Soon-to-be New Cat Owner -updated!

[rubysmama]

Glad things are working out with Tali. 11 weeks old already! Remember she's still a baby though. So brace yourself for continued mischief as she continues to explore and learn about everything.

To address some of your comments:
- I'm sure the vet closest to you is fine, unless you discover you don't like them. But unless she has a specific medical issue, the vet hospital probably isn't necessary
- Can you put the litter box outside the bathroom door, or leave the door ajar when you take a shower. Or put a 2nd litter box elsewhere? Especially while she's a baby, I wouldn't want to limit access to her litterbox for too long.
- I like it when Ruby talks to me. So I always answer back, even when she's meowing and I don't know why. Then I'll either say "what do you want", or "I love you too".
- Wonderful that she's a lap cat. Ruby is too, and I love it.
- They say you can't overfeed a kitten, so maybe she needs more food? Check the label to see what it says for kittens. Or their website, if it's not on the label. Canned food is definitely better than dry, but maybe leave some dry out overnight for her to munch on if she gets hungry.
-Glad you stopped the water squirter. Kittens, like toddlers, aren't easy to discipline, but you don't want her to be afraid of you.
-I guess I've occasionally found litter pieces with waste stuck to it. You mentioned upthread about her having diarrhea. Has that cleared up. Her poop should be fully formed and look kinda like Tootsie Rolls. So solid and dry-ish and not really smelly. Is there lots of litter in the litter box to cover everything? And, yes, some litter will stick in her paws and get on the floor / carpet.
- You shouldn't have to wipe her paws or bottom. Or very rarely. Unless she has very long fur around her backside that poop ends up sticking to. And her paws shouldn't touch her waste, as she should be just covering it with litter. Cats are notoriously clean animals, so they rarely need extra help with cleaning. That said, I wouldn't want a cat to put their paws around my mouth!

 

[James W]

Glad things are working out with Tali. 11 weeks old already! Remember she's still a baby though. So brace yourself for continued mischief as she continues to explore and learn about everything.

To address some of your comments:
- I'm sure the vet closest to you is fine, unless you discover you don't like them. But unless she has a specific medical issue, the vet hospital probably isn't necessary
- Can you put the litter box outside the bathroom door, or leave the door ajar when you take a shower. Or put a 2nd litter box elsewhere? Especially while she's a baby, I wouldn't want to limit access to her litterbox for too long.
- I like it when Ruby talks to me. So I always answer back, even when she's meowing and I don't know why. Then I'll either say "what do you want", or "I love you too".
- Wonderful that she's a lap cat. Ruby is too, and I love it.
- They say you can't overfeed a kitten, so maybe she needs more food? Check the label to see what it says for kittens. Or their website, if it's not on the label. Canned food is definitely better than dry, but maybe leave some dry out overnight for her to munch on if she gets hungry.
-Glad you stopped the water squirter. Kittens, like toddlers, aren't easy to discipline, but you don't want her to be afraid of you.
-I guess I've occasionally found litter pieces with waste stuck to it. You mentioned upthread about her having diarrhea. Has that cleared up. Her poop should be fully formed and look kinda like Tootsie Rolls. So solid and dry-ish and not really smelly. Is there lots of litter in the litter box to cover everything? And, yes, some litter will stick in her paws and get on the floor / carpet.
- You shouldn't have to wipe her paws or bottom. Or very rarely. Unless she has very long fur around her backside that poop ends up sticking to. And her paws shouldn't touch her waste, as she should be just covering it with litter. Cats are notoriously clean animals, so they rarely need extra help with cleaning. That said, I wouldn't want a cat to put their paws around my mouth!

Thanks, rubysmama!

Today I was away from home but spent the evening doing some laundry and vacuuming the living room (did the bedroom last night). I like the vet/staff/hospital close to me, so I'll be sticking with them. A bit pricier but it's very convenient to have them close to home/work.

Looks like they found tapeworms in Tali's poop sample I'll pass by tomorrow to get the tablet (half is only necessary but I will have the other half if I somehow can't get her to eat it with her wet food. I've also got a sampling of "Revolution" that a friend wants to apply on her tomorrow (friend works at another vet/animal skincare facility). Other than that, she doesn't have FIV/Feline Leukemia and I'll be taking her in for her booster shots in a couple weeks. They also gave me a dewormer (can give it to her orally).

I'll just leave the door ajar when taking a shower. It hasn't posed a problem (yet), however you're right about making sure she can go whenever she wants. This evening she was just sitting in the bathroom with me while I stepped into the shower, which was surprising. I've exposed her to loud/moderately loud noise more over the last few days - she's used to the sound of the washer and dryer (which is running in the bathroom / where her litter box is). I moved the litter box from my bedroom to just outside the bathroom before moving it fully into the bathroom. The issue is that I can't leave it just outside the bathroom (prefer not to) because it takes up most of the space between my bedroom and the bathroom (it's that small/short a length between doors).

I haven't noticed much waste on litter since that one day. Even though I now know it's tapeworms she has, I haven't heard "the squirts" like I did when giving her entirely new flavor of food. I read about "rotational diets" and thought she might like a variety of flavors to try.... but I guess with that sort of experimentation brings diarrhea or such??

