OT: Advice about introducing a new pet

[JonInMiddleGA]

Very sorry to hear about your loss steve.

[Ksyrup]

Yesterday afternoon we had to put down our 15-year old Chihuahua, Noelle. She had a number of medical issues, including diabetes and Cushing's Disease. We're fairly sure she had limited sight, as well. She took 3 or 4 pills twice a day and got insulin injections when she ate.

We went away this weekend and boarded the dogs, and on Sunday night, she started having issues. This wasn't out of the ordinary, since it happens every now and then and can be rectified with a couple of teaspoons of syrup. But she didn't bounce back like normal, so my wife took her in to the vet. They seemingly got her back to "normal" by Monday night, and she was eating well, but yesterday morning she suddenly turned and they couldn't do anything to keep her blood sugar level near where it needed to be. Normal is 100-150, and she was between 20 and 50 all day. When we got there, she was on oxygen and started having seizures, so my wife made the difficult decision to put her down. Noelle had been with my wife for all 15+ years, and she took/is taking it hard. She got her about 4 months after we started dating, so it will feel odd not to have her around. Our 7-year old definitely understood what was happening, but the 3-year old didn't.

Objectively, I think this was for the best, since I had seen her deteriorating lately (difficulty getting her to eat, which was important because of her insulin, and she started peeing on the carpet when we were out, so we had to lock her in our bathroom instead of leaving her out, etc.). But my wife and 7-year old are pretty torn up over it. Yesterday was definitely a tough day.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Man, it really sucks to lose a pet. Sorry about your losses, fellas.

In my limited experience with this, I found getting another pet - if that's what the family wants to do - is a really good idea. I had a dog, Mindy (named after the character in "Mork and Mindy"), for 15 years. Got her when I was 5 and had her until I was 20.

I was in college when we had to put her to sleep (though I did drive down and spend the last morning with her and held her paw when she passed), but my folks adopted another dog from the pound about 2-3 weeks after we put her to sleep. While the new dog, Sergei, who is still around some 13 years later, never replaced Mindy, but having a new dog around the house really helped a lot. It helps fill the void a bit.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Very sorry to hear about your loss Ksyrup. My sympathies are definitely with your family.

[JonInMiddleGA]

By way of an update on our situation, Coal is slowly adapting I think. We've learned that he likes Purina Cat Chow, the shutters completely open in the morning (as opposed to just opening the slats), and will at least nibble at turkey based moist/canned foods. We've also discovered that he's extremely nervous, that he'll bite when annoyed (by whatever random thing I did to annoy an otherwise happy loudly purring cat) and that he is more scared of Callie than she is of him. He's still quarantined after their first brief meeting on Day Two produced nothing more than some yowling on his part. On the bright side, he's a lot more settled now & they finally played footsie under the basement door yesterday.

On a down note though, my wife had to take Callie to the E.R. around 5 this morning after she threw up regularly through a 24 hour span. Not sure yet whether it's stress, illness, something she ate or what. She seems fine otherwise & the first report back from the hospital said she was perking up after the I.V. (she was definitely dehydrated) and was trying to get them to play with her. She's got a bad habit of eating non-edibles like plastic wrap, tape, dry cleaning tags, and so forth so we were worried something might have gotten stuck somewhere it didn't belong. We'll hopefully settle that concern after her X-rays come back later this morning. Probably nothing serious but under the circumstances lately we weren't inclined to take any chances.

[albionmoonlight]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

On a down note though, my wife had to take Callie to the E.R. around 5 this morning after she threw up regularly through a 24 hour span. Not sure yet whether it's stress, illness, something she ate or what. She seems fine otherwise & the first report back from the hospital said she was perking up after the I.V. (she was definitely dehydrated) and was trying to get them to play with her. She's got a bad habit of eating non-edibles like plastic wrap, tape, dry cleaning tags, and so forth so we were worried something might have gotten stuck somewhere it didn't belong. We'll hopefully settle that concern after her X-rays come back later this morning. Probably nothing serious but under the circumstances lately we weren't inclined to take any chances.

