Enrichment ideas for a very special kitty

[moxiewild]

Hi everyone!

Just to get this out of the way - we’ve discussed these issues with several different vets to ensure there wasn’t a medical problem at the root of any of this, and he’s repeatedly had a clean bill of health.

Anyway, long story short, we brought in a feral cat who had a lot of health issues, like a permanent head tilt and FIV. His name is Pretty Kitty, or PK for short. He is kept in his own room to reduce the risk of transmitting FIV to our very large, constantly rotating clowder inside (and also for PK’s safety to not constantly introduce him to new cats who could be carrying disease).

That was a year and a half ago now.

And let me tell you - this boy is a wild one. In a year and a half, we’ve made NO progress socializing him. He hisses every time we come in the room, hisses the entire time we try speaking to him (even from a distance), he won’t come anywhere near us.

In fact, he even tried to attack me the other day when I accidentally caught him out in the room (I usually knock and wait a few seconds for him to go hide… apparently I didn’t wait long enough this time!).

So human interaction and play time is mostly out of the question.

We’re really struggling to find alternative enrichment for him.

He doesn’t appear to be comfortable up high at all, presumably because of his head tilt and perhaps some residual dizziness. So trees, shelves, windows, etc he has no interest in (even with various steps and ramps and ensuring everything is large and super stable for him).

He also doesn’t like tunnels, ball track/tower toys, cat mobiles, treat toys/puzzles, scratchers (we’ve tried them ALL!!!), automatic toys/lasers, heating pads, self-grooming arches, silvervine sticks, chew toys, etc

He has also shared his room with foster rats and baby squirrels I rehab at various times, and had no interest whatsoever in watching them. A fancy fake aquarium didn’t interest him either, neither did a tub of water filled with toy fish that “swim”.

No interest in the cat wheel, cat garden/grass (we even made it large enough for him to lay and roll around on), or a low hanging hammock that attaches to chair legs.

I’m missing a few things, but we’ve essentially tried pretty much everything I can think of to try and bring some joy in this cats life.

What he does like:

- the ripple rug

- Small toys, especially squeaky or catnip toys, but only when they’re in the ripple rug

- catnip

- hiding places on the ground

- cat music (okay, I don’t know if he actually likes it, but we do play 4-8 hours of cat music for him daily)


I try to rotate the toys in the ripple rug somewhat regularly, but I feel so awful and guilty that this is his only real form of enrichment and he’s otherwise alone in that room all day with nothing to do

He seems to like to stalk and pounce with the ripple rug, so I’m thinking of making a foraging box with shredded packing paper + in tact packing paper for him to “stalk” toys.

We’ve also thought about maybe adopting an FIV+ friend for him, but he has a history of fighting, so I’m not too sure about that.

Honestly though, at this point, if it wasn’t for his FIV, I’d actually consider releasing him back outside because this situation feels so unfair to him. We normally don’t have an issue keeping our “room cats” entertained :/

If anyone has any other out of the box ideas, that would be really great!

 

[moxiewild]

Cat tax of the pretty boy!

 

[vince]

The interactive toys seem to be working the best for him. The box with paper and toys inside is a great idea. Have you tried something he can chase, like a laser pointer? Maybe you could tie a piece of paper on a string and get him to chase that while you're with him. Interactive feed toys might be good too. Try a paper towel or toilet paper core with some treats inside, then fold over the ends. Another one might be to get a Wiffle ball and tape over most of the holes, then drop some kibble inside. You can try putting treats in an ordinary papier-mache egg carton. Those should be good for a start. He might like a kicker. You an make one out of some old sweat socks, one inside the other and tied into knots, perhaps with catnip inside. Some cats also like a stick to play with. You might be able to use a yardstick to play with him.

All these are cheap cat thrills with stuff you might already have at home.

He's very handsome. It's too bad he hasn't warmed up to you yet.

 

[tarasgirl06]

Hi everyone!

Just to get this out of the way - we’ve discussed these issues with several different vets to ensure there wasn’t a medical problem at the root of any of this, and he’s repeatedly had a clean bill of health.

Anyway, long story short, we brought in a feral cat who had a lot of health issues, like a permanent head tilt and FIV. His name is Pretty Kitty, or PK for short. He is kept in his own room to reduce the risk of transmitting FIV to our very large, constantly rotating clowder inside (and also for PK’s safety to not constantly introduce him to new cats who could be carrying disease).

That was a year and a half ago now.

