Hello! New to adopting and cat keeping, and figured I should come ask for advice from veteran owners. I apologize in advance for the long post!
I'm not new to having animals in the house and currently have a 15 year old Silky Terrier (Coco) and a leopard gecko (Nidhogg). I've had my dog as a single pet since she was 2 months old, and hasn't been super well trained since I was very young and my parents didn't know much about dog obedience (also probably didn't think much of it because she was such a sweet and quiet puppy when we first got her- didn't even teeth on things or bark!). But this is a separate issue I'd like to address later when I eventually introduce my resident grandma to the new cat.
As for the new kitty Haki... I adopted him just under a week ago (Feb 11th). He was found Feb 03 dodging cars in the street by animal control, allegedly, so it's no surprise that he's very fearful of everything going on around him. Estimated to be 5-6 months old. I've done my research before adopting any cat and have been keeping Haki in my apartment bathroom to help him adjust to the new surrounding and smells, and it seems that he has been adjusting fairly well... I think. I have a small cat tree in the bathroom, litter box, bowl of water and food at all times, plenty of throws fluffed in a corner that has been used by me / boyfriend / and dog for him to sniff at. He likes to hide by the toilet, though recently I've walked in on him lounging around the sink counter and in the little cat tree by the door. I have yet to see him even interact a tiny bit with the throws on the floor. He doesn't run or hide when my boyfriend or I walk in either. A lot of the time, his eyes are half closed like he's about to pass out any moment. He's actually very welcoming of slow hands, purring quite loudly and headbutting / rubbing his face.
He hasn't approached me on his own quite yet even though I spend almost every free time just sitting in the bathroom with him. I read, nap, and talk to him frequently. I might be clocking 2-5 hours a day with him on the bathroom floor (which my boyfriend finds amusing, and dog not entirely happy with my disappearance). He's only hissed at me twice without swiping when I might have reached out to pet him a little too quickly, but he's very calm and purrs loudly as soon as I start lightly stroking him and often headbutts my palm, but never comes out on his own to "chase" for more pets. He doesn't resist or really run to hide when I go to pick him up either. In fact, he purrs loudly and snuggles up on me as soon as I plop him down on my lap. He's fallen asleep on my chest for 3 hours a couple days ago, waking every so often to stretch / knead/ purr/ headbutt against my chin then falling straight back asleep. My back was killing me, but I had to endure for the furbaby, haha. I brought him out to the couch one time to let him observe the living room, and he was just so good and napped on me / next to me with his claws in my jeans.
But what confuses me is his still very shy/fearful behavior around me. Even though he loves being held and pet and shows all the affectionate behaviors, he has yet to approach me AT ALL on his own. He's very aware of my presence and is always looking whenever I'm around him in the little bathroom. He doesn't walk around at all with me in the room, the most being that he snuck over to sniff at my chocolate shake before curling back up by the toilet and looking as if he's about to fall asleep. I've tried playing with him, but he doesn't seem interested in any string, toy, or laser. He recently became interested in the treats I've been giving him, but I also don't know if it's healthy to give him so many. He eats and uses the litter box wonderfully, even in my presence. It also seems to kind of freak him out whenever I stand, as if he didn't realize how big I really am. I locked my dog in my bedroom while she was napping to let the cat explore the living room a bit, but he crouches in utter fear with his big eyes whenever I walk by him. I'm still keeping him in the bathroom until I'm sure he feels safe with me, and until I can figure out a way to properly introduce the cat and dog together with the least amount of stress on both animals, but I figure it would be nice to let him slowly become accustomed to the rest of the apartment. Not sure if I should be doing that... But would it be a good idea to keep him in the bathroom until I'm sure he's comfortable with me and eager to go out to the living room? Or is that just suffocating...? He hasn't shown much interest beyond the bathroom door yet, honestly. How long should I wait before I even think about introducing the two animals?
I'm super new to cat behavior as an owner and completely new to keeping more than one 4-legged furbaby in the same living space, so I'm not exactly sure if I'm helping him adjust properly or if I'm rushing anything. I've already seen first hand how wonderfully sweet he is, and I just want to give him all my love and have all my animals be content around each other, haha. Any and all advice is MUCH MUCH appreciated! Again, sorry about the long post! Thank you so much for even reading this far!!
[Side note: Regarding my dog, she's been a single pet and hasn't been very well socialized with other animals as I used to live in a neighborhood that didn't have many dogs. She used to show "excitable / aggressive" behavior toward other dogs when she was younger, but with age, she seemed to mellow out. Nowadays, she stands her ground a distance away and watches other dogs on walks instead of running after them, and I haven't seen her chase after a squirrel in years. Often at home, she's sleeping around me or in my closet and I walk her at least once a day for about 20 minutes. She still got quite a bit of life in her, but the only time she's truly unreasonably excitable is when there are treats and food involved. It's my fault for not properly conditioning her, but I've made active efforts to curb her behavior. I made the mistake of keeping the bathroom door open a crack, and Haki peeked out. Coco didn't notice him until he turned a corner and she immediately ran after him while growling and yipping (thank god I'm quick enough to catch her before she even got anywhere near him). The boyfriend eventually coaxed the kitty out of the kitchen corner, and while it was cute to see Haki proudly perch himself on my boyfriend's leg like "haha you can't get me", I'm truly worried about having to socialize my dog with the cat. There were other times Coco tried lunging at the cat while both of them were in the living room with me heavily supervising (dog on the ground and too old to really make one clean jump on the couch, cat on the couch with me). I'm in my apartment alone most of the day, and I have no idea how to keep an excitable dog and a cautious cat safe while I try introducing them. Also, my dog is stupid (in the most loving way) and I'm sure she hasn't truly noticed the cat's presence via smell. I've even plopped a towel with Haki's smell in her sleeping corner and she hasn't actually sniffed it or showed any interest or acknowledgement. She literally only noticed him when she sees him visually.]
I'm not new to having animals in the house and currently have a 15 year old Silky Terrier (Coco) and a leopard gecko (Nidhogg). I've had my dog as a single pet since she was 2 months old, and hasn't been super well trained since I was very young and my parents didn't know much about dog obedience (also probably didn't think much of it because she was such a sweet and quiet puppy when we first got her- didn't even teeth on things or bark!). But this is a separate issue I'd like to address later when I eventually introduce my resident grandma to the new cat.
As for the new kitty Haki... I adopted him just under a week ago (Feb 11th). He was found Feb 03 dodging cars in the street by animal control, allegedly, so it's no surprise that he's very fearful of everything going on around him. Estimated to be 5-6 months old. I've done my research before adopting any cat and have been keeping Haki in my apartment bathroom to help him adjust to the new surrounding and smells, and it seems that he has been adjusting fairly well... I think. I have a small cat tree in the bathroom, litter box, bowl of water and food at all times, plenty of throws fluffed in a corner that has been used by me / boyfriend / and dog for him to sniff at. He likes to hide by the toilet, though recently I've walked in on him lounging around the sink counter and in the little cat tree by the door. I have yet to see him even interact a tiny bit with the throws on the floor. He doesn't run or hide when my boyfriend or I walk in either. A lot of the time, his eyes are half closed like he's about to pass out any moment. He's actually very welcoming of slow hands, purring quite loudly and headbutting / rubbing his face.
He hasn't approached me on his own quite yet even though I spend almost every free time just sitting in the bathroom with him. I read, nap, and talk to him frequently. I might be clocking 2-5 hours a day with him on the bathroom floor (which my boyfriend finds amusing, and dog not entirely happy with my disappearance). He's only hissed at me twice without swiping when I might have reached out to pet him a little too quickly, but he's very calm and purrs loudly as soon as I start lightly stroking him and often headbutts my palm, but never comes out on his own to "chase" for more pets. He doesn't resist or really run to hide when I go to pick him up either. In fact, he purrs loudly and snuggles up on me as soon as I plop him down on my lap. He's fallen asleep on my chest for 3 hours a couple days ago, waking every so often to stretch / knead/ purr/ headbutt against my chin then falling straight back asleep. My back was killing me, but I had to endure for the furbaby, haha. I brought him out to the couch one time to let him observe the living room, and he was just so good and napped on me / next to me with his claws in my jeans.
