We've taken in an older feral cat. Can we make it a house cat?

aquilegia

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To those who have made a domestic cat out of a stray or feral one, I need your help! I know you’re out there, and I need your advice on whether this is possible in our situation, and how to best make this cat a domestic cat (even if he won’t ever be super friendly).

Here’s the situation:
Sir Busby has been around the neighborhood as long as we can remember. A couple of months ago, we noticed he was very skinny and missing patches of hair, so we started feeding him.

It turns out the neighbor, who used to feed him, had moved away. My husband subsequently talked with her about Sir Busby, and apparently she had fed him for about 8 years, since he showed up in the neighborhood as a young cat. He would come and go from her house, hang out with the other cats, but he had limited human contact. She never adopted him as her own, though, or ever took him to a vet.

So we decided to try to adopt him, and after feeding him for about a month outside, we finally caught him in a live trap about 6 weeks ago. We took him to the vet, had him neutered and vaccinated, and fortunately he was negative for FIV and FeLV. Other than being skinny and having some parasites, he’s pretty healthy. We had him in a dog crate for a few days after the surgery, and now he has the whole daylight basement to himself, with lots of low and high areas to hide, sleep, and wash and nice big windows to look out of.

But after taking him in and reading up on the literature, we realized he’s more feral than stray – he keeps his distance from people, walks around low to the ground, tail down, doesn’t meow, and hisses if we get too close. He was always skittish outside, so we never got close enough to pet him (hence the live trap). After 6 weeks in our house, he still hides when we come in the room, although he’s come out briefly a couple of times while we’ve been hanging out. We set up a wifi camera with infrared, so we can see what he’s up to when we’re not in the room. At night he likes to walk around, sit in the windows, wash, and play with the catnip toy a bit. He seems content with the living quarters, just not with us.

So we’re wondering right now how successful we can be at making him a domestic cat. We know that he’s spent (limited) time with people in the past. But because of his age (estimated 9-10 years old) and the fact that he’s never really been a house cat, we’re not sure if this is possible. I’ve read that others have been successful with their stray & feral cats, so we want to know – what’s the best course of action? And when will we know whether this cat is not going to take to us or household life? We know this could take a really long time, which we’re fine with, but we would like to know what we can do to make things progress. Right now he seems comfortable, but we’re not sure how to take it to the next level. Do we leave the door open to the rest of the house, and let him explore it on his own? Or does he need to get really comfortable with us being in the room first?

Give me all your tips – we’re using Feliway, and try to spend time with him every day in a calm manner, talking with him so he gets used to our voices. I’ve read different posts on this site, I’ve read the tips from Alley Cat Allies, theluckyfew, etc., but I’m looking for more advice or anecdotes. Thanks!
 

seppaloha

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not sure why it's so hard for you to adopt this kitty. All 3 of my cats were feral cats who used to come and eat at my house, it took me a few months to be able to touch or pet them, and then I had them spayed/neutered through a local feral cat control group. 

The area I lived in at that time had a high turn-over of people, so most of the feral cats had a home at some time in their lives...check with a holistic vet and see if you can use chinese or other herbal supplements, or flower remedies to alleviate the "scared" behavior; maybe chamomile can work.

Rescue Remedy would be the first remedy I'd try....just put it in his drinking water!
 

ritz

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Thanks for taking in this semi-feral.

Give him something you've worn for a long time (sweaty, dirty) and place it close to where you feed him.

I'm not sure about giving him access to the rest of the house--he's like to find places to hid where you can't find him.  Especially because he seems comfortable where he is and can entertain himself.

If you're not already:  feed at regular times, spend time with him when he is eating (making no attempt to pet him), see if he is interested in playing (object at end of string type of toy)

Just give Sir lots of time.  It is possible, but he may never be a lap cat.  But he will be healthier and safer.
 

sevenwonders

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Hi and welcome to TCS!  


I give you lots of credit for what you are doing!

All of my Kitties have come from the outdoors, but I have never tried with one that old.

Since he is not going crazy and seems reasonably content already,

I'd say you are making very good progress.    


I would not give him access to the rest of the house until he is friendly with you.

I second Ritz' idea about the article of clothing,

although it doesn't have to be nasty or sweaty...

anything that you have worn for a few hours will have plenty of your smell on it.

Additionally, I'd try to hang out down there sometimes and let him get used to seeing you,

and he will eventually realize that you are not a threat.

Ideally, if you have a bean bag or other low seat,

being closer to the floor will make you less threatening as well.

Keep up the great work,

and please keep us posted on his progress!
 

callista

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It is quite possible for a feral that is used to humans to live happily inside a house. Let him hide; give him lots of little hiding spots from where he can watch you. Eventually you'll see he knows he can depend on you for his meals. Once he's a little less shy, try just hanging out in the room with him. Teach him that your presence is a positive thing. Maybe you'll be able to pet him; maybe not. Maybe he'll just barely touch your fingers with his nose and then retreat. He may be more of a silent companion than a snuggly pet, but that's okay. Try a fishing rod toy, if he likes to chase moving things. That's an interactive toy, but it lets him keep you at arm's length so it's not too intimidating for him.

There have been people on TCS who tamed fully feral adult cats to the point of being able to pick them up. Others have had ferals living in their houses for years without becoming much more tame. It really depends on the cat. Some cats are just wilder and shyer than others. My cat Tiny was semi-feral when I adopted him, but he was only about nine months old, and it really didn't take long for us to get used to each other. I really think he must have been dumped as a kitten, because he warmed up to me so quickly. All I had to do was provide a quiet environment, feed him, and let him come to me. Within days, he was no longer afraid of me touching him. It took much longer for him to climb into my lap, but that's a much more vulnerable position to a cat, and I don't blame him for being hesitant.

Your feral will probably be a one-person or one-family cat, regardless of what degree of tameness he ends up with. It's often difficult for feral/semi-feral cats to get used to people quickly enough to respond to visitors with anything but hiding. Tiny hides from everyone who comes into my apartment, still, and probably always will. Not a big deal, really; Tiny's happy, and I'm a loner who doesn't really get a lot of visitors anyway.
 
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aquilegia

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Thank you everyone so far for your suggestions.  I feel like we are making progress slowly, I just want to make sure we're doing all the right things.  We'll be fine if he's never a lap cat, we would just like to be able to live comfortably with him and him with us.  I'll try the rescue remedy, I've heard that's pretty good stuff.  I've thought about putting some pieces of clothing down in his room, I was just concerned he would just pee on them.  But maybe if they're near his food he'll be less likely to do so.  (I don't care if I have to sacrifice a bit of clothing, I'd just like it to be useful, not just something he sees as a threat because it has someone else's scent on it.)  We have been spending more time with him, so I think it's just a matter of patience on our part!

Again, thanks for the stories - it gives us some hope!
 
 

feralvr

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Welcome to TCS!!! and thank you for taking Sir Busby in :rub: YES, you can make him a house cat with loads of time and patience on your part. I think the most important thing would be too confine this kitty to one room if you have not already done so. It will help him feel like he has a place, a room, to call his own. Same schedule and routine everyday is very important for trust building. The confined space will allow you to be able to get closer to him little by little over time. Make sure there is not a bed he can hide under. Put the mattress/box spring on the floor and offer other hiding places that are easily reachable to you. Here is a great article that will have some more suggestions. http://www.catnipchronicles.com/may2012/laurie.htm Keep us updated and good luck!!! :cross: :vibes::vibes:
 
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