[chinda]

I really hope someone here can help me. We've had chinda now for 6 1/2 years. We homed her as an adult cat (she is nearly 10) as her previous owners could not keep her any more. She grew up with a sister whom we never met, as she was put down due to extremely aggressive behavour not long before we got our girl.

She is a Korat, and has very much bonded with me, although she tolerates the kids and she desperately wants attention from my husband, which he won't give her because of her behaviour. She cries/meows most of the time. We make sure she is fed, has access to the outdoors, has a litter tray if she needs it and she still yowls. She will often sit just away from our reach and really cry noisily, as if she's really angry with us. I give her all the attention I can when I'm at home, but she really only settles on my lap and unfortunately my lap is often too busy with the family to be sitting still with her.

I've thought about getting her a companion, but am terrified it will increase by two, which would be unbearable. Today I went to the vet to see about putting her on anti depressants, but the vet tried to push the Feliway spray thing on me, and looking at the website, I notice she displays none of the behaviours listed (she NEVER pees in the house, has grooming issues, appears listless or off her food) It also seems an expensive thing to try, and some of the reviews on this site seem poor.

My husband is at the end of his tether. He says that she has totally turned him from a cat lover to a cat hater. Even though she's annoying as hell, I don't want to give up on her, as she's very sweet in the fleeting quiet moments we have together.

I would love any suggestions people might have, as I'm becoming really desperate.

[Advert]

---

[CatsRU]

What a shame. I think she craves attention but you obviously don't have the time to give her that.

Do you play with her at all? Most cat owners spend at least an hour a day to play with their furries with a ball, toy on a string or whatever.

[Patricia L]

I've only met one Korat before, and yes, she was a talker too.
Many of the Oriental breeds are.
She is a cat, doing what comes naturally to her, and I don't really understand why you are both so focused on this as a negative.
You have a cat that is a talker, she doesn't do it to annoy you, and I think your husband is being unfairly hard on a little cat.
What would he say if one of the children was a chatterbox?

[Heather Sharada]

I have a talker and all she wants is for me to give her quality attention.....I do need to stop sometimes and just do that - usually brush her and tell her how wonderful she is and then she calms down for a while. If I do that for her or if my stud is being noisy all he/she wants is love. If I try to shut them up - which I do from time to time - without acknowledging their needs it never works.

Maybe if your husband gave her a grooming session every day and let her sit with him while watching the TV news etc - she might settle. Also does she have a scratch post with a platform - my talker is much happier if she can be up a bit and closer to me and i can give her a fleeting pat on the way past.

[chinda]

My husband grew up with talkative Siamese cats, but my girl takes the talking to a whole new level. When you can't carry on a conversation with a family member or speak on the phone or hear the tv because we can't hear over her, it becomes problematic.
We have noticed she's quite dog-like in her acceptance of very firm patting, although her ears go back, she comes back for more.

The kids play with her quite a bit, but she does talk while we are doing that. I will try to dedicate some play time with her and see if that helps. Keep the suggestions coming, I am willing to try almost anything.
Even other cat lovers/owners who come over comment on how she would drive them crazy. Initially she hides when strangers come over, but eventually comes out and starts chatting.

[burmeselover]

I would try the Feliway. It's not a medication and has no side effects because it is a synthetic version of a pheremone that cats produce to scent mark their territory to make them feel at home and safe. It is not just used for urine marking, grooming issues etc. as mentioned. It is useful to calm and relax highly strung cats and ease stress. I have used and continue to use Feliway in my home with good success.
You're better off buying the diffuser rather than the spray bottle and plug it into a powerpoint in an area of the house that your cat spends plenty of her time.

It sounds like she needs more stimulation and play. Have you tried interactive toys? My cats enjoy their treat ball. I put cat food inside it and they roll it around the floor to release the food. This toy stimulates my cats mentally as well as physically. Does she chew or sleep in cardboard boxes? If so, get the kids to create a cardboard "castle" with tunnels, peep-holes and flaps and see if your cat will play inside it. Try ping pong balls, scrunched up paper or aluminum foil, feathers, things inside old pantyhose.

[kirty]

Have you considered fostering a kitten? If you live not too far from a shelter, why not offer to foster a kitten or two for them and see if it makes any difference to her behaviour? If she continues to scream, you know she isn't lonely and the kittens will be rehomed. But if it helps, you can always adopt one of the kittens (or a different one).

[Jo1]

The feliway didn't work for me, nor has rescue remedy. My cat, who is a Birman, constantly cries unless he is asleep, playing or outside on his walks. Unfortunately she just might be a talker. I think that distracting her with playtime and wearing her out is really the only option. Try laser pointers and da bird. Another cat may also help by tiring her out with playing.

[Trifon]

It sounds like you just have a talkative kitty to me. If your hubby had a siamese previously, he should be well used to chatterboxes LOL. Enjoy her for who she is; a kitty who likes to tell you everything she is thinking and feeling. Spend lots of time playing with her and grooming her and hopefully she will give you a break from her constant talking.

[2Chester]

I am not sure what to suggest, there have been many good suggestions already. I can hear your frustration at loving her but if you can't do normal things like talk on the phone etc, I can see how this would be wearing....
Mine the the Da Bird, which is a wand with feathers on the end. I got mine from Ebay and you could flick it round while you are watching tv etc.
IMHO Feliway and Recsue Remedy are widely used on this site with great success. if you want to keep her, I can't see that it would hurt to try...
Talk to your vet as well.
I also thought the fostering would tell you if she was lonely too.
Poor you...it's worse when the OH gets annoyed too.
Good luck, I hope something works.
Beth

[Analog6]

What about an outside cattery where she could get some mental stimulation from watching the birds, playing with some grass, toys etc. Maybe it would tire her a bit. I think Kirsty's suggestion of taking in a foster kitten(s) to see if that helps quiet her is a good one, it would not be permanent and she might be happier and therefore quieter. I have 2 Siamese and I love the talking, but if she is as loud as you say I can see it could be a problem.

[oriental cats]

it maybe just her, I have OLH and bali's and 2 of mine talk all the time the other 2 are quiet, she does need attention though, some breeds do need other cats, and remember she had a sibling living with her so she is not used to being a singleton

[Morris & Zara]

Your Chinda sounds very much like my Ragdoll Morris. We have the same situation where he not only cries but howls non- stop to the point where he actually annoys our other Ragdoll.

He has always gotten so much love and attention but he continues to cry so we put it down to boredom as he tends to pace a lot. Morris has a companion who he adores and spends half the day chasing around the house but it hasn’t stopped the crying, so I’m not sure if getting a companion would help.

The only advice is maybe getting an outdoor enclosure like we did. He spends two hours a day outside and it seems to calm him down when he comes back inside. The only downside is he wants to go out ALL the time. LOL...ahhh you can never win with some things.

If she is desperately seeking attention from your OH maybe he should try to spend some time with her to see if it calms her down.

Good luck with her, I really do suggest getting an enclosure - Morris is so entertained by the wind, bugs, birds and especially the dog next door that it takes his attention from howling away.

I know exactly how you feel – it can be extremely frustrating as you feel hopeless not knowing what the problem is.