My cat Buddy

[Novus888]

Lynx Siamese. 8 to 9 years old.

 

[danteshuman]

You have a lynx point to!!! This is Jackie (3 years old), my foster fail. When did your lynx point stop darkening. My guy’s back has really darkened this last year.

 

[Novus888]

You have a lynx point to!!! This is Jackie (3 years old), my foster fail. When did your lynx point stop darkening. My guy’s back has really darkened this last year.

I got Buddy from the SPCA shelter ten days ago, so I would not know the answer to that question. He is such a sweet little spirit, and has stolen my heart.

 

[Tik cat's mum]

What a sweetheart Buddy is. And thanks for giving him a forever home. I'm at a loss how such a beautiful boy ended up in a shelter. He's too cute.

 

[Maria Bayote]

Look at that face! I am smitten too!
You are both lucky to have each other.

Thank you for taking him.

 

[Novus888]

What a sweetheart Buddy is. And thanks for giving him a forever home. I'm at a loss how such a beautiful boy ended up in a shelter. He's too cute.

I was told his owner decided to add ferals (kids), and dogs, which Buddy could not adapt to...so out with the old and in with the new. He is a very high-strung scaredy-cat, and panics at the slightest noise or fast movement. Also hand-shy, so I suspect abuse. Plus he plays rough, especially when on catnip, so I'd guess he made someone bleed, and got smacked. I just end the play before it escalates...and I set aside a lifetime supply of mercurochrome long ago, before the Nannyites could ban it!

 

[Tik cat's mum]

I was told his owner decided to add ferals (kids), and dogs, which Buddy could not adapt to...so out with the old and in with the new. He is a very high-strung scaredy-cat, and panics at the slightest noise or fast movement. Also hand-shy, so I suspect abuse. Plus he plays rough, especially when on catnip, so I'd guess he made someone bleed, and got smacked. I just end the play before it escalates...and I set aside a lifetime supply of mercurochrome long ago, before the Nannyites could ban it!

Awwww poor boy. Replaced how sad. The good thing is now he has a loving home with someone who understands him.

 

[danteshuman]

Poor Buddy! Losing his home & human (plus misbehaving kids & rowdy dogs!)

Jackie is very slow to warm up to people & easily stressed to. He got returned for stress peeing at 3 months old! With my niece I tell her she can’t hold him and she needs to respect the cat’s personhood when he wants to be left alone. I use wand toys and over react to any fang or claw (he only lightly nips where it doesn’t hurt if you rough house with him; which I don’t.) He kept gently attacking my legs while I was on the toilet ..... after 6 months of correcting him I just added a few wand toys to keep by the toilet to distract him; it worked. He is a terror with plenty of play attacks if he doesn’t get his harness time for 2 or more days in a row. When it rains I pull out his interactive toys. I love to give him a box or storage tub with tissue paper, some noisy toys and some fake mice in it. Plus I buy him the occasional play house/scratcher that would be fun and nice for insecure cats to hide in. My guy is tree dweller cat who loves high places but even he can’t resist a play house! I have to assemble his spring one but I included a picture of the box. Besides the cat dancer his favorite wand toy is his old petfit4life with the tail thingy.

Is there a window (by a cat tree or shelf) that you can hang some bird feeders near by (and let him look out the screen when you have good weather?) For interactive toys I love hexabugs (the mice & other kind.) I put 2-3 down on my bathroom floor and let him hunt (they need hard flooring.) You can also try clicker training (cats are 100% trainable & lynx points tend to be clever.) Plus clicker training would build up his trust. Puzzle feeders were a giant fail with my guy.... though he finally figured the easiest one out & made a huge mess with the dry food. For petting I know it sounds weird but you can try petting him with a back scratcher.... that way hands are not involved as he learns to trust you. My first hyper cat taught me that you have to tire out their minds to tire out their bodies.That & outside time is like Ritalin for hyper cats. So I was well prepared for life with hyper cuteness when I got my problem child Jackie!

 

[Novus888]

Poor Buddy! Losing his home & human (plus misbehaving kids & rowdy dogs!)

