Hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving.
Ghost, the hit-by-car cat that was miraculously uninjured, is doing pretty well. We put her in a basement room for awhile, but after 3 weeks she was still hiding from us. We were getting concerned that she was more feral than we thought, and started looking for other options. Before we gave up, we tried one more thing...using a large cage and putting her upstairs where we could interact with her more. The cage was recommended by Best Friends organization, based on the "Great Kitty Rescue". So, when we brought Ghost home from her spay, we put her into the cage with a single-level round condo, litterbox and food/water. We put the cage in the computer room, where we spend a lot of time.
The cage was the best thing ever! Turns out, Ghost is a love bug. She loves to be scratched, and will let us rub her belly. She's been meeting some of the cats, and things are going well. We've been letting her out in the room at night by herself. During the day, we'll close the room door at times and let her out of the cage. She's been playing with toys by herself and with human-powered wand toys. She and Spice, our 6-month old kitten, have started playing together somewhat. And she's started making noises - trilling, and just this weekend she's meowed a few times!
Now, Ghost is still uncertain with new things and places. She is just barely starting to come to me across the room. She's most comfortable near her cage. We had been letting the room door open, figuring she'd venture out slowly...but she ended up getting scared and hiding downstairs. We won't try an open-door policy again. This morning, she was doing really good in my arms, so I walked across the hall into the bathroom while scratching her. She was OK until she saw herself in the mirror, then she started to freak. I got her back into her safe-space quickly.
My plan is to get her completely comfortable in the computer room first, then slowly introduce her to other parts of the house. I will have to figure out how to close off kitty hidey spots.
Any suggestions, ideas, thoughts on how to help Ghost gain confidence? I know it will take time. I'm just impatient :-)
I'm still amazed at the Ghost girl. How could such a loving cat be left on her own? She is an incredible lover. And we are very lucky to have her in our lives.
Kalynnda, owned by 9 furry freeloaders
, you can't be impatient.... Turn off your clock - as LDG always says 
She will let you know if you are trying to hard or going to fast 
. Let her teach you to be patient 
They are wonderful teacher's, our sweet kitties, in so many ways.
run back to their safe room or safe place on their own. Keep her confined when you are not home. And, yes, 
blocking off hiding spots will be a bit tricky. Just pretend you are a ten pound kitty when you crawl around looking for places to hide. One of my feral kittens, whom I kept for a couple of extra month's until she found a home, loved to hide under our recliner in the living room. She would spend most of the day under that recliner - but always knew I was near and also knew the way back to her safe room. Ghost might find some place like that to hide - a special private fort to call her own... As long as you know where that is - let her be. Good luck with your furbaby, Ghost 
