Missing cat

[madmax]

THANK YOU so much you don't realize just how you have helped my through this awful time.
Misty has been allowed to sleep on the bed and I brought her some extra special food, she did share it with Sky who was almost as pleased to see her home as I was.
I am still felling terrible and have been at the hospital all afternoon seeing the rhumatolgist (sp) who says I need to rest and avoid stress for the next couple of weeks. He is referring me back to the pain clinic to see if they have any further suggestions and I am to have another round of Retiximub so I am hoping that all of this will help.
On top of all of this my Dad has been in ITU for the last 2 weeks with pneumonia following his heart valve replacement operation. He is in hospital in Lester and I live in Cornwall so there has been no way of me getting to see him.
The one thing this has taught me is to have UP TO DATE PICTURES of all of my furry family showing then both in profile and a good head shot, for posters and flyers . I had lots of the dogs but very few of either of the cats, so I am going to be taking far more now.
THANK you all once again you are all stars

 

[Flying Pigs]

It is so good to hear you sounding cheerful MadMax inspite of your own health and your Dad's.

 

[janie]

lovely to hear of misty being spoilt MM. hope now that stress has gone, you will get better in leaps and bounds. so sorry to hear about your dad (((hugs)))

 

[Bexi]

So glad Misty is home :mysmilie_515:

 

[Tinkerbelle]

That is fabulous news. Long may Misty remain where she belongs!!

It is a really good idea to have a picture of your cat that could be used should they ever go AWOL. I have dozens of pictures of him in the avatar but the brother is camera shy. I did make sure I had a proper picture of the brother though after he went AWOL for a day or two last winter.

 

[madmax]

Misty is well and truly back home she hasn't even been outside since she came home.
I have had to get her a litter tray,as she keeps on toileting all over the house.
I don't know how to get her to use it though as this is the first time she has ever had one.
I have put it in the place she has been going most regularly . I have had plenty of use from my Bissle carpet washer (Argos not IW) . I am using urine off from Pets at Home to try and get rid of the smell, has any one ever used any thing else as this is getting so expensive.
She is waiting for her 2nd breakfast now. I am giving her lots of very small meals so not to over load her system.

 

[Mam]

Misty is well and truly back home she hasn't even been outside since she came home.
I have had to get her a litter tray,as she keeps on toileting all over the house.
I don't know how to get her to use it though as this is the first time she has ever had one.
I have put it in the place she has been going most regularly . I have had plenty of use from my Bissle carpet washer (Argos not IW) . I am using urine off from Pets at Home to try and get rid of the smell, has any one ever used any thing else as this is getting so expensive.
She is waiting for her 2nd breakfast now. I am giving her lots of very small meals so not to over load her system.

Listerine mouthwash is worth a try madmax. Put it in a spray bottle and after soaking up as much as you can of the accident with absorbent cloths, give it a good soaking with the spray. White vinegar neat in a spray bottle works much in the same way, the vinegar smell just fades away as it dries. Bicarbonate of soda is also worth a try, sprinkle the area liberally with the bicarb which should help soak up the moisture. Vacuum it up when it's dry and if the smell is still there, make a paste with bicarb and water and scrub it into the area, rinse with clean water and allow to dry. Hope this helps and so pleased that little Misty is appreciating being at home. It sounds as if she had a real fright being stuck somewhere and is nervous that it's going to happen again.

 

[Tinkerbelle]

Soiling all over the house could well be because she's been frightened by her experience. She will learn what the litter tray is for soon enough. Cats are clean creatures by nature.

Do get her a Feliway plugin if you haven't got one. And put a couple of drops of Rescue Remedy in her water. Both will help her "feel safe".

Surgical spirit will get rid of the smell and stop her from going back to the same place to pee but don't put it near the litter tray because you want her to go there. Maybe put the litter tray near the Feliway plugin or vice versa. Do a test patch with the surgical spirit on the carpet first though. It was fine when I did it but would want to spoil the Persian rug.

Also put out a couple of cardboard boxes. Cats love them and sleeping in one will help her to feel safe. Cats in the wild never sleep in the open.

She will settle. I'm sure of it.

 

[mediastar]

Sounds very good advice from Mam there, apparently enzyme clothes wash works quite well!