It sounds like she is fine--and she is at the vet, so they will be right on it if something goes wrong. But I know what you mean about not taking chances. After we lost a dog suddenly, we are MUCH more cautious about any potential health issues. You can't help it.

And, of course, only a pet can turn a $0.02 piece of plastic into a $500.00 vet bill overnight.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by albionmoonlight

And, of course, only a pet can turn a $0.02 piece of plastic into a $500.00 vet bill overnight.

She's at UGA's clinic, so if we get out for less than $500 I'll be thrilled.

They have a reputation for doing good work, including some innovative stuff on some things, but it definitely comes at a price. Not a complaint in the world from me if it works, just saying I wish they weren't priced quite so far above average.

Of course I also wish I could figure out what she finds so appetizing about anything plastic but I'm not holding my breath on that happening either.

[BrianD]

I hope it turns out to be nerves and not something he ate. We recently had our smallest can in the kitty hospital because she had been throwing up regularly. It turns out that she had swallowed one of her small sparkle-ball cat toys. It got lodged in her intestines and no food was able to pass. The vet went in and got it out and our kitten has been fine since. It was a tense time for us, but she doesn't seem changed at all for the experience.

[st.cronin]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Of course I also wish I could figure out what she finds so appetizing about anything plastic but I'm not holding my breath on that happening either.

I had a vet tell me that most plastics contain some sort of dairy product, for some reason. Its not at all unusual for cats to find plastic incredibly tasty.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by st.cronin

I had a vet tell me that most plastics contain some sort of dairy product, for some reason. Its not at all unusual for cats to find plastic incredibly tasty.

Yep, I've heard this as well. Both of my cats love chewing on plastic, and I'm always worried they will accidently swallow it.

[albionmoonlight]

Jon, any update on the felines?

(Sad that it was the Vick thread that made me think of this).

[StarBuck]

Hi Jon, I know I'm late to this thread and it may be over and done with (I have not read through it) but I have a lot of experience with this, so I hope I can help you, or someone else.

Firstly please don't stress. People don't understand that cats in particular have a way of working out this kind of introduction. At times we will see things that will upset us, like hissing, cowering, growling, popping each other, chasing. But let them work it out.
Every one of our cats has experienced this and within 1-2 weeks, they are snuggling up together. Sometime however, they won't be best buddies but will tolerate each other, so know that too.

Okay, now here is how you do it.

DO NOT just plop the new cat into the room with the established cat.
Put the new cat in a room, with food water, litterbox, etc. Let the cat's sniff each other under the door . his helps them get the scent and also know each other before full introduction. It will also allow the older cat to find out there is a new one in the house in a less shocking manner.

Let this go on for a week. Then let them see each other by the process written out for you below.

For us, we only had to do this for one day. I had my cats on a flower essence (don't knock it till you've tried it!) for introducing cats for a gentle outcome. PM me for more info on that if you want. Our kitten Tommy, pictured below, had the hardest time with our female Ellie.And we thought for sure she would be the easiest with a kitten. She was nasty. three days later they were bestest friends. The essence seemed to work like a charm, But I have to ephasize that your family has to be patient and allow the animals to work it out without freaking out. Too often I see the owners giving up because they just don't understand and give up too soon.

