Smelly Cat, Smelly Cat

I've heard people admit that they are afraid to have another baby because their first born is such an angel--sleeps through the night, hardly cries, is just the perfect child--and surely that kind of good fortune only comes around once in a lifetime. The second child, they are convinced, will be the complete opposite--a difficult creature that will wreak havoc on their lives.

I don't have any children, but if children are anything like cats, I am here to tell you that those theories are TRUE. THEY ARE TRUE. If one is a lovely, uncomplicated piece of cake, the second will be a complete disaster.

Meet Olive.

We picked up Olive on Friday. I didn't want to blog about Olive because I could tell right away that things were not quite right. Plus, you know, blogs about cats are so awesome. I'd suggest that if you know something about cats or really love cats, read on. I need your advice, crazy cat people of the Internet. I am counting on you.

If you could care less about cats, I TOTALLY HEAR YOU. Totally. I don't want to read a crazy cat post either. Please, come back tomorrow for some non-cat content.

Now, the three of us who are still here, let's talk about Olive. She's utterly adorable, really cute, chases a string like a pro.

But.

For starters, I seem to have developed an allergic reaction to cats. We have a cat already, Millie, and I have always been mildly allergic to her, a sniffle here or there, but the allergies have been magnified since Olive moved in. Have I entered the permanent hell of itchiness or can you, uh, become immune to cat dander?

Second, and more importantly, she is kind of smelly. And that's putting it nicely. Really? She stinks. Specifically, she has a stinky butt. She poots all the time (we don't use the term fart here at this respectable website) but also her butt just stinks. We took her to the vet and they suggest that she will probably outgrow the stinkiness. No guarantees. Is probably good enough? And what does one mean by outgrow? Weeks? Months? Years? Because I'm thinking I can take about, oh, FOUR MORE HOURS.

The Internet provides all sorts of non-scientific sites dedicated to stinky cats and they suggest the following: change her food (we did), take to vet for assorted tests (we did), and various techniques involving lots of touching of cat butt (no, thank you, sorry).

We have two weeks to return the cat. What would you do, Internet, with this little face looking at you?

Don't look at me like that.

So, awesome, let's get a conversation going on here about cat butts.

(What is happening to this website? Should I just cancel my Typepad subscription now, redecorate in country clutter, and start knitting little kitty booties? On second thought, don't answer that. Stick to the assignment: should she stay or should she go?)

Comments

[Traci]

YOU HAVE TO KEEP HER, POOTY BUTT AND ALL. SO CUTE!

[Karen]

Aww, poor little stinky cat. I would be more concerned about the allergic reaction, having HORRIBLE allergies to cats myself. It's a tough call :(

[Kenzie]

Haha okay, so in that beginning paragraph, unfortunatly I am the oldest, and I am the worst of the bunch. It's terrible.

And I'm a big cat lover, which I can't help but umm, stinky cat isn't something I could handle. :/
So that's a toughy. It's a cute cat though. And she can grow out of it.

[bethany]

Holy crap Janet, she's TOO CUTE, like, it hurts, too cute!! You have to keep her!!! Why not, you're just a busy law student:) Why not add a few more chores to your day, eh? besides, cats like buddies and basically take care of themselves...can you tell i really want you to keep her?

[Angie]

I am also deathly allergic to cats. You will get used to her dander. Just take some over the counter allergy pills for awhile. I have noticed that all kittens smell a little. Mine really did but she grew out of it. I would keep her, but like the others said, I am a huge cat lover too.

[Alison]

Oh, she is so cute. I wish I had some advice for you!

[Miss Hass]

Too cute. The stinky butt I could deal with, but I don't know if I could put up with the itchiness. If you can control your allergies, I'd keep her.

[Miss Hass]

Too cute. The stinky butt I could deal with, but I don't know if I could put up with the itchiness. If you can control your allergies, I'd keep her.

[Laura]

I'm going to try to refrain from telling you HOW CUTE she is, because everyone else has done that for me. If the doc is convinced she'll outgrow the stinkiness, then I'd keep her. Maybe spray a little perfume on her toosh. But I dunno . . if she smells, will she make the rest of your place smell? You don't want guests coming over and thinking your place smells like cat butt. Tough decision!

