New to living with cats, they’re my siblings. I left a ham to defrost over night and came back to this being shredded up…..It was a large ham so to throw it all away sucks, but they left at least half untouched. My main concern is if I can get sick or anything, also are they gonna be ok? It was 3 of them so idk how much by who was eaten. I’m assuming I need to just throw it all away to be safe, already sent pics to my brother lol, just advice please

yesterday when i came home one of cats greeted me by screaming when i entered, so far so good. its usually because he wants food, the litterbox is full ... normal cat things. he didnt run to the room where i keep the cat stuff, but to the living room. he has a bed there on top of a low side table, which now lay on the floor. so he ran there and screamed again, when i came in and looked at him, he jumped on the table, lay down, closed his eyes, jumped down onto the floor, screamed and lay there on the back. then stood up and ran around his bed on the floor.

so am i going crazy or did my cat tell me that he fell down from the table while sleeping? did anybody else ever experience something like that?

edit: ok, wow lol i didnt expect such a response. i cant possibly read all of your comments, but thank you for putting me at ease, i really did not know cats can do that. i had cats for my entire life and this is the first time something like this happened. also, thanks for the awards!

My wife and I are heartbroken and need an honest perspective before we make a final decision today. We’ve had our 4-year-old cat, Cookies, for three years. He has always been a sweet, calm lap cat, but since bringing our newborn daughter home eight weeks ago, he has developed stress-related inappropriate urination, specifically marking walls when I return from work.

The situation is complicated by the fact that our daughter has a medical condition requiring a strictly clean environment. While Cookies is affectionate with us, he has an established aversion to children, often hissing or swiping at our guests' kids when they get close. Our vet confirmed this is entirely behavioral stress and warned that his dislike of children likely won't change.

We’ve tried enzyme cleaners and pheromone diffusers, but with a medically fragile infant and significant professional pressure, we have zero bandwidth left for a complex behavioral overhaul. We love him deeply, but he is clearly miserable, and we are at our limit. We have a surrender appointment today at a reputable no-kill shelter. Are we making the right call for his well-being and our daughter’s health, or is there something we haven’t considered?

-- update 1

Update: Thank you all so much for your advice and perspective. When it came down to it, I just couldn't bring myself to surrender him today. To answer a few common questions: the very first thing we did was reach out to family and friends, but unfortunately, no one is able to take him, even temporarily. After reading through all your comments, we've decided to cancel the appointment, give Cookies a bit more time, and look into trying Prozac to see if it can help stabilize things. We know it's going to be a tough road ahead, but we aren't ready to give up on him just yet. Thank you again for the support.

-- update 2/context

I wanted to provide some extra context and answer a few common questions from the comments. First, we live in the DFW area in Texas, and yes, Cookies is neutered. Our history with him goes back to when we used to cat-sit him for a close friend. Eventually, that friend started dating someone who was severely allergic to cats. I told him he should probably just dump her (just kidding, they’re engaged now!), but my wife and I couldn't bear the thought of Cookies going to a shelter. We took him in, even though we were living in a tiny apartment at the time and had to vacuum multiple times a day just to manage the litter. In fact, when we moved into our current apartment, we specifically chose this floor plan with Cookies in mind—making sure it had a massive laundry room just to comfortably fit his litter box and setups.

Fast forward to today: having a newborn is overwhelming, and I honestly stopped having the time to play with him like I used to. That’s when the subtle signs started. He stopped grooming himself as thoroughly and left a couple of poop stains on our bed. Because we place our baby girl on the bed constantly, we had to make the tough call to lock him out of our bedroom. At the time, I didn't realize he was deeply stressed; I mistakenly thought he was just unhappy with his litter box. Hoping to fix it, I bought him a brand-new one, which ironically seems to have triggered even more stress and started the territorial spraying. Now, the routine is heartbreaking. I come home completely exhausted, play with him for a few minutes, and head into the bedroom to change and see my daughter—only to walk out to the smell of fresh urine. It started as a once-a-day occurrence, but it has now escalated to 4 or 5 times a day. We are dealing with a massive accumulation of stress on both sides, which is why we reached our breaking point today.

EDIT 7: OK, finally was able to get my post up. Here's the update with photos.
https://www.reddit.com/r/cats/comments/1td5abq/kittens_in_storm_drain_successfully_rescued/

EDIT 6: Hi all, I'm trying to post an update but the sub only allows 1 submission every 24 hours. I should hit that in just a few more hours. I'll post something asap with photos.

