Will Ferals Learn From Watching Other Cats?

I have a feral cat, Ghostie (we thought those noises was a ghost) that I trapped and had him neutered, chipped and looked over at the vet. At first I let him wander the house but then I read a single room is better. He's now in a spare bedroom. I made a little cave for him and I started going in the room at least twice a day, talking to him etc. So far he's stayed in the cave when I visit, but its only been a week. He's eating & drinking normally and (thankfully) using the litter.

I have 2 other cats. Would letting one of them in the room just while im in there and playing with her in front of Ghostie be a good or bad idea? Ghostie had been coming in my cat door for 3 years before I trapped him and as long as he doesnt get too close to the other cats there's no fighting. I was thinking maybe Ghostie would be like "well he's not attacking and eating that cat...in fact they look like they're having fun"....but I also know its a cat and they dont think like we do.

Already been coming in? That’s a good start. You should make sure to get the kitty checked by a vet and immunized before exposing your other kitties. Just to be safe. Coming from outside can bring fleas, worms or other issues. If they already know each other then slow introductions would be fine. You can start with scent swapping. Take something that each cat has left there scent on, like a blanket, and put it with the other cat. Let them smell each other through the door too. Baby gates are useful. They can see each other but not fight. Bring in the room with them during introductions and providing verbal and physical reassuring is the way to go if all else is well. It sounds like they already know each other to some extent. I think it should go well. Keep us updated and ask any questions. We all want to know how it’s going. I think it’s great that you have brought this kitty into your family. Welcome to the site! We look forward to hearing more!

mutex said:

I have a feral cat, Ghostie (we thought those noises was a ghost) that I trapped and had him neutered, chipped and looked over at the vet. At first I let him wander the house but then I read a single room is better. He's now in a spare bedroom. I made a little cave for him and I started going in the room at least twice a day, talking to him etc. So far he's stayed in the cave when I visit, but its only been a week. He's eating & drinking normally and (thankfully) using the litter.

I have 2 other cats. Would letting one of them in the room just while im in there and playing with her in front of Ghostie be a good or bad idea? Ghostie had been coming in my cat door for 3 years before I trapped him and as long as he doesnt get too close to the other cats there's no fighting. I was thinking maybe Ghostie would be like "well he's not attacking and eating that cat...in fact they look like they're having fun"....but I also know its a cat and they dont think like we do.

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Cats definitely take note of how you interact with other cats but that’s just one piece of it for ferals. He’ll come out of the cave when he’s ready, and I’ll bet he comes out plenty when the human isn’t around. I have a wireless camera and mine would come out as soon as he was sure I was tucked away in bed or gone to work for the day. A week or even a month can seem like an eternity for us, especially when we know what our intentions are, but for a feral that time is needed to adjust. Going from a life where you’re always on guard to one of complete dependence is huge.

When your cat is ready to come out and play with you, it’s likely you’ll have to show it how to play. I even had to show mine how to use a scratching post and that ball-chase game.

Yes, I've always played with one or two of my cats with a wand toy in front of the cat I was socializing. They definitely do observe how we interact with our resident cats. Since your cats are all already familiar with each other and have been in your house together, I see nothing wrong with allowing them to interact now. My one formerly feral cat bonded with my other four cats long before she bonded with me. She immediately bonded with her brother from another litter, and he was a great comfort to her. Allowing your resident cats supervised access to your new cat would be a good idea.

The last semi-feral cat I took in (she's actually an indoor/outdoor cat) got to know four of my five resident cats through the windows separating my sunroom and my porch over the course of a year. One day last February, during a very cold spell, I opened my door and let her inside. She promptly went to sleep on the couch. There has never been any conflicts or fights between them, and I did not try to confine her to a room. Each cat and each situation is different, there is no one rule for all.

Thank you all so much for your replies! As FarmersWife24 noted what seems like a long time to us is nothing for a feral cat. I think I just need to be a little more patient. I'm going to try setting up an old cell phone as a camera and if that doesn't work then I'll grab a cheap one off Amazon so I can at least see what he does when I'm gone. Thanks again!

My neighbor had two stray cats in her yard a while back. They were probably abandoned, but the littler one was nearly feral - as I mean likely next to no human contact. In this case, the littler one was very comfortable with the older cat (may have been mama and baby, we don't know). After a short bit the older cat stopped running from my neighbor, but the littler one did not.

It took 4 months to get the littler one to even let my neighbor slightly touch her tail. But, over that 4 months, she began watching the older cat cozy up to my neighbor; and, we think that she learned my neighbor was OK by watching the older cat interact.