Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with feline

What's wrong with my cat who is now mostly unresponsive after a day of vomiting?

enoent — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 07:52:35 -0800

What is wrong with my cat? We've been to both the regular and emergency vets in the last 24 hours, and we still don't know what's wrong or why she isn't improving. (Details within.) Our geriatric female cat (about 14 years old) is extremely listless, almost to the point of unresponsiveness. In the past six months, she has been drinking a lot more than usual (polydipsia), as well as urinating more than usual (polyuria), but our efforts to determine what was wrong through blood tests had not been successful (elevated BUN but normal creatinine and phosphorus; tyhroid panel normal). Behaviorally, otherwise, she seemed perfectly normal and active, perhaps even more hungry than in previous months (she's fed a tin of wet food a day, and always has dry food available).

On Thursday evening, she managed to trick my girlfriend and I into feeding her two tins of wet food, and seemed happy to eat both. On Friday, my girlfriend discovered that she had vomited all over the kitchen (food with chunks of solid kibble, some hairball) as well as left stool on the kitchen floor (highly unusual for her!). Friday night, there was more vomiting, of thin brown foul-smelling liquid. By Saturday, the cat was listless and showed no interest in eating or drinking. We took her to the vet, who ran a blood workup (elevated BUN, normal creatinine and phosphate, no elevated white blood cell count, still awaiting thyroid results) and provided sub-Q fluids and suggested a bland diet of baby food. The cat was down from ~ 8 lbs (six months ago) to ~ 6.5 lbs, which was very worrying. Feeding her baby food via syringe seemed fine at first -- she held it down for a few hours -- but it all came up eventually, as this thin brown foul-smelling liquid. Some urine was produced after the vet visit, but no stool.

Late Saturday night, as she became increasingly unresponsive (she normally would put up a bit of a fight if you picked her up) and she continued to sit in a hunched-over posture, we took her to the emergency vet. An examination suggested nodules on the thyroid, and the vet could feel stool in her abdomen. They provided her with more sub-Q fluilds, an antiemetic to help relieve the nausea and vomiting, and 1/4 of a 15 mg mirtazapine to stimulate her appetite. After the mirtazapine, she looks somewhat stoned, and her heartrate is very rapid. Her discomfort hasn't improved since we brought her home several hours ago, and in fact, the mirtazapine may have made her more uncomfortable. In principle, it was *supposed* to perk her up and get her interested in eating again, but it doesn't seem to be having this effect.

Longer-term, I'm hoping that the thyroid retest will give us some clue as to her excessive thirst/urination problem, and then we'll probably need to address any renal issues that show up as well as the possibility of irritable bowel disease or feline leukemia, but I'm honestly at a complete loss as to how to pull her through the current acute issue. The best I can do right now is to try to make it comfortable, it seems, and make sure she stays hydrated with sub-Q fluids and see if she will keep some force-fed bland food down.

But I wonder if we might be missing something obvious. She's an indoor cat, so parasites would seem unlikely. She's had similar vomiting/hairball issues in the past, but has always pulled through them in quick order. We've been in a number of times for urinal tract infections, but urination seems fine and there's no elevated white blood cell count.

Does anybody have any other ideas? Should we pursue other types of screening (X-ray, ultrasound) that are expensive and likely won't actually tell us anything definitive?

Coping with personality shift in newly adopted cats

Anonymous — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 21:16:24 -0800

I recently adopted a 1 year old female cat, and within days her personality has changed drastically (some of which was expected, but not to this degree). What follows is an ethical dilemma. First off, I've had close feline companions all my life, and feel fairly competent in understanding their behavior, but not this time. A while back, my dear feline companion of 10 years passed after a long bout with kidney disease. Her 11 year old companion male was seemingly beside himself, despite the fact that they were often oil and water. I gave myself some space to think about when when and why of adoption, and allowed the cat to find me. For the sake of being concise, the cat "found" me, in that when I visited a private, home-run shelter she reached out and melted in my arms. I met her two times thereafter just to be sure.

The first night and following day were blissful. She delighted in her space, and acknowledging that I'm projecting human sensibilities on a non-human, she seemed thankful and irresistibly happy. I kept her separated from the male, who is as passive and "beta" as it comes- though he's quite large. He knew she was there, and didn't and hasn't made an aggressive move toward her. I slowly increased new cat's territory. Over a course of days, despite being litter trained, she left massive dumps on my bed while I was at work. Her sweet disposition quickly began to shift toward irritability; while days ago she sought out as much petting and affection as you could dispense, petting now is brief before she growls and bats you away. While old cat cares less, she growls at him and seems especially perturbed if you interact with him, and then her.

