I have a question for anyone having to feed two separate foods to 2 cats. We just got back from spending almost all Sunday morning at the emergency vet. She determined that Anna had pancreatitis. She’s keeping Anna overnight (or 2 or 3) to stabilize her. The vet said we will need to feed Anna a prescription food, which her sister, Bella, won’t need. What are some of your tricks for keeping them eating their own food?
I’m hoping others will chime in here, but I’ll say that you probably need to either feed them in separate rooms (when Spanky needed special food, we always fed him in the bathroom) or you could try the feeders that work with RFID chips – this is the one I’ve seen, and there’s a great, in-depth review of it over at Cats Herd You. I’m sure there are others – who out there has advice? Please chime in!
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If anyone is so inclined, please consider voting for my child Gabby’s painting of our Summer she’s entered in a pet portrait contest with an art supply company.
Please vote for Gabby! You can vote once every 24 hours.
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How do you keep your cats from climbing the fence?
We have a cat fence.
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You have your own WATERFALL?? Very cool! Also, so jealous!
I WISH we had our own waterfall! The first waterfall in the 1 Second Everyday video was located behind a house on the street behind us and shows up after a heavy rain. Fred happened to hear it when he was walking one morning, and we drove by later that morning so I could see it (I love waterfalls) and take a picture. The second waterfall is located just off the Alum Hollow Trail on Green Mountain here in Huntsville. (I am not much of a hiker, but I’ll make an exception for a waterfall.)
There’s another waterfall that I can see from Fred’s office window – it’s behind the next door neighbor’s property, and it’s another one that only shows up after a heavy rain. Here’s a picture out the window, across the neighbor’s back yard. You can see the waterfall pretty much in the center of the picture. Not the greatest picture, but you get the idea.
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So how long did it take Emmy to relax and let you handle the Noms? I guess she is the feral standard we’ll measure Katia progress by. But The Nominees ended up being friendly babies, didn’t they?
The Noms did end up being friendly. I think it was a few days before I tried touching the kittens, and Emmy was pretty growly when I did. I don’t think it was until the kittens were toddling out of the box on their own that I got to do any serious handling. Emmy was a lot less prone to smack the hands that reached for her than Katia is, though. I’ll be interested to see how Katia handles it once the kittens are moving about on their own.
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I know Katia’s already been named but I think her secret superhero name should be Night Fury (the type of dragon Toothless is in How to Train Your Dragon). Fury for short.
(It took me a while, but I finally realised what those lantern eyes of hers reminded me of!)
I love that!
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Two name suggestions: Kerrigan and Harding.
Oh no no no, we won’t be doing THAT. (But the idea makes me laugh!)
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What about snakes?!?! I’m terrified of them and I know down South, y’all got a lot of them. How do you handle possible intruders and have any cats ever met one?
We’ve dealt with snakes in the past, as evidenced by this video of Stefan bringing a snake into the house and my resultant scream.
Fred LOVES snakes (once, when we lived in the house before Crooked Acres, he called me from a hike excitedly saying “Can you hear it? Can you hear it? It’s so cool!” because he was harassing a rattlesnake and it was rattling at him)(no, he did not get bitten, and yes, he would have deserved it). I’m not scared of snakes, but I also pretty much avoid them when I see them. Generally I handle snakes (we’ve only had the one in the house THAT I KNOW OF, but I saw plenty outside in the back yard at Crooked Acres) by yelling for Fred, who picks them up and carries them away from the house.
Years and years ago, Fred went out back to see Spot slapping at a snake. Fred mistakenly thought it was a Water Moccasin and so killed it with a hoe. He later found out it was some other kind of (non-poisonous) snake, and has felt bad about it ever since.
I expect, given the way our back yard is arranged, that we’ll see snakes this summer. I will, of course, report what happens!
