Cat Won't Shut Up.

liah · 11-02-2011 4:33pm #1

I'm an animal person but I know next to nothing about cats. Only ever really had one and even then it was a wild one that took a shine to our house (and subsequently decided to have kittens under my bed, but I digress).

Basically, I've moved in with two lads, and one of them has a cat. They shouldn't have a cat, they won't get the thing spayed, but she's fed and looked after and given loads of love from all of us and she doesn't get outside so I guess I can't really complain that much.

The problem is, I'm fairly sure she's in heat, and she's driving me fcking batty. She just wanders aimlessly around the house mrrrrrowing consistently and as loud as she seemingly can, for hours. Not to mention if she manages to get into the room unsupervised she'll piss on anything soft on the floor.

I can't ask him to get her spayed (I've tried, there's just no point arguing it at his stage). Is there ANYTHING I can do to get her to can it for a couple hours so I can have some peace?

koneko · 11-02-2011 4:53pm

If she's in heat she's going to wander around and make a lot of noise.

Why won't they spay her, did they give a reason?
Or was it that wishy washy "It's not natural" excuse?

liah · 11-02-2011 5:05pm

koneko wrote: »

If she's in heat she's going to wander around and make a lot of noise.

Why won't they spay her, did they give a reason?
Or was it that wishy washy "It's not natural" excuse?

Frankly, the lad who owns her is lazy. The cat is really the least of the problems with him. But there's a variety of excuses from "I can't afford it" (I smoke it myself so I'm not being judgmental about the activity, but he can afford pot every 2-3 days and it's not exactly cheap, a hundred odd euro each week at least), to "why should I have to, she's an indoor cat," to the "it's not natural" bs.

Is there nothing cheap I can buy that would keep her occupied? Would catnip be counterproductive? She has other toys and things but I guess there's nothing I can feed her to calm her down or anything?

koneko · 11-02-2011 5:12pm

Tbh it sounds like he shouldn't even have a pet.

She may be meowing because she's in heat, not much you can do about it really. She'll keep meowing as she wants to mate. She could be sick or in pain otherwise (if she's not in heat), but judging by how lazy/uncaring he is he won't take her to a vet either.

The only thing that'll actually help is spaying her, and it's the responsible thing to do.

koneko · 11-02-2011 5:16pm

It's also worth noting that cats can go in heat quite often. Prepare for a lot of meowing and an uncomfortable looking cat.

liah · 11-02-2011 5:19pm

Yeah, I know, I'm a massive advocate of spaying as soon as is reasonable so this is something that's been under my skin since I realized she wasn't done. He definitely shouldn't have a pet (and this isn't the only reason why), but as far as I can gather he and his ex girlfriend got two cats together, she broke up with him, moved out and took one cat and left the other one that's here now.

He won't get rid of her, either, because now he has a huge bond with the cat and she loves him to bits, runs to the door whenever she hears the key in the lock and won't leave him alone, she's already lost her cat friend (they were pretty good buddies) and has a nervous disposition anyway so I doubt anything will change in terms of him keeping her.

Suppose I'll have to get earplugs or something. Poor thing.

EDIT: Also, nothing to do with going into heat but she seems to be carrying weight in an odd sort of way. Again, I've never really had cats so won't claim to know what she should look like, but I don't know if she's simply overweight or she's got some kind of growth. Her belly seems relatively firm, and she seems quite skinny everywhere else but her belly hangs far lower than her ribcage and is a bit of an odd shape. She loves belly rubs and things and when I palpate her belly she shows no signs of discomfort or pain. Is she just fat or is it worth getting onto him about?

koneko · 11-02-2011 5:22pm

Earplugs are a definite. He's a good summary from a page I just looked at:
"Until she mates or is spayed, these estrus cycles will repeat as often as every two or three weeks, causing distress to both the queen and her human companions. During these cycles, Queenie's entire focus will be on escaping the house to mate, or to mate with a male companion, if you are careless enough to have whole males in the same household. She will be single-minded in her need to mate, will loudly vocalize (call), and lurk near doors, just waiting for the chance to meet up with one of the noisy feline Romeos who will cluster near your house, fighting for the privilege of impregnating your queen."

I can sympathise with yourself though, we had a Siamese cat once that my parents delayed getting spayed and she cried the place down. They can be crazy loud when they're like that.

liah · 11-02-2011 5:27pm

Yep, that paragraph sounds like a pretty apt description of her right now! We've had dogs who've gone into heat (their first before the spay) and they were never this.. incessantly annoying. The sheer determination and dedication is actually kind of impressive, really! :pac:

planetX · 11-02-2011 5:30pm

Keep at him about the spaying - how's he going to feel when there are kittens to find homes for, you're going to get tom cats hanging around and spraying everywhere, or she's going to run off and he won't see her again.

