Kitten hell

[CountAllVotes]

my friends!

A slight update here on the kittens that were adopted about two mos. ago (now five months old).

It seems that all of the other kittens I've had in the past had one thing in common: They were all sick, sick as can be and close to death. They never played a whole lot except for the Maine Coon I had for a couple of years.

Well, the ones I have now go at it non-stop 24/7 if they can manage it!

Yesterday was the "icing in the cake". Mr. CAV was really PISSED when he found that the two little kittens (now about 5 lbs. each!) had managed to pry the molding off of the Pergo floor in the kitchen! YIKES! Mr. CAV managed with his fine carpentry skills and one eye to fix this nightmare of a problem by screwing said molding back on to the wall itself. YIKES again!

As for the kittens, they go on and on all day. They jump at Queen Jules at every chance and she slaps them around now and then and is pretty bristled up most of the time.

We are still separating them at night, Queen Jules in one room with me and the two kittens in the other room w/food and litter box and Mr. CAV.

This has been going on for two months now and I wonder, when if ever will it end?

I ran into a woman at the store and she advised me to "let them outside". I told her no, they were too young and it is very cold (freezing here right now) and they have very little fur which is quite strange IMO. It could be they have part of one of those hairless cats in them is what I think because their fur is very short, so short you can barely run a comb through it!

I'd post a new picture of the dynamic duo but I cannot manage to get a picture of them together where they'll stand still for a minute so I can snap one. Will keep trying though.

I think I'm going to go crazy! and yes, I mean that!

Poor Jules ... how she manages to deal with this is beyond me.

Sheesh, never thought about the possibility of actually adopting a cat/kitten that was not sick. I never knew what I was in for it seems ...

Advice anyone? Will take any/all I can find at this point as Mr. CAV was pretty darn p/o'd yesterday and his older brother passed away the day after Thanksgiving (so two of his brothers have died of cancer in a month) and he is not in the mood for this I'm knowing, not guessing.

Thanks for your help/advice my friends!

[Curmudgeoness]

1. I am sure that you already have lots of toys for them.

And scratching posts. And you play with them with the toys a lot.

I cannot help a lot, since I have only adopted older cats and have also not dealt with kittens (and what you are dealing with is one of the reasons that I prefer older cats, although it does mean that you lose them sooner and that is hard).

It seems that you might have to spend more time trying to wear them out, and if you have no more time, you might have to find a place to confine them where they cannot do damage to things that matter. I would also discourage them from playing with anything that they can damage, and there are a lot of techniques to use for that. Me, I yell a lot....but I don't think that is helpful. I have also used a loud noise to scare them away from things. I tried a spray bottle of water with a long stream that would squirt them. But all of these things only work when you can catch the buggers doing something that they should not be doing, and I don't know how much they worked. If they go near the molding again, you might try putting aluminum foil on it, because cats do not like that...at least most cats don't.

I have no other ideas at this time, because kittens will be kittens. I know that I have had a one-year old cat before, and he was over the worst of the mischief stage by then. When they wear down, though, I don't know----and I can tell that you do not want to wait a year for this to end.

I am very sorry that Mr. CAV has lost two brothers in such a short time. I am sure that he is having problems just dealing with that, without any other crises in his life. Get him to play with the kitties---it always makes me feel better and it can help wear those troublemakers down.

[CountAllVotes]

2. I could hardly move last night

It was because I was really sore from playing with them all day on/off, tossing around toys etc. Will get me in better shape if nothing else!

I have an old scratching post in the garage that my late father made for my last BIG cat that used to drag that thing across the room and back. It must weigh about 20+ lbs.

Maybe I'll bring that into the other room and let them check it out.

They are healthy and not sick. Who would have ever thought of that to be a "problem"?

Thanks for the aluminum foil idea -- never heard of that one before and will give it a try.

They aren't clawing anything up. They are just getting into everything possible.

Keeping them in the garage is very risky -- lots of toxic chemicals etc. out there.

Thank you for the condolences on my late brother-in-law. It was very sad and very fast. It was too far to go for the funeral(s) -- one in Ireland and the other one about 400 miles south of where we live and you are right, it is a lot for him and me to deal with to say the least.

Thanks again!!

[Curmudgeoness]

3. If they don't get into the scratching post,

rub some catnip on it. Some cats are opposed to toys that other cats have used before, and some will go crazy marking it with their own scent. I have had both instances.

Catnip is a double edged sword though, since it can make them crazier. But often it will also make them crazy enough to tire themselves out and crash.

Good luck.

[CountAllVotes]

4. Cat scratcher idea a very bad one ...

You are right about that.

I brought that old thing in the house and OMG, Queen Jules had a fit!

So ... I was about to cry I think and Mr. CAV came and took it back outside to the garage.

They are out there now trying to pry the old towels that line the crack in the garage door from the cold.

I swear ... it never stops! ... I think.

[Curmudgeoness]

5. Sorry....everything doesn't work.

Poor Queen Jules. Like she doesn't have enough problems with the kittens! Oh well. Worth a try. I guess Mr. CAV and his handyman abilities will have to build you a new one. Make sure you have sisal on it.

[CountAllVotes]

6. Well Queen Jules is getting a Xmas present this year

I bought her a nice ramp made out of sisal. I hope she likes it and the kittens will get a scratching post and I hope they like it or else!

Santa came early for all of them I would say.

Merry Xmas eh?

[Curmudgeoness]

7. So what! Like they can read a calendar!

Hope they all enjoy it.

