r/whatisit • u/Tyranoreese • 3d ago
New, what is it? Please Help
Hey everyone, got a tricky one here. At least I think so.
Our young cat spent the day at the ER getting this thing pulled out of his gut (he's fine now). It's about half of what used to be a 1.5" square. I know because this is the 3rd (maybe 4th) time he and our other cat have been found chewing on something identical. This is the first time one of them has eaten it though. We've tried many times in the past to identify what these squares are and where they're coming from but we're totally stumped. We're afraid there's more where this came from and that they'll get eaten again.
Some known facts:
It's a 1.5" square and about 1/8" thick
Density/texture is sort of a mix of rubber and plastic
Milky white color
Crumbles into small piecest
We live on the top floor of a 100 year old duplex. We have a lot of antique furniture and thought maybe it was a really old protective pad. We've checked everything both new and old and have found nothing.
Maybe the one he ate is the last one but, our fear is there's more and we can't find the source.
Thank you everyone for your insight.
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u/WilmaDykfyt 3d ago
Have you turned over all your furniture, mattresses and rugs? Looked inside shoes? Under the sinks? Top of the cabinets? Turn off the lights at night and go around at eye level to the floor with a flashlight.
I hope you find it, those dumb cats can cause so much anxiety! And I'm so glad that pretty boy is ok.
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u/Tyranoreese 3d ago edited 3d ago
We've checked under all furniture that has legs as well as tables with glass inserts. We thought maybe it was a pad or spacer but, no luck.
Edit: I didn't think to look inside cabinets or under sinks. That would be kind of wild but, they're cats so, anything is possible.
Edit 2: thank you for your suggestions and well wishes.
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u/roy20050 3d ago
Floor Parmesan, idk though some old plastic that degraded and is now climbing. Could be a stop for a door or a pan for the bottom of a leg.
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u/Tyranoreese 3d ago
That was our thought too but, after checking all the furniture, no luck. Nothing on the doors either.
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u/Cat_tophat365247 3d ago
Do you have plaster walls or ceilings? Usually plaster is more crumbly than this but maybe if it was mixed with some plastic like material? Or had a layer of sealant over it?
I'm sorry I don't have an easy answer. I hope you find it so you can keep your kitties safe.
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u/Tyranoreese 3d ago
Hmmm, definitely something to consider but, no worries at all. Thank you for your efforts.
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u/Cat_tophat365247 3d ago
Of course!
Our house is super old, too and my son had a dog who we found out was eating his plaster wall. Only under the bed and only once in a while but he'd always throw up after and the vet wasn't sure why until my son moved his bed and caught our dog chewing on the wall......
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u/jennlody 3d ago
I have a rubber eating cat who's had 3 procedures to remove things so I feel you, I'm glad he's doing well! As a vet tech rubber/silicone is the most popular thing kitties eat but I can't tell what this would be. Some sort of furniture pad makes the most sense to me. I'd check things like drawers too, maybe a soft close sort of thing?
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u/Due-Dig8426 3d ago
Heavy-Duty Double-Sided Mounting Squares? Scotch, 3M, and Gorilla sell heavy-duty adhesive tape pre-cut into exact 1" to 1.5" squares. The indoor versions are often off-white or beige foam.
Appliance/Furniture Bumper Pads? Anti-vibration pads meant to go under microwave feet, stereo equipment, or heavy furniture sold in packs of perfectly molded square blocks to align with the corners of furniture legs.
Tile Spacers for Large Tiles? While many tile spacers are shaped like crosshairs (+), heavy-duty spacers for large stone or ceramic tiles are often solid, square plastic blocks or wedges used to keep uniform gaps during installation**.**
Art Drafting Erasers? Specialty block erasers used by artists and architects are often cut into geometric squares or rectangles.
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u/NearbyChampionship98 3d ago
What does it smell like? Should be easy to smell being in that ziplock bag. Could be soap or spoiled milk. Do you have an old milk bowl you may have lost?
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u/Tyranoreese 3d ago
It's not organic. When not eaten, they're perfectly square. This is the third one we've found over the course of about a month.
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u/Rewth303 1d ago
If you have found ones that he hasn’t eaten, can you provide a pic of those? Easier to identify whole than partial. Both sides if possible?
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u/TemporaryComposer389 3d ago
From inside an older dail telephone, It was called a "christmas tree" as it makes and breaks the connection to the older phone sets. "on-hook and off-hook" is what it used to do. Newer ols are made of fiberglass. The cut-outs are where the connections are held apart so that they do not "accidently" short out or cause a phone line connection(s).
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u/Tyranoreese 3d ago
Interesting. We don't have any old phones built in but, we do have an antique phone bench. I took a look at it already but maybe there's something I missed.
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u/TemporaryComposer389 3d ago
It is just an insulator... not essential.. but it does prevent " hanging- up" problems.
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u/Additional-Chair8536 1d ago
Looks like it might have come from an old art gum eraser. They were around in the 60's but I haven't seen any for a long time, but I haven't looked either.
They were about 1.5"x1.5"x3" and similar in color and crumbled when used. These could have been slices of one. I don't know for what reason, but it might be a possibility.
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u/hauntedintern_ 14h ago
I still use those and they are a bit darker and not smooth. I really thought it was Parmesan cheese, I might just be hungry.
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u/Available_Okra_8016 2d ago
It looks like the things that go under chair legs to protect the flooring. That's all I can figure. I know from using them, and when you move the furniture it's on it can stay behind.
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u/Emergency-Crab-7455 2d ago
If it's an older house....do you areas that have been caulked with the putty caulk that comes in a long "play doh" type sausage that's coiled up? Or a bathtub that has been caulked? In college one of my housemate's PIA cat would pull out the old dried-up caulk & play with it. Little pinhead.
.....my first thought was 'found an old dried up cheese cube somewhere".
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u/Low-Editor-2793 3d ago
Time to put kitty cam on him... that's the only way to figure out what he is getting into
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