meet Buggy

tabbytom

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No worries about not answering the question. I know you are busy and you are up to your neck with this project.

But I say this , Go For It! :clap2:
 

ondine

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I've had to trap Chester, the cat in my avatar, for trips to the vet.  He's wary yet still goes in after a bit.  He loves his wet food.

His sister, Teresa, is another story.  She loves her pets, though, so I will put a carrier on its end, door at the top and open, next t her cat tree for a few days.  When I am ready and she's on the tree, I pet her until she is just relaxed enough for me to scruff her and dump her rather unceremoniously into the carrier.

It's awkward and upsetting to us both but sometimes it has to be done.  She doesn't talk to me for a couple of days afterward but once that carrier is washed and put back, she's fine.  I keep most of my carriers out permanently, just so the cats are not forewarned when they get dragged out of the closet.
 
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bigbadbass

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A ways to go before I can openly pet the Bug (I can't wait, but HE sure can)  

He's still hiding out, though playing with wand more and more. NOT using the tree....it leaves him vulnerable and conspicuous I guess?  Sleeping a lot. This afternoon, I brought in a pillow and blanket, flopped on the floor and napped with him.

Thats ok, isn't it? he was hiding under the chair, near the heat...we did blinky eyes. 

This mornings feed he gave me a sniff test (hope i passed....ewwww)

I'm giving a little more time feeding in the carrier....I'll get him in soon. Being patient,...now time for the little Kings dinner : ) 
 
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tabbytom

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You are doing well with the pillow and blanket on the floor and exchanging blinky eyes. This will give him a boost to show that he's being loved.
It's best not to force him up the tree and let him use it by his own. Let him feel free to do what he wants so that he don't feel cornered.

I think he's trying to show you who's the boss by doing the sniff test :lol3:

Just double check, has he been in the house all these while? I meant he slept indoors without leaving after his meals for the past few days?
 
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bigbadbass

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yes TT  he's been fully inside since Monday....so today was 5th day.  His integration has been surprising and positive....instantly using litter box, not wrecking anything, very minor aggressive behavior (hissed couple of times), he's beginning to play.....the only negatives...excessive sleeping...? see below

Dinner.... gave me the usual "greet" prior to eating with the usual petting. He's about 50% in the crate, his appetite is "healthy" to say the least, a full can of Friskies brand Savory Supper.

He slept prior to dinner, ate, cleaned himself for about 20 minutes...I tempted him to play with a wand...no go. 90 minutes later and the little king is sleeping yet again.

Question.....Is his sleeping excessive? Is this indicative of him being depressed? A positive result of warmth and good food? Or is he just showing his age?

Another question...he hides/sleeps behind a storage basket under a table....should I simply remove the basket (to be able to see him) or leave it (as his secure hiding spot) ?

Overall he's been amazing, given his tough, solitary background and plunged by me into an instant lifestyle change.      

The delay in vet/neutering is the only impediment to a seamless transition. Doing SO WELL... I'm proud of him!   
 

tabbytom

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Wow! That's wonderful to hear that he's been inside for the past 5 days without breaking free :clap:

Good that he is doing his routine in eating and sleeping and using the litter box and occasionally playing.

Think he is pretty comfortable now and relaxing so if got nothing to do, why not just sleep? As long as he is not pacing up and down feeling restless and sleeping soundly, think he's kind of settling in.

You can change the position of the basket as not totally removing it so that you'll be able to see him and he's ale to see you but at the same time he still can kind of use it to hide partially. Slowly move the basket and have a more open space till you still find him at the same spot but in full view. Then remove the basket totally and that'll proably be his usual resting spot. You want him to have confidence and be socialized so he must not form the habit of hiding.

The other thing if you lay down and exchange blinkies, try to hear if he purrs. If he does, even in short soft purrs, I think the victory is won.

Yes, both of you are doing extremely well. Just remember - slow and easy, one step forward, two steps back ;)
 
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Still a distance between us, long way to go....but he's been superb so far. I started feeding him late October, I would have thought it unfathomable that he'd be consistently using a litter box INDOORS in January! He did pace and examine the glass doors at 4AM on the 3rd night. He may have been scratching the glass, probing for a weak spot.... but this behavior he has not repeated.

