The Cat Thread

[jmdirt]

Re:

I've always had cats. Found this thread. Our oldest cat is 17. Last week she stopped eating and started hiding. Spent the weekend force feeding her. Got her to the vet yesterday. She has an infection (she got an antibiotic shot for that) and unfortunately kidney function is down which is part of the problem. So we came home with a bag of fluids, with tubes and needles to give her fluids. She's acting more normal today, but still not eating. So we're forcing feeding her. She did start eating treats again today, so that's at least an improvement.

Long story short about the force feeding. My cat that we had to put down about 4 years ago had major health issues her entire life and she had to be force fed multiple times for varying lengths before starting to eat again each time. She was 16 when we had to put her down due to health finally failing, but we had her for much longer than I had dared hoped I would have had her for.


This is a picture of our 17 yr old cat. Her name is Ariel. This picture is from when she was a kitten.

Unfortunately, I've been down this road many times with dogs and cats. I always push it too long and say that I will know better next time...next time, next time...

One of my cats is on urinary tract food, and the other is on kidney and thyroid meds. We spend about $5K on the later several years ago when her intestines 'crashed'. I don't know if I would have spent $5K had I known up front, but once you spend 1 then 2 then...once you start, when do you stop?!

 

[jmdirt]

Re:

I've always had cats. Found this thread. Our oldest cat is 17. Last week she stopped eating and started hiding. Spent the weekend force feeding her. Got her to the vet yesterday. She has an infection (she got an antibiotic shot for that) and unfortunately kidney function is down which is part of the problem. So we came home with a bag of fluids, with tubes and needles to give her fluids. She's acting more normal today, but still not eating. So we're forcing feeding her. She did start eating treats again today, so that's at least an improvement.

Long story short about the force feeding. My cat that we had to put down about 4 years ago had major health issues her entire life and she had to be force fed multiple times for varying lengths before starting to eat again each time. She was 16 when we had to put her down due to health finally failing, but we had her for much longer than I had dared hoped I would have had her for.


This is a picture of our 17 yr old cat. Her name is Ariel. This picture is from when she was a kitten.

Unfortunately, I've been down this road many times with dogs and cats. I always push it too long and say that I will know better next time...next time, next time...

One of my cats is on urinary track food, and the other is on kidney and thyroid meds. We spend about $5K on the later several years ago when her intestines 'crashed'. I don't know if I would have spent $5K had I known up front, but once you spend 1 then 2 then...once you start, when do you stop?!

 

[jmdirt]

Re:

I've always had cats. Found this thread. Our oldest cat is 17. Last week she stopped eating and started hiding. Spent the weekend force feeding her. Got her to the vet yesterday. She has an infection (she got an antibiotic shot for that) and unfortunately kidney function is down which is part of the problem. So we came home with a bag of fluids, with tubes and needles to give her fluids. She's acting more normal today, but still not eating. So we're forcing feeding her. She did start eating treats again today, so that's at least an improvement.

Long story short about the force feeding. My cat that we had to put down about 4 years ago had major health issues her entire life and she had to be force fed multiple times for varying lengths before starting to eat again each time. She was 16 when we had to put her down due to health finally failing, but we had her for much longer than I had dared hoped I would have had her for.


This is a picture of our 17 yr old cat. Her name is Ariel. This picture is from when she was a kitten.

Unfortunately, I've been down this road many times with dogs and cats. I always push it too long and say that I will know better next time...next time, next time...

One of my cats is on urinary track food, and the other is on kidney and thyroid meds. We spend about $5K on the later several years ago when her intestines 'crashed'. I don't know if I would have spent $5K had I known up front, but once you spend 1 then 2 then...once you start, when do you stop?!

 

[Koronin]

It's only a few hundred on her so far. For now with Ariel it's as long as her quality of life is good we'll do what we can for her. She's back to acting like herself. Very bossy and feisty. She needs to put more weight back on, but hopefully that'll come as she is eating again.