[RA]

She is cute, to be sure, but cat allergies are nothing to sneeze at. Sorry for the lame-o joke. No amount of cuteness makes up for the wheezing and throat-closing that occurs for me. What if you take a generic claritin once a day for a week and see what happens?

[Chris Cactus]

Once, a long time ago, we adopted a cat. We gave it back a few days later. I've always kinda regretted it.

[KateyJ]

Betcha thought I'd died, huh?

Have you tried (gasp) giving her a bath, it's possible that part of her stinkiness is due to absorbed smells from wherever she was before you got her.

Also, have you SEEN how freaking adorable she is?!?

The allergies will probably be helped by the bath too. She might have extra dander, also from her previous location, especially if she was with a lot of other cats/kittens.

Just make sure to use something super gentle as soap (like cat shampoo or baby shampoo) since she will lick herself clean afterwards.

[Nicole]

Hm. We have two cats at our house and while I love one, the other I could definitely do without. But then again, these are actually my housemate's cats and I have just taken over partial ownership of the one I like. Anyways. She is precious, but your life is quite stressful without added allergies and stinkiness at the house (damn, I'm harsh!) and since she is so precious another family would probably take her at a moment's notice. Then again, you could just keep her. How unhelpful am I?!

[Rachel]

Okay, we've established she's cute. Clearly. But she also stinks. And you seem like the type of person who enjoys have a non cat-smelling apartment. I mean, who likes walking into a place where you're overwhelmed by cat stink? Nobody. So perhaps the best part about the cat is that she comes with a return policy. And it's not like you're dumping her on skid-row to fend for herself. She'll probably be scooped up by someone else in less than a day and you can go on with your non-stinky, lawyer-to-be life.

[Marriage-101]

If she doesn't have any major behavioral problems, I'd say keep her. But, you're probably looking at getting some long-term allergy medicine and more vet bills so be prepared to cough up some extra change. I'm not a cat person, but I recognize cuteness when I see it.

[Sarah]

I'd say keep her! I too had a pooty stinky kitten. She was not so good with the personal hygiene (I'm totally outing myself as a crazy cat lady) so I would use baby wipes on her butt until she got the hang of it from watching the other cat. She's now 4 and while she's not the sharpest knife in the drawer, she is totally not stinky at all. It took a few months for her to grow out of it, but she did.

Also, she did stink when I first got her, which I assume was from being in a litter of other kittens, cleaned only by her mom and taking awhile to get the hang of it herself. After she was bathed with kitten shampoo, she totally lost the smell. I'm sure Olive was rolling around with other kitties as well and it's the same thing.

[Sarah]

In this sentence "She's now 4 and while she's not the sharpest knife in the drawer, she is totally not stinky at all." I meant she no longer poots and now cleans her butt . The general kitten stank was gone after her first bath.

[Emily]

I can't help with the stinky problem but I'm also allergic to cats and have two (as does my allergic boyfriend - are all softies such gluttons for punishment?). Hopefully, like me, you'll get used to Olive's dander just like you did with Millie. My second killed me for awhile and I thought I'd have to give her away. Thankfully, I only had to suffer for a little while and it was well worth it.

Good luck with the stinky problem - she's awful cute!

[Mary]

You will get used to the dander and she will outgrow the stinkiness. Please keep her.

[marisa]

sushi my cats bum smelled too when she was a kitten. now it does not. but sometimes there is an odor

its common
kitty digestive systems are still developing sooooo stinky bums are the norm.

[Shesabigstar]

I'll probably get hated on for this, but it's all about honesty, right? Get rid of the cat! Seriously. She's making your allergies worse AND she stinks...enough said! And let's talk hypothetical for a second here...say kids are in the future for you and Will...there's a chance you may pass on your cat allergy to your child and then of course you'd have to get rid of the cat...and that would be after years of bonding with Miss Olive.

I'm just sayin'!

[kathryn]

GO! goodbye OLIVE.

[mel]

*crazy cat lady ahead*

If you can get the allergies under control, I think you should keep her. But I'm also a firm believer that if I'm going to bring a pet into my family, than that pet is now family and there is no "return policy" on family.

