Natalie and Ziggy
Member Since 2018
Hey there! It's been some time since I posted here.
I will be overseas for two weeks starting tomorrow, and while I'm gone my dad will be taking care of my cat Ziggy at his house. My dad used to give Ziggy shots before Ziggy moved downstate to stay with me, and I've been taking care of him for the past five years. I was looking into boarding Ziggy locally, but the cost was too much for me and, from what I understand, it's not a good idea to board an older cat for that long.
I gave my dad all of the testing materials, the Lantus insulin, and syringes, and trained him on how to do the testing and shots. I handed Ziggy off to my dad yesterday.
My dad succeeded in giving Ziggy a shot last evening, although Ziggy was not happy about it (some hissing involved, lol, but he usually does that when it's not me giving the shots). But, given that there are three other pets at the house and it's a change of environment, it's understandable that he'd be nervous.
This morning, Ziggy didn't seem too keen on eating his food and has been staying under my old bed, so my dad wasn't able to give him his shot. In my experience, it takes Ziggy a day or two to get used to being at my parent's house (I usually bring him up with me during holidays), because he's more concerned about the other animals and is generally a very nervous cat.
That said, I'm a little worried that Ziggy will flat-out not allow my dad to give him shots. Are there any pointers or advice that I can give my dad to make the process a little easier?
For context, my process is that I give Ziggy his food, wait about ten minutes, and then give him an empty cat food can so he can lick the juice inside. That tends to distract him pretty well, so that's when I give him the shot. But I think Ziggy has more pressing concerns at the moment (two dogs and another cat!), so I don't think the distraction is effective.
I will be overseas for two weeks starting tomorrow, and while I'm gone my dad will be taking care of my cat Ziggy at his house. My dad used to give Ziggy shots before Ziggy moved downstate to stay with me, and I've been taking care of him for the past five years. I was looking into boarding Ziggy locally, but the cost was too much for me and, from what I understand, it's not a good idea to board an older cat for that long.
I gave my dad all of the testing materials, the Lantus insulin, and syringes, and trained him on how to do the testing and shots. I handed Ziggy off to my dad yesterday.
My dad succeeded in giving Ziggy a shot last evening, although Ziggy was not happy about it (some hissing involved, lol, but he usually does that when it's not me giving the shots). But, given that there are three other pets at the house and it's a change of environment, it's understandable that he'd be nervous.
This morning, Ziggy didn't seem too keen on eating his food and has been staying under my old bed, so my dad wasn't able to give him his shot. In my experience, it takes Ziggy a day or two to get used to being at my parent's house (I usually bring him up with me during holidays), because he's more concerned about the other animals and is generally a very nervous cat.
That said, I'm a little worried that Ziggy will flat-out not allow my dad to give him shots. Are there any pointers or advice that I can give my dad to make the process a little easier?
For context, my process is that I give Ziggy his food, wait about ten minutes, and then give him an empty cat food can so he can lick the juice inside. That tends to distract him pretty well, so that's when I give him the shot. But I think Ziggy has more pressing concerns at the moment (two dogs and another cat!), so I don't think the distraction is effective.
