in there.
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Jan 4, 2024 20:16
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cash crab posted:he has very smooth socks so there isn't much to trim. his sister doesn't but she's less clumsy. I'd suggest at least 2 litter boxes for 2 cats, probably 3. N+1 helps give them more options, though it does require more upkeep on your end. A litter robot is also a great choice, shouldn't be much in the way of waste to get attached to the fur. They just cost $$$. Rescue Toaster posted:Man we're having a surprisingly hard time integrating a couple cats that I thought would go better. You gotta let the cats cat, they're establishing their boundaries. As long as there is not straight up skipping to murder, give them a little more space.
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Jan 4, 2024 20:28
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Rescue Toaster posted:A) Every time he chases her and she runs instead of standing up for herself, how much is that setting things back? None of this sounds that bad honestly. I don't see any "setting things back" here at all. But my question is, how long has this been going on? If it's years, sure, that might be an issue. But if it's just weeks or months? That's normal. I've had this exact behavior between our cats and some of our fosters, and it DOES calm down if you let it play out and be patient. My other question is, do they ever fight? Like FIGHT fight? Street cat brawling, screeching, fur flying? If not, you're making too big of a deal out of normal new-cat socializing. You should stop locking her in the bedroom and just let her get used to his play, and she'll stop being stressed about it eventually. Rotten Red Rod fucked around with this message at 20:47 on Jan 4, 2024 |
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Jan 4, 2024 20:44
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It's only been two weeks so far. If he chases her more than a few seconds then the hissing/growling sort of transitions to screeching. There's no real sign of serious brawling/biting, just batting at each other which I totally get is normal. I guess 'set things back' in terms of, I perhaps naively would really like them to actually be, you know, friends eventually. I'm mainly afraid of establishing the ongoing dynamic of he chases her, she hisses/runs away will settle into the same dynamic SHE had with the older cat, where she would stalk/chase and they hissed/ran, and never ever got past that point, never even would sleep near each other, would get territorial over parts of the house, etc... And so maybe this is a question for 3-4 months from now, assuming they seem to just settle into that habit, how would you ever break it or try to improve it? Or are there any steps now we should take to avoid it long-term.
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Jan 4, 2024 21:02
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GlyphGryph posted:I've got several objects (a hat, some pieces of fabric, some small plastic bits from one of my son's toys) that my cats are absolutely obsessed with, to the point that they will do anything to get at them. Another deterrent can be scent. I’ve seen this recommended for Christmas trees, to make little ornament sachets with something your cats hate (citrus is a common one, so like dried orange peels). It can be an option for things where you can’t easily shut them out physically.
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Jan 4, 2024 21:09
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Rescue Toaster posted:It's only been two weeks so far. If he chases her more than a few seconds then the hissing/growling sort of transitions to screeching. There's no real sign of serious brawling/biting, just batting at each other which I totally get is normal. I think you need to get them in the same space together while focused on something else. Have you tried bringing out a toy while they’re doing this, like a feather wand (or whatever toy they like where you have control over the session and when it ends)? Actually, how did you start your introductions? Did you do the thing where you feed them both on either side of a door? Do you still feed them separately? There’s going to be some boundary setting they just need to work out for themselves, but a foundation of neutral, controlled situations will help them understand the space is shared. (Note I haven’t personally done a cat intro so I’m relying on what experts have told me, but it’s the same approach as how you introduce the cat to yourself e.g. start with food and play in circumstances you control.)
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Jan 4, 2024 21:22
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Yeah we did feedings through a door and then with a baby gate. We try to feed/treat them near each other when we can, but he's used to fixed feeding times and she's used to free feeding, so it's an adjustment. He eats MUCH faster too, so he immediately tries to go for her food when he finishes. If we use a slow bowl he tries to leave his bowl and take hers. I'm wondering if we should keep doing fixed feeding times with them separated by a baby gate, even if they're together most of the rest of the day. It'll put them in proximity but unable to reach each other.
