Adopting a second cat

Hi all,
I posted a little over a week ago that I took in a feral cat. After taking him to be neutered vaccinated etc we brought him home and he has not left my bathroom ever since. I originally put him in there with his cat house, litter, toys etc and confined him for 2 days, only going in to feed him, litter change and make sure he was doing ok after the surgery. I opened the door 2 days in so he can come out and start to explore if he chose to. This Sunday will be 2 weeks that he has been in the bathroom and won't come out. He is also making this sad crying noise. It's not a meow, its like a high pitched sound that gets higher. I never heard it in any cats I have had in the past (I also never had a feral cat, just adopted house cats). I have been reading so many articles on what to do and I am doing everything they say. Talk in a high pitch sweet voice, bring yummy food in every time I enter, don't make eye contact, let him be, have patience etc. I know it hasn't been very long and that he has had his world turned upside down. I am going to give him all the time he needs.
I recently read somewhere that bringing in a second cat might help him adjust. That seeing me with a "friendlier" cat (holding, petting etc) may make him realize that I am not there to hurt him. Since I am not hurting this "other" cat. has anyone else heard that this could work or had any experiences themselves with bringing in a friend for a feral? I don't want to make the situation worse and I don't want to stress him out any more.
Thank you for any advise you may have!!

I would give it a little more time. He does not sound truly feral, as he is allowing you to be around him without going ballistic inside. It sounds to me like he's just fussing about this new set of affairs. If you want to adopt another cat, by all means do so. But you will have to treat the situation gently. They will need to be introduced to one another slowly and the new cat is going to need time to adjust, too.

Might be better to let this guy adjust a little more first. Thank you for helping him. It sounds like he needed you.

Have you tried a Feliway diffuser or come Composure liquid or treats.  He sounds a bit frightened and the feliway and/or Composure might help.  You can find both on Amazon.

Another great trick is to use Gerber stage 2 chicken or turkey baby food.  It's in a small blue jar and contains only chicken or turkey and water with no added spices.  Cats go crazy for it.  It's very helpful when enticing a cat.  You can start with a bit on a plate and then progress to moving the bowl out of the room or even on your fingers for him to lick. 

Have you tried luring him out with a laser pointer or da Bird toy? 

Do you spend time with him just outside the bathroom?  You can also bring him some plain cooked chicken.  You can make a trail starting in the bathroom and leading out of the bathroom.  Go slowly and just go a bit out of the bathroom at first.  If he doesn't like chicken try to find something he does like.  He might prefer to do the exploring on his own at night when you are asleep.  Just leave something delicious and trail it out of the bathroom.  You might be surprised that it is gone in the morning.

Give it time.  If you get a second cat now, it may backfire on you.  He may retreat even further.  Cat to cat introductions can be easy for some cats and extremely difficult for others.  I brought a stray/feral into my home last year and it took 1 year for he and my other cat to get along.  It was a fur flying mess.  I suggest allowing him to get used to his surroundings and your first.

Thank you for the advise Ondine,
I agree that it may be best to give it a bit more time. He did actually scratch and hiss at me last night but I think it was my fault, I definitely got a bit to close to him to hand him a treat. But I wonder now that you mentioned it, could he possibly not be truly feral? He is usually pretty calm when I am around.
Again, thanks for you advise

Thank you so much shadowsrescue,
I did give him some cooked chicken which he enjoys and I bought the feliway spray as well. I'm not sure if it is making much of a difference. He has no interest in the laser (I try everyday) and he just watches the feather toy (the toy on a stick) but never does more. When I leave his food out, he will not eat unless I shut the door. A couple of days he went almost all day and didn't touch his food, then I shut the door and 5 minutes later when I opened it....food was gone!
I will definitely be purchasing some of the baby food to try! And that was my main concern, I didn't want another cat to make matters worse for this scared little guy. I think I will forget doing that for now.