But what confuses me is his still very shy/fearful behavior around me. Even though he loves being held and pet and shows all the affectionate behaviors, he has yet to approach me AT ALL on his own. He's very aware of my presence and is always looking whenever I'm around him in the little bathroom. He doesn't walk around at all with me in the room, the most being that he snuck over to sniff at my chocolate shake before curling back up by the toilet and looking as if he's about to fall asleep. I've tried playing with him, but he doesn't seem interested in any string, toy, or laser. He recently became interested in the treats I've been giving him, but I also don't know if it's healthy to give him so many. He eats and uses the litter box wonderfully, even in my presence. It also seems to kind of freak him out whenever I stand, as if he didn't realize how big I really am. I locked my dog in my bedroom while she was napping to let the cat explore the living room a bit, but he crouches in utter fear with his big eyes whenever I walk by him. I'm still keeping him in the bathroom until I'm sure he feels safe with me, and until I can figure out a way to properly introduce the cat and dog together with the least amount of stress on both animals, but I figure it would be nice to let him slowly become accustomed to the rest of the apartment. Not sure if I should be doing that... But would it be a good idea to keep him in the bathroom until I'm sure he's comfortable with me and eager to go out to the living room? Or is that just suffocating...? He hasn't shown much interest beyond the bathroom door yet, honestly. How long should I wait before I even think about introducing the two animals?
I'm super new to cat behavior as an owner and completely new to keeping more than one 4-legged furbaby in the same living space, so I'm not exactly sure if I'm helping him adjust properly or if I'm rushing anything. I've already seen first hand how wonderfully sweet he is, and I just want to give him all my love and have all my animals be content around each other, haha. Any and all advice is MUCH MUCH appreciated! Again, sorry about the long post! Thank you so much for even reading this far!!
[Side note: Regarding my dog, she's been a single pet and hasn't been very well socialized with other animals as I used to live in a neighborhood that didn't have many dogs. She used to show "excitable / aggressive" behavior toward other dogs when she was younger, but with age, she seemed to mellow out. Nowadays, she stands her ground a distance away and watches other dogs on walks instead of running after them, and I haven't seen her chase after a squirrel in years. Often at home, she's sleeping around me or in my closet and I walk her at least once a day for about 20 minutes. She still got quite a bit of life in her, but the only time she's truly unreasonably excitable is when there are treats and food involved. It's my fault for not properly conditioning her, but I've made active efforts to curb her behavior. I made the mistake of keeping the bathroom door open a crack, and Haki peeked out. Coco didn't notice him until he turned a corner and she immediately ran after him while growling and yipping (thank god I'm quick enough to catch her before she even got anywhere near him). The boyfriend eventually coaxed the kitty out of the kitchen corner, and while it was cute to see Haki proudly perch himself on my boyfriend's leg like "haha you can't get me", I'm truly worried about having to socialize my dog with the cat. There were other times Coco tried lunging at the cat while both of them were in the living room with me heavily supervising (dog on the ground and too old to really make one clean jump on the couch, cat on the couch with me). I'm in my apartment alone most of the day, and I have no idea how to keep an excitable dog and a cautious cat safe while I try introducing them. Also, my dog is stupid (in the most loving way) and I'm sure she hasn't truly noticed the cat's presence via smell. I've even plopped a towel with Haki's smell in her sleeping corner and she hasn't actually sniffed it or showed any interest or acknowledgement. She literally only noticed him when she sees him visually.]
And congrats on your adoption of little Haki. 
Could it be the stronger dog scent, or is a new area simply that terrifying for the little guy? But even in the bathroom, he doesn't approach me or even move around while I'm in there with him. He still doesn't show any interest in play either or really moving about the bathroom at all. YET, he very rarely runs away from me while we're in the bathroom and is usually incredibly receptive of petting (though I've made the decision to not overwhelm him with my affection and have been actively avoiding touching him). I've noticed new signs of his comfort around me: always stretching out when he sleeps, rolling over to show his belly at times, shyly peeking over at me from the cat tree, yawning right in front of me, and it seems like he's starting to recognize his name (or he's starting to respond to my voice at least??). I'm absolutely in love with the confidence that he's been showing! 
