Very green to cats

kittydad

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Hello all

I am Rob and I have adopted a cat from someone in the building that asked me to look for a new home due to upcoming concerns the person had. I ended up keeping suzie, and had gone through a number of things with her already.

Suzie is a tiger striped black and brown med(??) length tabby, and when I got her was not in the best of health. Since June when I got her, she has adapted to my apartment, and I will not part from her very easily. I am learning about her, trying to figure out her behaviour traits, which she likes to change constantly, lol.

I am hoping the site is able to help me learn more about cats, seeing as I am a dog person, and look after a dog during the day and on special occassions. Suzie has become acquaintances with the dog, and does not try any funny business with the dog now, thankfully.

Anyway, enough for now about me, just wanted to introduce myself and say hi.
 

miss mew

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Welcome to TCS Rob & Suzie!
I'm sure you'll find lots of helpful information on this site
 

huggles

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Welcome to TCS Rob & Suzie


How wonderful of you to adopt Suzie and bring her back to health. I can only imagine how she has now wormed her way into your heart as they have a way of doing that!

There is a wealth of knowledge and knowledgable members on this site so no doubt we will be able to help you in any way possible. And if you cant find an answer, post away and we will see what we can do to advise you. We really are like one big international family here so I hope too get to know you & Suzie over time (oh and photos are good! we love kitty photos!
)

Welcome again from me & my boys
 

pami

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Welcome Rob and Suzie! Look forward to seeing pics of your girl!
 
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kittydad

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thanks all from suzie and I. she is sitting here on my lap watching me post here. Will have to look to find out about posting a pic of my darling 4 legged friend.
 

tarasgirl06

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Dear Suzie and Rob:

Welcome to TheCatSite and THANK YOU SO MUCH for adopting and caring for Suzie -- you're gonna be so glad you did! and I am sure you already are.
This is a great site for new cat lovers, and you're sure to find all the information you need on the forums. I guess the first thing anyone needs to do when they have a new cat is to make an appt. for a checkup, basic innoculations, and spay/neuter. Your vet probably has a "package" of innoculations for one lowered price; and a lot of vets/clinics have good incentives for spay surgery. They generally also have lots of good information via flyers and information sheets at the clinic. Good premium cat foods are really helpful, too, as they keep cats healthier than "bargain" or supermarket cat foods, resulting in lower vet bills; and these foods don't contain fillers or byproducts, so you actually feed less in volume and know your cat is enjoying the best food and utilizing all of the nutrients. A good litterbox and scoopable litter are the best, too -- cats are much safer being indoors only, and adapt really well to living inside. Some good scratching posts and pads, safe, sturdy toys, and a nice, warm, soft cat bed if she doesn't sleep with you (good ones are obtainable for $10 at Petco and PetsMart...) are other "basics"; and I prefer stainless steel wet and dry food and water bowls, because they're so easy to care for and best for cats.


Hope this helps! Best to you both and so glad you're here!
 
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kittydad

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Well, I have already invested in 7 stainless steel bowls, mainly to change t hem and have fresh ones ready till the other ones get cleaned, nad they get changed up every few days. about 6 weeks after I took over suzie's care, I got her to a vet, and found out that she was dehydrated, which was the easiest problem to correct, just put out a couple of extra bowls of water for her in her favourite places, to encourage her to drink more fluids. She is a very lean cat for her age, ( i was told 4yrs old), weighing in a 6lbs at the vet. I also discussed stool issues, and at the time she was on a soft food, but I wanted to get her onto a hard food, which I am having issues in getting her to eat regularily. As for spaying, I inquired about that, but the vet was not able to tell me if she had, no scars are present. She had her vaccinations on this visit as well, so she is in the best health I can get her into except for being thin. I am beginning to think about getting bloodwork done to rule out feline illnesses that would prevent weight gain. Suzie has been declawed on the front paws only, so I do not have to worry about her scratching furniture. Just wish I could get suzie to eat the hard food more, and more regularily, it appears that she does not eat for a couple of days then will eat a bit, then repeat, and that is my biggest issue I face right now.
 

pami

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Originally Posted by kittydad

Well, I have already invested in 7 stainless steel bowls, mainly to change t hem and have fresh ones ready till the other ones get cleaned, nad they get changed up every few days. about 6 weeks after I took over suzie's care, I got her to a vet, and found out that she was dehydrated, which was the easiest problem to correct, just put out a couple of extra bowls of water for her in her favourite places, to encourage her to drink more fluids. She is a very lean cat for her age, ( i was told 4yrs old), weighing in a 6lbs at the vet. I also discussed stool issues, and at the time she was on a soft food, but I wanted to get her onto a hard food, which I am having issues in getting her to eat regularily. As for spaying, I inquired about that, but the vet was not able to tell me if she had, no scars are present. She had her vaccinations on this visit as well, so she is in the best health I can get her into except for being thin. I am beginning to think about getting bloodwork done to rule out feline illnesses that would prevent weight gain. Suzie has been declawed on the front paws only, so I do not have to worry about her scratching furniture. Just wish I could get suzie to eat the hard food more, and more regularily, it appears that she does not eat for a couple of days then will eat a bit, then repeat, and that is my biggest issue I face right now.
What is your reason behind getting her on hard food? Wet food would be better for her in that she is getting higher amount of protein. You can do a search on these boards on food and read about how wet is better for her.
 
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kittydad

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My rationale for getting her on hard food is too help form her stools. Her stools have gone from soft to almost runny, and i am hoping that the hard food would help to form the stools. Meds I tried after the first vet visit did not work, so this is the next thing I can think of to try. But hse was eating hard food for 2 weeks, then stopped. Thankfully I had a bit of food on hand that was wet to use as a treat. I might abandon the idea of getting her on hard food for a while, and stay with the fancy feast. Will have to look for the non-gravy dinners.
 
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kittydad

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Unfortunately, I have to announce to everyone that suzie passed away this morning in her little bed I made for her. My best attempts i guess where not enough and may have prolonged her passing by a bit by showing her the love and caring she deserved, and doing what i could to help promote a healthy lifestyle for her.
 

gemlady

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Originally Posted by kittydad

Unfortunately, I have to announce to everyone that suzie passed away this morning in her little bed I made for her. My best attempts i guess where not enough and may have prolonged her passing by a bit by showing her the love and caring she deserved, and doing what i could to help promote a healthy lifestyle for her.
Sorry to hear this, but take comfort in knowing Suzie had a wonderful caring purrpaw.

Hope you will stick around some more and maybe consider adopting another feline.
 
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kittydad

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i will stick around, and hopefully will get another friendly feline in the future, and maybe this time I can get a kitten. But we will see how things go.
 

huggles

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I am so very sorry to hear off the passing of Suzie. How completely devestating this must be for you - you did your best and showed Suzie so much love in the time she was with you


out of deepest respect for you & Suzie I will close this thread. Here is the link to Suzies tribute.
 

lovinmom828

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Hello and welcome to TCS
This site is great and all the people here are so nice too.,
 
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