I have been feeding and looking after my new in-home feral cat since it was a kitten that was born at my parent's house. For a little over a year, she has been living outside of my parent's house and we would bring her food and water just about every day. We even went out of town for a few days and she never strayed from the house. She has always had the freedom to leave or go anywhere she pleased but she never left. When she was a kitten, she was born with a sister and they were both very close. A few months ago, she got pregnant from another stray and had 3 kittens. She is a relatively small cat though. Two of the kittens died from malnutrition. The last kitten was fatally struck by a car. She lost all her babies. Then one month after that, her sister was struck in the head by some evil person passing by on the street. Unfortunately, her sister a more sociable cat and loved interacting with people. I never knew who killed her but I did discover her body on the sidewalk just outside of my parent's house. I could tell that this loss was affecting the last remaining cat so I decided that enough was enough. I have never cared for a cat before and don't have any experience with strays in the home but I needed to do something. Her life has been sad and I want her remaining years to be filled with as much love and happiness as possible. I was able to safely transport her to the vet to have a full examination and everything checked out great health wise. She is now spayed and I have brought her home to my apartment for the first time. I have read so many articles on what to expect when bringing in a feral cat for the first time, but she is different. She is hiding in dark spaces of the house, but not once has she been aggressive or defensive towards me or anyone else. In fact, throughout her first night in the home, my boyfriend and I have been able to pet her while she was in the dark space and talk to her and she didn't show any defensive signs of aggression. She even came out from the dark space and drank some water from her dish with me sitting right beside it. I wonder if this is happening because I have been knowing her and feeding her since she was a kitten. I even helped to nurse her kittens before they died and she seemed to trust me. Over the past year, I have grown to love this cat and my heart hurts for her many losses, and that is why I finally decided to bring her into my home. I hope she adjusts because I know its much more foreign than living outside all the time. I just want to keep her safe and warm and happy.
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New In-home Feral Cat, Been Knowing Since Kitten Days
- Thread starter rogin1021
- Start Date
Welcome to The Catsite and thank you for caring for this sweet one. You are truly her life saver by bringing her inside to love forever.
It would be best if you gave her a small room of her own for awhile. Having free roam of the apartment is too overwhelming right from the start. If you have a spare room that would be great. If not a bedroom will work as long as you don't let her have access to under the bed. That is the first place she will look to hide and it's nearly impossible to get a cat out from under the bed. I recommend putting the bed flat on the floor for awhile since it is so hard to block under a bed. When I have socialized feral/stray cats I use a spare room and pick the bed up off the floor.
Also block under and behind other large furniture. You want her out in the open as much as possible. Providing her with a safe hiding spot such as a cat carrier, cat cabana style bed, or even a simple card board box with a cozy towel inside. You needs a safe place, but my allowing her to hide in a dark corner or space it will be harder to socialize her.
Be sure there is a litter box or two in the room and it is far enough away from her food and water source. Cats don't like to eat in close proximity to their litter box.
Use food rewards to your advantage. Try plain cooked chicken or even some canned tuna. Another great product is Gerber Stage 2 baby food in chicken or turkey. It comes in a small glass jar with a blue label. The only ingredients are chicken or turkey, water and modified food starch. Most cats go crazy for this.
You can try to lure her out with yummy morsels of food. This is not in place of her regular food, just something to use when working on socializing skills.
She may like soft music playing. Most cats like soft quiet music. I usually use my ipod or phone.
When you are working with her, sit on the floor. Cats don't like it when you loom over them. Also watch eye contact. Many cats don't like when you look them in the eye. Keep your gaze down or over the top of her head.
Ask lots of questions, we are all her to help.
It would be best if you gave her a small room of her own for awhile. Having free roam of the apartment is too overwhelming right from the start. If you have a spare room that would be great. If not a bedroom will work as long as you don't let her have access to under the bed. That is the first place she will look to hide and it's nearly impossible to get a cat out from under the bed. I recommend putting the bed flat on the floor for awhile since it is so hard to block under a bed. When I have socialized feral/stray cats I use a spare room and pick the bed up off the floor.
Also block under and behind other large furniture. You want her out in the open as much as possible. Providing her with a safe hiding spot such as a cat carrier, cat cabana style bed, or even a simple card board box with a cozy towel inside. You needs a safe place, but my allowing her to hide in a dark corner or space it will be harder to socialize her.
Be sure there is a litter box or two in the room and it is far enough away from her food and water source. Cats don't like to eat in close proximity to their litter box.
Use food rewards to your advantage. Try plain cooked chicken or even some canned tuna. Another great product is Gerber Stage 2 baby food in chicken or turkey. It comes in a small glass jar with a blue label. The only ingredients are chicken or turkey, water and modified food starch. Most cats go crazy for this.
You can try to lure her out with yummy morsels of food. This is not in place of her regular food, just something to use when working on socializing skills.
She may like soft music playing. Most cats like soft quiet music. I usually use my ipod or phone.
When you are working with her, sit on the floor. Cats don't like it when you loom over them. Also watch eye contact. Many cats don't like when you look them in the eye. Keep your gaze down or over the top of her head.
Ask lots of questions, we are all her to help.
Check your apartment for holes in the walls - best places to find these:
under sinks, behind toilets
under and in cabinets - use a flashlight the holes will be in the dark corners.
in the backs of closets and on closet shelves.
in the backs of your wooden chests, filing cabinets and media consoles.
