What would YOU do?

I need some advice here, friends.  I wasn't going to write about something so personal, but I really truly need some advice and support.

Many of you know by now that I have four cats....3 males (Phoenix, Pharaoh, Dusty) and one female (Isis).

Isis was the most recent addition to my home, nearly 3 years ago.  Her breed is a Manx, (a tail-less cat).  I got her when she was about 6 months old, and she had come from a situation where she had very little interaction with humans.  It is hard to describe her personality, but she is not friendly towards humans and runs if approached.  Only on rare occasions will she approach anyone but me, and she won't let most people touch her.  Usually she hisses and runs away.  Her hideout is under the king-size bed in our Master bedroom. She has earned herself the nicknames "Icicle"  "Icy Bitch" and "Ice Princess".  She seems to get along just fine with Phoenix (actually, she is in LOVE with him) and also Dusty, but it is noticable lately that she has been picking on Pharaoh because he is so much smaller than she is.  She has also picked on and attacked the neighbor's dog when he has brought him over.

None of the cats are declawed (I don't believe in it), so they have to be clippedw every 1-2 weeks.  Except for with Isis this is nearly impossible.  Impossible to catch the little bitch and when we do, she puts up a huge fight.

On Sunday morning I had just fed the cats and all of a sudden Isis starts chasing Pharaoh away from the food dishes and starts swatting at him, hissing.  Pharaoh starts screaming bloody murder.  The sounds of Isis and Pharaoh fighting woke were really loud.  I hadn't clipped Isis's nails in awhile, so I trapped her in the  bedroom and tried to coax her out from under the bed to clip her damn nails.  Of course she wouldn't come, but she was kind of close enough for me to grab her by the scruff and drag her out.  Well she didn't like this and I was probably not very gentle with her.  She did not like me clipping her front claws, but I got the job done.  Trying to get her back claws was a different story.  She hissed, scratched and bit me a couple of times as I was trying to get the job done.  I was calm with her up to this point and explained to her that if she didn't let me clip her nails, she was going to have to find a new home.  I am not  putting up with this crap, little girl.  It isn't okay to terrorize Pharaoh.

So when I was done I head into the bathroom with wounds all up and down my arms and tears rolling down my face, cat hair stuck to every inch of me.  There is no way I could continue to put up with this.   Then she ran up to a friend and ferociously ATTACKED him, biting him multiple times in the hand.  She left puncture holes in his hand and he was bleeding profusely for about a half hour.  His hand swelled up to almost double its normal size. 
 

I called the vet first thing Monday morning and discussed the situation with the vet tech.  Her suggestion was to have Isis declawed before thinking about having her euthanized.  The earliest appt. is next Tuesday.  The entire situation was discussed at length last night and the conclusion is that she can no longer live in the home.  If she is declawed it will eliminate the problem with her clawing and attacking me or others, but who is to say she won't resort to biting more?  Will her lack of claws stop her from being aggressive toward Pharaoh and not allowing him to eat? Probably not.

I don't think it would be a good idea to surrender her (no shelters are intaking animals anyway) because I don't know how she would do in any home.  She is a wild cat and I have often wondered if she has something neurologically wrong with her too.  It could have something to do with her breed.  Who would take on a cat that attacks and bites when scared?

I thought that maybe a farm would be the best option.  She would be a great mousing cat and could do well without the human interaction, but she is also somewhat of a princess and has only lived as an inside cat.  This seems to be the only option at this point that would allow her to keep her life.

The last option and one that is winning out in the options  is having her euthanized later this week.  It breaks my heart to think about it because she can be really sweet to me and shows affection toward me that she has shown no other human (but only when I am in bed, laying still).

Most people I know are telling me to put her down, but I don't want to regret it the rest of my life.  I also know that I couldn't give her away in good conscience knowing that she is likely to bite or attack someone when she is scared.  PS I know others who have way more vicious cats than Isis and they deal with it.

So what do I do???  Does anyone know any farms in MN that are willing to give her a try?  She is spayed.

