Isolating A Sick Kitty In Small Apartment

[MoxZig]

This is my 3rd post relating to my girl Moxie. Tomorrow morning she is having surgery to remove her mammary tumors and also a spay Mammary Tumors <for details

My issue now is I live in a small 1 bedroom apartment, I have 2 cats. My boy is very hyper and playful and when the mood strikes will start chasing Moxie and just today they got into a very bad fight, he was wrestling her and she was screaming and it was so scary trying to break it up and far more scarier still she has bleeding tumors and I'm still afraid any minute the biggest one is going to rupture.

So after I managed to calm her down & separate her, I took her to the bathroom but the issue is something is wrong with the bathroom door and it won't close, he can easily open it. I tried to locate a crate with no luck, all I have is her cat carrier & that is far to small to keep her in overnight. I still want to be able to leave food & water out for my boy, he's hyperthyroid & needs his fluids so I can't deprive him for 7 hrs. what do i do? anyone else have this problem living in a small place with nowhere to keep kitty pre/post surgery?

I worry more that he's going to harrass her after the surgery, & forget a playpen, he'll jump in there with her. I feel like I'm stuck with no solutions.

Right now I'm going to try Google again to see if I can fix the bathroom door because it seems like the bathroom is her safespace right now.

 

[denice]

You can do what I did when I had to keep my cats separated for over a month due to illness and a feeding tube in one. I had to do introductions. I got a good sized wired dog crate, big enough for his bed and litter box. I would put the cat that hadn't been sick in the bedroom for an hour or so each day to give him time out of the crate. It took quite a while for my cat who hadn't been sick to quit hissing at him.

 

[Jem]

Could you set her up in your bedroom and keep the door closed?

When we had to keep two of ours separate, we used baby gates stacked on top of each other in our spare room, you could do the same for the bathroom, until you get the door fixed. It was a pain in the butt when we had to go into that room, but it worked, although that's not too ideal if you really need to pee!
Does the door to the bathroom, close but not latch? You could simply put in a chain lock or hook latch on the outside of the door to keep it latched so your boy can't open it....And maybe one on the inside if he's the type that does not believe in privacy when you're in there.

 

[MoxZig]

Haha yes it closes but he does like to pay us visits & makes sure to open it wide when he wants to come hang out with us on the potty.

So I'm thinking the latch idea might be the best bet. Thank you!

 

[MoxZig]

You can do what I did when I had to keep my cats separated for over a month due to illness and a feeding tube in one. I had to do introductions. I got a good sized wired dog crate, big enough for his bed and litter box. I would put the cat that hadn't been sick in the bedroom for an hour or so each day to give him time out of the crate. It took quite a while for my cat who hadn't been sick to quit hissing at him.

I wish I could get ahold of a large dog crate, it certainly would be ideal. I wish someplace rented them out as buying one would just take up a lot of room after we have used it.
Thanks for your suggestions

 

[Jem]

I thought of something else. Our front door would not latch properly and it got worse over time. The door was fine and it was just the door knob mechanism that was needing to be replaced, and indoor door knobs are even cheaper than outdoor door knobs. And they are super easy to change out. So you may not even need to rig up a latch system.

 

[denice]

The wired dog crates fold flat when not being used.

 

[MoxZig]

I thought of something else. Our front door would not latch properly and it got worse over time. The door was fine and it was just the door knob mechanism that was needing to be replaced, and indoor door knobs are even cheaper than outdoor door knobs. And they are super easy to change out. So you may not even need to rig up a latch system.

It definitely seems like the knob now that I think about it. I hope that's all it is. She's at the Vet now, last nite was easy but I guess the hard part will be post surgery when she needs to be kept calm. Thanks for the help.

 

[MoxZig]

The wired dog crates fold flat when not being used.

Oh good to know, I might actually invest in one then. I never used a dog crate so wasn't sure how they worked. Thanks

 

[MoxZig]

Well she's home from surgery now and as predicted I don't know where to put her. Everything I found with the door didn't work, I didn't get a chance to find a latch but even in that case every single time the door opens she makes a mad dash for it. She got out once already & immediately jumped onto the coffee table and back down again.. I had to put her back in the bathroom but now I'm worried any time we go in there she'll run out & on top of things.

For some reason I thought she would be too tired & want to sleep. She had a big surgery, they even told me that she was anemic pre-surgery and very high risk. The fact she's home now is wonderful but I don't want complications from her jumping about. I hate not being able to keep an eye on her since I can't stay in the bathroom all nite.

Only option is the dog crate.. I wish someplace rented them out.

 

[fionasmom]

You said apartment...is there a super who can be called to have someone fix the door? Otherwise, I would still try for the latch and hook and have a couple installed in my house because I have several sliding doors and both the dog and one cat know how to slide them. Used wire dog crate on eBay?

I am glad that your cat came through okay and you must be relieved. Unfortunately, surgery is no guarantee that they will remain quiet as you have seen.