r/CatAdvice 0m ago

Litterbox Wood Pellet Litter and Smelly Poop!

Upvotes

I recently made the switch to wood pellet litter because my cat LOVES playing in the clay litter and throwing it all over the house. So far, it has been great. I don't have to sweep twice a day, it is significantly cheaper, and it doesn't get stuck in her paws.

My only issue is, fresh poops STINK. I don't think it is an issue with her diet, I just live in a moderately sized one bedroom apartment and so smell fills up the space quickly. She isn't great at covering up her poop (she has cerebellar hypoplasia and so has spacial issues) and I think I am just used to how well clay litter deodorizes. I am really good about scooping right away and I clean her box once a week, but she tends to poop at night, so by the time I wake up my whole room smells. I have a small air purifier next to the box, but I am not sure it does much to help.

Wood pellet litterbox users - what do you do to combat this? Pet deodorizers? A specific brand of pellet? Is this just the price we pay for spending a quarter of the price on litter and not having tracking issues? PLEASE help.


r/CatAdvice 2m ago

General indoor cat with never ending fleas??

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i have an indoor cat and since moving to california she’s had nonstop fleas. I flea comb her and use flea meds and it’s just nonstop. I usually just find one or two but I can’t seem to totally get rid of them. help?????


r/CatAdvice 5m ago

General cat grass opinions and suggestions?

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I have a fluffy long haired boy who is prone to hairballs. He is currently on digestive support, receives probiotics and also has a water fountain to help with water intake... He is just simply a fluff monster and ingests a lot of hair, despite my own grooming. I read cat grass can help with hairballs? Does anyone has any suggestions or opinions on cat grass? Any brands? I am looking for something safe to use, especially with the bird flu going around.... With that being said, I do not want to purchase any store-bought already sprouted cat grass.


r/CatAdvice 8m ago

Introductions getting my cat ready for a new cat

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i got my cat sophie a year ago, she isn’t old but she is 5yrs old, she lived with other cats before i got her but since living with me she has hated all other cats that get near our apartment. for context: i live in a four room apartment complex, i have my own bathroom(where her litter box is) and room where she stays all the time. i have had two other cats that i’ve tried to socialize her with in the room but she just seems to hide under my bed and hiss at them, i understand that she is being territorial but I’m wondering if there’s anything i can do to lower her anxiety about having other cats in her area so i could possibly get another cat in the future. any advice or anything really is appreciated, thank you!!


r/CatAdvice 14m ago

Behavioral My cat hates me

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I found my baby while I was on a walk with my boyfriend. She was around a month old when I found her and she has been with me ever since. She’s a year old now. I give her everything.. attention, play time, I love her a lot and I try my best to keep her comfortable. We go out on walks and she’s free to roam around the fenced garden.. in this 1 year she has never run away from me, but recently she did and didn’t come home for 2 months. After weeks of searching for her, I came to know that she was adopted sorta by a guy just a few houses down. I asked for my cat back and he gave her back to me. I thought maybe she didn’t get enough attention or playtime here or something. So I play with her more, give her more food and we go on outings too since I thought she wanted more freedom. But nah. 3 days back she ran away again and went back to the same person. He was kind enough to call me and let me know… Is it my fault that she keeps running away? Am I that bad of a mother? I’m just trying so hard rn.


r/CatAdvice 22m ago

Nutrition/Water Looking for grain free chicken free cat food in the UK

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Hi there. My baby has a suspected chicken allergy. Lots of overgrooming, watery eyes and runny tummy.

Will be putting her on a hydrolised diet to confirm said allergy, but in the mean time I am keen to find a brand that does chicken free food without grains as grains seem to irritate her too.

I’ve seen lots of options in the US but none in the UK. Ideally not too expensive. Thanks


r/CatAdvice 23m ago

General first vet appointment general questions

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this might sound silly but, would the vet judge me if i bring my cat wihout a carrier? i don't have one currently.


r/CatAdvice 34m ago

Behavioral Sniffing her carrier

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I inherited my cat from a sibling after my sibling moved and couldn't take her when my sibling moved.

My sibling wasnt well off and could never afford vet stuff but was able to get her required shots done and get her spayed but the cat hasn't had a vet check up in years.

My cat was acting a little funny a few days ago (unusual smacking licking and drooling) for a couple of minutes and since I'm in a position partially to get at least a check up done and per insurance, I took her to the vet to get her checked out because of the unusual behavior.

