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Pyramid schema posted:I have to clarify that they already ran all the tests they could on her blood and the fluid they extracted. They contacted me on Friday with the results of those tests and my doctor recommended I set up an appointment for an ultrasound procedure as soon as I could to see if they could find something conclusive like a tumor. The Wed appointment is not at the same clinic I took her to on Thursday but it was with a recommended doctor so this was the earliest I could get. I'm not sure how to check for a fever in a cat so do you have some recommendations? Oh, sorry, I thought you were still waiting for the test results. It's good that they've ruled out a lot of the infectious stuff already. That lowers the chance that she'll spike a fever, but just in case, to check for fever, just watch for panting or excessive lethargy. One other thing you can do is to use a measuring tape to measure around her swollen abdomen each day. That way, you will know (instead of having to guess) if there's a change. That info would also be useful for the vet to know when you take her in for her ultrasound, and in the meantime, it might ease your mind a bit more.
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Nov 25, 2019 05:21
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four 3 month old kittens. we're up to 5 cans of food a day (2x morning, 2x evening, 1x night) but they still seem hongry? they free feed with the meat-only dry kibble in multiple locations in the house, but holy poo poo i cannot set foot in the kitchen without two or three curious noses going up my pant legs. this is a temp foster situation and they'll be gone early december. they were supposed to be gone last week but the spay/neuter vet is booked solid till next week. i'm fine. this is fine.
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Nov 25, 2019 21:45
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The more you feed them in response to their inquiries, the more they learn that asking for food gets them food.
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Nov 26, 2019 00:15
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Luneshot posted:The more you feed them in response to their inquiries, the more they learn that asking for food gets them food. This. Cats are very good at figuring out what actions get them what they want, and they are very bad at getting the message when that no longer works.
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Nov 26, 2019 00:20
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Cythereal posted:This. Cats are very good at figuring out what actions get them what they want, and they are very bad at getting the message when that no longer works. More like they are really sensitive to intermittent reinforcement. If it works 1 out of 200 times, it still works and they'll keep trying. You have to be perfectly consistent, and that's hard to do.
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Nov 26, 2019 00:49
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okay but when they were down to just 3.5 cans a day they always acted really hungry, cleaning plates, digging for cans in the recycling bin, and they were much more aggressive with each other.
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Nov 26, 2019 01:08
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PHIZ KALIFA posted:okay but when they were down to just 3.5 cans a day they always acted really hungry, cleaning plates, digging for cans in the recycling bin, and they were much more aggressive with each other. If they've got dry food available all the time in addition to the wet food feedings, then they are not really hungry. They just prefer the wet food and they like the attention they get from you when you give it to them. Kittens are wonderful fuzzy mad manipulative self-centered tiny scam artists.
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Nov 26, 2019 03:44
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A while back I posted about a stray kitten my mom dragged in from the front yard that had a little hitch in its giddy-up. I was home at the beginning of November to visit and got to meet it. This is Hope. Sorry for the blurriness, I had to crawl under the table where she was hanging out. Shes got wobbly cat syndrome (cerebellar hypoplasia) so while she walks with a bit of trouble shes expected to live as long as a normal cat. My mom is getting her spayed soon, but I wont be home to witness that wiggle paired with a cone of shame. She also has the wobble when shes concentrating on something but once she settles it stops.  She gets around the house pretty well on her own and if theres anything she needs (not the best at using the litterbox cleanly) she doesn't hesitate to meow for help. She even tries to play with my moms other cats but they are older and disinterested. If I didnt already have 2 cats myself I'd of stolen her, she was a good couch buddy, but shes better off with my mom who is more than happy to dote over her. Blackchamber fucked around with this message at 13:47 on Nov 26, 2019 |
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Nov 26, 2019 13:30
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Aww what a sweet kitty, good on your mom!
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Nov 26, 2019 13:39
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Somebody got a taste of freedom over the weekend because of an improperly locked screen door, and now he just sits by the door waiting for his next opportunity, I'd let him out but he's a gigantic wuss that's already missing an eye an I don't want the barn cats or a raccoon or something beating him up.
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Nov 26, 2019 17:27
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Shuffle has a little bump on his head, about an inch from his ear. Does this look like a cyst or something I should be more concerned about? He's acting perfectly normal.  