 

[rayshow053]

Hi cat lovers! I'm just curious what kind of cat food do you feed?

Backstory is, I have a 8 yr. old male, 2 yr. old male, and a 1 yr. old male. The 1 year old looks like a watermelon. He has an enormous tummy! I took him to the vet to have him checked out, and it was confirmed that he's just fat. I have found some recommendations online https://goodcatlife.com/ , but it would be nice to know what you all feed your cats

 

[sir fly]

Hi cat lovers! I'm just curious what kind of cat food do you feed?

Backstory is, I have a 8 yr. old male, 2 yr. old male, and a 1 yr. old male. The 1 year old looks like a watermelon. He has an enormous tummy! I took him to the vet to have him checked out, and it was confirmed that he's just fat. I have found some recommendations online, but it would be nice to know what you all feed your cats

Until they weren't working in a deratization company, I simply used to give them pocket money and they'd choose by themselves.
... Lasagne most often.

 

[jmdirt]

One of our cats passed away this evening. I'm in shock because there was no indication that anything was wrong. He stretched with me after my ride, something that he always did because he liked that I was on the floor. He rubbed against my wet legs when I got out of the shower, also something that he liked to do for some reason. I gave him some food and he ate it all. We took the dog for a walk, and then ate dinner. When I came upstairs he was laying on the bed and his mouth looked strange so I looked closer and it was obvious that he had passed.

I can't tell you how much I will miss that crooked tail goofball.

 

[Tricycle Rider]

One of our cats passed away this evening. I'm in shock because there was no indication that anything was wrong. He stretched with me after my ride, something that he always did because he liked that I was on the floor. He rubbed against my wet legs when I got out of the shower, also something that he liked to do for some reason. I gave him some food and he ate it all. We took the dog for a walk, and then ate dinner. When I came upstairs he was laying on the bed and his mouth looked strange so I looked closer and it was obvious that he had passed.

I can't tell you how much I will miss that crooked tail goofball.

Very sorry to hear, jmd.

Each time you lose a beloved pet it hurts. And at some point you just say to yourself- yeah well, I've been there, and had done that, why even bother anymore?

You will still feel the pain, but at some point I'm sure you'll be ready to adopt another homeless pet who may need some help with finding a new, nice home.

 

[Koronin]

So sorry, jmd. It's always tough.

 

[BlueRoads]

Sorry to hear that. But sounds like he did not have a bad last day.

 

[jmdirt]

Very sorry to hear, jmd.

Each time you lose a beloved pet it hurts. And at some point you just say to yourself- yeah well, I've been there, and had done that, why even bother anymore?

You will still feel the pain, but at some point I'm sure you'll be ready to adopt another homeless pet who may need some help with finding a new, nice home.

Sammie was truly homeless because someone dumped him with the *feral colony that my wife cared for. He was such a character and it was obvious that he wasn't feral. It wasn't uncommon for house cats to get dumped with the ferals, but it was rare for them to stay. When they did, we would take them to a cat rescue who works with the feral keepers.

This guy was special so my wife brought him home to see how he would work out with our other cat. They never became friends, but they tolerated each other...mostly. I think that he got dumped because he had very bad urinary issues. We spent a lot of money initially, and then monthly for prescription food so whoever dumped him probably wasn't willing or able to do that. He did have bad teeth, and over the years had many of them removed. I know that mouth issues and heart issues can go hand in hand so I do wonder if that is what happened even though there was no indication. Had I suspected something I would have taken him to the vet (even if that might not have made a difference).

He had a crazy crooked tail that we assume was closed in a car door or something. He wasn't a stereotypical cat in that he was very people centered. He loved being around us, and headbutting our legs to remind us that he needed to have his ears scratched. As I typed above he loved stretching with me after my rides because I was on the floor with him. Sometimes when I would come upstairs he would run into the office where I stretch and wait until he realized it wasn't stretch time and be disappointed. Actually it was pretty rare to come up the stairs and not have him meet me at the top. He also loved to be on my lap when I was at the computer (read can't see the monitor or type). No, stretch...no problem let me sit on your lap and scent mark everything on your desk!