Comments

[Jessica]

We were in a similar situation. We rescued a kitten, bottle fed her and all! She was the sweeeetest little cat ever. And then she started changing. Ryan started going out to sea more often. When he would come back, she would hiss at him the first day or so. She was always, always super affectionate with me, though. So we exposed her to more people, thinking she wasn't getting enough human interaction. She got spayed of course. Nothing seemed to help. It got so bad that if there was anyone but me in the house she would find a hidey-hole and hiss, growl, and moan the whole day! She attacked Ryan a few times, and even went after a friend of ours that was visiting. The last straw was when she bit Alyssa shortly after she was born. We had hoped she would welcome Alyssa as an extension of me, but no dice. Needless to say, that was it, we had to let her go. We agonized over what to do, but when it came down to it, we knew there was something wrong with her and we couldn't let some unsuspecting child get attacked by her...she was completely vicious for no reason to anyone but me. We ended up having her put down, and while I look back on the situation with sadness, I also know that we had to do it. Good luck with your decision!

[sarah]

oh sweetie.
I am no help...as I have no idea what I would do if I was in your situation either.

It sounds like finding a farm, or putting her down is the only real option. If you declaw her, she's still got her teeth - she can still hurt you or the other kitties.

I'm seriously in tears here for your kristi.
What a hard, tough decision . . .
you're in my thoughts.

[Michelle Sauer]

Well, you already know what I'm going to say, in my opinion, it's not fair to take her life away. I honestly have debated all of these options myself and I think that you need to try every last option to keep her in your house, declaw her if you have to, you may not know how the outcome will be, but you can say you tried everything. Frisco is an ass to everyone but me too, but I can't let him go, he is my pet, I chose him, not vice versa and he will be here until the day he croaks. I know it's a tough situation, but you'll do what you need to do. Did you ask about antidepressents? You can have the ones we got for friz, he won't take them. Let me know, it's worth a try. Maybe she has anxiety issues.

[Kristi Sauer]

I feel the need to comment to Michelle's comment...
If a person doesn't have control over their own animal, and that animal is not willing to submit, then who is running the show?
At our house it isn't going to be an animal, it is US. I am certain that this cat will not take antidepressants without more of a fight.
There are many cats out there that will truely appreciate the home we could give them, Isis takes it all for granted.
I love her, but I just don't know if it is worth it. If we had children at home it wouldn't be an option, she would've been gone a long time ago.

[Jeff Sauer]

I'm not going to write what I really feel about this post/treating cats like they are human beings, because you would probably be pissed at me. So, I'll leave it at this; I voted for option #4 on your blog poll.

[Adrienne]

Oh no....I don't know what to tell you. WOW, I know you will make the best decison.

[Scrapjazz Friends]

"i have no advice but I do empathize with you. sorry you and E are having such a hard time with this. - Charisse

"wow.....i dont know....you can give her to anyone or a shelter without telling them how she attacks you....kwim?? sounds pretty freakish of her...id be scared!!! GOOD LUCK!!! I support you in any decision..kwim??? "- Floridascrapper

"Here is my advice - if she was closer, I would offer to take her - I love cats.

Declawing her might reduce her hostility. It will definitely make it easier to get ahold of her with less injuries. But I think it is possible without her weapons, she may be a different cat.

I don't know how expensive it is to declaw where you are, but if it isn't too bad, why not try it and give her a one month last chance. If, during that month, she attacks and bites, you have no choice. Even if she swats at Pharoah, she can't really do any damage and he may learn to stand up to her and put her in her place. If she makes no change or gets worse - you know what you have to do." -Judge Amy

"I'd find a farm for her. That ferociosness would serve her well there. If nothing else, find a small town with a grain elevator and call them. When I worked at the grain elevator here in town we kept a few wild cats around for the mouse problems." -J3Mel

"Kristi- I'm so sorry. I had a cat, Gus, who was the same. Unfortunately, I couldn't take being attacked all the time and especially at night as he would come in and just attack you. The vet told me that Gus had kidney stones and at night when he was active it hurt and that is why he was attacking.

But... in the end. I couldn't give him away (cause he had attacked) and there were no farms. I put him down. It was horrible. I still cry about it. But, I just could not go on living like that. Even declawing him (something I do not believe in) wouldn't have been a solution as he would also bite and fight with his back claws. And like your Isis, forget trimming those babies.