Jackie is very slow to warm up to people & easily stressed to. He got returned for stress peeing at 3 months old! With my niece I tell her she can’t hold him and she needs to respect the cat’s personhood when he wants to be left alone. I use wand toys and over react to any fang or claw (he only lightly nips where it doesn’t hurt if you rough house with him; which I don’t.) He kept gently attacking my legs while I was on the toilet ..... after 6 months of correcting him I just added a few wand toys to keep by the toilet to distract him; it worked. He is a terror with plenty of play attacks if he doesn’t get his harness time for 2 or more days in a row. When it rains I pull out his interactive toys. I love to give him a box or storage tub with tissue paper, some noisy toys and some fake mice in it. Plus I buy him the occasional play house/scratcher that would be fun and nice for insecure cats to hide in. My guy is tree dweller cat who loves high places but even he can’t resist a play house! I have to assemble his spring one but I included a picture of the box. Besides the cat dancer his favorite wand toy is his old petfit4life with the tail thingy.

Is there a window (by a cat tree or shelf) that you can hang some bird feeders near by (and let him look out the screen when you have good weather?) For interactive toys I love hexabugs (the mice & other kind.) I put 2-3 down on my bathroom floor and let him hunt (they need hard flooring.) You can also try clicker training (cats are 100% trainable & lynx points tend to be clever.) Plus clicker training would build up his trust. Puzzle feeders were a giant fail with my guy.... though he finally figured the easiest one out & made a huge mess with the dry food. For petting I know it sounds weird but you can try petting him with a back scratcher.... that way hands are not involved as he learns to trust you. My first hyper cat taught me that you have to tire out their minds to tire out their bodies.That & outside time is like Ritalin for hyper cats. So I was well prepared for life with hyper cuteness when I got my problem child Jackie!

I got my cat harness today (https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71DftpmMkYL._AC_SX466_.jpg). I distracted him long enough to get him in it with minimum fuss. Took him out the door through the foyer, to the security gate about thirty feet away. He only made it half way, before he started freaking out. Flashbacks to the recent ER trip I suppose. Had to pick him up and carry him the rest of the way, then take him right back inside when I couldn't calm him. He immediately went into hiding in his box. So no nightly foray out back to the dumpster, or sunbaths, or stroller rides in his immediate future. Pretty much everything/anything is a DefCon 5 Emergency Red Alert with this one. He was very calm at the shelter, so I guess something here reminds him of the screeching ferals and barking dogs.

No windows open. The bathroom window has my fan in it, and I have the bedroom window sealed up with foamcore board, blackout curtain, and burglar alarm. A drunk crawled in through the bathroom window 4 or 5 years ago. Found him passed out on the kitchen floor. Traumatic for me, then about a year later the landlord decided to replace the small bedroom window above my bed with a giant picture window that takes up over half the wall. Needless to say, I was not amused. Instant stress inducing and insomnia producing. I have not gotten a cat tree yet, as I had planned on a senior cat, and wanted to make sure it would be used. Buddy is a climber, and definitely needs one, but I have to wait to be sure the medical problem is over, plus it will take at least a month or two to regenerate my $500 emergency fund. He will have to make do til then with watching YouTube bird videos.

 

[danteshuman]

With kittens (& more so senior cats) you first get them used to wearing the harness inside. (I bribe them by always giving treats when I take it off.) Then when they eat/play/maybe nap in the harness for 20-30 minutes, you get them used to dragging around a short leash inside. I distract them with play, treats or attention during that first step. Again get the cat used to it over weeks until it is no big deal and they are comfortable in it. This may take 2-16 weeks max but Buddy will get there. Then hold the leash, open the door and let the cat explore at their own pace. It takes time and routine. Seniors hate change more so expect it to take longer. When I first started I only left the harness on for a few seconds.

I leave my sliding glass door open so he can always run home to safety. I also would rather he ran around dragging his leash then escape his harness. I can always catch him easily by stepping on his leash then if he escapes his harness. if he gets loose I stay calm, follow slowly after him while talking to him, pick him up and then put him back in his harness so he can go have more fun outside. I never, ever punish him for letting me catch him. I have tried 3 different types of harnesses & he escaped them all. So I choose the kitty holster for it’s ease of putting on & taking it off. Lately because it is cold he has been hanging out on my lap looking out the open sliding glass door until he finds something of interest to run outside for. I give him a long leash and read while he gets under a bush and “hunts.” The downside of the long leash is it gets tangled so he must be watched closely. Walking a cat is kinda like walking a toddler. He takes 5 steps and freezes for a minute as he sniffs or watches a squirrel. Then a few more steps followed by pausing or back tracking to chase a leaf. He rolls in the dirt, chases squirrels, harasses baby lizards, lounges around & even climbs trees a bit in his harness.

