rcj@burl.UUCP (Curtis Jackson) (02/01/86)
I know this question has invariably come up in this group before, but I just started reading it today. Please mail replies to me and I *will* summarize them to the net: --------------------------- I have two cats, a male and a female, both about 8.5 months old. For economic reasons, the 3 of us are forced to share a one-bedroom apartment until my lease runs out in August, when I intend to buy/rent a house. In the meantime, I am having 4 major problems: 1) Litter box. Both these guys are excellently trained to the box, but I can change the litter in the afternoon and by the next morning the whole apartment smells. Any suggestions on this would be greatly appreciated -- if you have cats you probably know that no deodorizors will help (although good incense seems to do better than anything). Would it help if I had one/both of them fixed? I've run through every brand of litter known to man/beast -- nothing works; my best experience so far is with Kitty Litter brand. They are both still on Purina Kitten Chow, which I'm sure is ultra- loaded with protein -- a bad thing for me since protein breaks down into ammonia in the body. Would a dietary change help? 2) Spraying. I guess this is what he is doing -- the male started a month ago to "mark his territory" by urinating in obscure areas of the living room. To my knowledge (and boy, you have instant knowledge when you open the door of the apartment!), he has only done this twice; but I'm quite sure that won't be the end. I really hate to have him fixed for no reason, as he is already playful but basically docile (he doesn't really use his claws and teeth even when really excited while playing/fighting), and I don't want to turn him into a fat, boring old man before he is one year old. 3) Scratching post. I bought one of these oddities (carpet-covered variety, you know the type) at the local pet store when my babies were very young. They used it as a base from which to pull a Snoopy-style vulture routine, then pounce on each other. They never once scratched it. Now that they are too big to perch on it, it sits in the middle of the living room floor while they gleefully attack my $300 ottoman. For some reason they haven't yet realized that the easy chair and sofa of the same group are much more expensive, but I'm sure they'll figure it out sooner or later. I have an old fake-wicker clothes hamper that I really don't care about in front of the ottoman, but it is rapidly disappearing in shreds and doing wonders for the appearance of my apartment at the same time. Any scratching-post suggestions? The male discovered my speaker covers last night, and for that he will die -- only you can save him! 4) The house won't solve this one, but my job requires me to go the New Jersey [:-(] fairly often for around 3 days at a time, sometimes 4. Except when I get lucky like next week and get to go to Minneapolis [:-( :-(]. Has anyone had any experience with automatic feeders/waterers so I don't have to leave tons of food and water out? The male is in fantastic shape, but the female is a butterball -- a real tubbo. I have the feeling that if there isn't a huge pile of food *in the bowl* that maybe she'll cut down a bit -- I tried this when I was home for a long period and it seemed to work. She never cleaned out the bowl but she did eat less. Sorry this turned out to be so long, but this is my first experience with indoor cats and the pet stores in town have been no help whatsoever. Any help would be greatly appreciated! P.S.: Thanks in advance from Sam and Kodi, too! -- The MAD Programmer -- 919-228-3313 (Cornet 291) alias: Curtis Jackson ...![ ihnp4 ulysses cbosgd mgnetp ]!burl!rcj ...![ ihnp4 cbosgd akgua masscomp ]!clyde!rcj
jca@drutx.UUCP (ArnsonJC) (02/03/86)
If an unneuterd male starts spraying, you generally have one of two choices: Have the cat become entirely an outdoor cat, Neuter the cat, because once they start spraying THEY DON'T STOP. I had that problem when I first got one of my cats. All they need is one whiff of a female and that's the end of the story. If they are not neutered quickly after they start spraying, they will continue to spray the rest of their lives, even if they are neutered. And will generally NOT use the mess box. You can draw your own conclusions as to what you care about more. (ie your carpet, nose, sanity, etc.) As to the smell of the messbox: Try adding lots of baking soda to the litter, and mixing it in. It has worked quite well for me (I have 2 neutered males). Good luck, -- jill c. arnson ihnp4!drutx!jca AT&T IS, Denver (303)538-4800 "Excuse me,... My name's Enid Kapelsen, I'm from Boston. Tell me, do you fly a lot?"