So to summerize:

• Set up a comfortable "safe room" for New Cat. Put her food, water, litter box (not near the food), scratching post, toys, and bed or other sleeping mat there.
• Expect a great deal of "hissy-spitty" behavior through the closed door from both cats.This is natural and normal; they are just starting to explore their "pecking order."
• Scent is very important for cats. Let each of them smell the other indirectly, by rubbing a towel on one and letting the other smell it. They will soon accept the scent as a normal part of the house.
• Once or twice, switch roles. Put New Cat in the normal living quarters, and let your resident cat sniff out the new cat's Safe Room.
• After a day or so, let the two cats sniff each other through a baby-gate or through a barely-opened door. Gauge the rate at which they seem to be acclimating to each other.
• When you think they're ready, let them mingle under your supervision. Ignore hissing and growling, but you may have to intervene if a physical battle breaks out. Again, take this step slowly, depending on how quickly they get along. If they do seem to tolerate each other, even begrudgingly, praise both of them profusely.
• Make their first activities together enjoyable ones so they will learn to associate pleasure with the presence of the other cat. Feeding (with their own separate dishes), playing, and petting. Keep up with the praise.
• If things start going badly, separate them again, and then start where you left off. If one cat seems to consistently be the aggressor, give her some "time out," then try again a little bit later.

The introduction can take from two hours to six months, so don't be discouraged if your cats don't seem to get along well at first. Often the case is that they will eventually be "best buddies."
Factors to Consider

• If you are thinking of getting a kitten to keep an older cat company, you might want to consider two kittens. They will be able to keep each other company while the older cat learns to love them.
• If you already have more than one cat, use the "alpha cat" for preliminary introductions. Once he/she accepts the newcomer, the other resident cats will quickly fall in line.
• Lots of snuggle-time and attention is indicated for all cats concerned during this period. Remember, the prime goal is to get them to associate pleasure with the presence of each other.
• If possible, ask a friend to deliver the new cat to your home, in her cage. You can act nonchalant, as if it's no big deal, then later let your resident cat(s) think it's their idea to welcome the newcomer.

With patience and perseverance, you can turn what might appear at first as an "armed camp" into a haven of peace for your integrated feline family. Congratulations on giving another cat in need a permanent home!



Tommy says just do's it!

[JonInMiddleGA]

Thanks for asking.

Gosh, I didn't realize that I sort of left this hanging with Callie at UGA hospital.

She was home after a couple of days, with what the staff there decided was a rather unusual (for cats) case of grief-triggered sickness. Basically they felt like was upset, got her stomach out of whack, and then couldn't quite get over it without some help. Some anti-nausea drugs, some IV's, etc., and she was home & fine physically after that.

I think I'm picking up the story in the right place here (if not, sorry), while she was in the hospital we let Coal have the run of the house, figuring we'd isolate Callie for a couple of days when she got home just to make sure she had a calm secure place to finish recovering. Well that didn't last long. Less than 8 hours after we brought her in & put her in the master suite we discovered that Coal knows how to open sliding doors, and he apparently decided it was time for them to get to know each other better. Imagine the look on my wife's face as this big black cat turns the corner out of the bathroom & just strolls into the bedroom.

And as I'm typing this, I get the joy of cleaning up a Coal-instigated coffee spill. Sigh.

Long story short, it took a 2-3 weeks for the two adults to get their arrangement worked out, with Callie turning into mondo-alpha-kitty and thoroughly dominating the male twice her size.

Meanwhile, into the mix comes Vivienne, a precocious (aka out of her f'n skull half the time) tiny calico longhair kitten. Took, I dunno, the better part of two weeks before we let her out of quarantine in Will's bathroom full time. And of course, since cats are involved, nothing turned out as expected.
Coal & Vivi have bonded great, she gets away with doing suicide dive high spots onto him, takes a run & literally swings around his neck/head, uses his tail for a toy, etc., and gets nothing worse than some play fight back in return. Callie on the other hand was pretty much the picture of misery for the first 2-3 weeks with the kitten on the loose, her newly unleashed alpha personality vanished & she spent nearly all of her time hiding in the most secluded places she could find. Finally she did at least reach the point of all she could stand and with one mighty swing she sent the kitten spinning about three full revolutions across the kitchen floor. Since then, Callie doesn't hide any more and the kitten gives her a pretty wide berth about 3/4ths of the time.

