New backyard stray

Its not a great pic but if anyone is curious:

What a beautiful boy!  I love the new name as well.  When one of my strays came to me I had no idea what to call him.  I really didn't want another cat and didn't want to get attached so I called him Orange kitty!  He is now a member of our household and has his own real name, "Marvin".  I had a dream about him wanting me to call him Marvin.  He loves his name.

Seems like Random is making some progress!!
 

78.


That's how many crochet pieces it took before Random got up enough courage to come to me and ask to be petted. 



He likes having his forehead and cheeks rubbed and will let you stroke his back, but only if you start at his head. He's so much like Wendel was - so obviously wants attention but is terrified of it at the same time. At first I noticed he didn't hide when I brought him dinner tonight, just stood in the dinner spot alternating hissing and meowing at me. Then he didn't hide before starting to eat. After eating, he hung around for a moment staring at me before going into cave 3.0. About 3 minutes later I could hear him climb over the boxes into cave 2.0. (For the record, cave 1.0 is in the shelf on the other side of the room). This isn't odd. If he feels like hanging out, he often moves into cave 2.0 because it's the best view of where I sit so he can keep an eye on me. But tonight after a few minutes I here a slight sound and look up to see him staring hard at me from just outside his cave...then he purposely walks across the room and stops in front of me before giving my hand the lightest head-bump ever....followed by a stronger head-bump and five minutes of loving before meowing and walking back across the room to clean and watch me for 15 minutes, before going back to cave 3.0 and curling up to doze.



I'm so happy because I know how hard that was for him, but now I'm wrestling with the dilemma of tomorrow. Tomorrow he goes in for his neuter and I'm terrified he'll never forgive me if I climb into his cave to box him up after today. Would it be bad if I asked my husband to do it before leaving? It would mean Random would spend an extra 45 minutes in the crate...

The moment that makes it all worth it:

Random is neutered, vaccinated and becoming very vocal.

What a handsome fellow.  So glad he is neutered, vaccinated and so well cared for.  Congrats on your new forever kitty.

Random is slowly making his way through introductions. We've had some hissing, but not much else. He's a very tentative boy and doesn't seem in a hurry to get too far from his room.

This update is actually on ScragglyTabby...who apparently does have a home. He cam by the other day looking very dapper in his blue and silver collar with ID tags, so our suspicion was correct - somewhere in there someone's taken him in. I'm happy for him. He seemed like such a sweetie.

Ms. Freya said:

 
Random is slowly making his way through introductions. We've had some hissing, but not much else. He's a very tentative boy and doesn't seem in a hurry to get too far from his room.

This update is actually on ScragglyTabby...who apparently does have a home. He cam by the other day looking very dapper in his blue and silver collar with ID tags, so our suspicion was correct - somewhere in there someone's taken him in. I'm happy for him. He seemed like such a sweetie.

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Yea for ScragglyTabby.  I am so happy that someone has taken him in and is caring for him. 

So glad Random is continuing to progress!!

Hip hip hurray for both guys! And an extra cheer for you!

Oh I LOVE LOVE LOVE that picture!!! :lovegrin2: I am SO happy for Random - and ScragglyTabby - and you!

OK - 78 afghan pieces. How many does it take to make the afghan? :lol3:

Oh my heart is melting. Just look at his expression! And then scroll up and compare it to the picture of him eating. Talk about before and after!

He sounds like he's a real sweetheart. :rub:

LDG said:

Oh I LOVE LOVE LOVE that picture!!! :lovegrin2: I am SO happy for Random - and ScragglyTabby - and you!

OK - 78 afghan pieces. How many does it take to make the afghan? :lol3:

Oh my heart is melting. Just look at his expression! And then scroll up and compare it to the picture of him eating. Talk about before and after!

He sounds like he's a real sweetheart. :rub:

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This afghan takes 243 pieces, plus a border. I picked one that would give him lots of time.

He really is sweet, just very timid. Every evening we open his door for a few hours so he can join the family. Last night we had no hisses, even if he only came out for a total of msybe 40 minutes. He did curl up on his cushion watching us all from his safe room, though. I know he'll come out in time. Right now I think the house is a bit overwhelming so he does what he can, then goes back to his room to feel safe.

:heart2: :heart2: :heart2:

So how many hours a day will he be spending out in the rest of the house by the time you've completed the afghan?

...I guess that depends on whether or not you're spending as much time in his room as you were, working on it. :lol3:

OH how exciting and wonderful of you to rescue this darling kitty!! Congratulations on all of your progress with Random! He is a gorgeous boy and look how sweet he is in that head scratching picture. He is well on his way to "crocheting" his way right into your heart and home. :heart: :Yellow House: Keep up the great work, your patience is paying off in a big "afghan" way. Sorry about the corny puns.

Just thought I'd share a quick update on our Random cat. He's fit in well and is a terrible influence on Wendel. :lol3: They run around like a couple of lunatics being typical boys. He's almost up to 11 lbs and still growing. He and his brother crawl into bed with me most nights. He's very good about going into the carrier and amazing at the vets. I can't imagine why someone would have dumped him, but its our gain as he's a cutie...he beat me by far - I'm still hoping to have the afghan done by Christmas.

Thanks so much for the update!  Random has definitely made himself right at home!  I am pleased he completed his tasks before your afghan is complete!  It seems like he and Wendel are becoming buddies.  He is definitely your gain!

Thank you for the update.  He is a beautiful cat.  I'm with you - I can never understand how people can dump their pets.

Just started reading this thread - you're a gutsy lady! And congrats on it going so well!!!!

We've been TNRing all summer - and, while we did socialize three 8-week-olds - I can't imagine what our "socialization room" would have looked like if I'd tried to tame one of the adults! But ours have been feral for generations (a feral cat colony nurtured unbeknownst to us a few blocks away for years). Glad Greycat was stray and not feral - particularly from a "tornado room" aspect! Good for you for taking it on either way! I've learned that so many people look the other way!!

My only question - I noticed you said you had a friend who was good at trapping and relocating. Feral cats don't relocate well at all - and will generally virtually (if not literally) kill themselves trying to get back to home territory. If ScragglyTabby is a feral - can he be TNRd and then provided a nice warm shelter and food/water year round? I know it's a pain - but relocation demands alot of time and effort on the relocation end. Your friend may be well aware of this - but just wanted to note it in case they weren't. Generally relocation is a truly last resort.

Keep us posted (and add picks when you can get him to sit still and close enough!) on Greycat!

OOps - I'm an idiot! I missed that Random and Greycat were one and the same! What a gorgeous cat!!!!!!

And...I read too fast and missed the part about scragglycat being owned. I should learn to read a little slower before I post. Bad me

OMG look at him! ... and I'm sorry, but... :lol3: Oh I LOVE IT!

I REALLY needed this smile tonight, THANK YOU!

kittychick said:

My only question - I noticed you said you had a friend who was good at trapping and relocating. Feral cats don't relocate well at all - and will generally virtually (if not literally) kill themselves trying to get back to home territory. If ScragglyTabby is a feral - can he be TNRd and then provided a nice warm shelter and food/water year round? I know it's a pain - but relocation demands alot of time and effort on the relocation end.

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I knew they had a hard time moving, but didn't realize it could be that severe. Actually he relocates raccoons and coyotes mostly. Its just the same size trap that he could lend us. Relocating them if they'd been feral honestly never occurred to me - I figured they'd be tameable or they could live on the porch. I actually had plans to convert our deck box into an outdoor shelter if Random had really been feral. DHs face was priceless when I mentioned that so I'm glad it didn't come to that. :lol3: