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Cat Forum / Health and Behavior / March 2006Taking In Our 6th Stray Cat
Yes, dh and I may need to have our heads examined. We really do not have to have another cat. Especially having one boy who was dx 3 months ago with renal failure :-( It pushed us over the top though on Monday when "Whitey" was out in the rain and finally found some underbrush in the back of our yard. Thoughts were the cat slept in a drainage pipe adjacent to the woods at the back of our property, so needless to say, in rain needs to go elsewhere. Dragged out the Hav-a-hart late yesterday and dh was out of practice. Set the trap, Whitey went in at the wet food AND tuna, turned around and split. We couldn't leave the trap out over night because we would have ended up with oppusum instead. Set out 2 traps this a.m. One where we trapped it yesterday in our backyard (under the bird feeder of course) and the other on our front porch where the food is placed every morning. When I awoke, Whitey was already in the trap. Usual amount of ugly reaction on his part. Thankfully a very calm quiet ride to the vets. Left him there with instructions for checking him out. Called me about 45 minutes later to say that he was a SHE, about 3 years old and very sweet, but VERY scared AND declawed in the front (grrrrrrhhhh!). We've been feeding this stray since the end of November, but had no ideas about the claws. Also the cat is also spayed. The vet is wondering if perhaps the cat was "dumped" because it had been spraying??? I am praying that the cat was dumped because someone was just not interested in keeping her any longer. We already have 1 cat with spraying problems and is on Paxil for that :-( Vet called again 2 1/2 hours later saying the leukemia and FIV were negative. Besides vaccinations and de-worming, I asked them to "try" to bath her to rid her of some of the Georgia clay, but that evidently did not go over too well. Rather than sedate her just for the bath, we figure we'll skip it. Put some Advantage on her and ready for pick up in a couple of hours. So...do you all think Whitey is an appropriate name for a female cat? She has all white underneath and at the base of all 4 paws with tiger stripes all over her top. Is there a chance, (actually there has to be because I don't know what to do if not), that ONE female can co-habitate with FIVE males, TWO of whom are in a constant power struggle to be the leader? When I bring Whitey home I will set her up in our smallest spare bedroom. For some entertainment, she will have a beautiful window to view her old stomping grounds bird feeder and all. Knowing that she is scared, except for food and water what else can we do to comfort her and not make the situation worse? No way will we even consider introductions to the 5 gentlemen until she feels comfortable in her new environment. That hurdle we can tackle when the time comes. Just need some ideas on how to make her feel most comfortable, less frightened. Any suggestions? Thanks all in advance __ http://www.hoosierkitties.com Resource Links for You About Your Cat > Yes, dh and I may need to have our heads examined. We really do not > have to have another cat. Especially having one boy who was dx 3 months [quoted text clipped - 50 lines] > __ > http://www.hoosierkitties.com Resource Links for You About Your Cat Sounds to me like you've done everything you possibly can for "Whitey" (I'm not fond of that name, but then I don't have to live with it - I would suggest, if you're going with a descriptive name, Dazzle, Snowball, Snowy, Blanca, etc.) . The only thing I would add to the room is maybe a cardboard box to hide in. Hugs, CatNipped > Yes, dh and I may need to have our heads examined. We really do not > have to have another cat. Especially having one boy who was dx 3 months [quoted text clipped - 50 lines] > __ > http://www.hoosierkitties.com Resource Links for You About Your Cat Do you have a small radio that could play soft music? This might help and perhaps a couple of boxes to nest in. MLB > Is there a chance, (actually there has to be because I don't know what > to do if not), that ONE female can co-habitate with FIVE males, TWO of > whom are in a constant power struggle to be the leader? Absotively! One of my partners has 6 males and a female- they get along fine. I have 5 females and one male- it took awhile, but they get alone fine. Here're a few tips on introducing cats: http://maxshouse.com/introducing_cats.htm What about naming her Sugar? I think she will get along fine with the boys! The soft music idea is great! My kitties