Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

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geckodiva
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Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by geckodiva »

Our now 10 month old kitten, Monster, seems to have lost her playing enthusiasm already.

She only has 3 legs (complete amputation of rear leg) and so is an indoor cat, she has been spayed. Her mobility is reduced in that she can't run very far and can't jump up very far.

We also have 2 elderly sisters who are no longer interested in playing due to their age, they are also indoor cats. Monster has tried to play with them but just gets hissed at by Tat who is struggling with her hyper thyroidism. Pudding sometimes runs with her but soon gives up because of her arthritis.

Monster prefers to be on her own, usually sleeping. When we try to play with her it usually ends up with her biting us and we have to stop playing. Chasing things on the ends of sticks is usually safer but it's difficult to keep this going. Things aren't helped with the house being in disarray due to an impending house move.

We were wondering if she had a playmate of similar age this would stimulate her.
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lilynmitz
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by lilynmitz »

Hi, I can't help wondering if there's another reason she's not feeling playful. Having a leg missing means her posture is inevitably different to a fully balanced quadruped, and may overstress joints, muscles and other soft tissue, both in her legs and in her spine. I wonder whether the reason she's withdrawn and hissing at you/biting is because she's in pain, and rapid movement such as in play is actually uncomfortable or painful to her. She really needs to see a vet to look into this first. It;s surprising what a difference this can make - Lily has arthritis, but on the periods when she's had pain relief (which is limited due to her kidney problems), she's a totally different cat, much more active and alert and happier in herself.

As for getting another kitten, it may just make things worse for your two older cats, whose needs at this stage in their life really need to be taken seriously, particularly as they're not in good health. Would you want a bouncy toddler in the house if you were under the weather?

Monster could also be feeling very unsettled because of the upheaval in preparation for the house move, which would also make her hide away in a place she feels safe. The impending move alone would make this a very unwise time to bring another cat into the household - the three cats will be feeling confused enough without having to cope with an "intruder" on their territory - soon not to be their safe place anymore when they get uprooted.

So I'd suggest you take a step back, get Monster's health checked out, deal with the health issues of the two sisters, get the move out of the way, and when the dust has settled, then decide whether you still feel another cat in the house would improve the situation, but given the issues you have in front of you now, I really don't think it would be in anyone's best interests to do so.
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KittyWitty
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by KittyWitty »

geckodiva wrote: Monster prefers to be on her own, usually sleeping. When we try to play with her it usually ends up with her biting us and we have to stop playing. Chasing things on the ends of sticks is usually safer but it's difficult to keep this going.
What play do you do that ends in biting? Describe the exact play. Also how is it hard to keep the chasing a thing on a stick going?

Describe the actually play and AMOUNT of play you have with her please.
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geckodiva
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by geckodiva »

Don't worry we had no intention of introducing a new kitty just yet. We would wait until after the house move when everyone had settled down, and then also wait to find out if Tat would be having another thyroid operation. When I first got the 2 oldies I decided on 2 rather than just one so that they had each other for company. I wondered if this should be an option for Monster seeing as the two oldies don't really want much to do with her.

Monster only plays for about half an hour before she goes off to sleep upstairs on her own. The first 15mins is with us either chasing balls or feathers or toys on the end of sticks. After this she usually goes into the hall and plays by herself for a while before going off to sleep. With her struggling with mobility we have assumed that she is tired and so don't try to push her to carry on. As for the biting it is normal play but she bites really hard and it really hurts, it isn't aggression. The 2 oldies did this when they were young but I don't remember it hurting that much :) . I think because they played this way with each other they knew where the limit was but Monster doesn't seem to know. We play with her on the settee so that she isn't running around. We use little soft toys for her to grab and chew and rabbit kick as kittens do. However she prefers to play with our hands and arms which she starts off licking and gentle chewing then usually ends up with biting, we've tried using a glove / glove puppet but knows it not us so isn't interested.

