<p>I “owned” what I now refer to as a “neighborhood” cat. He adopted 4 families in a block radius and would happily trot from house to house, sleep in everybody’s bed and get fed by all. No fleas because everybody treated him for fleas. Heaven knows how many shots he had under different names. Wonderful cat. He loved us, we ALL loved him. He’d go on walks with us. Heck, he’d walk to the school bus stop and wait for the kids and walk them home. We didn’t know he was “sleeping around” (although we knew he wouldn’t be home every night) until we moved and wanted to take him with us-- and then everybody said “That’s OUR cat!”</p>
<p>I guarantee you he wasn’t getting any attention before I took him in. There would be rotten left overs from the neighbors, but nobody cared for him. Maybe he wandered into other neighborhoods, where there are nicer people. That could be why he’s so fat.</p>
<p>If he’s been an outdoor cat, you might have to introduce him to your litter box by starting with a little dirt in it, then gradually increasing the ratio of litter to dirt.</p>
<p>Please be a good cat owner and have him neutered. You can’t know for sure that he won’t slip out to chase a good-looking female at just the wrong time. There are too many unwanted cats euthanized every day in this country.</p>
<p>My “neighborhood” cat wasn’t going in a litter box hell or high water. He was strictly an outdoor cat. Just for the record. Good as long as he got outside…</p>
<p>He’s more likely to leave the house/roam/fight if not neutered. He’ll be healthier if neutered, as will your pocket book. You don’t want to have to take him to a vet for an abscessed cat bite or other injury. (Been there/done that.) And as already pointed out, he doesn’t need to add to the unwanted kitten demographic.</p>
<p>I second putting catnip on the scratching post. Place it near where he scratched the air mattress and move him to the scratching post if he starts scratching in the wrong place. A kitty treat when he scratches in the right place never hurts.</p>
<p>Wiping the floor with white vinegar will remove any lingering reminder to him that he once used the bathroom there. You may need to do more than one wipe down over a period of a couple days.</p>
<p>I put my strays in the litter box off and on throughout the day until they got the idea.</p>
<p>He sounds like a sweetheart. I’m glad he found you.</p>
<p>Un-neutered males tend to spray on walls and surfaces to mark their territory. That odor can be very hard to get rid of, even with strong doses of Nature’s Miracle.</p>
<p>Congratulations. It sounds like a good match. :)</p>
<p>Please have him neutered. He’ll make a better pet, and he will never father more kittens which will likely end up being homeless or euthanized. Also please have him vaccinated. Even indoor cats can pick up diseases, and you’ll end up spending a lot more money in the end. My local SPCA has a low-cost neuter/vaccination clinic; you might want to check into that.</p>
<p>While you’re there, have them show you how to clip his claws. Keeping them trimmed will save the furniture while you’re getting him trained to the scratching post.</p>
<p>Enjoy your new buddy!</p>
<p>I was brushing my teeth this morning, and he followed me, knelt in the litterbox, and began urinating. I gave him a treat, and was very pleased, until he rubbed some of that urine onto my leg. Now he’s licking his balls again. You guys convinced me to get him neutered. I saw the process on youtube, and it’s very unappealing. But he’s a cat, who supposedly doesn’t really care about it, so might as well.</p>
<p>I don’t know about clipping his claws though. That’s pretty much his last line of defense. I know there are people against it, and I can see both sides of the argument there.</p>
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<p>Are you confusing clipping his claws as you clip your fingernails with declawing which is surgically removing the claws?</p>
<p>yes, probably. got it</p>
<p>Please, please neuter him. </p>
<p>It isn’t necessary to cut nails for most cats. You have to see with each one. We had a siamese and her nails needed to be cut. Siamese can have particularly hooked long tips so she would constantly get stuck in blankets and sheets and they’d tear. She’d cling to your shirt like a velcro block. She didn’t like the process but they sell clippers for cats that make it easier. The thing is to clip only the tip, not the quick. Cut too far down and it hurts. And then you get hurt. We never cut back nails because those don’t curl as much.</p>
<p>None of the others get their nails cut. Of course they might kill you if you tried but a good scratching post is all you need.</p>
<p>As to posts, get a solid one or make a solid one and then buy sisal rope at Home Depot or the like and wrap and nail it in place. Very cheap. No need to keep buying them. Another good idea is to get a small sisal rug, like the size of a door mat. Cats love to scratch while stretching. The scratching pulls off the nail sheaths. You’ll find them lying around as souvenirs.</p>
