I don't think Bob would be amused with the pink legwarmers. He did, however, bat at a toy for a record 5 min this morning, and is in rare form chasing his brother around (SIGH. Why is the only exercise my cat gets beating up the OTHER cat?)
Wow, I thought I posted to this thread before but I guess not (after looking at all the posts). I have three kitties at home - all female.
Jinx is an 8 year old tortie. We adopted her from a shelter when she was 3 (she was a stray before that). She's a loyal kitty, very independent. Jinx has IBD and we have to give her prednisone and keep her on special food (meaning all 3 cats get the special food, which the vet said was fine).
Bailey is 5 years old, and is a cream and white tabby. We've had her since she was about 8 weeks old. Bailey was really sick when we got her. URI, ear mites, fleas, etc. She also has feline herpes. So, because she was so sick she got used to being handled (given a lot of medicine and attention) when she was young. She's turned out to be a super-dependent cat. She's like a dog, seriously. She sleeps with me every single night. When I work at home she HAS to be laying next to me. She constantly wants human attention.
Chloe is 3 years old, and we got her from a co-worker of mine when she was 1 year old. She's a black/gray/white tabby with hint of Egyptian Mau (she has spots instead of stripes on her sides, a very long tail, and huge ears). Chloe's attitude is skittish. She doesn't like it when we have other people over (some people don't believe we really have 3 cats) and doesn't like loud or sudden noises. She's very vocal though, and likes to be petted a lot.
Jinx and Bailey got along great (after the initial "this is my house and what are you doing here" thing from Jinx when we got Bailey) until we got Chloe. Jinx got mad at Bailey for befriending Chloe and now she just "puts up" with the two of them. The funny thing is that even though Jinx is the oldest, Chloe is the biggest, at 12 pounds. Jinx and Bailey both weigh 9 pounds. But Chloe has a much bigger frame than the other 2. So Jinx thinks she rules the house because she was there first, and Chloe thinks she does because she is the biggest. Bailey could care less
To those who have diabetic cats, I feel your pain. I used to have a cat, Quasar, who passed a little over 5 years ago who we had to give insulin to twice a day. We were constantly adjusting his dosage, and we had to be very strict about his food. He was always hungry and he drank a lot of water. I felt so bad for him at times. It turned out he also had an intestinal problem, and they just couldn't keep him going.
Oh and to comment about walking cats - seriously I don't see why people do this unless they used to let the cat roam free and then move somewhere (like an apartment complex) where that isn't allowed. I think they should be either indoor or outdoor. I tried "supervised outdoor visits" with Quasar before we knew he was diabetic, and he just ended up becoming an outdoor cat. Once they go out, they always want to be out and leashing them just takes too much effort (imo)!
It does take extra effort to leash train a cat, but there are situations where I think it's definitely worth the effort. My mother's cousin and her husband had two siamese mix cats that they let outside only on long leads, so the cats could explore, but not leave the yard. The cats didn't seem to mind the leashes, and liked both their indoor and outdoor time (the couple was older though and did have time to spend training the cats, but they said they started when they were kittens, and they took to it right away). Their home was in town and stray dogs and wildlife that could harass the cats were very rare though. In our area, we can not leave our kitty outside unsupervised with or without a leash because it's too dangerous for her.
We adopted our cat from a shelter. She had obviously been allowed to go roam, because for months after we brought her home, she would scratch at the door and beg to be let out every evening at precisely 7:00 pm. Because we live in an apartment, and because there are coyotes, foxes, hawks, and eagles in the area, we couldn't let her out unsupervised. We wanted to leash train her and get her used to traveling in the van so that we could travel with her. We figured with a leash, we could prevent her from dashing out of the van and getting lost when we stopped for gas or pit stops. The leash part worked great, but the van part didn't. She hated the moving vehicle, and cried for an hour of the five hour trip to my parents home. On the way home, she wasn't any better. If we did a lot of traveling, it would probably be worth getting her used to it, but since we only visit my folks a couple times a year, we just have a friend take care of her while we're gone.
I think each cat is different too. I knew a guy who had a cat that would not only walk on a leash like a dog (not quite as fast, so more like an old dog)with very little traing and would also play fetch. That cat was also a siamese. Our cat is such a talker that we suspect she might have some siamese in her, but we're not sure. So maybe some breeds are easier to train than others.
