How do I stop them fighting?

Developments:

1) rather out of the blue, someone is very interested in taking Paddy. They are about 100 miles North of here (so not very far) and run a stables on 60+ acres. At the moment it sounds as if they are beset by mice problems. I'm doing a home check next week and, if it looks right (and it sounds great), then it's all systems go. I'm sure Paddy has no interest in this but it's only a few miles from Nottingham which, in my humble opinion, is England's nicest city ;-)

2) this means that the catching of LC becomes more urgent - I don't want to adopt out Paddy only to find that LC is very poorly (and I think she's ok, but better to be safe than sorry). The trap arrived this morning. I've had to put the slowly slowly catchee monkey approach on hold and so it's set up with tasty roast chicken and triggered to go in LC's barn. Free-feeding is now on hold all over the farm! I don't think it'll happen today: LC had already had her food before the trap arrived.

Fortunately the vet practice is open all weekend. Not sure that the vets who deal with ferals will be in, but let's hope so.

More soon.....

well would you believe it....less than 3 hours after trap set, she's in there.

As I approached the barn to check on her, I could hear her running around in the cage. She's terrified; no meows like Rudi, just frantic scrabbling.

Fortunately the barn is nice and dark (and safe, the others can't get in) and she's only got an hour to wait until the vet appointment.

More later

dunnyboy69 said:

Developments:

1) rather out of the blue, someone is very interested in taking Paddy. They are about 100 miles North of here (so not very far) and run a stables on 60+ acres. At the moment it sounds as if they are beset by mice problems. I'm doing a home check next week and, if it looks right (and it sounds great), then it's all systems go. I'm sure Paddy has no interest in this but it's only a few miles from Nottingham which, in my humble opinion, is England's nicest city ;-)


More soon.....

Click to expand...

AMAZING NEWS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You have to be on cloud nine :9..... How in the world did this work out for you so quickly????!!!! HMMMM Nottingham - sounds just perfect for Paddy..... :rub: :heart3: NOW we just have to hope that LC is a very healthy girl and you do need to get her to the vet for that check-up :cross:

dunnyboy69 said:

well would you believe it....less than 3 hours after trap set, she's in there.
As I approached the barn to check on her, I could hear her running around in the cage. She's terrified; no meows like Rudi, just frantic scrabbling.
Fortunately the barn is nice and dark (and safe, the others can't get in) and she's only got an hour to wait until the vet appointment.
More later

Click to expand...

OH THE GOOD NEWS!!!!!!!!!!! It just keeps coming this morning !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OH poor baby - she must be so scared BUT this must be done to make sure she is well and healthy. Please come and post here when LC is back from the vet. Good luck :cross:

Thanks for the note.

For such an itty-bitty-kitty, Little Cow has a growl like Barry White. As I picked the cage up from the barn I heard a guttaral rumbling like the Walrus of Love had decided to drop in on a little farm in rural England....

Anyway, I'm back from the vet temporarily. Cow is still there.

What a bizarre conversation I had with the vet - not one I've seen before. I explained the situation to them in full: her pariah cat status, her virtual emprisonment in the back barn, the fighting, the potential rehoming of her bullying 'sister' and the general concerns about LC's well-being over the last few months. The vet basically tried to argue me out of doing anything - essentially did a 'cats will be cats' line on me and said that she looked fine and it might be better to come back once Paddy's re-homed! The vet's one sensible line was that, with LC needing to be sedated, a full health check isn't possible as certain things can only be done when the cat is alert. I said I understood that and, at worst, I would be happy if they sorted her for fleas, worms and the like. But the majority of the rest of her conversation was, frankly, disgraceful. Her best line was 'you say she isn't catching mice any more ... if you feed her, she shouldn't need to catch mice should she?' On the verge of snapping and saying 'well I'm so sorry for caring about my cat', I told her that she's been fed fabulously for 18 months and that I couldn't really care less about the mouseing: I simply want my little feral girl to have the run of the farm again and for me to know she's in good health. The rodents are a by-product of her happiness,

In a nutshell, what she was trying to say really was she didn't fancy doing it. Whilst Cow seemed quite calm in her cage, I think that dealing with a feral cat was the last thing she/ the vet needed on a Friday afternoon. And I empathise with that. But it's her job and, moreover,  Cow deserves to be looked after just as much as any other pet. To some extent I feel like I've neglected her by not only introducing Paddy to the farm, but also never taking her to the vet before in the c. 18 months I've had her.

