How to Resolve Common Problem of Cat Parents?

Cats are the pet of choice for numerous hectic individuals partly since, compared with pets and some other animals, they're pretty low maintenance. They're not "no maintenance," though. Keeping a cat is a lifetime commitment, and numerous felines live well into their 20s. Possibilities are you will face one or more of these 10 typical problems at some point during your cat's lifetime. This is part one, including the very first 5.

1. My cat badgers my other cat

With any kind of aggression, constantly eliminate medical causes first. Atlanta-based veterinary technician and licensed cat behavior specialist Ingrid Johnson stated her clinic provides an aggression examination, in which the clinicians look for urinary system infections, crystals in urine, ingrained toenails, agonizing teeth, impacted anal glands, and parasites. Untreated hyperthyroidism can also trigger aggressiveness in cats.

When a medical cause has been ruled out, make certain the felines have adequate resources.

" We set felines as much as fail by making them have to share," Johnson said. "Create an environment of plenty."

Offer plenty of feeding stations and water bowls throughout your home so they don't need to contend for resources.

Krieger added that it could be a matter of too many cats in too small a location.

" Provide a lot of vertical territory, so the cats can reveal their hierarchy," she said.

Vertical territory includes tall cat trees, window perches, and bookshelves.

Often the community cat's visitation can trigger one cat to redirect his hostility toward your other cat. Even more reason to discourage outdoor felines from your lawn. You constantly want to separate your felines, she encouraged, placing the aggressive cat in a dark space with the blinds closed for a few hours to soothe him down.

" Sometimes you have inter-cat hostility due to the fact that the felines weren't presented effectively," Krieger said.

Different the cats and gradually reintroduce them from scratch, she recommended.

2. My cat evacuates outside the litter box

Without a doubt, this is the most typical problem and, sadly, one that causes many individuals to relinquish their felines. Because illness and physical pain can disrupt correct litter box use, first take your cat to the vet to rule out a medical cause. When you're sure your cat has no health problems, take a look at the litter box itself.

If your litter box passes the test, take a look at modifications in the environment that might trigger your cat tension. A new person or family pet, the loss of a preferred companion, or an outside area cat can stress out your kitty, according to accredited cat habits specialist Marilyn Krieger who owns the Cat Coach in Redwood City, California, and composes the Ask a Behaviorist column here on Catster.

" Make sure your cat is neutered, and keep the outdoors cats away," she said.

Lots of devices at hardware shops or online will make your yard uninviting for outdoor felines without harming them. Ultrasonic creates that are movement delicate make a high-pitched noise. If you use these, make them face far from your house, she said. Lemon and other citrus fragrances likewise repel cats without injuring them.

If your cat urine-marked a location in your house, clean it up completely with an enzymatic cleaner to remove smells and prevent additional soiling, Krieger recommended.

3. My cat scratches my hands and feet, and it harms

Aggression toward individuals is a learned habits, Johnson said. Again, we set the felines up for failure by permitting kitties to have fun with our hands and feet, but it's not fun for us anymore with an adult cat. You want to reroute those play habits towards toys.

Johnson stated she sees cat-to-people aggression more in single-cat houses.

" I recommend embracing a pair so they have another cat to spar with," she said. "If you get two, they're far more socially normal. When they're play deprived, anything that moves is level playing field."

4. My cat claws up my furnishings

"Never declaw," Krieger stated.

Felines need to scratch to exercise their paws and to mark their area. They also scratch when they're feeling contrasted, she stated. Instead, supply your felines with something they will prefer to scratch more than your furniture: an excellent scratching post. In addition, obstruct the furnishings with sticky sheets or double-sided tape and place the scratching post right in front of the furnishings they're scratching. Reward your cats when they scratch the right furnishings.

5. My cat dislikes the new kitty I brought home

Be patient. Introductions must be progressive. Krieger stated making sure the kitties are entirely separated in the beginning. You want to designate three zones: a sanctuary for each cat and a neutral zone. The neutral zone is shared space but at different times. Never put one cat's smells on the other, but rather rub a fabric on one cat's cheek and place the cloth in the other cat's area, putting a sample of each other's smells in the other's room. Do that two times each day with a clean fabric each time.

Designate the doorway to the newer kitty's room as a feeding area, so that both cats associate that area with good ideas. Feed the cats at the same time 3 feet from the closed door and gradually move the food bowls closer to the door about 1 to 2 inches every day. If the cats won't consume or if they're grumbling, you're moving by moving the food meals as far from the open door as possible with you standing in the entrance.