After years raising cats, I chose a difficult one

[Longtime_cat_parent]

I’ve never tried the “Eeep!” method, which sounds excellent. I can honestly tell you it took years for our hellion to level out and be a sweetie pie/lap cat, but our method -probably much slower- was just to love him anyway, which worked, in the end. Let him be who he had to be, until he realized he didn’t have to to be that anymore. Do you have some cardboard boxes she could attack and work on? That might help. But to me it sounds as if what you are saying is: “Do I have the energy to deal with this?” And I can’t answer that— only you know, deep down, what that answer is. But I think all of us are here to help you every step of the way if the answer is yes. For me, the other vital question would be: “How would I feel if I returned this kitty? Would it seem as if I’m abandoning her and could I live with that?” Every kitty wants to be loved, it’s just, some of them need to process their new life for awhile….

Thanks. I would not normally ever consider returning an animal to a shelter...my thought was that if she was really uncontrollable, there is information about putting down a Hyperactive, troubled cat...which sounds awful, I know, but she would be out of control with others, besides. I would always wonder what would have happened with her...and hate to think of her being in the wrong hands, and if is truly unmanageable, would have one put down, instead.

She will be in her favorite window, batting at the window, the accordion shades (have a heavier bottom) are banging against the window. I am not sleeping as is in normal situations since she gets in window before dawn, and I may have only slept a bit, due to upstairs disruptive neighbor going to bed very late - another story, contributing to my lack of sleep or having regular hours.

Just earlier, she jumped up to attack my hand and arm as I was walking by.. other times will be my leg, foot. If I hadn't mentioned, she has in the past jumped upon my back when walking by. (I will try making the sound, suggested here). I realize she is likely wanting to play and I am all she has to do so with. She has a couple of items to interact with on her own, otherwise I need to toss, retrieve, swing something around....and cannot be playing every waking moment, looking for some other options. I feel she must have been allowed "hand play" with earlier owner / owners, or no socialization.

As I am writing this, she has gone from doing one thing to another...around and around, so needing to tend to her. (Here's the thing... she never really relaxes, unless asleep...it is constant activity and changeability OR sleep). I have seen something about a food with L-Tryptophan which helps to calm, but as was ordering, I saw it needs a prescription by Vet for. I realized I have been feeding her a dry food also with the ingredient L-Tryptophan, yet has seemingly not helped to calm her.

 

[Margot Lane]

To me that sounds just about right… I’d also guess that some of this behavior comes from the previous owner, and it’s a pity we’re never told much about what happened before. They do this, I’m told, to protect the privacy of the previous owner, but it certainly would help you now, to know what they’ve been through. But you sound very observant, a good detective. Weather the storm and be the calm anchor. I’ll be interested in knowing how the “Eeeping” goes! She does need to know that randomly chomping you isn’t OK.

 

[Alldara]

Magnus is super super active. Lots of boxes and craft paper helps, as well as switching out electronic toys, and varying his enrichment. It took to age 3 to calm down a bit.

We baby proofed essentially. Baby locks on cupboards, tieing back curtains etc.


I think it took about a month of eeping at Coco to stop his suprise attacks on our feet. Magnus never did really, maybe once or twice on accident. Ghost was the same, one attack and the eeping got him to stop and be gentle. He was older though when we got him and I dont think he realized it was feet under the blanket.

 

[Ella Spell]

My darling Ouiji who is now 3.5 years old was just like that for the first year or so of her life. Hester (11 months) is much the same but I'll focus on Ouiji.

Ouiji used to swat at anything on the wall including little fairy lights that were strung up by the ceiling. She would try to climb straight up the walls and sometimes got part-way there even without swinging on my curtains (which she did elsewhere - every set of curtains in my house was destroyed and she even chewed the edges on vinyl roller blinds). Many pictures were knocked down. She managed to get underneath my dresser which only has a 2-3" scallop at the bottom, and then she'd make her way through the backs of the drawers without me knowing she was in there chewing on my delicates, on phone chargers, or getting at sealed containers of prescription meds -- without opening them of course.

She was absolutely bat-shit crazy for food, and would rip anything apart including heads of lettuce, bread bags, butter in foil wrappers, lemons, onions, apples -- anything, including drinks. I get my groceries delivered and by the time I carried all the bags from the door to the kitchen she'd have the bread ripped open and ruined (it would go stale), or she'd puncture the fruit etc. I couldn't eat or drink anything without shutting her in another room or else she'd claw all over me, making me bleed. In fact I had a yearly physical at my doctor and she asked if I was self-harming or involved in domestic violence. Ouiji tried to drink alcohol, apple juice, and coffee. She's been going up on the counter since about 4 months old and sometimes jumped straight onto a hot stove.

