I wish I spoke cat!

[dreamfulone]

Hi everyone.

I have a problem I think. I work with animals so I ussualy am not confused about things such as this. I have 4 cats in one house. I am very lucky to have no big problems with them. The youngest was not the sweetest of the bunch when I brought him home. Time went on and he attached himself to me but still played allllll day long. I then got him neutered. Brought him home and now things have changed. I know that they calm down after but I rarely see him playing and he is constently talking.I as well have been under alot of stress and am sick. Yet when I try to love on him he lays at my feet. He seems to want alot of attention but when given backs away unless I am petting him with my FEET. He always had some strange love for my feet. He wonders around and SCREAMS. He is healthy but something is not right. it has been about 3 weeks since he came home and it has not stopped. Along with the screaming he paws at my kitchen floor like a cat would do in the kitty litter. He always had an obbsesion with pawing at the walls and everywhere around the little box after he was done. I guess he thought the walls helped some how. Yet, now it has seemed to moved on to the kitchen. His urine looks fine and he eats. I just do not understand. I want my kitty back. I feel as if he is trying to tell me something that myself and the Dr. missed.

 

[ghostuser]

His neutering should not have changed his personality and actions this much. Have you gone back to see your vet about this? If your current vet is clueless, consider taking him to another vet to get a second opinion. He might have picked up something as simple at a urinary tract infection from being stressed by the surgery.

I can tell you're really upset, and honestly, the best way to know if something is wrong with one of your cats is to go with your gut instinct.

I hope he's back to normal soon!

 

[stormy]

I agree with wodesorel. I would have him checked at the vet just to be sure everything is ok.

 

[kathryn41]

Originally Posted by dreamfulone

Hi everyone.

I have a problem I think. I work with animals so I ussualy am not confused about things such as this. I have 4 cats in one house. I am very lucky to have no big problems with them. The youngest was not the sweetest of the bunch when I brought him home. Time went on and he attached himself to me but still played allllll day long. I then got him neutered. Brought him home and now things have changed. I know that they calm down after but I rarely see him playing and he is constently talking.I as well have been under alot of stress and am sick. Yet when I try to love on him he lays at my feet. He seems to want alot of attention but when given backs away unless I am petting him with my FEET. He always had some strange love for my feet. He wonders around and SCREAMS. He is healthy but something is not right. it has been about 3 weeks since he came home and it has not stopped. Along with the screaming he paws at my kitchen floor like a cat would do in the kitty litter. He always had an obbsesion with pawing at the walls and everywhere around the little box after he was done. I guess he thought the walls helped some how. Yet, now it has seemed to moved on to the kitchen. His urine looks fine and he eats. I just do not understand. I want my kitty back. I feel as if he is trying to tell me something that myself and the Dr. missed.

Could he also be reacting to your stress and illness? Some cats are very susceptible to environmental imbalances, and perhaps the trip to the vet was upsetting enough to him that when he returned he was overly-sensitized to how stressed you are and he isn't sure how to deal with it. Certainly, check with the vet, to rule out anything physical. If you can afford it, consider purchasing a Feliway Comfort Zone room diffuser to help him feel less stressed, and then see if you can find things to do to lessen your own stress levels - play soothing music, rearrange the furniture so it feels more harmonious, clean the windows to allow in more sunshine, buy some fresh cut flowers, things like that. I am sure there are other things you can think of to help you feel better, and as you feel less stressed, then perhaps you cat will also feel more relaxed and less 'compulsive' in his behaviour.

The foot obsession could have something to do with his desire to get close to you, and he equates your scent with safety - and our feet definitely do have a scent. Maybe using Hissy's sweaty t-shirt trick might also help him feel more reassured and give him a 'safe-feeling' place until he destresses.
Kathryn

 

[dreamfulone]

Again I do not think it is a health problem. I work with a vet and he has been checked. I think I stated that but I am not sure. Its the pawing at the floor that is weird. Thank you Kathy. I have taken much needed personal leave at work and it seems he has started to calm down abit.

 

[hissy]

They seem to know when the balance in the house is either under stress or someone does not feel good. When my husband fell ill, all the cats were on the alert. They would huddle on the bed with him and crowd around him (we have 9) so it was a bit of a crowd. They were anxious when he was not at his best and quite a few fights broke out, when I would react to the stress of his illness.

I used the feliway comfort zone room diffusers, I burned three of them at once, and just tried to lower my stress level as well. Even the dog was responding to the stress and I am glad to say that things are pretty much back to normal now.