Rescued scared cat

[shaunahsquires]

Just rescued a cat who’s previous owners had bipolar. She’s extremely scared and timid.
We’ve set her up in our spare bedroom with lots of hiding spaces and plenty of food and treats. Was just looking for any additional advice that might be of help?
we’re being super quiet around her but she’s so traumatised, it’s sad to see it

 

[DreamerRose]

It is sad. Keep on doing what you're doing. It could take a month for her to relax. You could also sit on the floor and read her a book so she gets used to your voice.

 

[FeebysOwner]

I don't know if there are any tips in these TCS articles that might help, but it can't hurt to take a look and see.
How To Help An Abused Cat Recover – TheCatSite Articles
10 Must-know Tips For Happy Living With A Shy Cat – TheCatSite Articles
16 Top Cat Experts Share Tips For Dealing With Timid Cats – TheCatSite Articles

It will take time, perhaps a long time, but she will eventually learn that she can trust you and feel safe with you.

 

[Furballsmom]

Was just looking for any additional advice that might be of help?

Hi -
bless your hearts for saving her! and for giving her the space to learn about her new normal in her own time.

Along with the great comments above, try a purr toy and/or a heartbeat toy, and also try some Cat Music; There's Relax My Cat, Music For Cats, and spotify and other sources have harp music for cats.

 

[Bluelett]

How did it turn out? I am fostering a very scared, shut-down cat. He is "frozen" when we are in his room. How long did it take your furry one to come around and what did you do that seemed to help?

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi, have you had a chance to read through the suggestions and links above?

Are you sitting on the floor, not looking directly at him (that can seem aggressive to a cat) and simply read aloud to him, or just work on your phone/tablet? Try putting a treat in the middle of the floor but again, ignore him otherwise. Try rubbing some catnip in your shoes.

It will take as long as it takes and while one thing works for one cat it might not for the next, because every cat is different .

 

[neely]

Thank you for giving this cat a second chance. Patience and time are the two key factors to help her adjust to your home. When we adopted our present cat who came from a hoarder we bought this kitty tent to make him feel more secure. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00WMVUUXC/?tag=thecatsite
As other members have said be as quiet as possible, give her space, talk softly and let her come to you at her own pace. Once she realizes you are not a threat and she is safe her true personality will shine. Good luck!

 

[Bluelett]

Thank you both.

I've read through posters' suggestions, and have done some reading online. I'll check out the links posted above.

I've tried many things: Quiet alone time, playing cat purring sounds, cat music, talk radio, treats (various), toys, Feliway, Rescue remedy, catnip, spending time in there doing my own thing (puzzle on the floor, reading (sometimes aloud to him), on my computer) - not focusing on him, giving him alone time, having set feeding times so he associates food with me (but I haven't stuck to that as he appears to be able to go long stretches of time without eating! He's quite chubby, and isn't moving around much, so likely doesn't need a lot, but I do want to make sure he's still eating some so he doesn't have further issues).

The only thing I haven't tried that I've read about (so far) was blocking off under the futon (which is where he's hiding out most of the time) - mainly b/c I can't figure out how to block it off., and part of it is patience on my part, in terms of sticking with an approach for enough time.

Since he hides under the futon much of the time, I do look under to see where he is, and we are having eye contact (which I then give him the slow blink). But I'll try more to shift from maintaining any eye contact with him.

Some positive tiny shifts: He has started to sometimes sleep in the cat cave that's on top of the futon. And we can go in and out of the room and he just stays wherever he is... no movement while we are there. No sniffing at treats we offer. No following a toy with his eyes.

And I have pet him when he's been in his cat cave and he doesn't move, hiss, swat... nada. Tolerates it. But when I leave the room he will then relocate from there to back under the futon for a long time. I don't know whether petting him shows him how good it can feel and how gentle I can be, or if I should maybe not even touch him when he's in his cat cave so it's his safe space that's ON the futon rather than under. (I'm leaning toward doing the second from now on.)

He also will now come out at some points during the day to eat or use the litter box, but he can also sit for 12+ hours under the bed doing nothing. The first week he only came out at night. I started sleeping in there last week, and on the 3rd night he did come out and eat while I was in the room. I heard him eating but as soon as I twitch or move at all, he goes back under the futon.

So I may see what I can do about blocking off under the futon, but still having cat caves etc. he can hide in. He has 3 cozy places I set up and he's so far only used 1 (cat cave on futon) or sits under the futon on the wood floor.

I'll read the linked articles above and see if I can get some new ideas. If I had adopted him and could give him months and years of letting him do his own thing, that'd be one thing. But I'm fostering in order to help him be more sociable so that he can get adopted. And then I worry if he eventually comes out with me, will he go back to hiding when he gets adopted and have to do it all over?? Will he feel abandoned again? So hard to know.

 

[Bluelett]

OK... Here's my new plan:
- no petting the cat until he comes to us (we blew that!)
- minimizing eye contact (altho we need to check in on him from time to time and if he's under the couch, he's usually looking directly at us when we look under... will try to limit how much we check on him!)
- continue spending time in his room doing my own thing
- continue putting food and treats in there. Try toys periodically (self-play toys are available to him all the time)
And mostly have patience! ;-)

 

[Furballsmom]

Your plan sounds great

 

[FeebysOwner]

I agree with Furballsmom !!!

 

[dividedsky]

It sounds like you're making progress. I adopted a very scared semi feral cat that ran away for awhile and was returned recently. Before he hid under the cabinets and wouldn't come out. On return I blocked all the "unders" and he has made huge progress.

Also I just wanted to add that the fact the previous owner was "bipolar" has little to do with it's behavior now. There are people in my family that struggle with mental illness everyday and they treat their animals so well. I know you weren't trying to be offensive but please give more thought to this in the future.

 

[Meekie]

A cat will need to become comfortable with his new home before he will consider being comfortable with you, so a lot of time spent alone to explore his space on his own might yield positive results.

I have a fifteen month old who was poorly socialized as a kitten so it took awhile for her too. One thing I learned is that any interaction should be solely the cat's choice. I spent a lot of time reading and hanging out in the room I had my kitten in, but I'm not sure if it didn't seem threatening to her: think of the way a cat will play with or maim a mouse and then just sit there and watch it struggle. A traumatized cat will likely feel like captured prey in a new environment with unfamiliar people.

It may be frustrating, but I believe you should always let the cat make the first move. No touching until he comes to you. And if your eyes meet, a slow blink from you will go a long way. Once he comes out of his shell a bit you can try a little more contact.

Also, observe his reaction to anything you do while interacting. Every cat is different, and I was surprised to learn that making kissing noises was threatening to mine! We're so wired to think that certain things are comforting to a cat that sometimes we're blind to the individual cat's preference. For example, my Maple is ok with having her back feet touched but not her paws! Go figure. I have been putting off her first nail trimming for fear that it will be quite a bloody affair.