I accept that pets' personalities change often when moving from shelter to new home, but not this radically. I made absolutely sure that this was the best fit, and built a great rapport with her and the shelter owner before adoption. I made it clear I wasn't seeking a "replacement" to the recently deceased cat, and was seeking out a personality that's new and quite different. Now, new cat's personality is so different from the hours we spent in the interview stage, that had I known this would be the outcome I wouldn't have adopted her.

The ethical dilemma for me is this; do I return her (which they accept and allow for unconditionally) or accept the consequences of my choice and that this phase may pass? I strongly believe in not causing an animal adjustment trauma because of a change of heart, and that the choice I'd make would be one I could stand by. Is it better for the animal in the long run to return her or to work with the behaviors, even though it might cause us both discomfort?

This is gut-wrenching, and the guilt I feel is intense. I, and by extension a once homeless and long-overlooked kitty, would appreciate your thoughtful response. Email: catquestion@mailinator.com

Should I get my FLUTDed cat a urethrostomy?

Cogito — Sat, 03 Oct 2009 14:40:03 -0800

My male 5-year-old 20lbs cat has FLUTD. He's been hospitalized once and they thought he was doing better, but now that I have him home he's peeing somewhat, but still seems like he has Please forgive the gallows humor. I'm rather upset by this.

Originally, he was totally blocked (no clumps for 2 days). When I took him in, the vet flushed out his blockage and gave him a catheter. His blood work was normal (i.e., no toxins due to kidney failure) and he wasn't particularly dehydrated. They took the catheter out the next day and he seemed to be peeing OK. Even though it was a cat-only clinic, the environment was very stressful for him, so they sent him home with me the next evening.

On the night I brought him home, I saw him straining to pee and trying to go outside his box (he doesn't have accidents when healthy). In the morning, I found a few small clumps, but still well below his normal output. He is eating normally and drinking little, but that is normal for him.

As of now, he's on prescription Purina DM (weight loss) wet food (switched from his previous dry food), Amoxi tabs for infection, Methio-Form tablets for urine acidification, Acepromazine (muscle relaxant) to help with urethral constriction and Buprenex for pain.

I'm crossing my fingers that he's going to get better and gradually pee more, but if he gets totally blocked again I'm going to have to take him back. The vet says a urethrostomy would be the next step, but that it may not be worth putting him through that.

I'd like to hear from people who've had cats with serious FLUTD (I've seen the other AskMe threads) and what they did. Particularly if you've gotten a urethrostomy for your cat, how did it turn out? What was the healing time like? Were there major side-effects post-op?

How do I care for a cat with diabetes?

dbgrady — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 10:17:38 -0800

How do I best care for a cat with diabetes? A few specific questions:

1. Is it really difficult to inject a cat with insulin?

2. Is insulin necessary if the diabetes isn't severe?

3. Has anyone given their cat metformin pills instead of insulin? What are the advantages and disadvantages of this?

4. Is there anything practical I should know or expect with regard to the cat's behavior, side-effects, etc?

(I am aware of this previous question.)

(Posted for a friend)

Thank you.

How can I help my cat with a UTI?

apricot — Sat, 19 Sep 2009 10:43:07 -0800

I think my cat has a UTI. Is there anything I can do until I can get her to the vet? My cat has been going to the litter box every 20 minutes or so, but only squeezing out a tiny bit of pee each time. She doesn't show any signs of discomfort, and she's not lethargic and doesn't seem sick. She is eating and drinking normally, and her poos seem normal. She is not peeing in inappropriate places. She is a spayed female.

This started last night. We, she and her littermate/sister and I, spent 7 hours in the car yesterday driving out of town to friends. My friends have a grumpy cat who doesn't play well with others so my cats are in one room with their litter box and food. That's how I'm so attuned to how much she has been trying to pee! My cats and I have visited these friends before, and my cats are excellent travelers. There may be a psychological component to this, but I'm not sure. My cats are usually extremely easygoing and mellow.

I have found a few cat health websites and think that she might have a UTI. None of the websites have said anything about self-care, or tips about how to help your cat feel better. Does anyone have any experience with this who could give me some advice? I am driving home on Monday so could take her to the vet on Tuesday. Obviously, if she gets worse before then I'll try to find an emergency vet or take her on Monday. I just want to help her out before then if I can.

Cat, I don't like it like that.

xiaolongbao — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 16:04:52 -0800

My kitten is dry nursing me at night. She won't let me pick her up or pet her during the day. What can I do to strengthen our bond while preserving my sanity? I adopted my kitty from the local Animal Care & Control in early July. She was listed as 4 months, but the vet said she was probably closer to 9 weeks when i took her in for her first checkup. Obviously, she was taken from her mother too soon, right? The nursing behavior is something I've seen documented on various websites. I've read suggestions on forums and whatnot, but would appreciate the wisdom of Metafilter on this one. I know this behavior must provide comfort to her, but it's driving me a little nuts. I want to stop it without further alienating her from me, if possible. She doesn't seem to be growing out of it - a few months have passed and it's about the same.

