House cat and letting them outside???
24 August 2004, 08:43 AM
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House cat and letting them outside???
Yeah, I know sounds strange but the damn thing pisses on my carpet whenever I decorate or change anything in the house.
When we got her we were told by the cat protection league that she was a house cat only. She was VERY timid/scared when we first got her as she came from a not very freindly family. Now she is much better than when we first got her but still runs away and hides when anyone comes to visit us. We have a couple of litter trays strategically positioned around the house and she 99.9% of the time uses them.
Our dilema is that the CPL told us it wouldnt be humane of us to let her outside as she wouldnt know how to defend herself if she met another cat. However, how does any cat learn? Surely they just go out and they learn from experience.
I would love it if we could let her out and she became a 'proper' cat and wasnt such a wet lettuce so to speak but I know the missus would be distraught (sp?) if she went missing etc (although she was the one who suggested letting her out this morning after cleaning up the accident).
Where we live is very quiet and there are a number of cats in our neighbourhood that we see in our garden every now and again. Oh yeah our cat has been speyed (sp?). So guys'n'gals of SNET, what do you think we should do???
When we got her we were told by the cat protection league that she was a house cat only. She was VERY timid/scared when we first got her as she came from a not very freindly family. Now she is much better than when we first got her but still runs away and hides when anyone comes to visit us. We have a couple of litter trays strategically positioned around the house and she 99.9% of the time uses them.
Our dilema is that the CPL told us it wouldnt be humane of us to let her outside as she wouldnt know how to defend herself if she met another cat. However, how does any cat learn? Surely they just go out and they learn from experience.
I would love it if we could let her out and she became a 'proper' cat and wasnt such a wet lettuce so to speak but I know the missus would be distraught (sp?) if she went missing etc (although she was the one who suggested letting her out this morning after cleaning up the accident).
Where we live is very quiet and there are a number of cats in our neighbourhood that we see in our garden every now and again. Oh yeah our cat has been speyed (sp?). So guys'n'gals of SNET, what do you think we should do???
24 August 2004, 08:47 AM
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take her out on a lead, and keep walking her round the garden etc. Gets them used to the area. Takes a while but works a treat. A little coller and one of those extendable dog leads.
24 August 2004, 08:50 AM
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Let her out whilst keeping a discrete eye on her. Cats are naturally inquisitive animals, so just leave the door open, if she wants to go out she will, if she doesn't she won't.
24 August 2004, 08:59 AM
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If the only reason for letting it out is one of convenience to save your carpet I would follow the CPL advise and keep it indoors. It will be better for the cat, your neighbours and the local wildlife!
24 August 2004, 09:04 AM
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Letting her outside won't necessarily stop the marking. A rescue cat will often have problems that need working on, but you knew that already, right? She's had a hard life already, lets try to make things better for her.
First off, what is she doing & exactly where is it? Is it in the same place each time? Does she wee a little bit, or a lot? How do you clean afterwards? What is your response to her doing this? Have you used Feliway yet? Have you taken her to the vet? Where is she doing her poops? Where are her litter trays? What litter product do you use? Is she ever scared when she uses a tray? Are any cats marking outside near your house?
Your answer to the questions will determine whether she is marking or just using an inappropriate toilet.
How you clean the area is essential, just because you may think it's clean, doesn't mean that a cat does. You must remove the soiling by using a biological washing powder solution, then white spirit to remove the smell. Do not use any other cleaning products - especially ones that include ammonia.
You must not display any signs of anger to her, this only increases her insecurity, which increases her wish to mark. She will not associate your anger with her marking.
1. Go to the vet & make sure that the reasons for her marking are not due to medical problems.
2. While at the vet, buy a Feliway diffuser. This is a sort of air freshner that you can't smell, but the cat will feel more secure & comfortable.
