The CAT room!

Well there is no doubt he is neurotic but I think that is only half of the problem. We got the allergy shot for him a couple of times and he stopped licking so that is why I think it is allergies and not a skin condition.

I also heard from someone that lots of cats do better on food made entirely of vegetables (no meat). Anybody else hear anything like this?

jp

Have you tried a good dry cat food, like Iams?

I heard Iams isn't that good anymore... from what I understand they were the premier cat food until they got bought out by some company and the quality went down.

But I do give them good dry food... none of that meow mix stuff for my little ones. As a matter of fact that is all we give them... no canned food.

Oh, I didn't know that (about Iams). Still, there are a number of excellent brands around to choose from. My vet's theory is that cats live much longer, healthier lives these days because of the huge improvement in the quality of food available now.

jpin, I haven't heard anything one way or the other about vegetarian cat food. My gut reaction to it, however, is that it doesn't seem natural. A cat without protein? Meat? Can such a thing be healthy?

That was my reaction as well...

that's interesting - my neighbours dog had something similar and could only tolerate chicken and rice so it could be something like that

Cat's cannot eat a totally vegetarian diet as their digestion cannot cope with it and they will become ill and die.

My vet still seems to rate Iams but maybe some moist food would be good for him for a change? I give ours Whiskas and Iams (or similar) dry food and Rosie likes chicken - with chicken they need Iams to fill in dietary requirements missing in just chicken.


site where you may be able to get some info?


a vegetarian site that lists all the supplements needed if feeding a specialised veg diet

this site lists all the nutritional needs not met by a veggie diet and that would need to be added to make one work

That is some good info, Vivien.. thank you very much.

My cat (Scooter) somehow got out of his carrier as my mom was bringing him to the vet. He ran into the woods and did not come back when called (as most cats don't). For days we thought, we'll find him, but we didn't. I looked for him every single day for 3 weeks. I made signs and put them around the neighborhood behind the vets office (I even had them laminated). We soon began to lose hope. My family was totally devastated. I was in my room one day, and my mom came banging on my door, with the long lost cat in her arms. Somehow, miraculously, he found his way home. The vets office is a good 5 minute drive from my house. It took him one month to get home, but he made it. How did he know where he lived? I guess we'll never know. But we live past an overpass and unless he knew to go over the bridge, he had to cross the interstate to get home. He has been home for 2 months now and I couldn't be happier! If anyone doesn't believe in miracles, hopefully they will now!!!

that is wonderful kellybelle - it must have been terrible worrying all that time ... and hi

Hi. Yes it was awful. We all thought he was dead. He was a little skinny when he got home but no major illnesses to our suprise! He is back to normal now and doing great.

Hi Kellybelle, how good to hear that Scooter found his way home. They are smart!

But it must have been terrible weeks for you until he returned.

I hope we will see you around in the cat room :-)

Kellybelle, Wonderful news. We should never underestimate the ability of cats, except for Mikey, of course, who couldn't find his way out of a paper bag without help from me.

I'm glad Scooter is well. Glad for the both of you.

Found this Funny Kitty-and-Kid Video out there on the web. Its a small .wav file, and shouldn't be much of a download even for dialup users. It plays best in Windows Media Player, but others work too. Enjoy.

Thanks, timber. Very funny! But it stopped rather suddenly. Was there meant to be just one, solitary pounce? Or perhaps it's my (antiquated) computer?

Nah, it ain't your 'puter, msolga ... the clip is only a second or so in length. You might wanna save it to your machine so you can conveniently play it back-to-back a few times in a row. That seems to better convey the moment.

Oh, that's reassuring, timber. I blame my computer for all sorts of mishaps! Anyway, that was very funny!

naughty cat
I am starting to lose affection for my naughty, mean-spirited, snarly cat, Tabitha due to all the problems she's causing over our new cat.

I've had Tabby ever since she was a baby and now she's 8 1/2 years old. She has always been the selfish one. My older cat, Pollyanna, is a saint of a cat -- gentle and motherly. Polly would always give up her place on my lap when Tabitha noticed and became jealous.

We've had our new cat, Sally, since October 6 (over two months). Tabby stalks her down and beats her up. OMG, the cat fights are horrendous, the claws are out and the fur is flying. I thought that Tabby would eventually accept Sally or at least tolerate her presence, but that is NOT happening. Now that we understand that, we have been keeping the cats separated.

Sally is sleeping with "daddy" right now on our bed, so I have Tabby locked up in guest room. She's been crying and banging on that door for two hours straight, but if I let her out -- she will fly into our bedroom for the purpose of hunting down Sally and beating her up. So, for peace at night (my honey needs his sleep), Tabby has to be locked up.

Then during the daytime, I lock Sally up in the guest room so that Tabby can roam around the house.

We can't let both of them out at the same time unless we're able to protect Sally from Tabby's attacks. We've given Sally a tapestry cat carrier -- it's her bag, and she feels safe in her bag. In the evening, we bring Sally and her bag out to the living room so she can spend time with us and watch television. But she needs to be close to her bag in order to feel safe.

Right in front of us -- Tabby will dash over to Sally's bag -- give it a good slap -- and then retreat. I am now starting to punish Tabby after she attacks by grabbing her and putting her in the guest room, but I'm wondering if we're making her jealousy of Sally worse by punishing her or if it just doesn't matter what we do.

Poor Sally -- she's so afraid of Tabby -- and we want Sally to feel safe in her own home. My honey and I don't know what to do to help Tabby to accept Sally and to stop Tabby's attacks. Any suggestions?

I really don't think it sounds as if it will ever work and it would be kinder to rehome Sally - veyr upsetting I know but the stress must be awful for all of you.

Could a vet advise you if you really can't face this option?

I'm having problems but not to this degree - Rosie objects to Paddy but hasn't hurt him - just growls and hisses - he's confident and unafraid and just persists in trying to make friends.

I agree with Vivien, Debra. I don't think it will ever work. Hard as it may be, you might want to find Sally a home where she'll feel safe--and be safe.