Her final tactic of trying to put me off by telling me how much it was going to cost didn't work either. Peace of mind has no price.

So, as I left they told me they were going to sedate Cow and I'll get a call in a bit. I wouldn't be in the least bit surprised if - and this is the cynical Englishman in me - they leave her in her cage for 4 hours and then call me to pick her up with an 'it's all clear' message. But fingers crossed they will do their job properly and I'll get her back later on in tip-top condition. I suspect she'll be very happy to be back at her barn.

p.s. she has the most beautiful, delicate little whiskers. And I mean LC, not the vet...

She's back and it's all good news.1) health-wise, they reckon she's in good nick. Nothing alarming whatsoever from what they can see. She's had a dose of antibiotics, a spot-on wormer/ defleaer and a teeth check. They called her about as outwardly healthy as an outdoor cat can be. Interestingly, they only found one little nick behind her ear so she's clearly not losing the fights. She's also a bit bigger than I'd thought - just over 8lbs. Indeed they told me that I should feed her a bit less if I want her to catch mice....they don't get it, do they?! ;-)2) That said, I was maybe unfair on the vet earlier. I think it was a Friday afternoon thing for her (and for me)...she actually phoned me twice during the 3 hours to say what she was doing and check I was ok with it.3) when I went to pick LC up, I walked in the room and said hi to the vet, who was looking LC at the time. Apparently on hearing my voice LCs ears pricked up - 'she recognises you', the vet said. 'I should bloody well hope so', was my response, 'I've been pampering her for the last 18 months!' ;-) 4) brought her back here and released her back into her barn....basically put the perspex door of the trap up against her bolthole, lifted it and she wriggled back into her safe place. Interestingly, Rudi was only a few feet away when this happened and he seemed completely fine about it all - LC certainly didn't like his presence. As much as she's a pariah, I kinda get the feeling she likes it like that.So all's well. Off to see Paddy's potential new home next week - fingers crossed.

Well, I missed all the excitement, but LOVE LOVE LOVE the great news on ALL fronts!

Now :cross: that you like this potential home for Padders. As much as we hate it, social cats are traitors, and if it's a nice place where she'll be probably cared for and get her dose of loving, she'll be quite happy. :lol3:

I am SO happy to read about LC's great results and great reports. ARGH - those vet's can be a real PIA sometimes... sorry about that. BUT I am glad they checked her out and I am glad that you persisted - must be the englishman in you :lol3: It paid off..... LC is as healthy as can be. I do think you are right - she just LOVES her life just the way it is. Would be a darn shame IF you had to rehome her - don't think she would take kindly to that. She is after all, very attached to you..... her ears perked up when she heard your voice :rub: :heart3:

:cross: For Paddy's new home check :cross: I REALLY do hope that you approve :nod:

thanks for the kind words.

Well, after Friday's shenanigans, we're back to normality. Haven't actually seen LC since we dropped her off back at her barn, but as the food is disappearing she clearly hasn't lost her appetite.

I suspect she's sitting in there, part cursing me for putting her through the trauma and part liking me for bringing her back!

I do sometimes wonder with Rudi whether he is trying to be friends with her or is trying to antagonise her. Twice in the last couple of days he's sat in the lean-to for a good 30-40 minutes watching the front entrance to her barn (the entrance that only she can squeeze through) from about 12-15 feet away. I'd like to think he's just being inquisitive since she's been back from the vets.

Anyway, I'm viewing Paddy's potential new home on Weds pm, will post more thereafter.

Actually, :lol3: I think you are LC's new best friend after that whole ordeal last Friday . Certainly a trust has been solidified after that :nod: you bringing her back home . Let's just hope that Rudi IS just curious about LC and give him the benefit of the doubt in that he wants to make nice with her :cross: :lol3: Miracles DO happen :winkblue: Good luck on Wednesday. Can't wait to hear GOOD NEWs :bigthumb:

for tomorrow! :cross:

Waiting... for the news on your adventure yesterday!!!! :lol3: :wait:

Oh Lauren!

Hi All, apologies to keep you in suspense, The web site normally updates me when posts turn up but didn't this time.

Anyway, it's all good. Have been to see Paddy's new home and it's lovely. A busy, working stables (50+ horses), 67 acres to run around in, no busy roads nearby (and there is one at the front of my property), loads of people to make a fuss over her and a mouse problem to get under control! For the first week or so, until she's acclimatised, she'll live in the outside office there which I think she'll love as there will be lots of comings and goings.

