Cat Lovers............... A question
 

I've had my cat forever and I know her attitude and routines. She has always been standoff-ish and not a lap cat. In the last month she has started walking around the house crying, jumping in my lap every chance she gets, laying next to me when I sleep, walking ON me and laying on me in the morning after my alarm goes off and following me around like it's my last day on earth. Anyone know what gives? The vet says she is healthy... she has fresh water, her favorite food, a clean litter box. I'm confused. There have been no changes around here to spark this behavior.:helpme

have you been gone alot lately??

Sounds like she needs to be put to sleep. Sorry but it is the only humane thing to do.

How old is she?

is she starting to drool?

maybe she's getting old and retarded..

Not sure where you live but here in So Cal it is already warm outside. And as soon as spring kicks in cat breeding season begins and some cats just tend to get crazy no matter what.

I have an eight year old female cat who has been fixed for the last seven years but she still acts almost like she is in heat every year about this time when the weather heats up.

My cat has been lying upside down in the play dead position in the middle of the living room floor every day.

And as of a couple days ago she has started to sleep in my dog's kennel/cage bed which is really odd. She is snuggling up in his smelly dog blanket in there and has been extremely affectionate to him, its hilarious. He is a mini pin and takes all this abuse from a this cat 1/3 his size.

I don't have an exact age on her, but she's not old enough to be having complications unless she was ill, but all of her tests came back fine.

I was asked if I've been gone a lot. I was in Vegas for 4 days back in January and then in SanDiego for 5 days last month, so I have not been gone more than normal. Although she has developed a habit of pissing on things the last two times I have gone away.

She is a 100% indoor cat so she doesn't have a clue about the weather. lol Since I'm in Florida, the inside temp is always sub-zero thanks to a kickin' AC.

doesnt matter, you left her twice in 3 months for a long period of time.

my grams cat (3 yrs old) just died...my gram went into ICU last week and the cat died 3 days later (the vets said Broken Heart).

Cats are VERY sensitive about being left alone when they are not used to it. They go into a panic mode. Just be affectionate with your cat , she'll be fine. :)

Dogs rule, cats drool!

My cat's been acting the same way.

It just means they're tuned in to the change in seasons and they're getting jittery.

Normal. And healthy, I might add.

I wouldn't worry about it... they do change as they get older. My cats did the same thing.
I have 2 that were very dodgy but they flipped over once they hit 5.
100% indoor too.

I don't believe animals just die of a broken heart.

Too hard a pill to swallow, my friend.

hmm well even though she's an indoor cat I still think they know when spring comes. Its a biological thing.

Seriously this time of year most cats just get nutty.

is kitty fixed? did she get out?

cause from your description, she sounds like she's preggers.

:( Thats sad.....
I'm guessing since you left for a few days ,she was lonely and showing you that she missed you and thought you were going to leave her again.

She is fixed.... no kittens on the way!

I also still don't understand why my two trips over the last few months would affect her. This has been my normal travel behavior for over 6 years. (Even Less Maybe). I appreciate the input everyone!

Sometimes cats will do that if YOU are sick.
They can sense things that we cannot.
Maybe you should get a checkup.

My two most elderly cats (and I mean old 19 and 16) both did this change in attitude thing within a few months before they passed. The oldest had always been my cat only.. very skiddish and always hidding from other people. She was ill and we knew it and were treating her for it, but most of it was typical old age illnesses. She would walk through the house crying very loudly, etc. She started craving even demanding attention from anyone and everyone. She passed in my arms a year ago January.

Her best friend, Blue, had partial kidney failure for many years and had pancreatitus before he passed last November. He was the other cat's best buddy. They slept curled up together most of his life. After she died, he changed completely. He'd always been a very loving cat, purring and rubbing on everyone who would let him, kneeding you with his front paws until you couldn't stand it anymore. He searched for his Princess for the entire 10 months until he went into a major seizure that the vets could not get him out of and I held him while they ended his life. His kidneys had held at a fine level for years before Princess died. After her death, he went downhill and there was no bringing him back. When he started the loud howling through the house several times a day I feared something was worse. Diagnosis was he likely had pancreatitus which is extremely painful in humans. If it's painful to humans, I'd expect it must be to cats also. Since you can't really ask a cat if he hurts, we put him on pain meds. It helped some. He bounced back a bit, but only to continue his search for his missing buddy.

