My cat is living in the closet

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
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17 years ago this September some neighbor kids brought a kitten to me. She was the most pathetic looking thing. She was pretty clearly starving, but she had the most gorgeous chocolate brown fur. I took her in, and nursed her back to health. As it happens, that was probably the night I got pregnant with my daughter, and she was pretty much my soul companion through that pregnancy because my partner walked out shortly after that.

Cocoa has been an amazing character. She was bound and determined that she would never go hungry again so she became an amazing hunter. For the first several years I had her she caught most of her own dinner. This was fortunate because it turns out she also has some kind of severe food allergies that almost killed her when she ate the stuff I provided. We got it figured out but it was touch and go for a while there.

Cocoa also has a kind of mean sense of humor. There was a neighbor who had yellow lab that spent a lot of time chained up outside. Cocoa used to sit washing about 4 inches from where that chain maxed out and just watch as the dog tried to hang himself. The one neighbor she used to visit was terrified of cats. She was leery of every other person except family. Back in the day she weighed in at about 11 pounds.

The last couple of years she hasn’t moved as well. Instead of the 8 foot leaps to grab a bird out of the air she started having to climb up the bed, but other than that and a tooth she lost years ago she has been in pretty good shape. She doesn’t really want to hunt anymore. The rare occasions she has gone out the last couple of years she tends to find a sun spot and have a nap. She doesn’t have the muscle mass anymore so she has lost some weight, she was down to 8.75 pounds in September, but she doesn’t look sick. All said she wasn’t the cat she used to be, but then again she is seventeen, or pretty close to it, and seemed to be doing really well.

About three weeks ago something changed. We aren’t sure what. Maybe she got sick. What I do know is that she started hiding, at first in my room and later on the ducts in the basement. I took her to the vet, who had to put her under to do an exam, but she found nothing. She is down to 8 pounds but could have been a bit dehydrated. The only thing we can think is that the cat we rescued last August maybe bounced on her and scared her. He is running about 14 pounds, and would have just been trying to play, but the old Cocoa wasn’t scared of anything, just cautious.

So here we are. Cocoa is living in my closet. The vet says give her some space and maybe she will come around. Let her live there if she wants. We have been giving her tinned food and she has been going through about 9-12 oz of cat food a day. We moved the litter box in there and some water. I have been sneaking Glucosamine/Chondroitin snacks into her food. The thing is that my cat of almost 17 years hisses at me when I get near. I am not even sure what to do.

I did ask about kitty Prozac but the vet says wait to see if just giving her space helps, and to be perfectly honest, the idea of pilling her just makes me sad. She would never forgive me, as it is it seems she is not forgiving me for taking her to the vet.

I miss my cat.

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:frowning:

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Zyada says “Poor kitty! Poor Kitty-Mom!”

I agree, and we both send our best wishes.

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try some feliway to help reduce stress for her … it is available as a spray, and as a plug in diffuser which is what a friend of mine used.

Sometimes cats can get strange and all you can do is be patient and let them work it out.

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Well, she did leave the closet last night to go find where the box used to be in my room, (we put a new one there after we moved that one to the closet) so she did get out. The odd thing is she kept hissing as she went there. I am not sure what that is all about.

She used to come into the bathroom to watch me shower. She would stand on the toilet to lick me as I got out, and then go into the stall to drink from the bottom. I guess people flavored water is good. I have had other cats that were fascinated by human showering behavior. She also used to pee in the toilet. I think that stopped when she started getting arthritic but I always wondered how the heck she figured that out.

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Did the vet do blood tests for thyroid issues? If she’s not hyperthyroid, then I might suspect vision issues or senile dementia. There is medication for hyperthyroidism, but the other problems come with age and the best you can do for her is keep her comfortable and her surroundings familiar. If the other cat is upsetting her then I’d keep him out of the room, once she feels more comfortable she may venture out again and stop hissing at you.

Good luck with her.

