Literal CONSTANT screaming [help]

[Arke]

Hi guys,

It's been a pretty hectic few weeks and my crazy boy is 9 months old today!

Unfortunately there is a problem.

Caber screams literally every hour he is awake. He stands by the door to our flat and yells at the top of his voice. It's become a running joke with some of our friends, but my patience is starting to run thin.

When one of us approaches him, he skitter-dashes away, only to return the moment he is left alone.

He is neutered, and is played with for hours a day. He always has food, water and a clean litterbox. There are cosy places to curl up and my partner and I work on alternate schedules so he is rarely ever alone in the house.

I'm going actually crazy. It is the same repetitive MAOO every time. Here is what we have tried:

1. Ignoring him - this doesn't help.
2. Drawing him over with a teaser or a jingly ball - he'll come 70% of the time but then he starts to ignore us.
3. Shutting him in the room we are in - works, but his litter box is in the bathroom and I don't like denying him access.
4. Feliway - I have the spray and my friend gave me the diffuser. If there's a difference in him, it's negligible.

I want to get another cat or animal for him to play with but I wanted to wait until he turned a year old in January.

I feel like such a failure of a parent. This has only been happening for about 2 months but no matter what I do he just doesn't care. I'm worried about getting a noise complaint because he is so loud and high pitched and sounds like he is in actual pain, but I've had him checked and everything is where it should be.

Please, please help. I'm at the end of my tether and I don't know what to do.

 

[admin]

Hi guys,

It's been a pretty hectic few weeks and my crazy boy is 9 months old today!

Unfortunately there is a problem.

Caber screams literally every hour he is awake. He stands by the door to our flat and yells at the top of his voice. It's become a running joke with some of our friends, but my patience is starting to run thin.

When one of us approaches him, he skitter-dashes away, only to return the moment he is left alone.

He is neutered, and is played with for hours a day. He always has food, water and a clean litterbox. There are cosy places to curl up and my partner and I work on alternate schedules so he is rarely ever alone in the house.

I'm going actually crazy. It is the same repetitive MAOO every time. Here is what we have tried:

1. Ignoring him - this doesn't help.
2. Drawing him over with a teaser or a jingly ball - he'll come 70% of the time but then he starts to ignore us.
3. Shutting him in the room we are in - works, but his litter box is in the bathroom and I don't like denying him access.
4. Feliway - I have the spray and my friend gave me the diffuser. If there's a difference in him, it's negligible.

I want to get another cat or animal for him to play with but I wanted to wait until he turned a year old in January.

I feel like such a failure of a parent. This has only been happening for about 2 months but no matter what I do he just doesn't care. I'm worried about getting a noise complaint because he is so loud and high pitched and sounds like he is in actual pain, but I've had him checked and everything is where it should be.

Please, please help. I'm at the end of my tether and I don't know what to do.

Are there other cats outside the door that may be spraying or urinating in the outdoor area near your home?

 

[Arke]

Are there other cats outside the door that may be spraying or urinating in the outdoor area near your home?

We live in a second storey flat so we don't really have an outdoor area aside from a little balcony. There is 1 dog at least on our floor, but he's met dogs before. I have the feliway thing plugged in by the door just in case.

 

[admin]

We live in a second storey flat so we don't really have an outdoor area aside from a little balcony. There is 1 dog at least on our floor, but he's met dogs before. I have the feliway thing plugged in by the door just in case.

Is it possible strays come up to the second floor area or is it not setup like that.

 

[Toa and Ross]

Sorry to hear your dealing with this issue with Caber. Cobstant meoowing is annoying. Did you go to the vet to let him check? To make sure he's not in pain in any other health problem, I would go for a vet check.

 

[MollysMom]

Is he getting enough to eat? What is his weight? At 9 months they are kind of the equivalent of human teenagers. Annoying, rambunctious, and will eat you out of house and home..

 

[Yoda mom]

@Arke Do the neighbors have kitties that lounge on the neighboring balconies?
My boy is extremely Senstive and alert to any whiff of outside kitties. I can always tell by his demeanor .

I would call your vet for suggestions too

My one boy is a constant talker when he wants food

Do you free feed? I portion control free feeding dry kibble and it seems to help his chattering !