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Nov 26, 2019 22:53
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So update, I took him to the vet and it was just a cyst that they drained. I figured it was, but he was due for his annual visit anyway. A few years ago, he'd gotten outside and I borrowed a humane trap from a friend to try to catch him. Shuffle didn't fall for the trap, but one of the two pseudo-strays who are fed by the neighbor got caught. I ran out because I heard frantic meowing, and saw that her male friend AND Shuffle were climbing over and clawing at the trap as if they were trying to figure out how to rescue her. It was adorable and sad. I'd even see them laying next to each other outside. We eventually caught Shuffle; I sat outside listening to some YouTube videos that I normally listened to, and he heard the voice and came meandering over to listen and we were able to grab him. Since then, Shuffle has cried whenever he saw the male stray outside. Today when I brought Shuffle outside in his carrier, the male stray came running over. They were so excited to see each other, they were nose-to-nose sniffing and rubbing against the carrier, against my hand, etc. It was so cute to see how they were so comfortable with each other. The vet found a subtle heart murmur, which he's never had in his previous visits. He's only six years old and very healthy and playful and breathing fine, even when he's asleep.
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Nov 27, 2019 18:57
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LifeLynx posted:The vet found a subtle heart murmur, which he's never had in his previous visits. He's only six years old and very healthy and playful and breathing fine, even when he's asleep. Definitely something to keep an eye on but it could be transient (can sometimes be brought on by stress, the heart contracts too strongly and you get a whooshing sound in some of the valves...Rexie gets that). The vet probably recommended a follow-up soon, but just in case, I'd say go back in to get that rechecked in the near future.
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Nov 27, 2019 19:30
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BaronVonVaderham posted:Definitely something to keep an eye on but it could be transient (can sometimes be brought on by stress, the heart contracts too strongly and you get a whooshing sound in some of the valves...Rexie gets that). The vet probably recommended a follow-up soon, but just in case, I'd say go back in to get that rechecked in the near future. I will say he was super stressed because there was a ton of traffic on the way there... but yes, I'm going back in 4-6 weeks to see what's up. I don't know exactly how to keep an eye on it, just make sure he's doing normal cat stuff including eating, drinking, using the litterbox, and breathing?
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Nov 27, 2019 19:58
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With cats "keeping an eye on them" means just watching to see if their normal habits or personality changes at all, and going to the vet if you suspect anything. They're VERY good at hiding pain. I learned that pretty recently with a cat that had chronic (and then terminal) intestinal issues 
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Nov 27, 2019 20:20
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I've got a cat introduction question. Two weeks ago I adopted an awesome kitten. Did a bunch of reading (thanks thread page 1!) before bringing her home in regards to introducing her to my other 1.5 year old cat. I set up a spare room with a litter box, food, water, scratch post, toys, etc. I also set up a Feliway multicat diffuser about a week before as well. Brought the kitten home and immediately put her in the safe room. My resident cat was extremely not cool with this, as expected, and wouldn't go by the safe room door for a couple days, and then would growl/hiss when she got closer. Totally normal there so no big deal. I kept the kitten completely separate and switched their bedding daily, swapped their rooms, etc. Things were going awesome until my resident cat broke into the safe room and backed the kitten into a corner. I got in there and removed resident cat pretty quickly and nobody got hurt or anything, but it understandably spooked the kitten and caused her to hiss a bit when resident cat came on the other side of the door. That lasted a day or two. Since then they've both been super chill, swat each other under the door and resident cat looks for the kitten and sits outside the safe room pretty much all the time (except when she is screaming for food or play). I got this big mesh baby gate thing that attaches to a door and started allowing some visual peeks at each other while eating. This is going very well and there's no hissing or growling. I usually spend this time on the same side as resident cat and give her treats and pets and she seems quite chill. I think I'm at the point where I can introduce them without the barrier but I'm kinda scared that resident cat will chase down / go after the kitten again. I could always give it a few more days or a week or something but I feel like they're both as calm as they can be when they are face to face. Thoughts? Give it some more time or give it a shot? I just don't want to have an issue where either one of them decides to go "nope hate that bitch" for good.
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Nov 27, 2019 20:27
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Some amount of fighting and hissing is inevitable, especially since one's a kitten and one's older. With that pairing especially, thwacking the kitten is a perfectly normal cat way to tell a kitten what is and is not acceptable. Kittens are assholes, and the older cat is going to not take its poo poo well. Be concerned if there's blood, but otherwise some hissing and fighting is a normal fact of life for having two cats.
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Nov 27, 2019 20:33
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It's pretty unlikely the older cat would actually hurt the kitten. Have you seen kittens play? They're REALLY rough with each other, but they love it and don't generally hurt each other. You're probably good to let them meet if you don't see any signs of actual aggression. Expect some hissing and swatting as they figure each other out and work out boundaries. But unless your older cat actually has severe traumatic issues, it's probably not going to do anything to actually hurt the kitten. My 2 older cats will often wrestle the kitten to the ground by his throat and he can't get enough of it.
