- Joined
- Sep 4, 2015
- Messages
- 4
- Purraise
- 1
My wife and I have had Belle, our tabby, for about 6 years. She was a rescue, and we know nothing of her previous home(s). She has always had an issue with stress, and GI upset. She has been on a special diet since we adopted her. Belle is spoiled, as all cats are, but she has been the biggest snuggle bug and a great companion. Until the last year that is. As a spoiled kitty, she ate when she wanted (free fed) and pottied in the litter box when she needed. Her only issue until last year was that she vomited occasionally if she got into something (usually human food that upset her stomach).
In the past year, she has had a drastic temperament change. It started as getting really needy, and then progressed to the degree where she would snuggle up in bed, and not eat or drink. We tried taking her to the vet, but aside from mild dehydration at the time of the visit, she was given a clean bill of health. Despite being "healthy" she dropped literally half her weight (from 14 to 7 lbs). My wife and I worked tirelessly to get her weight up, but she is still skin and bones. She was fed more calorie rich foods, but only ate a scant amount.
Then we moved. She poops and pees everywhere. She still lazes about, hanging out in her "tree", she's still a snuggle bug. We are working on the potty thing, but it's been 2 months since we moved, and I still find poop and pee spots all over the house. And now, she is interested in human food so much that she wails every meal that we eat. It's incessant. We never feed her human food, because she always vomits afterward. But she cries and cries literally every time I walk into the kitchen. She licks dishes before I can clean them. She knocks plates, cups, and knives onto the floor. We have resorted to locking her away when we eat. She doesn't like that, and starts crying again.
But she never used to cry. Up to a year ago, she was the quietest cat I have ever met. We had to put a bell on her collar to know where she was (the irony was not lost on us, either). Now she whines all the time, constantly trying to get attention and\or food. When she is quiet, sitting on her perch, she is the old Belle. But then she turns into a whiny little punk, begging for food that she can't have.
My wife and I are at our whit's end. We don't know how to care for her anymore. We don't want to surrender her, or put her down, but we know that she will not thrive in a kennel. If she won't eat when she has a house and a bowl full of food, then she definitely won't in a cage.
Any suggestions are welcomed.
In the past year, she has had a drastic temperament change. It started as getting really needy, and then progressed to the degree where she would snuggle up in bed, and not eat or drink. We tried taking her to the vet, but aside from mild dehydration at the time of the visit, she was given a clean bill of health. Despite being "healthy" she dropped literally half her weight (from 14 to 7 lbs). My wife and I worked tirelessly to get her weight up, but she is still skin and bones. She was fed more calorie rich foods, but only ate a scant amount.
Then we moved. She poops and pees everywhere. She still lazes about, hanging out in her "tree", she's still a snuggle bug. We are working on the potty thing, but it's been 2 months since we moved, and I still find poop and pee spots all over the house. And now, she is interested in human food so much that she wails every meal that we eat. It's incessant. We never feed her human food, because she always vomits afterward. But she cries and cries literally every time I walk into the kitchen. She licks dishes before I can clean them. She knocks plates, cups, and knives onto the floor. We have resorted to locking her away when we eat. She doesn't like that, and starts crying again.
But she never used to cry. Up to a year ago, she was the quietest cat I have ever met. We had to put a bell on her collar to know where she was (the irony was not lost on us, either). Now she whines all the time, constantly trying to get attention and\or food. When she is quiet, sitting on her perch, she is the old Belle. But then she turns into a whiny little punk, begging for food that she can't have.
My wife and I are at our whit's end. We don't know how to care for her anymore. We don't want to surrender her, or put her down, but we know that she will not thrive in a kennel. If she won't eat when she has a house and a bowl full of food, then she definitely won't in a cage.
Any suggestions are welcomed.