My 19 year old cat Cleo died on September 17th. I wrote a diary about it here.
My home didn’t feel the same without a kitty. I wanted to adopt another kitten I could love and raise as I did Cleo, so I recently adopted Marble a 6 month old kitten from a local pet rescue. She was born in Texas, and was transported to a rescue in Minnesota.
Marble has adjusted very well. She hid under my bed the first afternoon and evening, but that night I woke up at 3 AM with her curled up next to me. She uses the litter box, isn’t at all aggressive, is not afraid of people, and is very playful and active which is normal for a 6-7 month old kitten.
I have plenty of toys left over from Cleo. She likes toys she can bat around and chase such as balls and toy mice. She often produces her own entertainment just batting toys around and chasing them. If she accidentally bats a toy under furniture, she will spend time trying to figure out how to retrieve it. She also likes to play laser light and she enjoys toys such as this and this.
Her favorite activities are to curl up near me, play with her toys, race back and forth, and look out the window. She also likes her food and Temptations cat treats. The only things she doesn’t like are ear drops (more later) and the vacuum cleaner.
As with Cleo, I want Marble to have a happy and healthy life. I took Marble to the Vet shortly after adopting her. She is healthy. She is FELV/FIV negative. The Vet did find a couple minor issues. One is an ear infection that’s both bacterial and fungal in both ears. That means ear drops — Tresaderm. She is very squirmy and hard to medicate. My best friend has come over twice a day to help as it takes two of us one to hold her the other to administer the drops! I made the mistake of googling ear infections in cats and began reading about how ear infections can be a sign of a more serious health issue such as ear polyps or an ear tumor, but my Vet said nothing in her ear exam suggests that and she thinks this is a minor ear infection.
The only other issue is dental. There is a molar coming in that’s crowded and causing gingivitis. The Vet said her jaw may continue to grow which will solve the problem. If not, then that tooth would need to be extracted.
Other than that, the Veterinarian has no concerns and she is healthy!
I’m feeding her a combination of wet food and dry food. Right now, she’s being fed free choice with some dry food out all times but that will probably change when she’s no longer a kitten so she is not overweight which is what I did with Cleo. That is, unless she is able to be fed free choice and not be overweight.
I wanted to let Marble sleep with me but she is too active and I need my sleep so I shut my bedroom door at night. But that’s worked out fine. She just stays out in the main area until she hears me get up and then she’s waiting at the bedroom door. She does not meow at the door all night long as my neighbor’s cat does until she opens the door.
The one “normal” behavior issue I have is I don’t want her to go out in the garage. The above photo shows the kitchen area with the exit to the garage. She isn’t overly determined to go out there, but she has tried to follow me and seems curious what’s out there. Cleo was not. For that reason, I put her in my bedroom when I leave which I don’t want to do. I was given a few suggestions for how to prevent her from going into the garage but I’m not comfortable with either idea. One idea was to get a scat mat you can put places you don’t want a pet to go. It gives “harmless static correction” when the cat or dog steps on it. When I went to You Tube and watched videos, it showed cats jumping high in the air leading me to believe this may not be so harmless. I was also told about a device called SSS CAT which is a can of motion sensitive compressed air that will scare the cat away. But is that really harmless? What if it sprays in the cats eyes? Maybe that’s a question for a Veterinarian?
Has anyone used either of these devices? Are they harmless as advertised? Right now, I just do not feel comfortable using either device.
The only other idea I have is to put boxes in the kitchen. Also, I always shut the garage door before I enter! It’s possible I could prevent her from getting out there when I leave and return — she is not overly determined just curious. My fears could be overdone.
Thank you everyone!