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Author Archives: Charles Huss
We Still Don’t Know What to Do About Puck
It has been over a week now and Puck is still pooping and peeing outside the litter box. If you haven’t read the first part of this story, you can see it here.
It a nutshell, Puck had crystals in his urine which probably made it painful to pee. It is possible he associated that pain with the litter box but if that is the case, why did he not associate the pain with peeing on the floor? The pooping on the floor has been an ongoing issue but the peeing is new and a much bigger problem because our laminate floors are already swelling at the seams where he has peed.
We started feeding Puck a special canned food the vet sold us from Science Diet. I have read many articles about how prescription diets are not good for your pet and I heard bad things about Science Diet but the vet said this would help acidify the urine and break up the crystals. If it did that one thing, it would be worth trying.
We also bought a package of pee pads that I spread around the house, especially in areas where he has already peed.
This past week has been filled with ups and downs. One day he would go 24 hours without peeing or pooping anywhere outside the box. The next day he would do both. I tried moving one of the litter boxes across the room. I thought maybe he might have suddenly developed a problem with the boxes’ location.
That didn’t work, so I moved it back.
One day he pooped next to the couch and peed on a pillow that was on the couch. He didn’t pee on the couch because I covered it with toys. I didn’t consider the pillow.
My wife said if he didn’t stop peeing on the floor he would find himself in a new home. She then suggested we might have to put him on Prozac because that is what her sister said might help. I said no to both. I understand Prozac might help but any long term medication is bad for the health of any cat . . . and person. I thought maybe a calming collar might be an alternative.
I read some articles online that offered some suggestions. I already tried most of them but a couple I did not know about.
I did not know that cats prefer one to two inches of litter. I usually fill it higher because it is easier to scoop if it is not stuck to the bottom. Apparently, some cats don’t like it when it is too deep. I didn’t think this was the problem since Puck never had a problem with it before but I thought every little bit counts.
A few posts said the litter should be far from their food and water but one post said it should be close. I decided far was the better choice. Our boxes are eight to nine feet from the food, Not close but no far either.
I also read the boxes should be spread out around the house and that they should be relatively private with an escape route in at least two directions. We put our boxes in one place because that is what ultimately stopped Chris from pooping on the floor. If one box was not to his liking, he could use the one next to it instead of the floor.
Rose and I went to Petco on Saturday and purchased another litter box and a calming collar, along with various other things. I put the box near Rose’s chair but on the other side of the end table. I then pulled the table out a little to offer an escape route in that direction.
I then put the calming collar on Puck, which wasn’t easy. In addition, there was a big mess of white, flaky stuff that fell off the collar while I struggled with it.
I was very hopeful when I went to bed and was happy to see that everything was normal when I woke up. It didn’t stay that way. About and hour later I smelled pee and found pee next to the chair, half on the pee pad and half off, where it could get under the pad and have no chance of drying It was the third time that has happened since I bought the pads. I also found poop behind Rose’s chair. It looked like Puck pulled the pad away from the wall far enough so he could poop directly on the floor. Why does he have to make things so difficult for me?
I moved the litter box behind the chair to see if that makes a difference.
We are planning on buying some cranberry supplements today but other than that, I don’t know what else to do.
Photo Friday: Jungle Cat
Here is Frankie during one of our walks when he felt the need to walk into the thicket. Perhaps he fancied himself to be a jungle cat.
The Instigator
Floki is our resident fight instigator. Sure, all the cats will start fights occasionally but Floki excels at it. Often, Floki’s “victims” turn the table on him and he will cry for help. I’ll usually just look at him and say, “You started it so you get what you get.”
The video below shows Floki picking a fight with Chris who just wants to relax on the cat tree.
Do you have any instigators in your house?
Cat and Mouse and Cat
Perhaps Chris should be nicknamed “The Spoiler” for his ability to spoil a good time, especially if it is Frankie having a good time. Check out the video below of Frankie having fun with a catnip mouse.
You may also remember a similar incident a few years ago.
What Are We Going To Do About Puck?
Thursday evening I got home from work just before my wife and I helped her bring some of her stuff in the house. I had her bag with her laptop and other stuff as well as her lunch bag. I set the laptop bag on our bed and as I was walking out of our bedroom I noticed water on the floor. The water looked clear so I thought I spilled her Yeti cup but it was empty. Of course, it could have been empty because I spilled it.
The water looked clear so I thought I spilled her Yeti cup but it was empty. Of course, it could have been empty because I spilled it. I wiped up the water and smelled it but didn’t smell anything so it remained a mystery.
Early the next morning, around 3:30 or so, Rose got up to use the bathroom and let Puck in the bedroom on her return trip. Puck is fine in the bedroom, unlike Chris. He usually just sleeps at my feet. This particular morning he was a bit restless, moving from my feet to my head and eventually lying down somewhere in the middle, on top of my arm. Suddenly my had felt very hot and, in my half-awake state, I thought there was something wrong with Puck, like he was running a fever or something.
Then it hit me and I was fully awake instantaneously. I announced very loudly, “Puck is peeing on the bed!’ and then got up so fast I scared him away.
Now we had to get up and pull the sheets off the bed and wash them and put new sheets on. I also found more pee on our laminate floor. I wiped it up and this time I could smell it was pee.
Friday I came home to more pee on the floor and I even found poop on the living room floor, though I don’t remember when I found that. Puck’s problem has always been pooping outside the box, which we have not been able to stop, except briefly, for a couple of years. I was always grateful that he didn’t pee on the floor and the poop was always on the tile floor next to the box (except when he pooped on the couch).