How about a jar in the kitchen for loose change with a big sign 'NEUTERING FUND'

Dixie Chick · 11-02-2011 5:31pm

I know she isnt your cat but would you consider paying for the cost of the spaying just to get it done? It doesnt seem like anyting will happen otherwise.
Sounds like she is a bit on the fat side, my cats belly hangs as well

newmug · 11-02-2011 5:37pm

One bullet, bang bang!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVPSizAcqeA

Dixie Chick · 11-02-2011 5:46pm

newmug wrote: »

One bullet, bang bang!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVPSizAcqeA

am NOT opening that link

newmug · 11-02-2011 5:47pm

Dixie Chick wrote: »

am NOT opening that link

I promise its ok, its funny!

liah · 11-02-2011 5:50pm

Dixie Chick wrote: »

I know she isnt your cat but would you consider paying for the cost of the spaying just to get it done? It doesnt seem like anyting will happen otherwise.
Sounds like she is a bit on the fat side, my cats belly hangs as well

I've considered it, I'm fairly hard up for the forseeable but it's just not fair on the poor cat, or us who have to listen to her. I'm just not sure how it would go down, he keeps largely to himself and I don't know him that well. I do know that talking to him about it is pretty much futile as the other lad has lived with him for years and has tried to get him to change other habits (he NEVER washes dishes or cleans up after himself in the kitchen. EVER. And I won't go into the state of his room or his clutter in the hallway. Both are exceptionally tiny, it's ridiculous.)

If I manage to get some extra cash to put aside I think I will and then ask him when I have the amount saved up if I can just take her myself. I have no idea what the fees are like here in Germany, though, so that might take some time.

Bah, I don't know. I'll have to figure something out. :mad:

carwash_2006 · 11-02-2011 6:24pm

You do want to be a bit careful though about getting her done youself. Make sure you have his permission before you do. I don't know what the laws regarding cat ownership in Germany are like, but if, god forbid. anything went wrong during the spay you could have a very tricky situation to deal with at home and could possibly be sued.

Do try pointing out to him that even though she is indoor, they can be very determined when they are in call. So if there are males hanging around outside she is likely to try and get out to them, or the males might even manage to slip in. I knew a couple that this happened to. They had a female that they delayed getting spayed and a male slipped into their flat when people were going out at one stage and it was only discovered when they got home, which was just a little late.

liah · 11-02-2011 6:28pm

See, it's tomcats I'm worried about. We live in a basement apartment so there's great big windows on the ground floor with no screens on them (why are there no screens on windows in Europe, btw?

), they're the kind where you twist the handle so you have two different 'open' settings. Both are wide enough for a cat to get through if she was particularly determined or a tomcat was and I have no idea how observant he is regarding his window, and I've often found the kitchen door and window both open with nobody around. And since it's a basement apartment and it's winter, it's fairly damp down here so the windows have to be open at least for awhile each day to air it out. Nightmare in a tiny apartment with a cat.

He's a stoner, plays videogames all day and I'm fairly sure he's some level of depressed what with the filth he lives in and subjects the shared kitchen to, I have a feeling that if I just went ahead and did it there wouldn't really be any repercussions so long as nothing bad happened to her, the impression I get from his mates who know him years is that he's mostly a good guy, just has no motivation.

I've already been the one cleaning up after him since I moved in so I guess I have some leverage in the situation.

Chris_Heilong · 12-02-2011 12:39am

also shouldnt have drugs around animals too.:mad:

MaryK666 · 14-02-2011 11:58am

Just a thought but have you tried contacting the ex-girlfriend and explaining the situation to her? She might be able to help persuade him to do the right thing and get the poor cat neutered before it's too late and she gets caught by one of the neighbourhood toms.

liah · 14-02-2011 1:02pm

MaryK666 wrote: »

Just a thought but have you tried contacting the ex-girlfriend and explaining the situation to her? She might be able to help persuade him to do the right thing and get the poor cat neutered before it's too late and she gets caught by one of the neighbourhood toms.

I've only met her a few times and certainly wouldn't know her enough to get her contact details.. according to mates she's much like him in pretty much all respects, she doesn't see it as a problem and won't no matter what you say, really. I highly doubt she got her cat neutered. Uphill battle tbh.

poconnor16 · 14-02-2011 5:19pm

Any chance you could afford to get him (your flatmate) neutered? I think it is important that this numb-nut does not reproduce...

liah - its a tough situation you are in, and fairplay to you for considering neutering the kitty. As peed off as you are you obviously have a good heart and want the best for her - as well as your peace and quiet.

Sounds to me like the best option, and I somehow doubt that he will give two hoots. Probably too busy talking to talking to his x-box as he rolls another....

Maybe locate a nearby vet and have a chat. Look into the cost of it, and the aftercare required. Its usually one stitch but the little one needs to looked after for a few days too, which I doubt your flatmate will do.

Good luck to you

Cat Won't Shut Up.

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