As far as leaving a trail of food goes, at night I usually put a nightlight on for him and close the bathroom door. (The door is always open when I am home during the day) but I am afraid he might tear the house apart or hurt my dog if she got to close (I have 15 year old Maltese). Do you think it would be a good idea to try and leave the door open through the night with the trail of food like you suggested?

Thank you so much for all your help

I would get some Composure and see if it will help to calm him somewhat.  You can find it on Amazon.  I prefer the liquid as it works quicker and lasts longer and only takes a small amount.  Some cats are finicky with the treats.

For night time, I would try to keep the dog with you and allow him some time out to explore.  Do you think he is afraid to come out because of the dog?  Here is an article on introducing dogs and cats http://www.thecatsite.com/a/introducing-cats-to-dogs

When I brought a feral/stray into my house last year it was really difficult.  I had another cat inside as well as a large dog.  The stray/feral cat had a room to himself so he could adjust to being an inside cat.  When I was ready for introductions, I placed a baby gate in the door way secured tightly.  I then purchased a cheap $20 wooden screen door from Lowes and attached it to the door with $4 tension rods.  I didn't have to deface the door.  This was the cat could see, hear and smell what was going on in the house.  Yet the other animals couldn't get to him.  The screen was a bit of a pain to put up and down, but it worked well.  I have a picture of the set up if you'd like to see.

If you do leave a trail of food out for him in hopes he explores a bit, I would block off all hiding spots if you can.  Places such as under couches, under hutches, bookcase, etc...  You do not want him squeezing himself into a spot where he feels completely trapped.  You also might be able to section off some of your place with a baby gate or even 2 gates stacked. 

As for toys, keep trying with the wand toy.  Also try an old shoe string.  Place it under a small towel and slowly pull.  See if you can get him interested.  Have you tried catnip yet?

Hi shadowsrescue,
Firstly, thank you again for all the input, I really appreciate it!
Yes, I tried various brands of catnip, he had no interest. I don't think the reason he is not coming out of the bathroom is my dog. She is 15 years old and mainly sleeps most of the time, and she is not a major "barker". Although you never know.
I am going to leave the bathroom door open tonight and see what happens. Malibu (my dog) sleeps in the bed with me anyway so it shouldn't be much of an issue (she only gets out of bed to use a weewee pad if need be but I can move it into the bedroom and shut the door. I do have a baby gate which I will use to block of the main area I think he could get "trapped" and will possibly purchase a second.
I am very interested in the screen door you put up. It sounds like a great idea, a picture would be fantastic! As far as the toys, I will keep trying and I will definitely try the shoe string. Hopefully the baby food will work as well. (I will be picking it up today)
Thank you so much!

Try to spend alot of time with him.  Even if you just sit outside of the bathroom on the floor and read aloud to him.  Tell him about your day.  If you can do this many times each day.  He needs to see you as a friend and someone he can trust.   When I brought my feral/stray inside last year, he cried and howled and yowled all night.  It was heart breaking.  Then he started crying during the day too.  The composure really helped him.  I started with the treats and gave him 2 in the morning and 3 at night.  Yet after a few weeks, he didn't like the treats.  So I switched to the liquid. 

Here is the picture of how I did the screen door.

Again, thank you so much, I have been going into him every hour to spend time with him (usually about 15 minutes per hour) I will start to spend even more time with him.
That door is a great idea, thank you for posting some picture, I think I might have a weekend project! )
Also, just ordered the composure on amazon.
I really appreciate yours, and everyone else's feedback.... So glad I found this site

I just remembered a really good video I watched when I socialized a 7 month old feral kitten.  This is a 3part video series that starts with the rescue of the feral kittens and continues with ideas on socializing and play.  It shows the baby food trick and also some tips on touching/petting them.  It was so helpful to me. Even though your cat is not a kitten, the techniques can still be used.

http://www.urbancatleague.org/TamingVideo

Thank you! I am going to watch it right now! Also, I purchased the gerber baby food, left it by his house he sleeps in, left the bathroom with the door open and sat about 8-10 ft away, about 5 minutes in he came out to eat the food, saw me and went back into his house not touching the food. So sad