@ wit's end w/ cat

[Wood]

my gf's cat is about 18 mos. old... due to some health problems she had as a kitten, she's always been a little tweaked. Since my girl moved into her own apartment a couple of months ago though, the cat's become exponentially more neurotic & hyperactive. We're at a loss as to what to do to help her, although we're prety sure her problem stems from lonliness. Before the move, she lived with my girl & her roommate, who had different work schedules so there was most often someone around to play with her. Now she spends every day alone in a batchelor suite. Me & my girl both work long days, so we're usually gone from 9 am til around 10 pm, at which time we usually get home and go straight to bed. The cat will usually let us sleep until about 4-5 am, then she starts with the crying, whining, scratching... anything she can do to make a lot of noise and keep us awake. It's no good, because both of us work in retail and can't afford to be sleepy & grumpy at work. With the holiday season approaching, we'll both soon be working extra long shifts and can't get by on 4 hours of sleep a night! there's always the option of sleeping at my place, but then the poor kitty is just more neglected.... my girl has made it clear that she's not willing to give the cat up, she loves it too much, but we are absolutely at our wit's end as to what to do about it. I've asked her to move in with me, to a new apartment, in March.... but as this problem worsens i'm wondering if i can really live with this disturbed animal. This is the first time in my 30 years i've been in a relationship serious enough to consider co-habitating, and i would sooner take this cat's life with my own hands than let it stand in our way. i'm sure there's a better solution.... but i'm at a loss. I'm not a cat person, i like them but i'd never voluntarily own one, and i don't know enough about them to come up with a solution. I should also note that, while we don't spend as much time as we'd like to with her, she is always fed on time, her litter box is regularly cleaned, she has plenty of toys.... it's occured to me that maybe she's missing interaction with other cats, but she's not an outdoor cat and we can't afford to get her a friend. What to do? i'm hoping some of the cat lovers out there might have a suggestion.....

s

[robyn]

Hey, my cat's a fat, depressed malcontent! We should set the two kitties up on a play date and maybe they'll fall in love, thus regaining their sanity!

[*Geminiz*]

This is a toughy, the only think I could think of is getting another kitty so she has a friend to play with, but then you said you can't afford it and I'm not sure if that's an answer because that just makes another kitty to have to spend time with!

Sorry, I'm stumped.

[Jingles]

Has miss Kitty been fixed? Cause they tend to mellow out after that - While the kitten is still young this type of behavior is natural and having a routine is the best thing you can do - lit's ikely that she's getting all her sleep during the day and so is able to cause trouble in the early morning.
Cats usually mellow out with age - my kitty was hyper hyper at first and now she's pretty mellow. Make sure that when you are home that she gets lots of love and attention -- One of the most remarkable things about cats is that they do form bonds - and usually it is only with one other being that there bond is closest and they want to be around whatever it is or whomever it is --- So your kitty may be missing out on having a 'bosom bud' if no one is home and she has no other kitties to pal around with, she is still just young....screw the idea of cat years right now your kitty is still basically a kitten.

Talk to your ver about ideas - they might have some - Ultimately a lot of cats live alone most of the time...she probably just needs some extra lovin'

[Wood]

^she has been fixed... it's interesting what you said though, about cat's only b0nding closely with one other being. As i mentioned above, the cat lived it's first year with my girl and her roommate. Most of that year, GF was spending half her time staying @ my place - plus she live with me for a month while she was in between places. my place doesn't allow pets, so the cat lived with her old roomie for that month. Is it possible that maybe she's formed a closer b0nd with him, and misses him? He still comes around & visits regularly, but probably less than once a week. I actually suggested having him take the cat back until we have time to figure out a solution, but his new roomie isn't into it.

we definitely try to lavish her with affection when we're around her, but that brings me to her other major problem - she usually respond to affection with scratching & biting! this cat seems to have multiple personalities, one moment she'll be all cuddly and the next she's trying to claw your eyes out. Fuck, last night she jumped on my girl and clawed her while she was sleeping, causing her to sit up fast and pull her clock off the shelf above the bed, which fell on her face and split her lip!

[Jingles]

^ Yup - a friend of mine has a kitty just like this, it's interesting that it's a girl doing it though - the male kittties usually do the whole violent affection thing as a way to assert their dominance..you know the whole Alpha male thang

Invest in a spray botttle with a little bit of lemon juice in water and use it to say 'no' to whatever behavior you're trying to limit.

A lot of this energy and strange affection will subside as the kitty ages - many cats will start off showing their affection this way , as it's how they play with their brothers and sisters (watch any nature show and see how lion cubs play)

I would ask the old roomate about how the cat behaved when she was pimarily with him - it was likely very similar..but it's worth knowing!

[*Jessica*]

buy another kitty to keep it company!

[tvmann]

Cats are nocturnal, so if there is nobody around they will sleep all day, and be rested up, energetic, and ready for exciting activity such as hunting and play at night.

My cat was the same way when it was young. The way to deal with it is to try to play with it during the day and give it things to do, to get it on a more human-type schedule, and wear down its nervous energy during the day. A 5-10 minute play session twice a day is what my cat demands, especially in the winter. Cat toys like a scratching post might help. If you put their food in a different room every day this can give them something to search for.

They are natural predators or hunters, so the play activity that is like hunting to them, seems to work best. My cat likes to chase a string attached to a stick I wave in front of it, and drag on the ground in front of it. Or if you put your hand under a blanket in front of them, they like to attack that because it is training them to hunt. On the job training.

It will be hard to do for you this though, since you're working all day and probably not too interested in playing with the cat when you get home.

[Ragga_Wh0re]

smoke your cat up man it works WONDERS. My best friends cat was a fucking demon literally,and no matter how much affection or attention we gave it it still wasnt satisfied, so one day we got the cat stoned and the cat totally mellow`d out. I know it seems inhumane and bla bla bla but seriously just try it i guarantee results! OR you could just lock up the demon spawn in a closet or something :)

[miss.myra]

I miss pundit, sherwood.

pundit ruled!

[Wood]

^i know, the bunny was much more personable than the cat. too bad she died :soak: