Do not ever ever ever ever

[musclemom]

its okay you can say it - I was wrong. I didnt know any better at all. My whole life I had cats but I'd never had a declawed one, I dont know why I thought it would be no big deal - the vet acted like it was no big deal and to just do it when I was neutering him - so I did, and he seemed fine while he was still a kitten. As an adult - he almost has a mental illness or something

I'm not going to chastise you, it sounds like you're beating yourself up quite enough for both of us and the cat, and I appreciate that you're sharing your experience in case someone is kicking the idea around.

I'm serious about the anti-anxiety meds, but uh, think about finding another vet, ideally, one that specializes in cats. Frankly, I recommend that for everyone that has cats. Going to the vet is traumatic enough for them, but then the scent and sound of dogs? Torture. And for this poor kitty of yours, it's a double trauma.

Besides, no vet that really understands cats is blase about declawing.

And your cat does have a mental illness. He has the equivalent of posttraumatic stress disorder. Humans have a hard time getting over that, even with therapy and meds.

 

[musclemom]

Question:
I was had a TB exposure at work before I was preg.(positive skin test but negative chest xray) and I was on isoniazid for over 9months right before I was preg. Do u think my son might have any antibodies from me?

That is a question for your pediatrician. Zoonotic diseases and domestic animals (cats, ferrets, dogs primarily) I know.

Although, from reading this:

http://yourtotalhealth.ivillage.com/active-tuberculosis-tb-in-pregnancy.html

I don't think you should worry much. Seems the tranfer is more a direct thing, which makes sense, TB is respiratory transmitted, correct? Now, I do know weird shit can cause false positive tests for some things (my mother always tested positive for small pox, she grew up on a dairy farm and had been exposed to cow pox) so this is definitely something you want to have in your son's medical records. When I was a kid they used to routinely test students for TB when I was in school, I don't know if they still do that today.

 

[myway]

That is a question for your pediatrician. Zoonotic diseases and domestic animals (cats, ferrets, dogs primarily) I know.

Although, from reading this:

http://yourtotalhealth.ivillage.com/active-tuberculosis-tb-in-pregnancy.html

I don't think you should worry much. Seems the tranfer is more a direct thing, which makes sense, TB is respiratory transmitted, correct? Now, I do know weird shit can cause false positive tests for some things (my mother always tested positive for small pox, she grew up on a dairy farm and had been exposed to cow pox) so this is definitely something you want to have in your son's medical records. When I was a kid they used to routinely test students for TB when I was in school, I don't know if they still do that today.

I will talk to my son's doc about it. I don't know if they test in school but paramedics get a skin test every year unless they have a positive skin test. Positive skin test means chest xray every 6 months.

 

[redsamurai]

I don't agree with declawing cats cause no cat should be house ridden...........'but", at the same time those little fuckers like to sharpen those things on your nice furniture, in which case I am all for giving a cat a belt beating or a face full of a water bottle spray. Growing up we always had outdoor cats yet they still loved to fucking put their backs into tearing up the couch or stereo speaker covers. They need a periodic beating to reinforce the "NO". I'm not advocating a thrashing that leaves em maimed, but a good spanking with a belt is not out of the question. Those claws can rip the fuck out of shit. But that's also what allows them to scamper up trees right quick if a dog comes for em. So leave em with the claws, but put the fear of god into em if they even "think" about using those bad boys in the house..............tha'ts my take.

 

[nangiggles]

Hate to say I told you so ... If you recall, we had a harsh discussion about this when you first joined.

Ah well, done bun can't be undone ... take him to the vet and get the poor beast on an anti-anxiolytic or antidepressant. He's never going to get over it, not at this age, but you might be able to temper his nervousness and some of the compulsiveness.

I would equate the behavior you're describing to feather tearing in exotic birds. What I suspect is going on (just a shot in the dark here) is that since he is without defenses the world is one giant threat to him, and he's, well, like shell shocked. He's developed OCD type behaviors because you can't spend 24/7 being terrified and not start to get more than a little twitchy.

