New and naughty cat

[speeedy01]

Hi, My name is Melissa and i'm new here, a friend of mine told me about this site.

I'm posting, because I have numerous problems with my new cat, who I got as a Christmas present from my sister, because I wanted a cat when I moved out. She's actually still just a kitten, she's only 6 months old, and on December 17th, I adopted her from the local shelter. I have no idea of her past, but she is a right little devil!

My cat has absolutely no respect for ANYTHING. She will climb on anything. She will get in behind ANYTHING (mostly the tv). She will climb on the benches, and even in the clean dishes, if I just happen to leave them there. She will rip to shreds the shower curtain, and climb up the screen doors/windows. She will get into rubbish bins, she's shredded the rubber protective guard under the sink. She's making me so wildly angry... and I can't cope with it. They say time makes things better... and in this case, it probably would... but before she gets better, she's only going to get into more mischeif... and I can't cope with that.

She has plenty of toys, some of which she really loves, including her fishing rod toy, and she's got a scratching post... which i've thankfully also taught her to use... however, she likes to have her spack attacks every morning and night (she keeps me up late at night, and wakes me up early in the morning doing this too)... and she will come up to me and sit on my lap every now 'n then... but will get off 5 minutes later, when she's had enough and takes a swipe at me... or she simply just jumps off.

So yeah... does anyone have any ideas? Right now she's too much to handle for me.

Oh and yeah... I should mention i'm in a wheelchair, and my cat makes it rather difficult to get to her at times, when she's being naughty... so it kinda needs to be appropriate advice for her and I.

Thanks!

Melissa

 

[ducman69]

Sorry to hear of your troubles. From your description, it sounds like boredom and play aggression.

All kitties vary in personalities and activity, but in general that is also the liveliest age for them to boot.

I do believe in disciplining cats for negative in addition to praising for positive behavior, but in your case I think you may be best served by placing more effort in kitten proofing (lidded trashcan, keep bathroom door closed, etc) the place as best you can. You can still have a squirt bottle handy, and use a SSSCAT to block off an important area, but ultimately its just hard to meet the play needs of some lively kitties by yourself.

Two cats may actually be a lot less effort, as they can entertain each other and chase one another around and wrestle. Thats what mine do half the day when they aren't dreaming about mice.

Cats will mellow out as they get older though.

 

[luvmyparker]

I feel your pain, trust me! We got Buddy when he was 7 months old and went through heck with him. He got into everything and on everything and in everything. We chased him around for months lol. He is nearing two and starting to settle down a bit. Still tries to get into the potatoes though. Having another cat for him to play with was definitely a big help.
They need a lot of play at that age and its hard to keep up with up them! Being in a wheelchair would be tough too. Maybe would have been wiser to adopt a cat that was out of its "terrible two's" and settled down!

But if you plan on keeping this kitty, a squirt bottle, like Ducman said, would be a good idea and a Ssscat or two.
Do you have a laser pointer for her to play with? Thats also a good way to burn off some energy. I find keeping the cats awake as best as I can throughout the day helps them sleep a bit more at night.

 

[speeedy01]

Having two cats sounds like a great idea. My parents have inherited my Nana's cat since her recent death, and their cat is being naughty peeing inside at night, so there's a possibility that I may be able to get her. So I might see about that. I usually play with my cat for like an hour or so a day, and then minus the early morning, and late night spack attack... she sleeps most of the time. She is recovering from cat flu etc. I've done my very best to kitten proof the house, though her dirt box is in the only place possible... the bathroom... where she gets her claws into the toilet roll too hahah. I sorta have a laser pointer, so that would help. I will have a think about getting my Nana's cat as well... and see whether that could work... because I really don't want to have to get rid of my new cat :/ That's not fair on her.

Thanks for your advice everyone!

Melissa

 

[stephanietx]

Welcome to TCS! Sounds like you have a very normal kitten on your hands! I would recommend that you get another kitten of similar age for your girl. That way they will have similar energy levels and will truly work at playing together. If you get an older kitty, the younger one might just terrorize the older one with all it's boundless energy and hijinks.

As for your mom's cat, which I know you didn't ask about, it needs to be seen by the vet. Inappropriate elimination is a big clue that something's not right with the kitty. Most likely, the stress of having your nana's cat come live there has caused it to have an urinary tract infection. If you can find it, you might suggest to your mom that they use a Feliway diffuser to help reduce the stress in their home and make the kitty more comfortable. (I'm not sure if you can get Feliway in Australia.)

 

[speeedy01]

Thanks for your advice!

Ok... i'll tell you the story. This is gonna get a wee bit confusing lol.

My cat is Marmalade, she's the 6 month old ginger cat that I just adopted from the pound.

Rhubarb is my Nana's tabby cat which my parents inherited when she died.

Max (who i'll also sorta mention) is "my" 10yo+ Abyssinian, who's the sweetest, best boy in the world... and always behaves himself lol.

So here's the story now:

Max is/was my cat before I left home, but couldn't take him due to the fact he's more of a "family" cat... and it's not fair on him.

Rhubarb was anti-social pretty much when we got her, always clawing, biting and mucking round and playing. She was Nana's cat (Nana had to get rid of another ginger cat and her chihuahua before she could move into our house). Now Rhubarb has pretty much calmed down.

My father does not allow Max or Rhubarb to have a litter box inside, and both cats were/are indoor/outdoor cats. Both cats get let inside late at night, and Max is able to hold on all night long, until my Dad lets him out at 5am to go to the toilet. However, since Nana died, Rhubarb has been unable to do this. I am almost certain this is due to the stress of Rhubarb losing a loved one. She and Nana were inseperable. So yeah, Rhubarb is probably going to come and live with me.... because I will have a litter box inside, where she will more than likely use it... as this is what she's used to.

So yeah, i'm also kinda hoping that my kitten Marmalade will get along with Rhubarb. They're both females, but they're also both still young. Anyone got advice on how to introduce them, if and when they get introduced?

Thanks!