First-time cat mom of a lovely stray :)

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wiltedfern

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Hi everyone!! I thought I’d give a little update on the babies… (pictures below!)

jasmine has recovered great from being spayed! It’s been two weeks now and her incision looks so good. You can hardly see it! Her little bald patches from the surgery and IV also are starting to become Fuzzy again. Lol!!

the rescue still hasn’t contacted me back about finding a real foster home for Baby… but I’m still doing my due diligence of posting about him and advertising him. I just don’t want to take him to the pound because he would be at risk of euthanasia and there is no way that’s happening. I’m also concerned about separating him from Jasmine, since she helped his real mom raise him. She can’t stand him most of the time (he likes to play-attack her lol) and he did just fine on his own when she was at the vet but I know they love each other. Any tips on that?

also, I hand built them a cat tower!! How cool is that? It’s as tall as me, so it would have been easy over $150. It cost me around $30 to make because I needed to buy a couple hardware pieces to attach the plywood to the tubing, but everything else was free from behind a carpet store. They love it and are playing/sleeping on it more and more every day. Should I do a separate thread on how I made it?

one last update… I am teaching them tricks! They both already know sit and “up” (getting on their back legs) and are learning how to spin now! It’s been a really fun way to connect with them and really get their brains working. They also have lots of puzzle feeders now, which baby adore but jasmine isn’t too fond of. Lol. She’ll figure it out one day. On a related note, I finally found a toy she actually likes and she has been playing with it and “killing” it constantly.

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rubysmama

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She can’t stand him most of the time (he likes to play-attack her lol) and he did just fine on his own when she was at the vet but I know they love each other. Any tips on that?
No tips, other than to ask if keeping him is an option?

also, I hand built them a cat tower!! How cool is that? It’s as tall as me, so it would have been easy over $150. It cost me around $30 to make because I needed to buy a couple hardware pieces to attach the plywood to the tubing, but everything else was free from behind a carpet store. They love it and are playing/sleeping on it more and more every day. Should I do a separate thread on how I made it?
Oh, that's really cool !!! Yes, a separate thread sounds like a great idea. Probably in the Grooming & General Cat Care forum would be best.
 
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wiltedfern

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No tips, other than to ask if keeping him is an option?



Oh, that's really cool !!! Yes, a separate thread sounds like a great idea. Probably in the Grooming & General Cat Care forum would be best.
Well, keeping him would be an option if I had the funds. I’m just a college kid living off work and student loans lol. But, a girl just came over tonight and wants him!! She’s going to be visiting over the next couple days while she gets stuff for him so that she will be familiar when she takes him. He will be in the complex right beside mine (like 2 minutes away) and I will get tons of updates and I’ll get to visit sometimes. And she will take him to the same vet I take jasmine to. He will finally get fixed and vaccinated like he deserves. I have super high hopes! She’s been up-talking how much she will spoil him and I believe her lol. I really think the cats will be fine when they’re separated because they each were fine in the instances when the other was gone for a couple days. I feel like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.
 

rubysmama

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Excellent news! And, yes, they'll be fine once they're separated, especially since they have humans that love them. :petcat::redheartpump:
 
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wiltedfern

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Hey, all. Jasmine did amazing this past week without Baby. However… last night, there was a sudden switch. She meowed crazily all night long just like she did when I first adopted her. she never was destructive, but she wouldn’t stop meowing and refused to eat her calming treats, even mixed with one of those lickable liquid treats. So I just had to endure her screaming all night. I tried everything and even tried to play hard with her so she’d tire out with no such luck. My boyfriend said she was screaming all morning when I was gone for class as well.

im just a little bit frustrated because the past week and a half have been so amazing. She has been sleeping in my bed cuddled all night long, she has been going on morning walks right when we wake up and then comes inside to play for 15ish minutes and then she eats breakfast. Then she naps while I shower and get ready for class. But my boyfriend came in town yesterday and it threw her all off. On top of that, we had a tornado last night AND my roommate accidentally let her outside when I was asleep. So then she screamed all night long after she came back in (completely by her own will. They left the door open for a couple minutes and she came back in). I feel a bit stressed after a sudden bad night’s sleep and im worried I’ve messed up what wonderful progress we’ve made over the past week and a half.

on another note, she also is refusing wet food for whatever reason. But she will graze on dry food. Im thinking of changing her food to higher quality since now I’m just feeding friskies wet food (which she is refusing) and purina cheap kibble. Maybe that will be better. Any suggestions? I’ve heard good things about orijin and naturals. Should I see if she likes higher quality can food as well?
 

rubysmama

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Hopefully the meowing is just caused by a combo of all the recent changes / events. Being picky about food is a bit concerning, but as long as she's eating enough, all's probably well.

About the food for her, and of course you can only buy what she'll eat, here's some TCS articles that might be helpful:

What Do I Need To Know About Feeding My Cat? – TheCatSite Articles
How To Choose The Right Food For Your Cat – TheCatSite Articles
Choosing The Right Food For Your Cat – Part 2 – TheCatSite Articles
Transitioning Your Cat From Kibble To A New Type Of Food – TheCatSite Articles
 
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wiltedfern

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Hopefully the meowing is just caused by a combo of all the recent changes / events. Being picky about food is a bit concerning, but as long as she's eating enough, all's probably well.

About the food for her, and of course you can only buy what she'll eat, here's some TCS articles that might be helpful:

What Do I Need To Know About Feeding My Cat? – TheCatSite Articles
How To Choose The Right Food For Your Cat – TheCatSite Articles
Choosing The Right Food For Your Cat – Part 2 – TheCatSite Articles
Transitioning Your Cat From Kibble To A New Type Of Food – TheCatSite Articles
Thank you for always being so supportive in all of your replies. My morale definitely needed boosting lol. She settled slightly last night and I got about half a night’s sleep. I know she just wants to go outside but I live in an apartment complex and she used to be satisfied with her morning walks to where she wouldn’t want to go outside after that. I just don’t get it. What changed?? What am I doing wrong all of the sudden? She gets so much attention and play time and love. Why can’t she just be happy. I feel so defeated.

also, after doing more research and looking around, I have upped my cat food game and her new food will be here tomorrow. I’m curious to see how she takes it because she’s always been so picky. I got a few different types of freeze dried raw food to chop up and use to transition from her cheap kibble. And I got some instinct wet food to play around with and see if she will eat it. I’m pretty desperate at this point lol. Hopefully this sparks up her appetite a bit more.
 

rubysmama

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I know she just wants to go outside but I live in an apartment complex and she used to be satisfied with her morning walks to where she wouldn’t want to go outside after that. I just don’t get it. What changed??
Maybe spring in the air? :dunno: I have read that cats that get to go outside for walks, start wanting to go outside all the time. So it could be something like that too.

And if you think she might be bored, this might be helpful:
Bored Cat? What Cat Owners Need To Know (including 10 Actionable Tips) – TheCatSite Articles

her new food will be here tomorrow
Fingers crossed that she likes it. :crossfingers:
 
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