New adopted cat

[AmericasTorturedBrow]

Brought home a beautiful grey and white short haired 2yr old today. Got the "safe room" prepped but as soon as the door opened she wanted to explore, so we've let her and tried to follow her lead, telling the young DC to keep out of her way

She seems happy enough, has eaten and used the litter, is exploring all corners of our home. But this eve keeps periodically having very "kittenish" crazy moments, chucking herself around and whizzing from room to room. Is this normal? Should we confine her back into one room? I just want to make her happy and she seems to be taking everything in her stride?

[cozietoesie]

Even if you decide to let her out, it's best to keep cats in at night because that's the most dangerous time for them eg cars and predators. They don't seem to mind a curfew at all even when they're outside-going.

Maybe try a late night feed then and see how that suits her. (Until you know whether she's a greedy guts, however, and/or you can judge her proper weight and intake better, perhaps best to divide up her current food allowance into more frequent but smaller meals? (Including that late night one.)

You're doing well there.

[AmericasTorturedBrow]

State laws allow cats and we're in the middle of LA. There's a coyote living a few miles away is my only concern but it's only been seen at night.

Was hoping if I give her a late night feed it would stop the night crying? We'll see - gave her breakfast at 5am when I was up with DD as she was so hungry then she was fine til 5pm, bowl empty just now (10pm) as we were heading to bed so will see how her night goes

[cozietoesie]

PS - maybe also have a read of \link{http://www.apbc.org.uk/system/files/private/advice_sheet_15_-_environmental_enrichments_games_for_cats.pdf\this} with particular regard to Page 3 as she's eating kibble.

[cozietoesie]

Looking forward to the pictures when you work out the new laptop.

I give Seniorboy his nosh in four meals - breakfast, lunch, tea and a late supper. (The last about 10 o'clock at night.) Admittedly, he's an elderly boy on wet food, so it keeps his food fresh to divide it up that way and he seems to like it more frequently. (Nor do I have to worry about him eating too much - if anything, I'd like him to eat a little more than he does.) So I wouldn't worry too much about giving her something late on if she's not overeating and that's the way she likes her meals planned - I'd just be drawing the line at giving her something every single time she cries in the night. (But I don't think that's what you were proposing?)

On the going out - do you have any local rules/laws about cats going outside? (I know that some US states or towns do.) And what about predators ? You said that you live in a residential area but some of those in the States back on to some pretty wild territory.

[AmericasTorturedBrow]

Me again! Need to downsize photos of Rosie to upload and have new laptop so still figuring it out.

Two questions for you, wise MNetters of the Litter Tray

1. Rosie is still crying in the night at various points, regardless of being disturbed. I had to get up to DD at 4:30 and Rosie's food bowl was empty and she was trying to lead me to it and miaowing pitifully. I know you said not to get into bad habits but she seemed hungry so I topped it up, she ate a bit and went back to bed (we put her bed cushion under the chair she's adopted and it seems to suit her!). She seems to eat little and often so should I maybe give her her "dinner" much later, so she does have good available in the night?

1. The more I think about it the more I do want her to be able to go outside. We have the windows open but she can't get out due to the mozzie mesh and she loves sitting at an open window. She's also really active - I just think she'd benefit and we live in a quiet residential area although there are busy roads nearby. We fully intend to keep her indoors for a good month regardless but what are the steps to make sure she just doesn't run off and is there anything we can do to convince her to stay close to home? I'm guessing not and don't want to put her in any danger by allowing her to be an indoor/outdoor cat, I suppose I just see cats as quite independant and would hate to curtail that in her?

Any thoughts?

[AmericasTorturedBrow]

oooh yes I will - finally got her sat still long enough for a decent mugshot!!

We've kept her shelter name of Rosie, wouldn't have been my first choice but better than DC coming up with something awful

[cozietoesie]

Well I think you need to put a photo of her on your profile now! (And has she been given a name now that she's confirmed to stay?)

[AmericasTorturedBrow]

back from the vet for her check up and check in (no charge! lovely surprise, thankyou Shelter for getting all her vaccines etc up to date)

Vet was pleased with her, said she was slightly on the skinny side so a bit of wet food might be good but as she's young and healthy and happily eating her dry food and drinking water and weeing enough we can just give it occasionally to bolster her weight and for extra nutrition and not worry about giving it regularly until she gets older (oooh excited shiver as I realised that means she's here to stay!)

Vet said she seemed happy and sociable, was clearly coping fine with DD (who had a mega meltdown tantrum and did that piercing scream that physically hurts your ears!)

Only slight thing was she has a cut on the flap that lubricates her eye, poor sausage feel awful for not noticing it, but it's not been bothering her so was told just to keep an eye and it might well heal on its own

Aw I love her!!!

[cozietoesie]

She's only been with you for two days so it's real early yet. I'd hang tough on that 07.00 timing then as a minimum - including no middle-of-the-night attention. (If you have to get up to see to one of the DCs, ignore her.)

[AmericasTorturedBrow]

hmmm interesting - I did also wake up to the sound of her crying at around 3am. I am already a broken mess of sleep deprivation thanks to DD so am not really prepared for the cat to keep my up as well! I'm feeding her at around 7am as there's always someone up by then, it's very very very rare for one of the DC (and therefore one of us) nt to be up by that point

[cozietoesie]

I'm wondering whether 05.30 was about the time someone was up and doing in her previous life - maybe the first worker arriving at the rescue. (Or even in her life before that.) If you give her no reward (attention/food) for being up at that time but use the firm NO, she should learn. Certainly, my boys have always known that they wake me up before I'm ready at their absolute peril, unless there's an emergency.

(I'm not good in the morning.)

