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#1
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At wit's end with cat
This has been like a 2 year oddessy. We have a very loving, adorable
black cat. Likes to be a lap cat. Takes very good care of his sister (we adopted litter-mates) and is overall a great cat. There's one problem. He's REALLY needy at night and he's made our nights hell for the last two years. From the start we've had a closed-door policy. Mostly because one of our first cats would jump on us at 3am and given that my wife and I both have insomnia that won't work. No problem with that cat. Door closed, he goes and finds something else to do. Opus, however, begin incessantly scratching on the door and waking us up. So we searched around places like this and our first attempt at getting our nights back was to open the door and let him in. The other cat had grown up enough that he was happy to be at the foot of the bed or in the closet. So we thought we had a solution. Opus, however, insisted on biting our fingers to play and in my case (since I use a CPAP for apnea that blows out air) batting at my head and scratching. So we sought help again. Someone said get a squirt bottle. After like 3 weeks of squirting him and him not getting the hint we closed the door again and tried the vacuum cleaner trick. Well, that worked for all of 2 weeks until one day I found out from my wife that she was waking up up to 5 times a night to plug the vacuum in. Then someone at a pet store told us that baby gates were the way to go. They can't be scratched and they're a barrier. So we bought two and tried that. Now we're in an arms race with Opus. We put up a baby gate, he jumps it. We put up two staggered, he jumps between them like an acrobat. We STACK them going almost all the way to the ceiling and he jumps on the bannister instead. We put a large laundry basket on the bannister and he jumps into the laudry basket and slides onto the floor. Last night my wife woke up twice because now, in spite of putting a towl over the top of the baby gates, lest he scale them, he managed to jump over the 6 feet worth of baby gates. In other words the situation has gone from ridiculous to he's getting locked in a closet soon. I don't want to lock him in a closet at night. I don't want to give him away. But this is getting ridiculous. He's been disturbing our already poor sleep for 2 years now. And he won't quit. We've tried virtually everything you're supposed to try. We didn't even list half of the things, like the "no scratch" spray on the door, stuff like that. We don't know what to do. We're at a point now where we have to barricade ourselves in our own bedroom with 6 feet of baby gates, a towel draped over it and a giant hamper guarding the flank with the bannister and he's still finding a way over. I have to give him credit for tenacity, but it's getting really really really really really old. We just want decent sleep. We already have sleep problems without Opus making it worse. And at this point it's gone from a nuisance to "please tell us, Opus, why we shouldn't find a new home for you?" Please help give any advice possible. We don't want to give up on him, but we need sleep. Preston |
#2
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Preston Crawford wrote:
This has been like a 2 year oddessy. We have a very loving, adorable black cat. Likes to be a lap cat. Takes very good care of his sister (we adopted litter-mates) and is overall a great cat. There's one problem. He's REALLY needy at night and he's made our nights hell for the last two years. From the start we've had a closed-door policy. Mostly because one of our first cats would jump on us at 3am and given that my wife and I both have insomnia that won't work. No problem with that cat. Door closed, he goes and finds something else to do. Opus, however, begin incessantly scratching on the door and waking us up. So we searched around places like this and our first attempt at getting our nights back was to open the door and let him in. The other cat had grown up enough that he was happy to be at the foot of the bed or in the closet. So we thought we had a solution. Opus, however, insisted on biting our fingers to play and in my case (since I use a CPAP for apnea that blows out air) batting at my head and scratching. So we sought help again. Someone said get a squirt bottle. After like 3 weeks of squirting him and him not getting the hint we closed the door again and tried the vacuum cleaner trick. Well, that worked for all of 2 weeks until one day I found out from my wife that she was waking up up to 5 times a night to plug the vacuum in. Then someone at a pet store told us that baby gates were the way to go. They can't be scratched and they're a barrier. So we bought two and tried that. Now we're in an arms race with Opus. We put up a baby gate, he jumps it. We put up two staggered, he jumps between them like an acrobat. We STACK them going almost all the way to the ceiling and he jumps on the bannister instead. We put a large laundry basket on the bannister and he jumps into the laudry basket and slides onto the floor. Last night my wife woke up twice because now, in spite of putting a towl over the top of the baby gates, lest he scale them, he managed to jump over the 6 feet worth of baby gates. In other words the situation has gone from ridiculous to he's getting locked in a closet soon. I don't want to lock him in a closet at night. I don't want to give him away. But this is getting ridiculous. He's been disturbing our already poor sleep for 2 years now. And he won't quit. We've tried virtually everything you're supposed to try. We didn't even list half of the things, like the "no scratch" spray on the door, stuff like that. We don't know what to do. We're at a point now where we have to barricade ourselves in our own bedroom with 6 feet of baby gates, a towel draped over it and a giant hamper guarding the flank with the bannister and he's still finding a way over. I have to give him credit for tenacity, but it's getting really really really really really old. We just want decent sleep. We already have sleep problems without Opus making it worse. And at this point it's gone from a nuisance to "please tell us, Opus, why we shouldn't find a new home for you?" Please help give any advice possible. We don't want to give up on him, but we need sleep. Preston Do you have another room you can lock him in? One further from your bedroom? A kitchen perhaps? Does he always have access to food? Maybe a radio left on would soothe him or cover up the noises for you! Has he always been like this or just more recently? -- Badger Badger Badger |
#3
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exactly what i was going to say.
