A year later, and Kat still doesn't like our new home

rink23

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It's been awhile since I have posted, here is my original post about me and Kat, Kat: The Rescue cat (A long love story) | TheCatSite , but we've run into a bit of a situation I need some advice on.
Just to let you know, Kat wandered into my life in August of 2012. She literally walked up to my backdoor one night and has never left.
She is a loving girl. Never gets angry. Always seems content. She was 4-years-old when we found each other, and will be 13 in May.
Anyway, in December of 2020 my landlord told me I was going to have to change apartments in the complex where we were living. They were doing renovations, and I had no choice but to either leave or move to another unit within the complex.
I said OK, I'd like to stay just don't put me on the the cornfield side.
The complex is surrounded by cornfields on two sides, with no fences between the property and the field.
This means wild animals often come onto the property, particularly worrisome are the coyotes.
My apartment featured a sliding glass door, which I often left open so Kat could look out.
During the day, the birdfeeders I put up attracted dozens of birds, squirrels and rabbits which she enjoyed to watch.
While at night, we'd get rabbits and she just seemed to love to look out to see what was going on.
So when the time to move came, they gave me the address of my new unit, and it was right in the middle of the cornfield.
Obviously, I was not pleased and they said, there was no other option, my unit was the last to be renovated.
I decided that after 20 year there for me, it was time to move. You also have to know, the quality of the neighborhood has deteriorated as well having attracted some drug dealers and other ner-do-wells. A gas station two blocks away recently had a clerk shot in a robbery.
So, I decided to find an upgrade..
Unfortunately, while the footage is about the same it is only one floor compared to the two we had at the old place.
It's been a year almost to the day, and she still hates it.
We're on the bottom floor, and hearing the people above us move about seems to irritate her and have her on edge.
In the old place, she was all over the place.
Here, she spends 95 percent of her time in the back of a large closet or in the door to my bedroom seemingly waiting for someone to walk by.
I also think she misses the squirrel circus. I have bird feeders for her to watch, but there is not nearly as much activity.
Fortunately, there have been no escape attempts. But every time she hears a noise, she seems on the verge of freaking out.
At 12, she is an old cat. And in almost every way, she is still the loving, friendly cat she has always been. But is there any way I can help come to accept this place as home.
 

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FeebysOwner

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Hi. It may not be a viable solution, financially and/or whether you would need to/have to get a approval from your landlord, but there are ways to insulate a ceiling to help reduce noises coming from above. I've included an article (see link below), just as a starting point for you to research. You could even consider doing just one room, at least giving her some area within the apartment that she could feel more comfortable in. Some insulation projects can be set up to be temporary so that you could easily remove it when you move.

Barring that, playing music - preferably 'cat music' (Cat In My Arms on Spotify and elsewhere, RelaxMyCat, and also MusicForCats) might help to drown out enough of the noises coming from above to help Kat. Looking into cat calming products might be another idea to consider - just do an internet search on 'cat calming products' to see what you might be interested in trying. Just know, it might mean some experimentation, as not all products work on all cats.

For entertainment, you could try playing bird and squirrel videos for her. Some cats love them, and other cats (like mine) seem to know they are not 'real' and lose interest pretty quickly.

Setting up an enclosed cat tree or two that she could use might also be another option. There are soundproofing blankets that could cover the tree to help block out a bit of the noise (link below for that as well). The blankets could be used to cover cat tunnels, etc. on the floor as well.

How to Soundproof a Ceiling: Silence Noisy Neighbors! - Snoring Source
Best Soundproof Blankets 2020 – Sound Deadening (soundproofpros.com)

Hope other members come along soon with some additional ideas for you to consider!
 
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