Thundershirts for our Three?

krystal55

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I found the Jackson Galaxy site yesterday and their Bully Remedy and Scaredy Cat essences really sound like they might help us with our prob of new dominant cat and 2 older terrorized cats.

I also fully intend to try the experiments suggested here, about feeding on opposite sides of a screen (board or towel), then placing the older cats very briefly inside the new cat's large cage.

Things could get ugly when I do that, but I shall wear a heavy coat and thick gloves! A hockey mask might also be a wise idea...

However I think using essences or something to calm down all 3 kits might be the first move before trying anything more adventurous.

What about Thundershirts, do they work on bullying domineering animals? I do feel they would be good for the 2 older cats, since the oldest, Missy, is really scared of T-storms anyway.

And Callie, the middle cat, is timid about anyone visiting the house, even family members. They have never really gotten a good look at her!

My only prob with the Spirit Essences is that they are expensive and I have only a minimum wage job.

Thundershirts would be a one-time investment and a godsend, if they would help all three of our cats!
 

ritz

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As I understand it, the principle behind thundershirts is that they fit tightly around the torso.
My cat mentor (who is really a dog person but rescued Ritz and the rest is history....) had a dog who was terrified of thunderstorms. I mentioned to her about thundershirts and she said she used a tight fitting t-shirt (presumably with her scent on it). You might try one of your t-shirts (dirty, smelly) and see if that works. Probably have to cut off sleeves. PS get a t-shirt for a human about the same weight/configuration as your cat. Take it to bed with you to imprint your scent on it. Wrangle it onto your cat. And, good luck!
Personally, I would have an issue with being able to put it on Ritz; she'd fight me tooth and claw.
Finally, FWIW (and, maybe nothing), Feliway has come out with a mulit-cat product. Available I know from vets; my holistic vet said it was not a marketing ploy, another way to get our money. I am trying it; for the first time I am fostering (adopting) a cat. Ritz has always been an only child. Bach's Rescue Remedy and Jackson's Spirit Essences did not work with Ritz.
 

shadowsrescue

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I use a thundershirt for our dog and it does work well.  Yet, I cannot see using one on my cats.  I think the t shirt idea is much better. 

The Spirit Essences come in really large bottles.  You only need a few drops per cat each day. 

Look into the Composure liquid Max.  For calming it worked the best on my two cats.  The flower essences take time to work.  They can start to work in a few days, but may take up to 6 weeks for full effect.  The composure begins to work immediately.  You can start with a double or even triple dose.  I used to give 1/2 t. mixed into morning wet food and then 1/4 t. with evening meal.  I noticed a difference in about 5-7 days.  It really took the edge off the more aggressive cat and also helped to calm my resident cat who was so frightened. 

I did use Flower essences too and I do believe they helped, it just took a lot longer to see results.

Of course the remedies are only supplemental to putting in the work needed to help the cats get along.  I used a cheap wooden screen door that I set against the door frame and attached with tension rods.  I placed a baby gate in the door way for extra protection.  This allowed the cats to sniff and see/hear each other.  I only did this when I was home incase they got through the screen or pushed it too hard. 
 
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krystal55

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I use a thundershirt for our dog and it does work well.  Yet, I cannot see using one on my cats.  I think the t shirt idea is much better. 

The Spirit Essences come in really large bottles.  You only need a few drops per cat each day. 

Look into the Composure liquid Max.  For calming it worked the best on my two cats.  The flower essences take time to work.  They can start to work in a few days, but may take up to 6 weeks for full effect.  The composure begins to work immediately.  You can start with a double or even triple dose.  I used to give 1/2 t. mixed into morning wet food and then 1/4 t. with evening meal.  I noticed a difference in about 5-7 days.  It really took the edge off the more aggressive cat and also helped to calm my resident cat who was so frightened. 

I did use Flower essences too and I do believe they helped, it just took a lot longer to see results.

Of course the remedies are only supplemental to putting in the work needed to help the cats get along.  I used a cheap wooden screen door that I set against the door frame and attached with tension rods.  I placed a baby gate in the door way for extra protection.  This allowed the cats to sniff and see/hear each other.  I only did this when I was home incase they got through the screen or pushed it too hard. 
Are there small T shirts for cats? I have heard from our vet that they do make cat-sized thundershirts. I would think the regular thundershirt might be a tad bulky for such a small animal though.

Great to know that the Spirit Essences come in large bottles! I could not tell even when mousing over the image whether the container was large or teensy. Should last a good long while since as it advises, use a few drops several times a day. The FAQ says the drops can be put on your hands and rubbed over the cat's fur. Fluffy is very nice about letting me stroke her head and about 1/2 way down her back. Doesn't seem to like that very handsome tail of hers to be touched. But she bit at me this morn when she'd "had enough" petting. A common prob for cat owners but I don't want this kind of behavior getting worse. Her main trouble though is anger and violent tendencies toward the other 2 older house cats. Really makes me wonder what kind of rough-and-tumble existence she had before "choosing" me as her savior.

From the get-go, I thought housing Fluffy in a large dog cage (and the one I bought for her is really large! a luxury model!) would be fine to get the 3 cats accustomed to being in the same room with each other. Fluffy is "on display" all the time whenever she's being contained in there. And if the older cats were brave enough they could walk up and sniff noses. But they are terrified of Fluffy even when she's closed into her cage.
 

betsygee

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I used a thundershirt on a cat I was trying to integrate with our resident cats. Jake had started a terrible fight with both of our other resident males so I thought I'd try a thundershirt on him.  I put it on him and he walked very calmly into the living room, and just laid down within about 10 feet of Rico, the cat he'd fought before.  He just laid there for several minutes and I thought the shirt was working great.

Then he got up, calmly walked toward Rico--and went after him!  Yikes.  They still fought but it wasn't with near the intensity of the first fight and he backed off fairly quickly.  Jake even let me pick him up and get him into a carrier.  No way could I have done that after the first fight.  

We didn't continue to try it--Rico had an injury he was recovering from (unrelated to fighting with Jake) and Jake had medical issues of his own, so we didn't want to risk any more injuries/trauma to either of them.  

Since we only tried it that once, I can't say for sure, but I think it would have helped the integration had we been able to keep working on it. I was amazed at the difference between Jake and Rico's first interaction, where Jake just lunged at Rico and beat the stuffings out of him, and the second time, when Jake just lay there calmly in his thundershirt for a good 10 minutes or so.  I should have picked him up then and taken him back to his safe room and just tried to lengthen the 'together' time slowly each day.
 

ritz

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I wonder if baby/toddler t-shirt would fit (never having children or done much babysitting, I haven't a clue!)
 
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