Franx

As the thing says, he'd been walking around not looking at all happy the last few days, and had gone all thin around the stomach area, when he wasn't before. We were looking for him just then, to go to the vet, then found him behind the gate
He'd had a good life anyway, at around 14 or 15 yrs, so it wasn't unexpected...
We still have the other one though, which is nice

Buzzer

cue ajm ----------------------->

Scoob99

iTrader: (1)

Franx........So sorry mate I myself are still coming tro terms with losing my beautiful Boxer Holly 4 days before xmas, bloody hurts mate feel for you
Cheers
Colin

astraboy

I lost my cat last year. She was 18. You have my sympathies.
astraboy.

mj

Franx - ,If I could come back as one animal in the next life it would be the domestic cat


cat No 1 " flossie" - found about 30 yds from home with an airgun pellet hole in her head , very timid cat, mega gutting to bury her in the garden after what happened.

cat No 2 "candy"- lived to ripe old age , and enjojed every minute of it, she was a loveley old cat, very sad to see her go, burying her was not so bad, READ: very happy cat.

cat No 3 "gonzo" ( black & white TOM )- he is currently enjoying his status as "****" of the neighbourhood, much to the dissapointment of other 'cats' that want to lay a log in mj's back garden .

cat No 4 "stella" AKA "The Rat"- she just sleeps on the bed & rolls over with cute cat "hello" noises when you go near - complete tart for a cat .

Go and rescue another from the cats home immediately, It sounds like your moggy had a charmed life ( as all cats strive to do ) .

cheers,

mike.

BEW

I got rid of my cats 2 years ago and never looked back!

Sounds great and seems to have so much more power!

ajm

*bites tongue*

Seriously though, despite my views on cats I'm not beyond offering my sympathy. You have my condolences Franx

dpb

ripe old age mind , for a cat, franx..

r32

Sorry to hear about your loss mate, its easy to get really attached to cats.
We lost one of our last year, Sprocket, came to us as a ferral cat, we used to feed him and let him in the house a bit. But he used to go round 'marking his territory'. Then we found him lying at the back of the house with a broken leg and tail, he had obviously been run over and was in a real state.
But he cost us a fortune in vets bills and ended up a real character, didnt leave the house much, then he got cancer and we nursed him for as long as he wasnt suffeirng. Shame, lovely old moggy..........

J4CKO

iTrader: (1)

I prefer cats to dogs, more like me I suppose, bad attitude !

Not a bad innings, 15 years of being fed, pampered, killing small furry things and not having to lift a finger.

The Wonderstuff got it right

'Cats and Dogs have got it sussed, worm their way in to your trust, spend their whole life getting fussed'

Franx

Thanks guys.
Not that old as they go, I suppose - someone said theirs was 18, but it can't be a bad life. Wouldn't mind knowing what happened to him though - it only set on a few days ago, & he was fine before that. Not worth worrying about though eh
We were thinking about trying to find a kitten, to keep the remaining one company, but not sure if that'd work. Ours might just kill it or something, although it's not really territorial as such, might not like another little thing wandering about. We shall see
Chris.

juan

Sorry to hear.
I'll be gutted when mine goes. 10 or 11 now.

I've heard of a few not-very-friendly cats who have reacted well to a kitten coming in. Less of a threat that a grown cat I suppose.
Guess a cats rescue centre or vet could tell you more, or the Internet

little miss fire

Franx

Where abouts are you? I know of some kittens that need new homes

LMF

Mice_Elf

One of my cats died a few years ago, so I can sympathise. We got a kitten to fill in the "hole" that he had left - we had 4 initially and it just seemed right to keep it at 4. Someone at work was giving away their kitten so I introduced it.

As they were already used to other cats about, they were ok. I think the fact that it was a kitten and not a fully grown cat made it easier.

The way I introduced them was to show them the kitten and allow them to sniff each other and if there was any singing or threatening behaviour to spray them lightly with a plant sprayer containing a weak mix of Dettol & water.

The first couple of nights I kept the kitten separate from the others, just in case, but after a few days they were quite happily integrated. And have been living together ever since.

ajm

This probably isn't such a good idea.... Dettol contains phenol (chlorodimethylphenol) and is most likely very poisonous to cats.... just a heads up from someone in the know

r32

Whats the best way to introduce another cat into the home? My Daughter is moving back and she is bringing her cat, Our cat is a real wuss and so timid, when the cat has been to stay with us for a few days our ct lives upstairs, it really freaks her out. We have to try and sort something, they did go for each other on one occassion.
STEVE.......

Mice_Elf

Hence why it was VERY weak. But good advice.

juan

We've recently introduced a (1 year old) dog into our home, previously run by the cat for 10 years Cat is timid and therefore lashes out whenever anything else comes near. We kept the dog in a bedroom for a couple for weeks. The cat saw him as he came out for walks etc. I guess they both kinda knew someone else was in the house and gradually smells would be recognised. Stroking one then the other can be a way of transferring scent.

Anyways, after 2 weeks it was getting a bit tiresome as we had to be apart all the time. wifey upstairs with dog and me downstairs with cat. Cat gradually got more comfy with another creature in the house. After 2 weeks we started letting dog come downstairs once cat was curled up on sofa. she would watch him but no trouble as long as he stayed on his side. now (after 4 weeks total) they can get within a couple of feet of each other before she miaows or hisses at him. she's swiped at him once or twice but he needs this warning. not hit him yet. when she does he will not go sniff her again as she has claws like razors.
Both now lie and sleep in the same room so we're making progress.
Outside he is more interested in the cat as a play companion so we've not ventured out much with both of them.

They seem to be accepting each other slowly though I doubt they will ever be best mates as she is not sociable.

We were gonna get a couple of kittens but then it turned into a dog. I would have thought kittens might not be too much trouble. i would also have thought 2 cats would be the hardest but still do-able given a bit of time. Just have to try and make both feel comfortable for a few weeks so that neither runs off.

Probably some useful resources on the internet somewhere.

2 boys might be the hardest. one of each might be ok and 2 ladies - not sure?


It might seem tempting to put the 2 in a room and shut the door but I don't think this is the best approach. A bit of time and gradual introduction seems best

Herts T555 Bird

Have tried introducing my one year old cat to my new 15 week old labrador puppy on many occassions over the last 4 weeks.......bad move as the cat's not having any of it. She only comes downstairs now if the puppies sleeping otherwise all he wants to do is play and chase her and she runs a mile!! Her tail gets to about 3 times its normal size, and she tries to hiss, but it must be coz she's only little and still pretty young that her hiss isn't even worth the breath she takes to do it! She's got quite mean growl though......

Sorry to hear about your loss, 14's a good age for a cat....a definete good innings

P.S Just read your post Juan.....think i'll definenetly need to try out the scent with the dog and cat, as we dont seem to be making any progress with either of them at the moment. What you were saying about your cat and dog was exactly the same of how my two are. But great advise, will give it a go and see what happens!!

Nick

Franx

I'm sorry for your loss.

The last thing your remaining cat needs is another cat - don't do it. Your cat will pine & be upset for 6 months or so, but he/she will get over it. Don't make things worse for the remaining cat by introducing a new feline.

Nick

Herts T55 bird

You need to get out of the run/chase thing that's happening. Start introducing them, again from scratch. Put the puppy in one of those small indoor training cages, & intorduce the cat for short periods of time. When the cat is in the same room, give the cat special treats - like prawns, so it will associate being near the dog as a good thing. Make sure that there are ZERO chases. Then starting the inroducing with the dog on a lead. Let them sniff each other, exchange bedding & toys, keep them apart, make sure there's no chases. This can take 2 weeks or more. If you do it right you can end up with the 2 being the best of friends.

moses

im so sorry to hear than franx , i know what its like mate i lost my baby rottweiller after 12 yrs and also my lil cat he was nearly 18 i think

juan

Sound advice from Nick - Things like swapping bedding etc also a good way to exchange scent.

It takes time and like Nick says gotta really try to avoid scaring the cat off or else it will be harder and harder.

Your problem partially is that its a puppy and therefore keen to play. Thankfully ours seems to be not so bad at 1 year old. He's quite chilled out actually, which is nice.

Did try the training cage method but it both of them much more on edge. The dog didn't like being vulnerable and the cat just had something a lot bigger and noisier to be worried about. But have heard it can be useful

Cat needs to be somewhere where it can get away or up high to protect itself from the *threat*

Franx

I was thinking that'd probably be the best way. I'll see what my sister thinks - she's a vet - but i'm not convinced that getting another one would be the best thing just now.... The remaining one - a male (or used to be), seems ok, & he's getting more attention. The two of them were bought at the same time, as part of the same litter, so I suppose they were quite close, even if it didn't seem that way at all

Nick

Hi Franx

Cats are naturally happy to stay together in family groups. Introducing a new cat is completely different. The male has had a bad enough time loosing his brother/sister he doesn't deserve the stress of a new arrival. Enjoy your remaining cat & help him to live out his life in peace.

You could probably do with checking why your poor cat died. He died at relatively middle-age for cats these days & you want to make sure if it's something that you need to watch out for in the remaining cat. For instance, it could be kidney disease & you could watch for signs of this in the other cat & maybe adjust his food.

Franx

I was thinking that'd be useful to know. He did get thin quite quickly as well - a matter of days, apparently, so it might have been some sort of kidney problem...or anything really. Only problem is, we buried him in the garden, and I don't really fancy an exhumation....
My sister might be able to shed some light on the matter - I'll see if she's seen a similar situation

Nick

Cats are very good at hiding illness. Try to think back & give a detailed report to your vet. Was he eating/drinking so much as normal over the last few months, what about his toilet frequency. I don't suggest that you exhume the poor creature. If you can't give a good report to a vet, then let him go & try to keep a watch on your other cat. Feed him a good premium brand senior food, play with him & handle him more. Cats who are unwell will resist being handled - it's a good test.