Hello. I have a shy female cat named Ivy (3 years old) & a friendly outgoing male cat name Professor (10+ years old).
It took a while for Ivy to come out of her hiding spot when we first got her, probably around a month. We've had her for about a year, she always hangs out with us now, and loves to be pet and get attention. She is still skittish at times but she trusts us to an extent. She also loves my other cat, even though sometimes he doesn't love her lol.
Anyways, I always see on FB how many animals are being put to sleep at shelters and I feel guilty, (my bf does not want me to foster cats as we have "too many" but a dogs ok) I have fostered a dog before and it went great but we didn't have Ivy. Professor is very friendly and doesn't mind dogs after a couple days. So I fostered a small 5 pound chi/pom mix, he doesn't chase the cats at all or anything.
I feel like I have lost her trust, and I feel absolutely horrible. Prof doesn't mind the dog but the cats' whole schedule changed now... They eat at night instead of in the morning, Ivy doesn't really come out of the room, and she's been acting like she's scared of me or doesn't remember who I am, she also started playing in the litter box for some reason.
Any tips on how to get Ivy back to normal after foster dog leaves? I feel awful, I didn't know this would effect her so much, and I probably won't be able to foster again since it causes her too much stress. Has anyone else had this problem and have any suggestions? Should I just give it time?
Thank you.
It took a while for Ivy to come out of her hiding spot when we first got her, probably around a month. We've had her for about a year, she always hangs out with us now, and loves to be pet and get attention. She is still skittish at times but she trusts us to an extent. She also loves my other cat, even though sometimes he doesn't love her lol.
Anyways, I always see on FB how many animals are being put to sleep at shelters and I feel guilty, (my bf does not want me to foster cats as we have "too many" but a dogs ok) I have fostered a dog before and it went great but we didn't have Ivy. Professor is very friendly and doesn't mind dogs after a couple days. So I fostered a small 5 pound chi/pom mix, he doesn't chase the cats at all or anything.
I feel like I have lost her trust, and I feel absolutely horrible. Prof doesn't mind the dog but the cats' whole schedule changed now... They eat at night instead of in the morning, Ivy doesn't really come out of the room, and she's been acting like she's scared of me or doesn't remember who I am, she also started playing in the litter box for some reason.
Any tips on how to get Ivy back to normal after foster dog leaves? I feel awful, I didn't know this would effect her so much, and I probably won't be able to foster again since it causes her too much stress. Has anyone else had this problem and have any suggestions? Should I just give it time?
Thank you.