Hello! Meet- Pascal, our Male Savannah F3

[RebeccaFrenchie]

Hello. This is my first post on here, you all have great advice and I am needing your help! A little over two months ago, we started fostering a 1.5 year F3 male Savannah, we named him Pascal.
We are his 3rd home, and I'm afraid we are his only hope for a stable home and have decided to keep him. We have two dogs and a cat. He loves playing with the dogs but he attacks our cat often, she is older and pretty weak compared to Pascal. I'm not sure he if he is trying to play with our other cat or what. He begins licking her, then will get on top of her and bite and fight her until she is screaming for help.
He uses the litter box to pee but not poop, he poops in the hallway and scoops it into a pile.
We can't have anything on our countertops, tables, etc. He constantly knocks everything off the countertops, and seems as if he is always trying to clean up, pawing at every thing.
I have also noticed he seems to be on the nervous side (somewhat of a scaredy cat). He is startled easy and will flip out over the smallest sound.
All the animals sleep in bed with us and he will sometimes sleep at the end of the bed, but he doesn't have much to do with us beside the occasional cat nap on the couch. He always bites and claws when you try and play with him. We've got him a bunch of toys but he still seems to tear up everything! But I won't give up on him! I feel like he wants to fit in and we are willing to give him a great home. I am taking him to the vet next week for a check up and advice as well...
I'm really not sure what I need help with, I just want him to be happy in our home.
Do you have any advice?
Thanks for reading!

 

[WitchyWoman]

Welcome Rebecca. Pascal is a very handsome boy.

Three homes in a year and a half is quite a lot of upheaval for any animal. What were the circumstances of all those moves -- were they behavior related? Did you quarantine him when he first arrived and did you do a slow introduction to your other cat? Is he neutered and if so, for how long?

It's possible, given the bit of background you've shared, that some of his behavior is anxiety based but without more info it's hard to know. One thing for sure, two months isn't enough time for him to settle in and gain confidence that he's in his forever home. It could take a long time for him to settle in and settle down.

One thing to consider to help the relationship between the cats is quarantine. Put him in a room with toys, food/water, litter, cat tree and somewhere safe he can retreat to (a crate or large box). Spend time in there talking to him and playing with him. After a couple weeks, let him out in the house a few hours a day while you isolate your other cat in the room. It may help them acclimate better. He may be trying to establish dominance. Go to this forum http://www.savannahcatchat.com/forums/savannah-cat-questions-need-savannah-cat-advice.20/ and read the stickies at the top "introducing a new cat into the family" and "the demon under the bed".

Knocking things over is a typical Savannah trait. He may also be doing it for attention.

The nervousness you describe could be part of his personality or it could be due to the stress of so many changes. You can speak to your vet about temporarily putting him on Prozac to take the edge off and then gradually weaning him off. The drug is effective not only with eliminating stress-based behavior but also with improper elimination so it may stop him from pooping outside the box. And speaking of boxes, what type do you have, how many, and where are they located? If you don't have at least 3 boxes in different (quiet, sheltered) locations around the house, it could be the reason why he poops in the hall.

Also consider a consult with Marilyn Krieger http://www.thecatcoach.com/ An animal behaviorist is well equipped to offer suggestions on how to change unwanted behaviors.

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

Although I don't know how long you made the introductory period between Pascal and your other cat, what you describe does sound like extra-rough wrestling. This can be the downside of a young rambunctious early generation male cat, they are large and energetic and love to "play". They think "no" from another kitty means "try harder" and "squeak the kitty" a fun game. A cat running away is an invitation to chase and wrestle to the ground also. If your other cat is docile and gentle she's going to find him a lot to deal with.

You can help by making sure Pascal gets plenty of active play with you, try different wand toys (Da Bird and the Cat Catcher by Go Cat are good choices) to find what really gets him running and jumping. Give him two active play sessions a day at least, sessions where he is panting and laying around afterwards. He'll have less energy to be wrestling your other cat then...

Think about places where your other cat can relax in peace...whether it is cat trees where she can get up high or kitty caves to be able to curl up and not be pounced on.

As to pooping outside the litterbox, this tends to indicate that Pascal is not completely comfortable in the litterbox. Generally when cats are upset about something else, they will pee to show displeasure or indicate the need to mark territory etc. Pooping outside the box is more because something is not comfy there. Peeing is quick and easy, hence they will not be as fussy and use any type of litterbox mostly, but to poop requires more effort and greater ease...

Is Pascal declawed? What litter do you use? Is your litterbox a covered one? An automated one? Where are they located? With two cats you need at least two boxes (actually the recommendation is one per cat plus one for the household) and in at least two locations. The location can also be important. They don't like it if it is too busy an area, but also if it is secluded so that either they have to travel far or they can be trapped in there. Can your dogs get to where the litterboxes are, and are they on the ground?

A good solution can be a nice clear tote box (Rubbermaid etc) with high sides, and then fill with Cat Attract, which not only has the additive to attract kitties to pee there, but the fine texture of the litter is really attractive to cats for many reasons.

 

[Patti]

You have gotten some very good advice. I would just add that some cats like to pee in one box and poop in the other, so if Pascal wants a dedicated litterbox to poop in you may actually want to consider four or more litterboxes. Cat Attract is a great idea, I have never had it fail when I've had some iffy eliminators.