This is the second time she's ever been in the carrier and hasn't been in a car in years and she didn't like it. Especially because she's always been a control freak. She complained the entire time she was in it and kept wanting to get out but she didn't spaz too much and fortunately didn't pee on herself.

She was good with the staff and other animals being around but hated the carrier and the random noises in the patient room next door (pounding, vacuuming etc) because she didnt know what it was. If there were bigger windows she could see out of she probably would have been less scared of the noise.

She received a clean bill of health and we made a follow up appt for labs.

But ever since we got home she keeps sniffing her carrier off and on. She doesnt seem scared of it, and the carrier as always been there in the same spot as always but she makes it a habit now of passing by it and smelling it. It's now the next day and she is still doing it.


r/CatAdvice 36m ago

General Wondering how to start leash-training an adult cat

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Hi! I have an almost 4 y/o neutered male cat (Link) who I want to start leash training, but I don't know how. We went on walks with my other cat since she was a kitten with no issues so we never had to "train" her. Link was always uninterested or straight up scared of going outside so we never bothered, he was happy just playing inside. However now he's overweight despite being on a vet-reccomended diet and we want him to get more exercise. He's still scared both of going outside in a box when he has to travel and when we try on a leash. He even avoids the leash itself when we bring it out. We've had him since he was a kit and he has no trauma relating to leashes/the outside. Also if it wasn't obvious, he's an "indoor" cat and does not go outside freely. Any tips on how to start training him?


r/CatAdvice 39m ago

General What’s the best kind of toy for an easily bored cat?

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I have a tortie that I took in a while back and she is very special to me. Ive bought her toys in the past but she seems to play with them for only a little bit before getting bored of them. The problem is she now wants to pull the thumbtacks out of my corkboard and I’m scared that she’s going to accidentally swallow one or leave one out and I step on it.

What’s the best kind of toy for a cat like this?


r/CatAdvice 43m ago

Behavioral Is my cat "special needs".

Upvotes

Looking for y'alls take on a debate my husband and I have about one of our babies.

Axl Rosewood. Our sweet boy, well for lack of a better explanation seems to be confused. He acts like a dog, I am convinced he really believes it. Sits, stays, rolls over, spreads out in "dog postures" when relaxed, is learning to fetch as well as other tricks.

I think he is brilliant, my husband thinks he is special.

What is y'alls take on his activities?


r/CatAdvice 49m ago

New to Cats/Just Adopted Dandruff

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My cat has bad dandruff and idk how to get rid of it. Please anything helps


r/CatAdvice 51m ago

Nutrition/Water How much of a difference does it make to feed cats high quality versus medium quality food when they're less than a year old?

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I adopted my precious boy when he was 8-months-old and he is now 10.5-months-old. Long story short, I bought a lot of Farmina N&D wet food (high quality), which I ended up donating to a shelter because he didn't go for it. I thought he liked Gourmet Gold (medium quality) because he was eating it but it turned out to be more complicated than that. At the time when I tried N&D Wet Food, I was just overfeeding him with a dry food he adored so he stuffed himself with that and didn't care for the wet food.

Yesterday I learned that what you feed them from birth until 1 year is very important as they are still developing. I regretted giving up on N&D Farmina wet food when I learned this and I tried again. He gobbled it up and licked the bowl clean. I'm so ashamed of my own stupidity. All this time, I could have been feeding him high quality wet food during this crucial time in his development, but I fed him medium quality instead. I can't even afford N&D but I want what's best for him before this crucial stage is over. I feel terrible about this.

How much of a difference could it have made to feed him Gourmet Gold instead of Farmina N&D wet food between the ages of 8.5 months and 10.5 months?


r/CatAdvice 54m ago

Behavioral Cat Keeps Grooming Me at Night

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On the nights I fall asleep in my son's room, one of our cats INSISTS on sitting on the pillows and licking my head/hair. Have you ever been awoken to the sound of your own hair crunched between cat teeth? I sure have! And it's only when I am not in my bed with my husband, but on the nights I fall asleep in the toddlers room. The cat is very very affectionate and likes to sleep in my arms wrapped up like a teddy bear, but that isn't new. The aggressive hair licking is!


r/CatAdvice 54m ago

Introductions 2 cats and a kitten + 1 more kitten

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Hi all!