I remember trying a leash with Quasar and he would just struggle to try to get out of it. Jinx, our oldest cat who used to be a stray, tries to "escape" just about every day. She's gotten out a few times, but there are a lot of other cats in the neighborhood and on occasion I've actually seen a couple of unleashed dogs (even though we have leash laws and they are the same dogs, so I know they are from the neighborhood, but I don't know who they belong to).
I guess leashing just never made sense to me with my cats. Jinx would go nuts and be pissed that I had her on a leash. Bailey is scared of the "outside" since she's never been. Seriously, I carry her out there and she will start to shake and she jumps out of my arms and runs back in the house. Chloe would probably be OK on a leash, but never shows interest in wanting to go out and I'd rather keep it that way I suppose
I think in general (actually for just about anything), if you don't see a reason to do something, you usually don't bother. I mean why would you? Unless you've got tons of time on your hands and nothing better to do, and even then training cats would be a pretty odd hobby (though not as odd as some I've seen on tv).
There was a guy on Ripley's Believe it or Not, who taught his cat to ride with him on his motorcycle. The cat even has her own tiny little helmet. Now that's a guy with too much time on his hands (but he was retired and a bachelor or widow, so he really did have all the time in the world do it).
When I was living at home with my folks while I was going to graduate school, I taught their dog to sneeze on command. It was adorable, but a stupid trick with no real reason behind it. I just wanted to see if I could do it. No doubt I was influenced by my bachelor's degree in behavioral psych as we had to teach rats to do all sorts of goofy things like turn on light switches and dance (the class after mine, got to teach theirs to play basketball). I can tell you that teaching a cat to walk on a leash is a picnic compared to teaching a rat to dance.
OK, so update - Bob's food is now in the puzzle ball, inside a bowl, on top of the cat scratcher. This means that for each bite, he has to stretch up on the scratching post, stick his paw in the bowl, shake the ball, grab a piece of food, knock it on the floor, and eat it.
He hates us. But it takes him a lot longer to eat now, and he's definitely expending more energy doing it. We feed him and he cries, though, with a definite "WHY ARE YOU DOING THIS TO ME" look.
WAY TO GO MANDALINN....that's awesome. I was just watching a program on Animal planet about overweight pets...and they were doing the same thing for an obese cat. He may hate you for it...but i bet he looses som weight. He may hate you...but at least he'll be healthier. I'm glad to hear the puzzle ball is working well. That's great!
I have one cat...who thinks he is, in fact, a dog.
He eats ONLY dog food, drinks out of the toilet, doesn't dig a hole to do his business in, and attempts to bark wildly.
I guess that's what we get for raising him with 6 dogs, huh?
He loves to sleep on the treadmill, is gets rather upset when I try to move him. Sometimes I don't even try anymore, I just turn it on and he moves rather quickly.
mandalinn have you ever tried the weight control food? I'm just curious. My aunt has an overweight cat. He is on prednisone which is mostly to blame and also has to have special food. I'll mention the food ball to her, I bet she'll like it (although the cat may hate it!).
i know its got to be frustrating mandalin...but you are trying to make him healthy...and he will never understand. You just need to know that deep in your heart, even though he screams pathetically, it is for his own good. Sort of like when mom's send their kids to school crying....heartbreaking..but they need to go. I hope he will lose weight with this exercise routine. I really think its great. Keep up the good work..the vet is telling you that you are doing an awesome job and try to not feel so guilty. You are doing everything to help Bob. I wish more of my clients were as compliant as you!
I leave the house at 6am when it is still dark. Tuesday morning, I saw a bob-cat with a rabbit in his mouth cross my driveway. He looked just like a larger version of my little bob-tail, siamese mix cat. Same color, shape etc. My kitty usually a grasshopper or moth in her mouth. The two cats hold their heads exactly the same way when carrying prey.
We have one indoor cat, a polydactil ( opposable thumbs on both front paws ) Russian Blue named Prada. And yeah, she's becoming a fat cat. Have cut out her wet food for a while since she thinks the gravy in the meat is a beverage. Laps up the sauce, leaves the meat. Bad kitty!
Another beautiful day in northern Nova Scotia -- with calm winds and a predicted high of over 20C/70F -- almost unheard of for the latter half of October.
My six are still doing the same old stuff -- tearing up the toilet paper; opening all the cupboard doors; knocking everything off the counter on a regular basis -- you all know the drill. Jazz (the diabetic) is still hanging in there. He goes for another glucose curve on Wednesday to see how he's doing on 4 units, twice a day.
