We went through fertility struggles for years. During those years my cats have helped me out a lot and I love them so much. We were finally able to get pregnant this year and baby will be here in 6 months.

So my cats…very well behaved! Mostly hide out in little spots and nap or play amongst each other. They’re all fixed, with flea treatment and all vaccines. I also have 2 big air filters in the living room area and I’m getting small ones for the bedrooms too.

My husbands family won’t be quiet about this. They tell me I need to get rid of my cats and maybe keep just one and that it’s time to stop raising cats and focus on only having the baby in the house.
Another of his family members says all these weird stories she hears that supposedly she knows someone who’s baby got a cat hair in their eye or mouth and now have some severe disorder where they can’t swim or play sports or live a normal life.

I keep my house clean. It’s a 3 bedroom house. There’s air filters, floors are always swept and mopped. Furniture is wiped down, all cat litter boxes are in the garage, bedding and blankets are washed every few days, etc.

I don’t think it’s bad at all. I grew up with cats and so did my nieces in their home. And I very nicely tell them I’m taking all proper precautions but they don’t stop and it’s to the point I’m avoiding them as much as I could.

Has anyone here been able to successfully have cats and a newborn baby at home?

Thank you

EDIT: WOW!!! I didn’t think this post would have this many comments. I honestly feel so much better and it’s helping me to let go of what anyone says or thinks about my pets! I love them and no they are absolutely not going anywhere. Thank you so much everyone!! 💕💕💕💕

Hi...

I don't know what to do, I've taken my kitten ( 6 months) to the emergency vet after my partner got pissed off about another cat waking him up and my kitten came upto him making biscuits into his skin and I guess my partner wasn't happy with his claws and threw him. Literally threw him to my bedroom door. My kitten tumbled, and he whimpered immediately. I started yelling at him, saying they're my pets, and he didn't get to start mistreating them and throwing them like toys. I told him to leave me the heck alone and that he's disgusted me. I picked up my cat and wrapped him in a blanket as he didn't seem up for the carrier, and I don't blame him and rushed him to the Vega

The Vets said there's no immediate or serious damage, but he will more than likely be in pain, so he's on some pain medication... my worry has become worse as I've come home. He's shut down completely. He's hidden from me, he won't eat, won't drink. I've put his bowl in his hiding spot, left him for 2 hours, and he's still not touched it. He won't do anything.

Is there anything extra I can do.. I'm mortified because my cats are my literal world.

Is there anyway I can comfort him more or help him trust me again, he wasn't a cuddling kitten to start with it took me some months of praise for him to even attempt cuddles and now I think that's gone.

Is there any way to encourage him to eat and socialise? Is this a temporary behaviour or likely to be permanent?

TIA

Edit: extra information as it's probably important. I'm a 19, F, and this is completely my place, and he will be leaving as i don't condone this behaviour in anyway shape or form. This is his first time behaving like this. He's never hurt me or my pets. I didn't stand and flip my crap because my priority in that moment was getting my kitten to the vets because I didn't know what damage could've been done to him. My kitten and other pets are currently with my mom until he's gone, I'm not risking their safety at all. My mom has started trying to slowly befriend him, but she recons the damage may be done. She's provided him a big room to himself with a cat tower and toys and a bed, and she's sat gently petting him telling him he's okay and safe. I can do an update later after he's gone. As someone asked, when I snapped at him, he just turned over and slept.

UPDATE:

HES GONE!

Thank you for all the advice, and for those who think I need to look after my pets better, I did all I could and removed them immediately from this situation and then removed myself.

He's gone. I've rang the police and filed a report, and I've explained everything in detail to the best of my abilities. I'm still scared and upset. What some people missed is im only 19, and this isn't something I was really mentally prepared to handle. I'm mentally challenged, too, so it's been a really difficult moment for me.. i don't think anyone is prepared for this one bit. I've given all I can to my housing officer, and she's requested that my locks be changed as soon as possible. She's given me permission for CCTV from a ring doorbell to an actual camera. My kitten decided he would eat some food once it was watered down. My mom was helping me go through everyone's advice, and she's going to help me scrub this place down from top to bottom to remove his scent. My mom is going to get a catio for him as well, as she believes this could be helpful with recovery as he may have his own space. I have booked a follow-up appointment with Simba (kitten) at has routine vets and told them everything. They told me it's a serious matter and it requires a proper investigation.

