- Joined
- May 14, 2017
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Hi all,
So here's my story --
Sometime in mid-March, while I was staying at home taking care of my parents' cats while they were on vacation, my boyfriend sent me a picture of a cat he'd spotted in the parking lot outside his condo. He only saw it as he was driving by on his way out somewhere, but it was obvious that its tail was injured and it was quite thin. We wanted to help, but despite frequent comings and goings in the parking lot, we did not see this cat again until a month later. I instantly knew that it was the same cat because I noticed immediately as it ran across my path that it was now missing most of its tail. Heartbroken, I made up my mind then and there to help. The kitty went into the bushes and looked out at my cautiously. I went upstairs and got some cat food for it and brought it down. I put it down, but the cat would not approach the plate until I went behind a pillar to hide. Then I could hear her crunching so I knew that she was eating. I watched her eat from my hiding spot, and over the next couple of weeks I continued to bring her food and water in the mornings and evenings. She was usually not around the mornings but I would leave the food for her, and she was often waiting for me in the evenings, sitting near where I would put her plate and meowing for me. At times I would think she was not around, but if I called for her for a few minutes, I would hear a meowing response from the bushes and she would come over to where I put her plate. By the end of three weeks, she would let me sit within about a foot of her while she ate her food, but she would back away if I got closer and hiss softly if I reached towards her.
Knowing that her tail needed medical attention, I borrowed a humane trap from a friend and set it up one morning. Kitty watched me curiously as I set the trap, and went in after a few minutes of sniffing around outside it. She was not terribly pleased when she realized she was stuck, but calmed after a few minutes and sat in the back of the trap. I called my friend who has a spare bedroom to come pick her up, as my boyfriend has three cats and we did not have a good area to house her. My friend took her home and put her in her spare bedroom, where she hid under the bed for the duration of her stay. She refused food while she was staying with my friend -- probably freaked out by the new environment and the smell of other cats (who had been coming and going in the room in the days prior to her arrival). My friend transported Kitty to the vet where they recommended that about 2" of necrotic tissue on what was left of her tail be amputated, so we set up the surgery and she has now been fully vetted -- spaying, amputation, tests for diseases and all the vaccines, de-fleaing, de-worming, etc.
My parents agreed to let her recouperate in their garage, which is where she is now. We are keeping her in a large dog kennel, with a sandbox with Yesterdays News litter as recommended by the vet post-op, and of course giving regular food and water. She has a cardboard box that she can go into to feel hidden, and we put a soft bed in for her at night. There is a blanket over the top and back portion of the kennel so she feels less exposed. She is eating well and has recently begun eating in front of me again (she would not eat in front of me for the first few days). She hisses softly when I approach the cage and will occasionally spit and attempt to strike if I try to get too close too quickly. I am not home every night, but I sit with her for long intervals when I am, reading her stories and singing her gentle songs. She seems very relaxed when we "visit" with her after some initial anxiety and hissing, but more and more she greets us (myself and my mom) with mostly meows and a few soft hisses thrown in for good measure. Lately when I visit with her she has been stretching, rolling around, bathing herself, rubbing her mouth on the corners of her box, and sleeping in a relaxed posture. I have gotten her to play vigorously with a string toy for 10 minutes or more at a time. I have also gotten her to lick baby food off a spoon I offered her. She still will not approach me, however, and I do not feel like she is at all ready for me to attempt touching her. I have been able to pet the sides of her mouth and the top of her head with the rod of the string toy, however. I leave the door to her kennel open when I visit with her and sit near the front of it. Last night, my parents and I played Scrabble in the garage with her so she can get used to all of us and our voices. She appeared quite relaxed and was resting comfortably throughout the visit.
Here are my questions: the vet recommended "cage rest" for 14 days. Wednesday will be 14 days since the operation. We would like to let her be able to have the whole garage to herself at that point, but I am worried that she will find some remote corner to hide in and we'll never see her again. (The garage is quite cluttered.) Should we continue to keep her in the kennel? It is large enough for her to move around some, but I feel like I am imprisoning her if I leave her in there. We have three cats inside so I do not want to bring her into the house yet, to avoid stressing both her and our other cats. We are working on cleaning the garage to eliminate "hidey holes," but it is a pretty big project, and as my uncle just passed away, we have not had as much time to devote to it as I would have liked. Should we begin leaving the cage door open on Wednesday, regardless?
From what I have mentioned so far, what do you think are the chances she can become a "house cat"? Or would she be happier/better off as an outdoor cat? I am afraid if we release her into our backyard, I'll never see her again. She seems to be making progress in socializing every day, and I have some reason to believe that she was not entirely feral when I found her -- a) she was wandering about in the daylight on people's stoops when my boyfriend first saw her, b) she was living alone and not with a nearby feral colony, c) she meows in response to me talking to her, d) the vet said when she spayed her that her uterus appeared "unused," and estimated her age at one year -- it seems unusual that she would not have been impregnated already if she had been outside for the whole year, e) we are familiar with all of the cats that live around the condo and did not see her for the first time until mid-March... so where was she before then? f) the progress she is making daily.
Any advice, hints, tips, tricks... would be appreciated. I really love this little cat and I just want what is best for her.