Saturday morning I found pee on the floor in the living room. It was next to a table with a glass to that holds a large lamp. It was quite the pain to take it apart so I could clean the bottom of it.
I left a message on the Vet’s answering machine Friday evening to ask for a Saturday appointment. I called them just before they opened that morning and she said I could have an 8 a.m. appointment if I could get there in seven minutes. We walked through their doors at 8:00 exactly. Puck was not happy to be there and wouldn’t come out of his carrier.
The vet tech examined Puck in their secret back room lab and brought him back with the top off his carrier.
I picked him up and let him lie on my lap for a while but he was nervous and go off my lap so he could hide behind me.
The vet said they found some bacteria and crystals in his urine and gave him – you guessed it – steroids and antibiotics.
Some of you probably know that every time I bring a cat to the vet I make some kind of a joke about how I could be a vet if I only had steroids and antibiotics because all feline ailments are caused by a steroid and antibiotic deficiency. I joke about it but it is really kind of sad. We also got some Hills urinary canned for to try to help break up the crystals. Hopefully, that will help but nobody likes it much so perhaps not.
I cleaned one of the litter boxes later that day and put in fresh litter and put it in a different location. My thought was that he may be associating pain while peeing with the litter boxes and new litter and a new location might help. I also bought a refill for our Feliway plug in and plugged that in between the patio and living room.
It did help, at first. Puck peed in the box as soon as I poured the litter into it . . . then he peed on the floor two hours later.
I had a half-bottle of Dr. Elsey’s Cat Attract that I bought for Pucks pooping problem. It didn’t work for that but I put it in the boxes with hopes it would work for pee. It didn’t.
Now we are going to have to lock all our cats on the patio while we are at work. I hate to do that but if pee stays on our laminate floor all day it will ruin it. Also, maybe close proximity to the litter boxes will help.
Update: This morning, shortly after this post published, I woke up to find pee on the floor in the living room. I then found something worse. Despite the obstacles we keep in his way, Puck pooped and peed on our sofa. We keep a cover on it for the poop but the pee soaks through.
Photo Friday: I Told You There Was Room
Frankie is always in the bathroom when I take a shower. For some reason, he is fascinated by it but only as an observer, not as a participant.
The other day, after I got out of the shower, Frankie turned his attention to the linen closet. He got up on the toilet seat and opened the closet door for a peek inside. He looked up and down for a place to jump up onto but decided against it after seeing how full it was.
Chris had come into the bathroom as Frankie was pondering what to do. “Stand aside Frankie, I can fit in there,” Chris said, or at least implied, and proceeded to jump into the closet where he pushed stuff out of his way and forced his way inside enough so he could turn around. Even I was impressed.
Frankie just sat on the toilet seat and suddenly became a bystander in his own game.
My computer is having problems and is running very slow and freezing up so I posted this from my phone for only the second time ever. I don’t like doing that because I don’t have an app to reduce the resolution of my pictures so they will load quicker. Hopefully, nobody will have trouble viewing this post today.
Hanging Outside With Dad
Saturday is typically outside day for Chris and Frankie. I first take Frankie for a cat walk on his leash and harness and then I let Chris outside for some fresh air and grass.
Chris doesn’t require a harness because he generally stays close to home. I do watch him because he wanders off sometimes and I have to pick him up and bring him back. Mostly he just eats grass and relaxes.
I usually sit at our table outside and watch him. Sometimes he joins me at the table.
Sometimes I sit on the steps and he joins me there.
Other times he wanders to the back of the house and I have to uproot myself and follow him. I’ll sit on the blocks behind the shed and Chris will hang out with me there too.
I think we make a good team.
Update on Our Friendly Stray and Her Two Shy Kittens.
The stray cat and her kittens have become somewhat regulars at our house recently although their visits are still somewhat unpredictable. They seem to come between 6 p.m. and 7 a.m but some days I don’t see them and some days I do. When I do see them, sometimes it is just the mother. Other times there is one or both kittens with her.
I have learned that the mother is not feral and is actually quite friendly. The other day she even rolled upside down on top of my foot and let me rub her belly. It was very brief but It amazed me at how quickly she learned to trust me. She still hisses at me sometimes but that is usually when I come out with food. I think maybe she is not sure who I am at first.
I noticed one of the kittens has a darker face than the other. That one is shy but he does take risks while the lighter faced kitten stays in the shadows. The lighter faced kitten has a hint of tabby marking which makes her, or him, somewhat unique.
Below are a video and some pictures that I took Thursday morning. The kittens were here at 5:30 in the morning eating and then I noticed them an hour later playing on the other side of the house while the mom lied in the grass watching. Our cats watched too. They seemed just as comfortable at our neighbor’s house than at ours.
Notice the tabby stripes?
I wonder how the planter got knocked over.
I was late for work when this playing was going on which is wy the video is so brief but my wife says she was quite entertained watching them play for a while after I left.
This morning I was able to get another video that shows how friendly the mom is and I captured a funny moment when one of the kittens was torn between fear and hunger.
My wife talked to a person at the TNVR place and he said they only trap on the weekend and put us down for next weekend so cross your fingers that everything goes well. I just fear that we will catch one or two but not all three and that would leave that kitten alone and scared.
Photo Friday: I Think I’ll Rest Here
You just never know what to expect when you take a walk with Frankie.
Bad Cat Chris 