Horatio's New Best Friend

Some of you might remember our adventure of taking Horatio in about 10 months ago. For those of you who wondered, he has developed into a super addition to our indoor family. One of our two girls inside, Katie, has become fast friends with him and they take naps and play together now. Bianca, our alpha girl, is happy to have reinforced her dominance and has moved on to the "acceptance" level. But I'm writing tonight with yet another quandary. Over the summer, we had a young orange short-hair female give birth to three kittens in our neighbor's yard. All three were adorable. Both our neighbor and us kept an eye on them. Two out of three disappeared over the summer. Then the mama cat left. The darling tortie calico kitten stayed here. And yes, we started feeding her. So, now she's extremely attached. Never wanders off. At this point, she's probably pushing 12-16 weeks. Haven't tried TNR. Think she needs a home before the winter. Horatio talks to her through our windows, we think he told her this is the home to be in. But, we live in a no-pets rental already with 3 cats. We can't take her in. Any advice? We are in NE Kansas, close to the Kansas City area. Anyone know of any good foster networks?

Hi!! I remember the story of Horatio and your girls very well. I'm so glad to hear that Horatio is fitting in so nicely!!

Try No More Homeless Pets. If nothing else they have a great spay/neuter program. Also try Animal Haven, HELP Humane, and The Pet Connection. Most are located in Mission, with HELP in Belton. All have foster programs, although I don't know how full they are at this time of year. I think the Lawrence shelter also has a foster program, although I haven't worked with them in the past so don't know for sure.

Thank you, so much for the advice, Amy I figured someone might remember us in this forum. The tortie-calico kitten has taken a liking to her outdoor shelter already. We took a large pet taxi and wrapped it in plastic insulation and placed it on our porch. There are shirts and blankets inside, and she seems to cuddle in them overnight for warmth. We are already using our social media networks to find her a home. We won't take her to the Lawrence shelter, as it is not a No-kill shelter. Worst case scenario, we will get heating pads for her shelter and try to do TNR. Our main worry is her getting pregnant in the spring if we don't find a home for her. So, we will make sure that doesn't happen. In the meanwhile, she is breaking our hearts daily, clinging to the window screens and begging to come inside. In the last two years, we've learned so much about stray/feral care, yet it is still difficult to deal with it. You just want to take them all in and make them happy.

Bless you for wanting to care for her. It is the hardest thing to not be able to take them all in,, I know that. But if you get her spayed and provide her with shelter and food, that is a good thing!

If you have a shelter already, that is great. I have used Purr Pads, they come in a set of 2 and I found them at Petsmart and Petco. I line the shelter with them and then load the shelter with straw. The liners provide warmth and block the wind and the kitties love to snuggle in the straw. When it gets really cold, I put one of the heat reflector pads, also at those stores, right in with the straw.

That should keep her warm and safe during the winter months. But I will say a prayer that you find her a wonderful forever home.

I will run out to Petco and get those Purr Pads. My hubby should be bringing a straw bale any minute, since we learned that straw is better when it's rainy/snowy. It's supposed to snow tonight, so please keep "Cleo" in your thoughts

Don't even talk about snow!!!!

Hay does work very well btw. I used it to insulate the base of my old farm house each winter and it kept the floor temperature inside the house about 10 degrees warmer than without the hay.

That's so wonderful to hear about Horatio!

Re: this little one... She's old enough to be spayed now, and it's something to think about. Rescues are more likely to take her if she's already vetted - and it's easier to adopt her out for the same reason.

When you're contacting the rescues, you may also want to ask about where there are low- or no-cost spay/neuter services in the area.

Originally Posted by LDG

When you're contacting the rescues, you may also want to ask about where there are low- or no-cost spay/neuter services in the area.

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No More Homeless Pets sponsors the best rates that I've found around here. They do a lot of TNR, and only charge people what they can afford to speuter their pets. They have been known to do it for free for very poor people.

Gail is the president if you do call them. She's brought the shelter euthanasia rate down by about 70% in this area. I volunteer for them from time to time.

No snow yet:-) Cleo has adapted really well to the outdoor shelter and likes the addition of hay/straw. If I cannot find a permanent home for her soon, I will contact No More Homeless Pets and see if we can get her spayed before too long. Horatio keeps talking to her through the windows anytime it's warm enough to open them, and sometimes even when the windows are shut... I hope he's giving her good advice! Thanks for all the good tips from you all!

We found Cleo a home!!!! Last night, I put the indoor cats in the back bedroom and lured Cleo in with some food. She came in, I closed the door. She stayed in the dining room for a bit and then walked into the kitchen and hid under a bar stool. I started petting her, she didn't run away, bite or scratch. So I pet her behind the ears for a bit, grabbed her by the neck, cuddled her and put her in a pet taxi. Our friends, who have a mice problem indoors, came and picked her up. She's been in their basement for 24 hours. They haven't seen her and she has not touched the food they left out. I told them it might be up to 48 hours before they see her, right? So, I'm advising talking to her, singing to her, reading. Smelly shirts to give their scent, what else? This is a non-cat household. There are some kitty loving dogs, but they can't get to the basement. Any other advice?
Should I feel remorse for tricking Cleo into believing she was coming into live with us and I shipped her away? Or feel good that she will have a warm, loving home????
It's better than sending her away to a shelter, right?

I think what you did was great. She is warm and safe and once she settles in, will have a loving home. She is frightened now, but time and patience will win her over.

How lucky for you to have found her a home so quickly.

Originally Posted by KansasCats

. She's been in their basement for 24 hours. They haven't seen her and she has not touched the food they left out. I told them it might be up to 48 hours before they see her, right? So, I'm advising talking to her, singing to her, reading. Smelly shirts to give their scent, what else? This is a non-cat household. There are some kitty loving dogs, but they can't get to the basement. Any other advice?
Should I feel remorse for tricking Cleo into believing she was coming into live with us and I shipped her away? Or feel good that she will have a warm, loving home????
It's better than sending her away to a shelter, right?

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It may be even longer than 48 hours with no pee, poo nor eating... Especielly as a semiferal she is used to hide if necessary. Big plus is, no great danger for liver damages because of not eating - she is used to this too, and is not overweigh...

Their smelly skirts? It is prob better with YOURS smelly skirts...
Sweat is apparently addictive, but smell from a friendly persons is this extra... Theirs is not known as friendly smell as yet.
So, do sweat and send away your sweat clothes... (just think about it. Some people would gladely pay good money for this used unmentionables, and you are sending this to a kitty! )

If they have access to a Feliway disperser, they can try with this. And or setting on some low, calming music. Classical harp music is best they say (ie our LDG says it!), and in second place, classical calm music. But almost any calm, nice music should work.


Dont feel remorse. A trap is more neutral, so nobody have any feelings.
But as long this new home is good - it takes precedence. They are good dog owners, this is a good first step to be a good cat owners too.

And yes, a decent private home is always better than a shelter. Always.
Although a good shelter is better than a bad home....
And if it is a good home, as we all think... No comparison at all, and she will copy soon enough.


Tx a lot, and good luck to you, your friend and this their new kitty!

Thanks for the support as always. We sent Cleo to a very good home with very good people. They used to have a kitty and he got along with the dogs. But the kitty passed away about a year and a half ago. When they saw pictures of Cleo, they wanted to help her instantly. I can't help but feel remorse, because Cleo knew us, not them. Which is why the advice on sending my smelly shirts was a good one, but I forgot. We did send a blanket along, which was in our living room. It should have all of our smells on it. I'll make sure to tell them to leave it nearby. I got a message tonight that they rescued her from behind their furnace motor... Should have seen that coming. I will tell them about Feliway and classical music. It turns out I am not equipped to be a halfway house. I'm worried about her more now that she is in a home...Sigh.

It is easy to tell you not to worry, but if you are like me, you will anyway.

But you really did the best thing for Cleo, you found her a home. They have experience with cats and most of all, they wanted her. No matter where she went, there would be an adjustment period.

As long as they are patient with her, she will come around. With winter right around the corner, you should give yourself a pat on the back for finding her a home.

Originally Posted by KRZ

It is easy to tell you not to worry, but if you are like me, you will anyway.

But you really did the best thing for Cleo, you found her a home. They have experience with cats and most of all, they wanted her. No matter where she went, there would be an adjustment period.

As long as they are patient with her, she will come around. With winter right around the corner, you should give yourself a pat on the back for finding her a home.

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Absolutely - ALL of that!!!!!!

There's no way for her to get up into the ceiling there - rafters or heating ducts, right? Those would be my concerns. (No guest bedroom they could use? The smaller the space she has to make "her own," the more quickly this will go).

I know they've had a cat, but being "dog" people, it might help to remind them that cats are all about territory. She will bond with them - but the initial steps are her feeling safe in her territory, making the territory "hers," and at the same time, coming to trust that these "new" people don't want ANYTHING from her. Remind them NOT to look directly in her eyes - in cats this is a sign of aggression. Feeding her on a schedule and putting treats out on a schedule will also help her realize more quickly that "people=good."

This is such a wonderful thing! She WILL come around, but everyone just needs to turn off their clocks.

Thanks guys for reminding me that what I really wanted for Cleo was not to be outside on a night like this, when it is supposed to dip into the 20s. Our friends thought the basement would be the best option because it has a kitty door which the dogs can't get through, but Cleo eventually could use to go upstairs. I think she'll be safe down there, but might take her longer to feel completely safe since there is so much more room to ensure "security." I'm hoping that since she let me pet her within an hour of coming inside that she will develop trust fast. I think she may be a cousin of Horatio's She has that same lovebug demeanor about her. I was able to look in her eyes and talk to her and she always meowed sweetly back to me. But I know it will be while before she gets to do that with strangers...