3. Clean the areas that she has toilet using the method above.
4. Come back with more data.
Regards
Nick
First off, what is she doing & exactly where is it? Is it in the same place each time? Does she wee a little bit, or a lot? How do you clean afterwards? What is your response to her doing this? Have you used Feliway yet? Have you taken her to the vet? Where is she doing her poops? Where are her litter trays? What litter product do you use? Is she ever scared when she uses a tray? Are any cats marking outside near your house?
Your answer to the questions will determine whether she is marking or just using an inappropriate toilet.
How you clean the area is essential, just because you may think it's clean, doesn't mean that a cat does. You must remove the soiling by using a biological washing powder solution, then white spirit to remove the smell. Do not use any other cleaning products - especially ones that include ammonia.
You must not display any signs of anger to her, this only increases her insecurity, which increases her wish to mark. She will not associate your anger with her marking.
1. Go to the vet & make sure that the reasons for her marking are not due to medical problems.
2. While at the vet, buy a Feliway diffuser. This is a sort of air freshner that you can't smell, but the cat will feel more secure & comfortable.
3. Clean the areas that she has toilet using the method above.
4. Come back with more data.
Regards
Nick
Last edited by Nick; 24 August 2004 at 09:06 AM.
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24 August 2004, 09:57 AM
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Ok, I'll try and answer what I can.
Firstly she hates going to the vet/being put in a basket (seriously she freaks out big time and when she does the missus does and shes the only one the cat will let pick her up) so the vets is not an option really.
We have two litter trays in the house, one in the study up-stairs which is very quiet and hardly anyone ever goes in there except her. The other tray is in the dining room (I hate this but this is where the accident occurs, right next to her tray FFS. That is why I put a tray there in the first place.)
She allways poops in her trays. The accidents she has is peeing and it seems to be in the same place and a proper pee not just a little sprinkle to to speak.
The missus does the cleaning of the trays unless shes away. We use Catsan as we've found she only likes this stuff. The trays get washed out once a month (is this enough?) with a biological washing powder solution.
I dont think she's scared when she uses her trays. She will quite happily 'curl one out' when I'm working on the computer in the study so she must be pretty relaxed
Just leaves me sitting there gagging from the smell!!!
When she has an accident we use a carpet cleaner we bought from the local pet store solely for cleaning cat pee (no ammonia).
Well, I think thats all the questions answered.
And my parents wonder why I'm not prepared to put new carpeting down in the house yet even though we've been there for nearly 3 years now!?!
Firstly she hates going to the vet/being put in a basket (seriously she freaks out big time and when she does the missus does and shes the only one the cat will let pick her up) so the vets is not an option really.
We have two litter trays in the house, one in the study up-stairs which is very quiet and hardly anyone ever goes in there except her. The other tray is in the dining room (I hate this but this is where the accident occurs, right next to her tray FFS. That is why I put a tray there in the first place.)
She allways poops in her trays. The accidents she has is peeing and it seems to be in the same place and a proper pee not just a little sprinkle to to speak.
The missus does the cleaning of the trays unless shes away. We use Catsan as we've found she only likes this stuff. The trays get washed out once a month (is this enough?) with a biological washing powder solution.
I dont think she's scared when she uses her trays. She will quite happily 'curl one out' when I'm working on the computer in the study so she must be pretty relaxed
Just leaves me sitting there gagging from the smell!!!When she has an accident we use a carpet cleaner we bought from the local pet store solely for cleaning cat pee (no ammonia).
Well, I think thats all the questions answered.
And my parents wonder why I'm not prepared to put new carpeting down in the house yet even though we've been there for nearly 3 years now!?!
24 August 2004, 10:30 AM
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Feliway is a good thing to use - its natural cat pheromone so should prevent the need to pee / claw both of which allow the cat to mark its territory.
A diffuser is a great idea - we've got the spray version as we don't have any plugs in the right place where we needed the diffuser.
We've never really washed out the litter tray although we do use liner bags which makes things easier to clean out.