I'm so sorry you have to worry about this. Can your vet check if there is a medical reason for her behavior just in case? " -Gizzy

[More Scrapjazz Friends]

"Oh I'm crying here just reading this - what a terrible situation to be in. If it were me, I probably would still keep her (I love cats) but consider some way of keeping her away from the other cats KWIM? Some kind of switch has clearly flipped in her - I'd get the vet to check her over, she may have something wrong with her." -GH26

"I would ask Brenda. Losing the claws might make it more mad and hyper. I would put it down before turning it loose on a farm to try to fend for itself when it was raised feeding from a bowl and living in temperate conditions. " -Cassandra A

"I am so sorry for your situation. I also went through something similar and when it came time to have our boy put down the vet told us about this drug - I think it is called clomicalm (??) something like that anyway - I will see if I can find the proper name. Anyway - it is like a anti-depressant for pets. At first he seemed pretty drowsy, but he really did turn into a different cat. It is something to think about anyway. Good luck.
Tara" -TaraGee

"I have no advice just wanted to let you know that Im sorry you are in such a difficult dillemma hugs to you Kriti "- AuntyCathy

[Dana]

Wow. I don't know what to say. I know how much you and Erick love Isis. I am leaning towards having her declawed... then see how she acts, give her a chance. But I also see the other end of it. You and E and the other cats cannot let Isis do what she wants, and allow her to control your home, and her actions probably won't change after removing her claws. She'll find another way to attack. Whatever you decide, I'm behind you both. Love You!

[Ruthann]

Kristi - I'm so sorry you are in this situation. I had a similar situation with my rabbits earlier in the year (not quite as serious as yours though). It absolutely killed me to do it, but I had to remove the pair from my home. You and E can NOT live with an animal that attacks like that. It's a liability in your home, and it's not fair that you and your other animals have to live in fear of being attacked. You also cannot give her away without disclosing what you know. You just never know where she is going to end up and she could seriously hurt someone. I think you did everything you could should probably consider the option of putting her down. As hard as it is, there is a reason she is so vicious and at least this would give her peace. JMHO. Good-Luck with your decision, my thoughts are with you :hug:

[Jen]

Kristi, I'm so sorry you even have to make this decision. But, IMO declawing may actually make the situation worse. The older the cat is, the more likely that declawing will make an already aggressive cat even more so.
I voted to find a farm for her but, euthanizing, as hard as it would be is running a close second in my mind. I know it would be painful for you but, you cannot be tortured in your own home and either can your other pets.

[Kristin (scrap novice)]

I am so sorry that you ahve to deal with this Kristi. One thing to think about is that IF you have her declawed, then other options are limited down the road if you need them. You wouldn't be able to send her to a farm or anything . . . .

[Brenda (blhdvm)]

Kristi -
First of all I'm sorry you are in such a tough position. And I want to preface everything I'm going to say by telling you I am a cat person!! And in particular a Manx cat person!! So I am shedding a few tears as I write this. And it breaks my heart!

If you seriously want to try to work this out, then you must first have a full work-up done to assess Isis' health. It is true the cats in pain are often aggressive. Medical needs need to be met first.

From the things you have described, I'm leaning toward some form of aggression issues - and there are several kinds. She sounds like she may even have a combo - fear agression and re-directed aggression (because she attacks you when she is really mad at another cat). There are drugs that can help with these issues. Clomacalm is only one. These trials can be long and tedious since you have to give them time to work and one may not be as effective as another. Which then means several trials.

Declawing - IMO - will not work. Not becuase I'm against the procedure. I do them after weighing the pros/cons on an individual basis. But for aggression issues - it does NOT eliminate the aggression! They learn to fight by some other means - usually biting. And since Isis already bites ...

Placing her in a "home" (inside or out) where she would have less interaction is an option. But remember that if there are other cats, she may fight with them as well. And if she has redirected aggression, even if there are no other cats in the home, it can be triggered even if she only sees one outside.

