I Really Wish Cats Could Talk
I could use a bit of help / advice with a problem I'm having with my clown-cat Tig.
About a month ago, he started having litter box issues. He'd start pooping in the box but before he was finished he'd OMG-RUN-AWAY-POOP-IS-SCARY!!!!! leaving a trail of rock-hard nuggets behind him. (I suppose nuggets are somewhat better than splatter, but still...)
Well, I got him to the vet who recommended a change in diet which I'm not overly thrilled with but am willing to try if it'll help. He was getting Taste of the Wild kibble but the vet suggested I try Iams Weight Control Hairball food. Tig does need to lose weight and supposedly the extra fiber will help with the rock-hard nuggets.
After a week with the new food, nothing had changed so back to the vet it was.
The vet examined him outside and in and couldn't feel anything out of the ordinary.
Since the 8th, he's been getting 2.5 mls of Lactulose (a stool softener) twice a day. The rock-hard nuggets are now a much more 'comfortable' texture. (Yes, I know what the poop feels like since I get to play a lovely game of seek-and-find after my darling boy has stopped OMG RUNNING!!!!!) *sigh*
He still pees in the litter box just fine and will often (but not always) start pooping in the box before running. It looks to me like he's scared out of what little wits he has. It's not a lets-play-fun-run.
I'll be calling the vet again tomorrow but thought I'd see what thoughts other people had.
I'm thinking of picking up some Feliway to see if that will help calm him down.
For now, it's not really possible to confine Tig to one room.
I currently live in a one bedroom apartment but will be combining households with my SO in a couple of weeks. At that point Tig and his sister Jax will be confined to one room of the house until they and their counterparts already in residence have come to an understanding.
We have an old door with a hole cut in it covered in chicken wire to keep the cats separated for as long as needed.
I'm at a loss as to what to do to make Tig a happy cat again. He always looks so guilty afterwards and just wants to be petted and reassured that he's not being bad. :(
The clown-cat himself looking good in a stained-glass sunbeam:
About a month ago, he started having litter box issues. He'd start pooping in the box but before he was finished he'd OMG-RUN-AWAY-POOP-IS-SCARY!!!!! leaving a trail of rock-hard nuggets behind him. (I suppose nuggets are somewhat better than splatter, but still...)
Well, I got him to the vet who recommended a change in diet which I'm not overly thrilled with but am willing to try if it'll help. He was getting Taste of the Wild kibble but the vet suggested I try Iams Weight Control Hairball food. Tig does need to lose weight and supposedly the extra fiber will help with the rock-hard nuggets.
After a week with the new food, nothing had changed so back to the vet it was.
The vet examined him outside and in and couldn't feel anything out of the ordinary.
Since the 8th, he's been getting 2.5 mls of Lactulose (a stool softener) twice a day. The rock-hard nuggets are now a much more 'comfortable' texture. (Yes, I know what the poop feels like since I get to play a lovely game of seek-and-find after my darling boy has stopped OMG RUNNING!!!!!) *sigh*
He still pees in the litter box just fine and will often (but not always) start pooping in the box before running. It looks to me like he's scared out of what little wits he has. It's not a lets-play-fun-run.
I'll be calling the vet again tomorrow but thought I'd see what thoughts other people had.
I'm thinking of picking up some Feliway to see if that will help calm him down.
For now, it's not really possible to confine Tig to one room.
I currently live in a one bedroom apartment but will be combining households with my SO in a couple of weeks. At that point Tig and his sister Jax will be confined to one room of the house until they and their counterparts already in residence have come to an understanding.
We have an old door with a hole cut in it covered in chicken wire to keep the cats separated for as long as needed.
I'm at a loss as to what to do to make Tig a happy cat again. He always looks so guilty afterwards and just wants to be petted and reassured that he's not being bad. :(
The clown-cat himself looking good in a stained-glass sunbeam:
