$108 and a drugged out cat later

[CatWoman]

Why me???

I posted the other day about Trinity's aggressive and mean behavior towards Female.

Just got back from the vet. She had a complete check up, and the vet says it's a "behavior" problem.

He put her on valium to calm her down.

She can barely walk, and is staggering all over the place looking for another "show down" with Female.

Why me???

Of all the cats in the world, "I" get the psychos!!!

[MissB]

1. mmmmmmm... Valium.

I'm sorry. Hopefully the valium will knock her behavior down a notch or two. Did the vet offer a daily dose for the valium, or is this a one-time option?

[CatWoman]

3. daily dose

got a whole bottle of them......

[warrens]

2. I dunno, cats are pretty smart, small and athletic

That's where the term cat burglar comes from. See where I'm going with this? OK, kitty, you want the happy juice, I need a few diamond rings. GOOD diamond rings, not like those cheap Wal-Mart ones you brought back the last time.

[Booster]

4. Do like I did. Took the Valium myself - felt much better later.

[MadHound]

5. When I've had psyco kitties who are cruising for a bruising

I put one bowl of water, one bowl of food, and one litterbox in the bathroom, add the two fightin' felines, and close the door for the night. Yes, there is lots of howling and carrying on, but it has never failed that the next morning emerge two cats who have established who's who in the zoo, and aren't fighting each other. Just my two cents.

[CatWoman]

8. the problem is

Trinity has her claws, and Female is declawed.

[MadHound]

10. Ouch, that is a problem

I'm fresh out of ideas then, good luck. But something's got to give, you can't keep your poor kitty drugged forever.

Perhaps a third cat, a male, would help change the balance of power in the house, and thus get Trinity pre-occupied with another cat:shrug: I hope it all works out well for you.

[CatWoman]

12. look I ALREADY have 4!!!!

The nurse is going to call me on Monday to discuss further options.

[MissB]

14. .

:rofl: Sorry, that was funny.

I hope the vet's nurse offers you a good option, whatever that may be.

[MadHound]

21. Ooops, sorry, my bad

Please don't hurt me:scared:

Really, I didn't know that you had four cats, you just mentioned two in this post, and while I see you around here a lot, I don't keep up on the number of pets people have.

I have three cats myself, plus four dogs. Of course I live out in the country where they can all get some running room.

Anyway, back to Trinity. Is she an outside cat? Perhaps she needs to be for awhile, perhaps she is having space issues, cats thrown together do get those once in awhile.

Again, sorry, no offense intended(though I should have realized from your winking, blinking and nodding sig line, brain fart, long day)

[CatWoman]

24. I'm sorry, I'm just grumpy and sleepy

I didn't mean to yell -- well, not at you anyway.

Trinity won't leave me alone.

However, I refuse to let my cats go outside.

Do you know what can happen to them out there?

[Nay]

13. How about putting claw covers on Trinity, and THEN throwing them

both in the bathroom?

[barb162]

36. If I would have done this with my cat Babe, there would have

been without a doubt, no lie, at least one dead cat and huge vet bills for the cat that lived.

[Kathy in Cambridge]

6. Too bad he couldn't prescribe you any to deal with her behavior

;-)

[CatWoman]

9. tell me about it

I'm so sleepy -- they get real riled up at night and all that noise wakes me up :(

[flamingyouth]

7. Papa has to take amyltriptyline (sp?) sometimes

He gets a little embarrassingly aggressive. x(

[Rick Myers]

11. I've got a CAT on Valium story!!!

In the late 80's I had a high-strung cat named Eris. I was moving to Fla from Ohio. The moving company took off, and the vet had given me VALIUM to 'chill out' Eris. An hour into the trip, he decided he was allergic or something, and went into COMPLETELY INSANE behavior, including power sprints around the inside of the car!!! This lasted nearly 12 HOURS!!!

Later the vet would say, "Yeah, some cats react that way!!!"

Thanks...


Best of luck with your little Valium kittie!!! :hi:

[CatWoman]

15. se won't sit or lay down and leave us alone!!!!

I wish she would just go to sleep!!