 

[Arke]

I am calling the vet today. It's become a meowfest regardless of where we are, where he is and what we are doing. If he is not asleep, he is yowling. He still goes to the front door if he is able but he has no issue with wailing even if I'm actively talking to him or giving him attention.

It would be very difficult for strays to get into the building. You have to use your key everywhere.

He gets wet food 2x a day and he always has dry down, so I don't think he is hungry.

Part of me thinks he's just really clingy (he tends to calm a bit when we're lying down in bed) or that he's cold. I have a little fan heater that he adores and he has a few soft fleeces. Generally he's quieter if he has a shirt on, almost as if the pressure comforts him.

 

[Dublin Riis]

@Arke I understand your pain. I haven't gotten a chance to bring up the issue of Dublin meowing AAALLLL DAY on Sphynxlair until now.
Unfortunately, I'm not responding to your post to give advice. I apologize, however I'm EAGER to see what others suggest. I'm almost reduced to tears from frustration. Like you, I've tried EVERYTHING you have, but Dublin doesn't respond to ANY of it!
I've read many times to ignore this behavior, THEN respond ONLY when he's stopped speaking on his "bull horn." By that time I'm sooo frazzled.
I'm ashamed of talking about MY issues, when this is about your Caber. Please forgive me, as I'd like to hear what the suggestions will be for BOTH our babies. I'd like to give a scenario of what I believe(?) is part of Dublin's problem:
Soon after purchasing him at 3 mos, at 6 months old, I took Dublin to a specialist for a BAER hearing test, because of his lack of response to noise. If I clapped behind his head, he didn't know the location the sound originated from. When I come in from work, he doesn't come to greet me, because he doesn't hear the door or my footsteps. When my (large) dog barks, he lifts his head, but again, looks for the origin of the sound....and so on.
The vet tried diligently to place the probes in Dublin's ears (the final step of the test), but he wouldn't cooperate, even after slight sedation, therefore the vet asked me to bring him back at a year old. I never did. I just live with Dublin the way he is and love EVERYTHING about him....everything BUT the CONSTANT screaming!!
If this is due in part to being (possibly) hearing impaired, then that only answers part of my dilemma. How do I go about keeping the silence?
I might add, Dublin will soon have a Donskoy brother coming mid December. I thought he could use a "cat" playmate, since his 6 year old Pit Bull/mix brother is waaaay too gentle and doesn't offer that cat-to-cat interaction Dublin so DESPARATELY needs. Dublin is currently 2 years old and the newcomer will be 5 mos old at that time. No name chosen yet.

Once again my sincere apologies to @Arke for seemingly taking over the post and hopefully NOT minimizing her (noise) issues. I believe we're in the same boat. PLEEEAAASE HELP!

 

[Dublin Riis]

I might add, Dublin has seen a vet and has a clean bill of health.

 

[Monica]

@Arke @Dublin Riis Kenzo only yowls when he wants something (food, attention, playtime), or when he wants to alert us that he’s going to poo... and again after he has finished, lol.
It sounds like you have tried to satiate his needs in every which way. Perhaps it’s linked to anxiety? Like people, some animals are just wired a bit different than others. You said clothes seem to chill him out a bit, have you tried a ‘thunder shirt.’ Essentially, it’s a compression shirt for dogs and cats. The pressure actually has a calming effect on them. Studies have shown similar treatments being successful with people on the autism spectrum. (Unrelated really, just a neat fact)
Also, if your state allows it, CBD oil works wonders for many animals with anxiety. I know a company that specializes in CBD for pets if you want me to PM you both the information.

 

[susi794]

A friend often helps. If it doesn’t, you might want to try one of Jackson Galaxy’s remedies that he sells on his website.

 

[JojoCatMama]

I have to say, Nakeds are very social creatures. I know quite a few owners here have single cats, but I believe they do best with a companion. We adopted a furry female tabby for our Merlin and they get along great. I can’t imagine what Merlin would be like without her. Maybe your little yowler needs a buddy!

 

[Dublin Riis]

@Monica So funny you mentioned Kenzo alerting you for the reasons you listed. Dublin does the EXACT same for ALL the same reasons, but waaaay more for attention. The reason for cat #2 is to alleviate the "attention" part, so there's another playmate. I just purchased the CBD oil last week. I put one drop over his food, but couldn't tell the difference...yet. I'm going to try this daily, once per day - his most vocal point of the day and I'll try @Arke suggestion about putting a shirt on him, too. Doing both may help.....(me)....by the end of the day.

