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My f3 kitten has behavioral problems and urinates on couches

NikkiA

Site Supporter
I cant speak at all to the potty issues, but i can tell you that my 7 month old F3 boy, Jarvis, also is not a cuddly kitten and can be a bit skittish at times. He does not like to be picked up. He is not a cuddler for me, but he does like to spend time near me.
I find that he will periodically get scared of something - it can be something different every day, for example, scarves are frightening to him this week- and he will run and hide. I let him go, and I do call after him to tell him it's ok and that I didn't mean to scare him, and he usually comes back in less than 5 minutes.
When Jarvis arrived, he bonded to my husband and our F5 boy Diablo, but not with me. I was inadvertently scaring him by doing things like picking him up, making eye contact, and moving suddenly.
Thanks to the helpful advice I have gotten here and from my vet, he may not come to snuggle on my lap, but he does follow me around the house, he loves to play, and he comes running to meet me when I walk in the door. Be patient, and hopefully your boy will get more confident and feel more secure over time too!
 

Jacq

Savannah Super Cat
Nimbus gets skittish sometimes too over things I can't see or hear. If I talk in a soft soothing voice to him, I can see him visibly relax. Works every time.
 
T

tkymasters

Guest
The soap is amazing! It gets rid of the new clothes smell.. I wash all my deer hunting equipment with this soap. I use it to clean the outdoor enclosure to get rid of the territorial spraying from my cats and other cats.
 

Wild Tafari

Savannah Super Cat
I saw this at a Bass Pro shop a while back and made a comment to my husband about hunters using specific detergent such as this for their laundry. Would have never thought about using it for cat urine. We've always used white vinegar for cleaning, but thanks for the tip! I'll keep this in mind in the event it's ever needed for any urine "accidents." :up:


The soap is amazing! It gets rid of the new clothes smell.. I wash all my deer hunting equipment with this soap. I use it to clean the outdoor enclosure to get rid of the territorial spraying from my cats and other cats.
 

jungle boy

Savannah Super Cat
Hey guys,

It's been a little over 3 weeks that i welcomed my new f3 boy kaïko into my house. He is now 6 months old and is neutered.
Even though there has been improvment in his adaptation to me and my appartment, certain behaviors tell me that there might be something wrong with him.

It only took a couple of days before Kaiko let me pet him. When i work him long enough, he lets me pet his head, cheeks, chin, paws, belly without any problems. He would close his eyes and feel completely relaxed and wouldn't fear anything from me. However, as soon as i leave the house or have a couple of hours without interacting with him, he would always hide in his bed and feel threatened by my presence once i try to approach him. most often than not, he will growl and hiss at me. Since i want to discourage such behaviors, i try to calm him down and make my way to pet him slowly. At this point he would just accept my hand and let me pet him. By now, I thought that he would have understood that i'm not a threat to him. However, he still backs off and avoids proximity At all costs. We can play for hours, fall asleep together in his bed at night, but he still wouldn't approach me by himslef. I was told that the best way to tame a cat is to hold him and have him feel your warmth and heart beat for a while. When i tried to grab him, he completely freaked out and bit me. I then grabbed him by the neck and forced him to calm down while holding him. It seemed to work as he stopped fighting and stood quiet for a good 10 minutes. However, when i put him down, he ran to the bathroom (his bunker) and stayed there for the rest of the evening..

On top of that, i have another major issue with Kaiko. He has been peeing on the couches since day one he arrived at the appartment. He poops in his litter box and often pees in there too, but i always have a pee on the couch every day. I cleaned the urine with vinegar and enzyme cleanser, i've been putting plastic and aluminum foil on the couches, used repelant, moved the litterbox directly on the couch, but nothing seems to be working. (Or it works until he finds a window of opportunity!)

The breeder tells me that he never had such behaviors back at the cattery.. I knew he was a shy kitten, but he wasn't as "wild" as he is right now. It feels like he is very stressed, but i have a hard time finding what i'm doing wrong (since i'm doing everything to bring him comfort). I adopted him right after his big surgery (neutering + declawing) and this, mixed with the rehoming process, might have traumatized him more deeply than i thought.

Any how, i would like to know if other people experienced such phase when taming their savannah, and what are the tricks to growing a healthy relationship with him. I would also appreciate any advice with the pee problem, since i'm starting to be low in alternative solutions.

Thanks very much in advance for your help ;)

I was wondering how things were going. Has there been any improvement on any of the fronts? :)
 
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