Tonight, i'm playing calming classical music on a sound system in HIS room at a barely audible volume. Note that WAS my bass practice room...on hold until he integrates into the household, however long it takes...and thats ok.   

I also ordered a Feliway plug-in, on the way.  I hope that will calm him as well. 

i'll continue playing, napping on the floor, talking, lightly engaging him without "pushing" him too quick. I'll be listening for purring....that would be AWESOME! 

The vet, the vet...I know....my focus is to get that behind us.  

Hey, thanks again, TT. 
 
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ondine

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He has made an amazing adjustment to inside, which tells me he may have initially been an inside cat.

The Feliway will help.  You can also get a spray and use it on bedding,

Although most cats sleep up to 20 hours a day, the sleeping may be a little depression during this adjustment period.  I would mention it to the vet, though, just to be on the safe side.

Is it too crowded in the room for you to practice?  If not, go in one day and see if your music soothes the savage beast.  Something soft and slow would do.
 
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bigbadbass

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Sure, there's some room....I'm also a fair acoustic guitar plunker....some very light jazz standards may soothe him.  Bass is out, WAY too low frequency...the room shakes. 

An AMAZING event today...I went to see the neighborhood feral lady  to tell her I had the Bug.......I did a doubletake,  a HUH? and a ***?   Knocking on her door, on her back porch I encountered a MIRROR image of the Bug... ***? How did you get out?  But...upon closer look, older, thinner,  scrawny, obviously a feral.    

I ask...who the hell is that? She says THATS THE 12 YEAR OLD FERAL....she calls him BEAR. I asked ...then who the hell do i have in my music room?  She's thinking he's Bears son, but she may not be as sure as she lets on.   

So BUG is NOT the 12 year old feral.....there were 2 (almost) identical black cats the whole time!!!

Surprise, surprise...this may explain Bugs taking to the inside so well. And he very well  _may be_   a dumped house cat.  I'll never know for sure, at this point.

Bear is ok, BTW, well fed and has lived at her place all his life.  

This is a game changer, in Bugs favor. I'm blown away by this event today! 

I'll mention the possible excessive sleeping to the vet, too. Pillow and blanket on the floor, i napped there today. Tried to get him to play, sat, had coffee, talking to him. 

Trying everything you've taught me....just more time needed, i guess. 
 

tabbytom

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[emoji]128562[/emoji] [emoji]128561[/emoji] .........,,,wha?! A case of mistaken identity?

Anyway, you've got the younger one and he is ok indoor for now.

Did they take turns coming to feed at your house? One eats and scoot off and one eats and stay? The mystery deepens.

But i'm sure yours is the true Bug as he is not the scrawny looking one.
 

ondine

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I had a feeling - that cat just didn't look like he had lived outside for 12 years.  So glad Bear is being cared for.  They don't live 12 years without support.

The vet should be able to give you an estimate of Bug's age but I'm guessing two or three.

This is part of why love rescue - there are always surprises.  So glad this was a good one.  Blessings on your neighbor for supporting Bear all these years.
 
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Doppelgangers. From a distance or in the dark, they'd be indistinguishable. 

A few weeks ago, when I asked her if it was ok if I took him in....she thought i meant Bear. The one time we were all present together....he was under a car,,,I assumed it was Bug we were looking at....it was Bear the whole time.

Then I wondered how he got to my house so quick and so stealthy....that was Bug, already there!   : )

I had NO IDEA there were **2**  black cats...until my face to face with Bear today.

I am concerned, Bug slept the majority of the day in his safe spot. I fed him minutes ago....he ate a bit, then balked, returned to his safe spot.

Vet Monday....i'm determined....nothing but his butt sticking out of the crate when feeding now....just a push and a slam of the door away from a car ride to exam, testing, etc etc. Fingers crossed he's healthy and clear of disease.  

Agreed the neighbor lady's a great advocate...gave her a pat on the back for watching after Bear. I'll have to get a pic...he's still a beautiful animal at his age.       

Bug has defied "feral" on a number of levels. Witness his immediate taking to the litterbox.

