Kitty advice?

[Eireann]

I'm baffled with my new girl.

I got her last December, and she's been one of the most playful kitties I've ever seen, and a real attention whore. She's always loving up against me when I'm sitting at the computer, watching TV, etc. I'd been having problems with her chasing my older kitty, but she hasn't done this in a couple of months.

Yesterday, she started avoiding me. If I went near her, she flitted away. This is not at all like her. She and Older Kitty were asleep on the couch, and I went to pet both of them, and she let me, but left the couch as I was petting Older Kitty.

She hasn't been playing with anything, either, or making any of her kitty noises.

I've looked at her carefully. Her eyes are clear. There is no discharge. She's walking normally. As far as I know, there are no litter problems.

One thing I did notice was that this morning, when I looked at her, she looked terrified. Her eyes were dilated, and her whole expression was fearful. It made me wonder if my landlord had come in to do something while I was away, and had scared her. However, Older Kitty would have been there at the same time, and she's fine.

New Girl is now hiding under a large piece of furniture. I got down on my stomach to talk to her soothingly and she allowed me to pet her without trying to move away from me, but she's still there; she's not coming out.

Anyone dealt with something like this before?

[KiaKat]

Does your apartment face a road or parking lot? I've found that a huge disruption outside, involving cars or groups of loud, angry people, will flip out my affectionate kitty enough that she'll hide from me for a day or so. I've found that putting her in a single room (usually bedroom so she can hide easily) and blocking out the windows/light/noise for a few hours helps make her feel comfortable enough that she'll start miewing for playtime.

[Eireann]

No, I live on a very quiet street, with little traffic. If anyone were to flip out, it would be my other kitty, who has a stress level like even the vet couldn't believe.

However, I'm cooking dinner right now, and first New Girl used the litterbox (I wasn't sure if she'd been able to go), and then, a while later, she ate. I don't often see her eat, anyway; I think she eats most of her food at night.

Then I heard a banging noise in the kitchen. When I went in to check on the food, I found her in the corner, and saw a fly zooming around. I think she was chasing it. She sat there licking one paw.

So, she's using the box, she's eating, and she's grooming herself. She may have been chasing a fly, too. I'm going to see how she is tomorrow, because I do NOT want any vet visits.

[BookstoreEscapee]

My girl used to be the brave one, but the she started getting skittish. She runs from every little noise and sudden movement now. And when my parents dogsat for my cousin she hid in the bedroom the entire time they were there. I don't know what happened to make her such a scaredy-cat, though she can be very affectionate when she wants to be. Hopefully your girl will get over whatever scared her.

[Eireann]

Well, this afternoon, she met me at the door, which she's in the habit of doing. Then she turned her back to me and stretched, showing me her naughty bits, which is also a habit (I've heard that this is a kitty's way of flipping you off).

She let me pet her, and made little chirpy noises and some purrs.

Can't figure it out. When I first got her, she tried (literally!) to climb the walls. Then she started settling down. Then she decided Older Kitty would make a marvelous play toy, which led to more than one fight.

Now, instead of being Ultra Love, she's walking slowly around the place, as if she's suddenly aged. She's deliberate in her movements. I don't know what it is. She just came to me for pets, which is good, but she looks like she has a lot on her mind.

[KiaKat]

That sounds like she was spooked by something on the floor.

My first guess would be something like a snake, or a lizard jumping out in front of her, though that may not be applicable for your area. Second thought would be something like Older Kitty knocking a dictionary or other large object off a table right in front of her.

Or maybe, during a Kitty Crazy moment, she ran into something. Mine have been known to faceplant into doors and corners during their races. They're frequently a bit more cautious for a few days after such an incident.

[Eireann]

It is possible, certainly, that she herself knocked something on the floor somehow, and it scared her. The weird thing is, she's done it before and hasn't freaked over it. Right now, she's asleep on the couch. I was petting her earlier, and she rolled over and let me pet her stomach, which isn't common in the female kitties I've known. She's still quiet and just very different. She does purr when I pet her, and she didn't show any signs of not wanting me to touch her abdomen, which I take to be a good sign. That's why I was petting her there, to see if she had any soreness.

She's using the box, she's eating, and she's walking around. I just went over to pet her, and again, she rolled on over and let me pet the stomach. I hate going to the vet, and I want to avoid it if this is at all possible; I'm going to give it a little time and see what happens.

[KiaKat]

It definitely sounds like something in her head, rather than her tummy. Especially with the belly rubs being welcomed.

Mine do that too, by the way. It's not unheard of, especially if you train them to like it when they're kittens. My fuzzbutt (Sarai) will demand belly rubs. She's quite forceful about it, too.

