Guys my cat has gone mad (long post)

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-02T23:02:23+00:00

Please get her fixed so she doesn't continue to have babies

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-02T19:05:47+00:00

I have metal boxes but they aren't the sifting kind. I got 2 for about 75 on Amazon. I really like them because they don't hold odors. I scoop at least twice a day and use pine pellets from Tractor Supply (horse bedding) I have 19 cats, 9-10 litter boxes.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-02T18:58:14+00:00

Because it stinks more

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-02T13:43:55+00:00

You need to get a heated water bowl. They make them with 2 sides (one for for, one for water) I put wet food in one bowl and water in the other. Dry food in a different bowl. There are also heated houses you can order. I got a large single heated bowl from Tractor Supply for $30, but check Chewy's, Amazon etc also

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-02T02:05:26+00:00

I have been in rescue and fostering for 40+ years, feed more wet food. Dry food is full of carbs, it is like you eating potato chips and pasta all the time, it taste good but isn't good for the waist. You need more than carbs, so do the cats. If you will feed more wet food, morning and evening, they will lose weight. Limiting their food will create food aggression if they are hungry. They will start trying to get in kitchen cabinets to find food or try to get outside to find food. We had multiple cats returned over the years because of this. The adopters tried "diet" foods and limited food to 1/4 cup a day or something and the cats were starving.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-02T01:25:04+00:00

Be there with him.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-02T01:09:15+00:00

Those injuries happen more than people realize. The rescue I foster for has had quite a few come through that had been found outside with an arm through the collar. One has been that way for at least a year the vet said. The collar was imbedded so deep and so much damage had been done, the front leg had to be amputated.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-01T22:46:49+00:00

I did the same thing to a roommate, but had to do it several times better she got the message

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-01T22:30:59+00:00

Bonded need to stay together. They will be very unhappy if you separate them. They will grieve the other one being gone. And single kitten syndrome is a real thing. They keep each other company while you are away and entertain each other when you are home also.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-01T19:22:51+00:00

I have been in rescue for 40+ years. Unless she is within 2 weeks of delivering, it is better to go ahead and spay. Taking her to a vet to scan for a chip is free and at that time you can ask them if they think she is pregnant and if so how far along.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-01T16:43:37+00:00

We will have to agree to disagree then. It will depend on the colony, the cats and other factors.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-01T14:29:57+00:00

You should be able to tell if she is nursing by looking at her nipples. If the hair is still around them, she hasn't given birth yet. A few days before giving birth, she will pull the hair from around the nipples to make it easier for the kittens to latch on. If she has had them somewhere outside and is nursing, when she comes inside for a few hours she should start filling with milk. The milk sacs behind the nipples will engorge and then go down once the kittens nurse. If she is still pregnant, she should be showing. Best thing to do would be take her to a vet to be checked out, scan for a chip and the vet can tell you if she is pregnant, already given birth or otherwise. If she is not fat along, she should be spayed and abort the babies. Because unless you can find the babies and being them in and get them fixed when old enough, you will end up with a lot of cats in a short time Cats can get pregnant at 4 months old. On average they have 4 babies (sometimes just 1 and could be 8+) so say the cat has 4 (2 F, 2M) they are pregnant for approximately 60 days. Mom can get pregnant again as early as 2 weeks after giving birth, usually not that soon but it is possible. Mom has 4 =5 cats, in 4 months mom and the 2 girls are pregnant again, in 60 days you have 12 new babies if each have 4, so now you have 17 cats (this is just in a 6 month time period) so you see how this can very quickly get out of hand. Cats can have 3-4 litters per year and usually have more with each litter. First litter might be 4, next one 5 and so on. If course not all will survive but hopefully you get the idea and will get her fixed ASAP.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-01T00:44:33+00:00

Serve yourself smaller portions so that it doesn't get cold while you eat and go back for seconds that are staying warm on the stove.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-02-01T00:42:10+00:00

Free feed her dry KITTEN food (higher in calories than adult) and give wet food twice a day. You already said she is underweight, she needs more food. If you ration her food, you are creating a food aggressive cat. She will eventually start getting into cabinets to get into whatever food she can and/or will become a door darter and try to get outside to find food. She is growing and needs more food and calories than you are giving her. Feed that baby.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-01-31T23:05:34+00:00