[lastknowngood]

16. Get a few water pistols and lay them around the house. Every

time she is aggressive, zap her with the water pistol. It will totally amaze her. She likely have no idea where the water is coming from, but they hate water so it's a good deterrent and a lot of fun.

[caty]

22. One of my cats, Bogie,

likes to knock on my bedroom door every night and wake me up. I started zapping him with a spray bottle and after about a half dozen times he quit. Worth a try.

[caty]

17. I was told my our vet

that, if you have cats, you should have an even number of cats and humans in the house. They pair up either with another human or another cat. If you have an odd number of total humans and cats, one cat will be left out. Do you have an even number?

[CatWoman]

18. I have four cats

and one "me"

[caty]

20. Odd number

Maybe (and I say "maybe") that's the problem. :shrug: :dilemma:

[barb162]

37. I have 4 now too(years ago I had 8)

[xultar]

19. I have 1 gay cat, 1 retarded cat, and 1 psychotic cat.

I feel your pain.

[KT2000]

23. I had a problem like that once

My older female became aggressive towards the younger more passive female (the only two cats in the house). It would occur starting in spring through summer.

The vet said it was likely due to mating season. Though my cats had been fixed, apparently if some tissue is left behind that can cause production of hormones. He said the ovary is attached to a cord and sometimes just a bit of tissue is left on that cord. The small amount of hormones can cause the kitty to go kind of nutty - they are sort of in heat but not really.

My cats were indoor only so she had only the other cat to take her nuttiness out on (besides, she did not like the other cat). He gave me a hormone to give her that would counteract the behavior, which it did. She sat around like a zombie. I quit giving it to her.

My solution was to put a man's shirt on the floor (unwashed since wearing) and she would regularly roll around on the shirt. It seemed to calm her down enough that she wasn't quite so obsessed with the other cat.
Don't know if this is the problem with your cat, but maybe?

[matcom]

25. "Of all the cats in the world, "I" get the psychos!!!"

for ONCE woman think about the poor CATS! :D

:* j/k

i love you :loveya:

i'm sorry.

i'm going now :hide:

[barb162]

26. I know this story. My one cat was aggressive with other cats

for most of his life although the last 2 or so years he has calmed down a lot, I think, due to age. But I played that valium game too and it did nothing to stop the aggression. I have an ex-psycho so I know what you are going through.

[distantearlywarning]

27. You're not the only one.

I have two psycho kitties too. They've been mortal enemies for 4 years, and the fighting ebbs and flows. I've had them on Valium at times, and currently they are both on kitty Elavil (amytriptlyine).

We have tried everything from the "locking them both in a room for a night" to complete separation (for over a year) to Feliway to the dreaded squirt bottle. Unfortunately, the only thing that works reliably when they are in a cycle where they are determined to kill one another is the drugs. Which makes them both so sedate that I think they both just stop caring enough to harrass the other cat.

Even on Elavil, they are still stalking and "guarding territory", where one of them sits in a doorway that is a major passage through the house and then attacks the other cat if he/she tries to get through. And they had a huge fight the other night while I was out and one of them scratched the other in the eye. And they made a horrible mess in the room they were fighting in - I don't even want to know what the neighbors thought was happening.

I even tried for almost a year to give one of them away to improve everyone's life, but they are both older cats (10+ years) and nobody will take a cat that old except the Humane Society (and we all know what happens there...) and people who already have 5 cats nobody else wants (which won't work for my cats, who need to both be only children).

Good luck to you with this one. This can be an incredibly difficult problem to solve.

[barb162]

28. Yes, I wanted to get rid of Babe so many times, I can't tell you

He is 16 now and he's fine these last 2 or so years. I would have brought other cats in many times but he literally tried killing them. One time he broke a claw off to the quick in a new female cat. He was bleeding all over the place. I eventually had to give this female cat up and I was crying my eyes out the day I did it. Five years ago and I hate myself for giving her up. Babe would have been put down in a shelter. And I can't tell the $$ amount of damage he did spraying all over to claim territory against all these other sweet cats. I have 4 cats now, all get along. Babe is still here and he has finally mellowed. He always should have been in a single cat environment. I found him starving as a one year old. I bet someone threw him out because of his aggression.