And let me tell you - this boy is a wild one. In a year and a half, we’ve made NO progress socializing him. He hisses every time we come in the room, hisses the entire time we try speaking to him (even from a distance), he won’t come anywhere near us.

In fact, he even tried to attack me the other day when I accidentally caught him out in the room (I usually knock and wait a few seconds for him to go hide… apparently I didn’t wait long enough this time!).

So human interaction and play time is mostly out of the question.

We’re really struggling to find alternative enrichment for him.

He doesn’t appear to be comfortable up high at all, presumably because of his head tilt and perhaps some residual dizziness. So trees, shelves, windows, etc he has no interest in (even with various steps and ramps and ensuring everything is large and super stable for him).

He also doesn’t like tunnels, ball track/tower toys, cat mobiles, treat toys/puzzles, scratchers (we’ve tried them ALL!!!), automatic toys/lasers, heating pads, self-grooming arches, silvervine sticks, chew toys, etc

He has also shared his room with foster rats and baby squirrels I rehab at various times, and had no interest whatsoever in watching them. A fancy fake aquarium didn’t interest him either, neither did a tub of water filled with toy fish that “swim”.

No interest in the cat wheel, cat garden/grass (we even made it large enough for him to lay and roll around on), or a low hanging hammock that attaches to chair legs.

I’m missing a few things, but we’ve essentially tried pretty much everything I can think of to try and bring some joy in this cats life.

What he does like:

- the ripple rug

- Small toys, especially squeaky or catnip toys, but only when they’re in the ripple rug

- catnip

- hiding places on the ground

- cat music (okay, I don’t know if he actually likes it, but we do play 4-8 hours of cat music for him daily)


I try to rotate the toys in the ripple rug somewhat regularly, but I feel so awful and guilty that this is his only real form of enrichment and he’s otherwise alone in that room all day with nothing to do

He seems to like to stalk and pounce with the ripple rug, so I’m thinking of making a foraging box with shredded packing paper + in tact packing paper for him to “stalk” toys.

We’ve also thought about maybe adopting an FIV+ friend for him, but he has a history of fighting, so I’m not too sure about that.

Honestly though, at this point, if it wasn’t for his FIV, I’d actually consider releasing him back outside because this situation feels so unfair to him. We normally don’t have an issue keeping our “room cats” entertained :/

If anyone has any other out of the box ideas, that would be really great!

PK is gorgeously handsome! and it sounds like you're doing everything right to make him comfortable and happy. Time, patience and love are key. My Baby Su was born feral and scooped up by us when she turned up on our land in the Mojave all by herself as a tiny kitten. She was wild then and she's wild now, 17 years later! but I love her just as she is. She's only bonded to me but she likes one of my roomies a lot. Elvis, who joined us 5 years ago at age 9, is NOT her favorite, but they do have detente most of the time. She loves da Bird and Cat Dancer sessions one-on-one with me. Sometimes they both play, from a short distance.
You might talk with daftcat75 about cat music. He can recommend some very good cat rock.

 

[daftcat75]

Cat rock:
Home | Music for Cats | David Teie

Available on all the major streaming services. This one was cat tested and cat approved. Even dogs at the hospital my Krista stayed at who were normally vocal on their overnights were unusually calm the nights Krista was hospitalized with her iPod of Music For Cats playing for her. I joked with the vet staff that she was probably their only patient who came with her own soundtrack.

For enrichment, every cat is different. My angel cat Krista loved heights. My new cat Betty seems okay with them, but has more ground tendencies. One thing she really loves is a cat-sized tent and a scratcher yacht I got from Target.

I wouldn't worry too much about his daytime enrichment. Cats sleep much of the day. If you can get him easy access to a window, that could fill out the rest of his daytime routine.

If you haven't already, I would get a couple of wifi cameras with night vision and place them in the room with him. Toys you think he may have no interest in may actually be his favorite toys in the middle of the night. If he is feral, he may simply be too stressed when you are around to play. I almost donated the aforementioned cat tent because I never saw Betty so much as sniff it. Then one night I walked in on her having early nighttime zoomies in the home office (which I learned is also her zoomies room.) It turns out she loves that tent. When I'm awake, she loves me more.

 

[maggie101]

I have cubes bought at target long time ago. Ground wand toys like go cat catcher or purrfect leather bouncer, or string tied to a wand. corrugated cardboard scratcher that comes in different shapes
Has he tried bigger chew toys like the banana. Shipping trash stashed in corners for him to hide or run and jump. They love the sound it makes. Most adults don't like some of the toys you mentioned. Adults hunt and pounce

 

[susanm9006]

Both of mine love homemade treat bottles. Just a tall water bottle with holes cut in it and filled with treats and/or kibble that they push or roll around to shake out the treats.