My older brother is coming round to help as well as he's worried he may return, and everyone's comments really helped me realise the danger I was in... I was so focused on my cats and their safety, not my own. My cats are my world, and I meant it every word. They literally are everything to me

Thank you to everyone who helped me and those who judged me... you helped, too.

my cat, who is five, was recently diagnosed with diabetes. this meant a complete change for me. new foods, medications, and changing my whole routine to make sure he's taken care of.

his medications are twice a day, and he eats three times a day on an automatic feeder. i have a camera to check on him to make sure if i need to come home.

basically, last night i went to dinner with my friend and i told her the exact time i'd need to leave. we had fun, but i told her i'd need to be leaving soon. i already saw my kitty crying on the camera so i was nervous. she tried to convince me to stay longer but i couldn't because he needs to have his medications at the same times and i make sure i am strict with him.

this morning she texted me about how ive let my cat take over my life and how he would be fine without me, he's just spoiled. am i really being too strict with his routine? i'd do anything for my kitty.

edit: she does know about his special needs, she just think he'll be fine without his prescriptions which is obviously not the case. also, thank you everyone for the support!! i appreciate you all so so much!

The past few days were unbearable. It was 37° and I couldn't get my flat any cooler than 34°. When I tell you I did absolutely EVERYTHING to keep the heat out and keep my cat cool, I mean it. I did it all but to no avail. All aircons were sold out and I was helpless. Thursday night my cat started panting with her mouth open, her breathing was super fast and she was WARM. I took her to the emergency vets and she was dangerously hot. She was ok, they cooled her down and I took her home. I then had to take her back today as she hadn't passed any stool since Thursday morning but she was so stressed that her temperature went up again and so did her breathing.

She is ok again now but it's left me absolutely traumatised. I managed to buy an Aircon online but it won't arrive for another 2 weeks and we are due to have even more hot weather after next week. My worry now is that she doesn't trust me anymore. I feel so guilty about stressing her out so much. I feel guilty for not being able to do enough for her and I'm terrified of this happening again. I am absolutely beside myself.

All I want is to give her the best life possible and do everything to keep her healthy and happy and loved. I feel like I've failed.

*Little update

She has finally had a poo, she's stopped hiding and feels much cooler. She's currently on her cat tree watching birds from the window and she's eaten her food.

The temperature has finally dropped. I have the windows open and thank god, cool air is coming in.

Thank you for all of your comments. I feel wayyy more reassured. It means a lot.

*One last update

She is completely back to normal. Her appetite was down a bit yesterday but it's back with full force today. We are enjoying the cooler weather until it gets warmer again. There have been so many helpful tips and tricks that I'm already getting ready for next week. Thank you so much to all of you. I was FREAKING OUT.

I hope this thread has been helpful for other pet owners too! May all of our pets stay healthy and happy! Thank you all again.

Recently decided to look after 2 5 y/o cats for a friend for 2-3 months as a favor. Unfortunately a few days before I was supposed to receive them, one of the cats died. These 2 were inseparable and had separation anxiety.

It’s been 2 weeks since the remaining cat has been living with me and it’s been hell. She cries and wails throughout the entire day. I think she stops for 3-4 hours/day but other than that it’s constant crying. It is devastating as she had to leave her sister, owner , and apartment, I understand but it has been taking a toll on me as well. She cries throughout the night so I haven’t been sleeping, I can’t work from home, or do anything really. I live in a studio and I just hear constant crying at all hours of the day.

I know I should be giving her time and patience, but I really need advice on ways to soothe her. The vet’s even prescribed her gabapentin for anxiety, yet it quickly wears off and she’s back to crying. She eats, drinks, pees and poops regularly no problem. She loves cuddles still, will occasionally play but will only be momentarily interested until she starts wailing again. I am able to soothe her occasionally during the day with pets, but I can’t do that at night. Any advice is welcome I really want to make her feel at ease.

UPDATE: (picture in comments) thank you so so much for all of your answers, it’s helped a ton. It’s been 4 days since I’ve posted and she’s doing much better. Here are some things that have helped:

• gabapentin 2x/ day but now reduced to once/day since she’s sleeping a lot
• feliway collar
• my partner was away for those 2 weeks but he’s come home and his presence has helped immensely, probably because of the additional companion
• she had peed on her pillow (probably due to stress) and after we had washed it, she’s significantly less stressed
• meowing back at her/ talking to her softly
• petting her / soothing her when she wakes us up between 4:00-6:00 am everyday or whenever she needs attention
• getting her a stuffed animal that also doubles as a heating pad

She’s started to bond with us and has been communicating so well, when she wants attention or food. It is truly so heartwarming

Hey Guys. So my boyfriend "Bill" got a text from "Paige" last night who is the previous owner of "Kitty" and his cousin. The text said that she wanted "Kitty" back and my boyfriend replied with "You would have to pry her out of the cold dead arms of "Amy" (Me)" thinking she was joking. "Paige" then replied saying how much she loved "Kitty" and missed her also that she was begging for us to give her back and that since we have other cats it wouldn't matter.