Honestly, all of our cats have been less stereotypical than what you hear and read, probably partly because of the way that we are with them. My mom has two cats that she rescued on the same day though, and one is very people centered and the other is much more stereotypical, so who knows how that works out.

We are in for a cruel double whammy because our 18 year old cat who is deaf, blind, and on a pharma cocktail, can't have too much time left.

*My wife cared for a feral colony for 13 years. When she started there were 10 'regulars'. She started out by just feeding them, but then after some brief research started trapping and fixing them. Before she got to all of them, a few did have kittens, and we were able to get all but two of them before they became feral. So the colony was 8 regulars and 3 frequs (frequent but not every day) for a while, then as fixed colonies do, it started getting smaller. Last year at this time she only had two left. One was one of the two original kittens that we didn't catch before she was feral (we did catcher her and get her fixed eventually). The other was one that was very feral, but would sit at my wife's feet and bathe after she ate. The kitten got very sick and disappeared (died), and the old matriarch disappeared shortly after (she was maybe 15, which is crazy old for ferals..the kitten made it to 12 I guess). That was hard for my wife. Something that she had done every day for 13 years ended! She still went there everyday for two more months just in case because she didn't want that cat to show up and be hungry.

Sorry, this is mental medicine for me...

 

[Tricycle Rider]

Sammie was truly homeless because someone dumped him with the *feral colony that my wife cared for. He was such a character and it was obvious that he wasn't feral. It wasn't uncommon for house cats to get dumped with the ferals, but it was rare for them to stay. When they did, we would take them to a cat rescue who works with the feral keepers.

This guy was special so my wife brought him home to see how he would work out with our other cat. They never became friends, but they tolerated each other...mostly. I think that he got dumped because he had very bad urinary issues. We spent a lot of money initially, and then monthly for prescription food so whoever dumped him probably wasn't willing or able to do that. He did have bad teeth, and over the years had many of them removed. I know that mouth issues and heart issues can go hand in hand so I do wonder if that is what happened even though there was no indication. Had I suspected something I would have taken him to the vet (even if that might not have made a difference).

He had a crazy crooked tail that we assume was closed in a car door or something. He wasn't a stereotypical cat in that he was very people centered. He loved being around us, and headbutting our legs to remind us that he needed to have his ears scratched. As I typed above he loved stretching with me after my rides because I was on the floor with him. Sometimes when I would come upstairs he would run into the office where I stretch and wait until he realized it wasn't stretch time and be disappointed. Actually it was pretty rare to come up the stairs and not have him meet me at the top. He also loved to be on my lap when I was at the computer (read can't see the monitor or type). No, stretch...no problem let me sit on your lap and scent mark everything on your desk!

Honestly, all of our cats have been less stereotypical than what you hear and read, probably partly because of the way that we are with them. My mom has two cats that she rescued on the same day though, and one is very people centered and the other is much more stereotypical, so who knows how that works out.

We are in for a cruel double whammy because our 18 year old cat who is deaf, blind, and on a pharma cocktail, can't have too much time left.

*My wife cared for a feral colony for 13 years. When she started there were 10 'regulars'. She started out by just feeding them, but then after some brief research started trapping and fixing them. Before she got to all of them, a few did have kittens, and we were able to get all but two of them before they became feral. So the colony was 8 regulars and 3 frequs (frequent but not every day) for a while, then as fixed colonies do, it started getting smaller. Last year at this time she only had two left. One was one of the two original kittens that we didn't catch before she was feral (we did catcher her and get her fixed eventually). The other was one that was very feral, but would sit at my wife's feet and bathe after she ate. The kitten got very sick and disappeared (died), and the old matriarch disappeared shortly after (she was maybe 15, which is crazy old for ferals..the kitten made it to 12 I guess). That was hard for my wife. Something that she had done every day for 13 years ended! She still went there everyday for two more months just in case because she didn't want that cat to show up and be hungry.