always relax to classical music! Just doze right off! She will probably hide under the bed. Some nice soft, gentle petting never hurt either! Good luck! > What about naming her Sugar? Sugar is a great name for a white female: http://maxshouse.com/Ours/sugar-5-12-05-4.jpg I think she will get along fine with the > boys! I think you're right. I don't think sex makes much of difference when all the cats are neutered. When there's no sexual competition or competition for food, they seem to develop their own little community. I think the cat hierarchy is more like a wheel- rather than like a ladder as with dogs. There's really no alpha cat- they just seem to time share the hub at the center of the wheel. lol The soft music idea is great! My kitties always relax to > classical music! Just doze right off! My cats are partial to Beliotz - "Requiem" in particular, probably because the soft kettle drums sounds like cats purring. She will probably hide under > the bed. Some nice soft, gentle petting never hurt either! ..or treats-- a lot of treats. Phil >> What about naming her Sugar? > > Sugar is a great name for a white female: > > http://maxshouse.com/Ours/sugar-5-12-05-4.jpg She is beautiful Phil she has a look at royalty > I think she will get along fine with the >> boys! [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > > Phil > >> What about naming her Sugar? > > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > She is beautiful Phil she has a look at royalty She is a knock out, isn't she? She does think she's royalty- a Princess. I happened to think she's right! Can you believe she was dumped at a shelter and returned twice- a declawed biter. Took some time but now she's a sweetheart. >> >> What about naming her Sugar? >> > [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > Can you believe she was dumped at a shelter and returned twice- a declawed > biter. Took some time but now she's a sweetheart. I am glad she found someone who cared. You can tell from the picture you love her dearly One word...WOW! What a gorgeous kitty! __ http://www.hoosierkitties.com Resource Links for You About Your Cat > One word...WOW! What a gorgeous kitty! Thanks- She knows it, too! lol. http://maxshouse.com/Ours/Suggie-Oggie.jpg > __ > http://www.hoosierkitties.com Resource Links for You About Your Cat >> What about naming her Sugar? > > Sugar is a great name for a white female: > > http://maxshouse.com/Ours/sugar-5-12-05-4.jpg Except for the blue eyes, she looks just like my Demi. http://www.possibleplaces.com/CatNipped/Demi5/PrettyDemi.jpg  SignatureHugs, CatNipped See all my masters at: http://www.PossiblePlaces.com/CatNipped/ > I think she will get along fine with the >> boys! [quoted text clipped - 19 lines] > > Phil Phil She is beautiful! How old is she? > What about naming her Sugar? Sugar is a great name for a white female: http://maxshouse.com/Ours/sugar-5-12-05-4.jpg I think she will get along fine with the > boys! I think you're right. I don't think sex makes much of difference when all the cats are neutered. When there's no sexual competition or competition for food, they seem to develop their own little community. I think the cat hierarchy is more like a wheel- rather than like a ladder as with dogs. There's really no alpha cat- they just seem to time share the hub at the center of the wheel. lol The soft music idea is great! My kitties always relax to > Phil > > She is beautiful! How old is she? Eight years old- but she still acts like a kitten. I'm convinced her behavioral problems were caused by her previous owners because since she's been with me she's been a real sweetheart. > http://maxshouse.com/Ours/sugar-5-12-05-4.jpg > >> What about naming her Sugar? > > [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > http://www.possibleplaces.com/CatNipped/Demi5/PrettyDemi.jpg Demi's eyes look bluer than Sugar's: http://maxshouse.com/Ours/Suggie-Oggie.jpg >> >> What about naming her Sugar? >> > [quoted text clipped - 9 lines] > > http://maxshouse.com/Ours/Suggie-Oggie.jpg That's just a weird quirk of the camera flash - her eyes are really yellow-gold: http://www.possibleplaces.com/CatNipped/Demi13/tnDCP_2060.jpg SignatureHugs, CatNipped See all my masters at: http://www.PossiblePlaces.com/CatNipped/ I think the cat > hierarchy is more like a wheel- rather than like a ladder as with dogs. > There's really no alpha cat- they just seem to time share the hub at the > center of the wheel. lol/// I definitely have an alpha cat in this house - he rules it with an iron paw and he dishes out discipline as he sees fit. Of course... it has