Neither of our cats like going to the vet and one leaps onto any high surface to avoid the dreaded basket but once in, they're both ok.
Both of ours were rescue cats. The first one is a total soppy idiot - we had her when we had a flat and she couldn't go outside for the first two years anyway until we moved. Her temperament is not really typical of a rescue cat. The second one we got from CPL last summer. We think she was badly treated by a woman because she would always react better to the hubby than to me. She still won't eat out of my hands but does from the hubby. She has been very hard work, she was very timid and refused to come out from behind the tv for about 3 days and then destroyed wallpaper. We've had her 15 months now and the change in her is amazing.
It may be an idea to phone the help numbers on the back of cat food tins etc - the advice they gave to us about the scratching worked.
Its a tricky situation about letting her out or not - especially when she's peeing elsewhere. I do tend to chuck them out when they are misbehaving such as scratching by the door but they are used to going out.
A diffuser is a great idea - we've got the spray version as we don't have any plugs in the right place where we needed the diffuser.
We've never really washed out the litter tray although we do use liner bags which makes things easier to clean out.
Neither of our cats like going to the vet and one leaps onto any high surface to avoid the dreaded basket but once in, they're both ok.
Both of ours were rescue cats. The first one is a total soppy idiot - we had her when we had a flat and she couldn't go outside for the first two years anyway until we moved. Her temperament is not really typical of a rescue cat. The second one we got from CPL last summer. We think she was badly treated by a woman because she would always react better to the hubby than to me. She still won't eat out of my hands but does from the hubby. She has been very hard work, she was very timid and refused to come out from behind the tv for about 3 days and then destroyed wallpaper. We've had her 15 months now and the change in her is amazing.
It may be an idea to phone the help numbers on the back of cat food tins etc - the advice they gave to us about the scratching worked.
Its a tricky situation about letting her out or not - especially when she's peeing elsewhere. I do tend to chuck them out when they are misbehaving such as scratching by the door but they are used to going out.
24 August 2004, 10:43 AM
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Good reply mate.
First you need to get the vet visits sorted. Even an indoor cat is going to need to visit once a year for vaccinations, worming & general checkover.
Get a new top-opening basket. Put an old jumper of your wife's inside & a favourite toy. Leave the basket out in the living room with the top open. Just leave it there for a few days. If your cat gets in, shut the lid & then immediately open it again. Don't lay in wait to do this. Make it a "no big deal thing". By some hard treats & put 1 or 2 in the basket. Do this for several weeks. When your wife puts her in the basket for a vet trip, it's ESSENTIAL that she stays calm & cool. The cat will feed off her emotions. Make the trip quick & efficient. Speak to the surgery receptionist & get an appointment early morning or late afternoon when there are no dogs! If there are dogs in the waiting room, sit in the car with the cat. Your vet should have a cat waiting room - if they don't find another vet that's more cat friendly. I find early morning visits are better as the surgery has a less doggy smell.
Once a month for a cat tray cleaning is a little too often in my opinion. If the litter is doing it's job, clumping well & not letting the soil reach the tray itself, then 3 monthly should be ok. For the carpet cleaning, get white spirit to finish the job properly. The problem is that you are leaving traces of the smell, so you are either getting a problem of her automatically topping up an old pee smell, or she is now in the habbit of peeing there. If possible, move the tray somewhere else downstairs, near to an exit if possible & put her food dish near where she currently pees. Please clean the area first & maybe put some carpet tiles on top of the area for a short time. You can get them in B&Q. So the tray must be moved away to another location & you need her to associate the area with a new purpose, like eating. If it's inappropriate for her food dish to go there, consider leaving some treats there every day.
If her poops are very smelly, look at the food you are giving her. Most vets recommend hard food with fresh water constantly available. I use Iams hard food with chicken. You can get it at the supermarket. If you change foods, make sure that you make the change gradually over at least 1 week. A correct hard food diet should make poops much less smelly, will make your cat more healthy, be less expensive & save on vets bills in the future.