She is quite friendly and is always curiously nosing around us finding out what we are doing. She is always having a good root around particularly at the moment with all the boxes moving around. We can't work out if she doesn't run around a great deal because of her restricted mobility or because she wants more varied interaction.

We will certainly discuss it with the vet to find out if she is in pain which is why she only plays for a short time and then wants to be on her own.

Thanks for the replies.
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by Hunnybunny »

Rear leg amputations shouldn't have any reduced mobility problems (unlike front legs who can struggle jumping down from height although this should still not keep them banned to the house) and so usually don't have to live as indoor cats so I would suggest there is another reason for her behaviour.

I certainly would not be jumping in and looking at another cat in hope it will liven her up until I had seen the vets and ruled out a medical condition. Shes a baby and should be full of life and curiosity even as a tripod!!
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by lilynmitz »

Do let us know how you get on with the vet visit. Meanwhile, the biting, it sounds like she may have been taken from her mum and siblings to early, who would normally teach a kitten that hard biting isn't allowed in play. In future, stop playing with her with your hands before it gets to this stage, and distract her with a toy. Otherwise, if she does "lock on", I usually find blowing a short sharp puff into her face is enough to make them stop and think without actually hurting or worrying them, then gently remove your hand while they're still trying to work out what just happened! She'll get the message eventually.

Does she have things to investigate, like a cat tree, hide and seek toys etc? ie toys that will stimulate her mentally without requiring her to run around too much (eg make a honeycomb of toilet rolls in a box and hide treats in them, or "undercover mouse", which is quite good for the less mobile cat).
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geckodiva
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by geckodiva »

Monster has an appointment later in the week with the vet. In the meantime we have cleared a bit of space so that she has more room to play. She has a cat tree but it is the wrong design for her. That might sound strange but she doesn't always get the best lift off to jump up and often ends up hanging in the air. Her good back leg is over the end of the mid platform so she can't push herself up. She doesn't play with the toys hanging from it. We intend to get a different one after we have moved.

There are plenty of toys but if they are not moving she doesn't notice them. So maybe something more stimulating would help. We will see what we can come up with.
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by KittyWitty »

You could look into getting the "cat's Meow" toy for Monster :) looks super fun! I am getting one for Comet :D
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geckodiva
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by geckodiva »

Thanks lilynmitz and kittywitty for the toy suggestion. I googled Cats Meow and watched some YouTube videos, it looks like just the thing for Monster so I have ordered one.

Monster went to the vet today and had a thorough examination, scan, xray and blood test. Nothing unusual was found other than she has a lot of fat, which would explain her bloated look. The vet could not find any evidence that she was in pain either. Seems she could probably be just a cat with a slower metabolism hence the fat (she doesn't eat loads no more than our other cats). The vet asked if she played with our other two cats, which she doesn't as they are not friends. She said that she needed more exercise so we hope the Cats Meow toy will stimulate her.
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Hazel
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by Hazel »

Please post back with how Monster likes the cats meow. I've just had a look at it and I think mine would love it. Ideal for those days when I really really really don't want to wave the flying frenzy toys about! (I usually don't get much choice, I get bullied into it)
Actually that's another toy Monster would probably like. Jess likes the mouse/ nymph attachments more than the feathers as he can't catch the feathers very well.
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by KittyWitty »

Monster may also like the CatIt Senses Super Circuit, Comet absolutely goes mental for his

Here is a video of him playing with his: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ziblaJd ... ture=share" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
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geckodiva
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by geckodiva »

Monster and her new Cats Meow toy;

Day 1. Monster runs and hides between daddies legs!

Day 2. Monster sits and watches from 1 foot away.

Day 3. Monster studies from 3 inches away.
Monster waits for mouse to be directly in front of her then grabs
it's tail in her mouth and chews on it while motor grinds.
No jumping or running around involved.

I will try to post a video when I work out how to use YouTube.
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Re: Should we get a playmate for our kitten?

Post by KittyWitty »

awww :) lol

Comet's Cats Meow arrived this week but we have no batteries so it is just sitting there doing nothing haha
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