Sad Kitty (aka. Kujo Kitty)

It's a sad story :( ... began about 3 weeks ago.. my cat, Max .. who is normally the most placid and sweet creature on the planet. Suddenly turned into Kujo :( when he bit my elderly mother on her hand...

This cat had never as much as scratched anyone in the 4 years I've had him (he's 4 years old)... then about a week and a half ago, he grabbed her ankle and bit, not badly..... but it startled her.. a few days later, I was standing near the front door, reading the mail. My cat was looking outside, as I looked up, I saw the neighbor's cat crossing the street into my yard.. My cat turned as if to run to another window to continue watching the cat, and rather than running past me, as he has so many times in the past... he attacked my leg in a very savage manner, biting me badly :( .... then 2 days later, he again attacked my mother's leg, giving her a severe bite, which required a Doctor's care... and hours later he attacked my ankle again.... each attack followed him seeing another cat in my yard.

I took him to the Vet, the following day, the vet said he was exhibiting symptoms of "redirected aggression" which is a territorial kind of thing, and referred me to an animal behavior specialist, aka.. kitty psychiatrist..... I'm waiting to hear back from her, had to fill out a 10 page questionaire, about all my cat's habits...

In the mean time, the Vet suggested we block my cat's view of the outside. So .. all shades are down, and I have paper over the bottom of the sliders keeping my cat from seeing other cats, I've also had to stop feeding the birds... which leads to this picture...

I took this earlier today, when I noticed my cat trying to peek out the little holes in the shade where the pull strinds run :(.. he's so sad not being able to look outside :(

http://img435.imageshack.us/img435/3659/sadkitty48xt.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img435.imageshack.us/img435/9663/sadkitty31wt.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Sorry about the cat. I had one that would lurk in a tree and drop on un-suspecting visitors. Never bit or scratched, just dropped and ran off. Scared the crap out of a lot of people. We finally had to send him to live with some people we knew who owned a farm.

Thanks Msnow.. with the help of the behavioralist.. we hope to change things, using drug therapy and desensitation and reconditioning program... it's going to take time.. in the mean time.. windows are covered.. :(

mmm kitty prozac...

My brother in law has a dog that he is absolutely attached to. This dog used to be very aggressive over his toys, food, and Michael. They had him put on prozac and he calmed down quite a bit. Then last year the dog had a stroke. He no longer needs to the prozac as he is quite dumb now. It is as if he had a labotomy. Also one ear drops and one side of his face is paralyzed.

However sad and cruel this might sound, it is the most hilarious thing to watch this dog when he eats or drinks. Michael my brother in law has to assist him at times.

I on the other hand have a klepto kitty. She steals everything from pens to pins and needle. She has a carpeted cat post with a cubbie in it and hides everything there. When she stares out the window she does this ba-ing sound everytime she sees a bird or a squirrle.

John

:cry: My cat loves the outdoors and he loves to stare out the windows on rainy days when he can't go out (he doesn't like the rain). If I were to shut the blinds on him, he would go crazy.
It's hard not letting a cat "observe" things outdoors.

I like your photo though!

Thanks John & Greg... going to do anything and everything possible to get my cat past this issue.. he's so dear to me :)

Oh dear, hope your kitty gets well soon. She's lovely.

Thanks ndroo, he's really the sweetest cat I've ever had.. this is all very disturbing :( but.. will do anything to keep him happy and healthy

That second shot - kitty is insistent on seeing through that blind!

Good luck...

I am a firm believer in animal therapy. I think animals help us with or daily burdons. Sorry to hear. Will keep you two in my prayers.
Now my kitty story. My mother worked as a veterinary aid for some time before I was born. On my first Christmas she brought home a cat that someone had dropped off on the front door of the clinic(she did this often). The cat ended up having 13 kittens on christmas eve. What a christmas gift. My dad said he wanted to shoot my mother. They had three other cats and a dalmation. Dad has a soft spot for the little fur balls so they kept them for quite a while. Eventually they were all given away to good homes.

Thanks Island & Kayak, I don't think it's going to be an easy fix .. but will be well worth the efforts :)

Cats are such interesting animals. I'm sorry to hear that yours is acting up. We had a cat that hated everybody but my parents and me. We were the only ones who could touch it...in fact he was so loving and sweet to us, but all of my friends would complain a lot about how he attacked them. They are such fickle creatures. I love your second shot, though. I hope everything works out well!

Thanks Cornflake.. :) he's very sweet other than when he sees another cat in the yard, then it's as if someone flipped a switch, and he goes back to his own sweet self withing seconds.. it's quite frustrating...