Herd your cats here

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Awww.....good for all of you.

Did he yowl a lot coming out of the anaesthesia?

They sometimes write the most endearing operas...

M.

He was very quiet yesterday, but still affectionate. Today, he was more vocal and even more affectionate. Right now, he is lying next to me in bed with his cone o' shame pushed up against my left arm. Actually, he's almost pushing me out of the bed. Did I mention that when he was younger that he used to spoon me?

Aww, what a sweet kitty!  Hopefully the cone of shame can come off soon.

We just took it off and he's napping on the couch. I think he's having some tummy distress since he's been burping a bit, so we figured he'd feel better with a break from the cone. We're supervising him while the cone is off and plan to put it back on later, when we can't keep all eyes on him. He is very stealthy and sneaky about things and I don't want him to scratch his stitches.

[the_geneticist]

Izzy the kitten has discovered house flies.  The are the Best Most Exciting Thing Ever!  She is even putting off her afternoon nap to squeak at them and romp around the house.

[mamselle]

And then there's the crunch.....crunch....crunch....

....of when she catches them and discovers they stop flying around and bothering you if you eat them....

M.

[Larimar]

Izzy the kitten has discovered house flies.  The are the Best Most Exciting Thing Ever!  She is even putting off her afternoon nap to squeak at them and romp around the house.

And then there's the crunch.....crunch....crunch....

....of when she catches them and discovers they stop flying around and bothering you if you eat them....

M.

Oh, yes, BUGS!!!!! Moths in particular put the entire feline contingent here into instant Hunter/Huntress Mode!


How is Evil Cat doing now? Hope he's feeling better.


Larimar

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Well, there's good news and there's bad news. Of the two lumps (both isolated outside of the rib cage), one was a fatty lipoma and the other was a slow-growing cancer that 'could' come back (so we're keeping an eye on the area). He's still doing his thing and I think that he LOVES the extra attention that he's getting. Unfortunately, he's using his cone like the front of a bulldozer to push me out of bed when he tries to spoon me. He's also tried sleeping on top of my pillows again- something he did when he was a kitten.

[mamselle]

Oh, dear.

Extra scritches where the cone allows....and hopes that the CA doesn't re-appear, as well.

M.

[Larimar]

Poor kitty. Hope he'll be okay.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Thanks all. Right now, he's lying all spread out on the electric blanket (I get cold easily and I'm in the South). A few minutes ago he was snoring. :)

[the_geneticist]

Well, there's good news and there's bad news. Of the two lumps (both isolated outside of the rib cage), one was a fatty lipoma and the other was a slow-growing cancer that 'could' come back (so we're keeping an eye on the area). He's still doing his thing and I think that he LOVES the extra attention that he's getting. Unfortunately, he's using his cone like the front of a bulldozer to push me out of bed when he tries to spoon me. He's also tried sleeping on top of my pillows again- something he did when he was a kitten.

I'd say that's pretty good news!  Slow-growing, isolated tumors are not nearly as scary as other types.  And a fatty lipoma is a literal "blob of fat", no cancer risk at all.  He sounds like a sweet kitty!  I love the mental image of the kitty bulldozer pushing you out of bed.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

Well, there's good news and there's bad news. Of the two lumps (both isolated outside of the rib cage), one was a fatty lipoma and the other was a slow-growing cancer that 'could' come back (so we're keeping an eye on the area). He's still doing his thing and I think that he LOVES the extra attention that he's getting. Unfortunately, he's using his cone like the front of a bulldozer to push me out of bed when he tries to spoon me. He's also tried sleeping on top of my pillows again- something he did when he was a kitten.

I'd say that's pretty good news!  Slow-growing, isolated tumors are not nearly as scary as other types.  And a fatty lipoma is a literal "blob of fat", no cancer risk at all.  He sounds like a sweet kitty!  I love the mental image of the kitty bulldozer pushing you out of bed.

He's VERY good at this. I woke up to a cone in my face this morning.

[mamselle]

He wants YOU to wear it for awhile.

He's had his turn...

M.

[evil_physics_witchcraft]

He wants YOU to wear it for awhile.

He's had his turn...