 

[maggie101]

Hi everyone!

Just to get this out of the way - we’ve discussed these issues with several different vets to ensure there wasn’t a medical problem at the root of any of this, and he’s repeatedly had a clean bill of health.

Anyway, long story short, we brought in a feral cat who had a lot of health issues, like a permanent head tilt and FIV. His name is Pretty Kitty, or PK for short. He is kept in his own room to reduce the risk of transmitting FIV to our very large, constantly rotating clowder inside (and also for PK’s safety to not constantly introduce him to new cats who could be carrying disease).

That was a year and a half ago now.

And let me tell you - this boy is a wild one. In a year and a half, we’ve made NO progress socializing him. He hisses every time we come in the room, hisses the entire time we try speaking to him (even from a distance), he won’t come anywhere near us.

In fact, he even tried to attack me the other day when I accidentally caught him out in the room (I usually knock and wait a few seconds for him to go hide… apparently I didn’t wait long enough this time!).

So human interaction and play time is mostly out of the question.

We’re really struggling to find alternative enrichment for him.

He doesn’t appear to be comfortable up high at all, presumably because of his head tilt and perhaps some residual dizziness. So trees, shelves, windows, etc he has no interest in (even with various steps and ramps and ensuring everything is large and super stable for him).

He also doesn’t like tunnels, ball track/tower toys, cat mobiles, treat toys/puzzles, scratchers (we’ve tried them ALL!!!), automatic toys/lasers, heating pads, self-grooming arches, silvervine sticks, chew toys, etc

He has also shared his room with foster rats and baby squirrels I rehab at various times, and had no interest whatsoever in watching them. A fancy fake aquarium didn’t interest him either, neither did a tub of water filled with toy fish that “swim”.

No interest in the cat wheel, cat garden/grass (we even made it large enough for him to lay and roll around on), or a low hanging hammock that attaches to chair legs.

I’m missing a few things, but we’ve essentially tried pretty much everything I can think of to try and bring some joy in this cats life.

What he does like:

- the ripple rug

- Small toys, especially squeaky or catnip toys, but only when they’re in the ripple rug

- catnip

- hiding places on the ground

- cat music (okay, I don’t know if he actually likes it, but we do play 4-8 hours of cat music for him daily)


I try to rotate the toys in the ripple rug somewhat regularly, but I feel so awful and guilty that this is his only real form of enrichment and he’s otherwise alone in that room all day with nothing to do

He seems to like to stalk and pounce with the ripple rug, so I’m thinking of making a foraging box with shredded packing paper + in tact packing paper for him to “stalk” toys.

We’ve also thought about maybe adopting an FIV+ friend for him, but he has a history of fighting, so I’m not too sure about that.

Honestly though, at this point, if it wasn’t for his FIV, I’d actually consider releasing him back outside because this situation feels so unfair to him. We normally don’t have an issue keeping our “room cats” entertained :/

If anyone has any other out of the box ideas, that would be really great!

If he has a permanent head tilt,letting him outside can be harmful to him. It is understandable that he would not want to chase after something. A wand toy you can shake in front of Him

 

[Margot Lane]

My boy Zorro got his named b/c he lived up to it: slashed everyone in sight, visitors stopped coming, a biter. But I saw through him and wore him down and now he’s a total softie. Slow & steady wins the race…maybe just not used to people being nice and talking and that just takes trust and time.

 

[tarasgirl06]

Great idea, susanm9006 !
Yes, Margot Lane The overwhelming majority of cats aren't that way by nature but by necessity. This is a very harsh world, and it's very hard to trust, no matter your species, but for cats, especially so, with good reason.
Absolutely, maggie101 ! Indoors only is far safer for any cat, and all the more so for any with so-called special needs.

 

[silent meowlook]

Are you sure the cat isn’t happy? Maybe he is just fine with his living situation and you think he isn’t happy because you wouldn’t be happy in that room.

 

[maggie101]

Hi everyone!

Just to get this out of the way - we’ve discussed these issues with several different vets to ensure there wasn’t a medical problem at the root of any of this, and he’s repeatedly had a clean bill of health.

Anyway, long story short, we brought in a feral cat who had a lot of health issues, like a permanent head tilt and FIV. His name is Pretty Kitty, or PK for short. He is kept in his own room to reduce the risk of transmitting FIV to our very large, constantly rotating clowder inside (and also for PK’s safety to not constantly introduce him to new cats who could be carrying disease).

