Watching my son's cat for a year .... and some challenges.

[timeforaction]

Hi there, I have taken in my son's cat for a year while he is away on a job (a short-haired tabby variety). He has not as yet gotten her fixed (she is about 1.5 years old) so was going to do that for him. I have a dog (husky mix) and another cat that we took in as a stray which was fixed and declawed before her arrival. The longer term cat is very calm (normally) but the new cat LOVES to torment her, sometimes in play, sometimes seriously. And the newest cat has claws. She loves to use them, and will swipe at the dog too. I am curious how people feel about declawing. I am afraid that while I am at work, the other cat is going to loose and eye (she doesn't generally fight back and often doesn't see the 'swipe' coming as she is resting. My other concern is that the dog is going to react instinctively if she gets a swat to the nose and 'bye bye new kitty'. I know there are differing opinions out there, but since this cat has already been here a month I think the behaviour pattern I am seeing is the one I can continue to expect. (It is quite a little livewire, and the only time she lets up is when she is in heat and 'friendly'.

My concern mainly is if they ever get outside. And I don't think a scratching post is the answer, although I can resort to that. She already has some scratching areas that I can live with. : ) It is more about 'cat to other animal behaviour' I am concerned about!

Any thoughts about declawing? Out of curiosity, I inquired of one vet when I also asked about spaying, and they said they will not declaw a cat. Henceforth for renewed concern. My son I think is fine either way, since he knows I have to look after his kitty for the next year.

 

[StefanZ]

We here at the forums are heavy against declawing. Especielly the Advisor/Mods team. And we do also have very good and heavy arguments against.
So you know The Answer.

If you are really desperate, you can always try with the "Soft Claws". Ie a sort of plastic protection you glue on the claws.
They are reported to work quite well, and arent too uncomfortable to the cat either. - Surely less uncomfortable than a declawing is...

After you spay her, she will be less territorarial, and thus probably easier to come to terms with your resident cat, and the dog too. So this is my answer and my advice. Hurry to the vet!

You can also try with a Feliway diffuser - cant hurt, may help.

It is very seldom they do hurt each other by mistake, par example when roughly playing.
Although, if a cat is fighting seriously with a much bigger opponent, it goes after the face and the eyes... So your worry although not necessary - is somewhat justified. At least in theory.

So if you still worry, you can let her be alone in a room when you arent home.


I hope others will fill in, and please, dont hesitate with questions and comments.


Good luck!



ps. you did mentioned scratching, but you didnt mentioned clipping her nails. If she is indoor only cat, you should of course do clip her nails now and then, at least every two weeks.
If she is outside cat - dont clip or clip only very little - so she wont be defenceless against stray dogs...

 

[bastetservant]

I think this site is anti declawing, as I am. You can read articles here as to why, as at catsinternational.com and a lot of other places. I had a declawed cat living with another with claws for a long time. The one with claws was very rowdy and tormented the other for the whole 10+ years - not because of having claws, though, but because he was younger, bigger, and wanted to wrestle and chase. She never liked it and would screech something awful. It was never really resolved, though she never actually got hurt (no blood or damage). Some cat relationships are like that. When the big boy with claws died from cancer at age 11, the much smaller, older female seemed to grieve him. Relationships among animals can be complex.

I think having the new cat spayed will go a long way towards decreasing the negative behaviors. You do need to supply amusements for her when people are not home, play with her with toys when you are home to wear her out and positively channel her energy, and have places she can scratch. At 1.5 years, she is still young. Most calm down after a while. Until things settle down, I would confine the new cat to a "safe room" for her (and the others) when the animals are home alone.

Robin

 

[timeforaction]

Thank you for the responses. I am curious as to whether you might both be right about spaying in fact helping with the behaviour; I do hear cats calm down some after that. I was thinking the older cat got clawed, as there was an abrasion near her left eye and it got weepy, so I have been putting drops in it. My dog has learned to 'steer clear' of the new kitty, but it is more the game of 'cat and mouse' which my son's cat likes to play. The new cat still acts 'intimidated' when the dog barks at her, but will also walk right by her when she feels the dog is calm. (My dog is actually very good with cats, but my worry was the instinctive reaction, especially with her being mostly husky.)

So spaying it will be, and I will keep the other suggestions in mind as well. I am envisioning me trying to clip the little daugther-of-a-guns nails! That ought to be a treat!

And a p.s. My intention is that she be an indoor cat, like my other one. : )

Thanks again.

 

[Willowy]

You can ask the vet to trim her claws while she's under for the spay. That way you can start out with her claws nice and dull, and it'll give you some time to learn how to do it yourself.

It's awfully lucky you found a vet that won't do de-claws. Routine de-clawing is against the ethical guidelines of all the veterinary associations. But most vets ignore those ethics and will de-claw any cat for any reason ($$$$). Nice to to know you have a good ethical vet.

 

[timeforaction]

That is a great idea. My dog Kiara sometimes stresses a lot over having her claws clipped, and other times, like yesterday, she just laid there and practically slept through it. Strange pooch.

So I guess I should pick up some kitty clippers. I must admit, I have never done the other cat's back claws, and yet they don't feel long. : )

Thanks again, all!

 

[Willowy]

Originally Posted by TimeForAction

I must admit, I have never done the other cat's back claws, and yet they don't feel long. : )

Most of the time their back claws don't get too long. And some cats never need their front claws clipped, either. It's only when sharp claws become a problem (damage to other pets or property, etc.) that they really need to be trimmed.

 

[stephanietx]

Getting several different types of scratching posts/pads (carpet, sisal, cardboard) will definitely help. Ask the vet to show you how to clip her nails, too. We clip nails about every 2 weeks.

I have one declawed cat (front only, came that way when she wandered into my life), but my other 2 cats both have claws and neither of them scratch in inappropriate places. They also have never scratched each other or me or my husband intentionally and they can get quite rough when playing.

 

[timeforaction]

I went onto the websites provided above; quite interesting. I will see what I can do to 'entertain' kitty via different scratching habitats. : )

My other cat is a long haired cat (other than the tail which is very sparce of hair and I kid that the fur was frost bitten off in her unfortunate outdoor life before she landed on my doorstep. I wonder now how she managed without claws out there in the urban jungle.

 

[stephanietx]

Also, remember that she's in a new environment and she's trying to claim "her" territory. Some of the scratching behavior may also be due to stress until she's fully settled in and acclimated.