WWYD very vocal cat ruining our lives.

[Minimili]

This sounds so ridiculous but it’s been such a big issue for so long and I just don’t know what to do.

I rehomed my parent’s cat.
My dad absolutely adored the cat but after he died my mum had him, she died and I took him in as I knew how much they loved him and wanted him to have a good life.

This cat is the loudest cat you’ve ever heard, he’s also the hungriest.
Whenever he wants something he miaows incessantly at a loud volume that ends up escalating to howls. We feed him 4-6 100g cat food pouches a day and he stands by his bowl getting louder and louder till we feed him immediately.
He has started making a noise that’s like a loud high pitched howl mixed with a growling noise that I can’t explain but is really jarring and can’t be tuned out.
You can hear it even with earplugs.

The vet checked him multiple times saying he’s just a vocal cat but you really don’t understand his volume till you hear him.

He has started mioawing/howling through the night and my autistic DP just can’t cope. He works early shifts and is woken up often in the early hours of the morning from continuous loud howling. When the cat wants food one of us has to drop everything and feed him because DP gets so distressed by the noise. He can miaow/howl for hours with absolutely no reason anyone has been able to find.

The cat sometimes eats half his food but howls until we put more in his dish, we thought he was just eating the jelly but he eats it all when we have piled food in his dish. He won’t eat dry food no matter how long we don’t give him wet.

I started to put the cat outside when it starts at night but the neighbours started complaining and one said she gets less sleep from my cat then from her baby crying.

DP and the neighbours said they are constantly on edge waiting for it to start, I hardly sleep as the slightest noise means I need to wake up and feed him or put him outside before it ramps up.

I love cats, I’ve always had them and a lot of my friends do, I’ve never witnessed this from any other cat. People who visit always seem shocked and a friend who stayed with us as she was locked out ended up sleeping in her car as she couldn’t stand the noise. It’s often a case of being woken up by random high pitched sounds through the night for no reason.

My DP of 12 years said he’s moving out unless I rehome the cat, my neighbours have begged me to keep him quiet.

I really don’t know what to do and this has been going on for 5 years and is getting worse. The cat is 17 but in great health, he’s unlikely to be rehomed though. He was a rescue cat to start then moved when my parents died and they adored him so much I just feel so much guilt.
I fell out with my sister 3 years ago when I said I’d rehome the cat and she thought I was heartless, she has dogs the cat wouldn’t live with.

So far I’ve lost my sister, my relationship is suffering, my neighbours hate me, I get no sleep and I’m constantly on edge, I never wanted the cat on the furniture but gave in to shut him up so my sofa is trashed and it costs me a fortune in food.

I know it’s easy to just say rehome him but the guilt is so bad. I finally decided to post on here to get an unbiased opinion about what to do.

The cats miaow is literally like a high pitched siren so it jolts everyone from sleep through the night. I have tried so hard to train him by putting him out the second he miaows and other methods.

Would I be unreasonable to finally decide on taking him to a shelter and living a more peaceful life? People can suggest tips on how to stop this but I’ve tried so many suggestions from the vet and other professionals.
It’s 3.38 and I have insomnia so being woken up just after I’d just gotten to sleep makes me angry and tearful. My next door neighbour put her lights on as soon as I put the cat out so she was obviously disturbed too.

This is why it sounds like hyperbole when I say it’s ruining my life but it actually really is.

Try the feliways plug in, the cat may be upset and insecure about being rehomed

My last cat was always quite vocal. However in her later years she started wailing really loudly, particularly during the night. It did get much louder in the last couple of years of her life.

She was also hiding behind things (like the tumble dryer that was in the understairs cupboard) and shouting her head off while she was in there too, like she didn't know where she was.

No one was getting any sleep. She had several visits to the vet over that two year period and the vet said it was normal because she had always been a vocal cat. In the end the vet agreed that she had dementia and was also deaf. It was kinder to put her to sleep as she was clearly in distress.

I think you know what needs to happen @Minimili but equally I also know how hard it is to make that decision and how difficult it is for the vet to understand that this is not normal, even in a very vocal cat.

Use your phone to record her and show that to the vet.

I love cats but you cannot continue like this. The cat isnt happy and no-one around you is either. Time to find another vet who is not stupid. Some will come to your home to euthanise. Use your phone to record as suggested above.