[Eireann]

Yeah, that's what I thought. She's jumping up in the windows, and I found her on the kitchen counter last night, where she knows she isn't allowed. If something threw a scare into her, I wish I knew what it was. Her personality has undergone a significant change - she still likes pets and she purrs when I pet her, but she hasn't been slutting up against me, the way she usually does. Right now, she's lying on the rug, leaning on her elbows, with her ears back in that pose of deep thought.

[BlaqueKatt]

my first question would be is she fixed? because if not my first reaction would be she's in estrus(heat), cats normally only howl in heat if there is any kind of male around*, if she is fixed, no idea.

*my girls were in an all girl household so no howling, when they came to live with myself and Mr. Katt(joutai on the boards-doesn't post much) it was constant howling for 2 weeks straight, as in every minute 24/7-you can bet they got spayed real quick.

[Eireann]

She's fixed, but vets here don't do a very good job of fixing the females. Damn, I hope that's not the problem. I really don't want to take her in for surgery.

[Primer]

The fact that she's eating, drinking, using the litter box, and getting up on the counter are all good news. At first I was thinking "broken pelvis" of which she could have hidden the pain, but not been able to jump up on the counter (I've seen cats run with a broken pelvis).

You don't say how old she is or how long you've had her. Have there been any changes at all in her environment recently--new food, new toy, catnip, used OTC flea treatment, did she get into any people meds, have you moved furniture around, sprayed for bugs?

Are her gums nice and pretty pink? If she has black gums, pull her bottom eyelid out and check her color there. If white, yellow or gray, get her to a vet ASAP. Pulse ought to be about 150-200 beats per minute; below 100 would be on the slow side. Temperature, if you can get it, should be about 100-101F.

If she's still acting strangely, I'd recommend a visit to the vet just to be sure. I hope she's doing/feeling better!

[NightWatch]

Cats are finicky little critters. Are you going through some personal problems or having a lot of stress lately? Maybe she's picking up on that?

I had a cat once (I had never had one and thought it would be fun) and I ended up hating the little guy. I felt bad but I knew we would never get along and turned him over to the Humane Society. He was normally such a hyperactive terror, but the day I planned to take him in, he was just suddenly so lovey and kept staring at me with what seemed like a pleading look. It seemed to me like he knew that he wasn't getting to keep his home after all. That could have been guilt on my part too, who knows.

Yes, I know I'm a bad person! I still feel terrible about that and no one needs to judge me for that. I have 2 doggies now that I love (I was raised with dogs) and wouldn't trade for all the gold in china, both came from shelters.

[Red_Dazes]

Yes, I know I'm a bad person! I still feel terrible about that and no one needs to judge me for that.

No one judges you ^_^ and I am sure you are not a bad person. Sometimes we just don't connect with some animals... just like we don't connect with some people. It is better that he found a home he fits in and is loved absolutely, than stay in a home where he doesn't have all the love he needs, out of guilt.
^_^ Some people are kitty people, and some are not. Nothing wrong with that. *hearts*

[Eireann]

No, there haven't been any changes in her environment. No new toys, no new people, no medication, nothing. I checked her gums, but they're black. My kitty who died last December had chronic gingivitis, so I know all about the smell and the careful way of eating. They do have bad breath, but given what they eat, it's not at all surprising.

I have noticed that Older Kitty is clearly Alpha Kitty now. This makes me wonder if New Girl and Older Kitty had a big ol' blowout of a fight, from which Older Kitty emerged victorious. It would explain why Older Kitty seems rather smug these days, and why New Girl has changed. Well, it might explain it.

I had a visitor here on Friday, a guy who has two cats, and New Girl came out to greet him. She rubbed against his legs, came over and head-butted me, and in general, showed friendly feelings towards both of us. Older Kitty meowed for attention and made herself comfy on his backpack.

So, I don't know. I tried to look at New Girl's eyelid, but didn't manage it. Her mouth looks okay. She spends much of her time on the couch now, and Older Kitty jumps up and curls up near her, usually giving herself a bath. Was it a fight? Did New Girl see, hear, or smell something that brought back a vivid and unpleasant memory?

[calulu]

Really hard to say exactly what the problem is. Was she a stray or from the pound and not adopted for a long time?

The reason I ask is we adopted a stray siamese mix kitten from the pound at about three months. When he was picked up by the animal shelter his beautiful siamese coat was matted and he was feral, undersized and perhaps 2 months old. The first couple of months he was here once he realized he was warm, getting as much as he wanted and there were lots of cats to play with he decided he loved, loved, loved me. When I worked here on my computer he would get in my shirt on top of my boobs, curl up purring and chirping wanting me to pet him.

