My wife and I have taken in two rescue cats.
We took in the first cat in 2005. He is a Maine Coon, and was 7 years old when we got him. The local shelter was getting ready to put him down, because the previous owners said that he was mean to the other animals in the house. He has turned into the neediest, most loving pet I have ever seen. It doesn't hurt that it appears that he has chosen me to be his pet human. He gets along with us fine, and we have not seen much from him, as far as being more than mildly territorial to the other cat.
The second cat, who is a calico persian, we adopted in 2007. The shelter had caught her as a stray, and they believed her to be 2 years old at the time. She is a bundle of every cat behavior problem there is, and I am convinced that she hates me. She has urinated on three couches in the past three years, to the point where they have had to be replaced because they were so pungent, and uncleanable (even by professional furniture cleaners). If I leave any of my (and only my) clothes lying about, she will urinate on them as well.
She is scared of me and runs away when I enter the room, and hides from me under furniture if she cannot escape. She will take food from my hand, but is very skittish while doing so. If I try to pet her, she will allow it if someone brings her to me, or if I corner her, and she even purrs, but will also frequently scratch and bite me, even while purring. Sometimes she will attack me if I just look at her.
She constantly scratches at doors, and cannot stand to see a closed door, but only inside doors, and will not go outside. She constantly meows at night, as if she is searching for someone.
I know this is a stressed cat, but I cannot figure out why. The vet says she is healthy. Interestingly, when we were at the vet, she clung to me for protection. I don't want to giver her back to the shelter, because they will put her down. Can anyone give me some insight here?
We took in the first cat in 2005. He is a Maine Coon, and was 7 years old when we got him. The local shelter was getting ready to put him down, because the previous owners said that he was mean to the other animals in the house. He has turned into the neediest, most loving pet I have ever seen. It doesn't hurt that it appears that he has chosen me to be his pet human. He gets along with us fine, and we have not seen much from him, as far as being more than mildly territorial to the other cat.
The second cat, who is a calico persian, we adopted in 2007. The shelter had caught her as a stray, and they believed her to be 2 years old at the time. She is a bundle of every cat behavior problem there is, and I am convinced that she hates me. She has urinated on three couches in the past three years, to the point where they have had to be replaced because they were so pungent, and uncleanable (even by professional furniture cleaners). If I leave any of my (and only my) clothes lying about, she will urinate on them as well.
She is scared of me and runs away when I enter the room, and hides from me under furniture if she cannot escape. She will take food from my hand, but is very skittish while doing so. If I try to pet her, she will allow it if someone brings her to me, or if I corner her, and she even purrs, but will also frequently scratch and bite me, even while purring. Sometimes she will attack me if I just look at her.
She constantly scratches at doors, and cannot stand to see a closed door, but only inside doors, and will not go outside. She constantly meows at night, as if she is searching for someone.
I know this is a stressed cat, but I cannot figure out why. The vet says she is healthy. Interestingly, when we were at the vet, she clung to me for protection. I don't want to giver her back to the shelter, because they will put her down. Can anyone give me some insight here?