Good luck with your decision. I'm sure it can't be an easy one!

[s'mee]

Googiewhump. The name says it all. I adored him. He was a gift as a BABY kitty. Rescued, full of fleas and in need of a mommy we took him in and introduced him to his surrogate mom.

She took one look at him and fell. Hard. She began to bathe him, as mommie kitties do, lick lick, lick and then GAG, SERIOUS GAG, GAG GAG!

Seems Googiewhump had a malodorous situation that even a feline mother couldn't get around. Unfortunately for all involved he was a lover, a snuggler, and such a sweety.

We just got "used" to his notoriety, and lived happily, if not stinkily, ever after.

[Rignt Brained Gal]

This reminds me of a funny story concerning my life with cats. While I was going through a divorce, my friend gave me a new kitten she had found and swore that it was a male to compliment the male we already had. A few months later, it turns out we had a kitten giving birth to six kittens, in the middle of the night, while my young daughters were experiencing the childhood disease know as chickenpox. Being stuck in a house that is on the market, with itchy kids, surrounded by eight cats was the low point in my life. The bottom line is that I became so attached to those kittens, it wasn't until they were twelve weeks old that I was able to donate them to the local pet store. I could handle selling the house, losing the husband, but giving up those babies was a heart breaker. I am still known in some circles as the "kitten woman." I have moved on to dogs, and unfortunately, it hasn't gotten any better. Good luck with your decision and consider yourself lucky that it is only one kitten and not a whole litter!

[statia]

I had a cat that I was really allergic to. Zyrtec helped and eventually, I just became immune to her dander.

It's just a matter of whether or not you want to stick it out. Rather, can stick it out.

[Michele]

Punt that kitty! EEK!

[Tendrils]

OMG! She is precious! Your post had me ROFL as I had the same experience when I got poor Nala. She STUNK!!!! And my allergies tripled when she was around! I had her for almost 11 years. I got her when she was 6 weeks old, and she passed away this November. I wouldn't have traded her for the world! Get the over the counter stuff.....and ENJOY!

[janet]

omg Olive is cuuuuuuuute!

However, we have a similar problem in my house (2nd cat is smelly and makes me sneeze in a way that NEVER happened with just cat #1) and I have to admit I wish we didn't have him. But, I am stuck with him now. Sad but true. I don't know what you should do.

[AuburnKat]

She should stay!!! I've had the same problem with the stinkiness with one of my kittens before. I changed the cat food and voila..no more stink! She's too adorable to give back!

[Amanda]

Such an adorable kitten. If you decide not to keep it. Anthony and I would be more then happy to take it in. We've been looking for a kitten. We had a similar problem with our past cat. (Brewsky) He was a pain in the butt. His....ummm poop smelled so bad and he would over eat and then end up throwing up. We changed his diet and only fed him certain times throughout the day and it helped solve those problems. Then at night we would attack our feet and our hands while we were sleeping. Despite all the attention he demanded from us we still loved him and miss him =(.

As far as allergies. I've heard that it is actually the cat's saliva that one is allergic to. So maybe bathe the kitten more often. But I'm not sure how true that is. I'll research it. =)

Good Luck! Such a cure Kitty.

[Nicole]

HEHE.
I think Anthony would laugh at
that last comment lol!

[shanny]

Keep her! But only if you promise more kitty pics on SOP.

[mamba]

Hi there, I'm new to your fanbase so this is my first comment. Hello!

As the owner of two cats, the first one being much better than the second, who also had two litters together, I know a thing or two about stinky cat butt. I found that all of the kittens, when still getting used to "real" food stank a bit (or a bunch). After a bath (fun, fun) and a few weeks, the smell was gone.

As for the allergies, I agree you should try some over the counter remedies and see what happens. You'll most likely get used to her!

Good luck! And, keep her! She's too cute!

[class-factotum]

I love cats and want to have one, but I am not willing to suffer for that love. I gave my rescue cat back to the crazy cat ladies place after a week because 1) there was hair all over my house, even though this sweet cat was allegedly a Siamese and should not have shed and 2) I was waking up every morning with a migraine, even though I was taking as many OTC drugs as I could to prevent the problem.