suze@terak.UUCP (Suzanne Barnett) (02/04/86)
> 1) Litter box. Both these guys are excellently trained to the box, but I > can change the litter in the afternoon and by the next morning the whole > apartment smells. Any suggestions on this would be greatly appreciated -- > if you have cats you probably know that no deodorizors will help (although > good incense seems to do better than anything). Would it help if I had Try coating the bottom of the pan with baking soda. Thoroughly wash the plastic (? I presume) litter box as plastic can retain odors. Then begin using a litter box liner. Are you putting enough litter in the box? You might want to change from an actual litterbox to a dishpan, they are deeper, which means they hold more litter and things can be buried deeper. Check with a vet about deodorizers, they can supply you with ones that work far better than those you can buy at the pet store. > one/both of them fixed? I've run through every brand of litter known to > man/beast -- nothing works; my best experience so far is with Kitty Litter > brand. They are both still on Purina Kitten Chow, which I'm sure is ultra- > loaded with protein -- a bad thing for me since protein breaks down into > ammonia in the body. Would a dietary change help? I agree, Kitty Litter is one of the better odor reducing brands. Try a diet change, it could help. Fixing the female will make no difference in her litter odor (that's perceptable to you, anyway). Fixing the male will eventually make a big difference in the odor of the male's urine. > > 2) Spraying. I guess this is what he is doing -- the male started a month > won't be the end. I really hate to have him fixed for no reason, as he is > already playful but basically docile (he doesn't really use his claws and > teeth even when really excited while playing/fighting), and I don't want to > turn him into a fat, boring old man before he is one year old. Talk to the vet about this. > > 3) Scratching post. I bought one of these oddities (carpet-covered variety, > then pounce on each other. They never once scratched it. Now that they are > too big to perch on it, it sits in the middle of the living room floor while > they gleefully attack my $300 ottoman. For some reason they haven't yet > for the appearance of my apartment at the same time. Any scratching-post > suggestions? The male discovered my speaker covers last night, and for that Try one of the larger scratching poles (floor to ceiling variety, with shelves). Whenever you catch them scratching something they shouldn't, firmly say the cat's name and "NO". A lot of people have success using a spray bottle or water pistol, depends on the cat. Take them to the scratching pole, pet them, say "good kitty" and move their paws on the pole in a scratching motion, you might even try to push their claws out while you do this, so they get a better idea of what you want. > > 4) The house won't solve this one, but my job requires me to go the New Jersey > had any experience with automatic feeders/waterers so I don't have to leave > tons of food and water out? The male is in fantastic shape, but the female > is a butterball -- a real tubbo. I have the feeling that if there isn't a huge > P.S.: Thanks in advance from Sam and Kodi, too! > -- > > The MAD Programmer -- 919-228-3313 (Cornet 291) > alias: Curtis Jackson ...![ ihnp4 ulysses cbosgd mgnetp ]!burl!rcj > ...![ ihnp4 cbosgd akgua masscomp ]!clyde!rcj I'd leave out as much water as possible. On food, leave out only the amount they'll need for those 3 or 4 days. For a longer time than that I'd either get someone to come in and feed them (neighbor kids are great for this) or put them in a kennel. I don't have any experience with an auto feeder, so I can't comment on other that it seems a good idea, but, once they learn the hang of it, I don't think it would make any difference over leaving the food out, except that it won't get stale as quickly. -- Suzanne Barnett-Scott uucp: ...{decvax,ihnp4,noao,savax,seismo}!terak!suze CalComp/Sanders Display Products Division 14151 N 76th Street, Scottsdale, AZ 85260 (602) 998-4800
larry@kitty.UUCP (Larry Lippman) (02/16/86)
> > 1) Litter box. Both these guys are excellently trained to the box, but I > > can change the litter in the afternoon and by the next morning the whole > > apartment smells. Any suggestions on this would be greatly appreciated -- > > Try coating the bottom of the pan with baking soda. Thoroughly > wash the plastic (? I presume) litter box as plastic can > retain odors. Then begin using a litter box liner. Are you > putting enough litter in the box? You might want to change > from an actual litterbox to a dishpan, they are deeper, which > means they hold more litter and things can be buried deeper. > Check with a vet about deodorizers, they can supply you with > ones that work far better than those you can buy at the pet > store. If you are ambitious, check with a medical/hospital supply firm about room deodorizers which REALLY work based upon chemical action, rather than a brute force perfume mask. One tradename to consider is "Ozium". > Try a diet change, it could help. ... It WILL help. We feed our eight cats Iams dry cat food (because of good quality and low-ash content). Only a few pet stores in our area carry Iams, and if we run out and temporarily substitute another brand from the grocery store, the odor will NOTICEABLY increase within 24 hours. > > 2) Spraying. I guess this is what he is doing -- the male started a month > > won't be the end. I really hate to have him fixed for no reason, as he is > > already playful but basically docile (he doesn't really use his claws and > > teeth even when really excited while playing/fighting), and I don't want to > > turn him into a fat, boring old man before he is one year old. > > Talk to the vet about this. He won't stay docile forever. To preclude forthcoming frustration on his part AND yours, now is the time to have him neutered. All of our three male cats were neutered at 6-7 months, and none are fat and boring. [Well, maybe a LITTLE chubby...] ==> Larry Lippman @ Recognition Research Corp., Clarence, New York <== ==> UUCP {decvax|dual|rocksanne|rocksvax|watmath}!sunybcs!kitty!larry <== ==> VOICE 716/741-9185 {rice|shell}!baylor!/ <== ==> FAX 716/741-9635 {G1, G2, G3 modes} duke!ethos!/ <== ==> seismo!/ <== ==> "Have you hugged your cat today?" ihnp4!/ <==
