help!! Issues with my new kitten

[chewchew's mommy]

Hi everyone. I'm a new mom to a 2-month-old British shorthair kitten named Chew chew (short for Pikachu) and this is my first time owning a pet by myself. Today is her one week mark here with me.
I am already a very anxious person so I'm constantly worried that she is mad at me or upset at something. I may give her too much attention, but she is such a baby kitten so she is comfortable with me most of the time. On her first day home, she was so cuddly and loving and kept wanting to snuggle with me so that made me really happy. But then, I realized my kitten is constipated and her anus always has poop clumps on it. I had to clean her every time she tries to poop because it would get really messy. I try to be gentle and use baby wipes, however, she still hates it and meows at me or run away from me when I try to clean her up. It seems like my repetitive action of wiping her bum makes her a little sad and mad at me. She doesn't come sleep by me anymore and doesn't come to me when I call her name (she used to when she just arrived). Her tail is always downwards and I think that indicates sadness. I took her to the vet 2 times and finally got everything all figured out (she needs to take meds still) but she seems really sad about the vet visits. When I brought her home today from the vet, I prepared 3 new toys for her but she's not playful and she even refused her favorite treat!
Please give me some advice on how to repair my relationship with my kitten. Please keep in mind that I've never had a cat before so I don't know if she's gonna stay mad or associate me with her sad feelings now... I'm really worried because I just got her and we have a long time to go, and I really want her to be loving and clingy. But i think she hates me now... (BTW, she was a very playful kitten to begin with, even when she wasn't here the breeder said she was the most playful and brave kitten out of all the kittens there. She's not scared of humans at all, and she never hides when my friends barge in the door. But she hissed at them today... Is she depressed? How can I make it better and make her my baby chew chew again ??? :/

Thank you all!

 

[maggie101]

Some cats need time to recuperate after a vet visit. It can take a day or more. She does not hate you Cats do not like being cleaned. They clean themselves. What do you feed her? Dry food is more likely to cause a problem with her poo. My apt is majorly catified. Lots of chew toys,wand toys,cubes,72 inch tower, square and vertical scratchers-they like to stretch. Regular feeding schedule 3x a day,

 

[jefferd18]

No, she does not hate you but I see future problems arising if you do not change your approach to her.

You don't want her to be "clingy".

Happiness means being loved and cared for but it also means being allowed to have your freedom too. She is a cat, which means she is already by nature a very independent creature- so please- allow her to enjoy her independence.

You are going to be a great cat parent, just don't try to analyze her every mood, accept her for who she is, and mostly, just enjoy her.

 

[ArtNJ]

I don't know you can count on a very tightly bonded cat because cats are independent creatures, but yes, some do become tightly bonded and even clingy. The trick to possibly getting there is paying attention to the cat whenever they are receptive, and doing *only* stuff they are willing to do with you. That means that you don't forcibly hold, pick up or pet an 8 week old. A healthy 8 week old might want to cuddle or get petted at times, like when sleepy, but will much more often want to run around and play. So you'll do more playing than cuddling and petting. Having the standard toys available should work.

 

[di and bob]

She associates vet visits and being cleaned with you now from the repetition. I hope you find a resolution to her problems so you can quit cleaning her, cats do not need to be bathed as they are self-cleaning. Of course, she is scared and wary of you now, but in time all this will change. Cats take a long time to get over something like this, but once the vet visits stop for a while and the cleaning stops, she will learn to trust you again, she is young enough to adapt rather quickly. Cats respond to people when they feel safe. ignoring them is one way to make them feel safe unless they approach you. Don't worry about her being mad or upset with you, just concentrate on making it better. Offer treats (not too many or she will get diarrhea) be the one who feeds her, and stroke her while she is eating. She can pick up on feelings of being upset, so try to keep calm and friendly. Get a wand toy and encourage play. Above all, don't give up! It takes a while to gain a cat's love and affection, but it will work out, just give both of yourselves time......

