- Joined
- May 27, 2021
- Messages
- 6
- Purraise
- 21
Lets start by saying, I sometimes bite off more than I can chew. I rescued my first cat 1 year ago (F ~ 2 years old) and she was slow to come around but eventually she did. She is still very skittish - she will sit on my lap but if I move at all she takes off like a shot. She is very playful though and likes to chase balls and has even learned to use the stairs as a gravity enhancer for chasing toys.
Recently a friend took in a pair of cats (F 2-3 years old) that were being displaced from a home eviction (I think that is the story) and discovered that her younger daughter was HIGHLY allergic so she needed to rehome the cats. She was having a really hard time placing the cats together and the idea of breaking up the cats was heartbreaking to me so I agreed to see if we could all make it work. Its only been a week so I know this is a long road, but I think I may have already made some mistakes and I was hoping for some advice on how to correct the course.
The two new cats were dropped off and put in a private room with all the things they would need to be held in isolation, however when the friend was saying goodbye she did not latch the door and the two cats made a run for it and got into the main house almost immediately. Of the two new cats, one is very outgoing and seems to have no issues with exploring (happy cat); the other is extremely shy and hides (shy cat) - I think she may be part ninja with they way she can sneak around.
Shy cat made it into my bedroom and under my king size bed so I could not reach her without using a stick or something to push her out and I knew that would be a very bad idea. I tried coaxing with food and what not to get her out but it took me 3 days to finally get her out from under the bed and back into the isolation room - eventually the resident cat bullied her enough that she moved to under the dresser and I was able to reach under there and (carefully) extract her with pets and scooping. For the three days she didn't eat, drink or use the litter box and I was starting to get very concerned about her well being.
In the time that shy cat was under the bed, I tried to use happy cat (her bonded buddy) to help her feel more comfortable and to get her out of hiding - it didn't work but happy cat had no problem climbing all over me and resident cat's cat tree and what not with no issues. In this time resident cat and happy cat made contact a few times and resident cat would puff up and hiss but happy cat just sort of turned around and walked away. Resident cat would also sit on top of the bed and hiss anytime shy cat tried to make a move out from under the bed. Unfortunately, the layout of the house (very open concept/loft design) made it impossible for me to separate the cats during this mayhem.
Now, the two new cats are back in the isolation room and resident cat is free to move about the cabin. I bring my laptop into the isolation room for a bit every day to just "be" in the space with the new cats and then in the evening I hang out a watch a show or something. Happy cat climbs all over me but shy cat has stayed hidden in the blanket fort I made for her. Last night was the first time she moved around the room a little bit while I was in the room. I am confident she is eating/drinking/littering at this point though.
If you have made it this far, thank you. Now the issue: Happy cat wants out of the isolation room badly but resident cat is still somewhat standoffish because of the invasion. I have been feeding them by the door, playing with them near the door, etc. and it seems to be going well but I will sometimes catch resident cat just sitting by the door hissing at it. I have let happy cat and resident cat see each other and they seem to be ok for a bit - happy cat is pretty much clueless and just wants to wander around so badly, but resident cat is constantly watching her and if she gets too close unless I am right there feeding chicken she will hiss at her. How can I keep happy cat happy without further traumatizing resident cat?
I think shy cat would be fine if the isolation process goes on for as long as needed but happy cat is getting very stir crazy locked in isolation with shy cat. I obviously can not "switch rooms" since shy cat will not leave the isolation room without finding a new hiding spot that could be inaccessible for days. I was planning to close resident cat in the bathroom that her litter box is in and then let happy cat out for a bit of time so she can move around. This won't exactly "scent swap" but it will mean that resident cat will get to smell the things she scents up after. Is this a realistic approach or could it cause more issues that I am overlooking?
If resident cat hisses at happy cat but they do not engage, is it ok to let them be in the open space together WITH SUPERVISION or is this asking for ongoing issues? Basically any advice on how to move forward with 3 unique and crazy cats would be greatly appreciated.
Recently a friend took in a pair of cats (F 2-3 years old) that were being displaced from a home eviction (I think that is the story) and discovered that her younger daughter was HIGHLY allergic so she needed to rehome the cats. She was having a really hard time placing the cats together and the idea of breaking up the cats was heartbreaking to me so I agreed to see if we could all make it work. Its only been a week so I know this is a long road, but I think I may have already made some mistakes and I was hoping for some advice on how to correct the course.
The two new cats were dropped off and put in a private room with all the things they would need to be held in isolation, however when the friend was saying goodbye she did not latch the door and the two cats made a run for it and got into the main house almost immediately. Of the two new cats, one is very outgoing and seems to have no issues with exploring (happy cat); the other is extremely shy and hides (shy cat) - I think she may be part ninja with they way she can sneak around.
Shy cat made it into my bedroom and under my king size bed so I could not reach her without using a stick or something to push her out and I knew that would be a very bad idea. I tried coaxing with food and what not to get her out but it took me 3 days to finally get her out from under the bed and back into the isolation room - eventually the resident cat bullied her enough that she moved to under the dresser and I was able to reach under there and (carefully) extract her with pets and scooping. For the three days she didn't eat, drink or use the litter box and I was starting to get very concerned about her well being.
In the time that shy cat was under the bed, I tried to use happy cat (her bonded buddy) to help her feel more comfortable and to get her out of hiding - it didn't work but happy cat had no problem climbing all over me and resident cat's cat tree and what not with no issues. In this time resident cat and happy cat made contact a few times and resident cat would puff up and hiss but happy cat just sort of turned around and walked away. Resident cat would also sit on top of the bed and hiss anytime shy cat tried to make a move out from under the bed. Unfortunately, the layout of the house (very open concept/loft design) made it impossible for me to separate the cats during this mayhem.
Now, the two new cats are back in the isolation room and resident cat is free to move about the cabin. I bring my laptop into the isolation room for a bit every day to just "be" in the space with the new cats and then in the evening I hang out a watch a show or something. Happy cat climbs all over me but shy cat has stayed hidden in the blanket fort I made for her. Last night was the first time she moved around the room a little bit while I was in the room. I am confident she is eating/drinking/littering at this point though.
If you have made it this far, thank you. Now the issue: Happy cat wants out of the isolation room badly but resident cat is still somewhat standoffish because of the invasion. I have been feeding them by the door, playing with them near the door, etc. and it seems to be going well but I will sometimes catch resident cat just sitting by the door hissing at it. I have let happy cat and resident cat see each other and they seem to be ok for a bit - happy cat is pretty much clueless and just wants to wander around so badly, but resident cat is constantly watching her and if she gets too close unless I am right there feeding chicken she will hiss at her. How can I keep happy cat happy without further traumatizing resident cat?
I think shy cat would be fine if the isolation process goes on for as long as needed but happy cat is getting very stir crazy locked in isolation with shy cat. I obviously can not "switch rooms" since shy cat will not leave the isolation room without finding a new hiding spot that could be inaccessible for days. I was planning to close resident cat in the bathroom that her litter box is in and then let happy cat out for a bit of time so she can move around. This won't exactly "scent swap" but it will mean that resident cat will get to smell the things she scents up after. Is this a realistic approach or could it cause more issues that I am overlooking?
If resident cat hisses at happy cat but they do not engage, is it ok to let them be in the open space together WITH SUPERVISION or is this asking for ongoing issues? Basically any advice on how to move forward with 3 unique and crazy cats would be greatly appreciated.
