Does your Cat (or any pet) misbehave since caregiving your loved one?
Have you been required to take care of your loved one's pet after they have passed? Does your pet have cute antics that entertain your loved one?
And finally, has the cat or dog transferred their loyalty to your Mother?
I get being thorough and their concern for the animals and all, but geeeeez.
And getting a dog from a rescue is more expensive than a shelter - and just like a pet from a shelter, there's no health guarantee. I paid $250 for my Corgi from a rescue - and lost her 18 months later to leukemia. I paid $65 for my dog from a shelter and had him for 12 years. Just no way to know.
I keep looking at dogs, but none are really speaking to me at this point, so while I'll probably still look at them, I don't know that I'll get one for a while. I'm going to start volunteering for the local animal shelter this weekend - taking a load of cats/kittens about 3 hours north to meet up with another volunteer, who will transport them the rest of the way to another shelter to help relieve the overflow as kitten season comes in. It only costs me gas money and I'll enjoy the ride. If I had a dog now, this would be difficult to do - he'd have to go with me or someone would have to come let him out and check on him. Now I can go and not be too worried about rushing back, because this is a rather long trip.
What surprised me most about NYC when I visited was how many shops had cats! Even the hostel I stayed in had one.
https://www.instagram.com/bodegacatsofinstagram/?hl=en
I tend to think being a bodega cat is a natural extension of the cat's historical relationship with humans. We came to live together because they kept the rodents out of the granaries and such.
My cats are indoor cats, and the only thing they protect my food stores from are moths and spiders!
Sigh. Heck with it, I just put post-its in the bathrooms.
There were also major teeth marks on the telephone books [back when we actually had telephone books].... and he would run off with the paper coming out of the printer.
I remember once when he decided to sleep on the unlit gas logs in the fireplace. We searched and searched for him not knowing he was there. Eventually we saw charcoal paw prints on the light beige rugs coming from the fireplace. That's my boy :)
He's now 17, and finally has outgrown these traits a couple of years ago.
I swear he just needs to kill something. Cat = psychopath. He's not going to be content till he murders.
Barb - post-its now in place, check. ;-)
He's never been a "talkative" cat (except at night when he yowls as he prowls the house) - now he chatters at me like you see cats do when they see a bird outside. I chatter back. We have a regular little conversation going most days.
He used to bite out of spite - literally just walk up and bite you for no reason - and God forbid you should scold him or forget to feed him when he expects it - you'd wear his teethmarks for the rest of the day. And he didn't care *where* he bit you, either - he's been resting on the back of the recliner and bitten me right on the boob when I stood there petting him. (And while I stood there exclaiming my dismay over that act, he reached out and bit the other one for good measure.)
Now he rarely bites me at all.
He liked the laser pointer before, but the dog was obsessed with it and would chase it all over the place - so the cat would just perch somewhere and watch him. Now that the dog is gone, the cat bugs me every morning and every night to get the laser pointer out and play with him - even to the point of jumping on my desk to make me get it out if I don't do it when he wants me to. He *loves* to play with it at night especially, when he's more energetic. He races all over the house chasing it.
He's always been a loner. He'd initiate playfights with the dog - until the dog got older and just didn't want to play anymore - he'd bite the dog to get him to play with him, and the dog would just go to his bed and lay down, not wanting to be bothered. He even snapped at the cat a couple of times - just didn't feel like dealing with him.
Now the cat stays in whatever room I'm in at all times. If I'm working at my desk in the living room, he's there. If I walk into the kitchen to make food, he follows me. If I go back to my room to do laundry, he jumps on the bed to "help" by batting at the clothes with his paws as I pick them up and shake them out.
I miss my dog, but I'm sure glad I have the cat. He's become really good company in the absence of the dog. I'm sure he senses there's an emptiness in my home now, and he needed to fill it.
My old boy cat,Odom chews up the toilet paper and eats it.
Henrick is beautiful,too pretty to be sick.I'm so glad he's ok~
Is it a) completely idiotic First World self-indulgence or b) worth further investigation?
Dog has been a bit "off" for a few months but now it is getting... tricky. Eating non-food items - soil, toilet paper, soap. Going into his pre-supper routine twenty minutes after he's just had supper. Forgetting which door he came through and getting lost. Roaming from room to room instead of settling in his basket.
He's thirteen this year, eyesight and hearing deteriorating, back legs weakening.
:(
I don't know what can be done - definitely a vet question. At some point, there's probably little they can do to help improve that - just like for humans. :-(
Your post really struck my heart this morning. Sending you hugs - I wish I could do or say something more to help.
Treat the pain.
Even though this may be his last days, his life could continue waxing and waning for some time, even a year or more. Vets say we will know when the time comes, if they do not die of natural causes, we will know when it is time to have the vet intervene. No guilt, no regrets, you will just do what needs to be done for your dog.
There are great supplements to brighten his day, ask the vet.
Bless you and your dog.