She's also going to get some playmates: at the same time as I got in touch with Carrie at the stables, their local vet told them someone had dumped 3 tom kittens of about 6-7 months at the clinic. Bizarrely, the toms had been snipped....the 'dumper' had left a note of the 'I can't cope' variety. Knowing how Paddy is with Rudi, I think she'll be fine. Indeed, let's hope she forms a real bond with these boys. Rudi is fine with her, but not as friendly as she is to him (he basically sees her as a dining companion and then goes off and does his own thing - namely, sleeping).

So, I'm taking her up Sunday. Once she's settled in, I think she'll be in heaven. My concern is over the first week or so: she's not a big fan of being cooped up and so I've warned Carrie that Paddy will probably not stay where she's meant to (in the office) but, as long as you give her love and affection, she'll quickly know where home is. Worst happens, they do have a big dog cage she can go in for 2-3 days at the start although I suspect this will make her unhappy. I'm providing some of her favourite dry food, her favourite scratching post, a bed and, most Paddy-esque of all, a bag of treats! Before too long, once all 4 kitties are settled, the plan is to put a catflap in this outside office door and let her come and go as she pleases.

I'm doing it with a heavy heart, but I know it's for the best on so many fronts. With the onset of the milder weather, another Paddy 'drawback' has become apparent: we - or even our neighbours! - can't have ground floor windows open as she's started climbing in. Sweet little thing, she knows no better and she just wants to be with humans, but given him little problem we really can't allow this. At the stables, the nearest properties are a good distance away so I can't ever see this happening, particularly once her catflap is in situ. I'm 80% confident she'll love it and, if she doesn't, she can come back to us.

More from me next week, best to all

THANK GOODNESS This IS wonderful news then. You must be so very happy. I think Carrie sounds just lovely and very kind. I think Paddy will enjoy her new friends, humans and cat's alike :rub: Yep, just make sure that they do confine Paddy for at the very least a week :cross: In that time - she will be doted on and cared for by her new humans and she should be very happy. Of course, the first day will be stressful for her - but I have a feeling Paddy just goes with the flow of these situations in her life lately. She seems to know the drill - sadly.. but there was no other choice - so don't fret over it LC will be a much happier little lady once Paddy is gone. IF they have the crate - it is better to use the crate rather than just letting her out of the office TOO soon. We don't want Paddy running off and getting lost. Better to keep her confined, somehow, one way or another until she is completely comfortable and realizes that this is where she needs to stay put :nod:

Such luck that you found Carrie. The horse farm sounds very beautiful!!! HORSE LOVER HERE :lol3: :heart3: I will keep my finger's crossed for you and for Paddy that this will work out. I am SO sure this WILL work out :bigthumb: Paddy seems very resilient and very easy-going. :rub: :heart3:

For Sunday -

For YOU for all you do for the kitties in your care

thanks for the kind wishes.

I think the crate will be the way to go for a few days, even if it means Paddy appears unhappy at the stables. Might need a little tough love for a few days: I've briefed Carrie in to Paddy's ways! Come April, I suspect we will just be a distant memory to little Paddy - although I have an open invite to pop in whenever to say hello and intend to drop by at least 2-3 times a year, as I have to go that way on business fairly frequently. I'll admit to starting to feel more than a little sad - Paddy was rolling around at my feet this lunchtime and is such a happy little girl. I shall miss her ridiculous squeaks, her mad dashes into the utility room to get to her scratching pole and, most of all, I'll miss her silly little bow-legged run alongside me when I potter around the farm. But it's the right decision for the farm: not just LC, all of us on the farm.

BTW, not seen LC all week. But she's clearly eating well. Sadly, I think she's reached the stage where, cowed by Paddy, she's decided to stay put in her little barn. And, of course, given that I put all her food in there to avoid fighting, I've just been allowing her to be even more of a hermit. But that stops on Monday: then the dry food goes back into the lean-to, although I'll continue to put her wet food in her barn. Rudi's not much of a dry food fan anyway; I'll keep some up near the house for him just in case but even if he does decide to feast on LC's, I don't see it causing too much of an issue. They lived side-by-side for 8-9 months with far less friction (although I won't kid myself there wasn't any) and I suspect they'll come to an agreement that suits everyone. I can't wait to see LC bathing in the sun again, chasing around after the toys I leave for her in the lean-to or stealing into the courtyard for a sneaky look at what the giants are doing .....

