Fostering feral cat

[Belinda70]

I'm new to the group and need advice. I took in a 1yo female feral cat that had been fostered by someone for three months and could no longer foster. I was under the impression she was a stray, not feral. I have no experience with feral cats and didn't realize what I was in for, honestly. But now there's a wild and terrified creature in my house and I want to do right by her. I've had her 3 mo. She has slowly moved from being totally hidden in a spare room to spending most of her time beneath the living room sofa. She has been creeping out at night to eat and use the litter box. But recently she has started pooping under the sofa occasionally.. I have three other cats. They've had some encounters and I suspect the feral girl is afraid of them. What do I do now? How long do I let her stay under the sofa? What is the best thing for her? I talk to her, give her treats. I've tried to get her out but I don't want to do more harm than good. She is not vicious. Hisses but doesn't try to bite or scratch.

 

[FeebysOwner]

Hi and welcome to TCS. She really isn't probably feral, per se. Even many strays act like what you are describing. What information did you/can you get from the previous foster?

She should have been confined to a safe room, along with any of the things she had grown accustomed to at the other foster home. I take it this did not happen, so you have one scared cat on your hands - being taken away from one place and thrown into another. The first thing was to get her acclimated to a single room and to you - long before her being exposed to other cats. If you can get her back in the spare room, do so and then not let her out again until you have worked with her to gain her trust. Then later you can go through an introduction process with your cats.
How To Help A New Cat Adjust To Your Home - TheCatSite
How To Successfully Introduce Cats [The Ultimate Guide] - TheCatSite

 

[fluffpaws]

Hi Belinda 70,
Does she have her own litter box or is she sharing one with your other cat's?

 

[Mamanyt1953]

She's terrified, and is pooping in a place that feels safe to her. The fact that she does not swipe at you is VERY encouraging, and tells me that time is what she needs. Yes, do establish her in a safe room, and spend time in there with her. Don't approach her, but if possible, sit on the floor talking to her, or reading aloud to her, and allow her to make all the first moves. It may take several weeks before she is ready to explore the rest of the house with any confidence. Time, and lots of patience, are your best friends here.

 

[wilogate]

I do a lot of fostering and adding to the advice above, with very scared and wild cats/kittens, I have a separate room away from the noise and hustle and bustle where I put them in a medium or larger dog cage. In the cage I have a litter box, water, free choice dry food, a box with a bed in it where they hide out. I usually start with gloves on giving them wet food or tuna fish. Some cats will also come out for churros. Be careful, many of these cats will grab the food and run. They aren’t necessarily trying to bite you but you might get bite in the panicky cross fire. That’s why I wear work gloves to start. I’ve worked with a lot of cats that were live trapped by people as feral/community cats. I’ve had about an 80% success with adult cats over the years and almost 100% with kittens. Note though success doesn’t always mean perfect litter trained family pets. The rescue I work with will place some as barn cats after they’ve been fixed if and only if they just can’t make it inside the house. Good luck! If you find you can’t handle having this cat I’d suggest reaching out to a local rescue, explaining how you got your cat, and asking for assistance.

 

[Belinda70]

Hi and welcome to TCS. She really isn't probably feral, per se. Even many strays act like what you are describing. What information did you/can you get from the previous foster?

She should have been confined to a safe room, along with any of the things she had grown accustomed to at the other foster home. I take it this did not happen, so you have one scared cat on your hands - being taken away from one place and thrown into another. The first thing was to get her acclimated to a single room and to you - long before her being exposed to other cats. If you can get her back in the spare room, do so and then not let her out again until you have worked with her to gain her trust. Then later you can go through an introduction process with your cats.
How To Help A New Cat Adjust To Your Home - TheCatSite

How To Successfully Introduce Cats [The Ultimate Guide] - TheCatSite

Thanks, this is helpful. The previous foster had her vetted and had been keeping her in a small bathroom. She has very mild CH. She didn't come with any toys or bowls. Just the cat.
I will try to move her back to another room.

 

[Belinda70]

Hi Belinda 70,
Does she have her own litter box or is she sharing one with your other cat's?