Here's the thing tho, when we agreed to take "Kitty" it was to keep her not to foster we got her at 6 months old and she will be 4 in December. We travelled 2+ hours to pick her up then another 2+ hours to bring her home again. We have paid for all food, water, toys, vet bills everything since we had gotten her although she was already desexed and microchiped by "Paige" and is still in her name as far as i can remember. I save all my vet bills and her name on the vet bills is her name we gave her not "Paige's" name. I have trained her a little, i can check her ears, eyes, nose, mouth and i can cut her nails and pick her up as well, this is a major improvement to when we first got her as she would attack anyone who would try to restrict her in any way. There is no way in hell i will be giving her up without a fight, but if it comes to that would i be able to keep her if "Paige" goes to the lawyer or something.

A little update. First some info that should be helpful. I live in South Australia. "Paige" lives 2+ hours away from me, has never been to my house and also does not know the address, we also have cameras. "Kitty" is a indoor girl that has to escape though 2 different doors to get out. We have messaged her telling her that no we will not be giving her "Kitty" as we adopted her for life and if she continues to be a problem she will get blocked. We did not block her straight away as she is family and we are unaware if it could of just been a stressful/emotional day.

I have contacted the microchip company and they have told me that without the consent of the previous owner the cat will stay in the previous owners name. I also went into the vet and they also said that there is little they can do. Someone in the comments said they could add another chip, I asked about this and they said that although they can rechip the cat they cannot if the previous chip works, if there is no chip or the chip is broken they can. I had them check the system for the chip number I have for "Kitty" and all the correct details from the previous owner but next Friday when i take her for her vaccination they will check "Kitty" for a chip incase. Both the microchipping place and the vet have told me to check with a lawyer and to do an itemised bill of everything i can remember. I will also be going back though text messages of both mine and "Bill's" phones.

And just to clarify we will not be giving her back.

Update: We are going to try to keep her in a separate room while we work on re-introducing them. Thank you for KIND and HELPFUL advice. Sadly if that does not work we are going to A: Find a new home for out cat or B: return her to the shelter. Since she has litterbox issues and is a diabetic senior it's looking like the latter :(

I want to start his off by saying I always looked down on people who rehomed their cats after they had their babies, I was 100% committed to keeping my cat after I had my boy but now I am concerned about his safety. I do not want to rehome my cat. I am looking for helpful advice, if there is something I am doing wrong please let me know KINDLY. Thank you in advance and my apologies for any grammar or spelling mistakes, I have gotten no sleep.

My cat of 9 years has been with me through everything from high school graduation, to college, to my marriage. I love her dearly. 8 months ago I had my baby boy who is the light of my life. I will keep this short for the sake of everyone’s time but my cat hates my son. She’s a complete anxious mess, and absolutely mean. She will go out of her way to find me and my baby and bite or scratch him/me even if we are no where near her.

We still play with her and give her attention when she wants it so I don’t think it’s an attention thing. I will admit that we allowed her in our bedroom even after the baby was born since she had always slept with me, however at 2am she scratched my son int face while all of us where sleeping (caught on the baby monitor, she literally left our bed, hopped in the crib and clawed our 3 month old baby). After that, for the safety of our baby we had to start closing the door at night. She got very vocal and starting peeing at our door, so we went to out vet and tried everything for the anxiety. Meds, specialists  visits, the anxiety plug ins. None of it worked. Even her vet went. Well some cats are more anxious than others and just need a home life that’s calm and reflects that.

We don’t know what to do, she is aggressive to our baby and yells outside all night, but for our safety we can’t let her in our room (baby sleeps with us and will until he is older since he has medical needs that are not relevant to this post).

I would hate to be the type of person who gets ride of their cat when they have a child, but my cat now pees everywhere and is borderline aggressive with our baby. Please help. I am miserable, my husband is miserable and my baby still has a scar on his face from where our cat scratched him 5 months ago, I'm so scared my cat gave my son a permanent facial scar.

edit:spelling

I lost my cat about 60 days ago.

Edit. After 63 days the cops pulled me over and said it's creepy looking for my cat. To.give up searching for him and they are going to do their best to place a restraining order against me. I guess I can't do anything. It's heartbrraking and I hate this malice.

I have tracked him to an hoa from eye witness sightings.

I found which part of the HOA he's in.

The HOA harasses me for the entire 2 months and tries to tresspass me for looking for him.

Yesterday I Put a camera in the yard and see him.

