I adopted a 4-yr-old cat a few weeks ago, a dilute torbie named Reese. Last year she was one of the feral cats my friend was feeding. She started doing TNR on them and Reese was friendly enough to be fostered and adopted out. Well she escaped from foster care out an open window and was missing since last March! My friend never gave up on finding her when in mid December a nice couple took in a cat they were feeding but couldn't keep, so they took her to the shelter where my friend volunteers. It was Reese!!! My friend couldn't keep her so I offered to adopt her. She's very shy but very sweet. It's a slow process but she was learning to trust me and would come to me on her own without hesitation. I have her setup in the dining room where she can be by herself until she settles in.
Just two days after I had her, I took her to the vet to have her ears checked. She was diagnosed with an ear infection. I treated her ears once a day for two weeks and to my surprise she was so good, letting me hold her, put the drops in, and then massage her ears. It didn't seem to disrupt our trust process as she still became more outgoing as the days went on.
This past Wednesday I had to take her to the vet to have her ears rechecked. The vet was going to keep her overnight to have her ears deeply cleaned if there was no improvement. She had hard wax plugs over her eardrums. Fortunately the plugs dissolved and she didn't need additional treatment. But now here's my problem....
I almost had her in the carrier when she freaked out and bolted. It was horrible and she was so afraid and trying to hide. There was nothing else I could do but try to catch her and get her to the vet, but it has been 3 days and she still doesn't trust me now. Things were going so well, and now I feel like I traumatized hery. She doesn't interact like she did, and only when I bring in her food does she come to me. She loved treats, too, and the crinkle of the bag would send her right to me, even putting her paws on my lap to reach the treats. Now she hardly approaches at all. She'll take the treat, then duck back to eat it.
I have been crying for 3 days for what I did to her. I traumatized this sweet little cat. I feel so guilty and sad that I caused her so much stress. Now I feel like she'll never trust me again. I want her to be happy, not scared and stressed, especially after all she has been through. She deserves a good life!
Meanwhile I'm giving her Calming Care in her food, I'm using Jackson Galaxy's Stress Stopper solution, I'm playing soothing music, I go into the room and just be there... no looking at her (slow blinks only), no approaching her, and I talk to her while sometimes reading her stories while I sit or lie on the floor.
I'm so sorry this post went so long. I tried to give as much information as I could without overdoing it.
Is there any hope at all that we can get back to where we were? Any advice you can give is appreciated, and if anyone here has been through a similar situation I would love to hear about it. I just want sweet Reesie to be happy.
Just two days after I had her, I took her to the vet to have her ears checked. She was diagnosed with an ear infection. I treated her ears once a day for two weeks and to my surprise she was so good, letting me hold her, put the drops in, and then massage her ears. It didn't seem to disrupt our trust process as she still became more outgoing as the days went on.
This past Wednesday I had to take her to the vet to have her ears rechecked. The vet was going to keep her overnight to have her ears deeply cleaned if there was no improvement. She had hard wax plugs over her eardrums. Fortunately the plugs dissolved and she didn't need additional treatment. But now here's my problem....
I almost had her in the carrier when she freaked out and bolted. It was horrible and she was so afraid and trying to hide. There was nothing else I could do but try to catch her and get her to the vet, but it has been 3 days and she still doesn't trust me now. Things were going so well, and now I feel like I traumatized hery. She doesn't interact like she did, and only when I bring in her food does she come to me. She loved treats, too, and the crinkle of the bag would send her right to me, even putting her paws on my lap to reach the treats. Now she hardly approaches at all. She'll take the treat, then duck back to eat it.
I have been crying for 3 days for what I did to her. I traumatized this sweet little cat. I feel so guilty and sad that I caused her so much stress. Now I feel like she'll never trust me again. I want her to be happy, not scared and stressed, especially after all she has been through. She deserves a good life!
Meanwhile I'm giving her Calming Care in her food, I'm using Jackson Galaxy's Stress Stopper solution, I'm playing soothing music, I go into the room and just be there... no looking at her (slow blinks only), no approaching her, and I talk to her while sometimes reading her stories while I sit or lie on the floor.
I'm so sorry this post went so long. I tried to give as much information as I could without overdoing it.
Is there any hope at all that we can get back to where we were? Any advice you can give is appreciated, and if anyone here has been through a similar situation I would love to hear about it. I just want sweet Reesie to be happy.