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None of that sounds bad. Give them time, they're just figuring out each other's boundries.
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Jan 12, 2024 04:49
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khy posted:1st incident : When they went nose-to-nose and old cat hissed and slapped at new cat. Just one little swat and then they both got freaked out when my mom got startled and yelled. That sounds totally fine. If they felt comfortable to even go nose to nose that's pretty encouraging imo, even if it ended with a little swat They gotta communicate each other's boundaries and stuff.
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Jan 12, 2024 04:58
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Definitely don't have your mom around screaming at their normal interactions lol. I think when they have those kinds of moments it's important to remain calm and emphasize with your body and verbal language that everything is fine and normal.
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Jan 12, 2024 05:02
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xzzy posted:But the general advice is you can train them to play softer, when it gets too rough just do the disengage and walk away thing. It's hard and they probably will give you the saddest eyes in all of history but it does work. My strategy was to hiss at them and pull away and just sort of give them the side eye for a bit from a distance the moment they went even a little bit too far, which has resulted one of who loves playing but won't play with hands at all and one of whom will play with hands but only very gently. Even as kittens my hand never ended up looking like that, though, that looks like letting them play too aggressively for too long territory. (although for mine they were mostly foot cats, which I've made clear isn't acceptable at all) Now the only times they get me is when they misjudge an attempt to jump on my lap and catch me while slipping.
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Jan 12, 2024 07:33
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How can I stop my idiot cat from loudly yowling for food at 4am? He's always been almost insane about food, and he and his sister were overweight, so about a year ago I started strictly portioning their food. Previously they had free access to food. While it has not resulted in any visible weight loss, he is still extremely obsessed with food. When he started getting hungry he would do this thing where he'd wait outside whatever room I was in and as soon as I stepped out he'd dash across my apartment to his food dish, and when I didn't follow him and feed him he'd dash back to me, and then back to the food dish. It's honestly pretty annoying as he's a naturally larger cat, and overweight, so he's quite loud when running around. A few months ago he added another tactic to his arsenal - he now sits outside my bedroom at night and starts yowling/meowing very loudly starting around 4am. It's loud enough that it sometimes wakes me up, and makes it difficult to get back to sleep. I actually went out and bought an automatic feeder when this started, in the hopes that after a while he'd stop associating me with feeding. It hasn't worked... Is there anything else I can do? I love him to death, but it's very irritating.
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Jan 12, 2024 14:15
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Annath posted:How can I stop my idiot cat from loudly yowling for food at 4am? I think the only solution is to teach him that yowling outside your door doesn't work. You'll just have to ignore him until he gives up. I don't know of any other methods.
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Jan 12, 2024 14:33
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You can try making the official feeding time later. At least in my experience cats internal clocks are off by about 30-45 minutes so if I set breakfast at 7am, they'll start pestering me a little after 6. So maybe if you shift everything an hour later (assuming that's possible for you) it'll help. But don't expect any miracles as they also seem to tell time based on sunrise/sunset because our cats tend to beg for dinner earlier and earlier as the fall season progresses.
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Jan 12, 2024 14:38
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Deteriorata posted:I think the only solution is to teach him that yowling outside your door doesn't work. You'll just have to ignore him until he gives up. I don't know of any other methods. Ugh... It's been like 4 months lol. xzzy posted:You can try making the official feeding time later. At least in my experience cats internal clocks are off by about 30-45 minutes so if I set breakfast at 7am, they'll start pestering me a little after 6. So maybe if you shift everything an hour later (assuming that's possible for you) it'll help. The feeder is scheduled for 7am and 4pm. I can certainly change that, but like I said he starts yelling at like 4am lol.