[CountAllVotes]

8. Like they can read a calendar!

Given what I've seen I would not be surprised!

Thanks a lot for your help/ideas/etc.!!!

[ginnyinWI]

9. As a foster mom to kittens...

I just started taking in fosters in June, but I have this:

I would go nuts if I didn't have the ability to put them "away" at their bedtime, usually by 8:30 in the evening, and also for nap times during the day. Just like with toddlers, you need a welcome break when they are put to bed!

My foster kittens start out in my laundry room, with a piece of cardboard across the doorway when I'm home, and the door closed when I'm not. Inside are their litter box, food, water, and heated cat bed. I go in and socialize them, brush them, wash faces, etc.

When they are big enough and need the space, they are allowed free access to the downstairs of my house, usually starting at about seven weeks, for several play times during the day: a few hours in the morning, then a mid-day nap back in the room, then playtime in the afternoon again, then another break, then out again after their evening meal, then back to bed for the night.

(I'm fostering kittens anywhere from four to ten weeks old, with the usual age being between six and nine weeks, until they are big enough to be put up for adoption at my shelter. It's good for them to learn to run and jump and climb safely--things they can't learn while in a cage. And they get used to everyday household sounds and routines as well as people.)

At five months, I doubt that the cardboard would keep your kittens in, but maybe you can establish naptime and bedtime routines where you put them in a small room like a laundry or bathroom, along with everything they need, and let them stay there for a few hours during the day, and 10-11 hours at night with the door completely closed. Put in a few toys too--nothing that they can get tangled up in, of course. And be sure nothing in the room is unsafe.

Then in the morning or after a naptime you will be a lot more happy to see them again, and they'll be more happy to just be out in the house again--their toys will seem new again. (and maybe they won't be so naughty).

They should be about ready to slow down some--by six to eight months they will be acting a lot more like adult cats. Hang in there!

[CountAllVotes]

10. Thank you so much!

A pattern has been established for them (straight off btw). They go to bed about 8 p.m. and sleep in the other bedroom (cat proofed) and are quiet all night.

They get up about 7:00 a.m. and then it all begins.

They do everything together and I mean everything.

I've never seen anything quite like this before nor has Mr. CAV, an old Irish farmer that has seen about everything to be seen with animals of any type. Even when one of them goes to the litter box (in the room) the other one goes right after him. I suppose they'd be devastated without one another!

They are lovely little kittens but I've never had a healthy one I don't believe.

My last cat Mr. Flame was a rescue case and we adopted him along with another kitten a few weeks younger. Both were sick and we did not know it. Sadly, the smaller of the two died the next day. Why? We never knew.

I'm glad to know they'll likely be growing up and becoming dignified cats soon. Mr. CAV was hoping to let them go outside in January as we often get a streak of great weather in Jan. for some odd reason. Right now it is cold as can be outside.

As for the toys, the found the cache of toys hidden by the other cats that died and they have been playing with them and I've got them a few new ones too.

I'll be getting the new ramp for the old Queen Jules who loves ramps. I'm not sure she like the stuff it is made out of so much as I have a clawing mat made of that same material and she never goes near it.

The favorite thing they've found to claw is the door mat going outside made out of some sort of heavy duty bamboo type of material. That is fine with me, they can claw that forever and it would never break down.

I'll have to sign off for now as I am very sick right now (was trying to figure out if I should go to the ER to be honest w/you -- decided not to do it given my last experience at the ER). I'm supposed to get some medication tomorrow if I can last the night and I am in rough shape at best so if you don't see me around for a bit, you'll know why.

Thanks for all of your great advice and may God bless you for fostering those kittens! They are all so very precious and fragile!

[avebury]

11. Try a laser pointer.

If they go crazy chasing the laser pointer then you will need to stock up on batteries. If they like it, the laser pointer might be a good way to tire them out and you can just sit there and move the pointer around.

[CountAllVotes]

13. yep, that is what I need

Something to wear them out.

It was pretty bad today. I put them out in the garage every time they started getting really out of line and jumping on the rapidly aging Queen Jules. Poor girl!

They are growing so fast! I wonder how big they are going to get before I can't handle them so easy as it still is.

Don't get me wrong, they are nice kitties, just very energetic!

Today one of them was carrying around a little plastic bag that the shelter gave me with a few treats, etc. in it and it says on it, "Thank you for adopting me!". Awwww .......

Almost made me feel guilty but I decided to laugh that one off instead. My friend said, "They want to go outside". I told her it is too cold for that as they seem to have very little fur. My friend then said, "Grow more fur, grow more fur ...", like it is that easy! Don't I wish it was that easy!

Thanks for the idea! I'll have to try to find one of these or the other item the poster below mentioned.

[csziggy]

12. Try what stores sell as "teasers"

A long stick or wand with a feather or something for the cats to play with on a string.

We used to use old buggy whips, stuff a sock with another sock and some catnip, and tie that on the whiplash. We had the whips since we have a horse farm. Now the stores sell various versions as "teasers". We called our homemade versions "Confuse A Cat" sticks.

The advantage is that you can sit on one place, swing the whip (or wand) around, and the kittens run and play enough to wear themselves out. A laser pointer would work the same way - but we couldn't make one from worn out equipment.

In all the years we adopted kittens it only didn't work for one - my current cat. He watched me swing the whip around, followed from the sock up the lash to the handle, and attacked my hand holding the handle! He never would play with the sock.