Care during the Holidays

I will be going out of town for a couple of days (Wednesday night to Saturday morning) for the holidays and can't decide what to do about my semi-feral cat.  She is pretty much an indoor cat now but still likes to go outside in the mornings and late evenings.  My question is whether I should leave her inside the whole time (a friend will come by to feed her) or leave her outside.  She is extremely scared of EVERYTHING!  She is scared of being outside and runs into the house when other cats approach but she gets scared being inside too! 

The whole time I am away she stays under the couch or under my bed.  She is not a social cat and hides if anyone comes into the house. (The doorbell scares the heck out of her!).  Last time I left her for two and a half days and when I came back she was scared of me and of everything.  It took me half a day to coax her out from under my bed.  Then it took me two days of constantly holding her to get her back to where she trusted me (I had someone come over and feed her twice a day).  Last time I left music on and left the blinds open so she could see out hoping that would help - it didn't!

I don't have anywhere to take her for someone to care for her and I cannot take her with me.  

Would any of the essence oils help?  I have looked at the page but the oils are expensive if they don't work.  

Any suggestions?

Thank you!

I can't answer your question on oils but without a doubt, you need to leave her indoors.  I have an outdoor cat missing right now.  She is smart and street savvy and if she was able to be displaced by a dog or a cat, I'm sure your little scaredy cat could be too.  Once they are frightened away they are often to frightened to return.

Please leave her indoors.

Leaving her insde sounds like the best thing to me.

There are a couple of things you could try. There is the plug in Feliway. This releases cat pheromones and relaxes them. I have used it for when I introduced new kitties or when one of mine goes to the vet and smells funny.

Also have you thought about maybe getting a cat door that opens and closes to a collar she would wear. Or just a basic cat door where she could come and go and not feel trapped.

I know they are safer inside but if her qualiy of life is suffering I am not sure that is always the answer.

Of course get her fixed before ever letting outside to avoid more u wanted kittiens.

Leaving her inside is best. Inside, she may be unnerved but she can't get hurt. If she hides for a few days after you return, so be it. I would come home and act like everything is normal. Acting as if you've done something wrong will make her think you have!

Feliway is a good idea. It will help calm her and keep her calm. Unless she knows and trusts the friend who is feeding her, ask the friend not to try to interact with her. Just let her be, feed her, scoop the box and leave, all as calmly as possible. Calm is the key here. Whatever she is afraid of, the way you (and your friend) act will help guide her through her fear.

I personally would absolutely, 100% leave her inside. Id look at it as how I'd feel in worst case scenario in each--if she's outside, & something would happen (like she'd go missing) you'd be devastated. Worst case, inside, is you come back & she's extra scared for a day or two. I know that's not fun for either of you, but if it were me, the outside "worst case" is a lot scarier.

We've got one kitty who also has a rough time any time we're gone for any time period that involves a cat sitter (all it takes is a knock on the door from a stranger & he hides under the bed for hours). Luckily we have a neighbor who comes in to feed/play/check on our guys whenever we're gone---and finally, after 2 years of her being the only person who ever cat sits, he gets that she's not there to torture him We were gone for 3 days recently and he actually came out & played with her! Try to have the person who comes to feed actually sit for a bit (we always entice our cat sitter by leaving her trashy magazines she secretly loves to read) as often as possible--and to offer the kitty extra enticing treats when they come -maybe a bit of salmon or tuna. Even if kitty won't come out when they're there, she'll hopefully eventually get that you leaving can actually bring things that are kinda good

And when I return, I kind of do what @Ondine said - I don't act like I did anything wrong by leaving (I swear they smell guilt a mile away !), but I do always provide an extra special treat when I come back (again-salmon, tuna, etc). Trust me - they all eventually forgive -even if it does take a day or two

Thank you for all the suggestions.  Your answers were in the direction I was thinking but wanted to make sure I was on the right track.  I'm going to purchase the feniway (sp) to see if it will help.  It sure is expensive though!!!

Its expensive but worth it, you could also try finding a classical radio station to leave on low volume, apparently classical music calms cats. I leave the radio on for my Bella while I'm at work, a bit of back ground noise helps the to relax.