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Jan 12, 2024 14:46
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I had basically the same problem, set the auto feeder to dump out three meals a day at 6 / 12 / 6, and she’s left us alone since. We don’t keep the door closed, though, and just made it clear that no amount of meowing / poking / chest-sitting was going to get her food to pop faster
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Jan 12, 2024 15:06
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Oh well. I guess I'll keep waiting. I'm hesitant to add an additional meal, because like I said even cutting back their food neither cat (I have 2) has lost weight. The other cat doesn't display the same behavior at all, despite them being raised from kittens together. Of course she does her own thing where she'll wander to another room that I'm not in, then start rapidly mewing until I call her to remind her where I am and she runs back. The only doors are on the one bedroom and the bathroom, so she's usually within visual distance of me and just looking in the wrong direction  She's adorable but dumb as a rock.
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Jan 12, 2024 15:12
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You can probably get the same overall caloric intake with multiple smaller portions, if the feeder can be managed that way. That usually helps a ton because cats in the wild eat small meals throughout the day, being carnivores of small critters that are basically a few mouthfuls a piece. Also, if the girl cat runs around meowing into the void and you start paying attention to her when before you weren't even if you were sharing the space together, that's mission accomplished
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Jan 12, 2024 15:35
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 Since people indicated the interactions weren't really negative, I brought the two cats into the same room. They aren't approaching each other right now but they ARE coexisting. No overtly uncomfortable body language either from what I can tell. Hooray?
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Jan 12, 2024 18:51
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Annath posted:How can I stop my idiot cat from loudly yowling for food at 4am? I had a roommate with a cat that was this food obsessed, and the answer is... There is none. She eventually just locked him in the bathroom at night when he started begging so she at least could sleep. Sorry. Some cats just won't be trained. Taking off what someone else said though, maybe make one of the feeding times in the middle of the night? Then she's not hungry all night and won't be as obsessive about anticipating her next meal. Rotten Red Rod fucked around with this message at 19:05 on Jan 12, 2024 |
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Jan 12, 2024 19:02
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khy posted:
Hooray, IMO. Cats need time to get used to each other and they take it at their own pace and in their own way. You aren’t in control of how it goes, you’re just the referee - blow the whistle if blood is drawn or if one of the cats begins to truly suffer. Otherwise, this is their game.
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Jan 12, 2024 19:34
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khy posted:
Yep, this is best case scenario. If two cats TRULY can't get along (which I HAVE had happen), they will not tolerate even being in the same space as the other without a fight. If they can ignore each other's presence, even temporarily, you're on the path to a healthy relationship. Don't intervene in anything that looks like a standoff or fight unless they ACTUALLY are hurting each other. Fights happen because of fear. What you're seeing when they clash isn't that - it's negotiating pre-established territory and boundaries, in cat language. Don't stop them from "speaking".
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Jan 12, 2024 20:30
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They spent about 3 hours in one another's company before new cat decided she was done with it. I was on the bed with new cat cuddling, old cat jumped up and new cat hissed and did a small lunge towards the old cat while hissing. I figured new cat was overly stressed so I picked her up to put her back downstairs where she could destress and she decided to bite and scratch my hand (Bite didn't break the skin but the scratch did). Still, 3 hours together without any confrontations seemed good all around so hopefully a week or two of this and the cats will be comfortable enough around one another that I can open up the house to both of them again.
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Jan 12, 2024 21:29
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Annath posted:How can I stop my idiot cat from loudly yowling for food at 4am? I get special satiety food from the vet for my boy, its supposed to help him loose weight while still feeling full. He's been losing weight pretty steadily except for the times I've gone on vacation and my cat sitting parents decided to feed him more. But automatic feeder, with a smaller meal in the morning and a bigger meal at night, helped keep him from waking me up in the middle of the night.Now I normally wake up to him curled up next to my leg being adorable, it's great.
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Jan 12, 2024 22:13
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Only issue with these ideas is that I have 2 cats, and it's just not feasible for me to have them eating different foods or on different schedules. My apartment is literally not big enough to keep them in separate rooms when I'm not around, and Fat Boy already tries to eat Fat Girl's food if she doesn't eat it fast enough. I'm honestly not sure how the male is fat-but-not-gaining while the girl is fat-and-not-losing given it don't always catch him before he eats half her food too.
