Cats

It's scary, but if the human is nearby she can conquer it!

You awesome people were so responsive to the picture of Tommy that I posted yesterday so I was hoping some of you might be able to chime in with your IBS experiences because he has it and none of my cats have before. I got Tommy a few months ago. He had been surrendered after having crystals and was eating prescription food for that. He had diarrhea however and tested negative for parasites. It sounded like the vet only even bothered testing for parasites because he had been in a shelter, I guess it isn't normally seen in this area with normal housecats. Anyways there was some intermittent improvement with an antibiotic so the vet changed him to a food that is safe for crystals but designed for ibs. He was fine within 2 days of starting this food but the last 2 days I could hear his tummy gurgling and now he has diarrhea again. He hasn't eaten anything off diet except for hay, which I think he got into because his tummy already wasn't feeling well. FWIW I'm calling the vet when they open to leave a message and get his Dr's thoughts, but wanted to also see if anyone else has had this experience. Is it common with cats who need prescription food for digestive issues to improve then relapse? Will this probably be something he just goes through every once in a while? I do know that my sister's cats eat a different food (same brand but different prescription formula) for diarrhea and she finds some every once in a while and then they seem fine again.

Recently I'm letting a stray car stay inside due to another stray that relentlessly picks fights with this cat. I've noticed that this cat absolutely loves being inside and got used to using a litter box in just a couple days, but every once and awhile, it starts meowing loudly and nonstop and running to the front door clawing to get out and seems very panicked. I always let him outside but this last time I decided to pet him a couple time before opening the door and it seemed like that comforted him and he didn't want outside any more, and he kept rubbing his forhead and cheeks on my hand for 15 minutes afterwards. I was wondering if maybe my cat has a lot of anxiety or even panic attacks or is this not something cats typically exhibit.

Eat, Sleep Meow, Repeat. It's tough out there for a cat. Follow Simon's Cat on his daily shenanigans, in our special colour compilation: A Day In The Life Of A Cat!

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6vVTZglSzM
• https://piped.video/watch?v=M6vVTZglSzM

Looking to pick up a self cleaning litterbox but there are a lot of options. The coolest one I've seen by far is the CatGenie Automatic Cat Box, but it's nearly $500 and seems a little overkill.

I've also seen that the PetSafe Litterbox is a very popular choice, but it uses proprietary litter refills and crystal litter when I'd prefer clay litter.

I've been getting away with a $15 do-it-yourself litterbox just fine for a while, but I think I (and my cat) would appreciate something that doesn't require daily maintenance. Something as simple as an automatic rake would be interesting.

My main goals are:

1. Requires as little maintenance as possible while keeping my cat happy and the smell under control
2. No proprietary lock-in (I can use my own litter)
3. Doesn't break the bank
4. Built well, won't break / easy to fix / good warranty / cheap enough that I can just buy a new one if it breaks

While I am looking for budget friendly options, I'm also curious on the more expensive options. I can't imagine what justifies spending $700 on a Litter-Robot when emptying a litterbox manually isn't that bad and the CatGenie is $500 and promises zero-maintenance. Have you had good luck with premium options like that?

cross-posted to: https://lemmy.world/post/2899074

He’s here to ask for a bite of my sammich.