Any advise please for our noisy boy?

[APotNoodleandaTommy]

Apologies if this is long, to avoid drip feeding

We had there rescue cats, which we rescued seperately over a period of three years. Our most recent is a boy. We think he's quite young, maybe 3 or 4? Stupidly handsome. He got neutered at the shelter so this was done late. Vet believes he is half Maine coon and half feral. He gets on fine with the others (well, a bit over exuberant and chasey but nothing too bad). Outside? Total psycho. Taking on any other cat; chased two other neighbourhood cats off.

In the last year, he sustained an injury which means we have to keep him indoors; in addition, I've had a baby, we have moved house and our oldest cat had to be out to sleep.

Now, he just won't shut up. He was always a talker, but he yowls the place down. We have to lock the cats in the living room at night as he was waking us at 4am. He frequently wakes the baby from his daytime naps. We don't understand. He has twice the space of his last home.

We've tried loads of things. Feliway has no effect; we've tried reinforcing good behaviour and petting him when he's quiet. We've tried food rewards; a cat calming collar.

His behaviour genuinely impacts our lives because he raises our stress levels; having a teething baby finally settled then woken by a cat?!?

We love him and don't want to rehome him at all but would really, really appreciate some other ideas on how to get him to settle down better.

If you're still reading, thank you :) ??

Loads of people on here with far, far more cat experience than newbie me, but I just wondered if taking him out for a stroll in the evening on a leash would be an option? He'd get the scents and smells and air but would be safe? Maybe that's a really thick idea though, I don't know much.
Your cat is beautiful.

Wow, that toy is fab! I'll order him one today
Re any time outside, we will ask the vet. I like the idea of the invisible fence, have heard mixed reviews?!?
We already have a female cat. She's very calm and settled and lazy their getting on can be a bit hit and miss as he gets overexcited when he plays and launches into attack mode. Yesterday he rolled her quite badly! I'd be scared to get a kitten in case he ate it, and not another rescue cat, he'd batter it
Loads of helpful suggestions, thank you!

Pinterest has pictures of cat runs, the Americans are big on it but if I had wild coyotes & mountain lions nearby I would want to keep my cat enclosed as well.

I think a number of US state or local byelaws have prohibitions on 'loose' pets as well, including cats. That may also contribute.

Booked in for lunchtime tomorrow so hopefully will get some ideas and do some investigation too in case there's a physical issue

Best of luck to you both.

Thank you :) will update

Hello, just to update we have been to the vet today. He got so anxious and was shaking with fear, it was so sad :(
Anyway the vet thinks that he is very stressed following all the changes and has given us some calmex cat to try...he's only had one dose but hasn't been yowling at all since! He's got his annual mot and jabs next month so we will review then.
It turned out the vet we saw, who was new to the practice, also has a one-eyed cat and made a huge, genuine fuss over him which was lovely :)
In the meantime we shall purchase more toys and entertainment for him and try to make sure we play with him more often
Thanks so much for all suggestions and support x

Poor lad.

Do you know if the cat/animal he had a fight with might still be around? (You might have seen one in the garden.) It must have been one heck of a scrap because he looks like a big boy - but then not every cat is deep down an alpha cat so he may now just be genuinely scared of other cats especially if he has a disability.

Do you think that the time may have come to consider whether he should go to another home - perhaps as a singleton cat? He shouldn't have any trouble finding one, I'd have thought.

I'm so glad you've got a vet who can really empathize with your/his situation now. That's a very positive step.

Well the cat who he lost the fight to is our former next door neighbours cat; we moved about 2 months ago and are having to decorate every room (another part of the problem I fear!). I've only seen the one cat in our new garden and I can't recall him seeing it, but he did get antagonised by a squirrel last week! He gets on mainly ok with our other cat - sometimes they play, he's the one who doesn't know when to stop! He also doesn't mind the baby, weirdly, even walks up to him.
The vet has given us the 'softest' intervention at this stage; he also knows a behaviourist we can see if things don't improve. Even more money but we love our catbabies.
We would rehome him if there was no other option but he really does love us (sounds mad but as you know, you can tell with cats!) and we want to try to make it right here first as he's part of our family

Crikey - a new house, a new baby, the loss of an eye and hospitalisation - and decorating as well? For animals who love routine, he's got a lot on his plate. Even you must be stressed by it.

When is the decorating to finish?

Has he a quiet/high/safe place where he can go to to get away from everything if he wants?

And don't forget cat number 3 being put to sleep :(

I've been horrendously stressed , but at least I understand! Our other cat is all very 'whatever' so she's been completely unfazed. She's not even tried to go it despite having been an 'outdoor' cat previously too!

The decorating is taking longer than we would hope as we are having to do it ourselves which is just enormous fun with a baby... However, he has found a hidey spot in one of the finished rooms so he has a safe place.

He's just had a sleep on the window sill for an hour - he's not done that in ages; properly slept instead of just looking sad. Husband thinks he can already see an improvement. We keep our fingers and paws crossed!

I'd try my darndest to keep that finished room 'the same'. It's awfully tempting when you're decorating to quickly shift some furniture/plants/whatever into a spare space if you're redecorating another room but if he can know that that place will be fine, it might relax him a little. (Maybe also make a temporary rule that no-one goes in there if the door is closed so that it becomes truly private for him?)

Oh, quite agree, it's his safe space so it's being left well alone. Next week our bedroom furniture arrives so that room will be done too and he can always go in there also. The finished room is the guest room, and the only guest we have planned soon is my mum, who nursed him after his op so he loves her!
It's so nice to see him calmer already. We'll give it a few days and if he stays calmer, we'll try letting them have the run of the house at night again. I just can't though if he goes back to waking us (and the baby!) at 4am....

Just a thought - but I've noticed in the past that my boys couldn't cope if I was being 'busy, busy, busy' without any relief. They needed me to have some down time which they could share - lounging on the bed with a book or a movie or something. Are you getting time for a little bit relaxation?

Hardly any I'm afraid but did find my boy on the bed earlier when I'd had my shower so flopped next to him for a chill and a snuggle.
The irony is that he's evil and violent but also very sensitive and very genuine for a cat! Our other cat would leave us for a bowl of tuna! Most of the time one-eyed cat is a hooligan and bites etc but after I had surgery he wouldn't leave my side for 2 days.
Maybe I need to make more chill out time so we can have some cuddles

I'd try that - it would be good for both of you. (It might mean that the decorating stretches for a day or two but you just could end up with a happier cat.) Try to make it for about the same time of whatever days you can organize it. They're very sensitive to timing.

Well we are taking it easy because of the baby so slowing further won't hurt :)
Am looking forward to enjoying time with my boy again :)

He sounds like mine, total psycho with other cats & a big soppy apeth with me.

I'm so glad the calmex has soothed him a bit, being so tense all the time must be awful for him.

Yes bless him
Well husband decided we should try letting him have the run of the house last night which worked til about 3am when he decided he wanted to play with the other cat! So husband had to shut them back in the living room bizarrely I managed to sleep through it all!

Hi
Just to say the cat calmex has made a huge difference, he has really calmed down and now only miyoops when he's hungry or about to use his tray! (Apart from the odd small chat like we always have) - yay!!

That's really good news! Is he happier now?

Great news - long may it last.

He's so much happier, thank you :) his tummy still isn't great but he's back at the vets in a couple of weeks so we'll have a chat then. He's being affectionate and is definitely more relaxed

Sometimes that can have the effect of a virtuous circle - the better they feel, the more they appreciate things, the better they feel........ and so on. I'm really pleased for him and you all.