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-   -   What's the deal with me and my cat?!? (https://www.soberrecovery.com/forums/friends-family-alcoholics/211941-whats-deal-me-my-cat.html)

transformyself 10-26-2010 07:06 AM

What's the deal with me and my cat?!?
 
Seriously, this is driving me crazy.

My cat was an indoor (mostly) critter until AH stayed at my house in May with the kids and dogs and Snuggs in May for two weeks while I was out of town.

He let him out all the time. Since, it's been IMPOSSIBLE to keep him in. You can only back out of the house with a squirt bottle so many times.

So I let him out, mainly at night, while I lived at the old house, mostly because he would YELL until I let him out. *******.

So I moved, a block around the corner, and he does the same thing but then disappears for a few days. I find him of course, back at the old house.

I locked him up alone in the house with food water and litter last Thursday, brought him back home yesterday, stayed up with him, bringing him to bed with me when he wandered around screaming. Told him repeatedly that he can't go out. He finally went to sleep.

Then, he must have snuck out behind me when I went out this morning to take the garbage out because the ****** isn't here now.

I'm so pissed I can't even tell you. I've ******* had it with that guy. I agreed to take him for AH when we split.

There's something going on with me about him though, I think it's taht I project my anger towards AH onto him--he runs around for days doing god knows what, I worry my heart sick that somethings happened to him, then he shows up to eat, sleep and take off again.

I guess I"m powerless over my cat! :react

I'm not looking for advice, or ill placed blame so be respectful please. I"m trying to process wtf is going on with ME about this. I feel like it's a total waste of my time to continue to do this, madness really. I need sleep, I need sanity in my life, I don't want to chase that ******** all over the neighborhood and I dont' want him to go live somewhere else. I just want him to shut the **** up and stay here and do what I tell him to do.

He hates other cats and most dogs except my chihuahuas, tries to kill them in fact so he can't go to a home with other animals. He actually hissed at one of my dogs last night which freaks me out because he attacked Tinkerbell, my smallest chihuahua once and she needed medical care, got stitched up. She was between the glass door and a large dog that ran up to the door unleashed and Snuggs attacked the door, with Tinky between. It was horrific.

That was last summer. He's been "triggered," I guess you could call it, since. He sees a large dog and goes bananas.

He plays with my one year old puppy, but it's still a bit creepy. He's giant and outwieghs them by 15 pounds. It's like having a lion in your house, from their perspective.

I feel angry, sad and betrayed. I probably should find him a home with no animals where he can go outside all he wants. That makes me feel like crying. He's been with us for 6 years, and comforted me when I was at my worst.

I just dont' know wtf do to.

Learn2Live 10-26-2010 07:11 AM

Does this cat have a drinking problem by chance?

transformyself 10-26-2010 07:17 AM

L2L!!! That's it, I SWEAR!! I am projecting this onto him. I even posted on FB awhile back that cat's are like alcoholics!

Thanks for the laugh.

Learn2Live 10-26-2010 07:24 AM

HAHAHAHAHA! I'm glad you got that I was trying to make you laugh.
That's exactly what I was thinking though, projection. Simple enough to stop if you want to. What is that saying? Something about how people will usually act the way we expect them to? I wonder if that applies to cats too? HAHAHA

JackNWA 10-26-2010 07:33 AM

This made me think about my old cats. They're both gone now, but I lived with the two of them through 10 years of my drinking life. I have no doubt that they saved my life on multiple occassions. If I hadn't had those two cats to care for, i would have had no reason to not open that second fifth of scotch every evening. I stayed just "sane" enough to care for them. Then they both saw me sober up and change my life. I owe those two cats soooo much. They were a gift from God to keep me just alive enough to hang on and eventually get help.

SlvrMag 10-26-2010 07:34 AM

I would take him if I could! Sounds like my kinda cat!

RollTide 10-26-2010 07:38 AM

I'll bet he's hid in under the sofa or somewhere like that. My cat does that. Open some sardines and that will flush him out. LOL

Learn2Live 10-26-2010 07:57 AM


Originally Posted by SlvrMag (Post 2747478)
I would take him if I could! Sounds like my kinda cat!