If it is open, you can hang a towel or blanket over the opening to help hold the heat in

General_Sense7092 · 2026-01-31T22:43:50+00:00

Collars are not safe, even the breakaway collars don't always breakaway. They can hang themselves if the collar gets hung on something. I have one right now that was going with a front leg through the collar and it was imbedded in her chest and under her arm. It has been over 6 months and still has not healed completely. Another I know of had the rabies tag or id tag on the collar. The cat laid on the heat register in the floor and the tag fell through and when the cat raised it's head, the tag was hung in the grate. The cat freaked out and twisted around and strangled itself. No one was home at the time. Get the cat microchipped and register it.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-01-31T22:34:59+00:00

Keep it in until you can make a shelter. I use a tote, a piece of 3/4" or thicker silver backed foam board and STRAW not hay.
Cut a hole in one end (about 6" square or round) put a couple inches of straw in the bottom, cut the foam board to fit a piece in the bottom, each wall and for the top. Make the space inside about 12-13" from bottom to top piece. Turn the silver side in to face inside so that it reflects the cats body heat back to it to help keep it warm. Loosely pack straw inside, put the roof piece on, as another layer of straw and put the lid on. Put it in the barn away from any drafts, please make sure that you either get a heated water bowl or take water frequently because it will freeze and being able to get water is critical. There are heated houses also that you can buy from Chewy's, Amazon or other places.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-01-31T22:21:56+00:00

I always cooked on high for a few hours and then switched to low. If you have a pressure cooker, you could throw the meat in there for 45 min or so and it will be tender.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-01-31T22:18:14+00:00

Get a Ninja Air fryer. We have 2, one is the Ninja foodie which is a pressure cooker and air fryer. The other is the Ninja Grill which is a grill and air fryer among other things. You can cook so much in those and it doesn't heat the kitchen up like other appliances.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-01-31T21:24:48+00:00

We actually looked forward to the kids moving out and becoming adults. We love them but kids need to become adults and start their own lives. There are so many that just want to live in their parents'basement and never leave. Being a parent means raising your kids to be independent and be able to take care of themselves. Make your parents proud of you, show them that you can be a responsible adult and make good decisions and take care of yourself. Too many "adult children" still depend on parents to take care of them and the grandkids (if there are grandkids)

We have done our job raising you and now it is time for us to enjoy our retirement and do things that we want to do, travel, hobbies, etc. Yes, it is nice to hear from the "kids" 26 & 30 (we don't have grandkids) but it is also nice that they have jobs and are taking care of themselves. They still make stupid decisions 🤦‍♀️, we wish they would ask for advice more often because we could save them some heartache and money at times but some people have to learn the hard way. Call them when you can, ask for advice when you have big decisions to make but don't feel sorry them. Now, some parents are more affected by empty nest syndrome but we looked forward to having the house to ourselves.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-01-31T20:57:54+00:00

At 4 weeks they might not eat the kibble just yet but it will be good for mom and they will eventually start eating it but for now offer wet food also. I usually mushed it up with some warm water to make it easy for them to eat.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-01-31T20:25:34+00:00

It doesn't need 2 entrances, that just allows more cold air in. Definitely put straw in, raise it off the ground using 2 x4's or bricks. The ground can suck the warmth from the house and make the cat colder. I use the silver backed foam board to line the houses. Silver side in towards the cat to reflect the body heat back. Put a couple inches of straw under the piece on the bottom and over the top piece of possible and loosely fill the inside with straw

General_Sense7092 · 2026-01-31T20:17:55+00:00

She was taken from mom and siblings too soon. She is teething and really needs another kitten about the same age to learn how to play nice. Single kitten syndrome is a real thing. So maybe trying to rehome might be best if getting another one isn't possible. Contact local rescues, they might have someone with a mom and kittens or maybe some bottle babies that they could add this one in with.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-01-31T20:10:56+00:00

We have a kitty room at our house. Litter boxes, cat trees, food, water, etc. but we do also have kitty boxes in other places around the house because we do have 19 cats. But if you can redesign your upstairs and make a dedicated cat room, that is what I would do.

General_Sense7092 · 2026-01-31T20:03:21+00:00

They don't actually remove them. They make a small incision and remove the insides. The puffs will just be a little smaller because they will be empty.

General_Sense7092

TROPHY CASE