Exactly!
I know the case of a woman who owned 3 parakeet and they were all fine and happy but one day a possum, rat or some freaking rodent got into the cage (the cage was almost as big as a bedroom) and grabbed the youngest, the noise woke up the owner and stoppe the little pest that had dragged the poor bord from the tail half way through the cage.... that day on the parakeet plucks out it's own feathers in the tail area...

It is OCD and it's best to take to your vet, hopefully a different one, even better if opposed to declawing...

 

[musclemom]

I don't agree with declawing cats cause no cat should be house ridden...........'but", at the same time those little fuckers like to sharpen those things on your nice furniture, in which case I am all for giving a cat a belt beating or a face full of a water bottle spray. Growing up we always had outdoor cats yet they still loved to fucking put their backs into tearing up the couch or stereo speaker covers. They need a periodic beating to reinforce the "NO". I'm not advocating a thrashing that leaves em maimed, but a good spanking with a belt is not out of the question. Those claws can rip the fuck out of shit. But that's also what allows them to scamper up trees right quick if a dog comes for em. So leave em with the claws, but put the fear of god into em if they even "think" about using those bad boys in the house..............tha'ts my take.

Hun, I'm sure your intentions are good but, take this as I'm saying it, hush. Hitting cats is NOT an effective deterrent, ever. A cat is not capable of equating stopping what it was doing with pain from you, it IS capable of equating YOU with pain. Hitting dogs works (to a degree) because dogs are pack animals and hardwired to grasp negative reinforcement. However, when you hit a cat for doing something you don't like, the cat learns to be afraid of you and you end up with a fearful, neurotic cat who might think it's a good idea to shit or piss on your bed (fear and/or abuse will cause cats to toilet inappropriately).

Water pistols are more effective, as are unpleasant noises (the sound of coins in a can or the sound of an air can hissing work really well) or even unpleasant tactile feelings, like double sided tape or aluminum foil (one of my cats loves to lie on top of my computer monitor. I don't want her up there so I put double sided sticky tape on top of the monitor. She stepped on it once, got totally creeped out, and hasn't been back since).

HOWEVER, none of that shit works for scratching (well, the unpleasant tactiles do, but it's a hassle) because you have to understand what's going on when a cat scratches something, it is not out of malice or even to "sharpen their claws." They are are tearing off the ragged edges of the sheaths of their talons. Cats continually shed their claws to expose new sharp ones beneath. Additionally, since their claws are actually the ends of their toes, they are stretching the ligaments and tendons of their feet and legs. Finally, cats have scent glands on their feet, they are depositing scent marks on what they are scratching.

Cats need to "sharpen their claws" physiologically and psychologically (even declawed cats go through the motions of sharpening their claws). And they will return to a spot they have used before precisely because they have scent marked it, whether you beat their asses or not. However, they do not need to sharpen their claws on your furniture. You merely need to provide the animal with sufficient scratching posts (or even old pieces of wood with the bark still on them or even heavy corrugated cardboard, rubbed with catnip, trying different things is the best bet, then you remove the stuff that isn't used).

I have Top Cat scratching posts. I have six cats, they ALL use the hell out of them, completely stripped the sisal off the last two I had, stripped them right down to the wood. I just bought new ones this year.

 

[redsamurai]

I've loved the shit out of all the little fuckers I grew up with, especially one.....I still miss him and he died probably 5-6 years ago. I still get a little tear in my eye thinking about him cause he was my buddy......complete and unconditional love, like a dog. Now.........saying all that, they were all some spoiled rotten little shits. Oh, we've had scratching posts...........but why use a scratching post when you're "perfectly entitled" to using the nice upholstery which really makes a great sound when you lean into it?? For animals that routinely hunted birds and squirrels and whatnot, they could be some picky ass bastards when it came to their cat food. And shit they would let you know about it when they didn't fancy something. Like I said, I love cats...........but I've gotten some pretty good behavior modifications from a good whuppin. I agree that spray bottles are best. They really don't like that shit. I'm waiting for the day there's robotic technology where I can buy a little robotic centurion that can detect the sound of a cat scratchin where he ain't supposed to and can go and hit the thing with a water cannon or some sort of unpleasant nerve spray. Cause you know when you leave the house those cats are heading straight for the furniture. They know.