 

[madmax]

I just knew that you wonderful people would have the answer I needed.
She is far more relaxed today than yesterday even so I am hoping that she will get better as each day passes.
I was trying to get a picture of her for you but my new camera( a Fugi TSV from September has broken again, I have asked for my money back this time)
So I am going to have to go to the DHS and see what I can find.

 

[kitten_with_claws]

I've managed to 'litter train' a number of older cats, some easier than others admittedley but some things I have found useful over the years:

If cat is widdling in one place, place litter tray (if convenient) in/near that area.

If cat is widdling all over, site litter tray where it is most convenient to have it but also (the tricksy bit! lol) where cat is comfortable being & will be most likely to use it.
(When DD's cat came to stay, he was used to a litter tray & very clean but I initially put it in the kitchen near the back door & noticed he only fled to it when desperate & scuttled back out again as fast as possible & also seemed a little on edge when eating in there, pausing frequently to look round etc., so moved both his litter tray & his feed bowls just a few feet away, into the living room & he leapt in the box almost instantly & was considerably more relaxed when eating too.)

Try not to move tray somewhere else once you have placed it somewhere as many cats will simply return to its original spot & continue peeing/pooping on the floor where it was originally sited.

When placing litter tray (if you can set it up like that), it can help to put food/water bowls behind it, so cat (especially good if they've never come across one before), is compelled to walk across/through it to reach bowls. (I have a gap under worktop where bin sits, so could do that next to this.) Put extra yummy stuff in bowls now & then to encourage this.

Many cats, unused to a litter tray, don't like the wood pellet cat litter & take to the Fullers Earth sort much better. It does pong a bit, especially once they've widdled in it a few times but hold out if you can & try not to empty it all out too often at first, as this helps attract them back.

Try sprinkling a little earth from the garden over the top of the cat litter, which not only smells of their own garden but helps trigger scraping/covering reactions by association.

Shut all doors where you don't want widdles/poopies, keeping cat confined, certainly overnight, in as small an area as possible. Provide extra snuggly blankies etc. so cat is happy to be in that area.

Place cat in litter tray frequently.....& wait......& wait. Expect them to initially get out again straightaway. Look for any sign of 'scraping', even a hesitant dab with a paw. Praise cat & reward with food if they're greedy.

Watch cat closely, any sign of sniffing the floor, peering round towards the back of the tv area etc., put cat in litter tray.

Finally, check house carefully, especially in hard to access (for you!) areas, to make sure there are no undiscovered wee wee patches which may encourage cat to return to that spot & clean them thoroughly to eliminate any residue smells, even if not obvious to you.

HTH a bit. xx

 

[Disenchanted]

Tinks is right about the Feilway plug ins, they are very effective - if a bit expensive. You may need to buy one locally (from a vet?) to start you off but the refills are much, much cheaper from Amazon and, in particular, one of the merchants called VioVet.

A weak solution of Ariel washing powder in water should rid your carpets of stains and smells and any residue can be vacuumed away after it has dried - probably best to do a patch test first in case it bleaches out dark colours.

 

[janie]

so sorry to hear this MM - i'm sure that's the last thing you need when you haven't been well. soon after i got louis, i had the same thing. because it was my stuff being targeted - pee in my handbag etc, the vet was convinced it was louis claiming me. however, when he disappeared for a week, it still happened so obviously poor louis got the blame wrongly.

anyway, what they told me at the vets, was to use surgical spirit first, then a solution of ariel to clean up and to also use a feliway plug in. all good ideas but the problem with feliway is, it is expensive - i think it started at about £25. they were no cheaper on ebay either. there is a feliway spray but i don't know what that costs.

 

[janie]

just a couple more points,

kitten you obviously know what you are talking about but i was told to keep the food bowls away from the litter tray. that they don't like them in the same area?

also, i agree, it's probably the frightening experience that caused this. my friend in the states who i went to canada with, came over here for 2 weeks almost directly after we got back. her cat was fine with daddy when we went away but when they both came here, her sister in law who knows the cat well, visited twice a day and all was well. when they got home however, she started toileting all over the house and also had a thing with the door. she liked being in and she liked being out but was scared to walk through the door. as far as sil knows, nothing scary happened in their absence but she obviously had to make her displeasure felt on their return. i've been half expecting this with louis as he's not been out for over 2 months and is annoyed about it but, touching all available wood, so far he's been a little angel :heart:

 

[kitten_with_claws]

kitten you obviously know what you are talking about but i was told to keep the food bowls away from the litter tray. that they don't like them in the same area?