In between the shenanigans she loved to watch bird TV (have you tried Paul Dinning? He saved our life ..) and I could tell she loved me. I certainly loved her but I'd never had such a crazy cat. I spoke to my vet several times about putting her on cat Prozac but he said once you start it has to be lifelong, and it's a big undertaking. She was tested for Hyperthyroid because of her ravenous appetite and zoomies, but she was negative. I thought about getting another cat so she'd have a friend but I was worried it would make things worse or I'd have double trouble. (Note: I ended up adopting Willow about a year after Ouiji, with my fingers crossed.)

Ouiji wasn't spayed until she was six months old. I got her when she was eight weeks. The vet said spaying her would help so I was hopeful but the pain of the spay made her go even more crazy, especially when confined to my room with nothing to climb on. I waited and waited and waited for her to calm down after being fixed. I can't remember how it happened but all of a sudden I noticed it had all stopped. She's totally fine, demure, calm, loving, and quiet now. She doesn't go berserk for food or try to eat my limbs anymore. The only change I made was in going grain-free. Maybe that helped reduce the sugar rush. I'd say by about 13 or 14 months she was totally normal. In fact when I look at her today it's hard to believe how much she's changed.

Lots and lots of Feliway plug-ins were used, but I know you aren't interested in them.

Hester who is 11 months is still at the berserk-for-food stage. When she was younger and lighter she jumped on my back from a table clear across the room several times, leaving bloody claw marks down to my legs. I pictured myself like Carrie from the Stephen King movie. Hess used to jump on my face and try to consume my nose. Literally. She claws the floor and the walls and has even snuck inside the fridge for food when the door is shutting and my back is turned. She walks on the hot stove top and burned her whiskers off by trying to stick her face in the toaster. She has a strong right hook and will grab whatever I'm eating off my plate before running away like a scavenger to eat it in some undisclosed den I've yet to locate in the house. I'm afraid of what I'll find someday. Oh, she also steals the dog's food and bullies all the other cats by eating theirs in .00005 seconds, before I can even scoop it out of the tin. She goes headfirst into food bags, shreds the bags open, and runs. Hester is just insatiably starving, always. She's never refused any type of food whether cat, human, or dog.

She and Macbeth (also 11 months) ate bits of the artificial Christmas tree, knocked all the ornaments down, claimed the fireplace mantel as their own, learned to climb up brick, and broke several things around the house. Macbeth runs up the stairs on the wrong side of the hand rail where there's only about 2" for him to stand on. He's also found a way to stand on top of the basement door when it's open, like he's on a trapeze. He goes on top of the fridge and jumps on people's heads when they walk into the kitchen.

Sorry I'm rambling about myself but I want you to know it gets better. I can tell that my 11-month olds are starting to chill out, having been fixed in November.

 

[Ella Spell]

This video saved my life with Ouiji. I used to play it on a loop for hours.




Her ears just perked up hearing me play it.

 

[Longtime_cat_parent]

Thanks so much. Yes, initially, while having been grieving for my last pet (nearly 16 years together), I was considering how I would select a new pet, if and when doing so, and made a list. Then, one day, I spontaneously went to the shelter -- then 2 days later, visited again. I had been depressed and I guess I wanted to get on with things, their having one volunteer to help all potential adopters and some cats were not able to be held...(and hadn't taken my list of considerations). 🫤 When asked if I wanted this one, I said "Yeah.. I think so". (Unlike my decision 16 years before, when I went to a shelter 4 different times prior to selecting and that cat was not pre-owned and adapted pretty easily).

I know there are other ways to find an adoptable pet, Petfinders for instance charges quite a fee, appearing to have background information for, yet likely does not provide everything. My first 2 babies years prior having been from private owners that socialized the litters, became such loving, perfect kitties, so I think that is the way to go. My 3rd (unexpected adoption) had been from a fostered situation, her having had a little bit of trouble, seemingly due to her past, but adapted. The fourth was the one mentioned having for 15 1/2 years who was a sweetheart, now this current one being my 5th, being a different experience.

 

[Ella Spell]

Do you ever watch Jackson Galaxy?

 

[Longtime_cat_parent]

My darling Ouiji who is now 3.5 years old was just like that for the first year or so of her life. Hester (11 months) is much the same but I'll focus on Ouiji.

