Cat Chat 2

[Topsy Turvey]

Speaking of overweight cats, our family cat named Ash is obese and has been the majority of his life.
He's now getting old and has never been hugely active or playful although with being in a slightly more exciting environment that is slowly changing, which I'm more than happy about! However he has for a very long time had an obsession with food, for a while we lived in a place where he couldn't get out of the house and he would sleep and the second we would go anywhere near the kitchen he would start screaming at us like his life depended on it and that was all he ever did. He didn't particularly like us (we hadn't bonded much as at the time he was still supposed to be my sister's) and so he wasn't interested in pats and refused to play, all he cared about was food. And he still does. I have no idea what to do about it, any suggestions? c':
(He's currently on a diet (and has been for a year c':) but it's made no difference as he steals other cat's food. I desperately want him to learn that there's more to life than just food but he's a cat so I can't exactly explain it to him, any suggestions on what I can do to help?

maybe since he's so motivated by food, You could train him? set up a kitty agility course and have him jump around and such? Idk works for my dog

That's actually a super good idea, I don't want to stop him from going outside as he's missed the freedom of being outside so much that it just wouldn't be fair to him. So this could be a very good alternative, he's a bit old and cranky but some more basic things might work. He's almost 10 and had never been put in a harness before let alone walked but with patience and treats I managed to pull it off so you never know, basic agility and such might work too ;p
I have been thinking that he loves to follow me to the bathrooms (it's a five minute walk from where we live) and he sometimes he loves to chase us too so he can catch up so I might try working on that and encouraging it more. <3

[Rainbow Dash]

Tambora is getting a visit from a business that arranges therapy animals for colleges, senior homes, and hospitals to see if he's a good fit as a therapy cat! A local senior home used to have a therapy cat come by but the cat moved away. We're now working on getting used to a harness and he took to it almost immediately.

Now to get him a therapy cat tag!

[Bitters]

My cat steals my roommates cat's food.

My veterinarian showed me a relatively affordable automatic feeder that will only open up and feed a cat based on its microchip. It will recognize the more obese kitty and not open up for her. I've been looking into it but soon won't need it as I will live alone.

[Winstalgia]

mm...where to start.

So, remember my post about the neighbor offering us her cat...? Well, we declined because my parents didn't want her. Her friend or something said she moved away, our of state not that long ago. I don't think he could care less about the kitten, so my sister fed it and played with it outside.

Long story short, it's inside now. It was named 'Mel' as in melody, I'd think, but my sister renamed it to Whiskey. My mom let her in very early this morning when I was asleep and chip was inside because she didn't wanna leave a mewing cat outside. It was pretty chilly too so...yeah. The car was starving and very thirsty when it came inside, so I'm glad my parents are letting is feed it.

So much for a slow, nice, introduction. They fought outside but chip thinks he owns the whole house. Thankfully he's been ignoring the kitten and minding his own business, and Whiskey is doing the same.

So, we have a second cat now. I'll share a picture later, I took pictures of her earlier yesterday. She isn't that old, not even a year old or even 10 months.

IMG_20190126_082736.jpg (428.24 KiB) Viewed 17 times

[Thalassic]

mm...where to start.

So, remember my post about the neighbor offering us her cat...? Well, we declined because my parents didn't want her. Her friend or something said she moved away, our of state not that long ago. I don't think he could care less about the kitten, so my sister fed it and played with it outside.

Long story short, it's inside now. It was named 'Mel' as in melody, I'd think, but my sister renamed it to Whiskey. My mom let her in very early this morning when I was asleep and chip was inside because she didn't wanna leave a mewing cat outside. It was pretty chilly too so...yeah. The car was starving and very thirsty when it came inside, so I'm glad my parents are letting is feed it.

So much for a slow, nice, introduction. They fought outside but chip thinks he owns the whole house. Thankfully he's been ignoring the kitten and minding his own business, and Whiskey is doing the same.

So, we have a second cat now. I'll share a picture later, I took pictures of her earlier yesterday. She isn't that old, not even a year old or even 10 months.

IMG_20190126_082736.jpg

You can still do all the things required for a slow introduction, even if the cats have already met. And you still should do it, as if they have fought before, they are likely not on the best of terms and more fights are likely to follow.
The first thing you should think about, though, is taking the new cat to the vet and setting up a date to neuter them. That in itself can help prevent aggression and mating behaviors (and I'm not sure if you've said if Chip is neutered or not, but obviously you can't have a female and a male cat living together if both of them are unneutered). And then go through the steps of introducing them gradually.

