Marci is our lifesaver. Literally. My kitty, Boobie, was adopted from a shelter about six years ago. Her previous owners had young boys that either played to roughly with her or just abused her. As a result, Boobie occasionally bites now when she is fearful or in an overly aggressive playtime mood. After the third bite, I knew I had to get help with this problem. When I took her to a licensed animal professional to make sure she didn’t have anything physically wrong, I was told by this person that she was by breed or personality — just plain “mean”. And she would always be mean and there was no cure for this problem. It was intimated that I should think about putting her down. I did solicit this animal professional for a point of view but it was utterly heartbreaking to hear it.
After thinking about this professional’s “diagnosis” when I got home, I decided that this point of view was extreme and was wrong. She is not a mean animal by breed or DNA. She’s a kitty that has a problem created by previous owners and there had to be another solution. Enter Marci.
Based on an in-depth questionnaire and then an in-depth meeting with her for a few hours, Marci reviewed all aspects of Boobie’s history and home life. She recommended many effective solutions and followed up with a written detailed behavior program designed for both myself and Boobie. The most crucial recommendation in our case was more frequent playtimes. I had been playing with Boobie once a day. She needed more playtimes. And she needed to fulfill a “prey sequence” cycle to more exhaustively satisfy her. This prey-sequence playtime cycle was one of the many things Marci taught both of us. Now we play at least two times a day—sometimes more. I always make sure Boobie gets a good little workout to wear her out and work off her over-abundance of energy. And Boobie loves to fulfill each playtime prey sequence by “killing” her birdie or wormie or buggie on the stick with better-directed biting.
I can tell Boobie is happier. And so far…..no biting episodes. She may never be totally cured of biting. But Marci’s behavior program for us and her many suggestions have been monumentally helpful. Both myself and Boobie are closely adhering to her program with positive results! We learned a lot from her. Marci’s good insights and insightful kitty behavior solutions really turned things around. And we are so grateful.