 

[chewchew's mommy]

Some cats need time to recuperate after a vet visit. It can take a day or more. She does not hate you Cats do not like being cleaned. They clean themselves. What do you feed her? Dry food is more likely to cause a problem with her poo. My apt is majorly catified. Lots of chew toys,wand toys,cubes,72 inch tower, square and vertical scratchers-they like to stretch. Regular feeding schedule 3x a day,

Hi! Thank you for your response. She is strictly on baby food diet now - 100% meat puree and a scoop of pumpklin puree. I hope that will help. I bought so many toys for her and I play with her often. But usually for like a few hours after I clean her bum she ignores me and lays somewhere else to sleep. But I just noticed that she gets over things pretty quickly, she kneads on me often when she's sleepy and cuddles with me in my arms. But yeah, I will try my best to solve her issue so that I don't have to clean her anymore. It's because her anus is a bit irritated (not the scary kind), so i apply baby rash cream for her daily. UGH i hate that I have to do something she hates so frequently but she will get poop everywhere if i don't:/

 

[She's a witch]

She’s growing like crazy now so she needs nutritionally complete food rather than baby food for humans - how long are you supposed to feed her like this? I’d be very worried if that had to be longer than couple of days. She should have unlimited amount of good quality wet food.
Every time when you clean her, offer her a treat as a reward, she will be more understanding when you do this. Treat just before and just after cleaning should really help.

Clingy cat is not emotionally healthy cat, as already mentioned she needs her space and believe me, she will be very bonded to you. Don’t force herself on her, she will like you more if you don’t. She’s been separated from her family too early (shocking as she comes from a breeder) so pay special attention for her biting habits- never play with your hands, react when she bites you etc. play with her as much as possible.
All the best for both of you!

 

[kittenmittens84]

She’s fine, give her space. Cats show love in lots of different ways, and you can’t force her to be more cuddly than she is. She still loves you and is getting accustomed to living in a new unfamiliar place, so it’ll take a bit of time for her to be completely comfortable. Going to the vet is also stressful and might require a bit of downtime to recuperate from. Holding her tail down doesn’t really indicate being sad, for a lot of cats that’s just their default/neutral tail position.

She might not be into sleeping on your bed once she gets comfortable, some cats like to and others like to sleep in their own space. It doesn’t mean they don’t like you, just preference on the cat’s part!

Feed her canned cat food (probably pate if she likes the purée) either for kittens or “all life stages” to help her digestion issues and so she gets enough moisture in her diet.

 

[chewchew's mommy]

She’s fine, give her space. Cats show love in lots of different ways, and you can’t force her to be more cuddly than she is. She still loves you and is getting accustomed to living in a new unfamiliar place, so it’ll take a bit of time for her to be completely comfortable. Going to the vet is also stressful and might require a bit of downtime to recuperate from. Holding her tail down doesn’t really indicate being sad, for a lot of cats that’s just their default/neutral tail position.

She might not be into sleeping on your bed once she gets comfortable, some cats like to and others like to sleep in their own space. It doesn’t mean they don’t like you, just preference on the cat’s part!

Feed her canned cat food (probably pate if she likes the purée) either for kittens or “all life stages” to help her digestion issues and so she gets enough moisture in her diet.

Hi! Thank you so much for your response. I've been feeding her baby food (mixture of meat and pumpkin) and yes I have a lot of canned kitten food ready for her. However, she is going through some constipation issues so I'm wondering if I should gradually shift to canned kitten food, or can I just give it to her when the baby food runs out?

 

[chewchew's mommy]

She’s growing like crazy now so she needs nutritionally complete food rather than baby food for humans - how long are you supposed to feed her like this? I’d be very worried if that had to be longer than couple of days. She should have unlimited amount of good quality wet food.
Every time when you clean her, offer her a treat as a reward, she will be more understanding when you do this. Treat just before and just after cleaning should really help.

Clingy cat is not emotionally healthy cat, as already mentioned she needs her space and believe me, she will be very bonded to you. Don’t force herself on her, she will like you more if you don’t. She’s been separated from her family too early (shocking as she comes from a breeder) so pay special attention for her biting habits- never play with your hands, react when she bites you etc. play with her as much as possible.
All the best for both of you!

Hi! Thank you so much! Would you recommend me gradually shifting to canned kitten food or can I just give it to her whenever? Her anus is a bit irritated from being constipated so I've been trying to keep her diet clean and the only treat I give her are the ORIJEN dry-freezed ones.

 

[kittenmittens84]

Hi! Thank you so much for your response. I've been feeding her baby food (mixture of meat and pumpkin) and yes I have a lot of canned kitten food ready for her. However, she is going through some constipation issues so I'm wondering if I should gradually shift to canned kitten food, or can I just give it to her when the baby food runs out?