Ouiji used to swat at anything on the wall including little fairy lights that were strung up by the ceiling. She would try to climb straight up the walls and sometimes got part-way there even without swinging on my curtains (which she did elsewhere - every set of curtains in my house was destroyed and she even chewed the edges on vinyl roller blinds). Many pictures were knocked down. She managed to get underneath my dresser which only has a 2-3" scallop at the bottom, and then she'd make her way through the backs of the drawers without me knowing she was in there chewing on my delicates, on phone chargers, or getting at sealed containers of prescription meds -- without opening them of course.

She was absolutely bat-shit crazy for food, and would rip anything apart including heads of lettuce, bread bags, butter in foil wrappers, lemons, onions, apples -- anything, including drinks. I get my groceries delivered and by the time I carried all the bags from the door to the kitchen she'd have the bread ripped open and ruined (it would go stale), or she'd puncture the fruit etc. I couldn't eat or drink anything without shutting her in another room or else she'd claw all over me, making me bleed. In fact I had a yearly physical at my doctor and she asked if I was self-harming or involved in domestic violence. Ouiji tried to drink alcohol, apple juice, and coffee. She's been going up on the counter since about 4 months old and sometimes jumped straight onto a hot stove.

In between the shenanigans she loved to watch bird TV (have you tried Paul Dinning? He saved our life ..) and I could tell she loved me. I certainly loved her but I'd never had such a crazy cat. I spoke to my vet several times about putting her on cat Prozac but he said once you start it has to be lifelong, and it's a big undertaking. She was tested for Hyperthyroid because of her ravenous appetite and zoomies, but she was negative. I thought about getting another cat so she'd have a friend but I was worried it would make things worse or I'd have double trouble. (Note: I ended up adopting Willow about a year after Ouiji, with my fingers crossed.)

Ouiji wasn't spayed until she was six months old. I got her when she was eight weeks. The vet said spaying her would help so I was hopeful but the pain of the spay made her go even more crazy, especially when confined to my room with nothing to climb on. I waited and waited and waited for her to calm down after being fixed. I can't remember how it happened but all of a sudden I noticed it had all stopped. She's totally fine, demure, calm, loving, and quiet now. She doesn't go berserk for food or try to eat my limbs anymore. The only change I made was in going grain-free. Maybe that helped reduce the sugar rush. I'd say by about 13 or 14 months she was totally normal. In fact when I look at her today it's hard to believe how much she's changed.

Lots and lots of Feliway plug-ins were used, but I know you aren't interested in them.

Hester who is 11 months is still at the berserk-for-food stage. When she was younger and lighter she jumped on my back from a table clear across the room several times, leaving bloody claw marks down to my legs. I pictured myself like Carrie from the Stephen King movie. Hess used to jump on my face and try to consume my nose. Literally. She claws the floor and the walls and has even snuck inside the fridge for food when the door is shutting and my back is turned. She walks on the hot stove top and burned her whiskers off by trying to stick her face in the toaster. She has a strong right hook and will grab whatever I'm eating off my plate before running away like a scavenger to eat it in some undisclosed den I've yet to locate in the house. I'm afraid of what I'll find someday. Oh, she also steals the dog's food and bullies all the other cats by eating theirs in .00005 seconds, before I can even scoop it out of the tin. She goes headfirst into food bags, shreds the bags open, and runs. Hester is just insatiably starving, always. She's never refused any type of food whether cat, human, or dog.

She and Macbeth (also 11 months) ate bits of the artificial Christmas tree, knocked all the ornaments down, claimed the fireplace mantel as their own, learned to climb up brick, and broke several things around the house. Macbeth runs up the stairs on the wrong side of the hand rail where there's only about 2" for him to stand on. He's also found a way to stand on top of the basement door when it's open, like he's on a trapeze. He goes on top of the fridge and jumps on people's heads when they walk into the kitchen.

Sorry I'm rambling about myself but I want you to know it gets better. I can tell that my 11-month olds are starting to chill out, having been fixed in November.

Wow...well, that makes me feel a bit better since not experiencing quite the same level of crazy that you have been able to endure. Still, this has been unusual for me, and she is going on two years, but as some have said, this sort of behavior should / can improve in time. Thanks for that.. and you appear to be pretty tough to have survived it all.

 

[Longtime_cat_parent]

Do you ever watch Jackson Galaxy?

Yes, I have and should watch more of.

 

[VAMama]

Cats in the wild have to use their waking hours to hunt. It's a lot of patrolling, scanning, chasing, fighting, etc. Their body is actually built to do that, not to sit in a window. Years (or generations) of conditioning can make them lose their edge. Cats who came from the feral world still have it.

You have an antsy young cat who hasn't figured out where to channel her energy. She's hunting everything in sight. She's finding easy pathways and marking her scent trails.