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Jan 4, 2024 21:28
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It's only been two weeks. Give it time - a lot more, months. And yeah it's naive to assume they'll be best friends. You can't force that. There's nothing you can really do to "break" or improve the habit. If the fighting gets worse you may want to separate them and redo introductions over a longer period of time. But where you are now, I say just wait it out and don't interject yourself. Rescue Toaster posted:Yeah we did feedings through a door and then with a baby gate. We try to feed/treat them near each other when we can, but he's used to fixed feeding times and she's used to free feeding, so it's an adjustment. He eats MUCH faster too, so he immediately tries to go for her food when he finishes. If we use a slow bowl he tries to leave his bowl and take hers. You could get a microchip feeder: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oqtmf5r-PN8 Or could build a cat feeder station: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EyYat05AH9U Rotten Red Rod fucked around with this message at 21:44 on Jan 4, 2024 |
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Jan 4, 2024 21:41
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Organza Quiz posted:Tofu litter has been incredible to me, all the benefits none of the downsides.
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Jan 6, 2024 02:11
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I got my litter robot into my wifi. It turned out to be user error. I was switching on the 2.4Ghz guest wifi on my router, but I missed the other setting, on a different page, to totally disable the 2.4Ghz radio, which was switched on. After enabling the radio, everything works 🥳
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Jan 6, 2024 07:34
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Squashy Nipples posted:My little baby got a seroma, 12 days after her fixin'. So I've been cradling her and holding a hot compress on her belly. Quill had this and the vet people were very much not concerned at all. Here is what hers looked like:    It didn't seem to be uncomfortable for her just irritating with the sutures there. It went away on it's own after a week or 2.
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Jan 6, 2024 08:38
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A friend of mine's cat has FIP and isn't looking too good. The Vet says there is some sort of blackmarket cure for it? Is this a real thing or a scam? Does anyone have any experience with it?A friend posted:In case you have experience we are at the vet. Bento not looking good. They suspect may be FIP Here is a picture of Bento for context, he's a very sweet and very stupid little boy. 
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Jan 6, 2024 23:23
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what's the general idea with clicker training? can I use it to stop kitten from running up to us and biting, or getting on the kitchen counter when we are cooking?
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Jan 6, 2024 23:40
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mawarannahr posted:what's the general idea with clicker training? can I use it to stop kitten from running up to us and biting, or getting on the kitchen counter when we are cooking?
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Jan 7, 2024 00:00
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Bell_ posted:IIRC, it's paired with treats and exclusively for positive reinforcement, because you want them to associate the noise with them doing something right. I see, thanks. I can't think of anything I really want him to do, just stuff I wish he didn't.
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Jan 7, 2024 00:07
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mawarannahr posted:what's the general idea with clicker training? can I use it to stop kitten from running up to us and biting, or getting on the kitchen counter when we are cooking? Clicker Trainer here! I've used it on cats, dogs, snakes, and various birds. Believe it or not, the research literature is mixed on if the addition of the click makes a difference in the animal's performance, so YMMV. But its worth a shot! The idea is: 0. (Optional) You give the animal the cue to respond, or the item to use. 1. The animal does the desired behavior. Clicker training is all about teaching what you want them to do, not to punish what you don't want them to do. 2. You click immediately after the behavior occurs. Literally within a second or two. 3. You follow up the click with a tangible reward of some kind. Typically this is food, but it can also be a pat on the head, play time/toys, etc. Whatever they like. The click is a distinctive sound, so it always 'means' "Yes, that's right, do that again, good job!" That's because vocal praise (or words in general) are things the animal hears all the time, and the click is a 'special' sound they will notice and remember. The click serves to give the animal feedback, serve as a conditioned reward, fill the 'gap' in time between the behavior and the treat, and tells the animal "Okay, now you can go get your reward!" This is helpful for behaviors where the food-seeking/attention-seeking behavior will interrupt the desired behavior. For overly-enthusiastic behavior, I tend to do a combination of clicker-training and corrective feedback. If they approach and play nicely, click-play. If they approach and bite, I let out a brief squeal like a kitten in pain and turn away and ignore the kitten for a few moments (just a minute or two, this isn't giving the kitten the silent treatment). If they go to an appropriate place when cooking (e.g., a bed, a platform on a cat tree), click-treat/pet. If they go on the counter, I say "No," pick them up gently, and put them on the floor immediately, with no further interaction. If you are REALLY stuck on the counter, you can try laying down a cutting board or piece of cardboard with double-sided tape on the surface. It doesn't hurt them, just feels, well, icky. It makes the counter less appealing, and that will help you steer them towards more appropriate places. Also - NO FEEDING WHILE COOKING. Karen Pryor wrote two excellent books worth picking up: Don't Shoot the Dog, and Clicker Training for Cats. You can get used copies for a buck or two.