Just a thought, does she normally only poop upstairs & pee downstairs?
First you need to get the vet visits sorted. Even an indoor cat is going to need to visit once a year for vaccinations, worming & general checkover.
Get a new top-opening basket. Put an old jumper of your wife's inside & a favourite toy. Leave the basket out in the living room with the top open. Just leave it there for a few days. If your cat gets in, shut the lid & then immediately open it again. Don't lay in wait to do this. Make it a "no big deal thing". By some hard treats & put 1 or 2 in the basket. Do this for several weeks. When your wife puts her in the basket for a vet trip, it's ESSENTIAL that she stays calm & cool. The cat will feed off her emotions. Make the trip quick & efficient. Speak to the surgery receptionist & get an appointment early morning or late afternoon when there are no dogs! If there are dogs in the waiting room, sit in the car with the cat. Your vet should have a cat waiting room - if they don't find another vet that's more cat friendly. I find early morning visits are better as the surgery has a less doggy smell.
Once a month for a cat tray cleaning is a little too often in my opinion. If the litter is doing it's job, clumping well & not letting the soil reach the tray itself, then 3 monthly should be ok. For the carpet cleaning, get white spirit to finish the job properly. The problem is that you are leaving traces of the smell, so you are either getting a problem of her automatically topping up an old pee smell, or she is now in the habbit of peeing there. If possible, move the tray somewhere else downstairs, near to an exit if possible & put her food dish near where she currently pees. Please clean the area first & maybe put some carpet tiles on top of the area for a short time. You can get them in B&Q. So the tray must be moved away to another location & you need her to associate the area with a new purpose, like eating. If it's inappropriate for her food dish to go there, consider leaving some treats there every day.
If her poops are very smelly, look at the food you are giving her. Most vets recommend hard food with fresh water constantly available. I use Iams hard food with chicken. You can get it at the supermarket. If you change foods, make sure that you make the change gradually over at least 1 week. A correct hard food diet should make poops much less smelly, will make your cat more healthy, be less expensive & save on vets bills in the future.
Just a thought, does she normally only poop upstairs & pee downstairs?
24 August 2004, 10:46 AM
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To follow up on Scoob babes post, I assume you have scratch posts for the puss? If not, you really need at least one post by each exit. I have at least on post in almost every room & have a cat aerobic centre at the top of the stairs & one by a window.
24 August 2004, 10:53 AM
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Yes, we do have scratch posts except the buggers rarely use them. Have tried everything including bribery but they wised up to it. The activity centre which is by the door, has a post on it but they stretch out and prefer to pull the fabric off instead!! Was quite funny when she had pulled too hard and yanked the staples - when she then jumped on top, it collapsed into itself, leaving the cat looking very bemused and about 12 inches lower down than she thought she should have been!
The scratching appears to be the odd stretch of paws rather than really going for it and Argos did do a wall protector in the summer but they don't anymore - our local pet shop should have them in soon, hopefully before we have the redecorating done!
Any other ideas for preventing the stretch/claw gratefully received.
The scratching appears to be the odd stretch of paws rather than really going for it and Argos did do a wall protector in the summer but they don't anymore - our local pet shop should have them in soon, hopefully before we have the redecorating done!
Any other ideas for preventing the stretch/claw gratefully received.
24 August 2004, 10:54 AM
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I have at least on post in almost every room & have a cat aerobic centre at the top of the stairs & one by a window.
24 August 2004, 10:59 AM
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Aerobic centre at the top of the stairs? Pah! Move next door to ajm and you can give it the full outdoor pursuit / paintballing / James Bond Escape experience...
24 August 2004, 11:03 AM
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Scoob Babe, my post wasn't intended for you, it was for the OP. You had just reminded me about the posts.