Her fur is pretty short, so I suppose I don't need to clean her paws or bottom either. At the advice of a friend, I put a towel on top of my bedsheet where she generally sleeps. I'm still getting over this introduced level of "dirt" My washer/dryer are getting a workout this last week.

Besides large round clumps (urine), I've not seen tootsie roll shaped ones but some that are more like... random.. like the shape of ginger root (for lack of a better description) or... a couple tootsie rolls clumped together? When she does a number two in the litter box, it smells for a little while then that smell dissipates (my appreciation for litter is realized).

Tali meows in frustration when I wake her up or if I have to move when she's on my lap. Makes sense. She does this adorable thing where she'll be curled up sleeping then reach out and stay in that position. Just like a hooman, hahaha.

I've done some re arranging again, where her tall, 52" cat tree is not closest to the bed. I moved it to the other side/corner. But there are still some boxes if she wanted to jump. I still like her sleeping beside me, even if she tries to paw at my face or mouth this morning (ughhhh!)

 

[rubysmama]

Ewww, on the tapeworms, but I think it is normal for kittens to have worms. And I think tapeworms come from eating fleas, but I'm not 100% sure. I was lucky and the shelter had been deworming Ruby before I adopted her, so none of that for me to worry about.

Tootsie roll, or any other "shape" sounds fine. You want formed shapes, rather than "pudding" shapes. Great visuals, right. LOL. And, yes, litter really does work for covering unwanted odours.
It sounds like you and Tali are doing well. Keep enjoying her kitten stages. She'll be a grownup before you know it.

 

[James W]

Her first owners are going to have the rest of the litter and mama cat checked for worms after I mentioned it. She may have gotten fleas either by the first vet (facility seemed old and smelly),or it was here. While I don’t have any flea bites, I kmow that an upstairs neighbor (not directly above but to the side)

This morning brought with it some emergent behavior. I was awake and checking my phone while in bed. Tali sleeps beside me at night, and she has taken to wiggling her butt going for the phone. If not that, she went for pouncing my nose (it could also be the glasses I’m wearing).

In both instances if happened, I picked her up and locked her out of the bedroom. First time she was meowing a lot, then gave up. I opened the door when I did hear her for a bit. The second time, I locked her out again -almost no meowing or scratching at the door.

Is this a wise move?

 

[rubysmama]

It's been such a long time since I've had a kitten. (Ruby was 2-ish when I adopted her) But I do know from my friends' kitten, that they get into everything and think everything is a toy. And when he gets too "enthusiastic", especially when they are cooking, he gets put in the basement. So you putting Tali out of your room is the same idea. So, yeah, if she's really pestering you, it's ok to put her out of the room. She probably won't understand why you're doing it, but it won't harm her.

 

[James W]

It's been such a long time since I've had a kitten. (Ruby was 2-ish when I adopted her) But I do know from my friends' kitten, that they get into everything and think everything is a toy. And when he gets too "enthusiastic", especially when they are cooking, he gets put in the basement. So you putting Tali out of your room is the same idea. So, yeah, if she's really pestering you, it's ok to put her out of the room. She probably won't understand why you're doing it, but it won't harm her.

I got a few more hours of rest as a result. When I opened the door and she came back onto the bed, she seemed more reserved. Perhaps she played with all her toys in the living room. Since all her essentials are outside of my bedroom, she’s probably fine if I close the door.

I have one of those black light “UVBlaster” LED lights - I was checking her coat for fleas last night (as well as my clothes) and didn’t see anything outside of notes of dust. The tapeworms thing is bothering me.

I broke down the half-tablet that I'm supposed to give her (for her worms), and put it in the food - she hasn't eaten the chunk just yet (maybe she can tell??). Hopefully she eats it up soon - she usually eats up one 6 oz can over the day and then some.

 

[rubysmama]

I don't know much about tapeworms. And don't particularly want to research the topic. Maybe post a new thread in the Cat Health forum so a different set of eyes will see it, and hopefully give you advice / peace of mind.

 

[James W]

It's been two weeks since I've brought Tali in. Thanks to a friend's advice, I decided to scruff her and feed her a anti-tapeworm pill (one of them didn't work when I mixed it in with her wet food - she could obviously smell the difference and was wondering what in heck I put in her food). Didn't think I could accomplish that with the kitten, but it was a success - her poops look "normal" now and don't appear soft.

She's been sleeping because of an exhausting morning of avoiding vacuums and cleaning today I also bought some pet wipes to wipe her bottom if I'm feeling icky about her sleeping beside me still, which she's been doing. I've been using my washer/dryer a bit more as a result of towels to clean up things (floors, one for the bed which I have her sleep on, etc).

There have been some frustrating evenings where I go to the kitchen (currently separated by baby gate) and she'll meow at me a LOT. I've given in sometimes and let her explore. One night, she really wanted to see what was up on the counters - this was even after I gave her food (the "routine" is her meowing a lot for her food in the morning after I wake up, and when I come back from work if the bowl is empty). I've read a wide variety of responses, from ignoring her when she meows to just talking to her. Hmmm.

