Poor Charlie the cat! - September 23, 2017
He is continuing to unravel! And we are continuing to try and figure out why and to monitor his symptoms and come up with an answer.
(Tom and Julie – don’t worry. As you’ll find out later in the story, we’ve got this figured out.)
What are his symptoms? Well, for one, he now likes to sit up snug against me. Normally, he doesn’t like to be touched. He’s even gone as far as draping himself over me. Very un-Charlie-like.
He is panting a lot of the time. He is pulling his fur out even more than usual. And he is biting his nails with ferocity.
He is not eating his canned cat food (and therefore Lucy is getting a second helping.)
When we take showers, he howls and howls – eventually poking his face between the shower curtain and wall.
We were trying to figure out what triggered this? When I went to Toronto to visit Tom and Julie and baby Jasper, did I bring a little scent of “the intruder” back with me? Did my leaving cause him to fear that Laurence would leave next, and he’ll be left all alone with his arch-enemy Lucy?
We’ve taken a few more bike rides that usual – taking advantage of this glorious September weather. I keep my bike in my bedroom, hence I have to roll it through the living room to go out the patio door. Does he worry that there is a monster living in the house?
Our superintendent came in to change the filter on our furnace. But is that enough to cause Charlie to still be out of sorts for the next week?
And then I noticed it. The Comfort Zone® Feliway Cat diffuser was empty. What does it diffuse? Synthetic copies of natural cat pheromones. What are pheromones? Professor Google tells me that “a pheromone is a chemical an animal produces which changes the behavior of another animal of the same species.” The synthetic chemical that Feliway has manufactured is the one nursing mother cats produce to “help create a harmonious bond between the kittens and their mother.”
I couldn’t make this stuff up! And if I could, I’d be able to afford one of the dream homes we cycled by today on Hollow Road. (Sigh!) This stuff retails at about $40 per diffuser at the local pet store. And it only lasts a month! When I went to buy the initial product, the staff person had to go and get it from under lock and key. It is the most frequently stolen item at this pet supply store!
I had plugged one in five weeks ago when we brought Charlie to stay with us for a few months while Tom and Julie and Jasper got settled in. And yesterday, I did math. Charlie has been here five weeks, Feliway only lasts four weeks, so this leaves one week – the amount of time Charlie has been completely out of sorts.
Initially, I hadn’t planned on replacing it, but I have rethought that plan. We have Charlie for another month and he is so stressed out. My daughter Anna who is a pharmacist suggested we consider kitty cat Prozac for Charlie – there is such a thing. But that would require a trip to the vet for a cat who is a travel-phobe. And it takes a few weeks to start working, and we are returning Charlie in a month.
However, if you buy a six pack of Feliway, it ends up being less than $20 per unit (vs. $40) so I ordered a “six-pack” and it’s set to arrive here on Monday. Yes, I realize that Charlie will be returning home in one month and won’t need it here. But he will need it at Tom’s and Julie’s place as he adapts to sharing “his” home with baby Jasper.
Also, when we go south, one of our fellow Jubilee-Placers will be looking after Lucy. Having Feliway in the air for the first month or six will make the transition much smoother.
Does Feliway work for humans? Sadly, no. It’s cat specific. But if it did, I would be begging Niagara College to start a program for manufacturing human Feliway. (Hey, they have just gotten the go ahead for one-year post-grad program in commercial production of a certain plant that’s related to catnip…)
Who doesn’t want to feel “a harmonious bond” – 24/7?
(Tom and Julie – don’t worry. As you’ll find out later in the story, we’ve got this figured out.)
What are his symptoms? Well, for one, he now likes to sit up snug against me. Normally, he doesn’t like to be touched. He’s even gone as far as draping himself over me. Very un-Charlie-like.
He is panting a lot of the time. He is pulling his fur out even more than usual. And he is biting his nails with ferocity.
He is not eating his canned cat food (and therefore Lucy is getting a second helping.)
When we take showers, he howls and howls – eventually poking his face between the shower curtain and wall.
We were trying to figure out what triggered this? When I went to Toronto to visit Tom and Julie and baby Jasper, did I bring a little scent of “the intruder” back with me? Did my leaving cause him to fear that Laurence would leave next, and he’ll be left all alone with his arch-enemy Lucy?
We’ve taken a few more bike rides that usual – taking advantage of this glorious September weather. I keep my bike in my bedroom, hence I have to roll it through the living room to go out the patio door. Does he worry that there is a monster living in the house?
Our superintendent came in to change the filter on our furnace. But is that enough to cause Charlie to still be out of sorts for the next week?
And then I noticed it. The Comfort Zone® Feliway Cat diffuser was empty. What does it diffuse? Synthetic copies of natural cat pheromones. What are pheromones? Professor Google tells me that “a pheromone is a chemical an animal produces which changes the behavior of another animal of the same species.” The synthetic chemical that Feliway has manufactured is the one nursing mother cats produce to “help create a harmonious bond between the kittens and their mother.”
I couldn’t make this stuff up! And if I could, I’d be able to afford one of the dream homes we cycled by today on Hollow Road. (Sigh!) This stuff retails at about $40 per diffuser at the local pet store. And it only lasts a month! When I went to buy the initial product, the staff person had to go and get it from under lock and key. It is the most frequently stolen item at this pet supply store!
I had plugged one in five weeks ago when we brought Charlie to stay with us for a few months while Tom and Julie and Jasper got settled in. And yesterday, I did math. Charlie has been here five weeks, Feliway only lasts four weeks, so this leaves one week – the amount of time Charlie has been completely out of sorts.
Initially, I hadn’t planned on replacing it, but I have rethought that plan. We have Charlie for another month and he is so stressed out. My daughter Anna who is a pharmacist suggested we consider kitty cat Prozac for Charlie – there is such a thing. But that would require a trip to the vet for a cat who is a travel-phobe. And it takes a few weeks to start working, and we are returning Charlie in a month.
However, if you buy a six pack of Feliway, it ends up being less than $20 per unit (vs. $40) so I ordered a “six-pack” and it’s set to arrive here on Monday. Yes, I realize that Charlie will be returning home in one month and won’t need it here. But he will need it at Tom’s and Julie’s place as he adapts to sharing “his” home with baby Jasper.
Also, when we go south, one of our fellow Jubilee-Placers will be looking after Lucy. Having Feliway in the air for the first month or six will make the transition much smoother.
Does Feliway work for humans? Sadly, no. It’s cat specific. But if it did, I would be begging Niagara College to start a program for manufacturing human Feliway. (Hey, they have just gotten the go ahead for one-year post-grad program in commercial production of a certain plant that’s related to catnip…)
Who doesn’t want to feel “a harmonious bond” – 24/7?