topic Re: We adopted a cat........question in Community Chat

We adopted a cat........question

Demitra1 — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:06:24 GMT

It has been almost two months since our beloved cat passed away. I just happened to see a similar colored one on Facebook that was in another town at a rescue shelter. We went yesterday and spent a little time with him and decided to adopt. He is almost 6 months old. Well, sadly he doesn't seem to want anything to do with us. He has explored everywhere, but then hid under a large piece of furniture in the living room all evening and night. This morning, I saw that he had used the litter box (good!) and possibly ate a little of his food. My DH had to get down and pull him out of his hiding place. He liked being petted a minute, but then wanted to take off again. We put him in his carrier where he is now napping. I am bummed because I want to love on him so bad. Our other two cats didn't display this behavior from the start. My question is, what should we do? I'm looking for suggestions for how to make him feel safe and "at home". Will it just take time or what? TIA. Demitra

Re: We adopted a cat........question

Plaid Pants2 — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:09:38 GMT

Give the cat time to get acclimated to his new surroundings!

He just went through something stressful, and now he has strangers "yanking" him from his safety spots.

Once he feels comfortable, he'll come out of hiding.

But he'll do it on HIS time, not yours.

Re: We adopted a cat........question

Colonel Meow — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:10:48 GMT

Time. That's my best suggestion. All of my cats have been rescues (in one way or another), and each of them warmed up to me in their own way and on their own time. As you undoubtedly know, felines are mercurial creatures... that's why we love them, lol!

Re: We adopted a cat........question

SydneyH — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:14:22 GMT

Do not approach the cat, allow it to become accustomed to its surrounding. This may take several weeks.

Re: We adopted a cat........question

rarejan — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:14:39 GMT

I agree. It takes time. I had one rescue that took a full year before he would let me pet him. Talk to him. Don't make any sudden moves towards him to make him feel threatened. If you see him venture out, be still if you can. He'll come around.

Re: We adopted a cat........question

Pashmina_1 — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:15:54 GMT

Who knows what the poor little guy has been through? I agree, give him time and I am sure he will warm up to the both of you. Congratulations BTW!

Re: We adopted a cat........question

Preds — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:17:59 GMT

Let him come to you. Ignore him, but have everything available to him. Do your normal routine and he will wander out, observe, and follow. Give him time to make his own space and it will work out fine. The more you try, the more he may resist. Let him be the judge.

Re: We adopted a cat........question

dooBdoo — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:20:08 GMT

If at all possible, start him out with access to only a small part of the house so he can get acclimated.

Then, slowly open up more of the house once he feels a wee bit more at home. Sometimes all the new sights and scents are overwhelming, and a new cat feels more secure in a smaller space. Having the run of the house too soon can be overstimulating and scary.

demitra, Bless you for giving this little one a permanent home.

Re: We adopted a cat........question

Plaid Pants2 — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:22:23 GMT

On 3/29/2015 Preds said:
Let him come to you. Ignore him, but have everything available to him. Do your normal routine and he will wander out, observe, and follow. Give him time to make his own space and it will work out fine. The more you try, the more he may resist. Let him be the judge.

Right.

A cat has to feel safe and secure in their surroundings.

Maybe try to engage him in play, by dragging a feather on a string around, but, and I can not stress this enough, DO NOT PUSH HIM FOR MORE THAN HE IS READY FOR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Re: We adopted a cat........question

KathyPet — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:23:18 GMT

When I adopted our two rescue kittens at 4 months I put them in a empty spare bedroom with their food , water and litter. there was a bureau in the room but that was all. Every day,I,would go in and sit quietly on the floor and wait for them to.come out from under the bureau. Slowly over a few days they started coming to me. I never went to them. I just waited quietly for them to come to,me. After 3 days they would come up and sniff around me. I started gently petting them. After a week they were climbing into my lap.

Re: We adopted a cat........question

dooBdoo — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:25:21 GMT

On 3/29/2015 KathyPet said: When I adopted our two rescue kittens at 4 months I put them in a empty spare bedroom with their food , water and litter. there was a bureau in the room but that was all. Every day,I,would go in and sit quietly on the floor and wait for them to.come out from under the bureau. Slowly over a few days they started coming to me. I never went to them. I just waited quietly for them to come to,me. After 3 days they would come up and sniff around me. I started gently petting them. After a week they were climbing into my lap.

That's what I've always done, too, KathyPet. The new kitty (or kitties) starts with "their own room" and I go in there periodically and just sit on the floor nearby, talk to them, try a few simple toys, that sort of thing. They can learn to feel at home gradually that way.

