Cats in General

[Ziggy]

Originally Posted by sailorchic34

Mr. Timmy, spends most of his time while underway in the cockpit, keeping me company. If it starts looking a little rough, I'll put him below, which he is not happy at all with. On hot days, He may spend some time in the head sink cooling off.

So how do you keep Mr. Timmy from climbing out when he's below? Does he get seasick?

[zeehag]

bubba says falling in drink at odarkthirty sukks bad and he was scareded and damnear dedded self in this process as he was prolly in water over an hour, in dark..i had no clue until 0530 when i couldnt find him and asked where is my bubba and i received a really horrible sounding YOWOOO ... YOWWW YOWWWWOO ..
AND KEPT HEARING IT BELOW DECK LEVEL UNTIL POOR BUBBA FOUND THE DINGHY AND I PULLED HIS COLD SOAKING WET SUBMARINE SWIMMING SPUTTERING AND COUGHing skeereded to death body into side tied dinghy boat. he had no fight in him whether by desire or ability.
sorry bout caps my hands hurt and i aint fixing it.
we be really lucky. damn, cats can make such horrid noises when they need to.

he is tethered now in darkness so the horrid birdees cannot again push his furry tail overboard.

[Ziggy]

Hi Zee,
We're just about to adopt a kitten. At night it won't be much of a problem. We sail in Maine where it's always cool and there are washboards or screens in the companionway. But I do worry about the silly thing escaping from the cabin to fall overboard when we're tacking or heeled over sailing hard on the wind.

[1ercru]

A cool setup I've seen to get cats back on board if they fall in, on boats with transom scoops, is to secure a length of old 2-3 inch diameter hawser (found on lots of beaches) and just long enough to touch the water. Cats can easily hook and pull themselves up the hawser to the first step. Throwing them in a few times near the hawser gets them used to the idea and location of the "rescue" device.

This won't work for vessels moving very fast.

[zeehag]

i have formosa so no scoop. it is good to have a scoop net to ..scoop gato...mine comes to voice and walks on leash.
.he is scared of being out when big water is around and only comes to companionway to check on me and let me know he is still hungry.
his story is that a birdee pushed him into water. he sed he stickin to that one.

[44'cruisingcat]

Originally Posted by Bash

"Declawing" involves more than just removing the claws. The procedure basically amputates each digit up to the first knuckle. It's a death sentence for a boat cat because it will no longer have a way to climb back up on a dock when it falls in. And notice that I say "when" rather than "if." Boat cats end up in the water a lot.

I did not know this and I'm shocked. How could anyone who claims to like cats do this to them?

[zeehag]

people who LIKE cats train em not to ruin stuff. is easy to train a cat. dont use spray water.
i used cat sounds and relocation..if cat is clawing..move cat onto what cat is allowed to claw and scratch. be consistent and persistent. works.
declawing is cruel and damn nasty way to cripple a cat.
they can not groom selves nor save selves.

[Mike OReilly]

Any tips for managing a cat that gets seasick? Our kitty loves the boat when it's not moving, and can tolerate easy sailing, but when the seas start rolling so does his stomach (and other evacuations).

Any tips from you cat/boat experts?

[kiltym]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Any tips for managing a cat that gets seasick? Our kitty loves the boat when it's not moving, and can tolerate easy sailing, but when the seas start rolling so does his stomach (and other evacuations).

Any tips from you cat/boat experts?

Stugeron drops. Give the cat the fewest drops possible that seems to make he/she feel better.

[NornaBiron]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Any tips for managing a cat that gets seasick? Our kitty loves the boat when it's not moving, and can tolerate easy sailing, but when the seas start rolling so does his stomach (and other evacuations).

Any tips from you cat/boat experts?

See your vet, he may have some great tips.

[SmartMove]

Originally Posted by Mike OReilly

Any tips for managing a cat that gets seasick? Our kitty loves the boat when it's not moving, and can tolerate easy sailing, but when the seas start rolling so does his stomach (and other evacuations).