4 myself . . . Any news on Baby? Did you make a vet's appointment for her yet?
Hi thinnythighs . . . know exactly what you mean. All of mine lap the gravy and leave the bits so I stopped buying those and only give them the pate type of wet food now and relatively little of it.
Poor Bob . . . but our resident Vet is right, Mandalinn . . . he will be healthier for it.
Hope everybody else has a great day, too, living in your feline zoo environments . . . see you later . . .
We have 9 cats, 7 dogs, and 3 birds. Our cats are, from oldest to youngest:
Stevie, 13, a mix breed grey tabby, who has been overweight for most of his life. Recently he has dropped some weight, and I`m worried about it. We are scheduling a trip to the vet soon.
Phoebe, approx. 9-10,(not sure because she came from a shelter) She is a long haired, blue-eyed Ragdoll or Ragdoll mix. She is sort of light coffee colored, with alot of white. She is also overweight, and has recently lost some, although not as much as Stevie. I know they`re not thrilled with their catfood, but it`s a high quality brand and they do eat it, just not crazy about it. I really hope nothing is wrong with either of them. Vet will let us know.
Fuzzy, 5, a long haired mix breed. She`s a tortie, and temperamental like torties tend to be. Not overweight at all, but, she is an indoor-outdoor cat. (NOT my idea! She was hubby`s cat before we got married, and he prefers to let his cats out. deep sigh....)
Sluggo, 5, a short haired mix breed. He is all black with a white spot under his chest. Not overweight either, but also one of the indoor-outdoors. Very friendly, really loves DH, who found him abandoned in the woods behind his workplace.
Mama, 4, a short haired tortie who is extremely petite. She weighs maybe 5 lbs? Just a guess, but I know she is under 10 lbs. She looks like a half grown kitten, but is fully grown. She also has a little attitude, but is also extremely loveable when she`s not being flighty.
Stripey, 3, Mama`s baby. She had a litter of 3 soon after DH found her also abandoned in the woods behind his workplace. He had no idea Mama was pregnant. He also had no idea Mama was a girl, LOL!! I still tease him about it to this day. Stripey is a short haired yellow tabby with a white ring around the end of his tail. He is alot bigger than Mama, you would think he was the mommy and Mama was his kitten, lol! The 2 of them love to snuggle up together and she holds his head in a vice grip while she licks him. If he tries to move, she digs her claws in and kicks him, lol! He was never overweight until recently, now he`s getting a belly, and I don`t know where it`s coming from, as he is one of the indoor/outdoors and they tend to stay slim.
Silky and Satin, both 3. I put them together because they are sisters who I bottle raised from the time they were 2 weeks old. I was in a pet rescue at the time, and these 2 plus another littermate were brought to us as abandoned by their feral mother. I took Silky and Satin, and someone else took the other sibling. They were sickly, but they got over it and grew rapidly, but their sibling died suddenly at about 4 or 5 weeks along. No one knew why. Anyhow, I was supposed to raise them until they were adoptable, but of course I became attached and kept them, lol! I couldn`t bear the thought of splitting them up. They love each other in a love/hate sisterly kind of way. Both are short haired, Silky is a grey tabby and Satin is a charcoal grey with some silver tabby markings mostly on her legs and face. Both are somewhat overweight, Silky more so than Satin.
And last but not least, Toomie, 1, who I found at the age of about 3 months at a park not far from here. He had been dumped off with his littermates, I believe there were 6 in all. I HATE people who do that. I hope there is a special place in **** for them...
Anyway, Toomie is a short haired cream colored tabby with white chest, paws, and belly, and a white ring around the tip of his tail also. When I found him (actually he found ME) he was with another sibling, a light grey tabby whom I was not able to catch. I even borrowed a trap from someone and set it there for several days, but after we caught Toomie, we never saw the other kitten again. I feel really bad about it, but I tried my best. I just hope someone was able to catch him/her. I did find out later that all of the other kittens in the litter had been caught and had homes, YEAY!!!!
Toomie is not overweight, but is also an indoor/outdoor so he prowls around enough to keep at a good weight.
Wow, that seemed to take forever to type, lol! I will post some pics later.
with calm winds and a predicted high of over 20C/70F -- almost unheard of for the latter half of October.
