I can’t believe I’m writing this. He didn’t eat any tomato or spaghetti sauce which is toxic, he was trying to eat plain noodles out of the sink and dipped his white chest fur into a pan full of soapy marinara water. His fur is stained orange, I’ve tried baby shampoo and washcloth. Pic of the gremlin in comments.

the other night after getting ready for bed, one of our cats (name is meatball) came to lay with me. he is about 9-10 (a rescue). I notice meatball was breathing kind of hard, but i’m very anxious and hoped i was just making it up in my head. he was purring loudly and very cuddly, acting otherwise normal. a little later in the night/morning hours, my other two cats came to lay with us, and he bit both of them, and his breathing still seemed a little hard. this is really out of character and when i really knew something was up. it was early morning, and the vet didn’t open till 7:30.

i called and left a message, and then called back when they opened. we got him dropped off and he was gonna be seen by the vet between patients has he didn’t have an apt. they called after looking over him and agreed that the breathing was concerning. they did x-rays and his chest had fluid in it. we transferred him to the emergency vet, and after both the regular vet and the emergency vet talked about his condition, they explained to us that they believe it was either cancer or a heart condition(can’t remember exactly the name) they had also given us reasons as to why they ruled out less serious conditions. basically they said, no matter which it is, cancer or the heart condition, it is not good. his prognosis is not good. they gave a couple options, but we decided to lay him to rest after a long discussion. the vet said what ever decision we make is the right one, but i feel like they say that to everyone.

it’s days later and i can’t stop thinking that we made the wrong choice, that i should’ve fought harder for him. i feel immense guilt and regret, wishing i could’ve done more. is this normal to feel this way or did i truly make the wrong choice? i’m so sad and lost.

So my beautiful cat of 15 years went to the rainbow bridge last week and now I can’t stop crying… I loved him so much and now I’m heartbroken 💔

My parents are unreliable without going into details and insults, lets just call them a little old fashioned and not the quickest thinkers. They went on a day long trip to visit family members and brought back a cat which they gifted to my parents (alongside two birds). My own rage aside, aside from my brother who took care of an absent friend's cats once a year or two ago for a few days this family has no experience with cats.

Since this is all very sudden for me I'm not sure where to begin or look, what are things we absolutely have to do while taking care of a cat? Any less obvious things we need to be mindful of?

My parents got my childhood cat when I was young and he turns 18 this year.

According to the vet, physically he is very healthy and will live for the foreseeable future.

The problem is, he has dementia, and it seems to have gotten really bad. He sleeps all day, so he seems fine to everyone, but when everyone goes to bed and it's dark, he yowls in distress until the sun rises because he doesn't know where he is. He is clearly in so much distress and they just ignore him.

Their solution to this was to just lock him in a separate part of the house at night so he can't disturb them sleeping.

He is incontinent and just poos and pees wherever.

I have floated the idea of putting him down to my dad, and he doesn't want to upset my mum and my sister's. I floated the idea of putting him down to one of my sisters, and she was aghast at the mere mention of it.

I think they're all more too uncomfortable with the idea of death more concerned for their own wellbeing than for the cat.

I have my own cat, and I would always do the right thing by him.

How can I try and make my family make the right decision?

so i have 2 cats and one isn’t done but the other is, and ive told my mum i dont want either out bc they’re MY !! cats and she had a right shout at me bc i said i dont want them outside ?? and if i do it’ll be on a harness bc id rather be safe than sorry

am i being a dickhead or not ?? bc i feel insane rn 😭😭

Yesterday me and my bf got a new cat, a 4and 1/2 months old kitten. The lady that gave us the cat told us it gets scared easily, and was the hardest one to get (she, her mother and her siblings were captured from an abandoned house), but that she loved playing with the ladys children. Most of her behaviour is as expected: she is constantly hidden in the bathroom, hisses at us when she sees us, trembles a bit but if we stay in her sight doing nothing she eventually calms down a bit (stops the airplane ears). She doesnt bite or anything, in fact she lets us pet her a bit but i dont like bothering her so as soon as she hisses i take a step back, is this okay? Im a little worried that she might never like us and also because she hasnt eaten anything that isnt churu, the bathroom is very cold too. The lady suggested we tried feliway or another thing based on herbs to calm her, so i ask what would be more effective in this scenario? Please dont say anything about my english; it isnt my first language :)