I have multiple litter boxes that they all have access to, but the others have stopped using the one she was using

 

[Belinda70]

She's terrified, and is pooping in a place that feels safe to her. The fact that she does not swipe at you is VERY encouraging, and tells me that time is what she needs. Yes, do establish her in a safe room, and spend time in there with her. Don't approach her, but if possible, sit on the floor talking to her, or reading aloud to her, and allow her to make all the first moves. It may take several weeks before she is ready to explore the rest of the house with any confidence. Time, and lots of patience, are your best friends here.

Thank you! That is encouraging and makes sense.

 

[Belinda70]

I do a lot of fostering and adding to the advice above, with very scared and wild cats/kittens, I have a separate room away from the noise and hustle and bustle where I put them in a medium or larger dog cage. In the cage I have a litter box, water, free choice dry food, a box with a bed in it where they hide out. I usually start with gloves on giving them wet food or tuna fish. Some cats will also come out for churros. Be careful, many of these cats will grab the food and run. They aren’t necessarily trying to bite you but you might get bite in the panicky cross fire. That’s why I wear work gloves to start. I’ve worked with a lot of cats that were live trapped by people as feral/community cats. I’ve had about an 80% success with adult cats over the years and almost 100% with kittens. Note though success doesn’t always mean perfect litter trained family pets. The rescue I work with will place some as barn cats after they’ve been fixed if and only if they just can’t make it inside the house. Good luck! If you find you can’t handle having this cat I’d suggest reaching out to a local rescue, explaining how you got your cat, and asking for assistance.

Thank you so much for your insights! I'm encouraged. I wish I'd known to keep her in a separate room from the start. We will have some backtracking to do.

 

[FeebysOwner]

I wish I'd known to keep her in a separate room from the start. We will have some backtracking to do.

And, just to help you with that, see my above post (#2) with links to TCS articles that might help you, in case you missed it before.

 

[Belinda70]

Got it, thanks!

 

[Mamanyt1953]

Thank you so much for your insights! I'm encouraged. I wish I'd known to keep her in a separate room from the start. We will have some backtracking to do.

And the nice thing is, cats, in general, are very willing to participate in do-overs.

 

[Belinda70]

Thank you all for the helpful advice and resources. I've got Josie set up in my spare room now, away from the other cats. ( This was super stressful for all of us, especially Josie). Because the room has lots of places to hide, I got a cat tent (see attached) where she can hide out in her little cave and have a separate litter area. I've put one of my tshirts in so she has my scent without having me invade her space. I've seen her sleeping on it occasionally.
At this point she seems comfy and is eating like crazy and using the litter box. She hasn't come out of the kitty cave while I'm in the room. I've been spending time several times a day sitting with her with the tent unzipped. I have reached in and petted her, which she allows but doesn't like. So I'll back off. All that to ask, what now?
Thank you!

 

[FeebysOwner]

Didn't the articles I linked above do anything to help you set up a plan? Or, maybe you have more specific questions that you have since reading them?

Can you cat proof that room and allow her the choice to move around it rather than keep her zipped up in a tent? If there is a bed in there, sit the boxsprings and mattress directly on the floor so she can't get under it. Remove items from the top of any tables/dressers, including lamps/etc. What else do you have in there that we might be able to make suggestions on how to cat-proof them?

You've set the stage for her to consider the tent a safe place, but I am sure that is a bit too much confinement if done for very long and could make her avoid the tent when she is allowed to use more of the room's space.

 

[Belinda70]

Didn't the articles I linked above do anything to help you set up a plan? Or, maybe you have more specific questions that you have since reading them?

Can you cat proof that room and allow her the choice to move around it rather than keep her zipped up in a tent? If there is a bed in there, sit the boxsprings and mattress directly on the floor so she can't get under it. Remove items from the top of any tables/dressers, including lamps/etc. What else do you have in there that we might be able to make suggestions on how to cat-proof them?

You've set the stage for her to consider the tent a safe place, but I am sure that is a bit too much confinement if done for very long and could make her avoid the tent when she is allowed to use more of the room's space.

I've read the articles several times and found them very helpful. If folks have suggestions of how they've gained trust that would be helpful. I do want to give her access to the entire room. It will take a lot of cat proofing. Thanks for your help.