Meow Monster

I assume he is neutered. If not, that is probably the cause. Barring any medical probs, I think a little friend would keep him company.

He sounds lonesome. But he also sounds like a sweetie!

How long have you had him? Long enough to know he is settled in and not in want of anything?

Some cats are just talkers. It's not a behavior, it's a personality trait. I've known a few like that. I know, as much as you love him, it can drive you crazy.

My suggestions:

Get some feliway plug ins diffusers.

Use Rescue Remedy Daily

Add a cat and hope the company takes some of the pressure of conversation off of you.

Keep us posted!

Try to match a purr-sonality as best as you can in finding a friend for Butters. I would lean you towards a 3 - 5 y/o because they are more mature, yet still young/playful. That said, don't rule out any age, as I have a 9-10 y/o who plays well with 2 younger kitties (my 10 month old & 1 y/o foster).

Some cats, no matter the age, are just couch potatoes & have limited to no desire to hardly ever play. I have one of those cats, she is annoyed silly by all these "young punks" pouncing on her. But I have a goofy 4-6 y/o male who loves everyone & anyone, he teaches foster kittens how to be kitties & adores them - and he's still fairly playful.

The howling you're describing isn't just a cat being 'talky' {I know, I got a talky cat myself!} He's distressed due to loneliness. I strongly recommend you add another cat to the household to keep him company. If it has been 8 months and he still has not adjusted to being an only cat it is unlikely he is going to adjust. Some cats just cannot be only cats. {Others can't tolerate other cats!} He was raised in a multi-cat situation, so this is no surprise.

From what you say he sounds like a very friendly cat.

I am having the same problem with my Chester. As I am typing this he is in the other room meowing like crazy.

He has been with me for five years. He is an only cat. Has never lived with other animals (except for a month at the shelter) and is very timid.

Over the last couple of months he has started this meowing behavior. And quite frankly he is driving me crazy. For no apparent reason he will start yowling from the other side of the apartment.

For example, I go to bed and just as I am about to fall asleep I hear this loud, and I mean loud, meowing from the living room.

My first reaction is to want to leap out of bed to see what is wrong but I ignore him. If I am lucky he will stop and eventually come join me in bed. On a bad night he keeps it up until I can't take it any more and call him to bed.

I've come to the conclusion that if he wants attention it is not from me. Because he does this a lot of times when I am here at the computer and I will call to him. Most of the time he doesn't even come in here he just keeps it up.

It it is really starting to stress me out because I don't know what is wrong and I can't fix it. Sometimes he is so bad I just want to scream at him.

I know screaming is not the answer. Lately I have been thinking that maybe he is hearing other cats in the building? I think the people in the apartment under me might have a cat. Could he be reacting to that?

Would getting him a feline companion be the answer? I really am hesitant about this because he is so afraid of new things and it may make things worse.

Sorry about the hijack....I was coming here to post about this and found this thread.

Of my three kittens, Blasa is quieter, calmer, and just plain lazy. I just checked and she literally is laying on the couch in the living room as I type this up.

I've had Tomas since finding him at ~10 weeks old. He was a very loud needy kitten till around 8 months old. He quieted slightly, but he still meows a lot. With more cats in the house he has other cats to meow at instead of me. He and another one of my kittens, Blaan, have "conversations" - a back and forth of quick meows with some higher, some lower, and some more drawn out mews. They have woken me up from the other side of the house doing this...Blaan is also loud, he likes to yowl at shadows, lights (from cars driving by during the day), meal moths, anything that catches his attention, etc. ( he let me know that I have a couple cobwebs on the ceiling the other night..) His sister Tanna just takes joy in being loud as possible to get attention from anyone - cat or human.

So maybe another cat isn't the answer unless you pick a cat that isn't inclined to join in with your cat in a vocal contest. You could always try a couple other things - leave a radio on low at night or the tv on playing animal/nature programing. You can also buy dvds for cats - usually a lot of birds in them. He may chatter at the tv, but it could entertain him some at night.

To answer the last post about Chester:
If you think you could handle another kitty you could look into it. Since Chester is an older kitty it would probably be best to find one that isn't too rambunctious and will settle down with him for a nice snuggle and grooming.
And he could be hearing things in the building, cats have amazing hearing. For all you know maybe someone is listening to some music he doesn't like. Or maybe you have neighbors with a canned meat addiction and they're frequently opening cans? I swear every cat can hear that from quite a ways away.

Danny is also very vocal and always have been. I am afraid I solve the problem in the worst way. I always give in. He loves to walk outside on his leash and if I have the least time, that is what we do. He has me very well trained. I know this is no help for your problem, but I think Danny wanted to gloat.