 

[Shmeeps]

I read somewhere that deaf cats howl more and louder than hearing cats. Maybe he is deaf. I'm not sure what you could do about it. Maybe some simple sign language and more visual stimulation. Maybe leave the TV on with no sound and access to more window perches? Just my two cents.

 

[Dublin Riis]

@susi794 Do you mean Jackson Galaxy sells some sort of calming solution on his website? I'll look into WHATEVER it is that will help

 

[Dublin Riis]

@JojoCatMama I believe @Arke said she was also thinking of getting a playmate for Caber. On one hand, that will solve Dublin's "screaming-for-attention" issue. But I'll take even 30 minutes LESS per day to save my sanity

 

[Dublin Riis]

@Shmeeps Dublin is supplied with lots of play areas with and without views. I do know he has a resting period with virtually NO SCREAMING from breakfast until about 3pm. I witness these "quiet times" usually on weekends when I'm off from work. He appears to maintain his (own?) internal clock "schedule" when hubby and I are normally working in the week. Though I return from work about 5pm, Dublin seems to begin stirring about 3-ish. The noise increases according to his needs: to eat, go on the screened patio, scream at lizards, back inside for attention, screams when I walk the dog because he can't go, screams (the entire way - round trip) if I decide to bring him in his stroller.... you get the point

 

[susi794]

@susi794 Do you mean Jackson Galaxy sells some sort of calming solution on his website? I'll look into WHATEVER it is that will help

Yes, he offers several homeopathic remedies for several conditions: bullying, obsessive behaviors, etc.
Solutions | Jackson Galaxy Store

 

[Dublin Riis]

@susi794 Thank you, kindly for the Jackson Galaxy information. Hope this works for @Arke too

 

[Arke]

Thanks for all the thoughts and ideas everyone! It's so nice to have such a supportive community.

So Caber went and saw our lovely vet yesterday. He's actually been pretty good over the last couple of days, but I still wanted to get him checked in case it was a medical issue.

The vet said he looked in great condition so that was wonderful to hear. Fortunately, Caber started up his yelling whilst we were there and the vet fully understood how frustrating and upsetting it would be to hear that 24/7. He's been seeing quite a few pets for anxiety recently as we're coming up to Bonfire Night.

His thoughts are that Caber got himself into this meow-cycle before he was neutered where he would go to the door and meow for a ladycat. Now he's neutered, but he remembers that he used to go to the door and meow for some reason, so he still does it as it's a part of his routine. His meowing gets more and more insistent because he thinks that something should happen, and he can't break himself out of the habit.

The vet agreed that it might be something he grows out of, but as a possible solution, Caber was prescribed NutraCalm, which is like a supplement that encourages relaxation? I've never really heard of it but it has good reviews. I have to sprinkle half a capsule onto his wet food twice a day. We should start seeing results in the next 2-3 days, so fingers crossed. If it doesn't work, then we'd probably need to look at actual anti-anxiety meds (but I'm hoping it doesn't come to that).

We're also being encouraged to ignore him when he gets into the cycle, hard as it might be, and give him fuss when he's quiet. It should help him associate positive attention with being calm and peaceful.

I'll definitely look into the Jackson Galaxy stuff. I had a peek at their website and they have something for every kind of issue! So it might be nice to have on hand just in case.

Here is the goblin having a calm moment in his soft new fleece:

 

[Catzzzmeow]

So happy you went to your vet. How lucky your vet got to actually hear it for himself!!!! Hoping what he suggested works. If it doesn’t, don’t think anti-anxiety meds are bad. Our girl is on them and she is far from lethargic. It just takes the edge off. Please keep updating us.

 

[Toa and Ross]

Fingers and paws crossed NutraCalm will help and Caber will stop his meowing!

 

[Dublin Riis]

@Arke Soooo glad to hear the good news! Hope it works. PLEASE keep us posted

 

[Yoda mom]

@Arke , all paws crossed for good news updates

It does take my boy several months for hormones to settle - I adopted him at 11 mos old and got him neutered the same week.

Lol I got him a onefast cat exercise wheel and tell him go Toby go! It's been great for him
To let out frustration from peeking out at the neighs kitties