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- Nov 13, 2023
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We have two short hair cats, Jamie and Zoe (siblings, both neutered, 7 years old). Their previous owner took good care of them, as far as we know. Jamie adapted to us quickly, though Zoe was quite traumatised when she first came to us about two years ago. The only other family members are my wife and I.
Over the last several months, Zoe has been losing fur around her belly and hind quarters.
We took Zoe to the vet. The nurse suggested fish oil. We put this into their food, but it seems she doesn't like it. We tried switching over to another food brand that contains a higher content of salmon. We only just tried this, so we will have to see how it goes.
Jamie sometimes tends to be quite aggressive towards Zoe. Both seem jealous when the other receives affection from us. Zoe tends to leave the room when we are cuddling Jamie. However, when we show affection to Zoe, Jamie will sometimes shove her out the way. Also, occasionally, Jamie will suddenly attack Zoe, jumping on her, biting and scratching her, chasing her through the house and garden. Jamie has never injured her in any serious way. We don’t really know what to do when he attacks her. We try our best to comfort Zoe by giving her a stroke and a treat, but we don’t know how to persuade Jamie to stop. It’s difficult to guess how often Jamie harasses Zoe. Once a fortnight is a very rough guess.
We did wonder if it might be an allergy to something. Jamie appears to be fine in this regard, although that doesn't really prove much.
My wife has suggested sometimes that I do not spend enough time playing with either Jamie or Zoe. I will set a reminder to play with them every day. My general feeling is that, if either of them do not respond within the first couple of minutes, then this is an indication they’d rather be left alone. Maybe I’m not being patient enough in waiting for them to respond.
When Zoe first came to us she was already quite plump. We put her on a diet. Last time I checked (about a month ago) she was about 4 kilos, down from five and a half.
Zoe very much likes spending time in the garden, but never ventures beyond. Not long after she first came to us, she left the garden and did not return for about 5 days. When she came back, she was rather traumatised. Since then, she has always kept within the garden, something we hope continues.
I have written down everything I can think of that could be the cause of this. Any support you could give in getting to the bottom of this would be very gratefully appreciated.
Over the last several months, Zoe has been losing fur around her belly and hind quarters.
We took Zoe to the vet. The nurse suggested fish oil. We put this into their food, but it seems she doesn't like it. We tried switching over to another food brand that contains a higher content of salmon. We only just tried this, so we will have to see how it goes.
Jamie sometimes tends to be quite aggressive towards Zoe. Both seem jealous when the other receives affection from us. Zoe tends to leave the room when we are cuddling Jamie. However, when we show affection to Zoe, Jamie will sometimes shove her out the way. Also, occasionally, Jamie will suddenly attack Zoe, jumping on her, biting and scratching her, chasing her through the house and garden. Jamie has never injured her in any serious way. We don’t really know what to do when he attacks her. We try our best to comfort Zoe by giving her a stroke and a treat, but we don’t know how to persuade Jamie to stop. It’s difficult to guess how often Jamie harasses Zoe. Once a fortnight is a very rough guess.
We did wonder if it might be an allergy to something. Jamie appears to be fine in this regard, although that doesn't really prove much.
My wife has suggested sometimes that I do not spend enough time playing with either Jamie or Zoe. I will set a reminder to play with them every day. My general feeling is that, if either of them do not respond within the first couple of minutes, then this is an indication they’d rather be left alone. Maybe I’m not being patient enough in waiting for them to respond.
When Zoe first came to us she was already quite plump. We put her on a diet. Last time I checked (about a month ago) she was about 4 kilos, down from five and a half.
Zoe very much likes spending time in the garden, but never ventures beyond. Not long after she first came to us, she left the garden and did not return for about 5 days. When she came back, she was rather traumatised. Since then, she has always kept within the garden, something we hope continues.
I have written down everything I can think of that could be the cause of this. Any support you could give in getting to the bottom of this would be very gratefully appreciated.