no effect on the girls, who are like "WHAT-EVer!" when he tries to tell them he's boss! ;o) Interestingly enough, I do have a hierarchy within the house, and I love watching my kitten interact with the older cats. She knows exactly how far she can go with each of them, and what each one will tolerate before she gets walloped by an annoyed paw. Helen M > I think the cat > > hierarchy is more like a wheel- rather than like a ladder as with dogs. [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > far she can go with each of them, and what each one will tolerate before > she gets walloped by an annoyed paw. Hiya Helen, I love to watch how differently the cats in the shelter formed their little community from my feral colonies. I can't really say there're any true alpha cats. They just seem to time share the center seat. lol Still working with FS Grampia? Phil > Hiya Helen, ned flanders wanna be > Still working with FS Grampia? like you give a rip! where's your wife at man...omg! "honey ill be in there in a min" > Phil On Sat 18 Mar 2006 12:28:59a, Miami Jones wrote in rec.pets.cats.health+behav (news:1142659739.294222.142680 @e56g2000cwe.googlegroups.com): >> Still working with FS Grampia? > > like you give a rip! Read up. The cats Helen works with are rare. Of course Phil cares. http://www.bigcats.org/swc/ SignatureCheryl > Hiya Helen, > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > > Still working with FS Grampia? I'm not working with F.S.Grampia in the field at the moment - I'm in the process of starting a new project. We're looking into something to do with skull morphometrics next year. I'm currently on feral trapping mode as spring is on its way! The one thing I find fascinating about my house crew, is the fact they all have their defined "spots" and time share a favourite bed or favoured spot. For example, in the morning Pandora is in her spotted bed on the sofa in the morning sun. In the afternoon, Robbie has the bed and the afternoon sun. Cleo has her bed under my bed in the bedroom, and no other cat shares it. Tiger has his bed on the bookshelf and no one is allowed to use it, but the bed next to it is used by everyone else at different times - kind of like a comunal bed. And each cat is fed in a different spot in the kitchen, and if I try to swap them around and feed them at soemone elses spot, they leave that dish and wait in their special place. There are definite dynamics within the household. Helen M > > Hiya Helen, > > [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > process of starting a new project. We're looking into something to do > with skull morphometrics next year. The African Wildcat seems to be facing the same threat of extinction through hybridization as the Scottish Wildcat. Its very sad. What hurts the most is that I just don't see how it can be prevented other than by the impossibility of neutering every domestic and feral cat on the continent or fencing in a huge sanctuary. I'm currently on feral trapping mode > as spring is on its way! Its getting harder and harder for me to release the cats after neutering. I try to convince myself that they're happier in their colony. I haven't recovered from last kitten season. Last year's kits are now a year old and even harder to home. And now another kitten season is right around the corner. > The one thing I find fascinating about my house crew, is the fact they > all have their defined "spots" and time share a favourite bed or [quoted text clipped - 11 lines] > > Helen M I bought one of those pyramid beds- Three of my ladies started using it so I bought another one and then another so each cat would have her own. But Jadeomine and Chatter didn't want their own bed. Noooooo, they want whichever bed Titi is sleeping in. lol Phil > > What about naming her Sugar? > > Sugar is a great name for a white female: > > http://maxshouse.com/Ours/sugar-5-12-05-4.jpg/// Wasn't Sugar your lass with the pee-ing problem because some a$$hole declawed her and then threw her away when she developed "inappropriate behaviour"? She's gorgeous! Helen M > > > What about naming her Sugar? > > [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > > She's gorgeous! ...and a sweetheart, too. She was returned to another shelter twice. She had all sorts of problems when I adopted her- she was clearly abused. The only reason the other shelter didn't kill her after the second return was because she's beautiful. The personality that has emerged in the last few years is even more beautiful than her looks. I don't believe there is such a thing as a naturally 'bad' or evil cat- just