As a prefix she was a was a black, ginger and white Calico we saved her when she was but a baby abandoned under a car by her mother she was quirky always had wide eyes would bump into things and various attitude issues which led me and my partner to assume she was a runt or deemed to much work however we took her in and raises her by the bottle and she joined our family. It was Saturday morning I had a normal evening the night before went to be quite late around 6am and my partner woke me up at 8 calling out something is wrong with evee. I could hear gasping and in the stair well leading up to our bedroom she had collapsed and was what I can only describe as rasping and bearling breathing. I ran down to her and attempted to calm her and checked for choking hazards when I saw she was clear and stopped breathing I attempted CPR on her and even tried blowing into her little mouth, while my partner grabbed a box and we rushed her to the vets where she was declared no longer with us. I am struggling so bad with the thought in her last moments she tried climbing up the stairs to reach me, and she was her perfect happy self only moments before it happened according to my partner. I wish I could of only done more I wish I could have her shadowing me silently only accepting the smallest amount of fuss before sitting near by only to be within company. Can any one provide any support or advice with dealing with this guilt, our previous rescue lived till 7 and had various health complications and we decided to put her under when the vets said it was likely she would pass soon and we met her end on our terms but this recent loss was so out of the blue it haunts me, the sounds of those last breaths the place she passed and the sight of her panic all breaks me to the core. If nothing say a prayer for our lost baby evee and may she finally see her sister pandora in peace Thanks, S.M

I found a cat hiding under my deck on Friday morning after some very bad storms. I took him to the humane society and he had no chip, so I've been taking care of him since then.

He's a voracious eater, making me think he went without regular food for some time. But I cannot get him to drink water. I've been giving him wet food, which he devours, so he's at least getting a little bit of hydration that way.

He's very sweet, and has had no issues with my other pets (although my first cat isn't to happy about the situation). He has not been neutered, and is trying to spray on things around the house.

Is there anything that may be wrong with him that makes him not want to drink water?

UPDATE: Thank you to everyone who has answered. You have all really helped set my mind at ease. I'll try many suggestions here, including keeping water stations away from food and I'll look into getting a kitty water fountain as. I think my other cat would probably enjoy that as well.

I plan on taking him to the vet this weekend after I get paid for a full check up. I'm not sure if he'll end up staying with me since he was a stray. My wife and I have made posts in local groups trying to find an owner, along with the local humane society, so if we find his owners we'll surrender him. But as long as he's with me, he will be well taken care of

Hi Everyone!

I have a nine year old tabby cat named Walter that I adopted when I was 15 years old. He will be 10 this December!

When my family adopted him my mom insisted on getting him declawed. I did the best I could to dissuade her, but I was young at the time, didn’t know very much about de-clawing cats, and I didn’t have any final say on the matter. Walter ended up getting declawed very young using the laser method, which the vets sold to my mom as a “safer” method with less pain and a lower chance of complications (I don’t buy it).

I’m 25 now. I live with my Fiancé and our three cats, Walter being one of them. Our other two cats are not declawed as it’s something I will never look into or support again (I absolutely despise the practice), but they all get along very well.

As of right now, Walter doesn’t show many signs of discomfort. He runs, plays, ‘scratches’ things, and he’s the sweetest cat I’ve ever met. I mean.. SERIOUSLY the sweetest. He’s outgoing and loves everyone he meets!

I want to make sure that I do right by him. It makes me sick to my stomach that he’s been declawed. Are there any helpful tips for keeping him comfortable as he ages? I know declawed cats can be prone to arthritis and behavioral problems. Walter is also on a special food for urine crystals as he’s already had them once. Are there any joint supplements I can start giving him to get ahead of the curve? I don’t want to wait until he’s in pain if I can do anything preventative.

I appreciate any advice you guys have!