monam@tekecs.UUCP (Mona McLaughlin) (02/18/86)
> > 1) Litter box. Both these guys are excellently trained to the box, but I > > can change the litter in the afternoon and by the next morning the whole > > apartment smells. Any suggestions on this would be greatly appreciated -- > > if you have cats you probably know that no deodorizors will help (although > > good incense seems to do better than anything). Would it help if I had > > Try coating the bottom of the pan with baking soda. Thoroughly > wash the plastic (? I presume) litter box as plastic can > retain odors. Then begin using a litter box liner. Are you > putting enough litter in the box? You might want to change > from an actual litterbox to a dishpan, they are deeper, which > means they hold more litter and things can be buried deeper. > Check with a vet about deodorizers, they can supply you with > ones that work far better than those you can buy at the pet > store. > > > one/both of them fixed? I've run through every brand of litter known to > > man/beast -- nothing works; my best experience so far is with Kitty Litter > > brand. They are both still on Purina Kitten Chow, which I'm sure is ultra- > > loaded with protein -- a bad thing for me since protein breaks down into > > ammonia in the body. Would a dietary change help? > > I agree, Kitty Litter is one of the better odor reducing brands. > Try a diet change, it could help. Fixing the female will make > no difference in her litter odor (that's perceptable to you, > anyway). Fixing the male will eventually make a big difference > in the odor of the male's urine. > > > > > 2) Spraying. I guess this is what he is doing -- the male started a month > > won't be the end. I really hate to have him fixed for no reason, as he is > > already playful but basically docile (he doesn't really use his claws and > > teeth even when really excited while playing/fighting), and I don't want to > > turn him into a fat, boring old man before he is one year old. > > Talk to the vet about this. > > > > > 3) Scratching post. I bought one of these oddities (carpet-covered variety, > > then pounce on each other. They never once scratched it. Now that they are > > too big to perch on it, it sits in the middle of the living room floor while > > they gleefully attack my $300 ottoman. For some reason they haven't yet > > for the appearance of my apartment at the same time. Any scratching-post > > suggestions? The male discovered my speaker covers last night, and for that > Try one of the larger scratching poles (floor to ceiling > variety, with shelves). Whenever you catch them scratching > something they shouldn't, firmly say the cat's name and "NO". A > lot of people have success using a spray bottle or water > pistol, depends on the cat. Take them to the scratching pole, > pet them, say "good kitty" and move their paws on the pole in > a scratching motion, you might even try to push their claws > out while you do this, so they get a better idea of what you > want. > > > > > 4) The house won't solve this one, but my job requires me to go the New Jersey > > had any experience with automatic feeders/waterers so I don't have to leave > > tons of food and water out? The male is in fantastic shape, but the female > > is a butterball -- a real tubbo. I have the feeling that if there isn't a huge > > P.S.: Thanks in advance from Sam and Kodi, too! > > -- > > > > The MAD Programmer -- 919-228-3313 (Cornet 291) > > alias: Curtis Jackson ...![ ihnp4 ulysses cbosgd mgnetp ]!burl!rcj > > ...![ ihnp4 cbosgd akgua masscomp ]!clyde!rcj > > I'd leave out as much water as possible. On food, leave out > only the amount they'll need for those 3 or 4 days. For a > longer time than that I'd either get someone to come in and > feed them (neighbor kids are great for this) or put them in a > kennel. I don't have any experience with an auto feeder, so I > can't comment on other that it seems a good idea, but, once > they learn the hang of it, I don't think it would make any > difference over leaving the food out, except that it won't get > stale as quickly. > -- > Suzanne Barnett-Scott > uucp: ...{decvax,ihnp4,noao,savax,seismo}!terak!suze > CalComp/Sanders Display Products Division > 14151 N 76th Street, Scottsdale, AZ 85260 > (602) 998-4800 By changing your cat food from whatever you are using to Iams or Science Diet you will probably notice a great deal of difference in the amount of odor from the litter box. I won't go into details of why these brands work - but you should ask your vet or pet store about them. My cats love the taste of Iams, even though they were hesitant at first. Believe me, the difference in odor is tremendous and definitely worth paying for the more expensive food. Good luck!