Help! Just took in 5mos stray-Desperate for Advice

Hello everyone,

Took in a 5mos old stray male grey tabby who was living down the block with a bunch of his siblings. He was caught & fixed on 11/20 Thursday and we brought him into our bathroom that night. We already have a 6yr old female cat who is not the friendliest...

Long story short, we had him in a crate in the bathroom for 2days and last night let him out in the bathroom. He had been crying a bit but he cried all night nonstop once we let him have free roam of the bathroom. Everyone was miserable.

He lets me touch him during feeding but is not that comfortable yet. If I put my hand towards his head to pet him, he gets scared. He will eat food off my fingers & hands- so that's hopeful right? He also started cleaning himself in front of me & uses the litterbox.

I know he really needs a lot of attention & company because he cries & cries, but if someone is in the bathroom with him, he falls asleep. The most upsetting thing is that every time I come into the bathroom is hisses at me and no one else. I am his primary caretaker and I just don't understand what the initial hissing is about. He only does it in the beginning when I come in but then stops. It's quite upsetting. Any ideas? Also any tips on how to socialize him to petting and such would be great. He won't let me wipe him down or pick him up yet. Please advise, I want to do things the right way so that he can be a confident socialized home kitty.

Lastly,I also found a very long white "string" in his poop- think it might be a worm- does that mean he has been dewormed or do I need to deworm him?
He also sneezed a few times today, but I see that he has had the FVRCP vaccine but I am worried about my 6yr old who is not up to date on vaccines because she's had bad reactions to them & has been an only indoor cat.

I appreciate any advice, sorry for the long post. Feeling at my wits' end from lack of sleep from little guy's crying & yowling all night...help!

OK - don't worry too much.

He'll take time to warm up - give him a month, most likely more than that. A lot has happened recently. Just take things slowly, on his time table. I usually just sit & talk to the scaredy cats - let them become accustomed to me before I start "pushing the envelope".

Was he fixed at like a low-cost clinic or where?

As for the worm - was he dewormed? That's something you need to find out - talk to the vet about it. They can test a stool sample for you to determine what kinds of worms he has, if any.

The sneezing is likely a URI/Upper Respiratory Infection - common in cats, esp. this time of year. I'd take him in to the vet & see about getting anti-biotics.

Did that answer all of your questions?

thank you WCL! I guess I am worrying too much, just a lot of other things going and this is the first time I have brought in a stray. My 6yr old was a 8wk old kitten of a stray when I took her in.

The little guy was taken to the ASPCA to be fixed by the woman who feeds the strays down the block. His paperwork has checked off: rabies vaccine, revolution for cats, SNAP Test & FVRCP Vaccine. Strongid (deworming) not checked. His test is FElv/FIV negative. Guess I need to get him dewormed because there was definitely something long & stringy in his poop...

Hope he stops crying soon. Just want to do the right things to make sure he turns out socialized & sweet...

Talk to your vet re: deworming - Revolution does cover some worms. I'd also check with your vet to find out when he needs a distemper/FVRCP booster shot. Here, a booster is needed 3-4 weeks after the intial shot (than one week past that they are UTD on distemper shots for a year).

If he's sneezing - the sooner you talk to the about URI, the better, especially in such a young kitten. They take hold rapidly. (I'm spastic about URIs - as some kitties at the shelter have had a hard time fighting them off))

Good for you for rescueing him. Is there someone taking care of his siblings? Will they also be spayed/neutered? I hope they also find homes or at least have a caretaker.

If you want to PM me, I would be happy to help you. You also check out my blog www.feralcatbehavior.com where I give anyone who cares to read it a glimpse about what life is like living with a multitude of stray and or feral cats.

WLC- thanks will do, might actually have a housecall vet because don't want to stress my cat & the stray even more by trying to pack them up in a carrier! And looks like little guy won't need booster until 2009 but will double check that !

KRZ- out of the group of strays that my little guy was with, his little sister also caught & fixed- still trying to find a home for her...she's awfully cute! and there's also another boy & girl about 10mos old also trapped & fixed & recovering, will try to find homes for them too, but the woman who is fostering them through the spay neuter recovery cannot keep them for much longer and unfortunately, they might have to be put back on the street. But I am hoping that by some miracle we find homes before they are put back out...My best-friend also took in one boy who is 10 mos old. It's been a busy week!

Hissy- will definitely PM you and check out your blog! thank you again!

Some vets only give kittens 1 distemper shot - I've seen kittens die from distemper they contracted after getting the initial shot - so talk to your vet about it.