Cat Chat Feline Forum

That is great news. There is nothing quite like the joy of a returning prodigal cat! If he behaves anything like my old Misty did when he came home from being lost, he won't want to go out anyway.

RIP Pippin

My Maine Coons Badger and Tilly, although coming from the same breeder were not siblings. No problems between them.

Tilly was at the vet hospital for over a week. She had a feeding tube for several days until she could be persuaded to eat again. She wasn't allowed home until she was cured and I don't recall having to give her anything other than antibiotics to ensure there was no infection from the feeding tube. ...

I think in this situation you have to consider what is the lesser of two evils. With Pancreatitis, getting him to eat is more important - renal food is no good if he won't eat enough of it. I found Thrive or Cannagan Chicken, though expensive, worked with getting Tilly to eat again after Pancreatiti...

I also vote for the wire mesh basket with plastic floor, although the wicker basket with steel grill door I bought for my first cat Sally some 40 years ago has proved quite durable as well.

Tilly used to like Thrive - indeed it was Thrive I used to tempt her to eat again after her last bout of Pancreatitis, but she seems to have rather gone off it of late. Don't think it would help Pippin, as it does require a bit of chewing.

Fish4Cats do a "Tuna with Seaweed" which Tilly likes as an occasional treat. It is only complimentary food though, so no good for full time eating.

It may not be anything to worry about at all - my old cat Misty ate most of the cat food (his and as much of Honey's that he could pinch) and never put much weight on.

If its any comfort to you, my Tilly has had several bad bouts of Pancreatitis. It is frightening how rapidly it develops and how fast she dehydrates. The last time (over 2 years ago now) Tilly was hospitalized and on a drip for a week and I thought she was going to die. She responded to treatment an...

I wouldn't really call them "shreds", I think they are chunks of reconstituted meat. They are about 6-10mm long and small enough to be picked up by tongue and swallowed without the need for chewing. I have only been feeding it to Tilly for about a year, after there was a severe local Pate ...

It's small pieces of soft meat in a thick gravy. Will try and measure the pieces before Tilly hoovers them up tomorrow!

So sorry to hear about Pippin. I hope he manages one more summer of lying in the sun.

Tilly votes for the Gourmet Pate (Fish or Chicken) and the Gourmet Savory Cake

I have no experience of cats in cat carriers for more than an hour and a half, but there are tales that back in the days of steam trains when every station and goods yard had a cat, the railway cats occasionally made long journeys (8 hours or so) by train in a GWR packing case when being sent back t...

I can only echo what the others have said. It took my rescue cat Misty some 3months to come out of his shell (an igloo bed in my attic room, in his case). When he finally did, though, he became a very loving cat although always prone to retreat to his igloo if frightened.

Glad things are improving a bit. Tilly, she settled down and accepted her fate after the first week although she made at least one bid for freedom in the first few days. I never had the problem of my other cat Badger (from the same breeder, but from a different litter and 1 day younger than Tilly) n...

To add to what Mollycat has said. Don't despair. I had to cage rest Tilly (then a very active 3 year old) for 8 weeks after she broke a tarsal bone. The first week is by far the worst! As long as your main cage has 2 doors opposite each other, I found that a small second cage alongside the first (wi...

The first week is the worst - after that they just seem to accept it.

A 2ft length of old sash cord with a large knot tied in one end of it works wonders for Tilly. Can be dragged over the floor in front of her so she pounces on it and plays with it. She seldom lets it go, so a second one to distract her into dropping the first is also useful! A bit of Sissal twine wi...

I don't know whether this will be any help or not, but do you give your kitty milk? My Tilly had several bad bouts of pancreatitis, but none since I stopped letting her have milk.

I agree with Papa and Mollycat. With a very shy cat, be prepared for a long haul. It took my Misty 3 months to come out of his shell. Once he did, though, he became a very loving and cuddly cat.

I think of the many cat books I have, Grace McHattie's "Supercat the non-pedigree cat care book" is the most useful. It is just as relevant to pedigree as non-pedigree mogs. Getting a bit old now (1989) so does not cover microchips, but otherwise the advice is still good.

When I got my Misty back after his being lost for 9 weeks, I was so happy I was even polite to cold callers! Misty was so hungry he seemed to do nothing other than eat for days. He didn't go out for a fortnight and only then because I carried him out. He shot straight back indoors and demanded dinne...

There is nothing quite so delightful as a prodigal cat returning home!

Hi Alwal and welcome.
My Tilly has just about got used to me being in all day.
She has been ordering dinner earlier and earlier as the months have gone by - it used to be 5:15pm and is now about 11:00am!

Also consider getting an older 10+ years cat. Most rescues have some and they are often quite happy with a more sedentary lifestyle. My Tilly, who as a young cat ranged far and wide, is now quite content to sit at home in front of the radiator.

My experience of kittens is getting a bit old now (10 years) but I don't recall them having any difficulty in finding their dinners. Their sense of smell is pretty good and will lead them to food when they are hungry. Probably best to keep her out of the kitchen while you fill the bowl, though, as y...

I used to give Tilly Yumove and for a while she loved it (she is very fond of fish and Yumove smells of fish). Initially, it certainly seemed to make a difference. However, Tilly has gone off it and doesn't seem to be any the worse for not taking it now. I do feed her muscles as a treat several time...

There's a picture of the Edgard Cooper food here: https://uk.edgardcooper.com/pages/our-food Tilly only likes it occasionally. Canagan "Chicken and " is strands of chicken with chunks of whatever the chicken is with. Tilly likes Canagan. They also do Tuna fillets with Mussels, which are ch...