Any tips from you cat/boat experts?

Our 18 YO got really seasick in the beginning. Our vet originally gave us an RX for a medication approved for dogs, it literally knocked her out for 8-hours. That didn't seem a good solution to us so he changed it to Maropitant (9mg). However, we haven't had to use anything since July when she was off the boat for three months with us.

I don't know if she finally acclimated from being in of a lot of rolly anchorages in the last three months, but we had a couple of rough (but short passages) lately and she has been great. She settles in under the settee and goes to sleep.

[Prairie Chicken]

I got 200' of sisal rope (natural fiber rope) from a hardware store and wrapped tight around the mast in the cabin (keel stepped mast). Goes all around mast, and covers about 2' vertical. The cats love to scratch it

We did something similar--got a scrap of carpet & cut to fit, then secured to the compression post under the saloon table. My kitty was a happy girl after that--as long as we didn't take her sailing.

Poor kitty--our first trip out she almost turned herself inside out! We were living overseas & as my husband was a sailor, we bought a boat to live aboard rather than living in an apartment. He was working a rotation; Macy (the kitty) & I were living on board. Macy was 3 when we moved on board & I've learned since the key to a happy ship's cat is getting them as a kitten--not introducing them to the boat as an adult.

That first trip was a disaster on so many levels! New boat we were anxious to get out & sailing, husband on leave & looking forward to getting out of port, his young adult daughter with us, and Macy who after a month in port was finally getting her sea legs (tied to the dock in calm wx). So off we went on what should have been a five hour trip. It wasn't rough but we had a nice reach with some sea. Then Macy got seasick, and the daughter got upset because the boat was leaning over, and I was upset because the cat was sick and puking all over the cabin, and the captain got upset because of all of the above & reached for a drink. After about three hours we pulled into the first available marina. By that time Macy was so weak she couldn't move & had pee'd on our (foam) mattress. The kid was never going to get on another boat that leaned over (and never has), the captain was drunk, and I was in tears. So ended our first voyage. The next day we called a friend who came & collected kid & cat. We hauled our foam mattress on deck & totally soaked & soaped it down, then slept in the vberth for a week while it dried. And the captain & I had a nice sail back to our home port while figuring out what to do with a kid & cat that wouldn't sail.

I'll add my voice to DO NOT DECLAW! I'm so glad people are finally recognizing how cruel a practice this is.

After nine months Macy never did get over her seasickness. Even a 'rough' day in port was too much for her. The final solution was to take her to stay with friends while we were out sailing, which severely restricted how far we could travel.

[Ziggy]

Prairie--That's exactly the scenario that haunts me. Have you tried putting her in a cat carrier while sailing?

[Mike OReilly]

Originally Posted by SmartMove

I don't know if she finally acclimated from being in of a lot of rolly anchorages in the last three months, but we had a couple of rough (but short passages) lately and she has been great. She settles in under the settee and goes to sleep.

Thanks for the tips SmartMove, kiltym and NornaBiron. It is difficult to administer any medication to our cat (he's tough... and very determined), but I'll look into Maropitant and Stugeron drops. The drops might be possible.

Our tabby has always got motion sick, even in the car, so the boat is difficult. But he is definitely getting better. One our last trip, which was 6 weeks long, by the end of it he was sleeping in the cockpit while underway. I think he'll get to the point of being comfortable most of the time, but just like my spouse, I suspect he'll always get queasy when the seas get very lumpy. A drug option would be great for those times.

[Prairie Chicken]

The kid or the cat?

I suspect so but don't really recall now. We had two carriers on board. We tried everything we could possibly think of, including vets & drugs, but to no avail. At the end of the day the cat & I flew home & she never returned to the boat. Because she never could sail with us we didn't have to worry about food & water bowls sliding around.

On the litter box issue, there was a good-sized locker under the chart table seat. We cut a cat-sized rectangular hole under the chart table & that was her litter box, which I kept very clean to ensure no odour. After she left the boat we put a vented panel in the hole--no one would ever guess why that vent is there now.