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Jan 7, 2024 00:13
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Talorat posted:A friend of mine's cat has FIP and isn't looking too good. The Vet says there is some sort of blackmarket cure for it? Is this a real thing or a scam? Does anyone have any experience with it? Yeah a local shelter here does this and it's a LONG process but they've had a near 100% success rate. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8621566/
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Jan 7, 2024 00:29
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Oh man I think I will have to try this and it makes total sense. I've heard of clicker training before but never really looked in to it. We recently got some young kittens (emergency foster that turned into a failed foster because that's what happens when you're cute), and they are complete gremlins come feeding time. They'll cry and prairiedog and jump up and try to grab the food bowls out of my hand before I get the chance to put the bowls down. I would love to be able to ask them to sit and just chill out on command for when I give them their food. I know they're smart enough to figure stuff out; like when it's time to eat, I ask them if they're hungry and tell them to go in the hallway so I can close the hallway door to separate them from the other cats, and they'll head right on over into the hallway. I was able to teach my older cat to high five, turn around, and shake hands in a random order before sitting and waiting patiently for her food by just asking, showing, and rewarding her, but I also got her when she was older so she was more receptive to it.
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Jan 7, 2024 00:37
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Talorat posted:A friend of mine's cat has FIP and isn't looking too good. The Vet says there is some sort of blackmarket cure for it? Is this a real thing or a scam? Does anyone have any experience with it? Tell your friend to join Pet Vet Corner on facebook, it's a group run by vets with only vets allowed to comment and I've seen them talk about a potential FIP cure many times before. It's a huge group of over a million members so your friend will get in quick and probably get information quickly. Best wishes for Bento.
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Jan 7, 2024 00:48
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Talorat posted:A friend of mine's cat has FIP and isn't looking too good. The Vet says there is some sort of blackmarket cure for it? Is this a real thing or a scam? Does anyone have any experience with it? Hi, I recently fostered a cat with FIP and brought him from the brink of death to a totally healthy, active cat. AMA. To answer one about the cure being blackmarket, the drug isn't technically illegal itself, it is simply unlicensed in SOME countries (including the USA) due to the creator of the drug choosing not to license it for veterinary use, so it does not have FDA approval. The reasons why they don't want it being licensed are complicated, but from what I understand, it's because they are holding out on its possibility as a COVID-19 treatment and that would be far more lucrative than veterinary use. But I can confirm it absolutely works to fully cure - not just treat, but cure - FIP in cats. Rotten Red Rod fucked around with this message at 01:08 on Jan 7, 2024 |
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Jan 7, 2024 00:59
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Thank you all so much for your feedback! Great to hear that there’s hope! A huge improvement from what sounded like a death sentence earlier today.
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Jan 7, 2024 01:39
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Sure - let me know if you have any specific questions. I can't direct you to where to purchase it, partly because of law and partly because I wasn't the one obtaining it, but the FIP Facebook groups could be a resource for that.
