to put my healthy cat down

[chocolaterabbit]

I have a cat who is now about 17 years old but still in good health - glossy coat, all teeth etc.

DH's cat died recently of natural causes and the two animals had been living together for 12 years. Since DH's cat died, my cat has started crapping all over the house, particularly in hard to reach areas like under the kitchen units/ behind the sofa.

I've shut all the doors etc but the cat flap leads directly into the kitchen and her food is there so can't shut her out. Came down this morning to find a sloppy poo under the kitchen table and against the legs of DD's highchair. It is absolutely revolting and horrible to have to clean up, also not exactly healthy for the DCs.

So. Would I be unreasonable to ask the vet to put my cat down because of this?

Animals can often go through a phase of this when they have experienced an emotional trauma. With a little persistence it can easily be rectified, ask your vet.

You are being VU. Poor animal.

There are 2 sides to pet ownership; the good and the bad.

If you cannot be bothered to deal with the bad then do not have pets.

cat is NOT healthy if it is crapping everywhere

would explore treatment/management problems - but surely goes without saying there is a litter tray already? but otherwise what is the objection to euthanasia?

A healthy cat will display these behaviours if it has experienced an emotional trauma - it CAN be rectified.

Do pet owners not read-up on such things or take advice from a vet before considering putting the animal down?

Can't believe how thick some people are.

Chocolate I've had two cats for years. One died; the other started crapping all over the house. We seriously considered re-homing him or having him put down (DD was only 3 at the time), but figured it was probably stress. We gave him lots of extra love and treats and fuss, and he stopped in about three weeks.

We just moved house in April; had poo and wee all over for nearly 2 months. Lots of scrubbing, lots of treats, problem went away.

Then a tomcat started bullying our two. Had 'spray' in the kitchen and the living room - the vet gave us this pheremone spray, and it's cleared up the problem again.

I think it's a stress thing. The mess is nasty but shrug can you put newspaper down in the kitchen overnight like you would with a kitten? Speak to your vet and see if the pheremone spray works too.

can't believe how sentimental some people are

Of course people will be sentimental; it's their pet!

How is it better for a cat to spend the rest of its days in a small department of Battersea dogs home??!!! It would be better for the cat to end its days in the home it has spent the last 17yrs.

If your vet has already suggested it Chocolaterabbit, then i would say you are definitely not being unreasonable.

emotional OR physical trauma = NOT healthy

needs investigation and treatment

Goodadvice - did you read my posts? I did everything. Felliway sprays, a room that my son was banned from so that the cat felt safe, I spent hundreds of pounds trying to help the cat get better. It didn't. It's a myth frankly that all emotional issues can be rectified. Oh actually - I could have put my son up for adoption. That would have probably helped.

YANBU
We had a very elderly cat who suddenly just started shitting all over the house. It was disgusting, diaorrhea everywhere and I had just given birth to ds2.
Took her to the vet who said pretty much "she's old - you can continue clearing up the shit, or put her down".
We put her down.
Sorry if that sounds unkind but having runny cat shit all over the house with a 2 year old, a new born and a breastfeeding mum was just never going to work.
I never thought of re homing her as a - who would want her and b - I thought a change of home at that stage in her life would be cruel.
Honestly, I don't know what the fuss is, she was humanely put to sleep with me stroking her.She was purring!

YANBU.

A 17 year old cat crapping all over the house is probably not a healthy cat.

I would take it to the vet and ask their opinion, but I would probably get it put down, or see if I could arrange the house so it was only in the kitchen and outside. Cat poo all over the house is not a good thing. have been there with two cats.

One cat like this we did rehome, and frankly I felt guilty for years, she was incontinent from quite a young age (6 or so) so we rehoused her in a calmer house with my sister, who spent 3 years dealing with cat shit everywhere, and then she got rehoused with my sister's MIL who spent several years dealing with cat shit all over her house. Not good. I felt bad about our rehousing, the cat remained a problem for years, but we'd ditched the problem to other people who were softer-hearted than us. in retrospect, I would put it down if I had another cat like that. you can be an animal lover and still think that a house full of crap is not a reasonable way to live.

aw tiredlady, that's lovely

Yes, I did read your posts otherwise I would not have commented.

If these attempts at solving the problem have been tried over a prolonged period of time without success then by all means talk to the vet again and perhaps get a second opinion.

My own experience of dealing with such matters have shown that people can often give up after a few weeks without perserverance.

I never stated that all emotional issues could be resolved so no idea why you feel the need to mention myths or putting your flesh and blood up for adoption! There is no need to highlight certain words, I can understand the words you want to emphasis myself!

I suggest speaking to the vet again and assessing all options, good luck. If it is the end for the animal I am asorry for you and your son, it is heartbreaking to lose a much loved pet.