hi, i'm new here, but a cat lover from way back. isn't there another bedroom, or a bathroom, far enough from your own bedroom, that you can enclose this cat in? supply a litter tray, some bedding, water, etc. and lock him in there. i'd go mad without sleep. from a different perspective, why is this cat so lively at night? is he not stimulated enough during the day? is there a way to tire him more? most cats seem happy to sleep about 18 hours a day! if you see him sleeping during the day, wake him up to play! BC wrote: Do you have another room you can lock him in? One further from your bedroom? A kitchen perhaps? Does he always have access to food? Maybe a radio left on would soothe him or cover up the noises for you! Has he always been like this or just more recently? |
#4
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On 2005-07-15, BC wrote:
Please help give any advice possible. We don't want to give up on him, but we need sleep. Preston Do you have another room you can lock him in? One further from your bedroom? A kitchen perhaps? Does he always have access to food? Maybe a radio left on would soothe him or cover up the noises for you! Has he always been like this or just more recently? He's always been like this. He's just a real people-cat. He follows us around a lot. He lays on our chests or laps while we watch TV. His sister (who isn't as bad) hangs out with me when I'm on the computer. She's beside me right now. So it's just *in* them, to be really need for people. Which is sorta cute if you're awake, not if you're asleep. Preston |
#5
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On 2005-07-16, jils wrote:
exactly what i was going to say. hi, i'm new here, but a cat lover from way back. isn't there another bedroom, or a bathroom, far enough from your own bedroom, that you can enclose this cat in? supply a litter tray, some bedding, water, etc. and lock him in there. Not really. We have a two bedroom apartment. My fear is if we lock him in the only other bedroom (which happens to be right next to our bedroom and contains the litter box) that... #1 - We'd have to move the litter box #2 - We'd have to lock ALL the cats in that room. So the best case scenario would be that we lock one or all the cats in said room and that they don't scratch on the wall or mew loudly or something. i'd go mad without sleep. I think we are going mad without sleep. We already both have insomnia. Which may be why we've put up with it for so long. But now we're getting that a little under control, so this is a real buzz kill. from a different perspective, why is this cat so lively at night? He's like this all the time. Not lively so much as he just wants to be in our precense whenever we're around. I don't know why. When we adopted him, that's what the sheet said about his personality. "He'll hang out and watch you do dishes", stuff like that. We just didn't realize how far that went. is he not stimulated enough during the day? is there a way to tire him more? most cats seem happy to sleep about 18 hours a day! if you see him sleeping during the day, wake him up to play! BC wrote: Do you have another room you can lock him in? One further from your bedroom? A kitchen perhaps? Does he always have access to food? Maybe a radio left on would soothe him or cover up the noises for you! Has he always been like this or just more recently? Yeah, I don't see it. We both work, so we'd have to be playing with him every waking our of our off time. Which isn't much. It's not an energy thing. It's a determination to be with his people thing. Preston |
#6
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you can't shut him in the bathroom?
you can't buy another litter tray? when you're at work, is he indoors? if so, he surely sleeps all that time. indoors in an apartment would be pretty boring! get some of those toys that you can put kibble inside, that would give him more to do, work for his food. does he have a climbing/scratching pole for exercise & entertainment? it seems a shame to make him stay away, when he's so loyal and needs you so much. Preston Crawford wrote: Not really. We have a two bedroom apartment. My fear is if we lock him in the only other bedroom (which happens to be right next to our bedroom and contains the litter box) that... #1 - We'd have to move the litter box #2 - We'd have to lock ALL the cats in that room. Yeah, I don't see it. We both work, so we'd have to be playing with him every waking our of our off time. Which isn't much. It's not an energy thing. It's a determination to be with his people thing. Preston |
#7
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On 2005-07-16, jils wrote:
you can't shut him in the bathroom? you can't buy another litter tray? We can do both of those things, but we're in a two bedroom apartment. There's only so much space for all the cat houses, litter boxen, etc. We live pretty spartan as it is. Setting up yet another cat domicile would not make this easier. when you're at work, is he indoors? if so, he surely sleeps all that time. indoors in an apartment would be pretty boring! get some of those toys that you can put kibble inside, that would give him more to do, work for his food. He has plenty of toys. And he's indoors because we live in the city and that's what the shelter people wanted. They don't like having to re-adopt out lost kitties. does he have a climbing/scratching pole for exercise & entertainment? Yes. it seems a shame to make him stay away, when he's so loyal and needs you so much. Well, he is loyal and we love him. But if we don't sleep, he doesn't eat (nor do we). I mean, we have to sleep, when did that become optional because you have a pet? Preston |
#8
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as a last resort, have you considered asking a vet for sleeping pills?