Oh it's just heart breaking when you have to say good bye, it really is. Especially when they're such loves. :heart3: OF COURSE you feel sad! You just have to do your best to focus on the fact that she WILL be happy. Because of all the attention she'll get, she'll probably be happier in the long run. :heart3: In the end, it's what's best for her, and as you say, for all of you at the farm. :rub:

But that it's the right thing, and that she'll have a wonderful life makes it no less difficult.

And she will be stressed and unhappy at first. But I don think they'll need to use the crate. I have to agree with Lauren - the rule of thumb is actually a few weeks. I'd make it a week at a minimum (at least when unsupervised). Once she gets her food regularly, and her love, she'll understand she's "home." But you don't want her scared and leaving, trying to find her way home.

Vibes that you'll be OK through this.... and that Padders will settle right in. :rub: :rub: :rub:

Thinking of you and Paddy today :rub: Don't worry....... Paddy WILL be fine. AND NOW - LC will figure out in the next few days that Paddy is gone and I am hoping you will see her bathing in the sun, playing with toys and venturing out into the courtyard :cross: It might take her a few days to realize it is safe again :lol3: Good luck today - will wait for your update :happy3:

thanks as ever for all the kind words and support.

We're back to being a two-cat farm and it's been a very bittersweet day. I had a little cry in the car on the way back....(not very English stiff-upper-lip of me, I know ...;-))

Drove up with Paddy this morning and, poor thing, she cried most of the way (so my tears were simply to complete the circle!). But it's going to be wonderful for her on all fronts. The humans are friendly, kind and caring. Not just Carrie and Neil, her hubby, but everyone else at the stables. They've also got a big, friendly dog called Trinny (female) who is very cat-friendly and seemed very inquisitive! And, best of all, the 3 8 month-old male kittens turned up yesterday.

Neil and Carrie have set up three huge crates in the stables office. In the right-hand crate are Alfie (b/w) and Wobert, who's going to be a really big tabby boy. These two seem really bonded. In the middle crate/ cage is 'Dangerous Dave', another b/w tuxedo who got his name because he's got a bit more of an attitude than the others. And Paddy is in the left-hand crate. Before we put her in there she had a good sniff around the office, tail in the air like a good little girl! When I put her in the crate she had a little hiss at DD, but nothing untoward.

It sounds like the plan is to keep them in the crates for between 1-2 weeks and allow each crate a little office time separately during this period. Then the cat flap will go in. I suspect Paddy won't enjoy her confinement but it's for the best and only short-term. They seem to be a bit unsure of whether the bonded boys will make for good farm cats (although DD is showing encouraging signs) and the hope is that Paddy will take them under her wing. I certainly know she'll help solve their mouse problem and I'm pretty confident that she'll enjoy having playmates.

Today was a glorious sunny day and everyone who was at the stables was coming in to cluck over the new arrivals! She's going to get so much fussing!

Rudi seems to realise already that her dining friend is gone: I fed him about an hour back and he seemed a bit quiet, but then - as I was able to open the utility room door - he pottered in to the hall and had a belly rub. It was a ritual we'd started last summer and I hope we can pick up again. He was quite fond of Paddy - they occasionally groomed one another at mealtimes a little, but never hung out otherwise. Like me, he'll miss her, but he'll realise soon enough that it'll have benefits for him. He's not a playful cat and I think he found her a bit draining! This is why these younger males might be ideal, I hope.

Best of all, I put the dry food bowl back in its communal position this pm and LC crept out about half an hour later for a quick chow down. It'll be slow and steady with her but fingers crossed...

I was thinking of you and Padders late last night when I should have been asleep, wondering if you were on your way.....

Aw, forget the stiff-upper-lip. That works for bad news, human tragedy and war and stuff. Not our beloved kitties. (I'm reading James Herriot's Cat Stories right now, in fact. I didn't know he'd written more books apart from the 4 in the All Creatures Great and Small series until someone sent this to me a few weeks ago!)

Yes, bittersweet. The GREAT news is that you will have no regrets. It sounds like the PERFECT home for her! She obviously wasn't scared in the new space being tail-up and all. And it sounds like she is going to get PLENTY of fussing and loving! And being the only girl, she's got lots of playful "boyfriends" to keep her company on her adventures. The BEST part, of course, is that you'll be able to visit her! So really, there is just no downside to this at all. None. :rub:

LC obviously already knows - and was out to enjoy her meal! The more you see of her, the more comfortable you'll feel with the decision. And as soon as you see Paddy "owning" her new home, your heart will sing with joy for her.

:heart2: