u/HeartShapedBox7

We took in a stray cat who is adorable and we love him a lot. Unfortunately, he is keeping us up at night. He’s figured out if he can’t wake us up, the best way to get our attention is to wake up and fight with our senior dog who is dying of cancer.

We try our best to keep him stimulated during the day time. Unfortunately, however, we’re a household that works 12 hours shifts, excluding the one hour it takes to drive to and from our jobs. In addition, he’s a cat that is very set in his ways. He likes to sleep during the day and, when we try to keep him up, he gets angry at us, storms off and finds a hiding spot where we cannot bother him. Unfortunately, our home is presently open concept so there is no door we can close to keep him out.

We’ve tried locking him in the basement. However, his cries are so heartbreaking, we can never keep him down there all night. We know cats tend to be nocturnal creatures. We don’t want to punish him and his cries make it seem as if we’re punishing him. And yes, he has a ton of toys down there to play with.

This cannot continue as it causing us a lot in sleep. What can we do to stop this behavior?

Hi. I’m caregiver to two sick, elderly parents who are complaining about the same symptoms: dizziness and lightheadedness. They’ve done full work ups that show nothing abnormal. One thing I have noticed on my own, however, is that both have low RBC counts (3.67 and 3.96). Otherwise, their bloodwork is normal, including their hemoglobin, hematocrit, electrolytes, and vitamin B levels.

Is it possible that the low RBC count is causing the dizziness and lightheadedness? If so, who do I go to confirm this given both their PCPs seem to dismiss my concerns?