Kristi, only you can make this decision. And I don't envy you it! But I will tell you this. Euthanasia is a valid choice. It is also a loving choice - because you are considering Isis' future. This is not a happy, normal cat.

I can only hope I have helped you even just a little in your decision. God bless!!!

[Greta]

Kristi my cat is like that EXACTLY like that so that is why i wouldn't take him when i moved out...because i wanted him put to sleep but my mother being the softy she is didn't so she agreed to keep him...now he is old so he don't put up fights but i can tell you from personal expierence that tigger was taumatized as a kitten and therefore made himt he way he was all through the years. If Isis is wild that is her way of defending herself and she will never be at "peace" kept inside with people who love and won't hurt her. So i know it is a tough decision but if you can't find a farm for her to run wild like she is use to i would have her put to sleep....you cannot continue on like that by a cat. Jesus lord girl are you sure we aren't talking about Melana...trade ya? ;)

Hope all is well and i am sure you will make the right decision no matter how tough of one it is

xoxo
{{{HUGS}}}}
g

Kristi,

First big hugs. This is not an easy decision I know.

I do agree that declawing a cat won't change agressiveness. I had one that was declawed and he got out and attacked my DH's Doberman. He drove her into the far corner of the yard before she realized those paws just whacked her and didn't leave scratches.

I can't honestly say what I would do in your situation, but is there any way you could find her a home with someone who doesn't have any other cats? They might be willing to try some of the medicines Brenda mentioned.

Whatever you decide, know that I support you and feel for you.

[Dana Sterner]

Kristi,

I don't envy your situation right now. I am a cat person too so I can imagine what you are going through. I wonder if it matters that Isis is outnumbered by males and she feels inferior to the males and that also she was the last cat to come into the household. I don't know this for sure but I have heard that the temperment of a female cat is different than a male cat. I guess I would try and find a no-kill shelter. (I wouldn't go to the Humane Society right now due to high numbers of animals. They will probably put her down.) With a no-kill shelter or a foster home for her until she is adopted, they may have more patience for the situation and maybe it would be good for Isis to live away from your cats or other animals if they feel like she should be away from them. Whatever you decide, it will be a hard situation but please keep us updated. Good luck.

[Mary]

I am sorry that you are in this situation. It's so hard to make decisions like these regarding pets. You just have to do what's right for your household. Try not to let the opinions of others bother you. Good Luck :)

[Lina]

I feel bad for your situation! We had a decision to make about euthanizing our two cats several years ago who were 8 & 7 that refused to stop urinating all over our home for no known reason. (we had complete health work-ups, medicated them, kitty therapy, etc. euthanasia was a last resort as we had them since they were very tiny babies ) From past experience with cats I can say that the hope of declawing @ her later age may be a gamble, as some have stated in earlier comments, it may reduce her to biting more. I would try to see if the vet is willing to work with you to calm her anxieties with some medications & over time you can wean her off of them, it may take just a few months to see results one way or the other. If not then you can make a decision & perhaps look for a farm home. Good luck to all of you-2 & 4-legged :)

[simone]

I'm sure I have no good advice as a non-cat person but I sure as hell wouldn't keep any animal that would do that to the bosses of the house.
Good luck finding a farm, my dog as a child bit my little sister and went to "live on a farm", little did I know til I was older that this "farm" was in heaven.
Hang tough girl!

[Jessica]

My two cents, for what it's worth: We were in a similar situation right before we got married. We had a cat that we had had from a kitten, and we had ended up taking him out to a farm. He's doing wonderful there, we've seen him once. I'd take her to a farm, if you could find one that would take her. Good luck, Kristi. I honestly know what a tough situation this is. You'll be in my thoughts and prayers.

[Rolana]

Goodness, Kristi. I know if I were you and E, I wouldn't put up with that. I would try to find her a farm first and be upfront with the owners of the farm about her behavior and if that doesn't work I would euthanize her as a last resort. She has a lot of aggression aimed at everyone which is probably due to her past. I hope you can find a new home for her.
Thanks so much for your sweet, kind words and advice. You're the best.

[Zanete]

I'm so sorry to hear that about you kitty.
:(