Most importantly, with the help of a cat-sitter coming twice a day, all of the felines survived our 9 days away from home in one piece, nobody died, nobody got arrested, so we counted that as a major success (and at least a little bit of a surprise to be honest).

At the moment I'd say there's a decent chance that Callie would have been at least marginally happier going solo rather than dealing with these two. Like me, there are times when it's pretty clear that she's missing Rhett & that nothing will ever really be a reasonable facsimile. And it's iffy whether she's ever going to forgive my wife more than about 80% for bringing these two in.

Coal has settled in pretty well but has a personality unlike any cat I've ever dealt with. Needy but aloof, happy but uncomfortable with being happy (still likes to bite me pretty good when he's in full purr mode), just a really different sort of cat. Great news on his checkup though, as even with normal food & completely on demand he had the lowest blood sugar readings of his life & was at a healthy weight. Best guess is the improvement comes from keeping him away from table food, which we're convinced he was at least somewhat accustomed to from watching him in the kitchen at meal times.

Vivi is, as kittens can be, a doll one second & a demon the next. But happily she's really bonding closely to Will, which none of our others have ever done, so for really the first time in his life I think he's getting to enjoy the whole pet experience which is great for him. It's ever better I think since he's already started asking about what age he'll have to be before he can be a regular volunteer for the local humane society. He's already a regular face at their adoption center, bringing the rabbits special treats & feeds them at least once a week, and being recognized as their first ever offical "Bunny Buddy" (complete with name badge) as they venture into rabbit adoptions for the first time.

One thing for sure, with three cats in the house, there's probably another new drama or story right around the next corner.

[StarBuck]

That's for sure! We have a multi cat household and your so right.

Thanks for the update. It's common for an animal to grieve at the loss of a human or companion animal to the point of illness or depression. When the "King" of our household pride died, the other male who was his best buddy and worshiped him became so depressed I had to give him one of those essences for grief to snap out of it. For weeks he went around calling for him, looking in his favorite sleep spots and hidey holes. It was sad.

[albionmoonlight]

Glad to hear that your guys have managed to find their place.

And very nice to hear about Will. Being involved with animals seems like such a neat and positive thing for a kid to do.

[stevew]

We found the cutest dog at a local shelter today and decided to bring him home. We've been passively looking for a dog for awhile now, although didn't want to spend like 5-600 bucks for a purebread. Freddie is a brownish boxer/lab mix. Slight problem now is that the cats are both pissed off as hell. I know that it's probably to be as expected, hopefully this will get better over time right? The big fat boy cat is all puffed up now, and is acting like a cobra.

I'll post pics of the cat/dog family for reference when I get a chance.

[lordscarlet]

We've had to pump pheromones into the air to keep my cats and my wife's cat at peace.

[Easy Mac]

You should give it a debutante ball

[korme]

You should get a cobra and show your cat that it is not one of those

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Shorty3281

You should get a cobra and show your cat that it is not one of those

I'd recommend trying pheromones as well if gradual exposure doesn't work.

[oliegirl]

I'm glad to see I'm not the only one who is crazy enough to have mulitple animals. We have a 7 year old cat, who is pretty much over the kitten phase and is content to lay around and be fat and lazy all day long. She is my son's cat and still sleeps with him every night, etc...but we don't see much of her during the day. We also have a 9 month old puppy, Weeble, a small beagle mix, who is a total lap dog and super sweet, but seemed kind of lonely and like he needed a playmate. So last week we adopted Riley, a 12 week old Golden Retriever/Schnauzer mix, along with 2 8 week old kittens that my fiancee and son found and fell in love with. Needless to say, it was chaos for a couple of days - but they all seem to have settled in and it's been interesting to watch the dynamic form between them.