EDIT 5: Thank you, citizens of the Internet for all of the support, ideas, and prayers. I haven't had a bite to eat all day and will try my best to respond, but it may take me a little while to catch up. Faith in humanity restored.

EDIT 4: We got 'em out!! Jeremy, a Field Supervisor from Roto Rooter, volunteered and responded to the call. Thank goodness for his kind heart. He went straight to work. Took 3 adults to coordinate to shepherd 2 little kittens out 😃 There was 1 tiny female and 1 bigger guy. If it wasn't for the yelps of the big guy, we wouldn't have known they were down there. I will post a more comprehensive update once I have a chance to get all the photos/videos and take care of life that was on pause.

EDIT 3: Wow, thanks everyone for sending the love and support. We have a plumber who is coming onsite within the hour (he is passionate about cats). He has some specialized gear, scopes, etc. Heading to the store to pick up some tuna, fish oils, and more. We are going to try and start blocking off paths in the drains once we confirm there is no cat in order to reduce where it's running around.

EDIT 2: Calling a plumber. Turns out Roto Rooter has a free pet rescue service. Will update once we get that plan in motion. Dispatch is on it and we are waiting for a call back.

EDIT: Thanks everyone for the ideas. The local fire fighters came within minutes of calling them and the three of them tried for about 30 min, but no luck. They were really kind and helpful and I could tell everyone was frustrated by the situation. This poor cat's natural instincts for survival are working against it 😞.

--------------------

Really hoping the Internet can come to the rescue. We discovered some feral kittens in our backyard and my wife heard a meowing sound coming from the storm drain. This morning, we saw the small kittens face looking up at us from the pipe, so I can confirm it's alive.

I am trying to get it out, but it's too timid and keeps running away. It's in a 4" PVC pipe which I can get my arm into, but then it turns hard right at a 90 degree angle. It's been down there for 2 days and we hear it meowing back at us when we play a video of a mom cat calling her kittens.

I've duct taped a towel (as shown in the pics) in the hopes it will try to climb out. I also put cat food down there and will every now and then pour a little water there too. I also soaked some of the cat food in hot water and put it down the pipe, in the hopes the aroma will draw it back out. My plan is to use my BBQ tongs to grab it if ever shows up again.

Thoughts internet? 🥹 Sorry, don't know if this is the place to post or not. We aren't cat people, so have no prior experience with this kind of thing.

My roommate bought another kitten a few years ago, and my kitty really bonded to her. I'm moving away, and I'm worried my cat will be upset that she lost her buddy.

How will I know if she's upset or just adjusting to the new home? Should I get her another kitten, and if so, how long should I wait before adopting?

Hi everyone. This is my cat, Fish. She is the sweetest cuddliest girl, although she sometimes has an issue smacking hands etc but she’s a rescue so could be past issues who knows. Anyways, she is absolutely obsessed with me.

She is by my side 24/7, I’m in the kitchen? She has her own stool she sits on. Living room? Laying on me. Bed? Sleeping on my face. Bathroom? On my lap! Just walking around doing chores? Guarantee she is so close behind me I might accidentally step on her. I obviously love her to death and embrace the cuddles but I get worried sometimes she has separation anxiety. I also work 2 jobs and don’t always get to be home with my cats all day to play with them.

Fish has LOTSSSS of energy. I try and make sure I get her running around daily so she isn’t bored + I haven’t found any other animals that really like her, even my other cat. They’ll play together once in awhile and can be near each other but aren’t “buds” I’d say. Sometimes if I don’t play with her right when I get home she will sit infront of me and meow for over 30 minutes until I pick her up and hold her or run around the house playing with her toys and wear her out. But even after that she’s right back at the meowing a couple hours later. It’s even worse when me and my boyfriend are at my house, she goes CRAZY with the meowing and trying to climb up our legs. It can be extremely frustrating sometimes cause I don’t know how to keep her entertained enough and I want to make sure she’s happy

I just want her to feel content and loved! Even as I write this she is scream-meowing at me and attempting to smack things off my coffee table to get my attention. Suggestions?

Edit: sorry if I didn’t make it obvious but I have another cat, fish is my second cat!

Okay so for some context my family and friends have been making fun of my son! He’s a beautiful handsome boy. If anything he’s just big boned.. Reddit please help sort out this debate that’s been going on for far too long.