I guess she probably thinks I'm her mother because of my long hair. She'll knead my neck with her paws (I started clipping her claws because this hurt). Then she'll try to get at my neck with her mouth. If I block my neck with my arm or a blanket, she'll cry pitifully, then resign herself to going away and sleeping elsewhere, or nurse/chew on my hair instead. I think she's sort of biting me a little bit, but it doesn't hurt. She also drools on my nightshirt. She doesn't nurse on my boyfriend. Presumably because he doesn't have long hair, and is away working most of the day, while I stay home?

Confusingly, or perhaps not, she doesn't like to be touched or petted during the day. She'll often rest on the floor with her paws and tail tucked under her, which looks rather defensive. If I pet her while she's napping and looking relaxed, she'll often get up and walk away. I've tried "letting her come to me" but she never has, except when she brings something for me to throw for her (yeah, she likes to fetch). It's perhaps worth noting that I do have another kitten, also adopted from AC&C, roughly her age. He's a loving little guy, though a biter/electronics cord destroyer. (Any suggestions for stopping this? Spray bottle? Bitter apple?) She calms down considerably when he comes over and starts licking her, but usually he's off sleeping at the foot of the bed, and I don't want to disturb him.

So, Metafilter, I'm asking you...what can I do? I love this cat and want her to love me, just not like this. Thanks for any suggestions!

Tell me the Future

LOLAttorney2009 — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 09:35:03 -0800

Kitty with kidney issues gets daily fluids; now what? I've posted about this cat before: AJ. She's my 14 year old geriatric cat. Earlier this year, AskMeFi helped get her kidney issues diagnosed (she had big kidney stones that blocked the tubes from kidneys to bladder; normal tests weren't working to show the cause of her problems). Those kidney issues have apparently permanently damaged her kidneys and I now give her a daily injection of 150ml of fluids.

She's once again the picture of feline health. Her coat is silky, eyes are bright; she eats well and demands treats on a regular basis (her food is now Wellness brand stuff) and she drinks lots of water. She has also taken over "Top Cat" status again and keeps the younger, heavier male in the house in line. She still misses the litterbox at least once a day, but she and I have worked out a truce: she pees on a towel on the bathroom floor.

My question is: what happens now? Assuming that her kidneys never heal from this damage and that the doctor and I keep her on these daily fluids, will she just continue living this way until some other old-age symptom takes her out? Or will her kidneys continue to decline and result in her death? I'd much appreciate anecdotal answers from folks who have gone through this sort of thing with their pet(s).

I know, I should just ask her doctor, but I get tongue-tied around him and he ends up not giving me the information I'm really seeking - essentially, he says: "We'll wait and see." Fine, but, gosh, some foreknowledge would be nice.

Two loved kitties have a happy home - can we stay that way?

odi.et.amo — Sat, 22 Aug 2009 09:32:31 -0800

Feline leukemia: one cat has it, one cat doesn't. Tell me your stories... I've had Whisper for 4 years now. He's so cute and I love him much more than he loves me. About a month and a half ago, I immediately fell in love with and adopted a stray (Gizmo) that a friend found. She's the sweetest, cuddliest little thing, but she's also positive for feline leukemia (tested twice 3 weeks apart). Otherwise, she's perfectly healthy and growing and gaining weight. Whisper's in the process of getting boosters and they're being kept separate for another month and a half.

I've been told (and read stories) that it's rare for a vaccinated adult cat to get the virus. Have you ever had a positive cat live with a negative cat with no repercussions on the negative's health? On the other hand, have you kept a positive cat with a negative cat and found out that the negative cat acquired the virus at some point?

Looking for lots of anecdata here so I can try and figure out what to do. I need cuddly in my life, so I'm hesitant to give up the new sweet kitty to whom I'm already VERY attached if I don't have to.

What chance does our cat have of recovery after seizures and coma?

geekgirl397 — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 12:37:06 -0800

Cat in recovery from suspected poisoning. Came out of post-seizure coma, now has suspected blindness, partial paralysis. What do we do next? We found our otherwise healthy 7-year-old cat unconscious on our (5th floor) back deck yesterday at 6.30am. Got her to the emergency room within a half hour. She was limp, unresponsive, pupils constricted almost to vanishing. Tests & X-rays showed no trauma, but hypothermia (low body temp) & hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) as well as shock. She had seizures, both before and after we found her.

After ~24 hours on a glucose drip, in an incubator, with supplemental oxygen, antibiotics (in case of undiagnosed infection), atropine (I think - some kind of antidote for an unknown poison), stomach pumping & ingestion of activated charcoal, she woke up and started eating, responding, moving.

