Obtained a cat. Worried about leaving him home alone

[Mercury00]

Today I have obtained a cat from a rescue centre. He's incredibly affectionate and clingy: he drools on me, licks me, softly bites me. If I go in another room he calls for me. I'm worried about leaving him through the day when I'm at work. Is there anything I can do to make things better for him?

The rescue were not happy about me leaving him through the day to be completely honest. Given that he was living alone in a tiny concrete cell, lying in his own piss, I may have told them fibs in order to acquire him. I thought I was doing the right thing at the time.

[Mr Gearchange]

Get another cat.

[ikarl]

Get 2 other cats?

[anonymous-user]

Yes, get another cat. Sooner you introduce the new one into what the existing one will start to consider "his" territory, the better.

[ali_kat]

Greg66 said:

Yes, get another cat. Sooner you introduce the new one into what the existing one will start to consider "his" territory, the better.

[Mercury00]

I've had him for ten hours and he hasn't used the toilet yet. He definitely hasn't gone anywhere as he's just been sat with me. I've plonked him in the tray a few times but he's not getting the message, is there a trick? I don't want to wake up to cat wee on my floor.

Edit: he just weed in the tray!

Also what gender and age cat would go together with a three year old neutered male?

Edited by Mercury00 on Saturday 30th July 22:18

[anonymous-user]

I would worry less about age/gender and more about temperament. If you're going back to the shelter to get another cat, get one that is used to being around other cat(s). After that, probably one around the same age.

[davepoth]

I imagine the cat will be fine. He's just making sure that you'll continue to supply him with food, water and somewhere warm to sleep, and so long as he's convinced that's going to happen he'll be fine.

The clue to that as I understand it is when the cat stops hoarding food - if it's worried that the food will stop it will only eat a very small amount of food, leaving the rest to ration out. If it eats the whole lot in one go it's confident there'll be more food, and thereby confident in you coming back.

[Jasandjules]

It will take another couple of weeks for the cat to settle in. But being clingy is quite interesting, as he already trusts you.

As above, back to the rescue, just ask for a cat to join him. The sooner the better i.e. before your cat becomes territorial.

[Mercury00]

How much do I feed this creature? He's like a bottomless pit. I'm currently giving him two tins and filling up his dry bowl three times a day. He still keeps crying for more food.

[jules_s]

3 pouches per day (each) here

Sounds like the cat has you round it's paw there

[Mercury00]

He definitely has, he wakes me up at 3am every night to play

[AndrewEH1]

Thread is useless without pictures!

[jules_s]

Mercury00 said:

He definitely has, he wakes me up at 3am every night to play

Needs a playmate to wear him out

Seriously

[Mercury00]

I am seriously considering it, it's just that he's so well behaved for a cat, I wouldn't want a naughty one. We've had cats in the past that just piss and st wherever they like, and scratch the furniture to bits. Monty is a good lad.

[Mercury00]

We've fallen out now. The little wouldn't go in the cat carrier and we've missed his vet appointment. I tried all sorts of tricks, even wrapping him up in a blanket like a sausage roll. He was just too wriggly and strong.

[p4cks]

Please can we have a pic?

[jmorgan]

Mercury00 said:

We've fallen out now. The little wouldn't go in the cat carrier and we've missed his vet appointment. I tried all sorts of tricks, even wrapping him up in a blanket like a sausage roll. He was just too wriggly and strong.

Wait till they escape from that one day and get the hind claw in the inside of your thigh and escape at warp 10. Stings to buggery.

[Mercury00]

Like butter wouldn't melt...




Little mode enabled



There's another pic of him on the second last page of the caturday thread. Here:

Edited by Mercury00 on Friday 5th August 18:30

[Eddw86]

davepoth said:

I imagine the cat will be fine. He's just making sure that you'll continue to supply him with food, water and somewhere warm to sleep, and so long as he's convinced that's going to happen he'll be fine.

The clue to that as I understand it is when the cat stops hoarding food - if it's worried that the food will stop it will only eat a very small amount of food, leaving the rest to ration out. If it eats the whole lot in one go it's confident there'll be more food, and thereby confident in you coming back.

Interesting that, and strangely we had the opposite experience, our stray cat that adopted us did the opposite, when he first started he'd eat everything in sight and quickly. After a while when he became more relaxed and safe he started to leave a little bit to come back to later, sometimes with wet food he'd even leave the bits he didn't want! I took that to mean he didn't need to eat everything and just what he needed as he knew he'd get more later.

Cats hey

Re volume of food, I'd find out how much to feed him - 2 sachets and dry food for us - and stick to it. With the family cat that had from kitten it never worried too much about food, the stray cat would happily eat double that and become a porker if we let him!

Lovely pictures!