That was a year and a half ago now.

And let me tell you - this boy is a wild one. In a year and a half, we’ve made NO progress socializing him. He hisses every time we come in the room, hisses the entire time we try speaking to him (even from a distance), he won’t come anywhere near us.

In fact, he even tried to attack me the other day when I accidentally caught him out in the room (I usually knock and wait a few seconds for him to go hide… apparently I didn’t wait long enough this time!).

So human interaction and play time is mostly out of the question.

We’re really struggling to find alternative enrichment for him.

He doesn’t appear to be comfortable up high at all, presumably because of his head tilt and perhaps some residual dizziness. So trees, shelves, windows, etc he has no interest in (even with various steps and ramps and ensuring everything is large and super stable for him).

He also doesn’t like tunnels, ball track/tower toys, cat mobiles, treat toys/puzzles, scratchers (we’ve tried them ALL!!!), automatic toys/lasers, heating pads, self-grooming arches, silvervine sticks, chew toys, etc

He has also shared his room with foster rats and baby squirrels I rehab at various times, and had no interest whatsoever in watching them. A fancy fake aquarium didn’t interest him either, neither did a tub of water filled with toy fish that “swim”.

No interest in the cat wheel, cat garden/grass (we even made it large enough for him to lay and roll around on), or a low hanging hammock that attaches to chair legs.

I’m missing a few things, but we’ve essentially tried pretty much everything I can think of to try and bring some joy in this cats life.

What he does like:

- the ripple rug

- Small toys, especially squeaky or catnip toys, but only when they’re in the ripple rug

- catnip

- hiding places on the ground

- cat music (okay, I don’t know if he actually likes it, but we do play 4-8 hours of cat music for him daily)


I try to rotate the toys in the ripple rug somewhat regularly, but I feel so awful and guilty that this is his only real form of enrichment and he’s otherwise alone in that room all day with nothing to do

He seems to like to stalk and pounce with the ripple rug, so I’m thinking of making a foraging box with shredded packing paper + in tact packing paper for him to “stalk” toys.

We’ve also thought about maybe adopting an FIV+ friend for him, but he has a history of fighting, so I’m not too sure about that.

Honestly though, at this point, if it wasn’t for his FIV, I’d actually consider releasing him back outside because this situation feels so unfair to him. We normally don’t have an issue keeping our “room cats” entertained :/

If anyone has any other out of the box ideas, that would be really great!

I just got this delivered. My cats love it. Each toy is separate with a long sturdy string. Good size for him and can use it like a wand toy
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09P31CLQ5/?tag=thecatsite

 

[moxiewild]

The interactive toys seem to be working the best for him. The box with paper and toys inside is a great idea. Have you tried something he can chase, like a laser pointer? Maybe you could tie a piece of paper on a string and get him to chase that while you're with him. Interactive feed toys might be good too. Try a paper towel or toilet paper core with some treats inside, then fold over the ends. Another one might be to get a Wiffle ball and tape over most of the holes, then drop some kibble inside. You can try putting treats in an ordinary papier-mache egg carton. Those should be good for a start. He might like a kicker. You an make one out of some old sweat socks, one inside the other and tied into knots, perhaps with catnip inside. Some cats also like a stick to play with. You might be able to use a yardstick to play with him.

All these are cheap cat thrills with stuff you might already have at home.

He's very handsome. It's too bad he hasn't warmed up to you yet.

Sorry for the late response! Been busy working with some animal rescues in Ukraine, so it’s been hectic.

We’ve unfortunately tried all of that He does use the Yeowww! Banana kicker when I hide it in the ripple rug, but if I forget to hide it in there again, he won’t touch it.

He just doesn’t seem to know what to do treat toys/puzzles or a lot of other toys. I try to kind of show him but he just hisses the whole time and it stresses him out and nothing comes of it even after I leave (we have cameras on him).

likewise, he won’t tolerate us operating a laser toy. I purchased an automatic one for him, but he never seemed to even notice it.

 

[moxiewild]

PK is gorgeously handsome! and it sounds like you're doing everything right to make him comfortable and happy. Time, patience and love are key. My Baby Su was born feral and scooped up by us when she turned up on our land in the Mojave all by herself as a tiny kitten. She was wild then and she's wild now, 17 years later! but I love her just as she is. She's only bonded to me but she likes one of my roomies a lot. Elvis, who joined us 5 years ago at age 9, is NOT her favorite, but they do have detente most of the time. She loves da Bird and Cat Dancer sessions one-on-one with me. Sometimes they both play, from a short distance.
You might talk with daftcat75 about cat music. He can recommend some very good cat rock.