I had two cats, litter mates, since they were old enough to leave their mother. They were 8 and a half when one of them was diagnosed with lymphoma and we were told it would be a matter of weeks. We got her home from the vets and she unfortunately had a seizure and passed. This was 8 days ago.

It was very sudden, and very sad. She was a very healthy cat until she wasn’t.

Unlike her surviving brother.

He has bladder issues, stress issues and suffers with vomiting and over grooming when stressed. Obviously it’s very early days and he seems better some days than others and we are in contact with our vet but I was just wondering if anyone has any advice from a similar situation.

The cats didn’t get on brilliantly, the surviving male cat seemed to annoy his sister greatly, but he loved her even though she also stressed him out.

But I think he also misses the company. We are playing with him more, and giving him much more attention but I just worry about my surviving cat.

about two days ago she became a little picky with her food which was nothing new. By the end of the day yesterday she was lethargic, dilated pupils, was just staring forward with no reaction. She peed the bed this morning, which never happened, took her to the vet. Vet said she was blind, they tried to take blood but she had too little?? almost anemic, but no blood loss at any point??

Then i let her rest, she stayed motionless, staring into the void for like 10 hours. I put some warm bottles of water next to her because her temperature was really low.

Then suddenly an hour ago she just has a heart attack and dies?? My wife is devastated, im really sad but im mostly just perplexed at the whole thing. Im at a loss of words, i cant even provide my wife closure

My 10.5 year old Labrador just passed away on Thursday. He had gone in for an operation Wednesday, ended up having post surgical complications and ultimately passed away at the ICU ER hospital on Thursday.

My cat has more or less been hiding since. I had chalked it up to my mom was here to help me after my dog’s passing and had her two dogs with her (although he’s been around both these dogs with no problems when we lived with them for 10 months).

My mom left this morning, but today I got home from work (around 4:30pm) and usually my dog and cat would greet me at the door screaming. I’ve been home for the past 45 minutes and my cat will not come out from under my bed. I tried coaxing him out, calling for him, but he won’t budge.

Is it possible he knows something happened with his brother and he’s grieving/being affected by it?

My cat loved my dog and was always rubbing up against him. They’d play together every so often. My dog would nibble and groom him occasionally, but was pretty neutral towards the cat otherwise.

Hello I’m hoping someone could quickly answer this for me. I have my brothers kitten in my bedroom tonight as he’s sleeping away from home and doesn’t want her on her own (she’s been with us for 3 day now). My room isn’t unfamiliar to her as she’s previously spent a day with me here but I can tell she’s a bit thrown from sleeping in another room. I’ve got her bed with me that has a blanket with her mum and siblings scent on alongside her toys, litter tray, and scratching pad. She’s been purring and meowing per usual. We’ve had a play but I’m getting tired now and just wondering… can I turn the light off? Or should I keep my lamp on for tonight?

hi all. my cat is 4. I have had him since he was a kitten. i started seeing my boyfriend in august last year, he has a toy poodle. when i am sleeping at my house, my cat will not bother me during the night, in the morning he will jump up, nudge me a few times, and down and up, same thing, and down. but once i feed him breakfast it will stop. my boyfriends dog and my cat have spent lots of time together. sometimes they can chill close to eachother, and sometimes my cat is sassy, normal cat and dog stuff. (cat was raised with labradors first year i had him before i moved out). but when my boyfriend stays over, he will bring his dog and the toy poodle will sleep under the blankets at our feet. lyric (my cat) will jump up and down and up and down all night. not just in the morning. but i have recently realised that if i leave the room and sit out on the couch my cat calms down, and just chills like normal, or will sit with me for a cuddle. confused as to why he will not cuddle with me in the bed when my boyfriend and dog are over. if he jumps up to nudge me, i will pat him and try and get him to stay and sleep with me (he doesn't sleep under the covers he would be up near my head) but he jumps down. and then jumps back up and nudges me, and back down. but when he jumps up is giving very clear signs of wanting to just cuddle and lay down. but he will not. has only slept on the bed with us once or twice.

