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Delaney Donelson | 7 years ago
How Will I Know When My Adult Cats Are Ready To Be Unsupervised? I Recently…

How will i know when my adult cats are ready to be unsupervised? I recently adopted an 8 year old male who was previously bonded with another female (they adopted her and i couldnt let him stay in the shelter alone), and i already had a 6 year old female. Louie seems pretty easy going about the whole thing but Mia still seems skiddish. They only hiss every once and awhile and its usually started by her, im doing all i can to keep him in his own quarters but its very obvious he wants the freedom. It has been 5 days since i adopted him and i am allowing him to roam under supervision. How will i know when its okay to let him out permanently?
I just had to share pictures of my cute babies, 1st is Fat Louie(weighing in at a hefty 22lbs) and 2nd is my beautiful Mia.

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  1. Cheyenne M

    I’ve had this happen with lots of cats before, we always took in strays. Cats are a bit different then dogs so honestly the two will work it out. They’ll either learn to get along or just avoid each other on their own. You could leave them unsupervised anytime and it’ll be fine.

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Pawbly | 7 years ago
I’ve Had A Kitten For Almost 2 Months And Have Adopted A Friends Older Cat…

I’ve had a kitten for almost 2 months and have adopted a friends older cat. My kitten tries to be friendly but the adult cat hisses and tries to attack. I have put them in separate rooms with the doors between them slightly open and each has their own food, water and litter box. Should they get along better over time? I feel sorry for the older cat because she seems stressed out and won’t leave her hiding spot, even though the kitten is being friendly.

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  1. Sarah

    Just like with anything else, the will take time. Giving them each their own space is a great start. A perch and a play tree might be a good idea to look into for both cats. The older cat may just need more time to adjust. Best of luck and congrats on your new cats!

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Pawbly | 8 years ago
On Friday, My Husband Stepped On Our Male Cat’s Paw And He Let Out A…

On Friday, my husband stepped on our male cat’s paw and he let out a yelp. Our female cat, violently attacked him and we were only able to stop the fight by locking her out of the room. Saturday, the male cat snuck his way into the room she was being held in and she violently attacked again. Today we have been switching them in and out of rooms to keep them apart. She has been sniffing where he has been excessively as if she has never smelled him before. They have been playing ok under the door, but when we cracked it slightly, the minute she saw him she hissed again and lunged trying to get him. They have lived together for over 3 years and this has never happened. What should we do?

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  1. Anonymous

    This is certainly bizarre behavior. I’d keep them separated for now. Get your male to the vet to get his foot checked, too, in case he’s injured and she’s sensing that.

  2. Krista Magnifico

    Hello,
    I agree with Laura. I would be concerned that the male is injured and the female attacked because he smelled, or looked, or even acted differently. Cats (dogs too) will often attack another household pet when they act (smell/look) differently (the classic example is the pet having a seizure that the others then attack). In an effort to protect the male you should separate them. But I would have both cats looked at by your vet.
    I would also ask about trying Feliway, and even something to help her anxiety like an SSRI (prozac). Please dont wait. best wishes.
    please let us know how things go

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Pawbly | 9 years ago
He Was Hiding And Hissing But I Spent A Lot Of Time With Him And…

He was hiding and hissing but I spent a lot of time with him and he was no longer afraid. He became very affectionate with me all day and really relaxed. Since I cleaned his eyes and gave drops this evening he is now hiding behind the couch and doesn’t want to be near me. All the trust work has been undone and I’m feeling disheartened. I don’t want him to be afraid of me! But I don’t want to stop the drops until the course is done. He is 8 weeks, and I just don’t know what the best thing to do is to ensure he is not scared. I’m being as gentle as possible when applying the drops. Any advice is most welcome! Thanks

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Pawbly | 9 years ago
I Have 2 Dogs And 3 Cats. One Dog Is An American Bulldog Mix And…

I have 2 dogs and 3 cats. One dog is an American Bulldog mix and the other is a chihuahua rat terrier mix. I’m trying to house train them to behave around the cats, but it’s not going so well with my elderly cat. The 2 young female cats just run upstairs or up the cat tree if they want to avoid the dogs, but my elderly cat can’t really do that, and he just simply moves maybe 5 steps away in the same room, pretty much feeling trapped. When the dogs approach, first he just shuts down, and if the dogs come close, he hisses and bats at the dogs.
Right now there is a cheap baby gate separating his territory (the dining room and kitchen) from the dog room (the living room) but I’d like to make more areas available to him, since he seems to see all other areas as “not his territory.” If taken to any other room, he kicks the person holding him and escapes. (He can’t jump over the baby gate.)
What should I do in this situation? Is there any hope for getting him to be less uneasy around the other animals?

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  1. Annie Yang-Shaffer

    While it’s true that I shouldn’t physically carry him places to see if he likes being in those areas, the point is, if maybe he could see upstairs as a safe place, he would actually have somewhere to run to when he feels threatened by the dogs. I’ve heard that having “cat safe spaces” should help when trying to get cats and dogs used to each other. He definitely does mind a lot when they are in the same room, and I do find him to be afraid. I guess it’s your call though, since I am much newer to cats, so what do I know.