Pack away all breakable bric-a-brac vases, figurines and the like. She may panic and in her rush to hide knock them off of a shelf. In time, she will go on all the shelves. It's a cat thing. There will time for these later when she is well settled in and feels very secure.
Pack away heavy bric-a-brac like thick decorative book ends which could hurt her if they fell on her. You'll unpack these later.
Put your dishes and glassware in cabinets with doors. Get in the habit of putting them up. Again, while she's skittish, she may take off and push a plate off a counter.
You are doing something wonderful and special by taking the little one and making her life safe and good.
under sinks, behind toilets
under and in cabinets - use a flashlight the holes will be in the dark corners.
in the backs of closets and on closet shelves.
in the backs of your wooden chests, filing cabinets and media consoles.
Pack away all breakable bric-a-brac vases, figurines and the like. She may panic and in her rush to hide knock them off of a shelf. In time, she will go on all the shelves. It's a cat thing. There will time for these later when she is well settled in and feels very secure.
Pack away heavy bric-a-brac like thick decorative book ends which could hurt her if they fell on her. You'll unpack these later.
Put your dishes and glassware in cabinets with doors. Get in the habit of putting them up. Again, while she's skittish, she may take off and push a plate off a counter.
You are doing something wonderful and special by taking the little one and making her life safe and good.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #4
Thank you so much for the feedback and support. I am happy to report that she is definitely adjusting well to the apartment. My living room is small in size and that's the area that I have her in. She is now using the litter box filled with organic potting soil and later on as she gets more comfortable I will mix the dirt with kitty litter. Hopefully by next month or so she will be using full kitty litter. The is a familiarity between us because I have been caring for her since she was a kitten. I think it is more so the environment that she is not used to. I did the Feliway plug-in and so far so good. I think it really does help her adjust a little better. I am going to be patient with her in understanding that it's not easy to go from the freedom of outdoors to a vet and then to such a small enclosed area. A part of me felt bad that I was taking her away from the beauty of the outdoors where she was free to roam and do her own thing, but it was ultimately the danger and the cold weather that had me deciding to bring her indoors. I hope that overall she is happy with this change of lifestyle.
My rescues though not ferals have been happy to become indoor kits. Many say they don't know the dangers outside so even if they die young they were happy. I think they are well aware of the dangers and that knowledge is stressful for them. Outdoor cats sleep light, nap/resting alert to every noise around them. We know this because once they are inside with a safe place to hide they sleep heavy for a very long time. Days, weeks, years of exhaustion catches up with them, just as it does people.
It sounds like she's more like a stray and not so much feral which is awesome. I think with time and patience she will come out of her shell more and be happy and safe!
Great suggestions above so not much to add.. let her hide. When she comes out playing with her is a good way to get her to let her guard down and feel comfortable/confident. Noodle was really frightened and oly came out from under the bed at night to slink to her food when we got her. She cowered in a corner at the shelter. But when she came out at night, we started coaxing her with a feather toy and playing, and it made a huge difference. Then all of a sudden she came to us for pets and turned into a compeltely different cat in a week.
Glad to hear another kitty is safe and taken care of thanks to you
Great suggestions above so not much to add.. let her hide. When she comes out playing with her is a good way to get her to let her guard down and feel comfortable/confident. Noodle was really frightened and oly came out from under the bed at night to slink to her food when we got her. She cowered in a corner at the shelter. But when she came out at night, we started coaxing her with a feather toy and playing, and it made a huge difference. Then all of a sudden she came to us for pets and turned into a compeltely different cat in a week.
Glad to hear another kitty is safe and taken care of thanks to you
Hello and welcome to TCS. Thank you so much for bringing that dear kitty inside. The losses she suffered, and you as well, are heart-breaking. Thanks to you, she will now have a good life with people who love her.
TCS has several articles that you may find helpful, so I'll post the links below.
Good luck with her. Keep us updated on her progress.
And post pictures of her, when you can.
How To Add A Picture To Your Forum Post
Here are the article links:
Handling Feral Cats
The Five Golden Rules To Bringing An Outdoor Cat Inside
First-time Cat Owner's Guide
How To Help A New Cat Adjust To Your Home
How To Get A Cat To Come Out Of Hiding?
10 Must-know Tips For Happy Living With A Shy Cat
16 Top Cat Experts Share Tips For Dealing With Timid Cats
TCS has several articles that you may find helpful, so I'll post the links below.
Good luck with her. Keep us updated on her progress.
And post pictures of her, when you can.
How To Add A Picture To Your Forum Post
Here are the article links:
Handling Feral Cats
The Five Golden Rules To Bringing An Outdoor Cat Inside
First-time Cat Owner's Guide
How To Help A New Cat Adjust To Your Home
How To Get A Cat To Come Out Of Hiding?
10 Must-know Tips For Happy Living With A Shy Cat
16 Top Cat Experts Share Tips For Dealing With Timid Cats
Thank you for rescuing that sweet kitty! She has suffered so many losses. KFlowers is right about most ferals living life in constant high alert. Please keep us posted on how things are going and if you get a chance, mention which of the links had the tips you liked best that Rubysmama posted. I hope to see pics soon!