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Jan 7, 2024 01:41
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Unfortunately, despite what I hope to god were my best efforts, Jet passed away on Friday. Shortly after this post, he started showing GI symptoms again. Vomiting, diarrhea, lethargy, bad mood. But he also stopped eating. Most of his time was spent either loafed up on the bed staring off into space, or hiding somewhere looking very sad. I tried all sorts of things to get him to eat, but he wouldn’t have any of it. Over the next couple days, he would lose a large amount of weight. He was also constantly in and out of the box, with frequent but very barely productive diarrhea, which would never look like normal stool should. He went to the vet again for his cardiac checkup and his heart and lungs looked great, so I figured he was just having some bad guts days. We got sent home with nausea meds and an appetite stimulant. They worked for that one night, and he had a little burst of energy and even got to eat some mashed up tuna and kibble. But the next morning, he was sulking and refused to eat again. I checked the litter box, and now his stool was dark and black. Internal hemorrhage. Somewhere between the stomach and the small intestine, blood digested by the large intestine. His mood had tanked, his behavior was abnormal, and although I’m not a vet nor do I speak cat it was clear he was in a heavy bout of illness, if not serious pain. He was so very light when I picked him up, and he entered his carrier without much of a fuss. The e-vet took a look at him. The car ride and exam room was giving him a rush of adrenaline-fueled energy, but even then she told me that he looked like a sad, sick cat. She said that everything they could do to try and help him had either already been tried and failed to improve his condition, or would have been drastic measures that were far more likely to put him in even more danger due to his heart condition. Feeding tubes, stimulants, etc. - none of them were any way to live a good life. Jet was actively wasting away, and there were no reasonable medical interventions left. I was offered a choice for that very moment, or an unknown number of days until a home visit. I chose to let him go before he suffered any more than he had to. As you can probably tell, I’m still not over it. It’ll be a long time until I am. I don’t have all my thoughts in order yet, but I figured the thread deserved to know what happened, so here I am reporting in. I could make all sorts of guesses to what happened, but in the end it doesn’t matter. Thank you all so much for the kind words you’ve given me and Jet over these many months and years, and we’ve appreciated each and every one of them.  Goodbye Jet. I hope you forgive me someday. And next we meet, you can yell at me all you want.
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Jan 7, 2024 02:31
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I never know what to say but I always feel such profound sadness about these. I'm so sorry and I wish that it was easier. It sounds like you did the right thing which must be so hard.
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Jan 7, 2024 02:47
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Same  I am so sorry Pollyanna. You bought Jet a lot of extra, quality time with how far you went to care for him.
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Jan 7, 2024 02:54
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Hey thread could use some advice. Tonight giving Glitch some headrubs and a scab has popped off and exposed this small wound. She's an indoor cat so I assume she's just gotten this from scratching herself, and it's the first time I've seen something like this on her.  I'll keep an eye on it incase it gets weepy and need to get to a vet, but what's the best way to disinfect? And sorry to read about Jet, Pollyanna, they looked sweet af
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Jan 7, 2024 11:50
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Get cat wound disinfectant spray, and lightly dab the wound with a warm damp cloth. I'd recommend a cone if she keeps reopening it, and don't hesitate to go to the vet for stitches if it's not healing or getting bigger. One of our fosters had the exact same looking wound on his body and it healed just fine doing that (I put a harness on him temporarily that covered it to keep him from scratching).
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Jan 7, 2024 15:51
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VelociBacon posted:Quill had this and the vet people were very much not concerned at all. Here is what hers looked like: Ok, your cat's looks a little worse, because of the sutures. My cat got glue on the outer layer. It's been two weeks, shes going to for a check in if this doesn't stop soon.
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Jan 8, 2024 16:21
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Having had them for about 9 months now, I absolutely love my cats. I love playing with them and cuddling them and building elaborate house wide wall pathways for them and taking them outside to hunt bugs and just being around them. I even enjoy when they break things or get places they aren't supposed to be, keeps life interesting. But I don't think purring will ever not be slightly aggravating to me. I just can't stand it. Even worse is when they try to lick me or my clothing. I know I'm probably distressing them or something by rejecting their attention but I really just want them to stop touching my so much with their unpleasant physical communication strategies. I know that's just how they do, I just wish they wouldn't... same way I wish dogs would stop trying to lick my face I guess, hah. GlyphGryph fucked around with this message at 04:26 on Jan 10, 2024 |
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Jan 10, 2024 04:16
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