A kitten with no cat instincts?

[ehh]

This is a really funny situation but also a really annoying situation after time.

My roommate got a cat, it was a stray for a few weeks before someone took it in and Craigslist'd it.

This thing is three months old now does not have a single "cat instinct."

It doesn't know how to cover its "business" in the litter box, it doesn't know how to go into a covered litter box, it drinks water but soaking its paw in the bowl and then licking the paw, it loves being wet and will play in the toilet for 10-15 minutes if the seat is left up, its absurdly un-agile, falls over randomly and loses its footing constantly, and it will bite people's faces, noses and ears (I assume it thinks its playing).

Anyone had a cat like this? Will it figures things out as it gets older? My biggest concern is the litter box because right now we have an uncovered litter box with a cat that doesn't cover any messes, which means we have one horrible smelling apartment.

[Gotmadskillzson]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

Well it was a stray what do you expect ? Being that it probably was alone since birth if the mom died or got separated some how, it wouldnt know how to do certain things.

The only thing that will help that cat is to be around older female cats to teach it the cat ways.

[ehh]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

We actually have an older female cat, but she is a total bitch and hisses, claws, swats at the kitten every time it goes near her.

The kitten is male btw.

[Gotmadskillzson]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

Hmmm that sucks....but yeah it definitely needs to be around some receptive cats to teach it the cat ways. For all we know, it could have been following around a racoon and thinks its a racoon and not a cat LOL.

[BurghFan]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

My sister works at a vet and brought home a kitten that had been abandoned at the age of ~3 weeks. She had to bottle feed it and stuff for a few weeks, but the cat still behaves like a cat (uses a covered litter box, covers its business, hates water, etc.) He is also pure evil and anti-social. My sister said it was because he wasn't raised by it's mother and didn't learn to fear humans. Has your cat been to the vet and been checked out? Does it have its shots. It sounds like it may have a neurological disorder based on its clumsiness and other behavioral issues.

[MassNole]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

Our cat Marley had a stray for a mother and his development compared to the others cats we have was very delayed. He had accidents for 6 months or so, so with your cat it will just take longer.

[stewaat]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

Maybe the cat has a mental disability. People have them, it's the way of life.

[J0nnD0ugh]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

He probably doesn't know he is a cat. Try getting some cat instructional DVD's & see if that works.

[pfunk880]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

It's a cat. There's your problem.

[SPTO]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

He probably doesn't know he is a cat. Try getting some cat instructional DVD's & see if that works.

That reminds me of the scene from SEE NO EVIL HEAR NO EVIL. Richard Pryor is a blind guy and he finds out for the first time that he's black ROFL!

[mattlanta]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

send it to china! or show us pics... if it's cute, then send it to a cat psychiatrist.

[superjames1992]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

We adopted a stray cat that we found outside under our porch last year. It was probably 6-10 weeks old when we found her (we already had a male cat for four years before we got her). She's never really had any issues as far as the litter box and stuff. She actually likes to be petting and interact with humans more than the other cat, who always has to have his personal space and doesn't like to be held. I've never noticed anything unusual about her, other than the fact that she has strange burst of energy at times, which result in her clawing some stuff she shouldn't and knocking over a couple breakable items (which my other cat has never done).

[bjf1377]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

This is a really funny situation but also a really annoying situation after time.

My roommate got a cat, it was a stray for a few weeks before someone took it in and Craigslist'd it.

This thing is three months old now does not have a single "cat instinct."

It doesn't know how to cover its "business" in the litter box, it doesn't know how to go into a covered litter box, it drinks water but soaking its paw in the bowl and then licking the paw, it loves being wet and will play in the toilet for 10-15 minutes if the seat is left up, its absurdly un-agile, falls over randomly and loses its footing constantly, and it will bite people's faces, noses and ears (I assume it thinks its playing).

Well it was a stray what do you expect ? Being that it probably was alone since birth if the mom died or got separated some how, it wouldnt know how to do certain things.

The only thing that will help that cat is to be around older female cats to teach it the cat ways.

I'm not sure that I would say its the only way for it to learn the basics, but that is the best way for sure.

Anyone had a cat like this? Will it figures things out as it gets older? My biggest concern is the litter box because right now we have an uncovered litter box with a cat that doesn't cover any messes, which means we have one horrible smelling apartment.

What kind of litter are you guys using? I know some of the cheaper non-clumping stuff annoys some of the cats we have up for adoption at the store. Even the older, smarter cats will leave their business out in the open. And maybe if you switch litters, it might trigger what little instinct it has and it'll bother it and it'll dig around in the litter. Then that may cause it to want to cover thing

[CMH]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

I feel like the bathing in water thing is just whatever. Some animals like water, some don't. I've had dogs that hate baths and dogs that love them. It's mostly about their personality. At least that's what I figured.

The cat litter ordeal seems like just a learning experience. I would imagine that a cat would instinctually know to cover up it's leavings. It's possible that she's just too young to even realize what she's doing. It may even take her doing it by mistake to notice how much better it would be to just cover it up.

Then again, I dislike cats so what do I know?

[Misfit]

Re: A kitten with no cat instincts?

I have two cats, both female both about 15 months old. One covers its business, one just chooses not to. I guess its just a thing where some will do it and some won't. Neither one wanted to use a covered box at first so I took the cover off. Once they used it I put it back on and from then on they seemed to get it. No accidents to speak of.