HOWEVER, as of 3 hours post-coma, she still could not support herself on her back legs, and the vet suspected some neurological problems. We've taken her to a neurologist where she is awaiting a consult (while still on an IV). The intern who did see her thinks she may be blind, but i guess we'll know more when she's had a full workup.

This cat's recovery so far is just miraculous. We thought that she was a goner for sure, and I'm pretty certain so did the emergency vet practice, as there was a real sense of surprise & jubilation when we came to get her this morning.

I wonder if anybody else out there has had a cat go through seizures/unconsciousness and then had residual problems. Were they temporary, or permanent?

From the internet research I've done, it looks to me like neurological symptoms such as temporary blindness and paralysis are not uncommon post seizure. What I'd like to know is how soon we should be expecting a change.

We've been warned that the neurologist may want to do an MRI (at a cost of ~3K). We don't want to put our cat through anything unnecessary but we do want to give her the best chance. On the one hand, if, via the MRI, they found swelling putting pressure on nerves, spine or brain, that they could fairly simply surgically relieve, and therefore 'repair' - it might just be worth it. And I imagine we'd want to get this diagnosed & treated ASAP.

On the other hand, she was very, very, very ill and she's been making progress since waking up that you can literally measure by the hour, we strongly suspect is still in with a good chance of recovering on her own (or maybe with some anti inflammatories, steroids etc.). In the ~2 hours between leaving the first emergency vet office and being seen by the neurologist's intern, she had gone from being unable to use her back legs at all to being able to crawl a bit using them.

Anyone seen anything like this - an unidentified poison causing seizures and coma? What about recovery after seizures anyway - could we still be seeing "spontaneous" recovery days rather than minutes after the incident?

We don't want to put our cat through unnecessary pain & distress if it turns out she's unlikely to be able to be treated, or if treatment may not give her any quality of life. But we don't want to give up on her too early.

Any advice?

thanks!!

What's wrong with my cat?

exogenous — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 04:03:25 -0800

Anemic cat with poor appetite. Had symptoms of kidney (renal) issues but the numbers are now OK. Still no appetite. Diagnosis? The patient is a 11 year old spayed female. Lethargy and lack of interest in food and water slowly developed over a few days and the vet found high creatinine. Treated with fluids and antibiotics and the cat perked up a bit. Urine culture negative (no infection). Cat is hydrated again, creatinine back to normal, but very little interest in food and found to be anemic.

Is this just simple chronic kidney issues or something else? She's visiting an internist today for more testing.

Help me find the best vet in Southeastern VA!

srrh — Sun, 31 May 2009 16:51:51 -0800

My cat is very sick. We went to the vet and were incredibly unsatisfied. Please recommend an awesome vet in the South Hampton Roads (preferably Norfolk or Virginia Beach) area. (Also, if you have ANY idea what's wrong with my cat, please give me an idea, because I'm sick to my stomach with worry.) This is a long story, but if you're a cat lover, please bear with me because I desperately need help.

At the end of March, my fiance and I adopted a cat from the Virginia Beach SPCA. Her name is Fiona. She is 4 years old, spayed, up to dates on shots/wormers/flea treatments, and in good health. Well, she was at the time of adoption, anyway.

About three weeks after we got her, we noticed her getting symmetrical bald patches on her shoulders. We weren't too concerned, because she wasn't showing any other symptoms, and we got her an appointment at Pet Care Veterinary Hospital for May 1st. Between the time we made the appointment and May 1st (about 1 week), the bald patches on her shoulders started to bleed and crack. I was putting antibiotic ointment on the open wounds every day, but she did not seem to be in any pain, and we never saw her licking or scratching at them.

Finally, May 1st rolls around, and with it, the most upsetting, disappointing vet visit of my life. The vet I saw was Dr. Partlow, and I believe the vet assistant was named Nicole (I'm not positive about that part). When we got into the examination room, we let Fiona out of her carrier, and she walked around, acting totally normal. At this point her only symptom was the wounds on her shoulders. The vet assistant picked her up, put her on the exam table, took her rectal temperature, all that stuff. When she was done, Fiona jumped back on the floor, and at this point, had a very pronounced limp on one of her rear legs. She did not have the limp when we got to the vet's office.

Dr. Partlow came in and immediately noticed Fiona's limp. We told her she had not had the limp before we got there, and the vet assistant confirmed that when she first got out of her carrier, she was walking around like normal. Dr. Partlow palpated her limb and said she didn't feel anything wrong, but we could "pay for x-rays" if we felt like it. We deferred to her expertise and said no, it was probably nothing. She kept assuring us Fiona had probably just landed wrong when she jumped off the table and it was no big deal. She then examined Fiona's wounds. She shaved the hair around them, so she could look at them better, and she remarked that they looked like burns. They really do look as if she got burned, but we have no idea how she COULD have been burned, and symmetrically on both shoulders? Plus the fact that we saw the hair fall out and normal bald spots first, and then the open wounds formed later. The doctor then told us that maybe it was allergies to food, or perhaps to pollen, or maybe she was licking herself due to stress. She tested Fiona for mites and yeast and both tests came back negative.