Still playing with her but not constantly/regularly. I've been waking up half an hour to an hour earlier to accommodate litter box scooping, giving her some attention, and so on before I go to work (and also at night when I'm home).

 

[rubysmama]

It sounds like you and Tali are doing really well. Once you get used to seeing her "normal" poops, you will probably be less paranoid about her "bottom" on your bed. Cats do clean that area themselves, so if her poop is normal, it'll be easier for her.
And of course she wants to be in the kitchen with you. She loves you!

It does take a bit extra time to do "cat chores" but it's all worth it.

 

[James W]

It sounds like you and Tali are doing really well. Once you get used to seeing her "normal" poops, you will probably be less paranoid about her "bottom" on your bed. Cats do clean that area themselves, so if her poop is normal, it'll be easier for her.
And of course she wants to be in the kitchen with you. She loves you!

It does take a bit extra time to do "cat chores" but it's all worth it.

I notice that when I'm in the bathroom brushing my teeth she'll just sit by my feet. She is also fascinated when I scoop clumps from her litter box. Hmm.

 

[rubysmama]

I know you've had Tali 2 weeks now, so you're no longer a cat novice, but I just came across this article which might have some info you haven't learned yet.
First-time Cat Owner's Guide

Also found this article, which hopefully you won't need to worry about anymore:
Be Kind To Your Cats' Behinds! Dirty Cat Butts Prevention And Treatment

 

[James W]

I know you've had Tali 2 weeks now, so you're no longer a cat novice, but I just came across this article which might have some info you haven't learned yet.
First-time Cat Owner's Guide

Also found this article, which hopefully you won't need to worry about anymore:
Be Kind To Your Cats' Behinds! Dirty Cat Butts Prevention And Treatment

Thanks Unfortunately I did find another small stain on a throw I put on top of my other blankets on my bed

This evening I closed the bedroom door as I’d like to get some uninterrupted sleep. Tali has a cat tree (20” tall “bed” with scratching posts for the legs with her blanket she can sleep in. And I left the outside wall-heater / thermostat at around 65 so it doesn’t get awfully cold in the living room.

Although I adore her and enjoy having her by my side, I want her to get used to letting me sleep soundly...

 

[rubysmama]

I, and others, understand sleep deprivation, so totally get why you have to keep her out of the bedroom. I know you don't want to rush through her kitten months, but it will be easier once she's an adult.

And about the stains, it still might have something to do with the worms. Or a food sensitivity. If it keeps up, mention it to your vet.

 

[James W]

I, and others, understand sleep deprivation, so totally get why you have to keep her out of the bedroom. I know you don't want to rush through her kitten months, but it will be easier once she's an adult.

And about the stains, it still might have something to do with the worms. Or a food sensitivity. If it keeps up, mention it to your vet.

She started meowing a lot around 5:30 then stopped. I have one of those Petcube cameras, so I watched her sit near the door.

I really had to go to the bathroom around 6, so I walked out when I saw she was walking around the living room. Of course, she meowed a bit and wanted to be around me. For a few minutes I sat in the living room to pet / console her. Then I went back into the bedroom where I am now.

She started meowing again and has very emotive meows! It breaks my heart to hear some of them right now! But I don’t want to give in so easily!

Work observes MLK today, so I can get a little more shut eye. I also took some advice from a friend and will attempt to feed her wet food in smaller portions then leave kibble out once she’s eaten her wet food serving. The gal needs to try some!!

 

[James W]

Dear Diary,

I've had some fair results mixing wet food and kibble (Instinct All-Stages dry food) for Tali. One day both are gone. The next night, only half of it was eaten. Perhaps I need to provide smaller portions - it's challenging though since I'm not going home at lunchtime lately.

For about four nights now I've locked Tali out of the bedroom - after finding a small poop stain one time and a second time, I already wanted my *own* 'safe space' as well as get some sleep.

Unfortunately, she's been meowing each night for a spell and when she wakes up at 4am. She's such a sweet kitten though. When I emerge from the bedroom, she'll follow me when I go to the bathroom to brush my teeth. If I go to the kitchen (which is still baby-gated), she'll start meowing a LOT. She'll also still meow a lot since it's mealtime in the morning and when I get home from work. I'm starting to think that she's meowing at me because she really wants the attention. "Where have you been, dad?!" After all, she came form a home with two humans, mama cat, and three other siblings to just seeing one person several hours a day.

This morning she was meowing even *more*, with some frustrated grumbling and clawing at the door followed by some digging at the carpet where the door was. It's only been four days but I don't think it's going to get any better and I'm just about to give up and let her sleep with me again. I don't want to be doing laundry every single day or such for my big blankets.

Tali is now about three months old and I've had her with me for three weeks. It feels like months have gone by (lack of sleep could contribute to this, however).

This morning, I started thinking about why she was more settled or quieter the first week or two. First, I didn't cut of her access to the bedroom. Second, she was also able to sleep in her cat tree or even on a shelf. I'm struggling with giving her access to some more height because of some electronics and stuff on my other tables/shelves. I have had to spend money to replace most of my containers with lidded storage, and I feel like I'm replacing EVERYTHING in my living room with said storage lately.