<p>Those cardboard things last for only a short time and don’t really satisfy them.</p>
<p>well now he just sits on his pillow and naps, instead of looking for insects to kill. What a rip off. :/</p>
<p>and my damn air mattress is slowly leaking. . .</p>
<p>Don’t worry, he’ll hunt the insects when he sees him.</p>
<p>Sorry about your air mattress.</p>
<p>But they do leak over time, as I’ve been there, done that. Get yourself a cheap one at one of those mattress outlet places. I’d tell you to do this whether you had a cat or not.</p>
<p>It’s good that he’s napping. It means he feels safe and trusts you.</p>
<p>Congratulations on making a forever friend, and I am so proud of you for taking in this little guy who obviously really needed a home.</p>
<p>I’ve had that blow up mattress for 2 months. I’ve only had to apply air twice in those two months. Now, it appears I’ll have to do it at least every other day. thanks schoolbus. Is that a weird name for a cat? schoolbus? the neighbors called him garfield. But I’m calling him schoolbus, because it’s awesome.</p>
<p>Schoolbus is a great name. Is he a ginger cat? You know, they’re lucky. And they are the sweetest cats. Thank you again for giving this sweet guy a home.</p>
<p>“Schoolbus” IS awesome. </p>
<p>Have you tried some duct tape for the mattress (if you know where the hole is)?</p>
<p>If you want to see more “action” from him, try some cat play. One of our cats loves wadded-up balls of paper or Ping-Pong balls, another likes to chase her string toy. They both love the catnip-filled mice. Check out the pet store for ideas; cat toys are inexpensive.</p>
<p>I also want to thank you for adopting this very sweet kitty. A month ago, he was hungry, cold, scared, and in danger. Now he’s safe and warm, well-fed, and obviously very happy. You’ve done a very, very good thing.</p>
<p>The world’s best cat toys are bendable poles with elastic cord as a cat-fishing line and something like a ball of colored pipe cleaner at the end. Spend 5-10 minutes a day fishing with the cat and it will bring out ever killing instinct. And one cool thing is each cat plays differently. One of mine rushes around after it and then sits on it until I nudge him off with a foot. Another leaps way into the air. Another rolled around on his back and grabbed it as it went by. Etc. You get to see each cat’s athleticism.</p>
<p>You can pick up one at any pet store and then add elastic, pipe cleaners, etc. as it breaks.</p>
<p>caught him stretching on my mattress today, AGAIN. Lifted the claw, and heard a hissing sound coming out of the mattress. I yelled at him and put him next to the scratching pole, but I don’t think he’s getting the memo. I’m clipping his claws ASAP. I might have to wear some gloves and long sleeves, and prepare a mighty chunk of cat treats.</p>
<p>And it’s a good thing the pole I got him has this feather thingie that I can take off and jerk around his face. Otherwise, he’d try to go to town on my hand when I pet him, which is not too ****in cute! Anyway, I let him out for a couple of hours to kill some bugs. Because apparently the cockroach that appears once every blue moon doesn’t seem to do him justice. He makes a whimpering noise. Does that mean he’s bored? </p>
<p>I mean he’s friendly alright. But so stupid. I wish his brain has Java or something. Write a little if statement in that little nutshell.</p>
<p>PS is it a bad idea to strap my cat to a cross with twist ties, while I trim his claws? Is he going to hate me if I do that? what if I feed him a treat every time I do a claw?</p>
<p>[kind</a> of like this](<a href=“http://us-p.vclart.net/vcl/Artists/Urban-Hermit/Sketches/Tied/skTied_Cat.gif]kind”>http://us-p.vclart.net/vcl/Artists/Urban-Hermit/Sketches/Tied/skTied_Cat.gif) except a little less grotesque</p>
![http://us-p.vclart.net/vcl/Artists/Urban-Hermit/Sketches/Tied/skTied_Cat.gif]kind](http://us-p.vclart.net/vcl/Artists/Urban-Hermit/Sketches/Tied/skTied_Cat.gif%5Dkind){kind=link}
<p>There is an art to it. You want to tuck as much of the cat’s body under your (non-dominant) arm, exerting firm but gentle pressure to keep him from wriggling out. Use your non-dominant hand to gently extend each claw, one at a time, then clip each with your dominant hand as quickly as possible (but remember, just the tips, otherwise you can make him bleed and really hurt him). It might take a while to find a pair of clippers or scissors that are sharp enough to clip in a single go without actually cracking the claw.</p>
<p>that’s why I ordered those special slippers. I want him to associate claw trimming to reward by not splitting his nail and hurting him, and feeding him treats. But I’ve read of owners starting “world war 3” with their cats, by trying to clip their claws. I can only hope for the best and expect the worst.</p>