[AmericasTorturedBrow]

well she had another mad half hour last night - fairly hilarious to watch! I wonder if it's because she ended up being in her room most of the day because I had to be out. Apart from taking her to the vets to be registered today and doing the usual school run though I'll be home with DD so cat can wander around to her heart's content and we'll attempt letting her stay out this eve. Just annoying neither our kitchen or sitting room have doors on them!

She was crying again at about 5:30am so I think I have the joy of looking forward to being woken up by cat and children

I also hate the smell of their breath when they have wet food (our old family cat could only have wet food thanks to no teeth) but been told to make sure she has some for the water in it, and we live in SoCal where it's pretty warm

[sashh]

They are called 'mad minutes' and cats win them from playing cat chess.

They have to be used up every day or so. We had one as a child who would run the length of the Livingston / diner (about 30 feet) and climb the curtains, swing for a bit and then run back to the other end, climb the curtains and repeat for 15 mins.

As for when to give wet food, in my case never/only as a treat, I don't like the smell of the food and when I had a litter tray I didn't like the smell of that even more.

[cozietoesie]

If it's under the chair, maybe just put a blanket or throw under there - or something similar and soft. Too much of a structure under there might not make it so attractive to her. (And she might actually like it without anything at all: cats can curl up on hardwood floors and seem perfectly comfortable!)

She's likely still learning too much and too excited to use her post but the usual rules - verbal praise when she uses it and a firm NO (or two) if she starts scratching something else. She should learn fairly quickly.

Oh - and good news indeed about her litter tray. Peeing and pooing in unauthorized places exercise many posters on this board.

You're doing well so far.

[AmericasTorturedBrow]

she has a kind of corrugated cardboard scratching thing - we got it because we watched her use it at the shelter so thought best to get something she already knows. Despite it being covered in catnip she hasn't used it once! Slightly reluctant to go buying an expensive post but maybe we should? How do you encourage them to use it?

I think we'll keep her in the room again tonight and let her out tomorrow night, there's a old wooden chair in the sitting room she likes to go under and though she's ignored her bed maybe if I pop it under there she'll make it a comfy place to hide and sleep? I just want her to be as comfortable as possible - she's not showing any interest in toys etc but is still constantly exploring, she seems to like company but not a lot of heavy petting. Good news is she uses the litter perfectly!!

Thanks so much for your help and support btw

[cozietoesie]

Seniorboy currently has an old (but originally very good quality) armchair as his scratching post. With previous house cats, I've had very good success with pieces of good quality carpet (free samples from the local carpet shop) rough-anchored to the floor in some way.

They've all treated any sort of official scratching post with utter contempt.

All of my cats have permitted claw tip cutting, though, which helps.

[mrsnec]

Necat's scratching post is on an outside wall. We also have fake grass in the garden which she likes to scratch. As there is plenty for her to do out there she tends not to go to far. On the off chance you have sn off cut of that lying about I thought id mention it!

We still have a few claw marks on furniture though but I have more blankets and throws everywhere now than I did before she moved in. Good idea to ask the vet about food.

[cozietoesie]

I'd be tempted to let her out tonight to see how it goes if you're thinking that she's settling. (Remembering to ensure/show her that she has a warm and comfortable private place to go if DD is rambunctious. If you haven't got anywhere obvious, a cardboard box with an old fleece in it is usually a winner.)

Have you acquired a scratching 'something' for her, yet? If she's to be an indoor cat, they've got to scratch something and my experience is that if you authorize something, they tend to stick to that. (Otherwise they might just have at anything they fancy.)

[AmericasTorturedBrow]

She seems to be settling in well - last night she even just curled up next to me while I worked.

We locked her in the spare room again last night, mainly because our nights are so disrupted with DD I can't bear a frolicking cat added to the mix, but she got woken constantly by DD anyway and was crying from behind the door We have guests staying Saturday so would you let her out from now on? We've also been keeping her in the spare room when we're out of the house for now (I've so far been gone max 2 hours at a time as I don't want her to feel abandoned) as she's not learnt about not scratching the furniture yet - but I'm out most of the day, would it be mean to keep her in that room?

She is eating her dry food but not finishing it. Going to the vet's tomorrow to register her etc so will ask about wet food recommendations then

[mrsnec]

Sounds like she's settling in well. Ours has biscuits all the time. Whiskas. Then a tin of gourmet or pouch of wet food twice a day at about 8am and 5pm although she often asks for breakfast early. Might change this as it could be too much anyway, she is most lively after her tea so that's when we tend to play. Then she'll settle with us while we eat and usually for the rest of the evening. Sometimes she goes out if her boyfriend calls her! Foraging toys sound like a great idea. Im going to look out for those since necat likes to play with her food!

[cozietoesie]

Seniorboy has virtually no teeth left (he's elderly) so is on mainly wet food but if I had a younger cat who wanted dried, I'd probably give dried during the day - in foraging toys where possible if it was an indoor cat - and wet for the evening meal. That's just me though.

(Check you feed a decent quality dried food though and have lots of water around all the time for her to drink. I'm afraid I don't know the good brands which you might have across there but another poster might.)

[AmericasTorturedBrow]

I have had a cat before but from the age of 8 so mum took on all this responsibility!!

[AmericasTorturedBrow]

Thanks for the reassurance!! She happily lay down in the kitchen cleaning herself while we had breakfast so I think you're right - the tearing about the house is just because it's so much space for her!

Yay! Next question - we were given dry food by the shelter but told she should have a combo? When would you give wet food normally?

[cozietoesie]

*act.

Sorry - I'm trying to type with Seniorboy stretched nearly on top of me and seeking attention with The Paw.

[cozietoesie]

It sounds as if she's just learning her new life. (And remember, she may have been kept in a smallish cage at the rescue so having a bit of room to stretch out and at the giddy goat may be nearly too much for her.) It all seems OK for such early days.