I took in a cat about two months ago from a warehouse district in a near by town. I wouldnt know whether to describe him as feral or stray because for the most part hes really good but he has a few really big issues and wanted to see if i could get any advice
first of all hes about a 1.5 old, and he has all four legs, but one of his front legs broke and reset itself leaving it kind of mangled. He was kept in foster by a friend for awhile where he got slightly better with his spraying and aggressive behavior. I have him now and hes doing okay but his stress levels are very obviously high sometimes. his tail is always going back and forth in an irritated manner and the smalest things will trigger him. he will be looking a my cat lying asleep and if she moves in her sleep he will growl. if hes on my bed with me and i shift my weight and it effects him his tail will start going and he makes his stressed meows.
but also, im thinking possibly because he was on the street for so long theres a possibility his vocal cords and under developed? because that would explain his meow, its always that kind of shaky, deep meow and its hard to tell if thats his meow or if he only meows when stressed and it is a stressed meow. also his bad leg twitches a lot which leads me to believe he has some kind of pain in it.
im working on getting him a home, but for the time being i was just wondering if anyone had any tips on dealing with a heavily stressed cat besides the basics, putting him in a dark room, keeping it quiet etc. he hates being alone and gets way more upset that way
first of all hes about a 1.5 old, and he has all four legs, but one of his front legs broke and reset itself leaving it kind of mangled. He was kept in foster by a friend for awhile where he got slightly better with his spraying and aggressive behavior. I have him now and hes doing okay but his stress levels are very obviously high sometimes. his tail is always going back and forth in an irritated manner and the smalest things will trigger him. he will be looking a my cat lying asleep and if she moves in her sleep he will growl. if hes on my bed with me and i shift my weight and it effects him his tail will start going and he makes his stressed meows.
but also, im thinking possibly because he was on the street for so long theres a possibility his vocal cords and under developed? because that would explain his meow, its always that kind of shaky, deep meow and its hard to tell if thats his meow or if he only meows when stressed and it is a stressed meow. also his bad leg twitches a lot which leads me to believe he has some kind of pain in it.
im working on getting him a home, but for the time being i was just wondering if anyone had any tips on dealing with a heavily stressed cat besides the basics, putting him in a dark room, keeping it quiet etc. he hates being alone and gets way more upset that way