Brought my cat with me...

[javo2004]

Hi, my cat has a history of bad behavior. This is actually the 3rd time I start a new topic because of this, but this time in different circumstances...

I relocated to the UK to accept a job offer.

Because of my cat history of bad behavior, and a need that he has to "be free" (eg. he doesn't accept  being closed in a room during the night) - I thought of giving him to a person who could prove to have the means and willing to make him happy, preferably with a garden or some outdoor space for him, before moving to the UK - especially because I would have to rent a room or a small flat in the first few months.

My wife didn't accept it. So I brought him with me. This is where hell starts. I am in a small room, the cat is with me. He doesn't accept me to close the door during the night. He meows loud because wants to go to the street. As I ignore all his noise, he moves to his typical bad behavior strategy and starts the scratching on everything (carpet!) and knocking things down.

He has nail caps but, somehow, still manages to cause scratching damage!

The owner of the house (lives on the floor below) demanded that I took actions to prevent noise, as he couldn't sleep (even I have trouble sleeping). Today he came up to the floor I am staying and saw some damage in the carpet due to scratching and noticed me that I have to fix / replace the carpet.

None of my friends can't relate to this because their cats usually sleep with them in the bed, or don't mind being be closed in a room.

Has anyone here ever had to replace a carpet because of the cat? I dont even know how muck I will have to pay

Any suggestions ?

 

[mani]

How long have you been in the new place?  Cats are very territorial so his behaviour is not uncommon and I can see from an old thread that he used to meow in the night before.  Now he's really making his feeling felt.

Have you ever tried a Feliway diffuser?  It gives out pheromones that can settle cats.  I usually use the spray as I can direct it where I want it to go, but many people swear by the diffuser as it's a constant release of the pheromones.

I have also had success with composure liquid, but it can be difficult to get them to eat it as it doesn't taste wonderful.  Works well, though! 

There is also the calming collars.

I do think that you need to use something to help settle him, but remember that lots of cuddling and playtime is really important. Also,  do you have a cat tree for him to climb and scratch?  You can get inexpensive ones and they are invaluable.. quite often the scratching of other things will stop once you give him a designated place.  Good if you can place it by a window so he has an outlook.

I do hope something I've mentioned helps and perhaps others will come along with some ideas.

 

[javo2004]

Tks for your ideas!

We arrived here in the UK 2 weeks ago.

I went to the vet before the relocation, and he suggested that it would a good idea to lock the cat in a room for 3 to 4 weeks to make sure he gets used to the new surroundings, before letting him explore the rest of the house.

Ha! As if my cat allowed such a thing!

The vet also suggested me to use the Feliway Diffuser on this room. Which I did... and didn't notice any different behavior.

I had a cat tree in the previous flat, which was good when was something new, but eventually the cat just started to ignore with time.

But that's a good idea. He needs a scratching alternative.

Despite having the caps on his nails, he still manages to scratch the fibers of the carpets and damage them.

 

[mani]

When I get a new cat tree I spray it with catnip spray and it makes it pretty irresistible.. to my two at least.   Where you put it is important too.