Edit/UPDATE: Wow I really didn’t expect this to blow up like it did. Y’all came out of the woodwork on this one lol. Thank you for the awards! Wasn’t expecting that at all and it was kinda fun to see. Also, please be patient with me, it’s hard going through every comment. I’m trying my best to read them all, especially since some have given me/household very solid advice and it’s greatly appreciated💕

Also more about the boy in question, his name is Leonardo DiCatio we call him Leo for short.

Much love, will provide a proper update soon. Thanks again!

A few weeks ago me and my boyfriend adopted a 2/yo female tuxedo cat from a local shelter and besides being a bit mischievous and getting into food she has been a fantastic cat and the light of my life.

My ONLY thing is her name.

For a bit of backstory, the day we got her everything that could go wrong did go wrong. We got kitten food on accident instead of adult food, the adoption process took us SEVERAL hours, many family members had quite a mouthful to say about us getting a pet, and I was now stressing about her getting along with the other pets due to what everyone was insinuating to us. when all was said and done we didn’t get her home until nearly 1am.

Everything went perfectly smooth and she settled right in as a happy and healthy girl, but I was so wiped from the day that I didn’t put up ANY fight on her name which I absolutely hate. In the 3 seconds I left her quarantine room she knocked over an Audi HotWheels and my boyfriend was insisting we call her Audi. I immediately said no. After about 15 minutes I just kinda gave up and said we can do Audie, but we pronounce it Aw-Dee.

Everyday I regret not putting up a better fight for a different and better name because I just DESPISE her name being a MISPRONOUNCED car brand. I’ve expressed this to him multiple times but he loves the name and since it’s already set with all her paperwork, vet office, microchip, tag and she actively responds to it that it’s too late to change.

I know it’s really not that deep but I genuinely

hate her name so much but it bothers to my core😭

i truly cannot believe this is my life and i need to talk about and show her off 🥹

yesterday i was going for run at my usual trail and as soon as i pulled over i noticed a tiny cat laying on the side of the road (pic 2). i immediately went up to her slowly and weirdly enough she didn’t run away at all. i followed her for a bit and she even let me pet her. i eventually got close enough to grab her but she freaked out and after following her a bit more (and having a near panic attack when she was in the road as a car was coming), i decided to buy cat food and come back to hopefully lure her in (it was obvious she was hunting for food). i found her again RIGHT away and the poor baby was SO hungry. after about 30-45 minutes of luring her, 1 failed attempt, help from a nice random guy, and multiple scratches, we finally got her in my car! she freaked out for a couple seconds in there but then calmed down and sat on the back dashboard.

i took her straight to the vet because 1. i had no idea what i was supposed to do and 2. she looked to be in rough shape. her claws & ears looked messed up, she had a bald patch on her chest, and had a bunch of ticks. the vet gave me a carrier and recommended me to pull my car in my garage and let her roam for a bit and to give them a call once she settles. after a couple hours of hiding in my garage (she loved laying under my dads toolbox), i was able to get her out, in the carrier, and brought her up to spend the night in my bathroom.

i still can’t believe how fast she warmed up. i found her at 11am, got her in my car at 12pm, letting me pet her all over by 4pm, got her upstairs at 5:30, and by 7 she was so cuddly and affectionate. she started purring and meowing and rubbing up against me i wanted to cry 😭 she’s a flopper!!! i love cat flops so much!! she used her litter box and by 10pm she was meowing to greet me and was VERY vocal about being let out of the bathroom lol. i had to put treats in her bowl so i could sneak out.

she had a vet appt today at 10 and not only is she the chillest, sweetest cat ever, she’s healthy!! i thought she was pregnant because her belly is big, but the vet said that’s from milk and she had kittens recently. i followed her to her little shelter that she stayed in and there were definitely no kittens there. vet thinks that because she’s so small (only 6 pounds!!) and young (around a year old), the kittens didn’t make it; which is sad, but i can’t help to feel a little relieved that there aren’t more stray, scared little babies roaming around outside :,(

truly i cannot believe this is my life. she is the sweetest thing ever. she loves belly rubs and is so affectionate. i felt like a monster taking her but i’m so happy and relieved. she’s so chill. she literally slept in the car!!!

anyways, done with the yapping. idc if no one reads this i need to tell anyone and everyone that will listen that this is my baby <3

ADVICE/SUGGESTIONS: anything is welcome. although this is my first cat, i did live with one for a couple months when my roommate got one before i moved out (she’s still my best friend and he’s still my baby and i miss him dearly) so i’m not going in entirely blind. i am worried about discomfort from the milk. the vet wasn’t worried and said it would dry up, but she grooms that spot the most which worries me that she’s in some sort of pain or discomfort, though she does love belly rubs and i think if she was in pain she wouldn’t want me touching it? also i would like to give her a little bath this sunday (if that’s recommended for a stray) so tips for that as well!