Make sure the posts are long as a cat likes to reach up full length to scratch. For short term fix some cooking silver foil on the wall to stop scratching. This should break the habit issue. Praise them if they scratch the scratch post & give them a treat. If they scratch somewhere inappropriate, a short sharp NO immediately the moment they do it, then praise them when they stop. It's essential to get the timing right. Also some stones in a coke can can be useful for just the moment they are doing inappropriate scratching, then praise the moment they stop.
Make sure the posts are long as a cat likes to reach up full length to scratch. For short term fix some cooking silver foil on the wall to stop scratching. This should break the habit issue. Praise them if they scratch the scratch post & give them a treat. If they scratch somewhere inappropriate, a short sharp NO immediately the moment they do it, then praise them when they stop. It's essential to get the timing right. Also some stones in a coke can can be useful for just the moment they are doing inappropriate scratching, then praise the moment they stop.
Last edited by Nick; 24 August 2004 at 11:13 AM. Reason: Fix typos
24 August 2004, 11:10 AM
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Originally Posted by ajm
Its great to see people enthusiastic about their animals, but some owners really do go that "extra mile"!
The birds only miss out on their lunch for about an hour or so a day & none of them get eaten!
24 August 2004, 11:10 AM
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scoob babe, get some cat-nip spray and spray it on the scratching posts. We did this with our cat when we bought a new sofa and she uses the post all the time now.
Nick, regarding food she will only eat whiskas pouches, especially the fishermans choice variety at the moment. She wont touch any other variety. We provide her with Purina 'house cat' dry food also and a bowl of water too. She occasionally eats the dry food and I've never seen her drink water (the missus has a couple of times though). Needless to say our cat is very picky and only likes the expensive stuff like Catsan litter, Whiskas pouches etc.
On the odd occasions we have taken her to the vets we have done the process you describe. I placed her food dish in front of the basket at feeding times and over a period of a week gradually moved it closer then inside the basket until the day came for the vets and the door was closed behind her. The basket has her bed-fleece thing in and an old t-shirt of my missus).
With regards to vaccinations etc, my missus is pretty strong minded about this. She comes from Canada and when they lived over there they had cats and dogs and none of them had yearly vaccinations etc and therefore she doesnt believe its necessary for the yearly vaccinations. I dont agree with her on this but like I say to her all the time when it comes to the cat "you wanted her, not me". And with everything mentioned above, this is precisely why I didnt want a cat but you have to keep them happy dont you lads
Nick, regarding food she will only eat whiskas pouches, especially the fishermans choice variety at the moment. She wont touch any other variety. We provide her with Purina 'house cat' dry food also and a bowl of water too. She occasionally eats the dry food and I've never seen her drink water (the missus has a couple of times though). Needless to say our cat is very picky and only likes the expensive stuff like Catsan litter, Whiskas pouches etc.
On the odd occasions we have taken her to the vets we have done the process you describe. I placed her food dish in front of the basket at feeding times and over a period of a week gradually moved it closer then inside the basket until the day came for the vets and the door was closed behind her. The basket has her bed-fleece thing in and an old t-shirt of my missus).
With regards to vaccinations etc, my missus is pretty strong minded about this. She comes from Canada and when they lived over there they had cats and dogs and none of them had yearly vaccinations etc and therefore she doesnt believe its necessary for the yearly vaccinations. I dont agree with her on this but like I say to her all the time when it comes to the cat "you wanted her, not me". And with everything mentioned above, this is precisely why I didnt want a cat but you have to keep them happy dont you lads
24 August 2004, 11:14 AM
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Originally Posted by Nick
AJM, when I decide that my cat would be an indoor only cat I knew that I would be keeping her from her normal natural activities. I therefore do everything I can to give her activities copatible with what she would do outside. I always play with her twice a day. The cat centre at the top of the stairs is like running up a tree for her. When she's in "ears back" mode, she runs from downstairs, tears up the stairs & launches herself at the cat centre & climbs to the top. She loves it! Also she can sleep on there & check out anyone going up & down the stairs. My other aerobic centre is by a window where I have placed 2 bird feeders outside. Marmite lays in wait for birds arriving at the feeder. It's like watching TV for her. The birds only miss out on their lunch for about an hour or so a day & none of them get eaten!
