Hi all, just looking for some tips to help our new kitten settle into his new home.
Pixel is 6 months old and has come straight from his breeder. Until yesterday he was still living with his mother. He was raised inside the house but was moved to an outside cage a couple of months ago with visits inside.
His breeder lives a couple of hours from me so we met in between yesterday. It was an awful day, my car broke down in a major way an hour from home within a few minutes of picking him up, so by the time we made it home he had been in the carrier for over 6 hours.
He spent the first 4 hours cowering at the back of the litter box, then made his way underneath my bed. He's not shown any inclination to sniff at anything or explore the space under the bed. He has been in the same spot under my bed for about 16 hours now. He didn't even move overnight when all was quiet. I've pushed the tray of food and water under the bed so he can get to it without having to expose himself, but he hasn't touched it yet.
Basically he seems petrified, and I can't really blame him.
I just got a Feliway diffuser and plugged it in about half an hour ago. If it's going to be helpful for him how long will it take? I know it will take time for him to settle in, but I'd like to minimise the stress for him and encourage him to come out and meet the family. Is there anything else I can do?
Edited to add: Should I take the wheels off the bed so it sits on the floor and he can't get underneath it? There is a cube and a wardrobe where he could hide but still be accessible if we need to get to him.
Pixel is 6 months old and has come straight from his breeder. Until yesterday he was still living with his mother. He was raised inside the house but was moved to an outside cage a couple of months ago with visits inside.
His breeder lives a couple of hours from me so we met in between yesterday. It was an awful day, my car broke down in a major way an hour from home within a few minutes of picking him up, so by the time we made it home he had been in the carrier for over 6 hours.
He spent the first 4 hours cowering at the back of the litter box, then made his way underneath my bed. He's not shown any inclination to sniff at anything or explore the space under the bed. He has been in the same spot under my bed for about 16 hours now. He didn't even move overnight when all was quiet. I've pushed the tray of food and water under the bed so he can get to it without having to expose himself, but he hasn't touched it yet.
Basically he seems petrified, and I can't really blame him.
I just got a Feliway diffuser and plugged it in about half an hour ago. If it's going to be helpful for him how long will it take? I know it will take time for him to settle in, but I'd like to minimise the stress for him and encourage him to come out and meet the family. Is there anything else I can do?
Edited to add: Should I take the wheels off the bed so it sits on the floor and he can't get underneath it? There is a cube and a wardrobe where he could hide but still be accessible if we need to get to him.
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