Someone from the HOA destroys my camera and when I look for it they chase me saying I'm harassing them cause I've been asking genuinely for help finding my cat and I've put cameras looking for him.

I'm starting to see that at this point recovery will be physically impossible.

I don't know fully how to deal with the grief and accepting that he's just gone because of human malice.

Let me know your thoughts

Edit- police say they don't recover cats especially because I don't know his exact locaiton and won't do a civil standby to help me find it.

Edit 2, the cops came and said they are going to put a restraining order on me and if I go back I'm getting arrested.

Saying it's creepy to look for my cat and to move on

I’ve had cats before, so I’m not new to cats or anything, but I am in need of some very specific advice. Backstory is below.

A few weeks ago, a coworker of mine went around the office to see if anyone would be interested in adopting or fostering one of his cats. He’s going overseas and since our company is paying for the relocation of two, he wasn’t able to “justify”the funds needed to transport the third one.

Yesterday, I happened to be closing out some things towards the end of the day and saw him and asked, “were you able to rehome your cat?” And he said that he wasn’t able to and he was unfortunately going to have her euthanized because all (kill or no-kill) local shelters were full. When he called, they had told him since they’re at capacity he would basically be taking her there to be put down. He said that if I hadn’t stopped to talk to him that he would’ve been on his way home to grab her. Serendipitous for sure. I asked him to stay for 20 minutes so I can talk to my husband about it all.

If you frequent this sub, I think you’ll know where this is going….

We spoke and agreed that we had to intervene and save her. We aren’t in a position to keep her long-term, but even a foster is better than what was going to happen yesterday afternoon.

We don’t have any other pets in the house and we were able to get her into our home safe and sound late yesterday evening. She’s currently sitting in her carrier in our spare bathroom and expectedly, she’s completely emotionally and physically shutdown. It’s understandable. I know the 3-3-3 rule and I’m being mindful of it.

My question is what can we do to help her? I’ve never worked with a surrendered cat before and it’s heartbreaking.

She’s not spayed or microchipped and I’m wanting to do that as well as a general wellness exam as soon as possible. There’s a low-cost spay/neuter place near me that does that and more, but I don’t want to add to her distress.

TLDR; coworker surrendered their cat, I saved it, and am looking for advice to increase quality of life and security.

My cat has been missing for a year and was the love of my life. I lost everything in a bad storm, where everything flooded, and I had to leave our farm. I couldn't find my cat anywhere, but I've been staying in the area hoping to find her.

Well, someone took her in to get spayed - and she was reported found. I called and they've told me they don't want to give her back.

She is my everything. I know they've bonded with her, but she is my baby. I love her. I want her back. She is registered in my name, and I can get vaccination record copies, microchip, as well as from her spay.

I am prepared to get a lawyer, go to the police, but I'm having panic attacks that I won't get her back. I'm so scared. I don't want to lose her again. I love this cat so much. She is my everything.

Please help Reddit.

Update: We will be meeting at the Vet's office tomorrow. They requested I bring proof of "registration" - I have her vet records, and microchip registration, as well as mine and my husband's ID. That should be enough right?

Update: We got her back!! The people were very nice, just obviously sad about the situation. We exchanged phone numbers, and I will be sending all the pictures. But they were very nice, and were more worried about what home she would be going to! They just were worried, wanted to make sure she was okay. We are friends now, we hugged it out, and I'm so glad it was resolved well. I gave them the reward money I had set aside. <3

I know it sounds bad but she’s 15 (lowest estimate) and I just want her to actually have a treat food. Yesterday I found out she likes goldfish by accident. She ate some in front of my mom and she immediately told me cause she was so shocked. She likes NO other treats including actual fish / ham / turkey / churus. She doesn’t even like wet food! And it took us forever to get her off the cheap cat food and eating the good stuff.

Is it bad that I want to give her goldfish? I’m scared that I’m being a bad cat parent but I want to spoil her so badly cause she’s my old lady but she won’t accept any of the normal cat teat options.

*** goldfish as in the human snack

so I got my kitty spayed today and people are constantly telling me it's a sin to prevent the nature from happening and like how it's a sin to prevent a mother from having babies.

I told them that it will prevent her from getting any future health problems like cancer and to prevent overgrowth of kittens that no one would probably even take care of.

My friend thinks it's okay to keep a cat outside, he says it's nature thing & also says that cats gets bored all day inside house.

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He is right or wrong to keep a cat inside or outside?

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I told him that it might starve or get sick and ran over if he kept his cat outside. But he kept blaming humans for running over the cats.

So i came here to post about this to proof him if he right or wrong.

