Hi all -
I'm glad my "go-to" forums for all my kitty needs is still very active, even though I only seem to pop in every couple of years, lol.
My senior cat (16.5 years) Cammie is a LOUD MOUTH. It's not necessarily new, but I think it's gotten a little worse in the last year or so. Nothing else about her behavior has changed. She eats well, drinks, fairly active, no litter box issues. She may have lost some weight over the last few years, but it seems to be steady now.
With that said, I think it's attention seeking or a senile thing. It's mostly at night. My mom said you can't even tell she's in the house during the day because she's so quiet. But once the evening rolls around, she seems a little unsettled - like she'll cry, then lay with me for a little bit, then get up, walk around the house, start crying again, come into my room and stare at me and cry (while I respond with "WHAT?? I'M RIGHT HERE") - she'll wake me up once or twice at night and become vocal once I'm awake, but then settles down by the time I'm leaving work. It's also worse when my boyfriend's here. She'll go into the other room & start crying as if she's saying "Let's hang out in here instead" lol - she likes my BF, but it's as if her space is being invaded.
Anyway - everything I'm reading says to ignore it and don't reward the behavior. Will that really help?? That's what I do in the middle of the night, I usually fall back asleep pretty quickly and she usually doesn't go on and on like she does in the evenings. But in the evening & early morning, it's SO hard to ignore. It also makes me feel like an a-hole. I've never used calming spray with her - would that make a difference?
I should also add that another cat is not an option. Sometimes I wonder if she's lonely since she used to be part of a pair, though her and the other cat weren't particularly close, but I do know that she became more vocal after my other cat passed away 5 years ago.
I just really need some relief. Some days I can tolerate it. But like this morning, I couldn't fall back asleep, my Dad was blasting the TV at 6AM, the cat starts crying, and I almost went off the deep end
Thanks!!
I'm glad my "go-to" forums for all my kitty needs is still very active, even though I only seem to pop in every couple of years, lol.
My senior cat (16.5 years) Cammie is a LOUD MOUTH. It's not necessarily new, but I think it's gotten a little worse in the last year or so. Nothing else about her behavior has changed. She eats well, drinks, fairly active, no litter box issues. She may have lost some weight over the last few years, but it seems to be steady now.
With that said, I think it's attention seeking or a senile thing. It's mostly at night. My mom said you can't even tell she's in the house during the day because she's so quiet. But once the evening rolls around, she seems a little unsettled - like she'll cry, then lay with me for a little bit, then get up, walk around the house, start crying again, come into my room and stare at me and cry (while I respond with "WHAT?? I'M RIGHT HERE") - she'll wake me up once or twice at night and become vocal once I'm awake, but then settles down by the time I'm leaving work. It's also worse when my boyfriend's here. She'll go into the other room & start crying as if she's saying "Let's hang out in here instead" lol - she likes my BF, but it's as if her space is being invaded.
Anyway - everything I'm reading says to ignore it and don't reward the behavior. Will that really help?? That's what I do in the middle of the night, I usually fall back asleep pretty quickly and she usually doesn't go on and on like she does in the evenings. But in the evening & early morning, it's SO hard to ignore. It also makes me feel like an a-hole. I've never used calming spray with her - would that make a difference?
I should also add that another cat is not an option. Sometimes I wonder if she's lonely since she used to be part of a pair, though her and the other cat weren't particularly close, but I do know that she became more vocal after my other cat passed away 5 years ago.
I just really need some relief. Some days I can tolerate it. But like this morning, I couldn't fall back asleep, my Dad was blasting the TV at 6AM, the cat starts crying, and I almost went off the deep end
Thanks!!