Needy clingy rescue cat....any tips?

[SpongeBobJudgeyPants]

I love SpongeCat dearly. When we got her from the Rescue, I don't know who rescued who really....and she loves me too! So much, that she wants to sit on me. All.The. Time. Which often involves holding my laptop at a weird angle, and aggravating my bad back. But when we are away, although we have a pet feeder/stroker/checker she gets quite stressed, even with the Feliway plugged in. When DD comes from uni with all her mess, that stresses her, and she starts weeing in odd places. It is now stressful for me to go away, even knowing she is being well looked after, because I know she will be stressed to. I realise this is largely down to her being a rescue, and she is probably now about 9. Have had her 5 years. Is there anything I could do/stop doing, which would help? TIA.

I'm always stressed when I leave my cats. I'm going to see my aunt on Wednesday, and should really stay overnight because she lives a 2 hour drive from me, however, I just won't rest knowing that my 3 will be without me, and it is close enough for me to get back to them in a day.

If I do go away for a few days, I have someone who can stay with them or someone else who can pop in to them a few times a day, but I still worry about them and hate leaving them. They are very messy cats as well, and I hate burdening anyone with having to clean up after them.

The reality is though, that we sometimes have to/want to go away and just have to hope that our furry friends will survive without us.

There is a brilliant book called The Trainable Cat by John Bradshaw & Sarah Ellis it's fantastic and could really help you. You could also try changing her food if she's on cereal type biscuits and pouches\tins. Ours all calm down incredibly when we stop with the cereals.

We give them a mix of raw and lightly cooked turkey.

Thanks all! I am going on honeymoon later in the year, so I really do need to leave her for a few days...might be an idea to have my Mother to stay and let her root through all my paperwork and throw things away in my kitchen and help her slattern-but-middle-aged daughter...I had never considered the food. Is it some cat type wheat allergy or similar? Will look at those links, and remember I do know she is better with my Mother around through gritted teeth

I talk to mine on the phone, he purrs!

I have similar.

I always put them in a cattery when we go away as it's actually less stressful than being at home on their own. In a cattery there's someone around to chat to the majority of the time. I use the same one and they know the people there and the environment.

Otherwise i just find ways to sit so they can sit on me. Laptop with a footstool so they can sit on my lower legs, for example.

I gave up holidays. (Without a cat that is.)

I've got a Motorola Hubble camera and you can get all to them through that. Hilarious to watch them try and work out where the voice is coming from.

Talk

Ooh good ideas. Cozie, do you go toholiday cottages/hotels with your cat? :)

I did with Twoago. Oneago and Seniorboy have just gone to other people's houses with me if needed.

They've all been desperately closely bonded though - won't eat properly (if at all) if I'm not around. That's Siamese for you. (Some of them.)

Sorry - The Lodger has also been moved around in recent times. (He's not a Siamese.) He doesn't much care where he is, though, although he prefers older houses. (Mice! )

16 years on and I still have that with my 2. They don't leave me alone but will settle for DS as second best. They were 2 years old and had been badly neglected when we got them.
Guess who doesn't come on holiday with us now... Although at 20 DS is ok with this. We used to have a friend who they love look after them.
They fight still to both get on my lap!