It’s frustrating because I’ve socialized dozens of adult ferals (and even more kittens!) before, but I think I’ve finally met my match with PK!

like I said, he doesn’t tolerate our presence. He becomes even more stressed when we try to use toys in front of him, like Da Bird and Cat Dancer. He’ll hiss at us until he starts coughing, poor guy

 

[moxiewild]

Cat rock:
Home | Music for Cats | David Teie

Available on all the major streaming services. This one was cat tested and cat approved. Even dogs at the hospital my Krista stayed at who were normally vocal on their overnights were unusually calm the nights Krista was hospitalized with her iPod of Music For Cats playing for her. I joked with the vet staff that she was probably their only patient who came with her own soundtrack.

For enrichment, every cat is different. My angel cat Krista loved heights. My new cat Betty seems okay with them, but has more ground tendencies. One thing she really loves is a cat-sized tent and a scratcher yacht I got from Target.

I wouldn't worry too much about his daytime enrichment. Cats sleep much of the day. If you can get him easy access to a window, that could fill out the rest of his daytime routine.

If you haven't already, I would get a couple of wifi cameras with night vision and place them in the room with him. Toys you think he may have no interest in may actually be his favorite toys in the middle of the night. If he is feral, he may simply be too stressed when you are around to play. I almost donated the aforementioned cat tent because I never saw Betty so much as sniff it. Then one night I walked in on her having early nighttime zoomies in the home office (which I learned is also her zoomies room.) It turns out she loves that tent. When I'm awake, she loves me more.

Yep, we’ve used David Teie for years! I made a long playlist with all of David Teie’s catalogue, plus harp music, nature sounds, etc.

We did give him easy access to a window and initially he went up a few times, but hasn’t since.

And yes, we keep a camera on him. That’s why I know that he likes what he does!

 

[moxiewild]

I have cubes bought at target long time ago. Ground wand toys like go cat catcher or purrfect leather bouncer, or string tied to a wand. corrugated cardboard scratcher that comes in different shapes
Has he tried bigger chew toys like the banana. Shipping trash stashed in corners for him to hide or run and jump. They love the sound it makes. Most adults don't like some of the toys you mentioned. Adults hunt and pounce

Our adults typically do like the toys I mentioned. That includes cat catcher, purrfect leather bouncer, and the cat charmer (basically a string on a wand, like you described).

We’ve tried all sorts of scratchers, including corrugated cardboard. He won’t scratch them, but he does sleep in the corrugated cardboard houses.

I thought of using packing paper because he of the fact that he clearly likes to stalk and pounce with the ripple rug, but so far he’s just laying on it. Sigh.

The thing is, we’re very limited here. He likes to stalk and pounce, but that’s hard to accommodate when he doesn’t tolerate our presence in the room. Hence the automatic toys.

 

[moxiewild]

Both of mine love homemade treat bottles. Just a tall water bottle with holes cut in it and filled with treats and/or kibble that they push or roll around to shake out the treats.

We’ve tried soooo many treat puzzles/toys, both store bought and homemade. He has no interest!

he alsoo ok wing eat treats if we put them on the floor, which is weird. He’ll leave them there for days. He’ll only eat them if we put them in a bowl. This kitty is so particular, lol

 

[moxiewild]

If he has a permanent head tilt,letting him outside can be harmful to him. It is understandable that he would not want to chase after something. A wand toy you can shake in front of Him

Don’t worry, we’d never release him because if the FIV and head tilt. I only meant that if it weren’t for those issues, we probably would release him back with the colony. He has a home for life here.

 

[moxiewild]

My boy Zorro got his named b/c he lived up to it: slashed everyone in sight, visitors stopped coming, a biter. But I saw through him and wore him down and now he’s a total softie. Slow & steady wins the race…maybe just not used to people being nice and talking and that just takes trust and time.

LOL! We named our other cat Zorro for completely opposite reasons! He’s a lover and was super brave! We got him as a 16 week old feral kitten and he made progress in record time, even faster than his 8 week old cousins. How funny!

Trust me, we’ve been going slow and steady! Like I said, he’s been inside for a year and a half, and we took care of him outside before that for two years.

I don’t actually need him to be anything other than what he is, he has a home for life with us no matter what - I just know that him warming up to us will be a lot less stressful for *him* and allow us to provide better enrichment for him.

 

[maggie101]

I figured that's what you ment. A very lucky kitty! So a permanent head tilt means he cannot move it at all?