Dr. Partlow then left the room, and the vet assistant kept pressuring us to buy a product called Aler-G 3, without actually answering any of our questions about what it does. (I researched when I got home, and it turns out it is basically just fish oil...) It was a very high pressure sales environment and left both my fiance and me very uncomfortable. When Dr. Partlow returned, she prescribed metacam (to ease the pain she surmised Fiona was feeling due to her limp), silver sulfadiazene cream (an antibiotic cream specifically used to treat burns), and an oral antibiotic (I no longer have the name of, unfortunately). She asked that we return in a week.

We got home, and Fiona's limp was worse than ever. I felt her foot myself, and could clearly feel a bone chip or something grinding. My fiance and I were both incredibly angry that the vet could have dismissed this without a second thought. All in all, the trip was very frustrating. None of our questions were answered and we were just given medications to treat the symptoms instead of whatever the underlying problems were. We did change her food (the vet recommended Purina One, so that's what we have changed it to), and for what it's worth, she has not developed any more bald patches or wounds.

As the days creeped towards her next appointment the following week, Fiona's limp got better and better, and my fiance and I decided we did not want to give any more of our money to the clinic we were so dissatisfied with before, so we cancelled the appointment the day beforehand. She seemed to be improving day by day.

At this point, her limp is totally gone (although that leg seems to have a permanent knot in it now), and the wounds on her shoulders have almost fully healed. However, over the past week or so, she has become more and more lethargic. She just lays in the kitchen all of the time, unless she's eating, drinking, or using the litterbox. We can't get her to play or even acknowledge us when we pet her. She is still eating and drinking like normal. I started to get very nervous at her extreme lethargy. My fiance told me she drooled for a short time about three nights ago (less than a minute). Today, one of her eyes is swollen almost totally shut.

I don't understand what could be going on. I want to take her to the absolute best vet in the area, who will work hard to find out what is causing her problems, not just throw medication at the symptoms and let new problems crop up. We have been very very wary to take her to another vet after the poor experience we had last time, but now that I see her swollen eye, I won't wait another day. Today is Sunday and she needs to see somebody tomorrow, Tuesday at the latest. Please, mefi, please tell me who the best vet I can take her to is, and if you have any idea what is wrong, please let me know. I know this post was really long, so I will summarize the symptoms and timeline again:

- 5 weeks ago, bald patches appear on shoulders
- 4 weeks ago, patches start bleeding, breaks toe(?) at vet
- 3 weeks ago, limp heals but leg has a knot
- 1 week ago, scabs fall off shoulders, she starts acting extremely lethargic
- 3 days ago, drools briefly (maybe unrelated to anything else?) after waking up from a nap
- today, still extremely lethargic, one eye swollen

Thank you so much in advance for any help you can offer. Fiona thanks you too.

Mother cat in basement/crawl space, nursing two newborn kittens (likely less than two weeks old) soliciting solutions.

weakcore — Fri, 01 May 2009 10:50:35 -0800

I just moved into a duplex two weeks ago, and yesterday I discovered two kittens (w/ mother) underneath my unit ... I can't afford (both financially and emotionally) to care for them at the moment .... Three main questions:

1. Does anybody know how high a cat is able to jump with a one/two week old kitten in her mouth? What is the best way to encourage a mother to relocate her litter?

2. What can I expect from animal control should I choose to call them for removal?

3. What do you think is best way to handle this? Call the local animal control to have them come get them or "encourage" the mother cat to relocate her litter?

context:

The kittens are probably one to two weeks old, they look like they've just begun to open their eyes and are [clumsily] stumbling about.

There is a trap door in one of my closets w/ stairs that leads down to about a 15x8'x5' (LxWxH) hole dug into the crawl space underneath the unit that functions as a tiny basement of sorts, containing two water heaters and some other odds and ends like paint buckets, tarps, etc.

The mother cat is able to exit and enter using various objects as a step ladder (said object is some sort of large iron anchor about 3.5' tall and REALLY heavy--too heavy for even two/three people to lift by my guesstimate, unless they're recent competitors in The World's Strongest Man). I imagine that she'd be able to make the 5' jump if she really had to, but I think the height makes it difficult/impossible for her to relocate her offspring. Maybe I can give her some help by making a serious of shorter jumps for her .... What would be the best way to encourage the mother cat to relocate should I choose this path?

I'm leaning towards animal control as opposed to encouraging relocation, but can't really decide (thus my post). I don't really want to just let nature take its course (I don't want a bunch of cat pee and poo down there and I don't think my landlord would be very happy). I am open to any other suggestions (that may be more ethical/humane?) that I might not yet considered too. Thanks in advance.