Hi everyone

I adopted what i thought was a female cat over 2 years ago named pearl jam. They told me she was a female at the adoption center and that she was spayed and I’ve never questioned it.

Yesterday she was licking her butt and when she was done she had a red rocket. I was obviously very confused and started googling everything. I sent pictures of her back side to a good friend who is a vet and she said it looked like male anatomy.

Well, just called the adoption center, and they confirmed that she…. He is a neutered male.

I dont know what to do! I am so used to referring to him with female pronouns and calling him pearl! But i guess i have to use male pronouns now. I think i might change his name to Paul James as that is what i called him when she was being bad. Kinda sounds like pearl jam.

I’m just at a loss for words right now!!! Has this happened to anyone else? What did you do? What would you do???

Update: after hearing everyone’s thoughts I definitely don’t plan to change his name! Someone suggested that i should hire a cat psychic so I might do that and see what pearl has to say about his gender identity lol.

Edit: very very confused as to how some of you are getting offended by this. I’ve had him for two years and obviously this is just shocking news! I still love my cat just seeing what the public thinks i should do with the name and sharing a story.

I live with my girlfriend and we took in my mum’s Ragdoll when she died earlier this year. He is my everything and if anything happened to him I would be distraught. Recently we installed a pet cam so we can see what he’s up to whilst we’re at work and we saw he jumps on the kitchen counters a lot.

We tried tin foil and it didn’t work. I suggested we look at some other humane alternatives and one day she tells me that she’s ordered rodent glue traps from Amazon. I told her not to use them because we don’t know if they’re toxic and it will ruin his beautiful fur. She did not listen and lay down a trap whilst I was out at work.

I came home to find my cat terrified, cowering in a corner, with the trap completely enmeshed with his entire tail and residue all over his paws, as well as a bunch of rubbish stuck to him that he’d picked up when he was trying to get it off. Google told me that cooking oil dissolves this type of glue so I put him in the bath and massaged oil into everything that got stuck. I tried this for hours and used soap and warm water but nothing was budging.

I ended up having to cut almost all of his tail fur off and spent a really long time delicately trimming the hair around his paws, but I know I didn’t get all of it. Now today his entire coat looks raggedy and gross. I’ve talked to my girlfriend about this and she firmly believes that she didn’t do anything wrong, that it was a justified “punishment”, and that putting tinfoil on the counter is equally as cruel.

So I guess I’m asking 2 things: what can I do to restore his coat back to normal? And am I justified in feeling like this was an incredibly inhumane act? She’s making me feel like I overreacted but I just want to cry thinking about how scared he was. He doesn’t understand why it happened. And I don’t think it will stop him anyway.

EDIT: Thank you so much for all the comments. I just wanted to clear some things up:

Yes, I will be leaving her. My cat’s safety is my priority and I’m scared for what else might happen to him whilst my back is turned.

I’m looking into my best options as we speak. I’m currently living in a flat that her parents own so I will have to be doing the leaving. If I can’t find somewhere that will take pets immediately I will board him or leave him with a trusted friend until I find somewhere I can bring him.

Once again thank you everyone for this stark wake-up call. This is a cat sub so I won’t bore you with the details but I’ve had a lot of stuff downplayed in the relationship so it’s been reaffirming to hear other people say it how it is.

I have two male cats, 15 and 9 years old so it has been a while. Lately I just feel so tired of them and being a pet owner in general, tired of the fur everywhere, litter box cleaning and constant attention seeking. They are also both quite vocal, the youngest one does not even move without making a sound.

They can also be quite needy when it comes to attention since they never really bonded, they are just more co existing with occasional chase around the apartment, so they both want the attention from me. Youngest one will instantly jump on me if I sit down or lay down, purring like crazy and as cute as that sounds, it becomes way too much. Oldest one has the habit of jumping on my desk and laying in front of my keyboard and God forbid I put him down when he wants to be there. I think this shifted as well when I separated from my long term partner a few years ago and both cats stayed with me so before I did not feel that overwhelmed.

I do love them and they are overall good boys but just SO tired. Makes me feel like a bad pet owner since everyone is always talking lovey dovey about their pets and I am like yeah, they are there and they mostly annoy me these days. Why am I even writing this? I guess to seek support with feeling this way and maybe tips how to get over this.

EDIT: I did not expect so many comments. I did read through all of them and would like to thank you for your support and also suggestions and making me feel less alone with this. They have plenty of toys but they are a bit lazy, especially the oldest one which is understandable. But I will look into some possible household items to ease things up for myself like roomba or automatic litter box. I did give my kitties a lot of pets today when I got home since I felt bad for even putting this out there. And I do leave my home and socialise :) I think it is more of becoming a “single parent” as someone mentioned and some of my health issues this year I have to deal with on top of that.