It does depend on the cat Janie but I was mentioning this mainly in respect to an older (hitherto un-litter trained) cat that views the idea of putting any one of its feet in a litter tray with the same degree of trepidation as if you had asked it to walk across a line of hot coals & I have always found the hardest thing with litter training an older animal is getting them to go anywhere near the ruddy thing in the first place! That first wee wee is cause for smiles but the first poopy in it is cause for a party, as then you really are on the road to potty-trained lol

Plus, despite their ultra 'clean' reputation, I have over the years, come to the conclusion that many cats are in fact grubby little oiks, who place having all their 'stuff' in one place & in a way that suits them & makes them feel relaxed & comfortable far above hygiene or layout perfection. I think this is due to a cats mentality in comparison to a dog's for example, cats being much less 'adaptable' & by nature, more tied to places & surroundings than dogs are, the latter happy to settle pretty much anywhere as long as their people are with them?

I do think however, the most important thing is to observe an individual animal & place items (litter trays, food bowls etc.) in a place/layout that does not put the cat on edge; this could be something as small as not making it walk past a dishwasher to reach its litter tray, or not placing its bowls too close to a back door if they are jumpy about this opening & closing, or placing items where they can face out into the room (& thus see any real or imagined threat coming), rather than where they have to keep their back/bum to the open space behind them?

 

[madmax]

This morning I took her out into the garden and stayed with her,I hung out the washing so that she didn't feel as though I was watching over her and she had a wander round and then brought her back indoors so she realizes that she can come in and out and we are always going to be here for her.
I will take her out again when I get the washing in and hope that this will increase her confidence.
I think it is going to much harder once it gets dark as she hasn't even sat on the window sill once the curtains are shut and she used to spend ages just looking at the world going by out side.
Do I need to have more than one litter tray? At the moment it is in my DD bedroom as that is were she unfortunately made the most mess.

 

[kitten_with_claws]

Do I need to have more than one litter tray? At the moment it is in my DD bedroom as that is were she unfortunately made the most mess.

Other people may have found differently but personally I've never been keen on the multiple litter tray idea, mainly because although the cat may use them all, unless you want to have litter trays dotted around your house for ever more, the problem comes when you then attempt to remove some of them? What often happens then is the cat continues to use the spot where the litter tray originally sat & you are effectively back at square one!

I definitely prefer the single litter tray idea & using confinement to keep the cat out of areas where, certainly if left unsupervised, it may get 'caught short' & just tiddle/poop anywhere if it is not 'conditioned' to heading for one particular spot?
Really, what you are trying to do is get the cat into a new 'habit' of heading for its litter tray automatically whenever it feels the need to go toilet & once firmly established, a good 'habit' is just as firmly rooted as a bad one, hence ideally not movng the litter tray to a new place once the cat has accepted & begun using it on a regular basis.

 

[Disenchanted]

Do I need to have more than one litter tray? At the moment it is in my DD bedroom as that is were she unfortunately made the most mess.

Noooooo! Start as you mean to go on and establish just one permanent area for it - cats adapt to routines, good and bad, very quickly so you don't want your home littered with litter trays any more than you want piles of poo or pools of pee.

Sorry - I've just read Kitten's post which is a similar view but far more eloquently put!

 

[madmax]

Thanks that is what I thought but just wanted to check with all you kitty experts.
While I have has Misty for 11 + years now she has never needed a litter tray before.
I am still feeding her in the same place as before and hope that she will start to associate the conservatory with good things again and from there see going outside as a normal thing to do but I don,t want to rush her or make her feel panicked in case she runs away.
She had a nice time in the garden while I was getting the washing in and played with Martha for a bit and chased some leaves.
I will do more of the same tomorrow if the weather isn't to wet.

 

[janie]

i think that's a really good idea MM. gradually introducing her to the garden and pretending not to watch. with any luck she may start to pee/poop on her visits outside before too long. sounds as though she's just lost her confidence.