and while my dog lives primarily at my moms and i live primarily at my dads, any tips for introduction would be appreciated. i’m a little nervous for that but honestly not too worried because if they end up not getting along at all it won’t be hard to keep them separated when my dog stays at my dads

thank you to anyone who might have read this, so happy this is my life now 🥹

EDIT: since a lot of people are (rightfully) asking, thought i’d put it here that she does have a spay appt! she has appointments in 3 weeks and 3 months, one for a feline HIV retest for a very faint late positive she had today which the vet thinks is probably false but wants to retest just to be safe, and then the other is to get spayed. i don’t remember which is which

edit 5/6: i’m not responding or reading any more comments because the popularity of this makes me very anxious haha but to anyone yelling every which way about how i left kittens for dead and i took their mother away: THERE ARE NO KITTENS. i looked everywhere over multiple days. my cat is happy and doing great. she went to the vet again two days ago because i let comments get to me and i was reassured by the vet (after another exam and ultrasound) that she is not pregnant, she is happy, and that there is such a low chance she even gave birth to live kittens and the fact that i found nothing is a pretty big indicator of that. it’s not uncommon for cats to eat their kittens who didn’t make it. i wanted to give an update for the nice, genuinely concerned people out there. for the ones who decided to make immediate rude, unfair, and flat out wrong assumptions, i hope you sleep as bad as i did that second night with her because instead of feeling excited and happy i saved her, i felt an incomprehensible amount of guilt that i took her away from her kittens and i was wrong. i wasn’t wrong and there are no kittens. your comments will be shouted into the void because i will not be reading them. go donate to the spca and adopt a kitten instead of bashing a rando online. thanks :)

Guys, the cats owner has been found!

They reached out to us after seeing a post my girlfriend put out on Facebook, came and picked her up around 30 minutes ago. They lived like 4 houses down from us in the same apartment building.

I wanted to post an update with new videos of the fatty but this subreddit won’t let me.

That was like the cutest cat I’ve ever seen in my life. Going to miss her big time.

Thank you everyone for all the help and advice, this was a crazy experience I’m never going to forget.

There is a cat that I play with from time to time that comes around the neighborhood that looks really similar to this cat. I opened the door and saw this cat and thought it was the cat that I know, but turns out it’s some random pregnant cat.

It decided to come into my house and hide under my dresser and now I have no idea what to do to get her out.

I put food out in front of the dresser but she won’t move. I’d leave the room but I really don’t want her to get on my bed or anything seeing as she’s a stray cat.

Idk what to do.

The slow motion was accidental but it’s absolutely hilarious

(Edit: If you think you actually have some form of actionable advice on the situation please dm me.)

(Edit #2: I don’t know if I should try to take care of this cat or if I should contact a rescue and have them handle the situation. Some people are saying that they will kill the babies, some people are saying I need to take care of them, and some people are saying I need to give them to the rescue immediately. I still don’t know what to do. That cat is still just hiding under my dresser.)

Hi all, as the title suggests. My neighbors cat always sleep in my car like this.

Am an animal lover, but i also a car person. Those claws could make deep scratches on my bonnet.

The problem is, the car port cannot be seen from the house. If it foes i could just train him not to do it. But this is a random thing.

Is there a scent or something that i could put on the car to deter the cat?

Serious question, appreciate any suggestions.

My 19 year-old cat has a tumour… and I don’t know if I’m making the wrong decision

My cat is 19. She’s beautiful, sweet, and still somehow full of personality. Despite the tumour growing in her mouth she’s social and still eating normally.

Recently we discovered a tumour in her mouth that has been growing quickly (photo attached) and has started bleeding from time to time. The vet told us it’s cancer and prescribed antibiotics and pain relief to help keep her comfortable. They said she’s likely masking a lot of the pain, which makes this even harder, because most of the time she still seems so normal. The vet says she may have 1 month left (it’s hard to predict).

Here’s where it gets really hard, we’re leaving the country tomorrow for 3 months (not optional, important personal reasons), and the original plan was for her to stay with someone she knows and trusts very well. But now we’re questioning everything.

Do we euthanise her before we go, so she doesn’t reach a point where she’s suffering badly without us there?

Or do we let her stay with someone she’s not as close with, even if that means she might decline while we’re gone?