Transformy could mail him to you!

acdirito 10-26-2010 08:07 AM

The more I get to know alcoholics the more I love my pets! (three border collies and one cat)

:Valdog:

Has your cat been spayed/neutered? The description of your cat's behavior makes me think that it hasn't been. Your description describes part of their mating behavior and can be very annoying. :gaah

Jazzman 10-26-2010 08:19 AM

Sounds to me like you have a choice. Either bang your head against a cat that doesn't want to change, (move to a new house) or give up the battle for the sake of your own serenity. I bet you couldn't have found a better web site to get sound advice in this matter :)

suki44883 10-26-2010 08:22 AM

I know you said you weren't looking for advice, but with this thread and the last one in mind, I think I'd get a cat carrier and deliver the cat to your AH and let him deal with it. Either that or take the cat to a shelter where hopefully he can find a new home. The cat isn't going to change to please you and you either will have to make changes or continue on as is. Nothing changes if nothing changes. :)

transformyself 10-26-2010 08:27 AM

Well he was, indeed sleeping it off in a pile of boxes in my closet. See? All that anger and abandonment for naught.

I think I've got his clock reset, hopefully. And today we have high winds. The doors and windows are open and he keeps going to the front screen door to look out, then run away when a big wind comes along.

See? I tell him. You don't want to go out there.

Yes, this guys' been spayed since he was a pup. kitten. He's insane I tell ya! An alcoholic cat to be sure.

I sure hope this is the end of the fight with him. The boys and I will lavish attention on him, he's not called Dr. Snuggs for nothing, he's very cuddly.

http://img183.imageshack.us/img183/3...uggspretty.jpg

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

and very strange
http://img233.imageshack.us/img233/4...ggsoncouch.jpg

Uploaded with ImageShack.us

TakingCharge999 10-26-2010 08:30 AM

Yes, have you told AH about the cat? perhaps he wants him back and if so, the cat can wake AH up and not you, lol.

Would you rather keep the cat? if so there are great forums that can help RE behavior
I a member of
Purrs In Our Hearts - Cat Forum UK - Index
(hope its allowed to put that link)

There is a forum called "health and behavior" and they also offer rehoming tips, etc.

If you got Facebook you can also look for Cat related forums, upload pics of the cat and its easier to find a new loving home.. (that is about one of the few things I like about facebook, when its about animal care/rescue/rehoming)

TakingCharge999 10-26-2010 08:32 AM

Aww LOL ... awwwwwwwwwwwww
Thanks for the pics!!
My Gabanna "sits" like that too..!

cymbal 10-26-2010 08:41 AM

Transform,
This is a wonderful allegory. The cat symbolizes the alcoholic. As a partner to an alcoholic I have tried to fix their behavior.

I think this is another lesson of acceptance. You cannot change a cat from being catlike (alcoholic from acting in their disease).

What you can change is the behavior with which you choose to respond (said gently and kindly).
1. I would cease to try to rescue the cat from previous residence.
2. I would let the cat out prior to going to sleep.

My point being that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again while expecting the outcome to change. You can only change your response (reaction) and not the cat (or alcoholic).

transformyself 10-26-2010 08:49 AM

Hi everyone

AH can't take this guy. He hates all other cats and attacks them and AH has a roommate with a cat.

I agree that this is another step in acceptance, all though I dare say I may have won this one! Snuggs slept last night, he's up and moving around today, perhaps I"ve reset his kitty clock from nocturnal to day time walker.

He may be tired of living in an abandoned house too.

Regardless, I'll keep turning the keen eye inward, to sort out why I react the way I do.

Control freak, mostly.

Learn2Live 10-26-2010 08:54 AM

OMG he is SO CUTE!!!

transformyself 10-26-2010 08:57 AM

See!?!? It's just like the alcoholic! Charming, sweet, adorable, fuzzy. Then they take off for days, prowling around the neighborhood, until they land in someones garage confused, hungry and apologetic!~

Learn2Live 10-26-2010 08:58 AM

so true so true. HAHAHAHA

Tally 10-26-2010 09:15 AM

I had a male that way spayed as a kitten only for the tubes to somehow reconnect later on and I had to have him spayed a second time.

My ginger tom that I have now is similar. He howls all the time and is very domineering over our other pets. I think he gets bored and he has seperation anxiety. He's also a house cat and I think he want's to be "top dog". He walks around grumbling too when he's fed up...it can be really annoying. I tend to just ignore him or squirt him with water if he's making a commotion, normally stops then.


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