If I owned the place I would build him a catio. Or at the very least a window catio.

 

[vince]

The prized treat afterward, religiously given, is a must to get them to do something they don't want to do. For me, it's essential to say, trim their claws, give them a Furminator treatment, etc.

 

[Novus888]

With kittens (& more so senior cats) you first get them used to wearing the harness inside. (I bribe them by always giving treats when I take it off.) Then when they eat/play/maybe nap in the harness for 20-30 minutes, you get them used to dragging around a short leash inside. I distract them with play, treats or attention during that first step. Again get the cat used to it over weeks until it is no big deal and they are comfortable in it. This may take 2-16 weeks max but Buddy will get there. Then hold the leash, open the door and let the cat explore at their own pace. It takes time and routine. Seniors hate change more so expect it to take longer. When I first started I only left the harness on for a few seconds.

I leave my sliding glass door open so he can always run home to safety. I also would rather he ran around dragging his leash then escape his harness. I can always catch him easily by stepping on his leash then if he escapes his harness. if he gets loose I stay calm, follow slowly after him while talking to him, pick him up and then put him back in his harness so he can go have more fun outside. I never, ever punish him for letting me catch him. I have tried 3 different types of harnesses & he escaped them all. So I choose the kitty holster for it’s ease of putting on & taking it off. Lately because it is cold he has been hanging out on my lap looking out the open sliding glass door until he finds something of interest to run outside for. I give him a long leash and read while he gets under a bush and “hunts.” The downside of the long leash is it gets tangled so he must be watched closely. Walking a cat is kinda like walking a toddler. He takes 5 steps and freezes for a minute as he sniffs or watches a squirrel. Then a few more steps followed by pausing or back tracking to chase a leaf. He rolls in the dirt, chases squirrels, harasses baby lizards, lounges around & even climbs trees a bit in his harness.

If I owned the place I would build him a catio. Or at the very least a window catio.

I had the door open last night to cool the place down. I been keeping the heat on during the day, and that plus cooking keeps it toasty for Buddy, but at night I need it cool to sleep good. So he discovered the open door and stepped out on his own. No halter/leash so I was a bit freaked out, even though there is no escape but to go up the stairs to the second floor, and jump off the balcony. Buddy only made it a few feet from my door before deciding 'Here there be monsters', and retreated. Still it's some progress that this scaredy-cat dared go out by himself.

I went with the Pupteck harness (https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71DftpmMkYL._AC_SX466_.jpg). Buddy gave it his best shot, but failed to escape it.

I'll have to force him into the soft carrier either today or tonight, and stow him in the laundry room for about fifteen minutes, which will stress him out and earn me the stink eye for some hours. Not much choice. He has litter tracked everywhere, and I have to vacuum. Pretty sure that would put him into panic mode worse than getting stranded in the laundry room. Seems like I'm always having to do something to violate his trust.

 

[danteshuman]

If that happens again why not pick him up and lock him in the bedroom? I just vacuum & let Jackie run to the other room. As for the litter I got these foam litter mats off chewy that worked great.

 

[danteshuman]

Jumbo Foam litter Mat (on chewy) it has lines in it to catch the litter.

Putting him in a crate will just stress him out extra.

 

[Novus888]

If that happens again why not pick him up and lock him in the bedroom? I just vacuum & let Jackie run to the other room. As for the litter I got these foam litter mats off chewy that worked great.

Open concept with zero doors, combined into a tiny studio apartment. Best I could do is lock him in the closet, but given how loud a wet/dry vacuum is, I don't see that doing much. I suspect he can likely hear it from the laundry room, on the other side of the bathroom wall, but there is only so much I can do.

 

[Novus888]

Buddy has made peace with the ShopVac. Instead of running and hiding, he now sits on my bed like three feet from me, and watches the vacuum do its job. When its put away, he will walk up to it and sniff it.