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Jan 12, 2024 22:30
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Annath posted:Only issue with these ideas is that I have 2 cats, and it's just not feasible for me to have them eating different foods or on different schedules. Microchip feeder? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oqtmf5r-PN8
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Jan 13, 2024 00:06
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Rotten Red Rod posted:Microchip feeder? I love my cats put I am absolutely not buying them each a $200 feeder + cost of the chips (I'm assuming the ID chips they already have are different).
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Jan 13, 2024 00:50
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No, it uses your existing microchips. Or you can use a collar with an RFID chip that comes with it.
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Jan 13, 2024 00:56
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Annath posted:I love my cats put I am absolutely not buying them each a $200 feeder + cost of the chips (I'm assuming the ID chips they already have are different). I said that once, too. Then we had a cat on a ludicrously expensive perscription food and welp, they've definitely saved enough money in saved food to pay for themseves since.
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Jan 13, 2024 01:38
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About 6 months ago, we got two ~18-month-old brother tuxedo cats. Our existing old lady did mind the previous two males she lived with, but they were both more her speed - slow and left her alone. These new boys really want to play with her, but they just end up pissing her off, to the point where my wife and I feel like they're harassing her. We make it a point to fuss at them and squirt them with the water bottle whenever we can catch them chasing her, but it doesn't seem to be doing much. We've also tried a few Feliway diffusers throughout the house, which also didn't seem to have much impact. What else could we try? On a separate note, is there a tool that will help you compare pet insurance policies?
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Jan 13, 2024 01:53
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They don't think they're harassing her, they think they're playing with her. The thing that teaches them not to do that is her reactions, not your intervening - you're probably confusing them more than anything. That said, they're less likely to learn their lesson from her since they're adults and not kittens. You're going to just have to let it happen and hope it improves, although setting aside a space for the older lady cat that they aren't allowed in may give her some peace now and again. Your best bet is as they age and calm down they'll stop having quite so much energy to burn on her. I've tried Feliway and I find it to be completely ineffective and way too expensive. And even if it did work, it's supposed to treat stress - your new cats aren't stressed, they're PLAYFUL. Which is totally normal.
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Jan 13, 2024 02:00
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Annath posted:Ugh... It's been like 4 months lol. Giving my cats smaller portions more frequently solved most of my problems. The feeders drop foot at 6/12/6. The only time they bug me now is for the wet food I give them around 10-11. That starts around 9.
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Jan 13, 2024 06:15
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does anyone else have cats that, instead of greeting you, both run to the nearest scratcher and start going to town while making pointed eye contact it has very "the boss is here look busy" vibes
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Jan 13, 2024 06:40
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rofl no that’s incredible. Ours will suddenly decide it’s time for a scratch-off and sprint over to the tree together, but they don’t act like they’re trying to impress us at the same time.
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Jan 13, 2024 06:44
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cash crab posted:does anyone else have cats that, instead of greeting you, both run to the nearest scratcher and start going to town while making pointed eye contact Two of my cats get up and stretch when they see me, and one always scratches a bit at the carpet whenever she stretches, but they don't make eye contact.
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Jan 13, 2024 08:23
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cash crab posted:does anyone else have cats that, instead of greeting you, both run to the nearest scratcher and start going to town while making pointed eye contact One of our cats, the one who seems to get overstimulated the most often, will sometimes do something like this, usually by running to a rug and then kind of rolling/scratching/grabbing the rug a little bit? I suspect she's getting overexcited at people coming home (and the possibility that she might be fed, since the cats get dinner when we get home from work) and expressing that physically.
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Jan 13, 2024 10:24
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cash crab posted:does anyone else have cats that, instead of greeting you, both run to the nearest scratcher and start going to town while making pointed eye contact Ferdie does this. Very pointed eye contact. We just say "oooh so angy".
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Jan 13, 2024 14:34
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cash crab posted:does anyone else have cats that, instead of greeting you, both run to the nearest scratcher and start going to town while making pointed eye contact Both of mine do this. One runs to a particular ratty armchair that I literally only keep because I'm worried he'll start tearing up the couch otherwise. The other one prefers to grab my slipper, roll over onto her side, and start doing the "gut the prey with rear claws" thing. Both stare intently at me while doing so, and bolt as soon as I walk towards them.