So here's my story --
Sometime in mid-March, while I was staying at home taking care of my parents' cats while they were on vacation, my boyfriend sent me a picture of a cat he'd spotted in the parking lot outside his condo. He only saw it as he was driving by on his way out somewhere, but it was obvious that its tail was injured and it was quite thin. We wanted to help, but despite frequent comings and goings in the parking lot, we did not see this cat again until a month later. I instantly knew that it was the same cat because I noticed immediately as it ran across my path that it was now missing most of its tail. Heartbroken, I made up my mind then and there to help. The kitty went into the bushes and looked out at my cautiously. I went upstairs and got some cat food for it and brought it down. I put it down, but the cat would not approach the plate until I went behind a pillar to hide. Then I could hear her crunching so I knew that she was eating. I watched her eat from my hiding spot, and over the next couple of weeks I continued to bring her food and water in the mornings and evenings. She was usually not around the mornings but I would leave the food for her, and she was often waiting for me in the evenings, sitting near where I would put her plate and meowing for me. At times I would think she was not around, but if I called for her for a few minutes, I would hear a meowing response from the bushes and she would come over to where I put her plate. By the end of three weeks, she would let me sit within about a foot of her while she ate her food, but she would back away if I got closer and hiss softly if I reached towards her.
Knowing that her tail needed medical attention, I borrowed a humane trap from a friend and set it up one morning. Kitty watched me curiously as I set the trap, and went in after a few minutes of sniffing around outside it. She was not terribly pleased when she realized she was stuck, but calmed after a few minutes and sat in the back of the trap. I called my friend who has a spare bedroom to come pick her up, as my boyfriend has three cats and we did not have a good area to house her. My friend took her home and put her in her spare bedroom, where she hid under the bed for the duration of her stay. She refused food while she was staying with my friend -- probably freaked out by the new environment and the smell of other cats (who had been coming and going in the room in the days prior to her arrival). My friend transported Kitty to the vet where they recommended that about 2" of necrotic tissue on what was left of her tail be amputated, so we set up the surgery and she has now been fully vetted -- spaying, amputation, tests for diseases and all the vaccines, de-fleaing, de-worming, etc.
My parents agreed to let her recouperate in their garage, which is where she is now. We are keeping her in a large dog kennel, with a sandbox with Yesterdays News litter as recommended by the vet post-op, and of course giving regular food and water. She has a cardboard box that she can go into to feel hidden, and we put a soft bed in for her at night. There is a blanket over the top and back portion of the kennel so she feels less exposed. She is eating well and has recently begun eating in front of me again (she would not eat in front of me for the first few days). She hisses softly when I approach the cage and will occasionally spit and attempt to strike if I try to get too close too quickly. I am not home every night, but I sit with her for long intervals when I am, reading her stories and singing her gentle songs. She seems very relaxed when we "visit" with her after some initial anxiety and hissing, but more and more she greets us (myself and my mom) with mostly meows and a few soft hisses thrown in for good measure. Lately when I visit with her she has been stretching, rolling around, bathing herself, rubbing her mouth on the corners of her box, and sleeping in a relaxed posture. I have gotten her to play vigorously with a string toy for 10 minutes or more at a time. I have also gotten her to lick baby food off a spoon I offered her. She still will not approach me, however, and I do not feel like she is at all ready for me to attempt touching her. I have been able to pet the sides of her mouth and the top of her head with the rod of the string toy, however. I leave the door to her kennel open when I visit with her and sit near the front of it. Last night, my parents and I played Scrabble in the garage with her so she can get used to all of us and our voices. She appeared quite relaxed and was resting comfortably throughout the visit.
Here are my questions: the vet recommended "cage rest" for 14 days. Wednesday will be 14 days since the operation. We would like to let her be able to have the whole garage to herself at that point, but I am worried that she will find some remote corner to hide in and we'll never see her again. (The garage is quite cluttered.) Should we continue to keep her in the kennel? It is large enough for her to move around some, but I feel like I am imprisoning her if I leave her in there. We have three cats inside so I do not want to bring her into the house yet, to avoid stressing both her and our other cats. We are working on cleaning the garage to eliminate "hidey holes," but it is a pretty big project, and as my uncle just passed away, we have not had as much time to devote to it as I would have liked. Should we begin leaving the cage door open on Wednesday, regardless?
From what I have mentioned so far, what do you think are the chances she can become a "house cat"? Or would she be happier/better off as an outdoor cat? I am afraid if we release her into our backyard, I'll never see her again. She seems to be making progress in socializing every day, and I have some reason to believe that she was not entirely feral when I found her -- a) she was wandering about in the daylight on people's stoops when my boyfriend first saw her, b) she was living alone and not with a nearby feral colony, c) she meows in response to me talking to her, d) the vet said when she spayed her that her uterus appeared "unused," and estimated her age at one year -- it seems unusual that she would not have been impregnated already if she had been outside for the whole year, e) we are familiar with all of the cats that live around the condo and did not see her for the first time until mid-March... so where was she before then? f) the progress she is making daily.
Any advice, hints, tips, tricks... would be appreciated. I really love this little cat and I just want what is best for her.