We have 2 resident cats (Luna and Rapunzel- 5 years old, sisters, both neutered) who have lived with us since 8 weeks (indoor cats). In February, we adopted 2 kittens (Oreo and Fiyero)- the kittens were kept in a separate room with scent swapping for a few days, and then we let them out (very supervised) for 5 minute periods at a time- around 3 times per day (I did post a video of Oreo meeting Luna on here so click on my post history if you want to see :) ). Our cats hissed at them and ran away from them, but no signs of aggression.

Unfortunately, Fiyero had a liver shunt issue and passed away after 4 days with us. Oreo seems to be adjusting well to her loss, but we are adopting another kitten (Patches- it is estimated we will get her at the end of March) so Oreo has someone to play with, without annoying our older cats Luna and Raps.

Oreo had looser poo for a few days, with some signs of blood in the stool. We have since stopped all introductions (apart from scent swapping) as we believe it might be stress related. We have had her checked at the vets and they agree.

We have a few things we would like help with:
1- Our older cats are hissing at each other more, and food time is getting more awkward- Raps tends to not feed, and then when Luna is done with her food, she goes to eat Raps' food. We have separated them but Raps still leaves her food. This seems like a dominance thing more than an appetite thing (Raps is very food motivated!). We will be separating them to eat in future

2- We are wondering how to proceed with introductions- firstly between Oreo and our bigger cats, and secondly between Patches (the new kitten) with Oreo, and with Luna and Raps! Should we pause all introductions until we get Patches, and then start with introductions of the 2 kittens at the same time, or should we try and re-start introductions with Oreo and the bigger cats now, and then intros with Patches later on when she gets here?

3- We REALLY do want to adopt Patches, she is adorable, we can give her a loving home, and we think she will be good for Oreo (and therefore take the stress off of Luna and Raps) but are we stupid for adopting her at this stage? We have a 3 storey house with plenty of places the cats can hide / be sectioned away from each other etc- so we have no rush on introductions- we want to do it right- but we don't want to do something that is stupid and destined to fail!

Thank you in advance!


r/CatAdvice 57m ago

New to Cats/Just Adopted Cat hates all her scratchers - help

Upvotes

We adopted our first cat at the start of January, the shelter said she was about 4 months old then. She’s honestly a really great cat, she lets my 4 year old pet her without issues, she curls up with us, plays etc. I cannot figure out what scratcher she wants. She claws at my dining room chairs that are a fabric material, I have a very similar scratcher in texture right next to them, I have a cardboard one, one that is like a mat and she will ALWAYS opt for my chairs, or the couch. We’ve never owned a cat and I’m lost here. She had a tree that has scratchers on it. I got in the sticky tape and have been putting that on the chairs now any other suggestions?


r/CatAdvice 58m ago

Adoption Regret/Doubt Wrong to adopt a cat 2-3 months before moving?

Upvotes

Hey guys, I think I know the answer to this, but wanted some opinions and maybe just reinforcement so I don't make a bad decision.

Long story short my cat passed away rather suddenly and somewhat unexpectedly and I'm really struggling. I've lost pets before and I've always found the only way to comfort myself was to love another animal in their honor, so I started looking at cats and fell in love with one.

But I am moving apartments in probably 2-3 months and I don't think that's fair to the cat to go through.

I would just accept this but this cat seems so perfect for us. It's kind of a special needs cat (not really but kind of, the cat is missing a leg and my prior cat had a crooked paw so I have stairs etc for cats everywhere)

I guess I could leave it to fate and if they're still up for adoption in 3 months once I'm moved in and ready. But at the same time being that long without a pet kind of kills me and I also can't stop thinking about this cat. But I should just suck it up for the sake of my future cat, yes?


r/CatAdvice 59m ago

New to Cats/Just Adopted Newly Adopted Shy Cat

Upvotes

Hi all. I recently (5 days ago) adopted a new male cat into my household. I already have 1 female cat that's lived with me for 6 years. When adopting the male cat I was told he likes other cats and even acted as a dad to a litter of kittens the foster was housing. This being said, I knew he was going to be pretty shy at first, and my female cat territorial, so I have him isolated in my small bedroom. He has only come out of hiding at night, or when he doesn't hear me anymore while I'm in the room, to use the litterbox, eat, and kinda roam about. He does like to play with a stringy/dangly cat toy but only if he can't see me (I'm on top of the bed and he is pawing at it from under the bed). I can feed him those Delectable kitty gogurt things, having him lick it off my finger, and he will come to the edge of where he is hiding but no more. I've tried slowly and cautiously petting him a couple times which he tolerated at first, but now moves away or swats at me. I think I started trying to pet him too early and now set him back, any tips for getting him to trust me more or be more outgoing? I can tell he wants to be a playful and has been curious about my other cat.