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From Carolyn: Update on Tiny/Bailey. First, a thanks to Connie for her suggestion. Secondly, there’s been a hiccup. There’s been no contact except what they can do under the door because Tiny pretty much stopped eating. Monday he ate some chicken and Temptation treats, but not his food. Tuesday the same, Wed AM he wouldn’t even eat the chicken or treats. He spent most of Wednesday and Thursday at the vet, getting hydrated, warmed, syringe fed and loved on. And came home to sleep with me each night. Wednesday night I got him to eat some watered down food off my hand. Thursday night I got Tiny to eat a teaspoon of chicken baby food. He still spent a fair amount of the time he was home hanging out outside the door to Bailey’s room. I was concerned that the not-eating was stress related, but it seems (to me) that if Bailey’s presence was stressful Tiny would avoid the area rather then try to barge into the room when I open the door. PLEASE let me know if I’m wrong. So Bailey had the run of the house Thursday while Tiny was away.
So this morning Tiny still didn’t want to eat, so I syringe fed him about 7-8 cc’s, with the other 2-3 cc’s going all over Tiny, down my leg, on the floor, etc. My vet recommended I take him to the emergency vet hospital. He’s there now. The sonogram showed no blockages, but some swollen lymph nodes. He’ll stay overnight and be treated for for the runs and dehydration, with a goal of getting his GI system calmed down and back on track.I also ordered some FortiFlora to see if that will help Tiny eat.
The good news is that, in the waiting room, I put my hand in to pet him and he proceeded to grab my finger and gnaw on me. And in the exam room as I was talking to the vet, he sat on my shoulder and bit my face.
So that’s the drama at my house. Bailey’s at least got the run of the house for the day. My main concern with the two cats is whether the stress of Bailey has caused Tiny’s not eating. If not, I’ll probably start more face to face time (after Tiny starts eating again.)
And Bailey just sat on my lap for the first time and now he’s rubbing his face against my head.
PS the name combinations are neck and neck with votes, but I probably won’t make a final decision until Tiny stops giving me grey hairs and heartburn.
How is Tiny doing now, Carolyn? I hope he’s bounced back and that the two kittens are already best friends!
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No kittens from Kristi yet – but she’s enjoying being petted. She purrs like crazy and kneads and drools. Such a sweetheart!
Finally, a shot of the belly. I love her kneadin’ paw.
I peeked into the crate, and then I died from the cute.
I mean, seriously.
“You no touch, lady.”
Squeeeeeee.
It’s hard to tell from this picture, but you see that little pink mouth in the middle of the picture? That would be Katia’s kitten, hissing at me.
Katia was particularly growly at me yesterday, I’m not sure why. Maybe she was tired of all the rain and gray skies. Maybe she’s tired of having me come peek in at her. Maybe (my favorite theory) she knows Kristi’s going to have her kittens very soon and then Kristi won’t have time for all the mother-daughter snuggling that’s been going on. Who knows? I keep hoping she’ll relax, and then she doesn’t. Maybe she knows I’m just dying to snatch her up and squeeze her because she looks SO SOFT. With that girl, it’s all a guessing game.
We’re hoping to get the kittens sexed this weekend. Keep your fingers crossed that no Anderson loses an eye or finger in the process.
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Stefan has reclaimed the island as his own, and is VERY PLEASED, as you can see.
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Previously
2017: Dewey bounded over to Stefan to play, and Stefan responded by flipping Dewey onto his back and gnawing on him like he was a chicken wing.
2016: “::thlurrrp:: I swear I heard a clicking sound, but I don’t see – ”
2015: That Open Mouth of Outrage is ALL BUSINESS.
2014: No entry.
2013: No entry.
2012: Little stumpy the half-tailed kitten.
2011: Alice, Alice, Alice.
2010: No entry.
2009: No entry.
2008: No entry.
2007: Best picture of Spanky, EVER.
2006: No entry.
2005: No entry.
Snakes in the kitchen-. I started an exotic pet rescue. A water snake was turned in. It had offspring. Live offspring. 38 worm sixlzwd offspring that gout through the 3mm crack between the sliding gas. Cats are overjoyed. With six cats, I was shocked that 32 survived the day. Some scared. It was like a pinata for the cats.
Separate food dishwz– you on different levels. Cats like routine
You guys are all so amazing. ♥️❣️ Thank you for your votes for Gabby’s painting. She’s thrilled beyond words. Thank you thank you thank you!