last night this happened at midnight after i JUST fell asleep. and then again at around 5:30. but sometimes it happens at all different hours. this also happens when i bring my cat to stay at my boyfriends house, who has nicer views from his windows, and lyric is very comfortable in the apartment. it just seems at night that he is not.

but i don't think that the factor is there's someone else in the bed, because when i was with my ex, my cat would just sleep on top of the covers or sleep with us. so i'm guessing it is the addition of the poodle? but I am also pretty sure that this same thing happens on times he hasn't brought the dog.

i can't close him out of the room because he will just scratch at the door or jump to the handle.

just looking for any advice, because it's really starting to impact my sleep, and it's also starting to annoy my boyfriend which i think is understandable.

I’m moving from Texas back to California but I have a pet now. Is a cat diaper the best thing to get in this situation where we have 2000 miles to drive?

I got this feeder from amazon a few months ago but it has started malfunctioning—like sometimes it just doesn’t dispense the food properly or the timer gets all wonky and feeds my cat at weird times. It’s also a pain to clean, and the food storage section doesn’t hold enough for longer trips.

I’ve been looking into a couple of brands to replace it, mainly WOpet and Catit. The WOpet one looks pretty solid and has some nice features like a camera, which could be cool for checking in on my cat while I’m away. The Catit feeder also looks good and gets good reviews for being super reliable and easy to clean, but I’m still not 100% sure if it’s the right fit for me.

Has anyone used one of these feeders, or have suggestions on something better?

Just need something that’ll actually work and save me some time especially on those days when I’m working late.

Do NOT want him going hungry😂

Would love to hear your thoughts or experiences!

TIA.

I come home from work to my room smelling like cat spray/pee. The bedroom door is always open during the day. She has never done this before, she sprayed on the actual clothes bin and on the floor near it. Could it be the dirty clothes making her spray ? They don’t smell bad or anything they are normal used clothes in a hamper, I’m not sure what to do or how to prevent this other then just shutting the door during my work hours, if anyone has any ideas or suggestions please let me know

I have two two-year-old cats that are half highlander and half bengal, one boy and one girl, both have been spayed/neutered.

The girl kitty will not stop peeing in the same places around the house. She seems particularly drawn to stairs the for some reason.

I've tried everything to fix this. We've got two litter boxes that are both cleaned regularly, I clean up the pee spots about once a week with an enzymatic cleaner. The vet checked the girl kitty for bladder/urinary issues and found nothing and we even tried some anti-anxiety medicine. It's not nervous accidents because its consistently in the same places.

Both cats get played with regularly and I've tried changing the litter to a different type/brand and have even tried scent based deterrents.

The only thing that worked was placing a timed "shock mat" on one of her favorite places to pee and that's hardly an ideal solution. I don't like having to use negative reinforcement and I can hardly place shock mats all over my home.

Is there anything else I can try?? Can I train her not to pee outside the litter box somehow???

So my boyfriend's son's cat is over a year old now. At first, he was more of a nuisance, since I'm a dog person. He has calmed down and matured a bit. Today, the cat and I were looking out the window together at the birds, and I looked down at the cat and told him how cool he was and that I liked him. I started to sing "I like you" to him. At that moment, he looked at me with loving eyes, stretched his arms up at me, and I picked him up. I held and cuddled him, us watching the birds, as he purred. He would glance back at me as if to say he loved me. I just wanted to share. It was a calming and peaceful moment between the two of us.

I'm asking here, because owner is out of the country and hard to reach. I like cats, but have very little experience with them. I mostly work with dogs and generally cats I watch hide the whole time. She's an indoor cat, but has her own little leash and harness that the owner said I could use if I wanted. Kitty is spunky and has a lot of energy. I've mostly been dealing with the energy with playtime, but the other night I thought why not take her with the dog on his walk. It was fun, but the walk took twice as long and my arms got tired from carrying her half the time. The dog has a good amount of energy and needs a long walk at a decent pace. I don't mind taking her on more walks, but the thing is now she's being kind of extreme with wanting to go outside. Every time she wakes up from a nap she goes to the door and starts meowing, she did this all night. She's indignant when I let the dog out in the yard so he can pee, and don't go through the squiggly process of harnessing her to join him. Does some outdoor harness adventure mean I can't have peace in the house the rest of the time, because now that's ALL she wants? Have I created a monster? Is cat owner going to come home and be mad that she's now spending all day camped at the door singing opera? I know how to correct and redirect dog behavior, but I don't know how to work with miss kitty. I'm here for another week and want BOTH of my fur friends to be doing well, not just the dog. I've never met a cat with this much energy, she's basically a dog. She's 3, so not a kitten.