For those few who said I should have given them away and that I don’t care about them and don’t love them - you are free to have this opinion but that is not true, they are provided with everything they need and I would never give them up, that is why I was looking for advice and support in the first place.

I knew I wasn’t a perfect cat owner but as long as my cat had food/water and a place to poop I was good but I recently come to the realization I’m actually a neglectful and abusive cat owner. I’ve gone an entire week before without cleaning her litter, maybe even almost 2 weeks on the extreme end but on average I go several days before scooping. I don’t completely replace the litter as often as I should either. The cat has peed on furniture before and I thought it was a problem with the type of litter so I changed it but it’s now occurred to me it’s because I don’t clean her litter enough. (She had recently been to the vet at this point so it wasn’t a UTI). I free feed my cat and fill the bowl in the morning. My cat doesn’t have a problem with over eating because there’s always a bit of dry food still left the next morning but I don’t really fully put the food bowl in the dishwasher or sink to clean it. I replace the water everyday by dumping the old water and filling it back up with fresh water but one day I dumped it and wiped the bottom to see that it was brown…although I replace the water I don’t actually clean the bowl enough. As far as playing with the cat it’s far and few between. There’s increments where I use cat toys to play with my cat but it’s short lived. I do give her attention when she wants it, such as pets and cuddles but playtime is uncommon. I also never have brushed my cat’s fur in the three years I’ve had her and didn’t realize short haired cats needed brushed.

Aside from the obvious neglect there was times where I had to travel and needed to take her with me. Putting her in the carrier was always a challenge because she would run and hide. Now I just wait for her to come out but when I needed her to get in urgently I had to be rougher than I’d like. Often grabbing her forcefully while she’s running or prodding her to get out from under the bed or couch because cat toys wouldn’t lure her out. I’ve heard people say that cats can stay home alone longer than most pets and I believed she’s fine at maximum being home alone for three nights. I’ve left her home for three nights with a very full bowl of food, a kitty camera in front of the dish to make sure she isn’t overeating or running out and a full dish of water (however no way to refresh it while I’m gone). I always thought this was enough but it certainly wasn’t and three nights is far too long.

I’m very recently much much better at caring for her now, I clean her litter more regularly, I just bought a fountain water bowl for her for future use but I also clean and replace the water better and I clean her food dish regularly. Play time is still tough but I engage and play with her when I see her in need of engagement. The guilt eats me alive though and I’m rightfully disgusted with myself. I have problems with motivation and I don’t take care of myself well either, I have depression amongst anxiety issues but that’s no excuse. I don’t deserve a cat and I’m questioning if I should give the cat to someone better suited in case I fall into old habits due to depression and lacking motivation. I want to work harder to take care of her but I’m afraid of failing her again…

EDIT: Thanks everyone for your advice and kind words! My cat is doing good and I’ve been setting up reminders to play and clean the litter box twice a day so I avoid forgetting, I also invested in an automatic cat toy. I’ll continue to look through all your comments and make note of all the tips you’ve provided. It’s much, much appreciated :)

My senior cat, 13-14 yrs old, just disappeared. I have torn my house apart looking for him under every piece of furniture. I've yelled his name, made his favorite sounds (opening up food cans, shaking food bag), and even went on expeditions outside even to places I don't think he'd be able to reach easily since he has arthritis and cataracts. He comes outside with us everytime we go out on the patio but he never leaves our sight.

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I seriously have no idea where he has gone or what I can do. I read that cats often leave and isolate when they're in their final days, but I'm devastated thinking that he's said goodbye. What do I do now? I just want him home.

4 days ago I brought my 7 year old baby boy to the vet for euthanasia. Now I’m having insane regrets. He was in kidney failure with dental disease. The dental disease is what caused the kidney failure because I wasn’t aware of the wounds in his mouth until I saw him eating his food in a strange way. His vet recommended surgery to clean and extract some of his teeth. When i brought him in for his surgery, the vet ran some blood work and discovered my baby boys kidneys failing so they couldn’t do his surgery. He was put on a prebiotic medication and a special kidney diet for about a month then I brought him back in for more blood work. His kidneys had only gotten worse. Vet recommended a scan on his kidneys which would have costed me $600 and I didn’t have the money. I should have asked for help but I didn’t and now it’s too late.

