Tuesday, January 9, '07

Dear Carole,

Hello - I brought home 2 cats from a nearby shelter about 9 years ago. They were male/female and both seemed to be about 4-6 months old. Since they were raised together and only knew each other (indoor cats) they got along and loved one another very well. Recently my male passed (leukemia cancer) very suddenly - only acted sick for a week, spent 3 days in the vet - had bone marrow surgery and as soon as we started chemo he passed.

My female has now been crying all night. I have read that she is either looking for him or is mourning. I have been giving her a ton of love and bought her new toys. It will be 3 weeks that my male has passed and I would love to adopt another cat but do not want to upset my female at all. I do not know if she prefers to be alone or would like another companion. She is now clingy and very loveable when before she would hide a lot. Do you have any suggestions?

Thank you, Sky

Dear Guardian Sky,

I'm so very sorry about your cat. Sounds like he was surrounded by love. Yes, I do think your female cat misses him terribly. She would benefit with a new companion. Try to adopt a kitten with the same coloring as your late male. A cat can determine color by scent, so a companion of your late male's coloring would be familiar and welcome to your female. You could adopt an older cat if you were sure that this cat was cat-partial or cat oriented so there would be an immediate, solid relationship with your female. Refer to my introduction in my book, THE TOTAL CAT. You can log on to my site (www.thecattherapist.com) for info.

Dear Carole,

I wrote to you last year concerning my male cat, Ozzie, 13, who was diagnosed with liver cancer early last year. I have had two ultrasounds accomplished denoting increased mass size. He became very thin & I saw little hope for him. Then I started feeding Ozzie Wysong geriatrix & also had given him glyconutrients. Ozzie has much more energy, eats well, jumps and is now enjoying life again.

Just thought I'd let you know what has helped Ozzie feel better.

MJ

Dear Guardian Mary Jane,

That's super! I'm so happy for you and Ozzie. Thanks for letting me know. This is great news and IDA appreciates your spreading the word of your Ozzie's rally. Anyone who has a cat with liver cancer can look into Ozzie's treatment plan.

Dear Carole,

Lucky, our matriarchal cat of twenty one years "went over the rainbow" about a month ago. She was quite the "chatte fatale." At first our other three cats were quite disoriented by her absence. Slowly, they recovered and now Cisco, our most sensitive and least courageous cat is so very, very happy. Unlike before, he even spends the night on the bed with us and his two companions. Although he and Lucky were not lovers, there wasn't any significant friction. Lucky, in spite of her huge quantity of health problems, was very mobile and her mantra was "live and let live."

Anyway, what do you think it is that caused Cisco's change of mood?

Dear Guardian:

Hurrah for Lucky! So glad she had so many golden years. Sounds like Cisco was affected by Lucky's various health issues and fragility. Because he is thin-skinned emotionally, her discomfort made him anxious and he kept his distance to reduce the angst. You will probably notice other changes in his behavior. The best to you and your cats.

Huntington Library

Saturday, February 3, 1-2:30pm

Main Library, 338 Main St., Huntington, NY 11743

631-427-5165.

There will be a GUEST cat present.

Mid-Manhattan Library

Tuesday, March 20th, 6:30 p.m.

455 Fifth Ave (at 40th St)

New York, NY 10016

www.nypl.org

There will be a GUEST cat present.

TESTIMONIALS

Thank you for sending along your testimonials. It lets other guardians know that their cat questions can be solved and lets me know that my column is helping cats to leave the couch.

Fabulous Felines

Don't miss out. You owe it to your cat/s. Scan photos to thecattherapist@idausa.org

Click on to Fabulous Felines and you'll see why this is a Feline Must!

Testimonials

Cat guardians, There is a new addition to CATS ON THE COUCH. Click on to TESTIMONIALS and read all about Winston and his rescue.

Stroll With Your Cats

There's a perfect and fun way to safely enjoy the outdoors with your cats. Click on to thecattherapist.com and then to Kittywalk

Cat Talk

CAT TALK is now available. Find out what your cat is TRYING TO TELL YOU. So guardians, click on to the Cat Store.

Carole's Newsletter - "The Wilbourn Way"

The Wilbourn Way Newsletter is Carole's free email newsletter, which brings you Carole's personal view on cat culture monthly..

Molly Of Myers Keswick Is Rescued

"Oh come on Molly you can do it," said cat therapist Carole Wilbourn.
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
Cat therapist Carole Wilbourn used the sounds of whales on tape and catnip to try and lure Molly out Wednesday. CBS

Feral Cats

Saturday, September 9, in San Francisco, the third annual National Feral Cat Summit will take place. You don't want to miss the only conference in the U.S. devoted exclusively to feral cats. Click on to neighborhoodcats.org for details.

Feral Cats

Each day we strive to give our cats the very best care. Helping feral cats is a valuable and wonderful way to extend social response to Neighborhood Cats can be your source of assistance.

You may even be the guardian of a feral cat—so you're aware of the beauty they possess. My late cat, Ziggy-Star-Dust was a feral kitten and the cure for my anxious, reformed attack cat, Sunny-Blue. After Sunny passed-on, Star-Dust took on many of his Sunny's traits—particularly, Sunny's Siamese cry. He was nine years old at the time but lived until seventeen. He taught me so many things, including patience and loyalty.

There is a chapter on feral cats in my book, THE TOTAL CAT, click on to my site, thecattherapist.com, for more info. You can also refer to the archives for my column, click on to Archives at top of page. There are articles from 11/04, 1/05, 11/15/05.

Let us all be socially responsible for feral cats on behalf of our own cats.

Remember, please add a picture of your cat along with your cat questions.