Now knowing he's new to "wintering" outdoors, I'm really glad he's inside. Looking at the "Bug cam" he's lying all warm and comfy in my chair this very moment....been snowing all afternoon. Lucky kitty. 
 

tabbytom

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They both are black, black starts with the letter B. Bear and Bug, both starts with the letter B too. How much more identical and coincidence is it? Now the lady owns one B and you the other B. Bravo! :clap: :lol3:
 
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bigbadbass

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@Ondine had him pegged for a younger, not-so-much feral early on. She certainly knows her stuff! 

TWO black cats...certainly a strange happenstance. I'm pleasantly surprised and my thinking has somewhat changed.....he's young, such long life ahead and whether he becomes indoor/outdoor is unknown..so will have vet microchip him as well.  

After dinner and a major league bm   [Bug, not me]   : )    ... he *finally* opted to come out, lay comfortably in the middle of the floor for a bit. Yes, FINALLY relaxed and not hidden!  

Retreating back to his safe spot...we played for 20-30 minutes. He's just getting comfortable with toy mousies. He likes wand toys with string only....no large toys at the end. I'm doing everything I know how (and you've all taught me) to encourage his play interaction.....always talking at low volume...."good boy, Bug. Get him" , etc etc etc.     

Slow and easy, nothing aggressive. 

Around 9 he retires under the warm radiator ...I sat and quietly talked to him for 15-20 minutes. He's out like a light. 

He *may* be starting to come around a bit.  I'm hopeful.  
 

tabbytom

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That's very good advancement. The next time he's out in the middle, form your hand in a fist form and slowly place in front of him and let him smell your hand and slowly slide your fist baby the side of his cheeks a few times and then on the forehead. Let him rub his pheromones on your hand. Once he gets use to this, move on to stroke his back slowly all the way to the base of his tail where I thinks he likes it.
And from cheek musking to striking and to petting and to holding him in your arms and you are there already!

Yes, he is slowly letting his guts down. If he ever lay on his side, I think you can celebrate!
 
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bigbadbass

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I'll give it a shot, though trying in the past, he looks like he'll strike. As suggested, I've never "pushed" him. 

We'll give it a shot, though.

Thought you'd like to know...I'm gonna donate a case of cat food to neighbor lady for Bear. Figured its the right thing to do, help her out in a minor way, acknowledging and thanking her long time support for Bear. The least I can do.  
 

tabbytom

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That's a very nice gesture to her in the support of Bear :clap:

Yes, don't push him, hope for all the best. So how is he doing today?
 

ondine

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That is a wonderful idea about the food.  I know she (and Bear) will appreciate it.

Bug does sound like he's getting more comfortable.  They operate on their own schedules and just have to go with it.  I have a feeling he's already appreciating this indoor gig.

Another thought about Bear - is he fixed?  He may very well benefit from a trip to the vet, too.  Not only to be neutered, if he isn't, but for a general check-up.  He deserves it after all these years on his own.

Maybe when Bug gets his trip and you feel more confident, you might suggest it to your neighbor.  Of course, this is how I got involved with rescue - fixing one danged cat until his brother showed up and then his sister and then his mother, so I understand completely if you beg off.

And I know it may sound silly to neuter a 12-year-old cat but think of all the Bugs you will help avoid.  There are simply too many and every neuter and spay helps.
 
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bigbadbass

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After breakfast, usual greeting and tail pets...well.....he headed for the litterbox....in his defense he's batting 1000, with no errors or strikeouts...this morning he hit a GRAND SLAM     (i'll leave it at that, suffice to say he is a BIG cat)    : )    

He is making more of a mid room presence....but loves his hiding place near the warm radiator...where we played with yarn for 15 minutes (awake and focused...he was actually BUG-eyed)

My camera notices tell me he was up and active from 2AM  sporadically till 6...I fed him at 7....then back to sleep. I cleaned, rearranged some stuff....had coffee, talked to him.

Later he stole my chair....I got hissed at when I entered the room and approached ....the little prince was pissed I awoke him...and probably startled him too. My bad.... but every day some improvement is realized. 

Tomorrow MLK day...emailed the vet to check their status, they do neutering on normal Mondays ....please not ANOTHER DELAY.... I await their response to availability  ....but next they are open is Thursday.

i've got him ready for safe/easy capture. Just want to do it, get him in car and go directly there....get it over with. Drop off in morning, pick up in afternoon. 
 
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