Hello! I adopted a cat a couple days ago, and his behavior is not jiving with what we were told about him and isn't something I will be able to deal with more than a week or so. I don't see it resolving anytime soon. I have had many rescue cats in the past and have worked through issues. What I'm seeing is far beyond what I have experienced, and I was not interested in a high needs/special needs situation right now.
We were looking for a family cat. We were prepared to deal with timidness and working with some behavior from not being treated properly. I told the organization I went through that the only behavior I could not work through was loud yowling. I also told them we would never own more than one cat and would not be allowing it in our bedrooms. They matched us with two cats that had come from a hoarder house in September, that they determined could go to different homes. Both were considered social and friendly, had good habits and they thought they would do well with children. We visited, and the female seemed a little twitchy and "off," so we were not interested in her.
The male was very relaxed and friendly, a little playful, but he is deaf. The foster mother said it doesn't seem to bother him or slow him down. She said he trills and chirrups, which we saw for ourselves. He was specifically noted as needing an active household with kids or other cats. We were told he likes to be active at night, and she'll hear him thumping around playing down there. We spent some time with him and there didn't seem to be any red flags other than the deafness and a slight cross to his eyes. He had a clean bill of health from the vet, and there was no explainable reason for his deafness.
The Cat: Male, neutered, ~4 years old, deaf.
When we got him home, he was eager to come out of his transport, greet us and explore the room. He was exceptionally happy, ate, drank, played, used his box, used his scratching post. Now worries at all... until we had to leave the room. Immediate distress that only escalated- yowling loudly. We tried to have someone keeping him company throughout the evening, but couldn't have someone there at all times. He got upset immediately upon being left alone and it would not end. He will also turn and walk away and think he is alone and start yelling, not even turning or attempting to find you, just panic until you wave in front of him (and he is perfectly happy again). He doesn't seem to care where he is or who he is with, just that he has company.
His vision, although listed as normal in his medical paperwork, seems very limited. He has no peripheral, and I am pretty sure he is nearsighted. We noticed this right away, yet the woman caring for him didn't notice anything off in the months she had him? We cannot have a deaf and visually limited cat. The hearing was borderline, but he seemed so perfect in other ways that we were willing to accept it.
Overnight was a nightmare. Loud yowling and door pounding all night with only a couple short breaks, I assume when he wore himself out.
Yesterday, we brought him out with us, thinking he would be happier just being with us.... and he is, until he loses sight of a person and starts yowling. He walks across the room, forgets we are right behind him, and yowls. This happens constantly. I think he might be retarded or have short term memory problems.
We had to leave for a couple hours yesterday, so I put him back in his room. He peed in the box twice and on two fabric surfaces in the room while we were gone. It seemed like an abnormally high amount to me and smells sweet and flowery. I know they can excrete more glucose when stressed, but I've never smelled cat urine this sweet, making me wonder if he has diabetes/prediabetes and we specifically passed on a very sweet cat that had diabetes, because the only way I would do blood tests and insulin shots is for a long term, beloved pet. I'm not committing to pre-existing issues that require regular management. Being with a foster for a couple months and having had several vet visits, shouldn't this be something that came up? After peeing out of the box, my husband is done with him.
Last night might have been worse than the night before. This morning, is the same as yesterday. His swings just seem even wider- more affectionate and adorably cattish, contrasted with yowling and lack of any reasonable problem solving skills, like "I might be alone, I should scan the room."
I e-mailed the foster and coordinator detailing my concerns. Any suggestions in the meantime? Short of magic, I'm not sure how to calm him down.
We were looking for a family cat. We were prepared to deal with timidness and working with some behavior from not being treated properly. I told the organization I went through that the only behavior I could not work through was loud yowling. I also told them we would never own more than one cat and would not be allowing it in our bedrooms. They matched us with two cats that had come from a hoarder house in September, that they determined could go to different homes. Both were considered social and friendly, had good habits and they thought they would do well with children. We visited, and the female seemed a little twitchy and "off," so we were not interested in her.
The male was very relaxed and friendly, a little playful, but he is deaf. The foster mother said it doesn't seem to bother him or slow him down. She said he trills and chirrups, which we saw for ourselves. He was specifically noted as needing an active household with kids or other cats. We were told he likes to be active at night, and she'll hear him thumping around playing down there. We spent some time with him and there didn't seem to be any red flags other than the deafness and a slight cross to his eyes. He had a clean bill of health from the vet, and there was no explainable reason for his deafness.
The Cat: Male, neutered, ~4 years old, deaf.
When we got him home, he was eager to come out of his transport, greet us and explore the room. He was exceptionally happy, ate, drank, played, used his box, used his scratching post. Now worries at all... until we had to leave the room. Immediate distress that only escalated- yowling loudly. We tried to have someone keeping him company throughout the evening, but couldn't have someone there at all times. He got upset immediately upon being left alone and it would not end. He will also turn and walk away and think he is alone and start yelling, not even turning or attempting to find you, just panic until you wave in front of him (and he is perfectly happy again). He doesn't seem to care where he is or who he is with, just that he has company.
His vision, although listed as normal in his medical paperwork, seems very limited. He has no peripheral, and I am pretty sure he is nearsighted. We noticed this right away, yet the woman caring for him didn't notice anything off in the months she had him? We cannot have a deaf and visually limited cat. The hearing was borderline, but he seemed so perfect in other ways that we were willing to accept it.
Overnight was a nightmare. Loud yowling and door pounding all night with only a couple short breaks, I assume when he wore himself out.
Yesterday, we brought him out with us, thinking he would be happier just being with us.... and he is, until he loses sight of a person and starts yowling. He walks across the room, forgets we are right behind him, and yowls. This happens constantly. I think he might be retarded or have short term memory problems.
We had to leave for a couple hours yesterday, so I put him back in his room. He peed in the box twice and on two fabric surfaces in the room while we were gone. It seemed like an abnormally high amount to me and smells sweet and flowery. I know they can excrete more glucose when stressed, but I've never smelled cat urine this sweet, making me wonder if he has diabetes/prediabetes and we specifically passed on a very sweet cat that had diabetes, because the only way I would do blood tests and insulin shots is for a long term, beloved pet. I'm not committing to pre-existing issues that require regular management. Being with a foster for a couple months and having had several vet visits, shouldn't this be something that came up? After peeing out of the box, my husband is done with him.
Last night might have been worse than the night before. This morning, is the same as yesterday. His swings just seem even wider- more affectionate and adorably cattish, contrasted with yowling and lack of any reasonable problem solving skills, like "I might be alone, I should scan the room."
I e-mailed the foster and coordinator detailing my concerns. Any suggestions in the meantime? Short of magic, I'm not sure how to calm him down.