My cat started waking me up in the night with constant meowing when we moved house. I got this automatic feeder and set it up to go off at various times throughout the night. No more meowing. Best purchase ever. https://www.amazon.co.uk/Mate-C500-Automatic-Pet-Digital/dp/B01AUYLVU8/ref=mp_s_a_1_3_pp?crid=E4VE98PWBUXY&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.loN8nCRUVGTBOcKZsSiCruu0FY6Zt14I7YyL4ZFFj2qxzn9_jKPy1IRlOsr1t0adAyf0bdIvJOLNq2u5NUkFSvVeM9tGMdexmmPevOSxkzvynn2DuBsv6gIrxZmYhB3rPZRpyo7j8JouRgIWJwIa5G6H2MPaiAnFJPCjOFHchtxuGQn2onKulrpqmTUnD_q6RvgwSo9-ZZI_vnBckk4fhg.2jxXbcIE7TaI6M7JrBcx0xzwH9pU2O_5VADS8TCvtU8&dib_tag=se&keywords=automatic+cat+feeder&qid=1761557068&sprefix=automat%2Caps%2C116&sr=8-3

I know you say he's always been vocal, but it sounds like it's getting worse? I'd definitely ask for a second opinion, and I agree with everyone who has said PTS could well be the kindest option all round (and I say this as someone who works in car rescue).

People often crate dogs at night....would you be able to make a soundproof crate, pad it out with a nice bed, water etc and put him in it at night so at least it is peaceful whilst you are sleeping.
If the vet thinks there is nothing wrong he will probably refuse to euthanize the cat.
If all else fails, find another vet for another opinion.

These are awful, and very distressing for any animal - please don't use adversives OP.

My cat started miaowing loudly at night when she was older. Vet called it geriatric anxiety and said it was her waking and not being sure where she was. She was fine during day, and we just kept her with us at night and reassured her if she woke. But we totally adored her, and it wasn’t such a problem for us. She was pts just before her 20th birthday. Awesome cat. I’m sorry you’re having to go through this. Must be stressful knowing it was your parents’ cat too.

YANBU

Some cats are a nightmare. Best to rehome to somewhere or someone that won't find his noise a problem. Win for all.

Poor cat and poor you! If the vet has ruled out dementia maybe they can prescribe a sedative for anxiety that will calm him down? There are such drugs for pets available.

Rehoming will be difficult as rescue shelters are so full. The chances of rehoming an old cat are pretty slim as very few people want old cats so they are unlikely to take him, especially if he is a 100 decibel howler.

Maybe a senior cat vet check up to see if there are any medical issues and take it from there? and then explore all sedative options for anxiety.

Sorry to derail the thread- how is 4-6 pouches of food not much??
Each pouch is around 80 calories. So 5 pouches is 400 calories! Far to much for even a large cat?
My cat weighs 5.4 KG and is overweight. We feed 1 pouch per day and 30g of kibble to try to get the weight down. Before we used to feed 2 pouches and 50g of kibble and that’s what piled on the weight!

He is 17, that is an amazing age for a cat. I think PTS, it is the kindest option for all. I also believe that our pets are reunited with their loved ones in heaven.

I think I have a solution for you OP : get an automated feeder and set it to give out food 4-5 times a day/night. I understand that if your cat is used to pouches he will be very unhappy for a while but he will get used to it and the regular, predictable feeding will "reassure" him. I believe you can get feeders for as little as £50 online, please try it out for at least two weeks. No vet worth his or her salt will euthanize a perfectly healthy cat, and at 17 his chances of being rehomed are pretty much nil.

Quality of life is everything at 17. Even if there is no physical problem right now (at least no diagnosed physical problem) good health will not be long-term realistically. Far, far kinder to PTS than put a cat who is already geriatric and sounds potentially confused and distressed into a shelter imo.

Agree with PPs though to request blood tests if not done recently.

Has he got dry food available all the time? Yes I know it isn’t great and he may pack on weight. But given the options it may be one of the kinder/easier ones.

It depends on the pouch.

Something like Animonda Carny which is all meat may make the cat fuller for longer.

If it isn't thyroid then get your vet to explore medication. One of our cats is on antidepressants and it's made a world of difference to her (and us).

Surely your parents wouldn't want you to jeopardise your own relationship over the cat. You need to shake off this feeling of guilt and obligation (easier said than done i know). You've cared for the cat for 5 years but your relationship with your DP comes first.

If you're really unsure, as others have said get a second opinion off another vet but failing that euthanasia is kinder than rehoming.

Well I think thing left to try are automtaic feeders - more nutritious food ( may not eat ) and any blood tests vet hasn't done yet.

If none of that works then PTS is only real option - and you need to talk to the vet about that and say it he can suggest nothing it is the next step as no-one will rehome the cat at it's age and with it's issues and it can't go on.

Wow, your parents would be proud of you.

I wonder if all the people saying to kill the poor thing would say the same of a parent that had dementia.

It’s extremely cruel to rehome a traumatized cat of that age. Come on.

It needs readily available dry food 24/7 and possibly anxiety meds, or PTS.

It's quality not quantity. The supermarket foods are very watery and low in meat, whereas foods like Animonda Carny have more substance.

Honesty, I think dementia is the cruelest of illnesses and I very much hope that my children would take the kindest route with me if I develop it when I am older.

The cat could be in pain. Find another vet and trial it on some painkillers. Whatever the problem is, it's obviously distressed.

If that is the policy of most shelters then I take back my post, but still feel very sad for the noisy kitty