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Original poster, here…
Marlowe (American foxhound mother, Jack Russell father who shot above his weight class & won) has self-chosen favorite places: inside the kneehole of my vanity; his personal ottoman in the living room, next to the window so he can see when we come home; and – when he’s feeling a little overloaded – my bathroom next to the sink (preferably in the dark). The bathroom is also his place of choice when the Navy gun-testing grounds across the river start test-firing their new naval cannons.
The dog crate (which he will not use) got more use as an isolation room when I got some female cats spayed.Another idea: Try one of the leashes that reel out, that you can lock at any length.
I have a 15 foot leash (I think, or is it 12 feet?) like this. They cost about $15.00 in Walmart. There are also $35 models available with built-in flashlights.
My dog, Marlowe, also pulls a lot on the leash when we have to keep him on a short lead (like at festivals).
But, oddly, when he has 12 or 15 feet to roam on the end of, he doesn’t pull nearly as much. I think it gives him the chance to dash forward a few feet & stop & sniff while we catch up with him.It’s also quite possible that she’s Asserting Her Independence by ignoring you when she feels like it. Cats can be like that.
Her ears may look clean now, but it is possible that she had an infection that cleared up & left after-effects.
If she’s hunting mice, it’s quite possible that she can hear is is just doesn’t care to respond.
Vacuums: Cats can feel the vibrations even if they can’t hear them. Most cats don’t like vacuum cleaners – the only exceptions appear to be fully deaf cats: they have been known to take rides on them because they like how the vibrations feel, but can’t hear the motor’s whine.
She may have figured out the "can opener" doesn’t always mean "cat food". Mine have. They know what the can LOOKS like. And smells like.
Ask the vet to check her ears when she’s in, it’s not an automatic thing.Let’s use a little common sense.
Your dogs are puppies. Puppies are eager – they can’t wait to get where they’re going, especially the 8-month-old who now feels So Brave Because He Is a BIG GROWNUP Dog (he thinks) and The World Is VERY Exciting!!!!. He will calm down some as he becomes an adult.
Possible fixes:
Keep him on a short lead while walking, so he can’t take off easily. Use lots of verbal scolding (make sure you sound like you mean it) when he pulls forward. You might also tap his nose firmly when he does this…
Training classes. He needs a little self-control, & training classes may help. Go off to your local Petsmart and sign up. They have puppy classes. Prices aren’t too horrible.
You might try the Premier brand Easy Walk Harness. Refer to Amazon.com for descriptions of how they work ($15.00 & free shipping for orders over $25.00). Link: http://www.amazon.com/Premier-Harness-Large-Black-Silver/dp/B0009ZBKG4/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351003259&sr=8-1&keywords=gentle+leader+harnessHow’s your cat doing?
I had a cat who would bolt his food & almost immediately throw up.
Try feeding the cat on a large plate (maybe a 9-inch plate), and spread the food out widely in little bits so that it isn’t in one pile. The cat will have to take a little at a time, because it’s all over the place.
This could help.(Cool, I love black cats… Daddy was probably dead black. Do any of them look like Egyptian cats, from off the tomb walls? Search pictures of "black Mau cats" to see if any of the children look like that.)
Green eyes are not linked to deafness, only blue eyes are – but she may be hard-of-hearing; it could be because of ear infections when she was on the street. Street cats often get bad chronic ear mite infections that can thicken the ear structure & wreck their hearing with scarring. You should take her to the vet to have her ears looked at specifically: the vet can look inside them & see what they look like. (Animal shelters frequently do slightly cheaper vet care – check for prices.)
TESTS/QUESTIONS/ETC: Does she rotate her ear(s) back when noises happen behind her? If so, she can hear something, as the ear-swivel is a way to pick up the sound for idenfication.
Get a whistle (not a police whistle, just one of those little plastic whistles that blow a couple of tones, shrilly but no too loudly.Try party stores for party favors or dollar stores’ toy departments). Move some distance off & not in her line of sight. Make sure she’s not noticing you – if her ears are swiveling, she is noticing you. Maybe do this when she’s dozing: blow the whistle. See if she reacts. If she does, she can at least hear high tones. – Also try blowing it when she’s concentrating on eating with her back to you.
It could be that she can only hear high tones, like the kittens crying. Frequently, the lower tones go first in deafness. Your voice may be too deep for her to pick up, and hand-clapping is also technically a low-tone sound.
If she can hear high tones, like a whistle, but not low tones, like clapping or your voice, then you can use a whistle to get her attention when you need to. You might also try using a laser-pointer to get her attention.
