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Why does she hiss at me in the morning?

post #1 of 10
6/17/10 at 10:49pm
Thread Starter 
We have an odd but dear young cat. I am usually the first up, as I am this morning. Emily spent a good 5 minutes hissing at me, even after I had cleaned up the crap she left in the hall way and had feed her. Every morning it seems she starts with these hisses. Am I surprising her or what? Otherwise she seems to like me.
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post #2 of 10
6/17/10 at 11:43pm
Sounds a bit strange to me, but minor.

1. How young is young?

2. How long has she been yours? (Did you adopt her when she was tiny?)

3. Have you moved to a new house recently?
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post #3 of 10
6/18/10 at 1:06pm
Does she strike out at you? Does she let you handle her while she is hissing?

I agree, it seems odd, but all cats have their quirks and some will hiss just because they are excited--not due to any aggression towards you. If the hissing is the only thing she does, I'd say it's just her doing her thing that makes her unique.
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post #4 of 10
6/18/10 at 4:42pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by emilydickinson View Post
We have an odd but dear young cat. I am usually the first up, as I am this morning. Emily spent a good 5 minutes hissing at me, even after I had cleaned up the crap she left in the hall way and had feed her. Every morning it seems she starts with these hisses. Am I surprising her or what? Otherwise she seems to like me.
Without more information it is basically impossible to suggest anything, but I can tell you that cleaning up her "crap" in the hall and feeding her isn't going to resolve whatever is causing her to behave this way. She is either physically ill or impaired or extremely stressed.......
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post #5 of 10
6/18/10 at 4:48pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by emilydickinson View Post
after I had cleaned up the crap she left in the hall way
Is she messing on the floor or in her litter box?
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post #6 of 10
6/19/10 at 4:21pm
Thread Starter 
So, we found our dear kitten, emily dickinson, at the warehouse where I work 3 months ago. She was obviously feral and was about 4 months old when we took her home. She is our only cat and we live in a rather small London flat.

She is still rather feral; will only let us pet her if she is eating her cat treats or cat milk. She does seem to like us. Lots of showing us her belly and slow blinks. If we are in the living room, so is she. If we are in the bedroom, so is she. For the first month of her time with us, my husband was working from home. Now both of us are out of the house during the day. I do more of the feeding as I wake up first and am home first. I am also the one who hisses at her when she attacks my feet while sleeping. My husband has an animalistic reflex and kicks back.

We managed to catch her once to take to the vet where she was deemed to feral to treat as is. My plan is to take her to the special feral cat charity vet later this week, assuming we can get her in the crusher cage.
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post #7 of 10
6/19/10 at 4:23pm
Thread Starter 
oh it seems like 98% she manages to poop in her box, and the other 2% is else where. I clean her box religiously. Luckily much our home is tiled and easy to clean.
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post #8 of 10
6/19/10 at 6:50pm
You are an angel for rescuing a feral kitten, and she sounds so grateful but confused , wanting to trust this new environment, but just doesn't know how. The fact that she is feral makes it even more difficult since you can't physically encourage her in any way.
You mentioned you tried to take her to the vet and am I correct understanding they were unable to examine or vaccinate? She is not spayed as well?
I would definitely try to find a vet or animal clinic who will vaccinate, spay and give a thorough examination, obviously while she is under sedation. It is best to avoid extreme stress and any form of where she sees you as a threat. I'm not sure what a crusher cage is, but I am thinking it is similar to a cattle shoot? If so, this is the worst thing for her to experience as a feral not trusting humans. Cats are very smart and instinctive, they remember everything. From birth to 12 months old is the most impressionable time for them.
A few suggestions that may help build trust between you. Give her space, don't try to touch her or draw her to you in the morning. Basically ignore her but talk to her giving her the space she needs to stop reacting defensive. If she hisses at all, walk away. Also sitting next to her while she eats but not touching her or staring at her. Let her come to you, if you reach out to her and she flinches or runs, ignore her reaction. The trick with cats is it is all up to them. You can't make them do anything they don't want to, but once you gain their trust, they are followers.
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post #9 of 10
6/20/10 at 3:21am
Thread Starter 
The crush cage was lent to us by a feral cap TNR charity. Here is a pic of something similar: http://www.wiretainers.com.au/index....4&det_switch=1

I get the impression from the vets/ feral cat charities I've talked to that these are the desired way to receive feral cats for treatment. Obviously, getting her into it is the hard part.

In the past 3 months she has really come around. For the first couple weeks she was basically invisible and now she really seems to love to spend time with us. We recently went on holiday and when we came back she wouldn't let us out of her sight.
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post #10 of 10
6/20/10 at 11:24pm
Thread Starter 
She just did it again! I woke up and she stood near me and started huffing. It is more of a loud exhale than a hiss. So went back to bed for a second and then started to slowly move to the kitchen. It was kinda scary how much huffing and puffing she was making. She'd come up to me and huff and there was no way for me to back away. I think it is more huffing than hissing, but it doesnt feel like a happy cat gesture.
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