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Old 11-09-2016, 00:16
StressMonkey
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Crow is a predominantly outdoor cat - his choice. He has free access to indoors, beds, food, litter trays etc but prefers to spend his awake time outdoors. Mostly hunting.

Came home a few nights ago with a big cut on his groin. Took him to the vet who advised that as it was a very fresh wound the best recovery would result from debridement and closure. So large vet bill, heavy sedation and several dissolvable stitches later I have a cat with a nicely healing wound, and an instinct to hunt that he can't fill. HE has another five days before he can go out. And he is bored.

So very bored.

We have toys, scratching post, cat nip and even a laser pointer. It feels like my every waking hour is filled with occupying him or sitting her listening to him cry.

The occasional spider or crane fly provide a temporary distraction otherwise he 'hunts' the dogs. Or me.

I can mentally tire the dogs quite easily with training and occupy them with kongs etc. Is there a kitty equivalent? Some way to stimulate, entertain and (most importantly) TIRE him? He wakes me in the night to play. And play usually involves teeth and claws.

He is currently worse than a baby.
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Old 11-09-2016, 18:54
Shrike
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He has toys, but maybe you need to interact with him to really tire him out? A scrunched up ball of paper thrown over his head should get him leaping for it. If you have stairs try chucking the ball up the stairs, the laser pen should really get him worn out if you are relentless in getting him running up and down and from room to room.
There are interactive toys like the catit circuit and those that behave like a mouse under a mat - but he maybe back outside before you source them! Might be an idea to have some toys like that incase he needs to be confined again though.
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Old 11-09-2016, 19:02
stud u like
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Mine loved the cat racing track. Much cheaper than Scaletrix!

Paper balls throw down the stairs kept her occupied.

Keeping her in was a nightmare. She soon discovered the banisters. I quickly put her out again.
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Old 11-09-2016, 21:05
TWS
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Mine would have you throw ping pong balls all day, laser pointer, swishing stick, cat tunnels, boxes, catit ball tracks, catnip toys, kickers are a big fave here. Cats are hard work when indoors
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Old 12-09-2016, 04:45
WhoAteMeDinner
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I am afraid the only solution for a tom cat hunter-killer, is the real thing. Go down to your local pet store and buy a few mice. Otherwise, what will happen when he recovers could be very violent for some random animal outside.

My tom cat was housebound for about three weeks with a bad muscle tear in his back leg, when he returned outside, first thing he locked onto was the dog next door, a toy breed midget about half the size of my black feline assassin, it was ugly, luckily I was there and managed to wrench him off the pica-shitsu wotsit's back before he got a coup-de-grace bite on the neck.
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Old 14-09-2016, 00:48
Blackjack Davy
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it was ugly, luckily I was there and managed to wrench him off the pica-shitsu wotsit's back before he got a coup-de-grace bite on the neck.
Well that makes a change its usually the other way around!
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Old 14-09-2016, 21:22
misha06
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Hi,

I don't know how old your moggy is, but he sounds a bit like the Beast, he is twelve and still wants to hunt down prey.

A couple of times a year we house sit at my parents for a week, mainly to monitor my two grannies.

The beast comes to, and being like yours an outdoor cat, isn't over impressed with being confined to an, albeit large bungalow.

After he has got over his hump about the journey, and has decides on his throne for the week, has a kip, then gets restless

We bring with us, his toys from when he was a kitten and couldn't go out before he had all his jabs.

What we do is spray them with catnip, and tie a bit of string to them and drag them away as he goes in for 'the kill'

It's fun for us, and it wears him out when we let him catch his toy he goes mental; biting and kicking his legs about.

The toy creatures are very tatty now, but a bit like a much loved childhood bear one cant part with

He tires of the game before we do, and goes back to his throne to have a long kip.

I actually enjoy those weeks, because we see so much more of him than usual
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Old 14-09-2016, 21:33
Heartache
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What about one of those Felliway plug ins, they might chill him out until well enough to go outside.
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Old 15-09-2016, 04:29
WhoAteMeDinner
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Well that makes a change its usually the other way around!
Yeh but in fairness to the dogs in our area, none of them have ever tried to take on my tom cat. He has a bit of the devil in him. He kills for sport and almost never eats the prey.
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Old 15-09-2016, 23:05
blueblade
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Tom cats can be a nightmare in wanting to go out. Most of the time it doesn't matter, but when you need to keep them in, they can drive you mad wanting to go out.

Female cats are better and more settled. Much happier to laze around the house for longer periods.
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Old 15-09-2016, 23:16
maggie thecat
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I bought my cats "battle hamsters". They're semi intelligent self propelled toys. They talk and giggle, and are otherwise a bit demented. Or, have yiu tried getting him to watch cartoons? I had one once who really went for them. Or they sell actual cat videos of fish tanks and birds for them to watch.

Otherwise, you can ask your vet for a short run of kitty tranquilisrrs. They also do calming pheromones dispensers, which yiu can get at pet supply places.
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Old 15-09-2016, 23:51
StressMonkey
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Thanks for all the suggestions.

Except the live mice in the house. That isn't going to happen/

He managed to bust a couple of stitches so his confinement should last longer. So I stuck a sticking plaster over his wound and let him out. 45 minutes outside and he is sleeping peacefully. Another 5 days on antibiotics and the offer of another £200 operation. Or antibiotics and sticking plaster and outdoors.......

Just wish he'd sleep for more than 40 minutes at a time
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Old 16-09-2016, 01:49
WhoAteMeDinner
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You can't be squeamish when you have a tom cat. People who have their tom cats snipped really are taking the wild and instinctive mini-lion/tiger they have in their homes and turning them into a docile, domesticated four-legged cushion on the sofa.

Your cat sounds cool. He will probably live a very long life with him being so active.
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