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Nov 27, 2019 20:35
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Ok cool. When I adopted the resident cat I lived with my ex who had a 5 year old cat so I'm familiar with the process and how that worked out, but just don't want to traumatize one or both. Most likely an unfounded fear I suppose. I swapped their rooms a bit ago and both are now sleeping in each others sleeping spots. When they both wake up I think I'll play the poo poo out of them and maybe try when they're tired and calm.
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Nov 27, 2019 20:38
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LifeLynx posted:I will say he was super stressed because there was a ton of traffic on the way there... but yes, I'm going back in 4-6 weeks to see what's up. I don't know exactly how to keep an eye on it, just make sure he's doing normal cat stuff including eating, drinking, using the litterbox, and breathing? Yeah what Rotten Red Rod said, just making sure their behavior doesn't suddenly change is all you can really do. The only way to really monitor this condition is getting rechecked at the vet, which you have scheduled so you're doing all the right things.
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Nov 27, 2019 21:12
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Yep, let them try it for a bit, and expect some hissing and chasing and fussing. The one thing you could do, just for extra peace of mind against any already unlikely potential accidents, is to trim both cats' claws beforehand, to help ensure that a swat doesn't inadvertently catch an eye or some such.
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Nov 27, 2019 21:21
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Cat is driving me bonkers with his poops. He still poops on the floor right next to the litter box every single time. I've tried different litter, adding a third litter box, different type of box (1 closed, 2 open), moving the boxes around, and yet he still continues to poo poo right next to them. I even move his poop into them. I'm at a loss, here.
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Nov 27, 2019 21:23
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Have you read the thread title?
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Nov 28, 2019 01:24
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Update: it went fairly well. The kitten seems to be the hissy bitchy one and basically hid under my coffee table while resident cat sniffed and took swats at her. There was no chasing or brawling so I'll call that a success. I'm going to keep feeding and playing with them on opposite sides of the barrier for a while longer but add in more of these supervised visits. Thanks all!
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Nov 28, 2019 14:38
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SixPabst posted:Update: it went fairly well. The kitten seems to be the hissy bitchy one and basically hid under my coffee table while resident cat sniffed and took swats at her. There was no chasing or brawling so I'll call that a success. I'm going to keep feeding and playing with them on opposite sides of the barrier for a while longer but add in more of these supervised visits. Thanks all! Chasing and brawling are actually good, as those are a form of play. The best thing you can do is leave them alone for a while, and let them work out their own relationship. There may be some hissing and swatting, but that's how cats communicate. As long as they keep their claws in, everything is cool. Intervene if either of them draws blood.
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Nov 28, 2019 16:22
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Blackchamber posted:A while back I posted about a stray kitten my mom dragged in from the front yard that had a little hitch in its giddy-up. I was home at the beginning of November to visit and got to meet it. This is Hope. I LOVE this wobbly kitty!
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Nov 28, 2019 16:29
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SixPabst posted:Update: it went fairly well. The kitten seems to be the hissy bitchy one and basically hid under my coffee table while resident cat sniffed and took swats at her. There was no chasing or brawling so I'll call that a success. I'm going to keep feeding and playing with them on opposite sides of the barrier for a while longer but add in more of these supervised visits. Thanks all! I would just let them be together at this point. While it's perfectly fine to introduce them slowly, it seems like you're being a bit overcautious here imo. Like you will know when there is a serious issue because one of your cats will literally sound like it's been taken over by an alien, although it can be a little harder with a kitten who can't be as loud.
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Nov 28, 2019 16:56
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SixPabst posted:Update: it went fairly well. The kitten seems to be the hissy bitchy one and basically hid under my coffee table while resident cat sniffed and took swats at her. There was no chasing or brawling so I'll call that a success. I'm going to keep feeding and playing with them on opposite sides of the barrier for a while longer but add in more of these supervised visits. Thanks all! That sound exactly like my cat meeting the new kitten. Lots of hissy and puff from the kitten, lots of sniffing and batting from the older cat. They get on really well now, I fretted a lot at the beginning because MacReady kept pinning the kitten down and bowling him around like a rubber ball, but then I figured out they were both enjoying themselves and MacReady was just teaching little Momo manners when he pinned him, like a little kitten time-out  Cat play can look super rough, but if there's no blood and only a little hissy (and the chasing/pouncing/pinning is reciprocal) that's just how they have fun. It's also pretty normal for an older cat to take on a mild disciplinary role with a kitten, and put them in their place when they get too hyper kitten-y all over the place, either by batting or pinning them. You will know if they're really fighting; there will be growling and screaming and viscious biting and no one will be showing their belly to anyone. As I write this post, Momo, who is now a year old, just grabbed MacReady by the neck, backflipped him into the ground, and is now chewing on his ear while MacReady grumbles and pretends he's not enjoying it. How the tables have turned. small ghost fucked around with this message at 18:14 on Nov 28, 2019 |
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Nov 28, 2019 18:10
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Werong Bustope posted:As I write this post, Momo, who is now a year old, just grabbed MacReady by the neck, backflipped him into the ground, and is now chewing on his ear while MacReady grumbles and pretends he's not enjoying it. How the tables have turned. Yeah this is pretty much our kitten playing with our older cats, only there's no ounce of pretense that he isn't totally loving it.