Give the cat back.

[marné]

I would try the bath first, and see if that helps with the stink and the allergies. If so, great, you've got yourself a second cat!

If not, now is the time to give her up, before you get too attached. I know that might not be the popular opinion, but you'll be living with this little furball for a long time if you keep her, and you don't want to be miserable. That's no good for you or her. Plus, with that kind of cute, she'll go to a good home in no time.

When we were thinking of getting a new cat, last year, my husband went to a crazy cat lady shelter, and told them he wanted a young, male cat. The talked him into adopting 'Tubby' the office cat, assuring him that he was both young, and male, and just needed to lose a pound or ten, or maybe it was 15? Anyway, he took him to our vet the next day and learned that the cat was a)female, and b)at least ten years old. Despite the fact that she was a very sweet cat, he decided that while we could deal with the weight in a young cat, we didn't want a cat that would only be around for a few more years and probably had more health problems. We had just gone through the death of two beloved cats the previous year.

So he took her back, the crazy cat ladies got mad at him, especially when he told them it was female, and they thought he was some kind of cat sexist and he was banned from adopting any more cats there.

A few weeks later, we went to our local Helen Woodward Animal Center where we got two 9 month old cats, who have fit into our home just perfectly. So we rescued 2 cats, instead of one :o)

I just think if you're going to have a pet, you need to be sure it's a good fit for everyone involved. It's a long term commitment, after all!

[Lesli]

Janet, please don't give her back--she is too cute for words! Just look at her. I will say that my cat, Brie, was kinda stinky when I first got her, but my vet said it was because of her diet and that just needed to stabilize. She had been eating god knows what (rescued from a cat house of 21 cats) and then fostered out and then finally adopted by moi. Now she is fresh as a daisy. Please keep her! My vote is keep her. I am a little bit of a crazy cat lady. So I will be sad if you send her back. Give her a chance!

[Nora]

She is so terribly cute....how about some Febreeze? They say it is pet-friendly :)

[Lani]

I'm still trying not to laugh...poor kitty and her smelly butt. I dont own a cat so I dont have much advice to offer, but I continue to find your posts brilliant!

[Zandria]

Stinky cat? Oh, noooooo...

(And boy, do you have a lot of comments going on with this post!)

[Laurie]

Ooooooooh noooo, how could you give her back, she's such a cutie and I know she'll have a great life with you. I think she'll grow out of her stinkiness and as for your allergies, I think you'll grow immune. Best to you and your new kitty!

[Tickled Pink.Nicole]

OMG - that cat is ADORABLE!!

We have two cats and I have to take Claritin daily. I love them too much to live another way.

[Paula]

I'm so curious to hear how your smelley cat situation is going now...several months later. We just got a new kitten yesterday, and she has an extremely smelley butt!! We have another cat, and I never noticed anything but this one is almost unbareable. I've been using "cat wipes", but I think she needs a good old fashioned bath...the only problem is they told us not to bath her until her stitches (from spaying) are taken out in another 10 days!!

[writing a dissertation]

Blogs are good for every one where we get lots of information for any topics nice job keep it up !!!

[Helen G]

Out first cat, Ivy used to pass wind dreadfully, but we found a great food- the version of Purina One made for "sensitive systems". Completely cured the toot problem. Now our second cat is stinky all over, and we're hoping for the same transformation, but this seems a more difficult issue. She likes wet food so we're going with the Iams stuff, but she's still stinky a few weeks later...

[feline symptoms]

Are there medicines for stinky cats? Poor lil cute cat.
A cat clinic, or veterinarian clinic, is a place where your cats health is cared for when it is suffering from some type of illness or needs to undergo surgery. This article will discuss some of the internal parasites that can be treated at a cat clinic.

[veterinary information]

Hi. Your cat is soo cute. Try giving her a bath daily. Or you can also consult your trusted vets about this issue.
We provide comprehensive veterinary care for Dogs, Cats, and Small Pets such as Vaccinations & Preventive Care, Illness & Injury Care, Surgery and Internal Medicine, Dentistry, Radiology and Microchipping.