Kitty teeth

greta simone — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 07:40:54 -0800

Cat filter: Do I really need to get her teeth cleaned? I just got back from my yearly vet check-up, and they recommended a teeth cleaning for my cat, stating that she has some gum disease. They showed me what indeed looked a little nasty, and then told me that a cleaning would cost from $250-350. I am very broke, getting ready to finish grad school, look for employment, and move to a large city. I cannot feasibly afford this, and probably won't be able to for quite some time.

I spoke with my mother shortly thereafter, and she said that I didn't need to get a cleaning, with her rationale being "they are animals. Their teeth get dirty. The cleaning is a vet racket". Now, I tend to be one of those cat-mamas that leans toward over-care and protection of my dear feline.

My questions are these: Have you, Mr. or Ms. Cat owner, gotten this recommendation from a vet and not gone ahead with the cleaning? Did you have negative consequences because of your decision? Is this neglect if I don't do it? Should I just bite the bullet and put this expense on my credit card?

Any and all experiences are welcome.

Thanks.

The tinest kitten puddle.

cgg — Wed, 11 Feb 2009 07:39:12 -0800

Follow up to last week's question: My rescue foster cat just had her litter of kittens. I have questions, obviously. 6 hours or so ago, my sweetheart foster cat gave birth. I think there's 6 of them -- they're all black, so when they're in a pile, it's hard to tell exactly. I had 6 counted, but it looked like she might have one more and I needed to get some sleep. If she had it and it's in the pile, I have no idea. It wasn't the easiest delivery, but in the end it looks like all are curled up with mom, eating and jostling for position. Momma's napping intermittently.

First question: How soon can I move momma cat and the litter? I have a bigger, better box for them in a better location, one that isn't layered with the icky bloody towel they're currently on. Momma cat trusts me, so getting her kittens from her isn't a problem. I just don't want to handle the newborns more than I already have, and I don't want to stress anybody out.

Two: In the bottom of the pile somewhere is a kitten with a really long umbilical cord. (Mom cut it, there's just several inches attached to the kitten) It cant be good -- it's either going to dry to the towel and get the kitten stuck, or get wrapped around something bad. Can I cut it?

Three: How do I know if the kittens are getting enough food? There's intermittent crying, but it's impossible to tell which kitten is the culprit. Also -- any idea how I can identify 6 seemingly identical kittens? I thought of nail polish, but I don't want momma cat licking that...

And finally: If any don't make it, what am I supposed to with the the bodies? I don't want to just throw them in the dumpster...

Sorry for all the questions. Basically, I'm just looking for new-litter advice from anybody who has been there or know about these things!

Why does my cat lick tile?

cymru_j — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 11:25:12 -0800

My cat has taken to licking the bathroom tiles, poor thing. What to do? My female cat is healthy and happy (if a little overweight), but lately she has taken to licking the bathroom tiles. Not obsessively by any means, and when I distract her, she forgets all about it. This doesn't fit into any larger behavior pattern-- it just seems to be its own quirk.

I feed her dry food (Nutro) with just a few ounces of wet.

If this indicates that she's lacking nutrients, can anyone recommend a feline supplement of some kind?

Yes, I will contact the vet. I just noticed this behavior a couple of days ago.

Thanks, guys.

To move or not to move; that is the question for my old cat.

losvedir — Tue, 30 Dec 2008 12:40:18 -0800

CatFilter: Thinking about taking my 11 year old cat with me to college. Too traumatic of an experience for her? I have an 11 year old cat who has lived in my parents house all her life. With me off at college and both of my parents gone for most of the day, Cookie is very lonely and depressed. I've been thinking about taking her up to my cat friendly dorm, but I'm not sure how this change of setting will affect my elderly cat. In addition, the dorm will have several other cats, and Cookie has little experience with her own kind.

Thoughts? Does anyone have experience with a similar situation? The move is from Florida to Massachusetts. Input on actually getting her to the dorm would be appreciated as well.

MetaCatFilter

Octoparrot — Fri, 10 Oct 2008 22:52:16 -0800

Dehydration, lethargy, and horrible bad breath in a six year old cat. What are the potential problems We have a six year old mixed breed cat we adopted about 5 years ago that seems to be incredibly sick all of the sudden and I'm looking for some ideas on what could be wrong. We took her to the vet today and are waiting on test results before any conclusions on what's wrong with her. I'm hoping to get some ideas to discuss with the vet in case the test results are inconclusive.

History:
We adopted this cat almost six years ago from the local Dumb Friends League. She is an extremely loving mixed breed (unknown, found on street) de-clawed black cat and she was estimated to be a year at most. She had her full round of shots and has been completely healthy as long as we've had her. We've been a bit lax on getting her vaccines but she was seen by a vet last four years ago and was fully up to date on shots then and had no health issues.

