Okay, right up front, let’s get the new kitty pics out of the way.
I got this 4-month-old kitten yesterday- she’s fixed, healthy, etc. She’s very sweet- lets you pick her up and hold her for a short time, lets you pet her and asks for it, rubs around your legs, etc. She came from a home with two adults, two dogs, and another (adult) cat.
The problem, and where I’m losing my mind, is that she meows almost constantly. I know it’s the move and she’s sensitive, and scared- I get that. What I don’t know is what to do- I’ve followed the advice generally given to isolate her in a room for a few days with food, water, litter box, etc, and I’ve been letting her out for short periods, during which she alternates between meowing and resting quietly. She goes to the windows and doors and does that scary hurt meow thing like she’s dying. If left in the room alone she meows constantly.
I’ve a feeling this is just what she will do for a few days and eventually it’ll stop. But I was hoping someone, anyone, would have some suggestions, because it is extremely annoying, as cute as she is.
Oh, and I haven’t named her yet, but I was thinking of Delilah. You guys cool with that?
Don’t worry about the meowing - and try to get used to it to the point you can tune it out. I have a Siamese and a Cornish Rex - and they are both “talkers”. I think Magic (the Rex) likes the sound of his own voice because he is very seldom quiet. As a matter of fact, that is how he ended up with me; the mother of his first owner decided he “talked too much” and threw him outside.
Some cats - like some people - are just naturally talkative. Try talking back to her!
Great name! And she’s really beautiful; I love all the colors that show up in her fur in the sunlight.
Perhaps she’s just used to more activity/people/creatures around her. If she meows constantly when left alone, & only part of the time when let out, maybe she prefers your company. Just a guess.
What she said. Siamese and Siamese mixes in particular are well known for being extremely talkative, but many cats just like to talk.
Unless there’s some reason to shut her up in one room, let her roam the house. Does she use her litter box consistently?
Our cats all vocalize to varying degrees. In fact, we say that one cat is part bat because she’s constantly giving out little beeps as she goes about her business. Her eyesight is fine, we think that she just likes to hear her beeps echoing against various surfaces. The male cat prefers to wait until we’re asleep, then he climbs up on us and hollers in our ears. THIS is annoying. He’s fairly quiet the rest of the time, but I guess he feels that if HE’S awake, nobody else gets to sleep. My Siamese is rather quiet for a Siamese, but she does like to carry on a conversation with her people. She’ll say something, then wait for you to respond, and then respond to you. If you don’t reply, she taps your arm with her forepaw. She also does the tapping thing if she wants to be petted.
Enjoy your new kitty, and you’re probably going to have to just get used to the talking.
I agree with the others who said let her out. I wouldn’t confine her unless you have other cats that need to be protected until you are sure she doesn’t have any health/disease issues she can pass on to other cats.
I adopted a shelter kitty last Dec. who hates to be alone. Unfortunately for him he has to be locked up in a room during meal times because he will eat the other cats’ food plus his. He will meow loudly while locked up - he really hates to be alone, even for a few minutes. That might be your kitty’s problem. Hopefully in a few days she’ll realize everything is OK and settle down.
Ooh, pretty kitty! Yes, some cats are just talkers, but if it seems she is distressed from the change of place, I think this could help. Feliway It has happy cat pheromones that can be calming.
Some kitties just make noise. I have a tabby who is sweet and cuddly but LOOOVES to hear himself talk. He will walk into corners or get up on windowsills against the glass and just scream his little heart out because he likes the sound of his own voice. My other cat barely makes any noise at all and instead communicates through gentle biting. To each cat their own, I guess.
I don’t know, this doesn’t seem like normal cat talking. I mean, this cat is literally meowing with every breath. Like this- “meow.meow.meow.meow.meow.” Repeat ad infinitum. This can’t be normal. I’m going insane. I’m going to look at the pheromone link when I get home tonight. Thanks!
Morgan hums while she’s eating, makes a variety of yowling noises when she’s chasing down a toy, merps to announce that she’s jumped on the bed, and occasionally sings kitty opera just for the hell of it.
What really sets her off, though, is putting a door between her and her humans. She’ll throw herself against the door, wailing like a banshee, until she exhausts herself… then she’ll rest a couple of minutes and start wailing all over again as soon as she’s caught her breath. And yes, this happens even if we’re just going to the bathroom for a couple of minutes, so we’ve learned to leave the door open just wide enough for her to come and go as she pleases.
We did the whole give-her-a-separate-room thing for all of one day when she came to live with us, because we were going absolutely bonkers from the noise. She was much better once she had free run of the house and could follow us around as she pleased.
Feliway didn’t help us none with her wailing, BTW… and it’s expensive as hell. I’d suggest letting her out to explore and see if that improves things before forking out the cash.
My kitten meowed near-constantly when she was “in quarantine” alone in the room too. mowmowMOWmowmowMOWMOWMOW… Drove me nuts, it’s a good thing kittens are cute. Anyway, once I let her out and she had free range of the house and could hang out with me, she was quiet except when she wanted food/toys. I don’t see any particular reason to keep her isolated any longer; she’s probably lonely.
When we first got Cyndi Yawper (who was found in an industrial park, cold and hungry), we set up a cozy place for her in a spare bathroom so that she wouldn’t be harassed by our adult cats. Although Cyndi had food, water, a litter pan, and a soft blanket, she caterwauled nonstop for hours. Finally I took a pillow and a quilt into Cyndi’s room. I lay down on the floor and cuddled her. She stopped hollering, crawled up next to my face, and began to purr. For three nights I slept in the bathroom with Cyndi so that we wouldn’t have to listen to those pitiful cries. Once Cyndi was integrated into the household, she became a much quieter kitty.
Very cute little girl.
She looks alot like our, not so little, Darla Lynn.
I second or third letting her out to roam and spending time talking/snuggling with her.
Good luck!
Update: Two weeks later, the kitty still meows A LOT. Monday I emailed the former owner to let her know how the cat was doing, and asked if she has always been like this. I haven’t gotten answer, which seems rude of her. Delilah seems perfectly normal in every other way- she has bonded with me, sleeps on my bed at night, eats and drinks like normal, purrs regularly, and plays quite a bit, with practically anything. The meowing hasn’t gotten much better, though- it’s extremely frequent. She does want to go outside real bad but I won’t let her- she is going to be an inside cat, so that may be part of it. Do you think it will stop before I run screaming through the neighborhood after having set myself on fire in order to drown out the infernal meowing?
This might be it. My daughter’s trying to convert her free-ranging cat to indoors only, and she says he meows constantly. He quieted down some over the winter, but he seems to sense that it’s nicer outside now, and the meowing has started again. Lucky for her she has an enclosed porch. That’s as far as he gets.
Can you give Delilah a window seat? Maybe that’ll help.
