Moved to a new house and have questions

[bodisha]

Hello and thanks in advance for anyone willing to help me

I'm a new-ish cat owner and have had my cat appx 1 1/2 yrs that I took in as a rescue.  He's come along way from when I first saw him and seems much more relaxed and happier with me.  I recently moved, and while I think Merlin is much happier here than at my last place I do have some questions someone can hopefully answer

1) Even though we've only been here a couple days, Merlin seems very happy.  He's been very cuddle-ish and purr-y while he seem content to wallow around scratching & rub his cheeks on all types of things... He hasn't been eating.  I typically give him wet food in the morning and dry to get him thru the night.  He's mostly just been licking the wet food of it's sauce but not eating the meat.  With the dry i have to coax him into walking up to it by petting him.  Once he figures out it's food... he'll take a bite of two then run off only to let me coax him back to it again where he'll just do the same thing.... Take a bite or two then run off.  As we've only been here a couple days I'm not overly concerned with it.  I figure once he settles down he'll start eating regularly again... I just wanted to toss it out there and get everyones opinion on it

2) I got a very nice and very expensive couch with my new place.  My old couch was old and pretty beat up and I wasn't really that worried if he clawed on it.  This is different though and I want to make sure he doesn't get into the habit of clawing it.  I've caught him starting to do it a couple times.... I yelled at him and he immediately stopped and ran off like he wasn't sure what to think (I very rarely yell at him).  Can anyone recommend what I can do to insure he doesn't claw this couch?

3)  I'm in a high rise building, on the 9th floor, and with a balcony.  I was on the 2nd floor at my old place and it had a balcony... But the railing was pretty wide and over some bushes.  Merlin loved to hop up on it and walk along the railing.  The railing here is much narrower and one i don't trust him on top of.  The big problem is I can't insure he stays off the balcony.  i have this huge sliding glass door that does not have a screen (It's build not to have one).  So those nice spring/summer days when i'm tempted to leave it open... I'm worried Merlin would wander out and try & jump on the balcony railing when i'm not looking.  Can someone recommend a way to keep him off the railing please?  last thing I want is for him to try and jump on it or walk down it and slip off. 

Anyway... once again, thanks in advance to anyone willing to answer my questions

 

[racn1320]

I recently moved too,My cat took two days to eat,he will come around,he will get hungry. Dont let him outside on patio, I wouldnt risk it,he falls could be deadly. Make a spot next to a window with a screen and let him smell the fresh air there. jmo

 

[justagimmick]

1) You're right, once he's comfortable he will start to eat in a normal way again.  They just have to get comfortable with their environment.  I haven't moved with a cat for a long time, but my ex took one of our cats when he moved out and she didn't eat normally for a while, she spent a lot of time hiding.  After a few days she became bolder and started to explore, and then eat.  So he should come round, it just takes time dependent on your cat =]

2)  I bought sticker strips to put on my furniture are first, they are clear sticky back plastic that you put on areas the cat likes to scratch which puts them off cause they stick on the cats paws.  Otherwise, lots of alternative to scratch rather than the couch! Scratching posts/boards/toys etc and praise when he uses those.  Even now I still praise my cats when they use the scratch post! I wouldn't necessarily shout when he goes to scratch the couch, just because he may not understand why you are shouting at him.  Instead, divert him with a toy or physically pick him up and put him near the scratch post where he is allowed to scratch.

3)  I wouldn't let him out on the balcony, to be honest.  But if you decide to, it should be when you are with him and if you can 'catproof' the balcony as much as possible.  I had seen some balconys with a net all round so the cat cannot jump from the railings.

Hope he continues to settle in well =]

 

[bodisha]

Thanks for the replies!  As far as "cat proofing" the balcony... Does anyone have any suggestions on how to do this?  Setting up a net around the balcony railing is probably impractical and not very feasible...  We've had a couple nice days recently so I've been outside on it... Which has sparked his curiosity.  Knowing him it's only a matter of time before he'll start wanting to go outside.  

As the railing is very thin, and i doubt if he could walk along it, i was thinking about putting him in a harness with a leash (With me having a good grip on the leash).  Then put him on the railing (Which is about 2" - 2 1/2"... and very windy) and letting him attempt to walk on it.  I'm pretty sure he'd figure out it wasn't made for walking pretty fast once he was on it.  I'm wondering if letting him on it and see how unstable it is might be a way to let him learn he shouldn't jump on it... What's anyone's thoughts on this?   

 

[sprin]

I wouldn't risk letting him on the railing. My cats are always jumping on things that they should know from past experiences are unstable, and they're always gracelessly falling off those things. If you put him on it once, he might see it as something you approve of and a challenge. Also, there's no gerenteeing that if he fell off the harness and leash would support him during the drop. You don't know that it would hold the combination of his body weight and the force of the drop, it could also cause some sort of injury to his body to fall and be caught by the harness. If I were you I just wouldn't let him out there and wouldn't leave the door open. Alternatively I guess you could try to install a secure screen to the glass door so you can open it without risking him going out.

I second getting him different cat scratching surfaces and redirecting him there when he scratches the couch.

 

[bodisha]

I'd like to thank everyone for replying.  I thought I'd post a quickie update.  

1) I figured it would only be a matter of time but his appetite has returned and he seems to be eating normally

2) I've had a scratch post for him to use for a while, but he's only shown a passing interest in it.  He always seemed to prefered the old couch as a scratching post over it.  I re-positioned the scratch post next to the spot he likes to claw at on the couch and it was like flipping a switch in him for some reason.  Now he heads straight for the scratching post instead of the couch.  He still occasionally starts to scratch the couch but it's nothing compared to what he use to do.

3) I guess I'll just have to make a point of keeping him in the other room if i keep the balcony door open.  He's already shown a strong interest to get out on the balcony, and knowing him his urge to get outside is just going to get bigger the longer I don't let him out. 

Anyway... thank everyone once again for sharing