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I know she did a blood workup, but I am not really sure what the specific tests were. I do worry about dementia, but would that come on slower? One day she was sleeping on my shoulder as I worked on the computer, or climbed up in my lap at the dinner table to try to snag chicken off my fork. (Chicken is her favorite and all manners and bets are off with chicken.) The next day she was hiding and hissing at everything. I also wonder if a little stroke could do it. I am keeping the door shut. None of the other animals can go in the room. She is back under the bed now rather than the closet.

I sort of hope that the glucosamine treats maybe make her joints feel enough better that she wants to come out. Other than that I am just trying to keep the room as unscarry as possible.

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Today she seems to be even more lethargic and not eating. Her tail was covered in poop. There is something really really wrong.

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Time to go back to the vet.

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Yeah. The constant hissing, especially at you, tells me that she really doesn’t feel good. Try to get the vet to understand that.

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The vet called. She is a little worried about it being some version of kitty dementia, but we are going to try some kind of anti anxiety med. I do not relish the idea of pilling her, but it is pretty clear she isn’t happy right now.

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Ughh

Go read my “fuck, here goes the cat” post in the BBQ pit from 3-4 weeks ago.

Sounds like it may be time to consider that unconsiderable option. If you have to do it, at least its better to go into it thinking things through ahead of time.

Your poor little kitty may be on her last leg :frowning:

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The cat is old. Look at it this way, did you ever try to tell an old person what to do? Good luck, the general response is “I’m 80 years old and I will do whatever I darn well please.”

As long as the cat is healthy and the vet says she’s OK, just let her do her thing. Make sure you have time to play with her and you know cats get old too.

She probably just wants to sit around and take it easy. You could try removing the other cat and seeing if she comes around, if not, perhaps she said to herself, “You know I never knew how nice it was in this closet” Many of my gay friends feel that way, much to my chagrin :slight_smile:

I had a tuxedo cat when I was little and she was quite friendly but HATED my brother. I don’t know why either. He is the one that named her. Anyway he was a missionary, and he’d go to different countries for 6 months to a year and between assignment he’d come home for about 2 weeks.

During those two weeks the cat ran under the bed and would NOT come out. She just, for some reason hated him. Well she came out to eat and use her litter box, then it was right back under the bed

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If you go that way it is possible to get some meds compounded into a transdermal gel that you would just apply to her ear.

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The thing is, this cat is pretty clearly not healthy. She’s chronically losing weight, she’s very lethargic, she’s not eating well, she’s letting her tail get covered with poop, and she’s had pretty dramatic behavioral changes. These are all bad signs, especially the lack of grooming. Unfortunately, there’s not a hell of a lot to be done for the more common problems that would cause those symptoms in a cat her age, especially one that’s resistant to being handled.

furlibusea, I wish I had something happier to tell you, but it’s just usually not a great outlook for situations like this. I’m sorry.

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You have a Gay cat? Me-Ow!

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My Kitty did this before she passed away. I knew there was something wrong and she was pretty old, so I kept an eye on her as much as possible. She was arthritic, cranky and just not right.

We did all the bloodwork as well and the only wrong was that her kidneys were beginning to show signs of deterioration. We had a follow-up scheduled, but Kitty went on her own a week before her appointment. She wasn’t eating as much as she used to, she lost weight and had a hard time doing the things she once enjoyed.

If she is hissing at you and hiding, she may very well be in a lot of pain. I would ask the vet if they can give you some sedative to give her before the appointment so that you don’t stress her taking her out of her hiding spot.

Good Luck.

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:frowning: So sorry to hear about your kitty.:frowning:

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I am supposed to go get anti-depressants for her today, but I am feeling like we are at the end. I am not ready to loose her.

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I’m sorry you have to deal with this–it’s by far the worst part of being a pet owner. But it’s time to let go. Cocoa is not depressed–she is elderly, in pain, and scared. I know you have the best of intentions, but this is just cruel to her. Bring her to the vet and have her sedated so that she is comfortable and so you can say good-bye. And then let her go, feeling safe and comforted by your presence.

Again, I’m so sorry you’re going through this–I know I will be a blubbering mess when my Coco and Minx go…