My oldest cat now, Smokey, is 14. He's got gastritus and liver problems that we treat and monitor. He's become more of a grump as he got older, but when he started the howling a few months ago I went straight to the vet. Bloodwork showed some change in his levels and we changed treatment a bit. His howling continued. He also was urinating inappropriately. My vet put him on prozac each night and it has helped some. In reading about some of the meds he takes, I've decided that some of the howling may be due to the steriod, dexamethesone, that he takes.

Not sure if you vet would try a round of prozac with your cat or not. But if there are no clinical signs showing, then it's behavioral and prozac might help.

PK,

your story had me in tears :(

Me too to tell the truth.

One of the hazards of unconditional love from a pet, you love them back. Take care of them well and they are around so long that you can't remember when they weren't there.

I'm sorry to hear that. My cat Smokey just passed ... not sure from what It was brought on by declawing.. if you want to read it you can @ http://www.catforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=3828

Very sad read, Budz. I feel for you, honestly. You did what you could and that's all they ask of us. Did the docs ever come up with any final diagnosis? Did you opt for a necropsy to find out? My first thought was that there could have been complications brought on by the anesthesia.

nah, didn't find out why for sure.. which really bothers me.


I didn't even know about the necropsy for pets, I don't really think I would want that done, if its like they do to humans :(

Thanks for your thoughts.

When I was majoring in veterinary science, I worked at a vet clinic. We were called to a ranch because a horse refused to come out of the stable and just sat in the corner. He woudn't eat or budge. A lab work up showed absolutly nothing wrong. Chest and abdomen x-rays showed nothing abnormal. His owner, a 68 year old man who had the 16 year old mare from the time she was weaned had died of a heart attack 1 week before. He was with her almost everyday. After another week, she died.

I have seen many family members bring the surviving pets of deceased people into the clinic. Most showed no signs of illness or disease. Just a lethargic demeanor and no appetite. without medically intervening, most died.

It may not be a broken heart, but something definitly took away these animals will to live.

By the way, I work with rescued avians (wild and domestic) and there are certain parrots(usually the ones with larger brains that would in the wild, be affiliated with large social groups and routine) that also exhibit a desire to not eat or participate after a caretaker has died or given the bird up. Some of these birds die as well.

We found 'Mandalay', A 38 year old African grey Timneh, dead on the pillow next to her owner of 37 years, who had died of natural causes. His body was found 4 days after he died. The parrot had enough food and water in the house to have survived another month if she had wanted too.


Maybe they connect to us in more ways than we think....

maybe she just wanted to fel you, to know that you're near...somewhere

maybe she's in heat?

It was already posted that she's fixed. No heat.

the season ;)

I have one cat that if I even leave to go to the corner store, cries at the door when I leave. When I'm gone for a day or more, refuses to eat or drink, he just curls up somewhere and sleeps until I come home. When I went into the hospital for the baby, he lost weight, he frets and gets upset if he can't be near me, it's like, obnoxious. I could never get rid of him, and I have no doubt that if something happened to me, he would be dead in a week, maybe a month at most. When we went to Vegas he was a frantic wreck and wouldn't leave me alone for weeks.

Sometimes kitties realize how much they like having you around when you're gone a few times. Hopefully she's just fine and just wants to let you know she loves you :)

I love cats!

Enjoy the cat while it is seeking/wanting attention.

did this happen right after she found out you were bi-sexual?:Graucho

Yeah, my cat has been acting strange too. If I dont come home at night, she pisses on mi bed! I know shes a kitten, but this kinda shit is intolerable! WTF?