[Winstalgia]

-snip-

You can still do all the things required for a slow introduction, even if the cats have already met. And you still should do it, as if they have fought before, they are likely not on the best of terms and more fights are likely to follow.
The first thing you should think about, though, is taking the new cat to the vet and setting up a date to neuter them. That in itself can help prevent aggression and mating behaviors (and I'm not sure if you've said if Chip is neutered or not, but obviously you can't have a female and a male cat living together if both of them are unneutered). And then go through the steps of introducing them gradually.

I figured I'd at least try, I want them to become friends.

I have no clue if my cat has been neutered, or Whiskey. If it were up to me I'd take them both to the vet to get them neutered but my Mom and Dad don't want to 'invest' in the cats. So, therefore, I really cannot do that yet. Once I get a job (Soon) I'll be able to pay my parents back and then we can take them.

They are both outside right now, we have people over and three are allergic to cats. When they were let out, Whiskey drank from the water bowl and Chip ate his food but they didn't fight. I think the reason the fight broke out in the first place was because Whiskey-before we took her in-tried to eat Chip's food and that's the one thing he is protective over.

We gave her her own food instantly though, and they've been on good terms since then, but I still will introduce them again to each other, slowly.

[Thalassic]

-snip-

You can still do all the things required for a slow introduction, even if the cats have already met. And you still should do it, as if they have fought before, they are likely not on the best of terms and more fights are likely to follow.
The first thing you should think about, though, is taking the new cat to the vet and setting up a date to neuter them. That in itself can help prevent aggression and mating behaviors (and I'm not sure if you've said if Chip is neutered or not, but obviously you can't have a female and a male cat living together if both of them are unneutered). And then go through the steps of introducing them gradually.

I figured I'd at least try, I want them to become friends.

I have no clue if my cat has been neutered, or Whiskey. If it were up to me I'd take them both to the vet to get them neutered but my Mom and Dad don't want to 'invest' in the cats. So, therefore, I really cannot do that yet. Once I get a job (Soon) I'll be able to pay my parents back and then we can take them.

They are both outside right now, we have people over and three are allergic to cats. When they were let out, Whiskey drank from the water bowl and Chip ate his food but they didn't fight. I think the reason the fight broke out in the first place was because Whiskey-before we took her in-tried to eat Chip's food and that's the one thing he is protective over.

We gave her her own food instantly though, and they've been on good terms since then, but I still will introduce them again to each other, slowly.

You really should get them neutered as soon as possible. It would be much more of an investment to care for a pregnant cat and later all of her kittens. Cats can get pregnant as early as 4 months old and it can be very dangerous for them.

[Winstalgia]

-snip-

You really should get them neutered as soon as possible. It would be much more of an investment to care for a pregnant cat and later all of her kittens. Cats can get pregnant as early as 4 months old and it can be very dangerous for them.

Good news; I brought it up to Mom and she's willing to do it. She wants to find a cheaper place, not a 200$ place, but she will be getting it done. My Mom is absolutely in love with Tally. (they changed her name...again.)

[Animall]

-snip-

You really should get them neutered as soon as possible. It would be much more of an investment to care for a pregnant cat and later all of her kittens. Cats can get pregnant as early as 4 months old and it can be very dangerous for them.

Good news; I brought it up to Mom and she's willing to do it. She wants to find a cheaper place, not a 200$ place, but she will be getting it done. My Mom is absolutely in love with Tally. (they changed her name...again.)

Im sure there are programs in your area that neuter for free/cheap! They are fairly common. Id recommend calling your local animal shelters, they would be able to direct you to the right place. Good luck! <3

[Sixx O'Clock]

-snip-

You really should get them neutered as soon as possible. It would be much more of an investment to care for a pregnant cat and later all of her kittens. Cats can get pregnant as early as 4 months old and it can be very dangerous for them.

Good news; I brought it up to Mom and she's willing to do it. She wants to find a cheaper place, not a 200$ place, but she will be getting it done. My Mom is absolutely in love with Tally. (they changed her name...again.)

Check with your local ASPCA or rescues, sometimes they'll have low-cost programs depending on income, or sometimes they'll do mobile spay/neuter events which will neuter animals for free or for very cheap.