The birds only miss out on their lunch for about an hour or so a day & none of them get eaten!
24 August 2004, 11:25 AM
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Do you have insurance for the cat, even if she doesn't go outside? My friend's cat decided to leap onto window-sill, slipped and caught his leg in the gap between the wall and the radiator - the bill would haev been enormous if they didn't have insurance. The other thing is, you might not be able to get insurance against treatment for anything she might catch period as you haven't taken reasonable precautions (ie vaccinations) to prevent it
24 August 2004, 11:25 AM
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Unfortunately the person who feeds the puss has made her into a fussy eater. It's possible to change, but it needs some strength of will. The pouches are making smelly poops.
The vaccinations are not essential, but without them, she would not be allowed to stay at a cattery & if she ever did get out, she could catch some extremely unpleasant & very painful illnesses. She also really needs to be wormed once a year as she will still eat spiders, flys etc. I get my cat wormed with the vaccinations in the form of an injection. The main use of the annual vet visit is to get her checked out by an expert.
Don't get me started on Canada, where the vets are happy to carry out the disgusting primitive "declawing" operations. "Declawing" is in inverted commas because the actual operation involves cutting off the cats "fingers" at the first joint. The pain is so great for the poor animal that no drugs can contain the pain for the cat once it comes around from the operation. Then you have a cat that can't walk properly, can't climb, can't protect itself, can't scratch, substantial behavior problems. FOR FKS SAKE!
The vaccinations are not essential, but without them, she would not be allowed to stay at a cattery & if she ever did get out, she could catch some extremely unpleasant & very painful illnesses. She also really needs to be wormed once a year as she will still eat spiders, flys etc. I get my cat wormed with the vaccinations in the form of an injection. The main use of the annual vet visit is to get her checked out by an expert.
Don't get me started on Canada, where the vets are happy to carry out the disgusting primitive "declawing" operations. "Declawing" is in inverted commas because the actual operation involves cutting off the cats "fingers" at the first joint. The pain is so great for the poor animal that no drugs can contain the pain for the cat once it comes around from the operation. Then you have a cat that can't walk properly, can't climb, can't protect itself, can't scratch, substantial behavior problems. FOR FKS SAKE!
24 August 2004, 11:36 AM
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We've got a cat that's very similar. She wasn't wanted by her previous owner and they lived in a flat, so when she came to us, she had no comprehension of The Outside World. Wind would make her ears flatten and run back inside. The noise of traffic would send her scuttling under the nearest table.
The way I got her used to it was simply to sit outside on the garden a few feet away with the doors open and allow her to investigate outside at her leisure. She would run to me and sit down sniffing everything and then move a few feet away and sniff, but always returning to me.
After a few days of this, I would get up and walk about the garden with her following like a puppy. Then I took her on the lead all around the garden and showed her the limits, spreading a little of the litter tray contents into the corners as a marker.
Then I could pop her outside, with the doors open and she's wonder about by herself for a bit and run inside. As long as she knew that she could get inside, she was ok.
We've recently moved and she obviously came to the new house with us and reverted back to hiding upstairs and only coming down for food. We again walked her round the garden but she wasn't happy at being outside and this time it was more accident than intention that she became used to it.
We went out for the day one Saturday and called all the cats in, as we didn't then have a cat flap and I didn't want them outside all day, in case it rained. We came home some 12 hours later to discover that inadvertantly we'd left her outside.
Since then she will happily bomble outside when she wants and will use the cat flap with ease now. It's juist a case of perserverence and patience.
The way I got her used to it was simply to sit outside on the garden a few feet away with the doors open and allow her to investigate outside at her leisure. She would run to me and sit down sniffing everything and then move a few feet away and sniff, but always returning to me.
After a few days of this, I would get up and walk about the garden with her following like a puppy. Then I took her on the lead all around the garden and showed her the limits, spreading a little of the litter tray contents into the corners as a marker.
Then I could pop her outside, with the doors open and she's wonder about by herself for a bit and run inside. As long as she knew that she could get inside, she was ok.
We've recently moved and she obviously came to the new house with us and reverted back to hiding upstairs and only coming down for food. We again walked her round the garden but she wasn't happy at being outside and this time it was more accident than intention that she became used to it.
We went out for the day one Saturday and called all the cats in, as we didn't then have a cat flap and I didn't want them outside all day, in case it rained. We came home some 12 hours later to discover that inadvertantly we'd left her outside.
Since then she will happily bomble outside when she wants and will use the cat flap with ease now. It's juist a case of perserverence and patience.
24 August 2004, 11:53 AM
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Nope, no Insurance. They all require regular vaccinations so we wouldnt be able to obtain any form of insurance. I have told my missus that if we are to let her outside we have to get her to the vets for annual vaccinations at it wouldnt be fair not to. Missus didnt comment after that as she got out of the car for work so will see what she says tonight.
I quite like the idea of a lead and taking her into the back garden. Is this a viable option? Would need to put a collar on her as the last one I put on her she managed to remove even though it was done up as per the instructions (tight but not too tight).
Nick, how easy would it be to change her over to dried food and is this ok to do. I'm no expert on cats but I dont know any cat that just eats dry food. I heard that if a cat is drinking lots its a bad helath sign, is this correct?
I quite like the idea of a lead and taking her into the back garden. Is this a viable option? Would need to put a collar on her as the last one I put on her she managed to remove even though it was done up as per the instructions (tight but not too tight).
Nick, how easy would it be to change her over to dried food and is this ok to do. I'm no expert on cats but I dont know any cat that just eats dry food. I heard that if a cat is drinking lots its a bad helath sign, is this correct?
24 August 2004, 11:58 AM
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Mice Elf, your situation sounds like the perfect ending to our little saga. Is the cat you mentioned anually vaccinated??? I dont think I'll be chucking Catsan litter around my garden. Having piles of bright white litter all over the place would look rather strange.
24 August 2004, 11:58 AM
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I think you need a harness, not just a collar to put her on a lead. If you're not good at picking her up, I don't fancy your chances of coming out of this unscathed!!
We give our cats dry food when its really hot otherwise the meat goes off and they go hungry. Neither of them appear to drink much - most cat foods will give them water contained in the food - although they do prefer to drink from the bowl outside with rainwater in it as opposed to tap water inside.
We give our cats dry food when its really hot otherwise the meat goes off and they go hungry. Neither of them appear to drink much - most cat foods will give them water contained in the food - although they do prefer to drink from the bowl outside with rainwater in it as opposed to tap water inside.
24 August 2004, 12:05 PM
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Originally Posted by prodriva
I quite like the idea of a lead and taking her into the back garden. Is this a viable option? Would need to put a collar on her as the last one I put on her she managed to remove even though it was done up as per the instructions (tight but not too tight).
We just opened the door once the cat was on the lead and let them go wherever they wanted within the garden.
Nick, how easy would it be to change her over to dried food and is this ok to do. I'm no expert on cats but I dont know any cat that just eats dry food. I heard that if a cat is drinking lots its a bad helath sign, is this correct?
If you want to switch the food to dry only, go from full pouch, no dry food, 3/4 pouch 1/4 dry, 1/2 pouch 1/2 dry, 1/4 puouch 3/4 dry to full dry. Do this over a period of 1 - 2 weeks.
You may still find that she prefers wet food. Ours found that Whiskas was too rich for them and while it made 1 sick, physically, the others were smelly. We switched to Go-Cat and Felix and there are no problems now.