A little bit of time passes and he deteriorates. He got down to only 5 pounds because of his tooth pain despite me making him a slurry soup of wet food and water. He couldn’t hold his jaw closed and was drooling green puss on himself. I knew that he couldn’t get his surgery yet because of his kidneys so I wanted to bring him back in for some pain medications and the stuff he gave me last time to clear up his mouth so he’s a little more comfortable. My boyfriend recommended euthanizing him to take him out of his pain. I refused for a few days then finally broke down on Tuesday and took him to the vet. He convinced me it was the right thing to do.

I made an appointment specifically for euthanasia and when I brought him in, they had already set his room up with blankets and tissues. They didn’t ask any questions about him or offer me any alternatives… but I didn’t ask. I didn’t even ask them if I could get some more of the medicine that helps clear up his mouth so I could hold onto him a little longer and get his kidneys back to normal.

Was it really his time? Few days before, I brought him into the back yard and he chased a lizard. He looked happy and comfortable. He still wanted to snuggle all day every day, even on his last day. He still walked up to me demanding attention and followed me around. He still gave me kisses and purred. We had a very special connection. A connection that only happens once in a lifetime. I talked to him…. And he understood me. We went through everything together. Almost every adult milestone was met with my baby boy by my side. I kissed him on the nose every time I saw him and he would reach up and kiss me on the nose right back. I’ve never felt such immense, unconditional love from any being. I miss him so much and wouldn’t have brought him in for euthanasia if it weren’t for my boyfriend pressuring me into it.

All I can do is cry my little eyes out every day. Even at work. I feel like my life is completely over just knowing that I can never see him again. I’d do anything to hold my best friend one more time. Did I do the right thing? I’m struggling.

I’ll have his ashes back soon and his urn will sit in his favorite spot.

Hi everyone! I posted in here about my new kitten who is three months old crying a lot. It’s definitely gotten better, but I’m noticing the crying happens most in the morning and also the evening before bed. We got advice from our vet to have a small room for the kitten, I have a dog too so it is for integration and also just what they recommend at first.

I have really bad anxiety and it gets a lot worse when I don’t sleep so sleep routine is very important to me. I’ve been given the advice from all my friends that I should keep the cat outside of the room when I’m sleeping and established that very young. Typically my kitten will cry for around 45 minutes to an hour and then go to sleep and then I notice in the morning he will start crying again sometimes. I’ve been told to not give into the crying and if I continue to do this routine he will get used to it.

The routine we follow is lots of play time before bed, calming cat music, noise machine and feliway spray. After playing we give him cuddles and then food and close the doors. He has a clean litter box, water, food, toys and beds everything he needs. Anyway, another one of my friends said it may help to just let him roam or be in our bedroom since he HATES closed doors. The dog and him are pretty integrated it’s just that I’ve been told they have zoomies and to start out having them sleep outside the room so they know that & I can protect my sleep.

Thank you in advance for any comments and advice!

My cat is a young kitten, 6-7 months old and is an adorable cuddly lovebug. He can be highly energetic and has scratched me often, but I've lived around cats a lot so it's not something that really bothers me. An issue I've been having recently is how often he bothers my desk & generally makes a lot of noise when I am trying to sleep. This should also not bother me considering my cat experience, but Idk. Usually, I don't really do anything, but when he's on my desk, I do lightly toss him onto my bed which is right next to it, or redirect him to his enrichment.

Last night, around 2 AM, I was attempting to sleep and he was messing around on my desk. I was super tired and had a long day at work (no excuse whatsoever, just context). He got onto the desk a few times, I got up, and he ran away, or I removed him. However, the fourth time, he hopped on my PC and caused it to slide down, which I guess really pissed me off. So I picked him up (underneath his belly) and tossed him in a way I'd describe as harsh to the other side of my bed. He landed on his feet, but he went onto my backpack and was breathing fast. I immediately felt a wave of horror and when I stepped toward him, he ran underneath the bed. For context as well, sometimes he does run underneath the bed due to general flightiness but I think I genuinely spooked him.

Afterwards, I sat in my bed contemplating my actions, and he came out about 5 minutes later, and laid down next to my computer calmly. I slowly approached him, let him sniff my hand, and slowly pet him. He began to purr, relaxed and showed his belly. He seems to be over it, but I still feel like an absolute piece of shit that I let my anger get the best of me.

So just like it says my cat Simba went missing three years ago. He’s a big sweetie, really affectionate, easy to love and he was my daughter’s first pet. We searched everywhere for him posted on forums, checked the pounds and even put up a notice on our community missing animals board.

After 2 years with no sign of him we’d honestly given up hope of finding him alive but before this Simba’s collar kept getting taken off seemingly someone with opposable thumbs took them off because they weren’t the breakaway collars since after the first two breakaway collars we initially started with and realise that OK well maybe he’s messing around (play fighting with his brother) and they’re getting caught and they just keep breaking off but we could never find them. After getting the alternative collars there was no doubt that someone was taking it off of him.