Sorry, this is mental medicine for me...

No worries, jmd, just type your heart out if you find it helpful. We'll listen.

One topic you haven't addressed, however, did Sammie and your wife ever have issues with your (poor) choices in vacuum cleaners?

 

[BlueRoads]

I always tell people writing will help. They just never believe me!

I am not good at dealing with dying pets. It's one of the reasons I don't want any right now. My family used to have a lot of pets and I have cried a lot over them dying. Kudos to you who don't let that deter you.

 

[jmdirt]

No worries, jmd, just type your heart out if you find it helpful. We'll listen.

One topic you haven't addressed, however, did Sammie and your wife ever have issues with your (poor) choices in vacuum cleaners?

Sammie found the vacuum annoying!

 

[jmdirt]

I always tell people writing will help. They just never believe me!

I am not good at dealing with dying pets. It's one of the reasons I don't want any right now. My family used to have a lot of pets and I have cried a lot over them dying. Kudos to you who don't let that deter you.

Every time that a pet dies it crushes me! But I can't imagine not having one. There is a lot of pleasure for the amount of pain. But man...the pain!

The suddenness of this one is really Fn with my head/heart. I had never experienced/dealt with the sudden passing of a pet or person for that matter.

 

[jmdirt]

Sammie was truly homeless because someone dumped him with the *feral colony that my wife cared for. He was such a character and it was obvious that he wasn't feral. It wasn't uncommon for house cats to get dumped with the ferals, but it was rare for them to stay. When they did, we would take them to a cat rescue who works with the feral keepers.

This guy was special so my wife brought him home to see how he would work out with our other cat. They never became friends, but they tolerated each other...mostly. I think that he got dumped because he had very bad urinary issues. We spent a lot of money initially, and then monthly for prescription food so whoever dumped him probably wasn't willing or able to do that. He did have bad teeth, and over the years had many of them removed. I know that mouth issues and heart issues can go hand in hand so I do wonder if that is what happened even though there was no indication. Had I suspected something I would have taken him to the vet (even if that might not have made a difference).

He had a crazy crooked tail that we assume was closed in a car door or something. He wasn't a stereotypical cat in that he was very people centered. He loved being around us, and headbutting our legs to remind us that he needed to have his ears scratched. As I typed above he loved stretching with me after my rides because I was on the floor with him. Sometimes when I would come upstairs he would run into the office where I stretch and wait until he realized it wasn't stretch time and be disappointed. Actually it was pretty rare to come up the stairs and not have him meet me at the top. He also loved to be on my lap when I was at the computer (read can't see the monitor or type). No, stretch...no problem let me sit on your lap and scent mark everything on your desk!

Honestly, all of our cats have been less stereotypical than what you hear and read, probably partly because of the way that we are with them. My mom has two cats that she rescued on the same day though, and one is very people centered and the other is much more stereotypical, so who knows how that works out.

We are in for a cruel double whammy because our 18 year old cat who is deaf, blind, and on a pharma cocktail, can't have too much time left.

*My wife cared for a feral colony for 13 years. When she started there were 10 'regulars'. She started out by just feeding them, but then after some brief research started trapping and fixing them. Before she got to all of them, a few did have kittens, and we were able to get all but two of them before they became feral. So the colony was 8 regulars and 3 frequs (frequent but not every day) for a while, then as fixed colonies do, it started getting smaller. Last year at this time she only had two left. One was one of the two original kittens that we didn't catch before she was feral (we did catcher her and get her fixed eventually). The other was one that was very feral, but would sit at my wife's feet and bathe after she ate. The kitten got very sick and disappeared (died), and the old matriarch disappeared shortly after (she was maybe 15, which is crazy old for ferals..the kitten made it to 12 I guess). That was hard for my wife. Something that she had done every day for 13 years ended! She still went there everyday for two more months just in case because she didn't want that cat to show up and be hungry.

