08712 317415 (national call rate) or email: training@safepets.co.uk
Back
to Homepage
08712 317415 (national call rate)
or email:
training@safepets.co.uk
Back
to Homepage
Debbie Connolly is the Founder of SafePets UK and is the Behaviour Consultant for Bengal Cat Rescue. She has treated all sorts of cats and owns 3 Bengals, an elderly Siamese a Bengal cross and 2 moggies.
 |
By Debbie Connolly: I got
into cats much later than dogs and thought maybe they didn't have the range
of issues that dogs have....... wow was I wrong! They have toilet
problems, aggression, nervousness, dominance and the treatment is different
from that of dogs. So they have taught me a huge amount. I was
lucky enough to meet Sarah Hopton who founded Bengal Cat Rescue and now I
foster and rehabilitate the breed and am the behaviour consultant.
These days I have worked with a lot of cats of all types and I have owned 7
Siamese. Some of my current pack are on the left! |
Some examples of cat problems:
Ben, owner of a 4 year old Bengal Female tells his story.....
I bought Lily as a young kitten from what I now know
was not a good breeder. The kitten was too young and I was told Bengals
are easy cats that get on with other cats and are very clean. I have since
discovered this is not true. Lily was fine at first and then started
messing all over when she was about 15 months. This was intermittent at
first then got worse. I found a behaviourist through my vet but I don't
think she actually knew anything about the breed.
Everything I was told to do I did but it didn't make much difference. I used a
diffuser, different litter and trays in different places and she just continued.
When Lily was about 2 it had got a bit better but I moved house. I was in a flat with a small walled courtyard and my shifts had changed too. Lily got very bad. I would dread walking into the house. She would have weed in several places including a leather recliner chair that eventually stank so bad I had to throw it out. I had no cushions on the sofa because she weed on them every day. She would also do it after I got home so I had to just put old towels and newspaper on them.
I love Lily and I didn't want to get rid of her but I couldn't have people round. When I got home I would put her straight out into the yard but she would cry at the patio doors to come in and then the second I wasn't looking she would mess. My vet thought she was incurable and this went on for almost 2 years. She is a loving cat and I love her a lot but I had to throw out furniture, stop friends coming and almost hated her at times.
I spent a fortune on trainers. The vet recommended one who suggested things like Chinese herbs, to no avail. Another one came and said the cat was stressed but had no idea how to cure it. I paid for a second visit when she said she'd never seen one this bad and Lily actually bit her when she tried to examine her. This sent the trainer into a frenzy and she told me the cat needed to be put down.
In desperation I rang Bengal Rescue and Sarah told me to speak to Debbie Connolly before doing anything. Debbie was reassuring and came to see us. It was so different from previous trainers. She is totally straight forward, told me off about the things I made a mess of and gave me a long list of things to do. She prescribed some Bach Remedies for Lily, correctly identified that the yard had been invaded by another cat even though she didn't see it and Lily adored her.
I was warned that nothing was a quick fix but I understood what to do when I came home, where to leave Lily, what food to feed and how to give her proper attention. Although it made sense after my previous experiences I was sceptical. I needn't have been. Within one week Lily was clean. She had relaxed, seemed much happier and was happy just hanging around. Lily has never messed again apart from an odd accident when not well. I have a new sofa! I have friends round and I almost can't believe the way we used to live. To think I almost gave Lily up is frightening. Please help your cat.
Ben 2006
Claire owner of Thomas a 2 year old male moggy
When I got Thomas I already had a female cat called Tia. She was fairly quiet and gentle and when she was about 2 years old I decided to get her a kitten friend so I got Thomas. He was a cheeky kitten, the boldest one in the litter and I just thought he was funny. I didn't know then he was too young at 6 weeks to be leaving his Mum.
I have two kids who loved Tia and played gently with her without problems but it was quickly apparent that Thomas was different. He bit he children enough to draw blood even when young and didn't like to be picked up. Stupidly I told the kids to stop annoying him and basically we all stopped picking him up, examining him and most other things he didn't like as he could be quite aggressive.
He started stalking the kids and eventually me too. He would run out from behind things and latch onto you with teeth and claws. Any attempt to discipline him was met with a snap and he would try to bite you. In between this he was lovely, constantly involved with everything, screaming a lot for attention, jumping on your knee. He seemed like Jekyll and Hyde and we really thought there was something wrong with him. Truthfully we became quite frightened of him.
Then he got worse because he started attacking Tia. She had never been fond of him and generally just kept out of his way. I first noticed him hissing a lot at her and occasionally striking her with his claws. Tia gradually lost a bit of weight and started hiding. One day as I was coming down stairs I saw him run down the hall and attack her. She was screaming and I got bitten trying to get him off her. I was shaking and threw him into the downstairs toilet whilst I took Tia to the vet. She needed a stitch in a nasty wound to her head. I just cried all night and daren't let Thomas out. Eventually I had to and I kept Tia in my bedroom.
Next day I spoke to the vet and they recommended rehoming Thomas or seeing a trainer they recommended. I didn't want to part with him so we tried the trainer. He came and said we'd been too soft and should have sorted Thomas whilst young. We had of course figured that out. He suggested some handling of Thomas but didn't seem to want to show us with the cat. I said I was honestly afraid to touch him in any way apart from a stroke and the trainer said that was stupid and I'd have to toughen up. He still wouldn't show me with the cat though. So he left and I felt a bit stupid and I was scared to let the kids touch Thomas as I was scared myself. Thomas reacted badly to the handling and I was just too scared to do it properly which made me feel like an idiot. I decided Thomas had to go and the kids were devastated.
I rang a cat rescue who weren't keen on taking him because of his aggression which stunned me. I had never thought I wouldn't be able to give him away. Then I thought I'd have to put him down which just made me and the kids cry. My mother came and said we were stupid and that he had to be put down before he hurt a cat or person again and I felt like s***.
So I rang another rescue and could hardly explain for crying and they suggested Safepets and told me to ring Debbie. I wasn't keen after the previous experience of a trainer and I didn't want to give the kids false hope. But the alternative was worse so I rang her and she came to see Thomas. She was very critical of us and what we'd done! But it showed it wasn't all Thomas's fault and maybe that meant it could be stopped. At one point he tried to tell Debbie off and went for her and she tapped him sharply and he backed off! I was stunned. She showed us all how to stop him, how to gradually teach him to be picked up and how he was to get his affection. We realised he was very understimulated and Debbie showed us how to play properly with him and wear him out mentally.
There was also a lot to do to get him safe with Tia, but we followed that through, even caging him as told although we felt sorry for him at first! It took a few weeks to feel he really was changed but truthfully he was improving from just a few days into the new routine. Tia doesn't like him but she isn't afraid of him and neither are we. Even my Mother admitted she was wrong! We now live happily and I am so grateful to Debbie that we were able to keep Thomas and all of have a quality of life we thought wasn't possible.
Claire 2006