I joined this forum because I am really worried about my cat.
We have every kind of animal imaginable here.. dogs, bears, snakes, other cats, etc. We have just started getting coyotes.. really close to the house. We can hear them howl in the mornings. My cat is an outside cat, and since we have spotted and heard the coyotes, we have been trying to let him inside at night.
Okay well.. yesterday it was raining all day, so he had to stay in. He was dying to go back out that night, so my brother figured he would be alright. My mom went to let him in the morning, she called and called for him. (Usually he will come running to the door as fast as he can, and come inside) But today it took him awhile to get to the door and he was just acting really strange. Instead of running in as usual, he stood at the doorway really freaked out. My mom went to pick him up, and noticed his pupils were really dialated. So she let him in the basement, and when I saw him I immediately knew something was up. Usually when I come down, he is all over me. He is a very friendly cat.. almost to the point of annoying because he always wants to lay on you. Today he sat in his chair and stared into space.. it was like he didn't even notice I was there. I let him be for a couple hours.. he still didn't move an inch. My little brother went to pick him up and he let out a nasty meow, and started hissing. So we let him be again for awhile, then went to check on him and he was gone. It took us awhile to find him.. he had crawled up into the closet and was laying on top of a cardboard box.. just staring at the wall. We called him a couple times, and usually he is very alert.. but it was like he didn't hear us. He wanted nothing to do with us. I tried to see if he was hungry.. I laid out some dry food on the box he was laying on.. then some turkey breast but he just stiffed it and looked away. He will let us pet him, just not pick him up, and I did manage to get a little purr out of him. It's like he is in some sort of shock or something..
I am just so worried about him. This has happened before after cat fights, but never this bad. So here are my questions.. sorry if some of them are dumb, I don't know much about cats.. I am a horse person
Any ideas what could have happened?
What can I do to help him?
Should I just leave him alone, or stay with him and make him more comfortable?
Do I take him to the vet? (my parents keep insisting that he doesn't need to go, but I think he does)
We are going on vacation tomorrow, only for the weekend. Do you think he will be okay? He is used to staying in the basement when we go on vacation.. he will have planty of access to food and water. (I am thinking about asking my parents to let him stay at the vet for the weekend just so they can keep an eye on him.. but I am worried that this will make him more stressed out, because he hates car rides, and he hates going to the vet.. it really worries him)
I just don't know what to do. He really is the best cat.. I am just afraid to loose him.
If you can answer any of my questions that is great, but if nothing else, could you please just keep him in your thoughts for me.
We have every kind of animal imaginable here.. dogs, bears, snakes, other cats, etc. We have just started getting coyotes.. really close to the house. We can hear them howl in the mornings. My cat is an outside cat, and since we have spotted and heard the coyotes, we have been trying to let him inside at night.
Okay well.. yesterday it was raining all day, so he had to stay in. He was dying to go back out that night, so my brother figured he would be alright. My mom went to let him in the morning, she called and called for him. (Usually he will come running to the door as fast as he can, and come inside) But today it took him awhile to get to the door and he was just acting really strange. Instead of running in as usual, he stood at the doorway really freaked out. My mom went to pick him up, and noticed his pupils were really dialated. So she let him in the basement, and when I saw him I immediately knew something was up. Usually when I come down, he is all over me. He is a very friendly cat.. almost to the point of annoying because he always wants to lay on you. Today he sat in his chair and stared into space.. it was like he didn't even notice I was there. I let him be for a couple hours.. he still didn't move an inch. My little brother went to pick him up and he let out a nasty meow, and started hissing. So we let him be again for awhile, then went to check on him and he was gone. It took us awhile to find him.. he had crawled up into the closet and was laying on top of a cardboard box.. just staring at the wall. We called him a couple times, and usually he is very alert.. but it was like he didn't hear us. He wanted nothing to do with us. I tried to see if he was hungry.. I laid out some dry food on the box he was laying on.. then some turkey breast but he just stiffed it and looked away. He will let us pet him, just not pick him up, and I did manage to get a little purr out of him. It's like he is in some sort of shock or something..
I am just so worried about him. This has happened before after cat fights, but never this bad. So here are my questions.. sorry if some of them are dumb, I don't know much about cats.. I am a horse person
Any ideas what could have happened?
What can I do to help him?
Should I just leave him alone, or stay with him and make him more comfortable?
Do I take him to the vet? (my parents keep insisting that he doesn't need to go, but I think he does)
We are going on vacation tomorrow, only for the weekend. Do you think he will be okay? He is used to staying in the basement when we go on vacation.. he will have planty of access to food and water. (I am thinking about asking my parents to let him stay at the vet for the weekend just so they can keep an eye on him.. but I am worried that this will make him more stressed out, because he hates car rides, and he hates going to the vet.. it really worries him)
I just don't know what to do. He really is the best cat.. I am just afraid to loose him.