Problem:
About 3 weeks ago we noticed her breath to be even fouler than normal. Going from "She has bad breath" comments to "Keep her out of the room" smell. We figured she needed her teeth cleaned and were looking at vets to take her too in the near future.

In the last few days she has suddenly become extremely lethargic and seems to have dropped weight. We have two other cats in the household who all eat the same food in the same dish but we assume she's stopped eating. She's also extremely dehydrated and hypothermic (lower temperature than normal) according to the vet.

Other potentially relevant data:
We just moved to a new house about four weeks ago and there is another cat in the household (total of three cats). All three cats are strictly indoors only and are up to date on vet checks/vaccinations.

So hive mind, what are the potential problems we may be facing? Obviously she may pass but what all should we be considering as far as outcomes?

Cat needs allergy shots. Now what?

chowflap — Sun, 14 Sep 2008 15:06:56 -0800

My cat is allergic to, well, everything. Pine, wool, insects, dogs, dust mites, grasses, you name it. So I've ordered her some allergy shots, which I will have to give to her daily. How do I make this as painless as possible for both me and the cat? Seriously, my vet says that there's no way to eliminate all of her allergens from her environment, and since the allergies aren't temporary/seasonal, shots are the way to go. (My cat's been licking a lot of her fur off, which is what started this whole ordeal. The limited diet had no effect.) My vet was unclear as to how long my cat will need to get the shots -- it sounds like it'll be once daily for four months, but I might be getting the "four months" from her explaining that it will take that long to see if the shots even work. And if they do work, ideally we will taper the frequency down until she gets one shot every 3 weeks (that's the bare minimum; she will never be shot-free). Am I correct?

Have you dealt with an allergic cat? How did you treat the cat? How can I make the shot-getting less horrible for her? Give her special food treats before, or after? (I have 2 other cats who will make giving her a treat difficult, though not impossible...) I cut my cats' claws and have given them medication and stuff, but they don't like it, to put it mildly. I'd like it if my cat didn't end up running from me in fear whenever I see her. Any advice is welcome.

Cat just starting Lasix - how long before I should see effects?

giddygirlie — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 19:55:42 -0800

Cat just starting Lasix - how long before I should see effects? My 9 year old cat developed allergies about 3 months ago and the vet treated him with antihistimines and a round of antibiotics (the x-rays showed some spots on his lungs that she thought could be bronchitis) and he got much better.

About 2 weeks ago, he started having difficulty breathing and asthma attacks, so I took him back to the vet. After several additional tests, it was determined that he has heart/lung problems, most likely an early symptom of heart disease (causing fluid to build up in his lungs). He has just started Enalapril and Lasix (Furosemide). These are the same medications used to treat humans as well, so I am hoping someone here might have some experience with how long it takes to see results. The vet said it varies by animal and can take days or weeks. But I am hoping for a few first-hand experiences. And I'm crossing my fingers that the poor guy can breathe easy soon.

Stop the pee!

cgs — Fri, 20 Jun 2008 21:01:25 -0800

How do I get my cat to stop pissing all over my apartment? Some details:
- He is a 14 year old male. I adopted him when he was 3. He's been scent-marking (pissing) for the past year.
- We've gone to the vet and everything is ok (no crystals, no UTI, blood + urine fine). Vet says "he's getting older and things like this happen".
- I've tried Feliway spray and diffuser: no affect.
- He is scent marking... he still uses the litter box for main urination.
- I have a second cat, but she has been in the house for 8 years and this is new behavior over the last year. As he has escalated, I have shown him more affection in case he is competing with her: no affect.
- I have gotten the advice to separate the cats and give them their own litter boxes: my apartment is not amenable to this (it is a floorthrough w/ no doors... only door is on the bathroom).
- He pees on anything new or that I leave out: my blackberry, wallet, laundry. He has peed on me, while curling up in my lap.
- Sometimes it is the very deliberate tail-curling, hunched back posture w/ a 10-inch stripe of urine on the floor, sometimes it is just a few random drops where he is lying.
- He does it in jags... like nothing for awhile, and then over an hour just walks around does it every seven feet or so.
- My apt has begun to stink despite my best efforts to keep on top of it. The instructions online are to not clean up the urine w/ any strong smelling soap, since this will make him pee more.
- As it is now, I'm not comfortable having guests over. My furniture basically reeks, and I'm approaching my wits end. Each time I wake in the middle of the night to the sound of him scraping over his latest spray, I fantasize of him catching a terminal illness, and feel evil.

Ugh... tell me what to do, AskMeFi.