24 August 2004, 12:09 PM
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Originally Posted by prodriva
I quite like the idea of a lead and taking her into the back garden. Is this a viable option?
LOL - we tried this once on one of our cats to help it settle in to the gardens around a house we were renting short term.
The effect on the cat was amazing - within about half a second of the lead being clipped on to the collar she was off - sprinting round in circles trying to escape it, wrapping the extendable lead round my wifes head by doing the cat version of the wall of death around the living room.
It took about 3 days for the damn cat to calm down again
If you're going to try it I would wear a face mask and really thick gardening gloves - just in case
24 August 2004, 12:11 PM
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when i got my cat it was timid and scared i used to put his on a harness ad lead then attach the lead to a piece of rope so he could explore the garden every day! i then moved to a nicer area put butter on all of his feet and now he goes out every day and when he gets scared he just runs back in the house! i wasnt expecting him to come back the first time but being the dumb thing he is he ran outside got to the end of the path and rolled over to sunbathe!
give the cat chance to go out on a lead etc etc then put butter on its paws he/she will lick it off but they will come back
give the cat chance to go out on a lead etc etc then put butter on its paws he/she will lick it off but they will come back
24 August 2004, 12:11 PM
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Remember that if you take her into the garden, she will need to be vaccinated.
To change a diet, take at least 1 week & then on each day, increase the proportion of new food until on day 7, she is on 100% new food. Sometimes, cats may not recognise hard food as their food, in which case you can add a little water to the hard food to make it soggy, Then over a few days add less & less water until there is none added. My cat ate soft food as a kitten, I then moved her too hard food at around 9 months. I also had to teach her to drink. I did this accidently by watering a plant & spilling the water on the floor. She started lapping the water & then we quickly graduated from drinking small puddles of water on the floor to drinking out of her bowl. Use a ceramic or pottery bowl for water, not plastic. Freshen the water every day.
Cats who drink more than they normally do are an indicator of health risk, often kidneys. One advantage of having an indoor cat is that you can immediately spot changes in her drinking or toileting. Your cat is currently getting all her water from the pouches & this is what you're paying for. Smelly food, with water added. If she eats hard food only, she will need to also drink water from a separate dish. It's recommended to keep this dish in another location. The cat must realise that she can drink at any time, not just at food times. My cat also likes to drink from my upstairs basin tap. She'll sit next to the basin purring, waiting for me to turn on the tap. My basin gets a little fluffy! I also have to hide my toothbrush!
To change a diet, take at least 1 week & then on each day, increase the proportion of new food until on day 7, she is on 100% new food. Sometimes, cats may not recognise hard food as their food, in which case you can add a little water to the hard food to make it soggy, Then over a few days add less & less water until there is none added. My cat ate soft food as a kitten, I then moved her too hard food at around 9 months. I also had to teach her to drink. I did this accidently by watering a plant & spilling the water on the floor. She started lapping the water & then we quickly graduated from drinking small puddles of water on the floor to drinking out of her bowl. Use a ceramic or pottery bowl for water, not plastic. Freshen the water every day.
Cats who drink more than they normally do are an indicator of health risk, often kidneys. One advantage of having an indoor cat is that you can immediately spot changes in her drinking or toileting. Your cat is currently getting all her water from the pouches & this is what you're paying for. Smelly food, with water added. If she eats hard food only, she will need to also drink water from a separate dish. It's recommended to keep this dish in another location. The cat must realise that she can drink at any time, not just at food times. My cat also likes to drink from my upstairs basin tap. She'll sit next to the basin purring, waiting for me to turn on the tap. My basin gets a little fluffy! I also have to hide my toothbrush!
24 August 2004, 12:15 PM
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my cat used to refuse to eat or drink i left fresh food water and biscuits down for him every day but he was so stubborn! in the end he took to drinking out of a cup which i'd accidently left in the bathroom so to get him into it i used to put a cup of water daily in the bath! now he drinks from anywhere!