I add to the suggestion for separate rooms. Our Mr. Odin was an aggressive eater, often gobbling his own before shouldering Julie out of the way to steal hers. So I started feeding him behind closed doors. He learned pretty quickly to run ahead of me to the bedroom for his after I set Julie’s down. I also made a habit of tapping on the bowl as I went to keep his attention (most useful in the beginning). He’s calmed somewhat in his stealing now so he’s being fed in the kitchen with Julie again. Funny thing is he still waits for that tapping the bowl sound. If I forget before setting his bowl down he’ll just sit there looking at me, so I’ll have to pick it up and tap it before setting it back down.
But in the beginning you might need to enlist the assistance of someone else who can help by carrying one of the kitties to the separate room with their food while the you (or they) feeds the other kitty wherever you normally do it. Hopefully they’ll adjust to the new routine like Odin did and it’ll just be a matter of directing them to their feeding stations at mealtimes.
We used to feed separately in the carrier/crate as well
We feed our newest addition, Norton, in a bathroom by himself because he’s just like Odin. He’ll inhale his own food and then push aside the other two cats (who I’d originally thought were fast eaters…. but compared to Norton lol, no.) He knows where to go for his food and comes happily, tail up.
Seeing that video of the snake reminds me of the one time ours brought one in. We were sitting watching tv one evening and I heard Max happily playing away in the other room by himself. He was having a great time slapping and bouncing and since that was the same room the aquarium was in I got a little concerned when this continued for a while. I get up, go around the corner and there is a TEN FOOT TWO HEADED SNAKE WITH 3 FOOT FANGS about to devour my kitten – or at least that is what my adrenaline panicked brain said. In reality it was a 8 inch or so rat snake who just wanted to get away I yell to the spouse “get up! He has a snake in here!” Her oh-so-calm reply “a real one?” (No honey, he went to the store and bought a toy one with his catnip funds) Luckily there was a box nearby and I was able to cover and catch him and then do the walk of the Lady With a Snake in a Box outside to let him free.
“catnip funds” …..hahahahhahaha
Robyn,
After spending 24 hours at the emergency vet getting IV fluids, anti-nausea, pro-biotics, etc., Tiny came home raring to go. I started letting them out together, and it’s one looonnnnggg wrestling match. The occasional screech or growl, but whenever they’ve left each other alone for more than 45 seconds, one will start up again. Since they both instigate about the same amount, I’m assuming they’re loving it. The next issue will be feeding, since Tiny’s a fussy grazer and Bailey (former feral) will eat anything not tied down. So I loved that this post started out with a solution to that. I can do the separate rooms, but because Tiny only eats a little at a time I still worry that he’s not eating enough before Bailey comes along and cleans out Tiny’s dish. I still put Bailey in his own room at night (so everyone can get some rest), but I hope to eventually leave them both out full time. Bailey’s only been here two weeks, so I think it’s gone pretty well.
OMC – the kitten picture killed me. I NEED kittens!!!
And I’m sorry, but the snake video makes me laugh EVERY.DAMN.TIME. That said, if that was my house, I would have been half way across the state screaming like a lunatic.
Carolyn – those chip feeders are great. I’m friends with Julie of Cats Herd You who did the review. She loves her…the kitten she adopted from me is the World’s Slowest Eater ™ and she got a second one for her. Also, if it has only been two weeks and there is just the occasional growl, you are in good shape. I’m sorry Tiny gave you a scare though. I will be honest, I think sometimes just the change messes with them. Cupcake (Julie’s kitten) didn’t eat for about 24 hours after I got her down to Julie’s house and we both freaked out a little – fortunately her vet is great and gave an appetite stimulant and that was all it took. Ultimately, cats are weird. 🙂
Ditto on the snake vid. “FRED ANDERSON!!!” ROFLMAO!
I use separate rooms – my diabetic cat gets fed in the bathroom and I keep Fizzgig from tormenting the girls during meals by feeding him in the stairwell to the basement.
Oh the kitten picture!!!! You must really have some will power not to just crawl in there and love on all of them.
