Newly Adopted 5 Mo. Old Terrified Of Toys!

[goosed]

Hi! New here, but have appreciated advice I have read on this forum thus far.

One week ago, I adopted a ~5 mo. old kitten from the Humane Society. He is underweight and recovering from a URI w/fever, so he has had a bit of a rough start. However, he is starting to be curious and explore.

I don't think this kitten has ever seen toys or really played, and I'm having a tough time introducing them. Obviously it will help once he is fully over his URI, but if I show him any toy (ball, mouse, interactive wand, etc.), he backs up, squints his eyes, and begins to drool heavily. I don't know what to make of this!

My resident 2 year old cat is a big fan of this little guy and they have started playing chase/sneak attack, so I am hopeful that he can help teach him that toys are fun, too. Do you have any other advice?

 

[susanm9006]

I think he needs to discover the toys at his own pace. It may be that it isn’t that he doesn’t know what a toy is as much as he is suspicious of everything new. So leave the toys out and around but don’t try to lead him to or show him them. He will eventually get around to sniffing them and checking them out. And yes, I also think that your older cat will demonstrate what fun toys are and once he relaxes your new guy will jump in.

 

[Mamanyt1953]

I absolutely canNOT do any better than susanm9006 has already done. You're right, he probably has no idea what a toy is, and, being sick and in a new place, he'll need time to recover and acclimate to his new home. I'm betting that within a very few weeks, your resident cat will have taught him the joys of "mowzies".

 

[rubysmama]

Hello and welcome to TCS. And congrats on the adoption of your little 5 month old kitten. Hopefully he'll be feeling better soon.

Please consider introducing him, and yourself, in our New Cats on the Block forum.

About toys, TCS has a short article on Choosing The Right Cat Toy For Your Kitten which might be helpful.

But cats don't even have to have bought cat toys. Most will play with everyday things like a foil ball, or a paper towel roll cut into smaller rings. We had a cat once who would grab at a piece of tissue we'd slide out under a closed door.

I'm sure once he's feeling better, you'll discover he will play with pretty much anything he finds interesting, so make sure you put away any breakables.