Cat vocalizations

christopherious — Sat, 14 Jun 2008 13:40:27 -0800

My cat often communicates with me through these short vocalizations made while his mouth is closed. They sound like muffled, abbreviated meows and remind me of a broken telephone (old school telephone -- the kind with the bell). He does it whenever he's lurking around me but usually when I glance in his direction. And he does it all the time.

I have owned many cats, but never one who vocalized so much in such a funny way. Is this actually common? Is it limited to any specific breeds (he's a short hair black cat), or just to certain personality types? Do feline behaviorists have a word for it?

Giant Kitty

Ms. Saint — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 10:00:54 -0800

My cat is big. What are the chances of him getting bigger? My cat, Commie, is big. Very big, very fuzzy (and very sweet, aww). He is also now a year old, the point at which cats are considered adults, so I had figured this was the biggest he would get.

However...

For the fun of it, I was learning about different cat breeds to see what kind of blood he might have in him. I'm willing to bet he is either part Maine Coon or part Norwegian Forest (though I'm leaning towards Norwegian Forest). According to different online sources, both of these cat breeds are known to keep growing until they are 5 years old.

So, I don't have any definite evidence what Commie's bloodline is, and he is most certainly a mix-breed cat (I have no doubt of that). But, if we assume he has some Maine Coon or Norwegian Forest blood in him, how likely is he to keep growing for the next four years? How much will he grow? If the answer is "it depends," are there any physical features that could indicate the answer (in the same way, for instance, that a kitten's paw size indicates what their full-grown size will be)?

Diabetic cat care

Stacey — Sat, 17 May 2008 09:19:48 -0800

How do I best care for my cat after a hypoglycemic reaction until I can get him to the vet? My 10-year-old cat was diagnosed with diabetes a year ago and it is well-managed with twice-daily 4-unit doses of Humulin. His last fructosamine check was in early April and the vet said his blood sugar was still very well regulated and we should stay on the same dosage.

This morning he had what I'm fairly certain was his first hypoglycemic reaction, about two hours after his insulin dosage and breakfast. Yowling, staggering, poor hind leg control, panting. We rubbed some corn syrup on his gums and fed him some food and now he seems fine, if maybe a little subdued.

His regular vet can't see him today but he has an appointment first thing Monday. We will take him to the emergency vet if necessary, but right now he seems to be doing fine. But I realized after I made the vet appointment for Monday that I don't know what to do about his insulin dosage between now and then, and now his vet's office is closed for the weekend. I'm going to call the emergency vet and see if they'll dispense any advice over the phone, but am wondering if there are any vets out there who might have advice or be able to point me toward a reliable resource with information. Should I keep him on his usual schedule? Withhold the insulin until Monday? A reduced dosage? Anything else I should be doing to care for him and keep an eye on him until he's checked out

He's skipped doses a handful of times over the past year with no apparent incident, but never more than one.

Weight loss for kitty

odi.et.amo — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 07:01:29 -0800

How much food do you give your cat compared to the bag's recommended serving? My kitty (he's about 3 years old and 16-17ish pounds at his last vet appointment) has a bit of belly flub so I have him on Royal Canin Indoor Light 37. The package says 1 cup a day for his weight and build but that seems like an awful lot given he sleeps almost all the time. I feed him about a half cup per day in 2 or 3 meals but his flub remains unchanged.

I know you are not my vet. My vet did say to reduce his food intake from what he was eating of his previous food which I did for a few months (before changing to this food) and which didn't change anything. Based on your own experiences with a chubby kitty, should I be feeding more, less, more frequently, or other?

Too bad House, MD isn't a vet

Fiberoptic Zebroid and The Hypnagogic Jerks — Fri, 28 Mar 2008 20:04:25 -0800

SneezyCatHelpFilter: I adopted an adult female Maine Coon-ish cat back in January. Any suggestions cures on why her nose runs and she keeps sneezing? The previous owner, a close friend, adopted her 6 years ago as a skinny, starving stray. The cat had a runny nose and frequent sneezing from day one, which continues to this day. Previous vet visits, including x-rays of her skull, showed no discernable reason for the condition (Vet: "She's just a sneezy cat, maybe allergies."). While watching her drink about a week ago, I noticed that it appears that a lot of the water she drinks ends up coming right back out her nose. When I first adopted her, I discovered that the bridge of her nose is definitely wider than I've seen on any other cat and one of her eye openings in her skull appears larger than the other, figuring this was no big deal because of the previous vet's x-rays... but now I'm thinking they are related.

I have an appointment in three weeks for a cat-specialized vet, but any ideas on what to try in the interim? She is up on her shots and is feline herpes negative. I switched her to a corn- and wheat-free cat food three weeks ago, but no change. She has been an inside exclusive cat (with a filtered, AC home) and then an "in-and-out as she pleases" cat, but neither seems to effect her nose (so maybe not allergies?).