Cats shouldn’t really eat baby food unless they’re very sick and it’s the only thing they will eat - it’s not formulated to be nutritionally complete for cats like cat food is, so it doesn’t contain all the vitamins and nutrients cats need. For example cats need a regular source of taurine in their diet, which baby food probably doesn’t have in high levels.

I would shift to the kitten food, eating food not meant for cats could be part of the cause of her stomach/poop issues. She also needs lots of calories to grow, and kitten food is more calorie dense.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Begin to mix the kitten food in with the baby food...25% kitten to 75% baby, and gradually over 10 days or so, add more and more kitten to less and less baby food. Too rapid a shift will cause diarrhea, and you don't want that, either!

 

[Dimie]

I have been reading most of the things here and I am seeing some problems for you see cleaning a kitten rear with baby wipes is not something you should do it will cause irritation. Next try not to use baby powder cats are not humans. But I will say this as for food cat have sencetive bellys changing their diets will cause problems with pooping. Make changes slowly tends to do well less it is raw chicken that tends to really do well with my cats when changing and as they do not have to worrie about salmonella it tends to be their best food. Then lastly I do not think you kitten hates you at all getting a rod with a string and a feather on the end os the string will help alot with re building play as those type of toys tend to bring up their hunters in stinkt. Your kitten will grow on you and everything needs time same as you having to get used to your kitten they have to get used to you, the two of you will mold to each other given time.
PS: sorry for spelling mistakes and grammar mistakes I have heavy dislexia and english is not my first second or thirde langauge, I do hope all the tips people are giving you help, lastly cats can notice you might be anxious, stressed and well most emotions those things can keep a cat away or make them come to you.

 

[Dimie]

ah yes, something I forgot to mention too, cats also make a good bond with you if you brush them, not all I mean I have one cat that is not a fan of the brush and she would try and bite is as soon as it gets close.

 

[chewchew's mommy]

update:
I wanna thank all of you for your kind responses! you truly helped me a lot rebuild my confidence in having a cat! Yes, I have come to accept that cats are independent and they will want alone times! So I've been trying my best to give my kitten that independence she needs from time to time. I have recently switched her food to kitten wet food pate (gradually) and she loves it! I see a gradual improvement in her constipation issues so I am very happy.
One thing I would like to ask is that do cats have less poop with only wet food diet? Cuz that may be the reason I think my kitten is constipated but it really isn't that big of a deal? She poops 3/4 times a day and it probably adds up to the size of a ping-pong ball. Is that healthy or not? All she eats is really quality wet food with little carbohydrates with lots of moisture. So that may be the reason she's only pooping a little? How much poop should a 2 month kitten produce daily?

Thank you all again.

 

[Dimie]

well if it is three to four times a day it should be fine, they poop from once to six times a day.
it will become less the older they get my cats only poop once maybe twice a day if your kitten is meowing whiles pooping I would say have a look, but as it stands I think she sounds healthy to me.

 

[chewchew's mommy]

She's is healthy and active. However, I noticed today that she only ate 1/4 of what she usually does. She also puked her food out this morning (only once, so I'm not concerned about it).
She ate a little bit this afternoon and a little tonight. I noticed that she turns around and scratches the floor after every few bites which is not common for her (before she only scratches when done eating) . Does this mean she dislikes the food? She is on a strict wet food diet (cuz she had constipation issues before), and I make her the exact same thing for every meal which is two spoonful of the wet food, one spoonful of gerber chicken & gravy, pumpkin puree, and a little honey water. I store them in the fridge and heat it up. She used to love it.
Should I change up the menu a little bit (for example, changing up the brand of wet food I feed her once in a while? Would it be bad for her disgestion? Should I change her food gradually or is it ok to just simply open up a new can? All her wet food are quality kitten wet foods (dinner pates that can be used as a main meal).

Thank you all!!

 

[bella.cat]

Hi,

A cat scratching around her food sometimes indicated that she is 'saving it for later' as in the wild its like burying. I might be wrong though. She might just be bored or she might be ill (hopefully not).
I would say switch up the menu a bit, but if this continues go to the vet.

 

[di and bob]

Cats often don't like food that is refrigerated, just like many of us don't like leftovers. I get my cats those little single-serving foods and they work great. They love them and no leftovers. also, many cats don't like pate's that much, mine prefer 'cuts', or shreds, and try to 'bury' the pate too. I get Sheba single-serve cups and Meow Mix simple servings in chicken breast.

 

[Dimie]

I would leave the food warm up a bit outside the fridge having it lukewarm is something they enjoy and is less harsh on there belly.