Regarding your other cat, if at all possible, consider physically removing her by keeping her in a separate room from Pascal. If she is a docile, low energy cat she probably would not mind at all spending most of her hours in one room, as long as you spend some time with her each day.

One other thing - there is something called Museum Wax that can help keep items in place (used in museums to keep items safe during earthquakes) - it might help discourage Pascal from trying to knock everything off the counters, but if he becomes really determined, he will beat the Museum Wax eventually.

 

[RebeccaFrenchie]

Welcome Rebecca. Pascal is a very handsome boy.

Three homes in a year and a half is quite a lot of upheaval for any animal. What were the circumstances of all those moves -- were they behavior related? Did you quarantine him when he first arrived and did you do a slow introduction to your other cat? Is he neutered and if so, for how long?

It's possible, given the bit of background you've shared, that some of his behavior is anxiety based but without more info it's hard to know. One thing for sure, two months isn't enough time for him to settle in and gain confidence that he's in his forever home. It could take a long time for him to settle in and settle down...


Thank you so much for the response and advice!

I do not have a lot of information on Pascal, we are going to try and contact his past veterinarians after the holiday. He is neutered. We tried to slowly introduce him to all of our animals, he was very scared for the first two weeks (which is understandable).
I am also not sure of the circumstances for all the moves he's had...(poor guy). I know the first was due to behavioral issues of some sort. The couple we got him from said their infant daughter was allergic and is why they could not keep him. They did mention he knocked over their fish tank and ate the fish out of it. I don't know the people well enough to try and get all of this information either... They only had him for a few months as well.
I have been trying to read as much as I can about Savannahs, I have found a lot of information from this forum! After the bit of research I have done, his personality and behavior makes sense.
I just want to make sure I am doing everything to give him and our other animals a good home. We have a doberman, french bulldog, and a 13 year old black cat named Polly-she's my soulmate, my familiar

I am definitely going to give him more one on one attention and if will definitely ask the veterinarian about Prozac while he settles in.

Thank you again!

 

[RebeccaFrenchie]

Although I don't know how long you made the introductory period between Pascal and your other cat, what you describe does sound like extra-rough wrestling. This can be the downside of a young rambunctious early generation male cat, they are large and energetic and love to "play". They think "no" from another kitty means "try harder" and "squeak the kitty" a fun game. A cat running away is an invitation to chase and wrestle to the ground also. If your other cat is docile and gentle she's going to find him a lot to deal with.

You can help by making sure Pascal gets plenty of active play with you, try different wand toys (Da Bird and the Cat Catcher by Go Cat are good choices) to find what really gets him running and jumping. Give him two active play sessions a day at least, sessions where he is panting and laying around afterwards. He'll have less energy to be wrestling your other cat then...

Think about places where your other cat can relax in peace...whether it is cat trees where she can get up high or kitty caves to be able to curl up and not be pounced on.

As to pooping outside the litterbox, this tends to indicate that Pascal is not completely comfortable in the litterbox. Generally when cats are upset about something else, they will pee to show displeasure or indicate the need to mark territory etc. Pooping outside the box is more because something is not comfy there. Peeing is quick and easy, hence they will not be as fussy and use any type of litterbox mostly, but to poop requires more effort and greater ease...

Is Pascal declawed? What litter do you use? Is your litterbox a covered one? An automated one? Where are they located? With two cats you need at least two boxes (actually the recommendation is one per cat plus one for the household) and in at least two locations. The location can also be important. They don't like it if it is too busy an area, but also if it is secluded so that either they have to travel far or they can be trapped in there. Can your dogs get to where the litterboxes are, and are they on the ground?

A good solution can be a nice clear tote box (Rubbermaid etc) with high sides, and then fill with Cat Attract, which not only has the additive to attract kitties to pee there, but the fine texture of the litter is really attractive to cats for many reasons.

Thank you so much for the reply and advice!

I will definitely be having dedicated play times with Pascal, he loves all toys!
Pascal is not declawed, I recently bought Soft Paws (claw caps) and even though he doesn't like them at first, he doesn't seem to mind them much.
Last year I started using the Breeze system litter box with my other cat Polly. When we first got Pascal I eased him into using the Breeze system from the corn based litter they used. Maybe it is the pellets that he doesn't like. I have two litter boxes and they are large and are both in covered furniture like cabinets, so they dogs can't bother them. They are close to each other, the cats seem to use one much more than the other. The couple we got him from said that he was once toilet trained, but I am not sure why he no longer is.

Thanks again!

 

[Brigitte Cowell]

I think that the different home means he may be less comfortable than he was.

I would suggest trying something other than the Breeze system pellets. Try putting a box of the corn based litter in another location and just see. I would also (due to the dogs) maybe put that new litter box on a table or bench to make sure it is out of the way of the dogs...or possibly put a baby gate across a doorway into a room (possibly the laundry) to be sure he feels comfortable. But if a cat is not raised with pelleted litter, it can be something they really don't like. There are ways to slowly transition onto pellets, did you try that gradual process or how did you "ease" him into using the Breeze system?