If she is partially deaf, she certainly can have a full life, but should be a totally inside cat, as she may not be able to hear danger coming her way.Yes, absolutely, she’s grieving. She’s used to having a friend and misses the other cat. 2 cats together are always better. Head out to your local animal shelter and adopt a young cat, a male, anywhere from kitten to 6 months (male/female pairings work better than 2 females, there’s less competition). She can sort of raise the new cat & it won’t challenge her for awhile. Personally, I’d prefer 4 months: a child, but already competent & litter-box trained. Follow your heart: pick the cat that appeals to you. If nothing else, she won’t have time to brood – the youngster will be jumping on her tail all the time…
NOTE: This is an observation:
A cat does not necessarily go into heat every month.
I have 3 9-month-old females at home right now.
Amelia went into heat at 3 months & 3 weeks. She didn’t go into heat again for another three months.
Her two sisters haven’t gone into heat at all, as far as I can tell.
Her mother has been in heat only 3 times since July 2011, and the last two times had several months between the incidents.He was either scared or angry – that’s what a bushed tail means.
The fact that he went forward & attacked it meant he was either more angry than scared, and "fight" kicked in more than "flight".
I can’t imagine why he considered it a threat…
Suggestion: Get (or record) a CD of the sounds that scare him, then play them at a VERY low volume, barely above "can’t hear", for a couple of weeks, gradually upping the volume a touch at a time. (Remember: he can hear better than you.) Put the CD on "replay" for a few hours at a time, both when you’re home and away.
This may get him used to the sound and consider it just background eventually.penguinsfan…
I don’t know what you do for a living.
I don’t know if you’re even good at your job.
I don’t know why you’re so angry.
I think that the original poster fell silent because he/she was tired of being screamed at & insulted by you.
You were always somewhat insulting in your postings – you have a habit of calling other posters "moron" (yes, I checked back in your old postings) – but I have noticed that you have gotten far nastier and meaner lately.
You are now bordering on manic. You are screaming almost all the time. You lacerate the character of everyone you disagree with.
We don’t need this. The tone of the boards have become so negative, I believe that it is driving members away.
I believe you are part of the problem.
You may have problems we don’t know about that are causing your attitude – we all have pressures on us, from family to financial.
Whatever the reason:
If you cannot keep a civil tone, please stop posting until you CAN be civil.
Thank you.Oh Lord, yes, breeders charge a minimum of $500 – usually more – for a non-show-quality animal. Full-breed adoption is horribly expensive.
And there’s actually a lot of purebred dogs (especially) and cats available through breed adoption groups, and even in animal shelters.Oh, by the way, penguinsfan…
You are being really, really rude and nasty.
Excessively so.
There is no reason for this. It is possible to disagree with someone while still being civil.
Abusing other posters will only drive them away.
I have noticed that there is a lot less posting on the board than there was six months ago.
It could be that postings like yours are part of the reason. Who wants to be yelled at by strangers when they’re looking for information?To bring some civility back to this thread…
The fees the shelters & adoption agencies charge are to pay for the care given to the pets:
Shots: Rabies, distemper. Comes to at least $60, maybe more.
Tests: FeLV (in cats). This is a $40 test (I think).
Spaying fee: Minimum, $75 (cats) at a low-cost spay clinic.
By now, you’re up to $175.00 for a cat, $135 or more for dogs.
To continue:
Worming, monthly.
Tests for parasites & treatment for infestations.
Surgery, if the pet needs it (I adopted a cat who’d had $1000 or more in ear operations.)
Then there’s the cost of keeping all the other pets alive – care, food, bedding, electricity.
This is why the fee is anywhere from $150 to $250. It’s actually very cost-effective, when you figure the costs involved.
It discourages very bad people who want to get stray cats to sell to labs.
It also discourages people who can’t afford a pet from getting one in the first place.
However, multiple pet adoptions are usually discounted.
Many county animal shelters have yearly month-long special adoption events, when cats and/or dogs are up for adoption for a far-reduced fee. Call the county shelter & find out when their next Event is.
So there’s a good reason for the fees.It could.
My cats use Revolution. It kills pretty much anything that can infest a cat, & it’s generally safe, with few cats having reactions.
To buy it online, get a written prescription from your vet. Sign up on Drs. Foster & Smith Pharmacy for a pharmacy account (they’re licensed in Wisconsin). Order the Revolution for Cats – it’s 6 doses for $75.00. Call them, tell them the prescription will be mailed to them (they only accept faxes from vet offices & most vet offices flatly refuse to send any prescription anywhere that isn’t an actual vet’s office that takes patients). Mail the prescription to them. They will ship the stuff, free. You can put in email reminders to yourself to order more.
Or, if your vet price-matches, print off the Revolution for Cats page with the price & present it to them when you go buy it from your vet.