Reptile & Amphibian Forums

I acquired an 18 month old 1/2 Bengal and 1/2 either Canadian Lynx or Jungle Cat (spayed female) about 2-1/2 weeks ago. After the flight she was terrified for days but is now settling down. She has the run of the house and was very good about using her litter box, but is now pooping on my bed. I have washed the covers and have resorted to using urine gone, but she still wants to do it. I feed her, and play with her, and talk to her, and I keep her litter boxes very clean. She does urinate in the boxes. I thought that perhaps she was triggered by smells of my recently deceased cat.

Any ideas or suggestions? I would eventually like to have this cat sleep with me and be able to pick her up. But I refuse to share my bed with cat poop!

On another note, I have yet to be able to pet this cat. I am waiting for her to come to me and she is still timid.

Thanks

>>I acquired an 18 month old 1/2 Bengal and 1/2 either Canadian Lynx or Jungle Cat (spayed female) about 2-1/2 weeks ago. After the flight she was terrified for days but is now settling down. She has the run of the house and was very good about using her litter box, but is now pooping on my bed. I have washed the covers and have resorted to using urine gone, but she still wants to do it. I feed her, and play with her, and talk to her, and I keep her litter boxes very clean. She does urinate in the boxes. I thought that perhaps she was triggered by smells of my recently deceased cat.
>>
>>Any ideas or suggestions? I would eventually like to have this cat sleep with me and be able to pick her up. But I refuse to share my bed with cat poop!
>>
>>On another note, I have yet to be able to pet this cat. I am waiting for her to come to me and she is still timid.
>>
>>Thanks

Your new baby may still be terrified. Can you predict when the poop will happen? If you can, then she either needs to be placed in a small area with with litterbox when she is "due" or she needs to be placed in the same situation when you leave and are unable to supervise her. It may be that she needs to be totally confined for a bit to retrain to the box. A vet check can help in this area.

She probably needs some "space" right now, so don't press your affections. Keep telling her that you want her to use the litterbox and that you love her. Can't hurt!
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Smile, it will make them wonder what you are up to!

Ok, well first, you should have been told to expect these sorts of problems when purchasing a hybrid cat that is 50% or more wild. Especially, if she is from where I expect she is, she's more like 75-80% wild. First thing you must do is find out if it is even legal to have these hybrids where you live- check city, county, and state statutes. In MANY locations, these cats are prohibited or permit only. You've got to make sure you can legally keep her, because otherwise if you are reported (by a vet, for instance), she will be taken away and put down, plus you could be fined...even do jail time!

Now, legal issues aside...I truly congratulate you and envy you, your purchase...they are awesome creatures! Something that a hybrid breeder once told me, is that many times these cats like to go in a water box, instead of a regular litterbox. Just dump out the litter and instead put in a few inches of water...see if she will use it then, to poop AND pee. As far as her standoffishness goes, you must try to get her past that, because she could become a serious threat someday. Work with her, every day...no exceptions...until she trusts you and is affectionate. Keep her nails trimmed and NEVER let her nibble on you, no matter how cute and innocent it is.

Lastly, be careful about bringing any other animals in the house, and avoid taking your cat out of the house except when necessary. Taking her for leashed walked is tempting, no doubt, but she could potentially scare or hurt a neighbor. Thus you could get sued. And don't let her outside unattended, no matter what! Maybe you could screen in a porch, so she can get that MUCH needed fresh outside air feel, without being in danger of small minded people assuming you have a 'tiger' or a 'leopard'. Believe me, it's not that outlandish.
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Jennifer

My alley cats: Othello, Vladimir, and Maxwell.

My Bengal: Razzle Tazzle.

My Himalayans: Krueger, Jinx, Dumplin', Dervish, and Precious. Thank you, Jennifer, Sandy, and Rita for trusting me with your babies!!!

Thanks for your reply. I will try the water box. She was completely declawed when I got her - in fact her teeth were also filed. She's a beauty and is really starting to come around. She loves to play and watches for me to come home from work from the window every day. She is treated like a queen here. I know it will take some time, especially since she was previously put in a cage at night. I checked with the laws before I got her, so I'm okay there. I wouldn't ever want to have to give her up - I'd probably move first. Any other suggestions would be appreciated. I had thought about getting her a playmate, to keep her company, but I would want her to know that she is the queen first. The best progress I made with this bad habit was buying her a brand new dooder box (large) and Dr. Elsey's Cat Attract litter. Although it hasn't cured her, she was so pleased when I showed her her new box, she rolled around in it. Of course, she also got a new ball too and some other toys. I'm at the pet store more than the food store, because she hides her toys and I can't find them! She has a lot of places to go in this big house. And she seems to like it here. For others who are reading, I also used white vinegar to wash the bedding and then ran it though another wash. I've just put a garbage bag on the bed and it hasn't happened again - not yet. But she still goes in some other places. I expect that she could smell the other cats that lived here and didn't want to use their boxes since they were cleaned out with Mr. Clean and perhaps the ammona turned her off. I'll keep at it. Hopefully the screen door can go on this weekend.

Any other suggestions would be appreciated. Keep loving cats! They have no idea how much they mean to us.

Thanks again,

Amy

Oh, gosh, I'm so glad that you are really on the ball with her! These hybrids so often get the short shaft, as pets. Unfortunatly, it sounds like in her previous home, she did. Honestly, it tends to mess with any cat's personality when they are declawed, and with a wild cat, it's far crueler. The filing of the teeth is not so bad, except that they will now be more prone to future dental problems, so keep a watch for that. It's a good idea to brush them if she'll let you, and if not use the anti-plaque water attitives, treats, food etc. Caging this sort of cat at night is soooo bad for her development, which I get the idea, you really are intune with, and I'm really glad . The thing is that alot of people get into the idea of having a wild cat without really understanding the level of care needed for they're proper development. So they try to take the easy way out by declawing etc, and then wonder why the cat acts funny and has different behavioral problems. Again, I don't get that feel from you, but it sounds like that's exactly the attitude she dealt with previously. Now, as for the fun part of adding a wild playmate for her... I think it's a great idea! She needs someone like her to play with. I would probably say to try a male. You know... I know of exactly the breeders you would want to contact to get a species match for her, depending on whether the 2nd factor in her genetics is lynx or jungle. It's probably a good idea to match the species mix, as closely as you can. Could you email me and we can speak more freely? I don't think I can post links to the breeders' sites here, since I'm not sure they would pass the Cat Hobbyist requirements as breeders. Genuinely, though I think they are the best breeders of this type. If you send me pics, and give me the background that you know on this cat, I can probably tell you which the 'mystery componant' was, and thus send you in the correct direction for breeders. Just so you are aware though, depending on which breeder you have to go to, costs could range between 500-2000 dollars for the second cat, and you may have to travel a distance to pick your cat up, because some of them won't ship. Because these cats don't come with papers though, since they can't be registered with any of the cat associations, it's important to go with someone reputable, or you can't be sure what you are getting. Reputable in the exotic cat business often equals expensive, because the cats are very costly to breed and raise correctly and humanely. I'd love to hear from you, you can contact me at jconey@stny.rr.com Can't wait to hear from you! Also, I recommend the ExoticsHobbyist forums here at PetHobbyist, as opposed to CatHobbyist, because these aren't your average kitties LOL. You'll get lots more advice over there!
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Jennifer

My alley cats: Othello, Vladimir, and Maxwell.

My Bengal: Razzle Tazzle.

My Himalayans: Krueger, Jinx, Dumplin', Dervish, and Precious. Thank you, Jennifer, Sandy, and Rita for trusting me with your babies!!!