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#1
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What Can I Do To Help This Cat?
I recently adopted a 5 year old dsh/declawed/spayed female who was taken from
her home when the owner threatened to dump her in the street. She was put into a waiting shelter for one month before I adopted her. I've had 2-cat combos twice before with little problem...now, I have big problems. My resident cat is a 10 lb. dsh/neutered/declawed alpha male who lost his companion 3 months ago. He's claimed every part of the apartment since then. The new girl was an only cat and is a sweetheart. I brought her into my bedroom (w/a cage) and introduced the two. It went ok until the second day when my boy jumped on her. I kept them apart since then. She has exclusive use of my bedroom. Problem 1: She has peed on the bed..the sheet..my quilts 3x so far and deficated on my quilt. I cleaned the mattress as best as I could with a diluted bleach solution, but she peed again and again. While I was cleaning (when she threw up - problem 2) she peed on the bed again. I don't know what to do. Currently there's the litterbox that was always there AND the litterbox that is in her cage. She used the box twice for peeing but is not consistant. After peeing in the box, she deficated next to the box. I put large garbage bags over where she peed on the bed. So...she peed on the garbage bag. Shall I keep her caged? How can I stop her from going on my bed. Can I teach her to use the litterbox exclusively? Problem 2: She doesn't keep food down. I feed her a little more than a teaspoon of food at a time. When I feed her at breakfast and lunch, she vomits by dinnertime. Originally, she was given Fancy Feast. I changed it to Friskies (regular, not shredded or chunks), but she threw that up too. All food given to her had fish or turkey as the first ingredient, not by-products or water. I had her at the vets for 3 days so they could monitor this situation. She was x-rayed and declared fine. Supposedly, she DID keep food down at the vet's office AND at the month-long stay at the shelter. They fed her Friskies. She had 5 teeth extracted before I got her and one tooth extracted after I got her. Dry food isn't an option. Problem 3: My resident cat cries from the other side of the door. I haven't slept more than an hour an a time since the new cat arrived. (two weeks ago - except for the 3 days she was at the vets). The inital arrangement was that she was kept in the cage (in my bedroom) while my resident cat checked her out. They met nose-to-nose (through the cage) and there was no hissing. So, I let her out of the cage and he kept his distance for a short time. Pretty soon, she hissed at/batted him..so he did the same. Then he started jumping on her (a habit he had with his former companion..she didn't like it but she was twice the size of this new cat and defended herself). I felt that made her ill so I banished him from the bedroom. I visit her in the bedroom often (even though I can't sleep on the bed). She appears to be very affectionate and nuzzles me constantly. I make sure the resident cat gets plenty of lovin', too...but sleep has been out of the question. I placed over 15 calls to the vet who treated her, my regular vet, a pet columnist, three cat rescue faciities, two members of the rescue group who handled this adoption, and other pet people. Perhaps she was given away because she had these problems. Who knows? I ordered Feliway (to help the cats co-exist) but I don't know if that'll work. I don't know how to solve any of the above problems. Perhaps she isn't meant for a 2 cat household. It breaks my heart, but I am turning psychotic from lack of sleep. Any advice here or email at would be so appreciated. Thank you. |
#2
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Could you possibly keep her in a bathroom with a litter box, until she calms down? Maybe try putting her back on Fancy Feast for a while. Someone once told me to wipe her all over with a towel, and then put the towel with the other cat and do the same with the male cat, wipeing him with a towel and putting the towel with her. Just to get them used to each other's smell. Just my 2 cents, don't know if it will help any. I wish you the very best of luck!! Aimee |
#3
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Re..my cat with problems
Could you possibly keep her in a bathroom with a litter box, until she calms down? Maybe try putting her back on Fancy Feast for a while. Someone once told me to wipe her all over with a towel, and then put the towel with the other cat... No sense in putting her in the bathroom and introducing her to a new set of problems. The resident cat"s scent is already in the bedroom and she's had a week to get used to that. Also...she doesn't need to go by the door...the bedroom is large; the bathroom is a lot smaller and she'd be closer to the door (and to the cat on the other side of the door.) I tried the towel thing..and had brushed my cat and the new cat with the same brush about 15 times. No sense in feeding her Fancy feast..And have her throw up again? That doesn't make sense! Anyway...I was assured that she did NOT throw up while being caged at the vet for 3 days NOR being caged for one month at the shelter..both were high stress situations. If she's this way now...in the most relaxing part of the apartment, she'll be worse once the resident cat comes back in. My only choice is to keep her caged & force her to use the box in there. I think she's darling, but I'm battling between thinking I didn't give her enough time and thinking she is not going tolerate another cat and would do best in a one-cat home. |
#4