I live about 3 hours from Battersea Dogs home. I wouldn't be surprised if the stress of the journey was enough to finish her off.

I've been trying to give extra fuss etc but she is not a big fan of DS = she's fine with him but he's only 3 months so noisy and doesn't understand about tails not for attempted grabbing. DS is pretty permanently clamped to me at the moment as he seems to have had a constant growth spurt for the last 8 weeks so she really only wants cuddles and fuss from DH who works long hours.

As I;ve said, I'm taking her to the vet and will see what he says although his default seems to be euthanasia. I would have to take some advice from the vet even if I thought she would be put down - its not really a DIY job is it?

Goodadvice: this is what your post said

"A healthy cat will display these behaviours if it has experienced an emotional trauma - it CAN be rectified.

Do pet owners not read-up on such things or take advice from a vet before considering putting the animal down?

Can't believe how thick some people are."

That reads to me that you think that all emotional problems can be solved. Not some of them.

tiredlady - I was with my first cat when she was put down and it was just like that. That's why it was so hard that I couldn't do that with this one. Was much worse leaving her at the animal shelter.

Same problem here, but with incontinent dog. She was at the vets for 2 weeks this year, it was then when I realised how stressed I feel about the whole situation:

Runing down at every bark in case she needs to go out

Not being able to have a day out in the weekends unless I'm prepared to scrub the kitchen floor with bleach at my return.

If we sit at the table we have to open the door for her at least 5 times while we are eating, the moment we don't she goes next to the table even when she had been out 30 seconds before.

Using a crate is not working anymore, she just wees/poos on her bed.

It is a huge expense, I dread to invite people around as I'm always on edge wondering what would be waiting for me when I open the kitchen door. We can't sit to have a meal in peace (If I put her out she keeps scratching he door until I let her in).

She is old, had a lot of health problems and I'm sure she won't survive if I rehome her or send her to the RSPCA. Other than her "drainage" problems, she is a lovely happy affectionate dog who seems to have a lot of live on her yet. I'm counting the minutes..

no, but i was thinking that if they were 'ready to die' so to speak, then a lot of cats would simply go away somewhere of their own accord - we had a few that disappeared when it was time. best to leave it to the vet in all ways i suppose although some vets are more pro-ptting down than others. we had a neighbour who seemed to have their cats put down after around 3 years of life, saying that they "were ill" when they had all seemed perfectly healthy to us

I stated that these issues can be rectified, not "all" can be rectified. My reference was to the chances of success, not with regards to success in all cases.

There are options; some animal charities will rehome to (perhaps) an elderly person who just wants a lap cat, for example.

Unfortunately a cat of these mature years may well find a baby unsettling. If the messing cannot be brought under control there options.

As I said, if the owner feels that it is time to say goodbye then I truly feel for them as it is sad to lose an animal. Unfortunatly this is the down side to pet ownership, at some point we have to say goodbye.

choc our cat though a lot younger than yours started doing this after I had ds, it was a behavioural thing and eventually sorted itself out

I'd take the cat to the vets to make sure that there is no underlying condition and if there isn't they will probably recommend something like feliway that makes the cat less stressed

Oh and YABVU

www.dog-nappy.co.uk/Cats_Faecal_and_Urinary_Incontinence_payment_page.htm

paste the link if it doesn't work

One question about napies... does it mean then that you have to wipe the poo off the cat's hair every time?

Gosh, this is where I regret not getting a hairless dog!

Absolutely unreasonable - there is an alternative and no excuse for killing her.

I can only urge you to take her to your vet for assessment in case their is a physical problem and get her treated and failing that to approach the Cats Protection, an independent cat rescue or animal sanctuary, or a network rescuer such as myself and have the poor cat rehomed safely. The RSPCA are not the best and safest bet for an animal of her age - please don't consider them in this cats case.

I'm happy to help rehome her or find her a rescue or sanctuary place (it's what I do, mainly with dogs but also with other animals). I have animal welfare and rescue contacts nationwide and, as you gather, work on a no-kill policy. You can contact me at alfaalfa AT live DOT co DOT uk for further info on who I am, what I do, references and help for your cat.

Btw, its entirely possible to find an assessed, approved home for your cat and not have to place her in a rescue.

Equally, in some of the sanctuaries I know the cats live in the house with the owner just as anyone else's would - they aren't confined to a kennel or cat-house.

Get her checked by a vet first. Any chance of rehoming? I would have her put down as last resort.

Vallhalla, I rang the PDSA, the CPL and every single sanctuary and shelter in London and the Home Counties. I eventually found one that would take my cat. It's really not easy to find somewhere that will take an elderly incontinent cat