We feed Andre and Bella and Jessie in separate rooms since they are on different food. Jessie gets fed in the bedroom while Andre and Bella eat in the dining room. It works fine. Bill stays in the bedroom with Jessie while she eats and gives her some extra love. We will probably continue this even after they start eating the same food just to keep the peace between Jessie and Bella and to keep Andre from stealing Jessie’s food. When he tries to eat Bella’s, she whaps him. When he tries to eat Jessie’s, she runs off.
Having lived in Florida with a screened in pool and cat door, I know all about snakes and lizards in the house!. Snakes I could handle, but I HATED the lizards.
Please, please, PLEASE. If ever you post anything snake related, give plenty of warning! Like the creepy crawly warnings you posted at Crooked Acres. Nothing creeps me out like snakes. NOTHING. Needless to say, I did not look at the video.
But those babies…oh man. And I just can’t get over how pretty Katia is.
I think Kristi is carrying a herd. I read somewhere that the more litters a cat has, the larger the subsequent litters tend to be?
I just learned I’m going to be fostering a pregnant mama cat. I’m picking her up from the shelter after work. I have a room dedicated for her (although I have to clean it tonight) and would welcome any advice anyone has. It’s been about twenty years since I dealt with a preggo kitty.
Some momma’s won’t get up to eat when they first give birth. We have had to literally put it under her nose. Then she gobbled it up. Feed her kitten food for the extra calories and protein. Mama does most of the work for you.
Is there an emoji for KITTEN SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!?!? Surely there is 😀
followed by AWWWWWW for that sweet Kristi and her kneadin’ paw <3 <3 <3
I need some guidance from the Love and Hisses hive mind. I need a new vacuum cleaner! What kind works best for you? I will be replacing my Dyson (all the plastic is breaking) and I’m not very satisfied with it. I have a lot of woven rugs and a long haired cat with an undercoat that is a combination of cottonwood fluff and cotton candy. It gets EVERYWHERE and sticks like glue. One of my rugs has a white haze on it that I cannot vacuum off. Does any one have a recommendation? The fluffy kitty is new, he was dumped in the neighborhood and I finally won his trust, took him to the vet, and he moved when it got cold. He’s huge (actually, he’s not big, but he LOOKS it), orange and fluffy. Ridiculously fluffy. He has to be part Main Coon. And maybe part Yeti. I’m not sure yet. Everyone who sees him bursts into laughter. Lucky for me, he likes to be brushed with the furminator. If anyone is in Kansas and needs a skittish, but adorable, orange kitty, let me know. My other cats will be happy to crate him up and drive him to a new home.
My Panasonic is almost 18 years old. It does a good job, but I change the belt every three months.
We have a Dyson Absolute 8 and my fiance swears by it. 3 cats and 2 dogs in the household.
I think Kristi has a bit of loon goin’ on there!
As for problem with feeding Anna, my girl Gracie has special (read: expensive) food, so I don’t want her eating the others’ food or them eating hers. I can’t free feed them because Jitterbug is a piggy and would weigh three tons if I did, and the other two would starve. What I do is, I put down wet food (which they love) in three separate bowls, and stand over them while they snarf it down. When Gracie starts to sidle over to Sophie (the wee slow eater of the group) I make a disapproving noise and she sidles right back. How’s that for low tech! If I am in a hurry and can’t wait watch them eat, I just put down the special dry food. The vet said it wouldn’t hurt the other two.
Re vacuum cleaner, it was horribly expensive, but I love my Meile.
I recommend: https://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=surefeeder
I have four of them! You can control food, amount and you will know if someone stops eating!
I love our SureFeed feeder! We have 4 cats and one of them (Allie) is a grazer while the others needed to lose weight. So we switched to canned food but Allie is not a big fan of it. If he eats it at all, it’s two bites and then the others finish it for him. So now, he gets dry food in his SureFeed and the others get canned food twice a day.
Allie is very timid and I was afraid that the sound of the door opening and closing would scare him and he would not use the SureFeed. It probably took longer for him to adjust to it than a normal cat, but he got used to it.
Oh those babies! I cannot WAIT to see the markings! I think I see someone has a little white bikini.. could be thin fur I suppose, but oh how cute they are!!!!
2016 post Fancypants2.0, the very scared feral cat! LOL!! Oh Khal, you sure had them fooled! (Or he was fooling himself)