M.

Oh, believe me, I know. He really doesn't like it. I'm trying to take it off him as much as possible (when I can directly supervise him). Unfortunately, he really wants to lick his side. Maybe I could put a cat sweater on him?

[the_geneticist]

He wants YOU to wear it for awhile.

He's had his turn...

M.

Oh, believe me, I know. He really doesn't like it. I'm trying to take it off him as much as possible (when I can directly supervise him). Unfortunately, he really wants to lick his side. Maybe I could put a cat sweater on him?

That would work.  Or, a baby to toddler sized t-shirt. 

[mamselle]

Umm...

Maybe. He might try to bit through the sweater, though, too.

If the skin is itchy, did they give you any cream or something to put on it?

Or maybe ask them if something inert like vegetable oil would be OK?

(I think if he licks it, it may only function as an internal lubricant, but I might be wrong).

More scritches. Sweet kitty...

M.

[smallcleanrat]

Been meaning to post here for a while, but was too overwhelmed to organize thoughts.

About a month ago, someone in our building complex found an abandoned litter of kittens. They had been left in a cardboard box without food or water for we don't know how long. Don't know what happened to the mama cat. The person who found them estimated they were about 4 weeks old and was looking for volunteers to take care of them so they wouldn't have to go to a shelter.

SO and I ended up taking the last kitten of the litter. Neither of us had ever cared for a kitty that young, so there was a lot of internet searching for instructions (especially the 2 days between taking him in and being able to get him a vet check up).

Pleased to say, he's grown from a tiny, wobbly ball of fur into a healthy, active kitten of about 10-11 weeks of age. We seem to have done ok with some major milestones: weaning him onto solid food (he's now on a mix of wet kitten food and kitten kibble), getting him using the litter box comfortably (trial and error process finding the right size box and litter he approved of), finding toys he loves, and starting some clicker training (so far I've got him turning to look at me when I say his name and touching his nose to the end of a stick).

What I'm worried about most is socialization. He is very comfortable with SO and me: loves to snuggle up to us or climb in our laps when he is in the mood to chill or nap, purrs when petted (unless in hyperactive kitten mode, in which case the slightest touch is like touching him with a live wire), and he likes to lounge near us even when not in the mood for play or affection. We're not sure yet how he will react to unfamiliar humans.

But I'm not sure what to do about:

1) Socializing him with other animals. I keep reading about how important these early weeks are for their development and how 4 weeks is far too young to be separated from mother and siblings. SO doesn't want to adopt a second cat since the one kitten already needs quite a lot of attention. I worry it would be difficult for the cat to eventually learn to get along with a second pet (cat or dog) if he has not had enough exposure while young. Not sure how to remedy this, especially with the pandemic going on. Not like I can easily invite a friend with a pet over.

2) Biting. I've been following the advice of some cat behaviorists (or at least so-called) who say to make a noise like "ow" when the kitten bites and then pull away and ignore kitty for a short time. This is meant to teach him that being too rough ends playtime. In addition, whenever we see him lunging for a hand or foot, we try to intercept him with a toy to chew on to teach him acceptable attack targets. I'm not sure how well it's working. He's perfectly happy to maul one of his toys, but if there is a hand or foot in sight, it seems to be a much more tempting target.

Also, not all the cat advice I got was consistent. Some say any mouthing at all needs to be discouraged because if the cat thinks mouthing is ok he will also think biting is ok. Others say gentle nips or mouthing are signs of affection that cats often give each other when grooming.

3) Pouncing on us in bed. He especially likes to go for the face. We've been trying to keep him on a regular feeding and play/exercise routine; but he's in this pattern of sleeping like the dead during the afternoon and bursting with energy around 10pm-1am. We try to tucker him out with an hour of play before bed, but he's still got a couple of more hours in reserve. I've tried to get him to play more in the afternoon so he is more sleepy at night, but he is so naturally sleepy at this time it's hard to get him to engage. I don't like locking him out because he is so young. He cries if not allowed to sleep with at least one of us.

Was hoping to hear kitten-raising experiences from people on the fora, since I prefer to hear from people I pseudo-know than from people I don't know at all.