Advice on Crazy Kitties

After yesterday's craziness with Nanuq, I decided to ask for help, and support, from the experts. Gwen Bohenkamp runs a terrific website on dog and cat training, as well as a blog called Puppy & Dog Training Tips, with a special section on cats. I love the way Gwen provides honest, thoughtful answers that address both the needs of our forever friends and the needs of our own psyches. Here's what she advised:

Hi, Gwen,
Thanks for your site. It's so helpful. I'm wondering if you can give me some advice about my cat. Nanuq is about a year old, and I adopted him from an animal shelter about two months ago. He is white and, I'm pretty sure, completely deaf. Before he came to live with me, he lived with another cat in a house. Their owners abandoned them in the house when they moved.

Nanuq is incredibly destructive. He wails every time I leave the house or close the door to go to the bathroom, and I almost always return to at least one broken object. When I get home from work, I play with him for hours, but he still stays up all night and plays. He scratches everything in sight, even though I've tried the spray bottle. I don't think he likes the bottle, but he's pretty stubborn and won't stop misbehaving even after he's drenched with water. I've tried smearing catnip over his two scratching posts, but he shows little interest.

Do you have advice on (1) what other ways I can show a deaf cat that I don't like his behavior and (2) any methods I can use to calm him down during the night? By the way, I'm hoping to move to a large place in a few months and get a second cat; I'm thinking Nanuq might be happier if he had a friend. Thanks!Janine
3/29/2006

Gwen Bohnenkamp said...
Hi Janine, thank you for your kind words about my website. They are very much appreciated. Since Nanuq lived with another cat before, maybe he does need a companion. He's still very young and needs lots of stimulation, play and outlets for his energy. It sounds like you're giving him as much as you can and perhaps only another playful companion will satisfy him. He may be very lonely for a companion of his own species, even tho you provide him with all the love, attention and affection you can.

He's still a young male cat and you are a human. Try to reverse the roles and you may understand. When you get him a companion, make sure it's one who is really compatible with him or you'll have 2 pouting cats to deal with!!! If there's any way to keep him awake during the day it will help with curbing his nocturnal activities. It's normal for cats to be nocturnal and it takes some effort to change their natural sleep/wake pattern. Some cats adapt well, and others don't.The fact that the prior owners abandoned him also speaks for itself. They obviously did not love him and care for him or he would never have been left behind. I'm sure this contributes to his behavior as well - especially the wailing when he thinks he's being left. It will take a while before he trusts anyone and feels completely secure so you're both having to practice patience. The difference is that you understand intellectually and he only has experience and emotion to go on so he's at a major disadvantage. He really needs your loving support but at the same time you have to maintain your own sanity and life. This is probably why he resists the spray bottle. Even tho he may hate it, it's better than being left alone.

Instead of trying to reprimand him for his obnoxious behavior, it might be better to flood him with affection to the point that he rejects it. I know that sounds contrary, but it often works. You might even try some herbal or homeopathic remedies like Bach Flower Rescue Remedy to see if that helps. It may or it may not, but it won't hurt and it's not expensive. Keep in touch and let us know how it's going. Maybe some other readers will have some suggestions. And if you find something that works, please share it with us. thank you.

I also called on another guru, my friend Erika. She has two cats, Scout and Hazie, that she and her husband, Nick, have reared since kittenhood.

J: Nanuq is still a kitten learning his new environments - he will calm down and learn how to manuever his surroundings. Scout had a spree of breakage and then by 1 1/2 she was an expert jumper. Nanuq is a doll baby. He's probably also getting used to being alone as well as he was with other cats before both at his first home and in the shelter. And I think his not being able to hear crashes pribably makes them less scary to him. You are not insane. Also I will check on Nanuq at lunch today and Nick and I will visit him for dinner tomorrow. I will clean as much carnage as I can and maybe try and hide things he can destroy. Don't worry J - everything will be ok - The first couple of months with a new one is an adjustment.
Erika

Many thanks to both Erika and Gwen for cheering me up with more options! By the way, I did not hear from Peter today. Could that mean Nanuq behaved himself? Stay tuned...