bad or evil owners. Phil >Yes, dh and I may need to have our heads examined. We really do not >have to have another cat. Especially having one boy who was dx 3 months [quoted text clipped - 50 lines] >__ >http://www.hoosierkitties.com Resource Links for You About Your Cat Good for you for taking in this stray. For awhile, we had *7* males and *1* female. Heh. Our female was not that happy, but she basically made herself Princess and it her right to hiss at the boys if she so chose. I'm sure "Whitey" will find some place in the pecking order that will work. Best of luck to you! Ginger-lyn Home Pages: http://www.moonsummer.com http://www.angelfire.com/folk/glsummer (homepage & cats) http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.com/~summer/index.htm (genealogy) http://www.movieanimals.bravehost.com/ (The Violence Against Animals in Movies Website) Just wanted to say that you are terrific to take this girl in. Gail > Yes, dh and I may need to have our heads examined. We really do not > have to have another cat. Especially having one boy who was dx 3 months [quoted text clipped - 50 lines] > __ > http://www.hoosierkitties.com Resource Links for You About Your Cat > Yes, dh and I may need to have our heads examined. We really do not > have to have another cat. Yep, I think you "have to have" another cat! > So...do you all think Whitey is an appropriate name for a female cat? I think Whitey is okay, but I read it as "Whitney." I kinda liked Whitney. You get to pick whatever name you want, she's your new baby! > Is there a chance, (actually there has to be because I don't know what > to do if not), that ONE female can co-habitate with FIVE males, TWO of > whom are in a constant power struggle to be the leader? The most issues we've had were between two boys. I don't think the sex matters all that much, I think she'll be fine. That's great of you to help that poor cat. She probably wouldn't have lasted too long out there, being declawed. Rhonda >> Yes, dh and I may need to have our heads examined. We really do not >> have to have another cat. [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] > lasted too long out there, being declawed. > Rhonda Name her anything you feel like. Blessings on you all for having mercy and caring for those in need. I have one suggestion: either keep this window you mention closed entirely or open just a tiny bit for air circulation if needed. I still feel bad about this: back in early 80's, I had a feral male cat in my apt. and the room he was in shortly after we got him had a tiny window about 6 feet off the floor (a bedroom). Some time while I was watching a noisy football game in l.r. nearby, he actually jumped up and broke through the screen, escaping through the bars on outside of window......never to be seen again. Since then, I have never left windows entirely open anywhere in home unless I am in the room. When I leave room, window gets closed except for opening much smaller than a cat head (few inches). Talk about guilt. > I still feel > bad about this: back in early 80's, I had a feral male cat in my [quoted text clipped - 7 lines] > except for opening much smaller than a cat head (few inches). > Talk about guilt. Aww, don't feel guilty. It was not expected, and certainly not intentional. But I understand. I've had screens pop out, and now my windows aren't opened at all except for when a guard that I found that fits in the window is in. And, like you, only if I'm in the room. I had the reverse, weird thing happen when I first bought my house. My bedroom window (1 level up from ground level) was open and sometime during the middle of the night I was woken up by the sound of shreaking cats. A stray or a neighbors cat was hanging on the screen, and it had half pulled out, and my cats had apparently run from the room. I even got scratched trying to pull the screen back in! For a while I didn't know if one of my two cats had fallen out, and searched the house until both were found. Since then, the bedroom windows are never opened. SignatureCheryl DNR, please don't feel bad. Thanks for the suggestion. Unfortunately due to my horrible allergies, we rarely open our windows. Living here in Georgia, mid-March and we already had our air conditioning on last week :-( Every once in awhile on a beautiful day some open windows are a really great treat for the kitties. My dh taught me to always check the screen first thing after opening a window and we are for the most part in the same room. Thankfully after just having been retested, I am NOT allergic to cats :-) We have 6 stray/feral cats and only 1 is