Help, I'm a novice here, so will my sweet friendly feral tolerate a vet visit?

tweetydee

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Last winter we discovered a momma cat and her two babies in our feral colony at the college I work for.The kittens survived the long cold snowy Utah winter along with the other ferals in the colony because of our community program of feeding and providing shelters. Over the Christmas holiday I walked through several feet of snow to feed wet food to the kittens who would watch me wide eyed from a distance. In the spring we managed to TNR several cats along with mom and one of the kittens. When they were being picked up the second kitten got out of the trap and bolted away. We have tried unsuccessfully to retrap it. Eventually the one kitten we spayed started to become more and more friendly. She learned to recognize my car and would come from hiding out in the field to greet me. She started rubbing up against my leg and eventually let me and some of the other feeders pet her. Momma cat and the other kitten will not come anywhere near us! We decided the kitty was getting way too friendly and needed to be removed from the colony for safety reasons. So I (too big of heart to say no) put a large kennel in my car with wet food and she jumped right in and started eating. Once I closed the cage door though she yowled the whole way home. She wouldn't eat all night. I set her up in a extra large dog crate with water, dry food, and litter box in a small bathroom. I also put a soft kitty bed cave in it. She wouldn't eat all night but the next morning when she seemed settled in the kennel I opened the door and gave her some wet food. She couldn't decide whether she wanted to rub up against me for some love, or eat the food. She would take a few bites, then run back over to me for some scratches. She ate the wet food and even some of the dry food, then came and layed down next to me. She let me pick her up and put her back in the kennel. She finally pooped, in the litter box! Yay! That evening she let me hold her and brush her. She loves being in my lap sleeping and kneading on me! She is more interested in me than exploring the room and sometimes even more into getting rubs than eating the wet food! I need to take her to a vet to get a well check and dewormed and any follow up vaccines she might need. My question (sorry about the long explanation!) is whether she will tolerate the vet visit? Could she be friendly just to me and attack the vet? Or do you think since she is so sweet and friendly and warmed up so quickly that she will be ok? Also, I don't want her to lose her trust in me! Help!
 

shadowsrescue

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Welcome to TCS.  Thank you so much for all you do for the feral kitties.  How extra special that you have brought one home to be an inside kitty!  She certainly is doing very well. 

Vet visits are hard on most cats, but they get over the stress quickly.  You can try spraying the carrier with some Feliway Comfort Zone spray.  It's phermone based that has a calming affect on cats.  I like to spray mine about 30 minutes before needed.  You can find this product on Amazon for the best price. 

When you make the vet appointment, tell the vet that she brought her from a feral colony and not sure how she will react.  Many vets are prepared to handle very scared kitties.  If needed they can sedate her if worst comes to worst.  Another tip is to remain really calm yourself.  If you are stressed and worried about it, the kitty will pick up on this.

When I transport my cats to the vet, I always cover the carrier with a light towel or sheet.  This tends to keep them calm.  I leave the towel/sheet over the carrier until I am ready to take the cat out for the vet to see.

Once home, act normal and offer a special treat or small meal.  Usually within a short time, cats are over the stressful visit and back to normal.
 
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tweetydee

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ShadowsRescue, thank you so much! This is very helpful! Where can I find to purchase the comfort spray?
 
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