As the others have said, your task is to find healthy ways to get the energy out of her. Not to simply entertain her, but to let her feel like she's hunting something. Laser dots and stick toys are popular options for the human to sit while the cat runs in circles. Two or three sessions a day can make a big difference. Cardboard boxes and stuffed animals make good targets of aggression.

Show displeasure when she attacks you or your possessions, and direct her to her possessions.

 

[VAMama]

Oldie but goodie... Sparta the mean kitty! He became famous for terrorizing his humans. They coped by making money on him.

 

[Alldara]

Longtime_cat_parent Some "pre-owned" cats do adapt really well and some do not.

I've really loved the cats we adopted and didn't find the "pre owned" ones any more inclined to have behaviour issues or bad habits than others. I was never able to train Nobel out of scratching the couches and he was not "pre-owned". Lily was "pre-owned" and from Kijiji and her habits were easily taught out for example. Ghost was most certainly owned by someone before and he takes no rather easily if it's not food related. Magnus was in a very good foster home, adopted to us at 4 months and does not take no at all (I think this is what you consider not pre-owned.)

Training and behavioral habits are really cat to cat. Don't drive yourself wild with this or that.

I think just take your cat as it is and don't worry to much about the "pre-owned".

 

[Alldara]

I can assure you that if the cat was attacking, OP would have been to the hospital at least once. Cats may be small but they do significant damage when they truly attack.

There is a huge difference between a cat that attacks and a cat hurting someone through rough play.

 

[Longtime_cat_parent]

I have endured having been bitten HARD on my hand, her not letting go, seemingly affecting veins, as it was throbbing afterwards. There have been scratches with irritation and a bit of blood at times. She has grabbed onto my hand / arm / leg / foot and twice, jumping upon my back while walking by. This is what was meant as experiencing sudden, unexpected and hurtful "attacks". As said, never having experienced with four other cats prior.

 

[Alldara]

I have endured having been bitten HARD on my hand, her not letting go, seemingly affecting veins, as it was throbbing afterwards. There have been scratches with irritation and a bit of blood at times. She has grabbed onto my hand / arm / leg / foot and twice, jumping upon my back while walking by. This is what was meant as experiencing sudden, unexpected and hurtful "attacks". As said, never having experienced with four other cats prior.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not trying to downplay what you've been through. And I'm certainly not trying to say you haven't been hurt. We've all been accidentally or purposely scratched by a cat and it hurts! A pinch or bite from play that is too hard is painful too!

As someone who has actually been attacked by a cat, a true attack, you would need medical care. I had 18 deep puncture wounds, had antibiotics - cream and pills, new tetanus shot and my arm was wrapped for months. All that and the length of the biggest wound was only 5cm or so. And that was from my (now late) cat who was indoor only and we knew didn't have rabies. Not like dirt or anything got mixed in the wounds when we dragged him off me. We came back from that, he and I...but this was a deferred aggression issue.

 

[Longtime_cat_parent]

Longtime_cat_parent Some "pre-owned" cats do adapt really well and some do not.

I've really loved the cats we adopted and didn't find the "pre owned" ones any more inclined to have behaviour issues or bad habits than others. I was never able to train Nobel out of scratching the couches and he was not "pre-owned". Lily was "pre-owned" and from Kijiji and her habits were easily taught out for example. Ghost was most certainly owned by someone before and he takes no rather easily if it's not food related. Magnus was in a very good foster home, adopted to us at 4 months and does not take no at all (I think this is what you consider not pre-owned.)

Training and behavioral habits are really cat to cat. Don't drive yourself wild with this or that.

I think just take your cat as it is and don't worry to much about the "pre-owned".

Thanks...yes, I know it may vary. It's just that this one apparently was not socialized, not knowing what occurred during her first year or so, then the last owner only had for 11 days when returning, and should have considered, but I thought I might make a difference. It seems she may have been taught to play with owner's hands / feet, other habits. I am just so used to adaptable pets not having lived elsewhere, except one being a foster. I have tried for over 5 months, though knowing that is not terribly long.

 

[Alldara]

Thanks...yes, I know it may vary. It's just that this one apparently was not socialized, not knowing what occurred during her first year or so, then the last owner only had for 11 days when returning, and should have considered, but I thought I might make a difference. It seems she may have been taught to play with owner's hands / feet, other habits. I am just so used to adaptable pets not having lived elsewhere, except one being a foster. I have tried for over 5 months, though knowing that is not terribly long.

She's a young cat who likes to wrestle and has no other cat to do so with.