I went out of town for a few days and I came back and he was extremely frightened of me but suddenly in love, love, love with my 21 year old son, who replaced me as the source of all petting and food. He acted terrified of me and I swear I've done nothing to warrant it, I'm one of those people even strays adore so I was very puzzled by this. He was fixed, well and behaving normally otherwise.

In the last year he's had favorites and non favorites and switched between us. Now he seems to have settled down to like most of us but absolutely adore the son.

My long winded point is that sometimes I think cats, like people, take to crazy notions in their head for little or no reason. I wonder with this guy if he was abused by a woman because he really prefers men.

[Eireann]

She came from a shelter, and they told me that she had a litter of kittens, but she caught a virus and passed it on to them; all the little babies died, and she was sick for a long time. When I brought her home, she was so freaked that she tried to climb the wall. I left her alone, isolated her in one room at night while Older Kitty slept with me, and gradually, she got used to being here.

Then she started playing. She played with everything in sight. She played with the cat toys. She played with things that weren't cat toys. She got into boxes. She hooked turds out of the litterbox and played floor hockey with them. She got into everything. She chased Older Kitty around, and sometimes Older Kitty got pissed off and attacked her. She still did it, though, even though it got her an attack from her playmate and some stern words from me.

I don't know what to think about this sudden shift in attitude. If someone were to come in here who didn't know the kitties and had never seen New Girl before, they would think that she was just a calm, maybe lazy girl. That's it. That's what I would think. Right now, she and Older Kitty are meditating on the couch. The shelter woman told me that she was "very calm", so maybe she was just working off a lot of getting-to-know-you energy. It doesn't explain the look of fear on her face, though.

[Eireann]

UPDATE!

I took kitty to the vet today. She was walking slowly around the place, and I remembered the comment about a possible broken pelvis, so I took her on in. In this country, you can just bring your pet to the office; you don't necessarily need an appointment, unless it's for surgery or something similar.

So I sat in the waiting room for almost an hour, and finally, the vet had time for me. I told him about her sudden personality change, the way she just doesn't play at all, etc.

He looked at kitty, then opened her mouth and said, "Oh, Jesus Christ!"

I said, "WHAT? WHAT?"

He showed me her teeth, which were brown and disgusting. "I'd have a personality change, too," he told me.

The teeth have to come out. She has also been coughing, which may be inhalation pneumonia (caused by the infection) or feline asthma. He recommends a bronchoscopy. This, of course, will cost more money.

So, I have to bring her in on Thursday morning, wait for the results of the X-ray (to see if anything appears on her lungs that would make a bronchoscopy a good idea), then come back in the evening to pick her up, after surgery.

So. I told the vet I didn't have much cash on me, and he didn't like that. No, sir. He didn't like that at all.

"Every time you come in, it's the same thing," he bitched. (Not true, as it happens. The last two times I was in his office, I had sufficient cash.)

I told him that if I'd known he had decided never to accept debit cards for payment, I would have, oh, REMEMBERED it, and acted accordingly. But he wanted to complain more.

"Every time you come in..." bitch, bitch, bitch.

"Look," I told him, "I don't do this to make things more difficult for you."

"Well, it does make things difficult... you wouldn't go to a store without cash. It doesn't make sense."

"Stores take cards," I pointed out.

"Not all of them."

"Most of them."

I closed the door on further bitching.

I swear, if this guy weren't a fantastic vet, I'd take my business elsewhere. I now have to withdraw money from my account to have right on hand to pay Iwannabitchallday when he does the surgery on Thursday.

On the other hand, I now know what is wrong with my girl, it's treatable, and she should be much happier afterwards.

[Broomjockey]

I swear, if this guy weren't a fantastic vet, I'd take my business elsewhere.


Maybe he'd be more sympathetic if you neutered him with his own tools. Being excellent at your job does not give you the right to be a dickface.

[Eireann]

Hee hee hee... I don't know if he'd be more sympathetic, but I doubt that he'd bitch at me anymore. Seriously, this guy runs a top-class veterinary clinic, and he thinks that all his clients should have exactly the right amount of cash with them every single damn time they bring in an animal? He should lower his prices, then.

[Eireann]

ANOTHER UPDATE!

Kitty is back home. I took her to the vet this morning. She had X-rays, then the surgery. I went to pick her up this evening.

She only had to have two teeth removed, which is great; less trauma, less time spent under anesthesia. She is awake. She is looking good.

The vet's assistant told me, though, that the X-ray revealed a shadow on one lung. They don't know what it is - maybe a tumor, maybe just an inflammation. They gave me a shitload of antibiotics to give her (one in the morning, one at night), and I'm bringing her back to the office in two weeks so they can do a follow-up.

Keep your fingers crossed that whatever the shadow was, it's just an inflammation that the antibiotics will destroy!