Hi Guys!
Soooooooo happy I found this site. Need help! GiGi is the last stray from a small colony I've been caring for since the mid- 90s. Through diligent S/N and natural attrition, the group thinned over the years until only two, Tizzy and GiGi remained. The site was an abandoned factory, a vacant office building, lots of land and a big parking lot...this is where I fed them. Several months ago a huge demo/excavation/construction project was started, and I began to fear for the cats' safety. When the shed was knocked down under which Tizzy lived, she disappeared, leaving only GiGi, who lived in the storm drains. When new sewer lines were laid and those horrible "raccoon-proof" storm sewer covers were delivered, I knew I had to take action. If you read my profile, you know I already have five cats and one very old, very sick doggie. One of my cats was actually adopted from that same site about seven years ago, and she has just started to let me touch her head! Unfortunately, I don't remember how I went about introducing Peaches into the household, but I know it was by instinct. This time I'd like to do it right. Here's the scene. I trapped GiGi on Easter Sunday and kept her in the basement in a very large, comfortable cage for a week until I could have her checked out by my vet. She's clean except for a bad case of ear mites. Knowing I'd probably be unable to medicate her, my vet did a super thorough job of flushing out her ears, and we're hoping for the best. Brought her up to my (small) apartment in a carrier and set her up in a smaller cage with litter, food and water, in a nice large bathroom. (Learned early on to keep the window opened only a crack after she nearly tore the window screen out!). GiGi is not extremely wild, maybe because she recognizes me from all those years of feeding. I would put the food out at her feeding station, then rap on the sewer cover several times with a rock...and out she would come. Anyway, over the past several weeks, I have succeeded in being able to pet her on the head and under the chin and a little down the back, usually while she's in her cage...feels secure I guess. I was also advised to gain trust by feeding her with a spoon, and now she's eating out of my hand. Great strides, but she's still frightened and dashes to the safety of her cage (left open with the bathroom door closed most of the time) when I get too close. Sorry this is so long, but I had to provide history. My three immediate concerns are 1) How long can I humanely keep her isolated without any ill effects? 2) When and how do I allow her access the rest of the apartment without losing control? and 3) Other than keeping windows closed all the time, do you have any suggestions for protecting the cat from pulling out my screens and escaping? Oh yes, one other thing. Usually once a day I bring GiGi, in her cage, into the adjoining bedroom and leave her there for a few hours so she'll know there's someplace other than her private quarters, so she knows she's not the only cat in the place, and also so my cats get to see her. So far they have shown exceedingly little interest in her! That's about it...again, Sorry So Long. I'm counting on everyone who's "Been there, done that" to help me make this work.
Thanks a bunch!
Soooooooo happy I found this site. Need help! GiGi is the last stray from a small colony I've been caring for since the mid- 90s. Through diligent S/N and natural attrition, the group thinned over the years until only two, Tizzy and GiGi remained. The site was an abandoned factory, a vacant office building, lots of land and a big parking lot...this is where I fed them. Several months ago a huge demo/excavation/construction project was started, and I began to fear for the cats' safety. When the shed was knocked down under which Tizzy lived, she disappeared, leaving only GiGi, who lived in the storm drains. When new sewer lines were laid and those horrible "raccoon-proof" storm sewer covers were delivered, I knew I had to take action. If you read my profile, you know I already have five cats and one very old, very sick doggie. One of my cats was actually adopted from that same site about seven years ago, and she has just started to let me touch her head! Unfortunately, I don't remember how I went about introducing Peaches into the household, but I know it was by instinct. This time I'd like to do it right. Here's the scene. I trapped GiGi on Easter Sunday and kept her in the basement in a very large, comfortable cage for a week until I could have her checked out by my vet. She's clean except for a bad case of ear mites. Knowing I'd probably be unable to medicate her, my vet did a super thorough job of flushing out her ears, and we're hoping for the best. Brought her up to my (small) apartment in a carrier and set her up in a smaller cage with litter, food and water, in a nice large bathroom. (Learned early on to keep the window opened only a crack after she nearly tore the window screen out!). GiGi is not extremely wild, maybe because she recognizes me from all those years of feeding. I would put the food out at her feeding station, then rap on the sewer cover several times with a rock...and out she would come. Anyway, over the past several weeks, I have succeeded in being able to pet her on the head and under the chin and a little down the back, usually while she's in her cage...feels secure I guess. I was also advised to gain trust by feeding her with a spoon, and now she's eating out of my hand. Great strides, but she's still frightened and dashes to the safety of her cage (left open with the bathroom door closed most of the time) when I get too close. Sorry this is so long, but I had to provide history. My three immediate concerns are 1) How long can I humanely keep her isolated without any ill effects? 2) When and how do I allow her access the rest of the apartment without losing control? and 3) Other than keeping windows closed all the time, do you have any suggestions for protecting the cat from pulling out my screens and escaping? Oh yes, one other thing. Usually once a day I bring GiGi, in her cage, into the adjoining bedroom and leave her there for a few hours so she'll know there's someplace other than her private quarters, so she knows she's not the only cat in the place, and also so my cats get to see her. So far they have shown exceedingly little interest in her! That's about it...again, Sorry So Long. I'm counting on everyone who's "Been there, done that" to help me make this work.
Thanks a bunch!