To begin my story, on December 2lst, my son found a cat who was approximately six months old when a car stopped near him and let her out. The vet surmised she was part-feral...most likely fed at times by someone who owned a home and then when it was sold... they wanted her not to hang around. When she was found, it was obvious she was a street cat since there was a bite wound on her hip and her nose was all scratched up. The next day we took her to a veterinarian who treated her and thankfully she tested negative for feline aids and leukemia. We took her in, gave her a good home; she's well fed, kindly treated and we had her fixed. We have had her for 2 months now and find she still sometimes responds to touch with aggression. Her moods are somewhat unpredictable and in a moment, she can turn from sweet to a bit hostile. We have tried everything we can think of and am at a loss to know what to do at this point.
She hasn't been declawed and at times when we pet her and she is unwilling, she may either strike us with her paw or attempt to nip us. Although she is not going all out to bite or scratch it is nonetheless enough to make us hesitant to interact with her. Is there anything we can do to make her more calm and modify her behavior? Also, she is very active and we give her play time using string and balls with bells in them and a feather stick.
Any comments and/or suggestions would be greatly appreciated as this would enhance both Penny's life and ours.
Thank you in advance.
Sincerely,
Bobbie Sue