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I recently adopted a 5 year old dsh/declawed/spayed female who was taken from her home when the owner threatened to dump her in the street. She was put into a waiting shelter for one month before I adopted her. I've had 2-cat combos twice before with little problem...now, I have big problems. My resident cat is a 10 lb. dsh/neutered/declawed alpha male who lost his companion 3 months ago. He's claimed every part of the apartment since then. The new girl was an only cat and is a sweetheart. I brought her into my bedroom (w/a cage) and introduced the two. It went ok until the second day when my boy jumped on her. This was a mistake. This cat was just brought into a new home (stressful) from a shelter (stressful) and is with a strange person (stressful) and is then confronted by a strange cat when she has been an only cat up until this point (*very* stressful.) I kept them apart since then. She has exclusive use of my bedroom. It's good that you have separated them, but you need to understand that the damage has already been done and will take some time to undo, so the best thing you can do is be very patient and don't try to reintroduce her to your resident cat until you get her other issues resolved. Problem 1: She has peed on the bed..the sheet..my quilts 3x so far and deficated on my quilt. I cleaned the mattress as best as I could with a diluted bleach solution, but she peed again and again. Take her to a vet and have her checked for a UTI. She is clearly stressed and stress can cause UTIs. Until you do this, don't assume she has a behavior problem. While I was cleaning (when she threw up - problem 2) she peed on the bed again. I don't know what to do. Currently there's the litterbox that was always there AND the litterbox that is in her cage. She used the box twice for peeing but is not consistant. After peeing in the box, she deficated next to the box. I put large garbage bags over where she peed on the bed. So...she peed on the garbage bag. Plastic seems to be very attractive to cats for peeing on. Shall I keep her caged? For now I think this would be a good idea. Keep it partially covered by where her sleeping area is so she feels secure, and leave the introduction to the resident cat for later. How can I stop her from going on my bed. Get her to the vet first and see if this is a health issue. It sure sounds like it. Can I teach her to use the litterbox exclusively? Probably, but until you know if this is a medical or behavioral issue you can't formulate a plan. Problem 2: She doesn't keep food down. I feed her a little more than a teaspoon of food at a time. When I feed her at breakfast and lunch, she vomits by dinnertime. Originally, she was given Fancy Feast. I changed it to Friskies (regular, not shredded or chunks), but she threw that up too. All food given to her had fish or turkey as the first ingredient, not by-products or water. I had her at the vets for 3 days so they could monitor this situation. She was x-rayed and declared fine. Supposedly, she DID keep food down at the vet's office AND at the month-long stay at the shelter. They fed her Friskies. She had 5 teeth extracted before I got her and one tooth extracted after I got her. Dry food isn't an option. It sounds like this may be stress related, and considering what she's been through its not surprising. I would suggest you try a high quality canned food such as Wellness or Felidae and try it out in very small amounts. Try brushing her and loving her up for a few minutes to get her to relax just before you feed her and see if that helps. Once the Feliway comes (I hope you got a diffuser) plug it in close to where her cage is. If you got the spray, you can mist the sheet you use to partially cover her cage and mist her bedding at least once a day. Problem 3: My resident cat cries from the other side of the door. I haven't slept more than an hour an a time since the new cat arrived. (two weeks ago - except for the 3 days she was at the vets). The inital arrangement was that she was kept in the cage (in my bedroom) while my resident cat checked her out. They met nose-to-nose (through the cage) and there was no hissing. So, I let her out of the cage and he kept his distance for a short time. Pretty soon, she hissed at/batted him..so he did the same. Then he started jumping on her (a habit he had with his former companion..she didn't like it but she was twice the size of this new cat and defended herself). I felt that made her ill so I banished him from the bedroom. And there's your problem. You took away something that he has been used to for all of his life. This is unfair and upsetting to him and then he got punished for reacting appropriately. It also may cause resentment towards the new cat, which could cause problems and is the last thing the new cat needs to deal with. When bringing a new cat in it is extremely important to keep the routine the *resident cat* is used to, and fit the new cat into it. What you need to do is set up a litterbox, bed, water, etc. in the bathroom and put the new cat in there at night so your boy kitty can have the sleep time with you that he is used to. You can put her back in the cage in the morning and close off the bedroom for the day. I visit her in the bedroom often (even though I can't sleep on the bed). She appears to be very affectionate and nuzzles me constantly. I make sure the resident cat gets plenty of lovin', too...but sleep has been out of the question. I placed over 15 calls to the vet who treated her, my regular vet, a pet columnist, three cat rescue faciities, two members of the rescue group who handled this adoption, and other pet people. Perhaps she was given away because she had these problems. Who knows? I ordered Feliway (to help the cats co-exist) but I don't know if that'll work. I don't know how to solve any of the above problems. Perhaps she isn't meant for a 2 cat household. It breaks my heart, but I am turning psychotic from lack of sleep. Any advice here or email at would be so appreciated. Thank you. Again, getting her checked for a UTI is imperative. Beyond that, be patient, go SLOW and things will work out. Megan "The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing." -Edmund Burke Learn The TRUTH About Declawing http://www.stopdeclaw.com Zuzu's Cats Photo Album: http://www.PictureTrail.com/zuzu22 "Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way." - W.H. Murray |
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