a female. When we got 5 & 6 at the same time she went ballistic and started spraying but after isolating her in one room for awhile and visiting several hours a day, she rejoined the family and is getting along well with the kittens. We have 1 male who bullies everybody but the kittens have brought him down several pegs and protect the female from him but drawing his attention. Personally I think several females would have a harder time integrating than a single female with several males. Best of luck!!! <snip> > When I bring Whitey home I will set her up in our smallest spare > bedroom. For some entertainment, she will have a beautiful [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > her feel most comfortable, less frightened. Any suggestions? > Thanks all in advance Bless you for taking her in because she surely needs you. Best wishes, and your approach sounds great. You have lots of good advice here. SignatureCheryl Here we are day two with our new addition :-) First thing dd did was change Whitey to Snowy. Thank you for all the suggestions. I liked Blanca, but with RockY, MickeY, BlacIE, TiggY, dh and I agreed to keep harmony in the family's names :-) The room I have Snowy set up in has a trundle bed. To give Snowy a place to "hide out" when I brought her home from the vet, I just took her carrier and all and placed her in a corner of the room. The bed is on one side of her and the wall is on the other. Just steps out of the carrier are her food (the same dry food she was eating outdoors), water bowl and then her litterbox. She used the litterbox twice during the night, but did not touch her food :-( This a.m. I put down some wet food, right outside the door of the carrier. Went back 20 minutes later and it had not been touched. Returned a little over an hour later and she had finally begun pecking at it, so at least that was a relief. Snowy is very very scared. I can go into the room and sweet talk her into allowing me to get within a foot of her crate, although this a.m. when I went in, my initial greeting were a growl and a hiss. Dh steps in the room and Snowy growls big time at him. It is hurting his feelings, but I keep telling him that she saw him setting the trap so she is entitled. Understandably she is also very, very tired. She looks at me through half open eyes and then finally gives in, closes her eyes and lays down her head. Definitely not the always alert kitty we saw roaming around outside. I at least take comfort in the fact that after the growl and or hiss, she is comfortable enough to close her eyes to sleep. As a funny aside, when the boys used to see her outside, they would get a little annoyed as I am sure most cats do. Mickey though knew where her food bowl was on our front porch. From the windows in the front of the house, when Snowy was around, Mickey would run back and forth between all of the windows trying to get a good look at her. Boy was hee was very interested in her! Last night poor Mickey kept peering out the window looking for her in vain. He is the only cat who so far has figured out that there is another cat in the house, he just does not know who it is :-) __ http://www.hoosierkitties.com Resource Links for You About Your Cat Well, I wish I could say things are going well. Dh is at the Urgent Care Center right now having his bitten hand looked at. Beginning Friday night, the cat began allowing him to get near him, actually coming out of her carrier, rubbing up against him, purring and allowing him to pet her. Yesterday things were going along the same. He goes in and checks on her every hour or so. He sits on the floor and waits for her to approach him. She began rubbing up against him and purring, make a fuss, allowing him to scratch under her chin ... all the same stuff as the night previous. Then CHOMP! We washed the hand well, put anti-bacterial ointment and hoped for the best. When he awoke this a.m. his finger is all swollen and red extending up into his hand... I went into the room late afternoon oh say an hour or two after this happened and sat on the floor and read a book for 25 minutes. She totally ignored me. Trying the same this a.m. and I received the same reaction...no reaction... Gosh, maybe she was trying to see what kind of reaction your husband would have? Strange. I hope he is ok, please let us know. Maybe she just needs more space right now. This has to be very traumatic for her. Thanks Buddy for your concern. Dh was glad he went to see a Dr. The swelling just kept getting worse this a.m. and he developed a fever. Dr. prescribed 10 days antibiotic and of course gave dh a