For Calcifer, we use a holiday oven mitt to wrestle with him and make a loud high pitched "eeeep!" Sound at him if he attacked our hands or feet. It took a bit, but he did stop. He does have two similar aged playmates though.


Your post sounds like you may be returning her? If you do, I would have the shelter note that she needs a playmate. They should note that she tries to play with human hands and feet to prevent her being returned a third time. You may consider taking her to a no-kill cat rescue with fosters who might have the time for her instead of where you got her from.
I'd suggest a 3-5 year old cat or bonded pair if you are looking to return her and get another cat. Those ages are much more settled.

 

[Longtime_cat_parent]

I know... my intention was to get one that was older and settled, and that day, allowed other factors to guide me, having emotional reasons.. and not wanting to "keep searching", though had expected to make a proper decision. There being one volunteer at that shelter to handle all guests seeking a pet. On my 2nd visit, waiting for the volunteer to assist me who could not get some out of their cages, when it was "my turn" again, and having held this one for a little while, I made the decision to accept her when asked. I did not have information about her recent history until making the transaction, doing so anyway.

In 2007 I had visited a different shelter four different times prior to making the decision on a 5-month-old, not having had a history. That cat was fairly adaptable, her only issue had been chewing on fabric, which I addressed and having ended over time. In comparison, it was such an easy experience, her not getting into trouble, not changeable, sleeping the same hours as me, having taught her tricks and developed a wonderful relationship with. I believe whomever cared for that litter had done so properly.

Just as my first two had been - both having come from private owners whom had socialized the litters. My first experience having been so great, it established for me how cats could be, the 2nd cat a bit later also adapting well. They were both 5 - 6 months when adopting and truly believe that these owners had done the right thing in both instances, not having had issues with either male.

It was later on, having made a spontaneous decision while at Petsmart, after being goaded into accepting a foster that day. Though doing so of course was weird, unexpectedly bringing a new female cat home with my males. The poor thing had a history, roughly under 2 years of age, realizing she had been mistreated some. I kept her, since I did not want her to suffer anymore transitions or poor treatment, as she and I bonded, the boys growing to tolerate her, but was not a perfect experience, having urinated elsewhere from the boys. She was a basically sweet girl, though an example of one possibly needing to be the only pet in a household.

As they all aged and experienced their passing, I got my previous cat in 2007 who lived with me alone successfully, before passing in 2023. I think I felt getting a young one again currently would be to my benefit, my earlier experiences having been successful. My biggest complaint is being unable to get sleep in early hours, having already been an issue with neighbor disruption between 12:00 - 4:00 a.m., now being kept awake from dawn until approximately 10:00 a.m., with the cat's exuberant behavior. If I could only fix this and become consistently rested on a better schedule, I could tolerate other aspects of her newness / youngness as it adjusts.

 

[Alldara]

Cats are dawn and dusk animals. Especially in the spring, younger ones are quite boisterous.

We can get a bit of extra sleep by getting them to play just before bed...but we have 3 and they play with us and then one another.

I've also learned to sleep through quite a bit of the play by leaving on our air purifier which acts as white noise.

Wish I had some advice about your neighbor that's always rough.

 

[Longtime_cat_parent]

Thanks. Well, really it has to do with her wanting to be in the bedroom window (favorite spot) while I am trying to sleep, my bed being few feet away from. She climbs up and in.. out....in...out...up and down.. jumps on my bed, then back to the window, scratches drapes, wall to enter another end, though there is a middle opening for her. I have really worked at her leaving access to while trying to keep light from streaming in. I will get out of bed repeatedly to adjust / stop something during those 4 hours, trying to fall back to sleep. She will bang against the closet door, as it will rattle as if having a quake. Any deterrent has not pevented. It is truly driving me nuts and my days are ruined. If there was a separate room for her, that would be one thing. While I go thru this stress, I will mutter how I can't take it anymore and need to do something.

She tends to sleep in early evening (not when I want to go to bed), is awake at about 11:30 pm, then though I try playing with her, I am not really in the mood to run around then. She will sleep again before dawn, then up between 5 am to 9:30-10:00 am. I end up sleeping after that into the afternoon. I'm not scheduling needed appointments, since I do not get to sleep a normal time. I have experienced an illness now, not having caught a cold in 20 years and think the stress contributed.

I've been up today since late afternoon. Currently (eve.) she is wanting to jump up on my entertainment unit repeatedly, though trying to stop her. I am looking for some other sticky sheets to arrange there. This is all I deal with unless I leave the house. As I have said, NO other cat caused this kind of stress. I realize everyone has their own lives and pet experiences, it is why trying to find out if anyone experienced and resolved the same.