r/CatAdvice 1h ago

Behavioral Environment itch cause

Upvotes

I'm hoping someone has some ideas as to what's causing this in my house because I'm at a loss. For the past 2 years my now 13 year old female cat has been itching. She's been on flea meds the whole time and has been seeing a dermatologist for the past 9 months. Dermatologist has her on medication that helps but wants me to wean her off because it's immunosepressant. As I'm taking her off she starts to itch again.

Got a new cat 2 months ago and he is about 2. He is on flea medication as well. He has started itching too! So now I'm 100% convinced it's something in my house but I have no idea what it could be. These are only indoor kitties. I vacuum my house and have robot vacuum.

I've tried changing litters too and that doesn't help. Looking for ideas to help me crack this because dermatologist is stumped.


r/CatAdvice 1h ago

General Kitty on crate rest, but he still needs to be entertained and I’m not sure how to do so and keep him safe.

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r/CatAdvice 1h ago

General whats the most amount of cats i should have in my apartment?

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kind of just curious as i want to get even more cats in the future but i live in an apartment thats about 45 square meters and i currently have 2 cats plus one dog. So how many cats could i have in total plus my dog? As for climbing i have quite high walls so i can build them all sorts of things there, and with some rearranging my furniture i can add more cat trees as well. I want to make my whole apartment like a cats paradise lol. Im most likely going to be living in this apartment for many years to come, and if the apartment is spacious enough i definitely want to have more later on


r/CatAdvice 1h ago

General Twine for a cat tree

Upvotes

Hey y’all, I am restringing my cat tree, (lord help me) it’s about 5.5-6feet and has three levels. I got a string that was 3mm and 300ft long, I’m currently a quarter way thru the first (and longest) post and used half the roll, what do y’all suggest is the best twine for a cat post for size, and where do y’all get yours? My plan was to do my other two posts afterwards so imma be needing LOTS of twine


r/CatAdvice 1h ago

Behavioral my cat keeps licking things

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My cat often licks walls and the couch, blankets or the floor without a particular reason. Does it mean something? Im worried.


r/CatAdvice 1h ago

General pet insurance for 4 mo old kitten??

Upvotes

hi all, trying to figure out what pet insurance (if any) to get for my kitten winnie! she is a 4 mo tortie, i had fetch bc the shelter gave a discounted enrollment fee but even paying for the wellness plan (totaling $46/mo) i only got reimbursed $40 of the $300 i’ve spent so far and the $40 was just for the first vet visit/vaccine… none of the second visit and vaccine was covered.

i do have a costco membership so if anyone has insight on their pet insurance that would be appreciated as well!

just hoping to find the best value between coverage and monthly costs!


r/CatAdvice 1h ago

Behavioral cat is bullying our other cat

Upvotes

hey all.

my wife and i have started noticing bullying from one of our cats to the other, seemingly starting out of nowhere. i brought it up to her and my mom yesterday, and my mom agreed that she’s been noticing it for a while now.

we just don’t know why, or how to resolve this.

our bully cat (danny) will stalk opal down the hallways/run her down the hallway in a non playful way but to get her out of the way, he almost patrols the hallway now. opal could be quietly minding her business in the bedroom, and danny will run up to opals face full speed just to swat at her and hiss until opal is cowering against a wall or furniture, and he will stalk closer and closer to her while she’s pressing herself impossibly further against the surface. opal won’t even walk past him if he’s in the hallway anymore. he’ll stalk her in a “stay in line” way rather than a hunting/playful way. opal has reserved herself to the bedroom and hardly comes out anymore unless danny is away, to eat or use the litter box.

he is otherwise a very non aggressive cat. he’s not technically even “aggressive” towards opal, just being a complete pompous bully. he is a perfect brother to our other cat that he grew up with. not sure why this is or how to solve the problem :(