[CatWoman]

30. Trinity just turned 3

and Female is around 7.

I don't know what I'm going to do :cry:

[barb162]

35. I don't know what to tell you and I truly want to help; I don't want

anyone to go through this. To me each and every cat is lovable, even Babe is the most loveable cat to me but he really wants no other cats around. He always tolerated my oldest cat who is 17. I was doing the very expensive bit with the vets for years. It got so bad that if Babe saw a cat a few hundred feet away, he'd spray in the house or on the deck, bang hard on the windows with all his weight,etc to keep the bad guys away. Talk about territorial, aggressive, jealous, etc. I think there are different solutions for different cats most of the time. With Babe it was age. That's the only thing I can figure out. I am hoping some of the other posters have some real solutions. And check around the internet on subduing aggression in cats which wasn't really available to me when Babe was his worst. I think a lot of times vets are full of shit and they dick people around with meds they know won't work.

But then again maybe if the aggressive cat is sedated enough for long enough... things will work out.

[Lorien]

29. Try liquid prozac instead

worked for one of mine several years ago. Feliway spray might also diffuse the situation (available at most pet stores).

You could also try clicker training: www.clickertraining.com

:hi:

[CatWoman]

32. will the vet give me liquid prozac?

[Lorien]

34. Yes. It's a much lower dose than humans use.

my cat was happier than he had ever been in his life on that stuff!

[barb162]

39. Really? How do you give it to cats?

Do you use a dropper? Hell, maybe I shouldn try it!

[Lorien]

43. Yes, an eyedropper works just fine n/t

[LisaL]

31. My cat is not psycho, but he is driving me insane because

he is peeing all over the place. So, maybe your cat isn't all that bad after all.
Well, maybe I should take it back-he is also nuts. Hides under the bed all day. He is a freak of nature.
:crazy:

[barb162]

40. How often are you changing the litter trays. He might not

like where the tray is, the litter may not be deep enough, etc. I have 4 cats and 8 trays. All the cats seem to like 3 trays and if they get a bit too icky, they stand on the side of the tray and do their business right outside it. Do you have other cats...if you do, sometimes they will sabatoge the scared cat from going to the tray and then the scared cat does it somewhere where he feels safe. I had this going on for a long time with a number of different cats.

[LisaL]

41. Nah. He has been to a vet more times I can count,

and his vet bills are going to eat me out of my home, but it's not behavioral, he got health issues.
Which I am pretty sure are caused by stress, since this animal is nuts.

[barb162]

45. I know what you mean about the vet bills; they can get

astronomical. In 2003 I had a kitty diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and a cat just diagnosed with renal failure (I still have him). That year my vet bills were in five figures, mostly because of the beloved cancer kitty who died that same year.

[MidwestMomma]

33. I have a Tortie from hell myself called Patches

She and my boy cat Walter couldn't stand each other. Sadly, Walter died last year from stomach cancer. It made everybody sad except for Patches.

Anyway, did they test Trinity's thyroid? Patches is 10+ and she was just diagnosed with Hyperthyroid which can make a cat mean and irritable.

Funny thing is I had the same condition. :) But my levels are all under control and I'm sane now.

So I was just wondering if they had checked that as it's a condition that can go undetected for years, in humans and cats. They found it in my cat because she got really thin.

Since she's been on her meds she does seem a little more lovable. She'll always been a pain but at least she's getting up in my lap again and hanging out in the livingroom with the other animals a little more.

It's tough when the children can't get along. Patches and Walter used to almost kill each other. I was always finding somebodies claw stuck in the other. But they both did have claws so at least it was far fight.

Poor Female. I bet he's just a big ole sweetheart isn't he? Hang in there. Hugs to you and all....except Trinity. (I kid :))

[AuntieM1957]

38. I've got a tortie myself

she is nearly twenty years old, and I raised her from birth.

And yet she hesitates to sit in my lap - and is the most neurotic creature I've ever known. If I didn't know better, I'd think that someone had abused her.