One of the kittens (they are brothers) is fearless and has been since we brought him home. He'll pounce right on Weeble or Riley and plays with them all the time. His brother however, was a little more timid and it took him a few days until he stopped hissing at the dogs anytime they were near him. The 2 dogs play all the time, and even though Riley will probably end up being bigger than Weeble, he realizes that Weeble is the one in charge and makes the rules.

All in all it's been a good transition, though we have had to get used to sharing the bed with a few more furry creatures...but it's all worth it.

[Synovia]

My Animals: 2 Cats, Bernese Mountain Dog, 2 Rabbits, Guinea pig, rat, and a large saltwater reef tank.


My cats are 2 years old, and about 5 months old. When I introduced the kitten (and I highly reccomend getting a kitten if you've already got an adult cat), there was absolutely no posturing or anything. The (year and a half at the time, neutered) old male came over, and just started grooming the kitten.

With a kitten and adult, theres no need to establish dominance. They're pretty much inseperable at this point.

[lordscarlet]

I "only" have 3 cats, but that is in 650 sq ft with two people living there.

[JonInMiddleGA]

As seems to be the case with pets, the update to this thread is a sad one.

Callie went to be with Rhett earlier today, losing a game ten month battle with lymphoma.

Today was her regular exam and given a sudden deterioration in her condition in the past week or so we feared the worst & that turned out to be what we got. While the latest course of chemo had actually started to work on the stomach tumor that turned out to be the most problematic, the ones in/on her kidneys went into overdrive at the same time and led to renal failure. With no way to arrest those tumors in time to save her life, there was really no choice but to have to put down today instead of forcing her to endure another 3-5 days that would have gotten progressively worse.

Her quality of life throughout treatment was quite good, right up until the past few days. We did everything we could, so did the doctors, and so did that sweet little cat but we suddenly found ourselves at the point where putting her through anything else - especially with pretty much a 0% chance of success - would have crossed the line into trying to do too much.

One of the simultaneously saddest & most beautiful things I've ever seen happened in the final minute or two this morning. One of us was on each side of Callie loving on her just before the time came for the doctor (who was crying almost as hard as we were afterwards) to administer the drugs. She had been facing away from my wife throughout & I suggested we switch side so she could see her face one more time. My wife said no, she doesn't want to see me because she's mad because of all the pills I've had to give her. Callie very purposefully turned to face my wife, in an instant telling her without a doubt that "I'm not mad at you stupid, I'm just sick". Maybe you had to be there, I'm not doing it justice at all trying to describe it. But I'll never forget that as long as I live, this poor cat who we had long described as the sweetest to ever grace the earth staying true to her personality literally to the very end. Not only will that scene never leave me, I'm not sure I'll ever be able to describe it without crying, one of the most heart wrenching things I've ever seen.

The end was very peaceful, the combination of a strong sedative & the lethal combo that followed really did just send her off peacefully to one final sleep, unspeakably difficult to authorize and yet something we absolutely owed her after all the love she had given us.

Rest in peace dear one.

[Honolulu_Blue]

Man, tough week all around.

Sorry to hear about your loss, Jon.

[TCY Junkie]

I had a moment like that. Thanksgiving morning I woke up and noticed my 14 year old dog who always eats all his food didn't touch it. Two days earlier he went to turn around and just stopped and stayed in a spot like I never seen him do before. He acted kinda different those days in between and I was going to get him checked out after thanksgiving. Well, when I went over to his bed that morning he wouldn't get off of it. I picked him up and took him outside to pee. After he peed he didn't move so I picked him up. He always looked around before, but this time he put his head on my neck. At that moment I knew I was going to have to put him down the next day. I guess I got lucky because he never had any problems and seemed very happy until the last few days. He had very bad congestive heart failure and they recommended I put him down.

[BrianD]

This is terrible news. I am very sad at your loss, but I'm happy you got such a touching message right at the end. There is no good way to go through this process, but having Callie re-demonstrate her love before going to sleep is a small gift.

[Butter]

Sorry, Jon. At least you got one more great memory to keep.