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The litter tray

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Original poster

Picking up our cat that's been 'missing' for years

459 replies

KiffyKiffyKiffy · 03/02/2025 14:57

Well not missing exactly but we lived at our old address and as our cat got older and we had kids and 2 dogs our cat spent more and more time with our elderly neighbour. We would try and coax him home but he always went back.

The neighbour loved him and spoilt him rotton.

2 years ago we moved house and we tried to catch him a few times to bring him with us but he evaded us. So we went to the neighbours house to ask him to catch him for us. The elderly neighbour said he would like him to stay (his wife and dog had passed away) as he was good company

So over time we check in on him, make sure he doesn't need vet care etc.
Neighbour has our number.

We just stopped by to check in and he asked if we could take him.

Of course!

But I'm worried as he's not seen our dogs in years. He's never been to this home and we have somehow adopted a stray cat here who treats it like his home and is basically out unplanned cat too now.

We are picking him up in an hour and I'm just a bit stressed at how to navigate this!!

We never planned to be apart from him but he chose the neighbour over us and at that time the neighbour really needed him.

Any advice please!

OP posts:
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TheFatCatsWhiskers1 · 09/02/2025 21:40

KiffyKiffyKiffy · 09/02/2025 17:08

I'm covered in hives.

I don't know if I'm having a reaction to the fleas or something?

But I've got spots all over then these ...

I'm itching like hell :(

Has he been brushing against that area? I once moved into a flat that had a very bad infestation of fleas from the previous owner. A pest controller had to come in and spray it, and I ended up covered in hives like that, so many that I had no healthy skin left on my legs. It turns out I'm allergic to pyrethrins which are in flea treatments.

MoonWoman69 · 09/02/2025 21:55

Aww he's absolutely gorgeous @KiffyKiffyKiffy!
Don't feel bad about it all hon, you have him back and are doing everything possible to make him happy and comfy!
He'll feel like a new boy now!

Marinel · 10/02/2025 09:29

I just looked at your hand thread, that looks so sore. I have had several episodes of dishydrotic eczema on hands and feet, but it did resolve with steroid ointment (I know you don't have a diagnosis for it yet).

I think you Indorexed your room? You could have an additional reaction to that, it can cause skin irritation.

Original poster
KiffyKiffyKiffy · 10/02/2025 16:11

A little update.

Don't seen to have any new bites, so I think it was a rogue flea. Am keeping up the daily bedding washing.

He did another poo in the tray!! Completely unprompted. All on his own 🥳

He's feeling better 100% as he's gone from a quiet, sleepy cat with little energy to...quite frankly, a pain in the arse 🤣

Last night he jumped on my chest of drawers and was knocking all my belongings off then proceeded to jump on my head from the headboard.

This is after DH let him out of the crate because he was meowing at top volume like he needed the loo.

He didn't.

He wanted a 3am snack 😐

It's so nice to see him so animated though. I suppose now that he's not being tucked dry by fleas he has some extra energy.

We also got a message from a relative of neighbour who asked if we would like to take Vaders friend, a ginger British Short-hair.

But I can't even think of that right now, although the thought of another cat being eaten alive by fleas is upsetting me a lot.

I might go speak to him with some flea treatments and discuss possibly taking him when summer rolls round. I don't know. This cat used to spend a lot of time with us when he was younger. He flitted between both our homes and he was a sweet boy but the thought of more fleas right now is killing me.

OP posts:
Agapornis · 10/02/2025 16:32

On the other side, Vader would have a friend and perhaps they'd bother each other rather than you...

TheFatCatsWhiskers1 · 10/02/2025 17:00

British shorthairs are wonderful, they tend to be sweet, lazy and docile and usually no bother at all. And as pp says, they’d have each other.

Floralnomad · 10/02/2025 17:02

It would be lovely for him to have a friend but I’d be tempted to say you want to take ginger friend to your vet first to get him a clean bill of health , that way at least you can start the deflecting etc and actually get a proper idea of his condition .

Binglebong · 10/02/2025 18:12

Wonderful news that he's doing so well. Let him settle with the rest of your household before you even consider taking in another, I know you're tempted but it's not fair to them to add too much in one go. You could provide some flea medicine in the short term if you have some spare though.

Original poster
KiffyKiffyKiffy · 10/02/2025 19:32

So I've been locking the door when we go out of the room but I must've forgotten to.

Just came upstairs to this.

GingerCat is grufting a little but looks completely chill (loaf mode) so Vader can't hear his complaints. So they're just sat together.