I love her dearly, but she is rough to handle sometimes.

Ironic that she's nearing the end of her natural life, and tonight for the first time ever she approached me and wanted to sit in my lap.

I see you have torties also, and have often wondered if Greta's behavior is linked to her genes - because she has had nothing but a safe, loving home - and still she's neurotic in the extreme.

[barb162]

42. I have a six year old tortie. All torties are nuts. My female tor is

half the weight of Babe, my aggressive 15 pound muscular male. She kicks the living shit out of him and he seems to enjoy it. She will stalk him, jump high up in the air, give him a hard body slam with her back feet usually around his rib cage/abdomen area , knock him off his feet onto the floor and then she runs away as fast as she can. Babe never tries attacking her. She is the first cat I think Babe ever really liked; she's as nuts as he is. Now if this happened ten years ago, she would have died doing that to him.

[barb162]

44. behavior clinic at vet school

U. of Illinois article referencing U. of PA behavior clinic below
(also I have called Cornell vet school; they're pretty good; I think they charge about 40 bucks for a call. Might want to check their web site if they have a behavior clinic or your state)
---------
Aggressive Cats and Dogs

Pet Column for the week of February 23, 1998

Office of Public Engagement
2001 S. Lincoln Ave.
Urbana, Illinois 61802
Phone: [phone]


By Theresa A. Fuess, Ph.D.
Information Specialist
University of Illinois
College of Veterinary Medicine

"Aggressive behavior is one of the most difficult pet topics to talk about outside of
euthanasia. However, the number one reason animals are euthanized is problem behavior,"
says Dr. Sheila M. McCullough, veterinarian at the University of Illinois Veterinary
Medicine Teaching Hospital at Urbana. "We think of euthanasia as a merciful relief from
suffering for an incurably ill or old animal. But the majority of pets are euthanized because of
behavior problems."

Aggressive behavior in pets must be addressed without delay. The longer it continues, the
harder it is to change. Don't wait until someone is injured to seek help with this problem.

Some behavioral problems result from medical problems. A thorough physical examination
by your veterinarian can reveal an underlying problem. You can also ask your veterinarian
for suggestions on curbing aggressive behavior. However, veterinarians often don't feel
qualified to give such advice because their training is in medicine rather than behavior. Pet
behavior is a new and growing field.

If the pet is healthy and initial efforts to curb the behavior don't work, then Dr. McCullough
advises immediately contacting a board-certified behaviorist. This is a veterinarian who
specializes in animal behavior. Dr. Karen Overall, a behaviorist at the University of
Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, runs a behavior clinic that pet owners can call
for information (215/898-3347). Since mishandled aggressive behavior is potentially
dangerous, most specialists will want to see the pet and owner in person. Dr. Overall can
refer pet owners to a specialist in their area.

Prospective owners can reduce the chance they'll end up with an aggressive pet by
educating themselves. Through books and animal shows, learn about the personalities of
different breeds and the environments they do well in. For example, a particular breed may
look like a teddy bear, but a dog's signals can be hard to read and aggression is not always
easy to anticipate. Read several books about general pet care and about handling and
raising a puppy or kitten. A pet dog or cat is a 15-year emotional commitment. A little
advance planning will help make it a rewarding experience.

When picking out a puppy or kitten, don't choose either the most pushy or the shiest one in
the litter. Pick out a friendly, happy pup or kitten that will come to you. Then, while it is
young, accustom your new pet to people young and old, other animals, and a variety of
different situations. Early socialization is very important.

If you are considering adopting an adult animal that is known to be aggressive, be realistic
about what you can expect. Even if the problem was aggravated by the previous
environment, rehabilitating an aggressive animal is a big project. To believe the animal needs
only tender loving care is a mistake. Animals do change, but it takes dedicated work and
lots of time. An aggressive pet is a liability, especially if there are young children around.

"If a pet shows signs of aggression," says Dr. McCullough, "the most important thing is to
get help right away. Don't delay."

For more information on animal health, contact your local veterinarian.


Office of Public Engagement