Hun, I'm sure your intentions are good but, take this as I'm saying it, hush. Hitting cats is NOT an effective deterrent, ever. A cat is not capable of equating stopping what it was doing with pain from you, it IS capable of equating YOU with pain. Hitting dogs works (to a degree) because dogs are pack animals and hardwired to grasp negative reinforcement. However, when you hit a cat for doing something you don't like, the cat learns to be afraid of you and you end up with a fearful, neurotic cat who might think it's a good idea to shit or piss on your bed (fear and/or abuse will cause cats to toilet inappropriately).

Water pistols are more effective, as are unpleasant noises (the sound of coins in a can or the sound of an air can hissing work really well) or even unpleasant tactile feelings, like double sided tape or aluminum foil (one of my cats loves to lie on top of my computer monitor. I don't want her up there so I put double sided sticky tape on top of the monitor. She stepped on it once, got totally creeped out, and hasn't been back since).

HOWEVER, none of that shit works for scratching (well, the unpleasant tactiles do, but it's a hassle) because you have to understand what's going on when a cat scratches something, it is not out of malice or even to "sharpen their claws." They are are tearing off the ragged edges of the sheaths of their talons. Cats continually shed their claws to expose new sharp ones beneath. Additionally, since their claws are actually the ends of their toes, they are stretching the ligaments and tendons of their feet and legs. Finally, cats have scent glands on their feet, they are depositing scent marks on what they are scratching.

Cats need to "sharpen their claws" physiologically and psychologically (even declawed cats go through the motions of sharpening their claws). And they will return to a spot they have used before precisely because they have scent marked it, whether you beat their asses or not. However, they do not need to sharpen their claws on your furniture. You merely need to provide the animal with sufficient scratching posts (or even old pieces of wood with the bark still on them or even heavy corrugated cardboard, rubbed with catnip, trying different things is the best bet, then you remove the stuff that isn't used).

I have Top Cat scratching posts. I have six cats, they ALL use the hell out of them, completely stripped the sisal off the last two I had, stripped them right down to the wood. I just bought new ones this year.

 

[musclemom]

My cats use the post because the scratching post is nicer than the sofa, is imbued with catnip and allows the cat to fully stretch up. Your cats used the furniture because it was already scent marked. How well did hitting the cat make them stop, hm?

I have six cats, they all have (very sharp) claws, they use the scratching posts, they love those things. They don't use my furniture.

I would ask, again, that you refrain from talking about hitting cats and saying you get good results. Hitting a toddler gets good results, too. Slap them often enough, hard enough, and they're afraid to do anything and you get them to the point that they duck when you raise your hand. Hitting cats makes them afraid of you and instills negative behaviors. It is not good pet ownership, and considering I've owned cats, rescued cats and participated in the day to day operations of my mother in laws pedigreed show cattery -- longer than you've been on this planet, I might add -- I think I might know what I'm talking about.

As for food, firstly, I wouldn't feed my cat anything I wouldn't put in my mouth, myself. Secondly, people get this daft idea that they need to change the animals food up (or they just want to buy the cheapest shit on sale). No, you find a wholesome, well balanced food and feed that, all the time, period. Cats are extreme creatures of habit. Feed them the same stuff every day for the rest of the their lives, they don't give a shit. It's nutrients and calories to them, nothing else.

 

[Mr. dB]

My doc told me it was no big deal, just to have someone else change the litter box. I'm glad to have a break from doing it lol

It's nice to have a convenient excuse to get out of a tedious chore! Especially when it's a legitimate excuse.

While we're on the subject of not cutting, if your pending offspring is male I hope you'll consider not letting them circumcise him.

 

[musclemom]

While we're on the subject of not cutting, if your pending offspring is male I hope you'll consider not letting them circumcise him.

Talk about an odd seque, from declawing to foreskins.

I told my ex the following: "I don't have one of those, the circumcision decision is up to you."