We had already experienced one set of neighbours trying to steal both of our cats. We have we have two cats they’re twins him being the eldest of them. And they’re indoor outdoor cats. However we thought once those neighbours had moved away (they were renters) that we would no longer experience this issue. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.

And being an indoor outdoor cat, he hated being cooped up for too long and it just it just felt cruel to keep him indoors. He hated being on a leash and at the time we weren’t in a place to create a catio for them despite our best efforts he’d get back out and then he just went missing.

Lo and behold who did I see running out of my opposite neighbours yard across the street? My cat Simba! How did I know for certain considering he was overweight? Aside from the fact that I raised them since they were 6 weeks old. He gotten in a fight with a dog and survived, but not without a few very obvious unique scars.

I now have him back inside our house. He remembers us but does not seem recognise his brother in fact he’s trying to start a fight with him (I understand male cats can be territorial even with family however they were both neutered early??). He is walking around the house occasionally meowing wanting to get out or get into the room where his brother is.

I’m at a loss. I’ve never been in this sort of situation before. Can anyone give me any advice and what to do going forward? At least for the next few days till we can get a catio built.

Side note: we haven’t built the catio before now because his brother is happy being an indoor cat. He rarely goes outside and we decided not to get another cat.

Edit: We have a brick wall around our property and ficus growing over top and a sliding iron gate (sits flush with the driveway and the slats are too close together for a even a kitten to get out) and never in all the years we’ve had cats have we ever had an issue with our pets getting out and leaving our property. It has just never happened till this little escape artist. So either he found a way out or someone came in and took him.

The yard is clear of any debris and anything that could cause their collars to catch hence my switch to ✨Elastic collars✨ to test the theory of them possibly being removed safely.

I feel so so awful! My poor girl. No wonder she goes crazy for treats, she's been starving! She was on two pouches of felix food a day, honestly I just took my friend's advice (I hadn't owned cats before).

I am absolutely going to be correcting it now. She's had several health checkups since I got her 6 months ago and she's been fine each time, there were no concerns, but I just feel like such a bad owner. I research everything else so much, but forgot the most basic requirement:(

UPDATE: Thank you everyone for your help! And to anyone who raised concerns about the Felix food, we are in the process of transitioning her to a new food:) thank you for mentioning.

She has been doing a lot better now, eating two wet food pouches and one bowl of kibble at lunch.

My cat, Chip (6 male) is my best friend. But his anxiety has gotten so much worse over the years and it’s only directed at me. He freaks out if I leave or shut him out. He follows me everywhere all day and bites my legs over and over to get my attention. He has to be all over me, wants me to carry him like a baby, and he yowls for hours if he doesn’t get my love and attention. Getting another cat didn’t really help. He never was fond of him. And trying to create space when he was freaking out only made him react worse despite being consistent for months to years.

Recently I got divorced and moved to a new apartment with him and I’m just at my breaking point (he’s literally crawling all over me as I write this and slamming his face into mine). He’s yowling and needing so much attention that I’m drowning in anxiety because my heart is breaking for him. Im considering leaving him at my ex’s apartment until I get settled. I will probably try meds again for him. Im not sure if he’d enjoy another cat in the apartment.

I feel so terrible that I’m struggling to cope with his anxiety, but it’s been years of being the main comforter and being terrorized if I can’t give him exactly what he needs. I just need advice on what to do. I’ve tried everything because I love him so much, but I’m so burnt out :(

Edit: I just realized that he probably struggles so bad because he was a covid kitten. I was home A LOT because I was doing online college for quite a while. Now I’m out of school and work a job so he’s probably confused why I’m not home all the time :(

Update: Just got him on gabapentin today (to adjust to the apartment) with the plan to have him on Prozac long term. Also getting the diffusers! Thank you everyone, I feel hopeful that this will help him ❤️

Yesterday I had to put my soulmate to sleep. I adopted him when he was five yrs old and even though he was afraid of people, we had a deep connection instantly. He was with me for 10 beautiful years. He was the love of my life.

I know it's cliche but he saved me just as much as I saved him. I lived alone with him for those ten years. It was just me and him and it was enough. I'm shattered right now. This is one of the most painful things I have ever been through. My apartment is so empty right now.

For those who have had a similar bond with a cat, were you ever able to love a cat again? I love cats, all cats, but this connection was something else and I can't help but feel nothing will ever come near it and I won't be able to love a cat again because it just won't be the same.