if you could break the cycle, say for a couple of weeks, his behaviour might change. and you'd be rested and more able to cope! Preston Crawford wrote: Well, he is loyal and we love him. But if we don't sleep, he doesn't eat (nor do we). I mean, we have to sleep, when did that become optional because you have a pet? Preston |
#9
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There is a simple answer to your problem. If you live in a two-story house, then you can keep your cat on the opposite floor and keep in a different room with the door closed. Keep food, water, and a litterpan in the room and this should end your problems. I hope that I've helped you and please let me know if it all works out. Preston Crawford wrote: This has been like a 2 year oddessy. We have a very loving, adorable black cat. Likes to be a lap cat. Takes very good care of his sister (we adopted litter-mates) and is overall a great cat. There's one problem. He's REALLY needy at night and he's made our nights hell for the last two years. From the start we've had a closed-door policy. Mostly because one of our first cats would jump on us at 3am and given that my wife and I both have insomnia that won't work. No problem with that cat. Door closed, he goes and finds something else to do. Opus, however, begin incessantly scratching on the door and waking us up. So we searched around places like this and our first attempt at getting our nights back was to open the door and let him in. The other cat had grown up enough that he was happy to be at the foot of the bed or in the closet. So we thought we had a solution. Opus, however, insisted on biting our fingers to play and in my case (since I use a CPAP for apnea that blows out air) batting at my head and scratching. So we sought help again. Someone said get a squirt bottle. After like 3 weeks of squirting him and him not getting the hint we closed the door again and tried the vacuum cleaner trick. Well, that worked for all of 2 weeks until one day I found out from my wife that she was waking up up to 5 times a night to plug the vacuum in. Then someone at a pet store told us that baby gates were the way to go. They can't be scratched and they're a barrier. So we bought two and tried that. Now we're in an arms race with Opus. We put up a baby gate, he jumps it. We put up two staggered, he jumps between them like an acrobat. We STACK them going almost all the way to the ceiling and he jumps on the bannister instead. We put a large laundry basket on the bannister and he jumps into the laudry basket and slides onto the floor. Last night my wife woke up twice because now, in spite of putting a towl over the top of the baby gates, lest he scale them, he managed to jump over the 6 feet worth of baby gates. In other words the situation has gone from ridiculous to he's getting locked in a closet soon. I don't want to lock him in a closet at night. I don't want to give him away. But this is getting ridiculous. He's been disturbing our already poor sleep for 2 years now. And he won't quit. We've tried virtually everything you're supposed to try. We didn't even list half of the things, like the "no scratch" spray on the door, stuff like that. We don't know what to do. We're at a point now where we have to barricade ourselves in our own bedroom with 6 feet of baby gates, a towel draped over it and a giant hamper guarding the flank with the bannister and he's still finding a way over. I have to give him credit for tenacity, but it's getting really really really really really old. We just want decent sleep. We already have sleep problems without Opus making it worse. And at this point it's gone from a nuisance to "please tell us, Opus, why we shouldn't find a new home for you?" Please help give any advice possible. We don't want to give up on him, but we need sleep. Preston -- "There is no snooze button on a hungry cat." Anonymous Visit thelifeofcats.blogspot.com Visit periodcornerjustforgirls.blogspot.com Neither blog has a www. |
#10
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On Fri, 15 Jul 2005 09:03:44 -0500, Preston Crawford
wrote: This has been like a 2 year oddessy. We have a very loving, adorable black cat. Likes to be a lap cat. Takes very good care of his sister (we adopted litter-mates) and is overall a great cat. There's one problem. He's REALLY needy at night and he's made our nights hell for the last two years. Is it food he wants? Mine wakes up every morning with the sound of the birds outside and wants to be fed. He will make as much noise as possible until I wake up and feed him, including running over my legs and knocking stuff off my night stand. As soon as I feed him, though, he and I can both go back to sleep. I've thought about buying an auto feeder for him so he won't feel the need to rely on me for food in the morning. He has endless kibble, it's the canned breakfast he wants. Habits are hard to break. pepsi |
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