Re: We adopted a cat........question

Demitra1 — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:25:26 GMT

Thank you. I knew there would be good advice here. Oh, and even though I guess it is too late because our leather furniture is very clawed, are there any tips on encouraging the kitty to use the scratch post instead of the furniture? Our last cat wasn't quite as bad as the first at scratching, but wish this one would be even better. He has a five foot carpeted tower he can do anything on. Lol

Re: We adopted a cat........question

Demitra1 — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:25:27 GMT

Re: We adopted a cat........question

Colonel Meow — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:30:12 GMT

On 3/29/2015 demitra said: Thank you. I knew there would be good advice here. Oh, and even though I guess it is too late because our leather furniture is very clawed, are there any tips on encouraging the kitty to use the scratch post instead of the furniture? Our last cat wasn't quite as bad as the first at scratching, but wish this one would be even better. He has a five foot carpeted tower he can do anything on. Lol

I've given up on this. My furniture is well worn and "lived-in". If I had 100 cat nip scented scratching posts in my home, my cats would still prefer using the furniture.

Re: We adopted a cat........question

hckynut — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:32:36 GMT

On 3/29/2015 demitra said: It has been almost two months since our beloved cat passed away. I just happened to see a similar colored one on Facebook that was in another town at a rescue shelter. We went yesterday and spent a little time with him and decided to adopt. He is almost 6 months old. Well, sadly he doesn't seem to want anything to do with us. He has explored everywhere, but then hid under a large piece of furniture in the living room all evening and night. This morning, I saw that he had used the litter box (good!) and possibly ate a little of his food. My DH had to get down and pull him out of his hiding place. He liked being petted a minute, but then wanted to take off again. We put him in his carrier where he is now napping. I am bummed because I want to love on him so bad. Our other two cats didn't display this behavior from the start. My question is, what should we do? I'm looking for suggestions for how to make him feel safe and "at home". Will it just take time or what? TIA. Demitra

demitra

First off, thank you and your husband for giving this little guy a home. Think of how you would feel in a situation like many of these poor little animals find themselves. New places and almost all that can see are people's feet close to them. Keep the litter box clean and leave out plenty of food and water and he will eventually come around.

But,never/ever pull a frightened feline out of their hiding place, that is a non-starter. We've found it best just to act like they are not there unless that are looking for us or at us. With some it takes a long, long time. With others, not so much.

I will repeat: Never/Ever pull a scared feline out of their hiding place as that will make the situation worse. All the felines that have owned us for over 30+ years have a hiding place. When they get frightened that is where they run and they like to think they cannot be seen or found, and we've had a few that we didn't find, and 1 of ours I still have not found his hiding place. When we have company he does not know he takes off. I've looked for him in ever, what you say, "nook and cranny" without luck. Even if I did find it and saw him I "would not" let him know I can see him.

Re: We adopted a cat........question

dooBdoo — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:33:08 GMT

On 3/29/2015 demitra said: Thank you. I knew there would be good advice here. Oh, and even though I guess it is too late because our leather furniture is very clawed, are there any tips on encouraging the kitty to use the scratch post instead of the furniture? Our last cat wasn't quite as bad as the first at scratching, but wish this one would be even better. He has a five foot carpeted tower he can do anything on. Lol

Some cats like vertical clawing spots, others like horizontal ones.

I think the ones made of corrugated cardboard seem to work really well, but it depends on the cat.

When in doubt... ask Jackson Galaxy!

Video:

How to Stop Your Cats From Scratching Furniture

link goes to: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-XZxyWEiQZM

Re: We adopted a cat........question

hyacinth003 — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:37:38 GMT

I have 9 cats now and have had others in the past.

Your new kitty hasn't had enough time!

Please be patient and don't rush him. And don't get discouraged.

He's been through a lot in his short life. More time is needed.

It's a good idea to just keep him in one room for awhile so he is not overwhelmed.

Congratulations!!! Care to share his name???

Hyacinth

Re: We adopted a cat........question

loveschocolate — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:45:32 GMT

A lot of good advice here. I have fostered cats and kittens. It took me three weeks to get one off the bag of mulch in the backyard to trust me. Then he had the walk in closet as his room. Gradually, he came into the bedroom. Then eventually, onto the bed to snuggle. Took him weeks, whereas I had others that were just a few days. It will all work out. Just takes time and patience. Good luck!!

Re: We adopted a cat........question

dooBdoo — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:45:44 GMT

And more Jackson Galaxy!

Article:

Cats and Claws – Living Happily Ever After

link goes to: http://jacksongalaxy.com/2010/10/01/cats-and-claws-living-happily-ever-after/

~~~~~~

By the way, his new season of "My Cat From H-ll" starts next weekend!

Re: We adopted a cat........question

Plaid Pants2 — Mon, 30 Mar 2015 00:48:27 GMT

On 3/29/2015 demitra said: Thank you. I knew there would be good advice here. Oh, and even though I guess it is too late because our leather furniture is very clawed, are there any tips on encouraging the kitty to use the scratch post instead of the furniture? Our last cat wasn't quite as bad as the first at scratching, but wish this one would be even better. He has a five foot carpeted tower he can do anything on. Lol

One of my favorite tv shows is "My Cat From Heck", with Jackson Galaxy.

If you want to learn anything about cat behavior, he is the one to learn from

Watch.

Listen.

Learn.

To keep a cat from scratching furniture, you can put double-sided tape on the corners, and next to the corners of the couch, put a vertical scratching post.

I learned that from watching Mr. Galaxy.