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Nov 28, 2019 22:01
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my older cat, who is generally a grump, has been asking about the missing cat and has started cleaning the kittens like the missing cat used to.
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Nov 29, 2019 03:41
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Nov 29, 2019 05:20
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is Thanksgiving over in the us yet, because I got some Christmas peace n joy
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Nov 29, 2019 05:54
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TMMadman posted:Like you will know when there is a serious issue because one of your cats will literally sound like it's been taken over by an alien, although it can be a little harder with a kitten who can't be as loud. I mean, the kitten flops on her side and SCREAMS when the older one tries to sniff her and investigate. It gets better after a few minutes though.
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Nov 29, 2019 18:04
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SixPabst posted:I mean, the kitten flops on her side and SCREAMS when the older one tries to sniff her and investigate. It gets better after a few minutes though. Heh, yeah that's typical cat. The scream changes when it's actually serious though.
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Nov 29, 2019 18:25
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SixPabst posted:Update: it went fairly well. The kitten seems to be the hissy bitchy one and basically hid under my coffee table while resident cat sniffed and took swats at her. There was no chasing or brawling so I'll call that a success. I'm going to keep feeding and playing with them on opposite sides of the barrier for a while longer but add in more of these supervised visits. Thanks all! We also introduced a kitten to our older cat and it went much the same as you describe. The older one sulked for the first few days, then got more curious, did some hissing and swatting and a bit of growling early on, and now they're fine. Not friends, but they coexist well enough. She won't tolerate the younger one trying to cuddle up, but they follow each other around, eat out of the same bowl and play together. In the early days it can be useful to have a thick towel ready to break up a fight if it gets serious, but we never had to do that.
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Nov 29, 2019 19:06
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Should I be worried about Black Poops? They've just been put on a medication cuz one of them has a sniffle, could that be it? I've also been changing foods.
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Nov 29, 2019 20:12
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PHIZ KALIFA posted:Should I be worried about Black Poops? They've just been put on a medication cuz one of them has a sniffle, could that be it? I've also been changing foods. Black poops can sometimes mean bloody poops, so it could be something to worry about. I would absolutely call your vet - anything out of the ordinary like that after starting a new medication is something to pay strict attention to. Might be nothing, but then again, might not be nothing. It might just be the change of food - maybe even it probably is. But it's worth a phone call.
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Nov 30, 2019 13:00
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Any tips on getting cats used to hands? We adopted a mum and daughter that were found under some decking about a year ago. Mum is about 3 by now we think, baby is maybe 18 months at most. They were considered feral or semi-feral, but they're never aggressive at all, even if we corner them to try to take them to the vets, they're just not up for being handled or 'trapped'. It took a long time for them to feel comfortable not just hiding under a sofa bed when we first got them, but they're much more settled now. They tend to stick to sleeping and chilling in one room (which they sometimes change up) which is a little odd, but they're not averse to wandering around the rest of the house. We keep them as indoor cats (mostly because of the difficulty in getting them to the vets for neutering and vaccines at the moment, we don't want to put them through a bunch of trauma and set their confidence back even further). We've recently been playing with string and slowly introducing gentle strokes on the top of their heads (after letting them sniff hands first) and they're getting there to an extent, just VERY slowly. I guess I'm just wondering if all of this seems okay? I've only had one cat in the past and he was the exact opposite - unbelievably cuddly and happy to get himself up in your personal space for fuss - I just wanna make sure we're doing okay by these two! 
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Nov 30, 2019 13:35
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Bribe them with whatever they find most delicious! But yes it's basically just go very slowly and don't try to force it and hopefully they'll warm up and realise Not All Hands Are Bad. Mind you I've had one of mine for four years now and she still only understands that in very specific scenarios and is super suspicious at all times.
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Nov 30, 2019 15:36
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Pellisworth posted:To a cat brain, anything new or different is very suspicious. Give it a week and he should eventually decide the new setup is okay. Or not, because cat?? It was this. He no longer regards this litter box as something to fear and is using it. drat walnut brain
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Nov 30, 2019 16:45
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