Vader then had enough and went back to his bed.

Picking up our cat that's been 'missing' for years
OP posts:
Original poster
KiffyKiffyKiffy · 10/02/2025 20:04

He'd shit under the bed again :/

OP posts:
0psiedasiy · 10/02/2025 20:38

Just when you thought you had come so far, maybe it was a protest at ginger cat

Binglebong · 10/02/2025 20:40

Glad they're getting on. Sorry about the poo though.

Original poster
KiffyKiffyKiffy · 10/02/2025 21:28

0psiedasiy · 10/02/2025 20:38

Just when you thought you had come so far, maybe it was a protest at ginger cat

It was before meeting Gingercat. So unrelated I think.

OP posts:
TheFatCatsWhiskers1 · 10/02/2025 21:48

They’re so cute together! I don’t think GingerCat is a British shorthair but he’s very pretty nonetheless 😻

you could try putting some tinfoil down on the shitting areas, they don’t like to walk on it.

Original poster
KiffyKiffyKiffy · 10/02/2025 22:25

TheFatCatsWhiskers1 · 10/02/2025 21:48

They’re so cute together! I don’t think GingerCat is a British shorthair but he’s very pretty nonetheless 😻

you could try putting some tinfoil down on the shitting areas, they don’t like to walk on it.

No Gingercat is our cat.

The BSH is still with with the old man.

OP posts:
Original poster
KiffyKiffyKiffy · 13/02/2025 05:34

It's 5.30am and Vader started meowing at 4am to get out of his crate. He kept going under the bed so DH kept putting him near his litter tray.

He wouldn't settle and was just meowing so DH fed him 🙄 and kept putting him near his tray. Nothing.

About 4 times we put him to bed and he kept meowing and scratching the floor to get out but wouldn't go in the tray.

We decided to ignore him in the hopes he would sleep and he shit in his crate 😐

He's been doing this every night now. Just wandering about meowing and scratching. Trying to go under the bed which makes us think he is going to shit.

Am so tired. I can't do this every night :( I find it really hard to fall back to sleep if I'm woken so have felt like a zombie the last few days

There's not anywhere else he can sleep though.

OP posts:
Mia184 · 13/02/2025 06:25

OP, please get some puppy pads, put one under the bed and see if Vader poops onto it. Then you only have to pick it up and dump it in the garbage. These pads were a lifesaver for me when I took in a cat with violent diarrhea.

Zonder · 13/02/2025 07:12

Oh no! Would you not just let him out of your room yet? I couldn't cope with that.

Marinel · 13/02/2025 08:16

Keeping Vader in your room was only a short term solution while he recovered, what was the medium term plan? It is not sustainable for you to have him living in your bedroom, and not fair on to be confined to one room.

He may be able to rub along okay with your other cat, they looked fairly civilised in that photo. But is there a way of letting him have more freedom while keeping him safe from the dogs? Is there a downstairs room he could stay in, with door shut, overnight?

CurrentHun · 13/02/2025 08:22

Often elderly cats need to drink a lot of water and they get thirsty in the night. Just have a bowl of dry food and a water bowl out upstairs overnight and see if that helps. Litter tray upstairs and downstairs so there’s not far to go.

rainbowstardrops · 13/02/2025 09:20

Oh bless him, he was doing so well with the poo situation. I think I might be inclined to try to integrate him into the household now and not just your bedroom. Maybe he's stressed?

Original poster
KiffyKiffyKiffy · 13/02/2025 11:01

He's got water and he's not confined to our room anymore.
We have a 3 storey house so he has 2 floors to Potter about on without having to go down to the 1st floor and deal with the dogs.

The old man said he was living in the airing cupboard and just going out for poops so he's definitely got enough space to roam.

He's still in our room over night because this is where he wants to be. The door isn't shut he can leave the room but his heated crate is in here and his litter tray.

I'm not sure there's anywhere else these 2 things can go.

There's 4 bedrooms on the 2 floors and narrow hallways.

There's the bathroom but there's nowhere to plug in his heated mat.

Or a very small laundry room, like 1msq floorspace.

I'm also conscious of him wandering about and shitting in bedrooms

OP posts:
Marinel · 13/02/2025 14:55

Ah right, great he's got plenty of space to roam around.

I would find another place for him to sleep at night since that seems the only issue now. The bathroom would be fine, give him a cosy bed overnight rather than a heated mat.

Ohnobackagain · 13/02/2025 16:04

@KiffyKiffyKiffy he will probably feel more secure in a smaller space …