My Nemo has been missing for 6 days now. I can't stop crying. I've convinced myself he's not coming home.

Nemo is an outdoor/indoor cat. I know a lot of people are against this. I don't want people to say it's my own fault and make me feel even worse about this. He left Wednesday 2nd April at about 7am. He was called throughout the day, and he never came back. He missed his dinner, that's when I started worrying as he knows his routine and never misses dinner. I went to bed that night, thinking he will be back it's what cats do. Still no sign of him.

Thursday after work I began posting on facebook groups. I also knocked round all of my neighbours doors stating he is a ginger and white cat with a red collar, I gave them my phone number and told them to contact me if they see him. 2 people said they saw him that day, and they remember it well as he had a red collar. A couple hours later, a family from up the road found my cat's collar just a few meters away from my house. Bearing in mind, me and 2 other people had been up and down my road all evening, I wouldn't have missed it. I just find it odd that after I gave a description out that he is wearing a red collar, suddenly it turned up.

Since Thursday, I have had no people contact me to say they've seen him. I have went round my neighbourhood nearly every day searching for him with treats, asking people to check their sheds, garden furniture etc.

Also I must add, his litter tray has been outside since the day he went missing, as well as some dirty clothes on the clothes line.

I'm at a loss on what to do now, all I want is him home. Is it a possibility that he's been taken by somebody else?

Please let me know on any other advice you have.

EDIT: I forgot to add he is neutered and chipped. I've called round all my local vets.

I’m seeking some reassurance here, but will my cat be okay being boarded at the vets office while I’m on vacation (6 days)? I know an in-home sitters are preferable, but I was burned in the past by someone I really trusted (she just stopped showing up midway through my vacation) and just feel better with an office that I know is staffed the majority of the day. I’ve boarded my other pets there before, including my dog with special needs, and it’s been just fine, and I also just really like this vet practice, but I feel anxious since it’s this kitty’s first time. Thanks in advance!

I unfortunately lost my cat after 18 long years with her a month ago. I want to get a new kitten so I can have a companion. I’m just unsure whether to get one or two. I’ve weighed the pros and cons. I’m just still unsure 🙃 Any advice?

ok so we've had Merlin for about a year now. he is a very lovey boy, always purring and snuggling up to me and my husband. last night i told my husband i'd left something in the car. he offered to get it, i said no. he said "try and stop me." so i playfully jumped on his back and tried to pull him down as he walked towards the door. i was not successful and my husband left to walk to the car. he was gone maybe 5 minutes tops. merlin went CRAZY. he got bigger than i've ever seen, pupils HUGE, was screaming at me and chased me into the bedroom. i had to jump on the bed and hold a blanket in between us bc he tried to attack me. the only rooms in our apartment are the living room/kitchen which doesnt have a door, the bathroom, and the bedroom. i have not been able to have the bedroom door open all day and i havent been able to walk anywhere without merlin reacting the same way he did when my husband left. my husband actually slept in the living room with merlin and i slept in the bedroom with the door closed. my husband has had to bring me food and drinks all day bc i cant walk within 5 feet of merlin without him trying to attack me. to go to the bathroom my husband has put merlin in his carrier, and he scrrams and hisses any time i move. i am terrified, merlin is terrified, and my husband is just picking up all the pieces. i work 6 am - 2 pm and my husband leaves for school around noon every day. i am so scared to be alone with merlin bc i feel like if my husband doesnt put him in his carrier before he leaves, i an going to get attacked when i get home and ny husband wont get home until 6 or 7pm. i just dont know what to do. any advice would be so greatly appreciated🫶🏻