Hi my little stinker loves cuddles and sleeping on chest. He doesn’t notice the massive pain I feel when he steps directly on the fracture. How do I train him not to sleep on my sling side? I threw him off of me when he caused a jab of pain throughout my body but that was mean and he didn’t learn to be gentle. ,
It’s a learning curve for both of you. The ice and pillow techniques are good ones. It took about a week for my snuggly cat to figure out the best place to lay across my lap to not injure my femur fracture. Let him know when he’s hurting you (yelp when he steps where it’s painful), and he’ll find his spot and you’ll find your spot. It’s normal for cats who love you to want to be near you while you are healing, he’s trying his best to help.
Scream at them like how they do if you were to accidentally smush their tail, high-to-low pitch.
Seconding this
Thank you, I’ll try this tonight!
If your cat is laying there and purring he might actually know exactly what he’s doing. The frequencies that cats purr at actually encourages bones to heal. He’s trying to help you. That said, cats hate citrus scents. You can also move him where you want him and give him treats there to make positive association. Training and repetition take time. Locking him out might be easier.
Maybe keep a small pillow over your collarbone area? Especially if you have a buckwheat or microbead one that molds to the shape of whatever you put it on.
I had abdominal/pelvic surgery with a cat who loved walking across my stomach, so while I was recovering I never lay down without a pillow covering my incisions. When she did step on it, the pillow at least helped disperse her weight so it didn’t hurt much.
Thats smart. I fell asleep with an ice pack on my should and I threw a towel over it so my cats claws wouldn’t pierce the plastic pack. He was more curious abt why I was icing I guess
You are already capable of communicating to your cat that you are in pain. Be honest. Make sounds of pain when they hurt you, the same way you would train a kitten not to bite or claw with malice. Your cat will understand. Just don’t get angry. It’s easy for cats to forget about empathy in the face of anger.
When my kitten bothers me at night I just hiss at her. Sal though there’s a good chance she hisses back and jumps on my face. Then I just have to accept my fate.
That’s a tough one. There is a spray you can get, Bitter Apple. Most cats hate the smell and will avoid it. In your shoes, I would get some and spray a little on a wash cloth or similar and tuck it in the sling. That may keep him from crowding the sling and stepping on your injury. Don’t spray yourself or your sling directly though. If the odor is too offensive and makes him stay away entirely, you can toss the washcloth in the laundry and try something else.
Bitter Apple Spray - Note, this talks about the spray as a chewing deterrent, but in my experience cats will avoid areas where it’s been sprayed. Just remember to start small. You wouldn’t want your boy to start avoiding you completely.
