Posted on 01/21/2015 7:50:19 PM PST by Jamestown1630
We had a serious cat issue tonight, and I'd like to post this so that others can avoid it.
As some of you know, we acquired two young cats over the past couple of weeks.
They've adjusted really well - they are male siblings; but something happened tonight.
A friend of ours, another Cat person, gave us a bag of toys for the cats. There were lots of nice toys in there, but one of them was a very small, very silky mouse - small enough to fit into a cat's mouth (about an inch long). "They" make cat toys now that have the same silky feeling that real mice do.
I had been throwing these toys for the cats to chase, and when I picked up the tiny, silky mouse and was about to throw it, something in my mind said "NO!". I should have listened to my mind! (Always listen to your instincts! They don't lie!)
But, I threw it anyway. And, a few minutes later, we heard 'cat moaning' going on. At first, we thought that one cat was defending itself against the other.
But, I saw a piece of ribbon sticking out of the moaning cat's mouth, and realized that the little silky mouse was in his mouth, and he couldn't get it out!
Afraid that he would choke, I picked him up, pinched his mouth open, and got the thing out. The cat scratched me furiously, and got the mouse in his mouth again.
This happened three times, before I finally grabbed the demonic toy, and threw it in the trash can.
My hand had many bloody points - cat did NOT want to give up this toy.
My 'Husband Unit' got the peroxide, patched me up, and I'm fine, now.
BUT: DO NOT buy any of those really silky mouse toys for your cat, unless they are large enough that there is no possibility that the cat could choke on it. To the cat, they feel like real mice; and they become more possessive of them than they do of other toys.
Just a caution.
-JT
Pill administration to all of our family cats has always been grippingbthe beasty by the scruff of the neck, inverting, and when they cry in protest the pill drops into the back of the mouth at the same time as a glob of spit and the free pill hand then closes the mouth in one swift action... holding th3 mouth closed to make it swallow. Works like a charm.
VERY glad you saved kitty and that you’re gonna be OK. I am very careful about choosing kitty toys. None of those beaded eyes that can come off and be swallowed, no strings, no yarn, no feathers or other things that could be torn off and swallowed. My cats particularly like round tracks with balls that roll around in them, furry mousie or birdie toys (my Maine Coon likes to carry those around in her mouth), big plastic springs (the little cat likes those), and the Kickeroo (little cat loves to “kill” it, and it’s almost as big as she is!).
I bet you aged 10 years! Squeeze the blood out and with it any dirt, wash and peroxide. Lived with scratches all my cat life with no serious problems. Have gotten pin worms from kissing them in high school. They still get hugged and kissed. Thanks for head up, he must have really thought he had a kill! Kittens get into all sorts of scrapes. Good thing they have such intelligent, lightening reacting staff!
Yes. You REALLY have to evaluate cat toys before giving them to kitteh. We had a similar issue last year: My favorite cat suddenly wouldn’t eat and sat around literally moaning. Now, Dinah likes to EAT so I knew something was really wrong. Took her to the vet immediately and it transpired that she had eaten a homemade cat toy (my kids made it) and it had lodged in her gut in, of course, a hard-to-reach place. She’s young, healthy and greatly beloved, so we sprang for the surgery . . . and it cost us $3K!!!!!
The specialist vet who did the surgery told us that cats have a particular problem getting non-food back out of their mouths because of the soft little spines on their tongues. The little spines tend to move the food (or object) back toward their throats whether they want it or not. Now you know why cats have to work so hard at getting rid of a hairball!
LOL. I enjoyed reading that so much! Hilarious :)
Novice cat owner here. What do you mean by that?
I’ve never had a cat try to swallow a toy. The favorite these days is a pipe cleaner that gets batted around from room to room.
Since they were all strays, I guess they can tell the difference between a real meal and a toy.
Outdoor cats have a better grasp. Indoor cats gets senile. We have two primarily outdoor and two indoor. The indoor cars are weird. One of them sings to her toys and sings after she poops. She is also bulimic. The other indoor cat is food-insecure. Come Spring, they are all going outside.
just keep an eye out for redness creeping.....the fever can take as much as 7 days to fully develop
Glad all else is well
Have to admit that #15 was mine ....
Have to admit #15 was my addition ....
Have to admit that #15 was my addition ...
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ko7WUj6Fy68
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Mu7aPLc0Lq4
The trick is to practice witb your cat a few times doing this by hand only.
This will teach where the spot on the their neck is that deactivates kitty.
Then you can try clips.
It’s usually a spot near the base of the neck, just above shoulder blades.
Im not above whooopin’ my cats when they bite or scratch out of meanness...
they dont like it though.
Glad you got the mouse out of Kitteh’s mouth before he choked it down. Could have been lethal.
As for cat scratch: are your tetanus shots up to date? Andy scratched me when I tried to pick him up off his perch, which is taller than I am. He wasn’t trying to scratch me, just trying to escape. But he hit a vein, or maybe it was an artery, and blood spurted all over, I had to wrap my arm tightly and a friend took me to the emergency med place nearby. Didn’t need stitches, but got a tetanus shot and, as I recall, some antibiotics.
Suggest you think about calling your doc or the nearest emergency med place.
As for Andy, he was really appalled by hurting me. Since then, he “high-fives” me with his claws tucked in. No kidding, he had a behavior shift after that incident.
Hope your little guy simmers down, too. Eventually he will.
Nasty cats require being rolled up in a towel. There is no reason to let them claw you. Learn to restrain them and you can do anything they require.
How to wash a cat
1. Put lid and seat of the toilet up and add 1/8 cup of pet shampoo to the water in the bowl...
2. Pick up the cat and soothe him while you carry him towards the bathroom.
3. In one smooth movement put the cat in the toilet and dose the lid. You may need to stand on the lid.
4. At this point the cat will self agitate and make ample suds. Never mind the noises that come from the toilet, the cat is actually enjoying this!
5. Flush the toilet three or four times. This provides a ‘Power-Wash’ and ‘Rinse’.
8. Have someone open the front door of your home. Be sure that there are no people between the bathroom and the front door.
7. Stand well back, behind the toilet if possible, and quickly lift the lid.
8. The cat will rocket out of the toilet, streak through the bathroom, and run outside where he will dry himself off.
9. Both the toilet and the cat will be sparkling clean.
Yours Sincerely,
The Dog
I think this particular toy was dangerous not because it was so small, but because it felt uncannily like a real mouse - the same very silky pelt, just like a Swiss Webster. (I’m wondering what they used to make it.)
The cats have other toys that are nearly as small, but they’re hard, or made of something that doesn’t feel ‘mousy’ at all. They’ve never taken those entirely into their mouths.
-JT
I’ve been thinking about this tonight - it’s amazing to me that kittens survive to adulthood!
These are the first very young kitties we’ve had in a long time - our other rescues were all adults.
These little guys do so much absolutely reckless stuff - and just walk away from it unscathed.
Whoever said that ‘Curiosity Killed the Cat’, knew whereof he spoke!
-JT
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