  2. Annie Yang-Shaffer

    Well you see, I’d like to allow the dogs to come and go through the house. Right now, they only are allowed in their crates and in the living room under strict supervision, but always having to do that is very draining. I’d like to have them wander around the house one day just like the humans and cats in my house. But I can’t really do that because the cat-dog relations are an issue… However, if Loki would see upstairs as a safe place to be, maybe he could try hanging out up there. But he doesn’t want to. My question is, how can I make more spaces inviting for him, as an elderly declawed cat? He doesn’t seem to be able to go the cat tree because lack of claws.

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Gary Thomas | 12 years ago
I Have A Feral Cat That Has Given Birth To 5 Kittens In A Old…

I have a feral cat that has given birth to 5 kittens in a old shed out back. This was 5 or 6 weeks ago.

There was another cat that is much more tame that also gave birth to 4 kittens in our yard leaves. These kittens and the mother were brought inside about 1 – 2 weeks old. They were exposed to people and are pretty tame. The mother comes in and out by the cat window. We did this so that we could possibly find homes for them.

We would also like to do the same with the other 5 kittens but the mother is very feral. The 2 mother cats I believe were from the same litter and live in the woods out back.

The cats in the back began to escape and wonder. 2 were abandoned and we thought we would try to incorporate them with the other litter. It was easy and we have made sure the other mother is not overwhelmed. They immediately began to eat solid moistened kitten food. They are a little older then the others. They are all now very friendly with humans and again hoping to find them homes. They are all in a childs play pen, modified, doing well and all beginning to try solid food. Mother is still coming in to check them and feed them. Sometimes we have to remove the 2 "outside" cats so that the mother is not overwhelmed and the cats not really eating solid food have milk, the "outside" cats are at least a week older and stronger.

So.. We happened to come across the other 3 kittens under a palate of landscaping stone. The mother was still around and had not abandoned them like we had thought.

We moved them back into the sheltered shed. They hissed a lot but once we were handling them they were ok. We have been going out there and holding them whenever the mother is not around cause she gets bent out of shape and attacks us.

FINALLY THE QUESTION.
We would like to remove the kittens in the shed and put them in a crate to acclimate them to humans in hope of finding them homes. They are all very beautiful and unique kittens. So we have a separate crate for these cats and I am pretty sure they have learned to eat solid food cause the other 2 from this took to it and had learned. We did not want to put all 9 kittens in the same pen now cause we did not want to overwhelm the one mother, what are your thoughts? Should we put them in a crate where the mother cant get to them and feed them food an water, making sure they do eat?

Any thoughts?

Also, we would like to trap and get this feral mother fixed so there are no more kittens from her, any thoughts about how we should do this or a place that could do this inexpensively? When can we do this? Did not want to do it while she was nursing.
Same goes with the other mother cat. When can we get her fixed, how old should her kittens be and when can we give them away?

I live in Delta PA area.

Thank you

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  1. Krista Magnifico

    Hello Gary,

    Thank you for your question, and thank you for being so proactive and compassionate to these kitties.

    I think that in general you have a very good plan and it sounds like you are doing everything just as I would recommend. I think that 9 kittens is too much for one mom if they are all nursing (it sounds like they are not though). A mom that has too many kittens nursing can get hypocalcemia (we call it eclampsia). This can be life threatening.

    By 4 weeks old the kittens should be able to be transitioned to kitten food. I would recommend leaving dry kitten food, wet kitten food, or softened dry food with kitten formula out every 4 hours. If the kittens continue to nurse I would start to rotate them so they have more individual time with you and a better ability to be encouraged to eat.

    We estimate the age of kittens by one pound per month of age up to about 7 months old. A one pound kitten is about 4 weeks old.

    If a kitten is not socialized and tamed by about 6 to 8 weeks old it gets increasingly more difficult. Spend as much time and attention that you can with them before this age.

    Please be warned that unvaccinated cats and kittens can carry rabies. It can be deadly to them and to you.

    I would also recommend that you contact your veterinarian and any local rescue groups for help in humanely trapping, spaying, vaccinating, de-worming, feline leukemia and feline immuno-deficiency testing, and microchipping. Many of the non-profits or rescues have low cost options for these.

    I have included information about some local groups below.

    Of course, if you would like to talk to me, or anyone else at Jarrettsville Vet about any of this you can find me at the link below.

    For help on affordable pet care;
    http://www.humanesociety.org/animals/resources/tips/trouble_affording_veterinary_care.html

    Alley Cat Allies;
    http://www.alleycat.org/

    Animal Rescue in New Freedom Pa;
    http://www.animalrescueinc.org/

    Krista Magnifico, DVM
    Owner Jarrettsville Veterinary Center
    Jarrettsville, MD
    http://www.jarrettsvillevet.com