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Jan 13, 2024 14:53
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Isn't it just them being excited and having an outlet for the excitement they're feeling?
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Jan 13, 2024 15:27
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yeah both of ours sometimes do this as well, and enjoy getting ruffled up and petted while they're up scratching re: clicker training a negative - i haven't had to teach our cats 'no' because for some reason the older one has always considered the kitchen counter a no-go area, and taught his younger brother not to go up there by slapping or biting him when he tried. but this fella's clicker strats generally worked really well for me, and he has one for teaching them 'no': https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kStdUi2ebo
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Jan 13, 2024 16:00
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Rotten Red Rod posted:They don't think they're harassing her, they think they're playing with her. The thing that teaches them not to do that is her reactions, not your intervening - you're probably confusing them more than anything. That said, they're less likely to learn their lesson from her since they're adults and not kittens. You're going to just have to let it happen and hope it improves, although setting aside a space for the older lady cat that they aren't allowed in may give her some peace now and again. Your best bet is as they age and calm down they'll stop having quite so much energy to burn on her. Ok. That's pretty much what I figured. Thanks.
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Jan 13, 2024 20:50
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VelociBacon posted:Isn't it just them being excited and having an outlet for the excitement they're feeling? 🥺 oh. that is nice.
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Jan 14, 2024 03:11
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Our very needy cat wakes up around 3-4pm and gets extremely demanding for attention, which makes getting work done pretty difficult. We don't really have scheduled play with him, so I'm thinking I should start doing it, but I'm not sure what the best time for it is in order to get him to wait patiently until we're finished work. Should we play with him after work so that he knows that he'll only get play time when we're away from our desks? Should we do it right when he wakes up to placate him until his dinner time?
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Jan 15, 2024 20:17
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Anyone here ever make an outdoor cat shelter? Winter’s going to get real cold soon, and I’ve seen cats every once in a while in my area (no idea if they’re feral or just indoor-outdoor). I figured building a shelter could be a good way to take my mind off of things. That said, just because I build a shelter doesn’t mean a cat will magically appear and make use it. I actually don’t know how common feral, stray, or indoor-outdoor cats are in my area. I saw a few prior to winter, but they’re always super elusive. Worth a shot, right?
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Jan 15, 2024 21:21
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I've made one. Instructions using a plastic tote, styrofoam cooler, and straw can be found all over the web. It's better to set it up even if it doesn't get used rather than feeling nervous about community cats every time it gets cold, in my opinion.
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Jan 15, 2024 22:15
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You may want to consider getting a camera for outside looking at the area where you might consider putting a shelter to help you make a better decision as to where to put it. I never knew how many outdoor cats (and other animals) cut through my backyard until I set up a camera in the back (originally just to see if people were going in to my backyard). That eventually led me to set up an auto-refilling water fountain for them drink from (which saw a lot of use when it was incredibly hot), and the occasional outdoor cat shelter for when it gets colder. Nobody ever really overstayed their welcome, they just sort of knew that if they really needed water and couldn't find it they knew at least one consistent place that was safe (there are also roaming dogs, but none of them can get over the fence). It's also kind of fun seeing on the camera who drops by (like multiple birds just hanging out and splashing around, or the odd possum, or lizard bros chilling nearby). One of my cats was originally a kitten that got abandoned or something in the backyard who I never would have found if it wasn't for the camera (she had a sibling with her that unfortunately didn't make it, and no mom cat around ever came around looking for them). HamburgerTownUSA fucked around with this message at 22:40 on Jan 15, 2024 |
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Jan 15, 2024 22:37
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Due to weather my order (had some both wet and dry food) from chewy has been sitting on a Fedex truck for like, a week straight presumably freezing to -10F every night. If the cans burst that's obvious, but if they're only slightly bulged or whatnot will that still be safe? Or should I try to get chewy to replace them either way? Supposedly arriving tomorrow but they've said that like 4 days in a row.
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Jan 16, 2024 02:23
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