Sorry, this is mental medicine for me...

Tinker passed.
Two animals within a few months...

 

[Tricycle Rider]

Tinker passed.
Two animals within a few months...

So sorry to hear, jmd, if you would like me to post a picture of Tinker for you just shoot it over to me, you know my email addy. I do still have that pic of Sammie.

 

[Tricycle Rider]

I have a burning question for the cat and/or kitten owners here...

I recently saw an episode of one of those vet ER tv shows, in it they showed a vet pulling out a whole bunch of maggots out of a kitten's jaw. I felt so grossed out by the maggots, but also felt very badly for the poor kitty. Thankfully the vet was able to provide some relief.

So anyway, is this something you guys encounter on a regular basis?

 

[Koronin]

We had to put Ariel to sleep today. She was 18 (would have turned 19 in May). She'd had some health issues over the past 2 years. About a week before Christmas she had started really going downhill. Over Christmas she ate better, she was gobbling up the ham. then New Year's Eve and Day she only ate in the afternoon and Saturday she had had enough and wouldn't eat anything else. Called yesterday to make an apt to bring her in. (Had to schedule where my husband could be here as well, he had an MRI yesterday at a hospital 3 hours away). We took her in this afternoon to say goodbye.

This is her as a kitten.

 

[jmdirt]

I have a burning question for the cat and/or kitten owners here...

I recently saw an episode of one of those vet ER tv shows, in it they showed a vet pulling out a whole bunch of maggots out of a kitten's jaw. I felt so grossed out by the maggots, but also felt very badly for the poor kitty. Thankfully the vet was able to provide some relief.

So anyway, is this something you guys encounter on a regular basis?

Never.

 

[jmdirt]

We had to put Ariel to sleep today. She was 18 (would have turned 19 in May). She'd had some health issues over the past 2 years. About a week before Christmas she had started really going downhill. Over Christmas she ate better, she was gobbling up the ham. then New Year's Eve and Day she only ate in the afternoon and Saturday she had had enough and wouldn't eat anything else. Called yesterday to make an apt to bring her in. (Had to schedule where my husband could be here as well, he had an MRI yesterday at a hospital 3 hours away). We took her in this afternoon to say goodbye.

This is her as a kitten.

As you can tell by reading a few of the post upthread, I literally feel your sorrow!

 

[Tricycle Rider]

We had to put Ariel to sleep today. She was 18 (would have turned 19 in May). She'd had some health issues over the past 2 years. About a week before Christmas she had started really going downhill. Over Christmas she ate better, she was gobbling up the ham. then New Year's Eve and Day she only ate in the afternoon and Saturday she had had enough and wouldn't eat anything else. Called yesterday to make an apt to bring her in. (Had to schedule where my husband could be here as well, he had an MRI yesterday at a hospital 3 hours away). We took her in this afternoon to say goodbye.

This is her as a kitten.

Very sorry to hear, it's always so hard when we lose our beloved pets.

 

[RobinSm89]

Recently, I often hear that it is necessary to clean the anal glands of cats and dogs. What do you think about that? I just don't even know how to feel about it

 

[jmdirt]

Recently, I often hear that it is necessary to clean the anal glands of cats and dogs. What do you think about that? I just don't even know how to feel about it

I've never had that issue with a cat, but had a dog that needed it done once of twice a year.

 

[jmdirt]

There are some kittens living in the neighborhood that started being seen in April of 2020 living under garages and sheds. In August one of them started spending her days on our patio, and her nights in the neighbors geothermal hot pool hut. She and my wife hit it off, and she really liked our dog too. She would follow us around the block when we did Buddy's bedtime walk. My wife decided to see how the kitten would do inside so she caught her, took her to the vet, and now she lives in our house. She is super affectionate, and very talkative, but also still very jumpy. She absolutely loves Buddy, but he is just meh.