tetanus shot. Snowy on the other hand is very lovey dovey! Like night and day...When we enter her room she is now talking to us and greets us by coming directly up to us, rubbing up against us, holding her neck up for scratching, she is even rolling over for her belly to be rubbed!!! I would never have believed all this without seeing it with my own eyes...we'll have to begin thinking about how to expand her territory while limiting the exposure to the 5 boys. When we move on to that, life is going to be REAL interesting. I hope to post some pics of her tomorrow. She is a real beauty with some extremely interesting patterns of stripes and spots! So good to hear that she is acting more "normal"! What a releif for you! My advice would be to not move too fast - enjoy this stage for a while! Cats don't like change. Give her some time the way things are now. She is probably sorry about biting Dh and trying to tell you that. Trust is everything at this point. Looking forward to pictures! Well finally have a couple of pictures of Snowy http://www.hoosierkitties.com/boys/snowy.htm She is doing well, spending most of her day sleeping on top of the bed, but of course underneath the covers! Last night she did a short exploration of our second floor and made her way back to "her room". Two nights ago after we said good night to her and went to bed she began meowing. I ended up sleeping in her room and she was fine the rest of the night. She slept at the foot of the bed, waking me up twice for some lovin's :-) >From here on in, my daughter happily volunteered to sleep with Snowy. Dh and I were hanging out with Snowy tonight when one of our boys, Blackie snuck in the room. He is pretty easy going and gets along with everyone except our special needs cat. We were pleasantly surprised to see that Snowy was not too phased by him. Blackie approached slowly to get a sniff and Snowy only replied with a little hissing. Thanksfully NO raised paws! Blackie was a prefect gentleman, but if Snowy had raised a paw, Blackie would have struck back. This weekend we'll gather the 5 boys upstairs in two of the bedrooms to get some more exploration time in for her. Especially downstairs (only bedrooms upstairs where Snowy is now) where we spend most of our waking hours. Just our luck, tonight, a brand new stray who I have never seen before, showed up meowing at our backdoor. One of the opussums scared it off before I could think about what to do...I swear we either have "sucker" written on our foreheads or they are out there taking numbers :-) Dh says no more cats. He said no after number 3, he said no after number 4, he said no after number 5...now we have number 6 and he has said no more cats...we shall see... __ http://www.hoosierkitties.com Resource Links for You About Your Cat Thank you for the update!! I am so happy she is doing well. Gail > Well finally have a couple of pictures of Snowy > http://www.hoosierkitties.com/boys/snowy.htm [quoted text clipped - 35 lines] > __ > http://www.hoosierkitties.com Resource Links for You About Your Cat > Well finally have a couple of pictures of Snowy > http://www.hoosierkitties.com/boys/snowy.htm She is just lovely. And the way she is looking at you! She seems to really appreciate being taken in. > Two nights ago after we said good night to her and went to bed she > began meowing. I ended up sleeping in her room and she was fine the > rest of the night. She slept at the foot of the bed, waking me up twice > for some lovin's :-) That is just too sweet! > This weekend we'll gather the 5 boys upstairs in two of the bedrooms to > get some more exploration time in for her. Especially downstairs (only > bedrooms upstairs where Snowy is now) where we spend most of our waking > hours. With our last arrival, we kept him in a separated area for a couple of weeks, then started bringing the other cats in one at a time. It was interesting to watch his reaction to each one and theirs to him. Our oldest, friendliest cat walked over and licked him on the head on the first meeting. Now Abernathy always presents his head to him like "okay, you're supposed to lick me now" and usually he does. There were still some squabbles when he finally came out of the room, but nothing terrible. I think it helped that he knew who they were and vice versa. Good luck with your new guy. Rhonda > Just our luck, tonight, a brand new stray who I have never seen before, > showed up meowing at our backdoor. The neighbourhood cats obviously told them which door to meow at! Lesley Slave of the Fabulous Furballs |
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