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Cat Forum / Rescue / November 2003

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What Can I Do To Help This Cat?

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Luvskats00 - 13 Nov 2003 18:38 GMT
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 luvskats00@aol.com would be so appreciated. Thank you.
Aimee S - 13 Nov 2003 22:45 GMT
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
Luvskats00 - 13 Nov 2003 23:08 GMT
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.
zuzu22@webtv.net - 14 Nov 2003 04:23 GMT
> I recently adopted a 5 year old
> dsh/declawed/spayed female who was taken
[quoted text clipped - 13 lines]
> 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.
[quoted text clipped - 7 lines]
> 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
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
> 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
[quoted text clipped - 15 lines]
> 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
[quoted text clipped - 20 lines]
> here or email at luvskats00@aol.com
> 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

                                   
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