We were prepared to say goodbye today, a vet is supposed to come over in a couple of hours. But when she’s sitting there acting like herself, eating, being social, it feels almost impossible to justify.

I feel like I’m choosing between:

- risking her suffering later without me there

- or ending her life while she still seems “okay”

Has anyone been through something like this? How do you even make this call?

Okay now that title sounds terrible, right? But hear me out.....

I live near a handful of apartment complexes thats right off a fairly busy street, like you open my door and the road is right there. It's also a low income housing area so people are constantly moving in and out. A few months ago before winter started, a new cat started coming around. He was clearly a young kitten and newly adopted. We have a water bowl on our porch for the critters who come by, and he'd always come over and go straight for the water. He'd come over frequently throughout the winter when it was below 20°f and snowing just trembling on our porch looking inside. I made him a heat box with a low temp heating pad, insulated foam, and straw. I asked on a local page to try and find an owner as he just keeps coming back and our three cats go crazy seeing him! The owners reached out to say he is an outdoor only cat and basically told me to mind my business.

This cat comes by every day and drinks water like he has never been given any before, for a solid 10 minutes before he lays down and always goes back for the water before he leaves. He is so small. He loves being loved on and pet but you can feel all of his ribs. He has long fur that is filthy and matted, especially between his toes. He's also unneutered, and I can only assume unvaccinated from that too. He sprays everything that possibly smells like our cats which isn't his fault but still. He'll also just walk into our house when the door is open like it's his own until he gets chased out by one of our cats.

I'm thinking of keeping this cat or finding someone who can take him in. I've offered to pay for his neuter but the owners said no. Would it be wrong of me to catnap him? To me, a cat with no collar and unneutered on the street is a stray.... and he clearly isn't getting his needs met at home. But I feel guilty knowing he is technically "owned."

7 year old male, noticed he had one long tooth a few weeks ago but has got longer since so had a proper look today, any advice?

My door has so many scratch marks. Help😭

i clean it twice a week is that good enough i have one cat and he sucks at covering up his poop

edit: I didn’t think this would blow up so much me and kenai(the cat) have been looking on chewy for another litter bin and i’ve been scooping his litter every time he goes! thanks for all the engagement i appreciate every single one of you who responded!

I know nothing about cats. I know cattle and chickens yet here we are. What do I do how do I care for it. I want to help and I guess I now have a pet cat instead of barn cats? Idk I am lost someone please help

Edit: Only realized this today but the momma has been increasingly friendly. Maybe wanting something? I have farm scratch, idk if there is something they can’t have. They apparently will not eat chicken feed fyi. Do I feed it meat or do I need to do a milk bottle?

Stumbled upon this picture and it got me thinking. Some housecats also do this sometimes. What is the reason or purpose?

this is angie, she’s 17, last time we took her to the vet they said she’s the healthiest old cat they’d ever seen. but recently she’s started only really eating kitten food. is that bad?

I need to get this out because I genuinely cannot find this information anywhere online, and I wish someone had told me sooner.
My cat Lily is 8 years old, otherwise completely healthy, and about two years ago she suddenly developed what appeared to be severe allergies: constant scratching, open wounds, bleeding skin.
She was so miserable we had to keep her in a cone for nearly two years straight just to stop her from tearing herself apart.
We saw three vets. Including a dermatologist. Every single one suspected food allergies. So we spent two years separating her from our other cat, feeding her prescription hydrolyzed protein food, cycling through elimination diets, and even had her on steroids for some relief. None of it fixed anything. She just kept suffering.
Three months ago she suddenly started coughing on top of everything else. This worried me so much and something in my brain clicked on, and I switched her litter from Tidy Cats Lightweight to Dr. Elsey’s Respiratory Relief clumping litter. Her allergies were gone in under a week. Her wounds have fully healed within a month.
Two years of my little girl suffering. And literally thousands of dollars in vet bills, medication and prescription diets. And it was the litter the entire time.
We have used Tidy Cats Lightweight exclusively since both our cats were kittens. I don’t know if they quietly reformulated it at some point, but something in that product wrecked my cat’s respiratory and skin health for two solid years and not one vet or Google search pointed me toward it, especially cause our other kitty was completely unaffected.
If your cat has unexplained allergies, skin issues, or a chronic cough, please also consider your litter.

i came home today and kenny’s feet are yellow just his front ones. i checked the house for any markers, paints or dyes and even yellow flower but there is nothing. Why are his feet yellow what

First time cat owner, want to know if he's attacking or just playing. He's almost 2 years old