To give some backstory .... I had a starving Momma cat with two kittens come into my backyard about 4 years ago and make it their home. Momma went from wanting to lunge and kill me, to a fat happy little girl. I bought them igloos (heated pads in the winter) and trapped them and had them all fixed. Momma was won over and decided she really loved me, but the kittens would never let me touch them. They would be so excited to see me when I came out with food. They would have their tails up and rub against the chairs and just looked to be so content, but would only allow me to get so close. One was hit by a car and died as the vet was pulling him out of the crate, which only left Momma and one kitten. Then the next blow came that we found out that we had to move and the next tragedy was that my Momma disappeared. I was devastated and so was the remaining kitten because they were inseparable. So now... I had to somehow trap the kitten (now grown 4 year old cat) to take with me because no way was I leaving her. I had already trapped her previously in a live trap and she would have no part of that, so I started lulling her into the house with treats. She knew me and depended on me for food, shelter and her favorite treats that she would come running for when I called her. I finally got her in the house and in a kennel in December and brought her to the new house. We cleared out a bedroom and put her in it. I have bought a cat trees, toys, etc and tried to make it as inviting as I could. It is now 4 months later and I don't feel like I have made any progress with her. She still won't let me touch her... some days she won't hiss at me, but mostly she still does. She has been in this room for 4 months and I feel horrible about it, but not sure what to do at this point. Should I let her roam around the house? I am unsure what to do now and hoping that someone has been through this and can give me some advice. I do leave the door to the bedroom open now during the day and since I work from home, I made a temporary desk in the room with her so I can spend all day with her. I talk to her, give her those treats she loves and sometimes she lets me pet her with a long stick that had a mouse at the end. Today is a bad day... she spits, hisses and no way to "pet" her with that little stick with the rat. I do have my niece and her friend up, so the house is not as quiet as it usually is. I also have family coming at the end of the month and really need to use this bedroom on the main floor for my husbands parents since they can't climb steps. I am at a loss and would welcome any advice.
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Advice On Taming A Feral Cat
- Thread starter mbiddy
- Start Date
Moving her to a new room might be very hard for her. If you do have to move her, make sure that the new space is safe and secure but that she cannot hide under a bed or other large furniture. Hopefully the change will only be for a few days. Yet if you think you will need the space again, it might be best to find her another secure space where she will not have to be moved. It can take months and months for previous feral cats to adjust to inside living.
I have brought 5 inside over the course of 5 years. The first one took one solid year to adjust and to be able to fully leave his safe room. Now he is very sweet, but still skittish of noises and other people. The second one was quicker. I just brought 3 inside also in December as I too moved. I had been caring for 3 ferals on my deck for years. One had been with me for 7 years. They are all inside now and at varying degrees of settling. They are in a large sun room separate from my 3 other cats and large dog. Right now they are allowed out for short visits. I can only handle one of them, but I can pet them all. It takes lots of time and patience.
Have you tried Feliway plugs in or Composure calming treats or liquid? There is also a product called Zylkene that might help too. I used Composure liquid max on my first feral and it worked so well for him. My current 3 do not like it, but the Zylkene is tasteless and can be sprinkled into wet food.
Are you careful to not make direct eye contact with her? I always announce myself by knocking quietly to let them know I am coming inside the room.
Have you tried yummy food rewards. I used plain cooked chicken in little ziplock bags. I would shake the bag upon entering and toss a small piece. The cats go used to the sound of the bag and started to wait for me. Gerber Stage @ chicken or turkey baby food is also a good thing to try. Canned tuna, salmon or mackeral works well too.
Thank you for rescuing this little one. Just give her lots of time and patience. She may never ever be a lap kitty who loves people, but she is warm, safe, dry and loved inside her home.
I have brought 5 inside over the course of 5 years. The first one took one solid year to adjust and to be able to fully leave his safe room. Now he is very sweet, but still skittish of noises and other people. The second one was quicker. I just brought 3 inside also in December as I too moved. I had been caring for 3 ferals on my deck for years. One had been with me for 7 years. They are all inside now and at varying degrees of settling. They are in a large sun room separate from my 3 other cats and large dog. Right now they are allowed out for short visits. I can only handle one of them, but I can pet them all. It takes lots of time and patience.
Have you tried Feliway plugs in or Composure calming treats or liquid? There is also a product called Zylkene that might help too. I used Composure liquid max on my first feral and it worked so well for him. My current 3 do not like it, but the Zylkene is tasteless and can be sprinkled into wet food.
Are you careful to not make direct eye contact with her? I always announce myself by knocking quietly to let them know I am coming inside the room.
Have you tried yummy food rewards. I used plain cooked chicken in little ziplock bags. I would shake the bag upon entering and toss a small piece. The cats go used to the sound of the bag and started to wait for me. Gerber Stage @ chicken or turkey baby food is also a good thing to try. Canned tuna, salmon or mackeral works well too.
Thank you for rescuing this little one. Just give her lots of time and patience. She may never ever be a lap kitty who loves people, but she is warm, safe, dry and loved inside her home.
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Thank you so much for taking the time to reply to me. I do give her treats (she loves those) and canned tuna along with her dry food. I just recently learned about the eye contact, so I try very hard to look at her throat or paws when I am talking to her. I haven't heard of Feliway or Composure but I am going right now to get some. I do love this little baby so bad and just want her to feel safe and not scared half to death. We do have a security camera in her room so she does move around a lot when I am not in here with her. She sits on the window sill and looks out at all the strays that I feed at this house and moves around to various places in the room. I do have a dog and 20 year old cat and they come in and out of her room during the day and she seems to like it. My older cat will come in and walk around and Puddin (the feral cat) perks up a lot like she is so excited to see another one of her kind. ;-)
What a beautiful girl and orange at that! I would definitely be using your other cats to your advantage. Have her watch while you interact with your other cats. I have had many of my ferals learn through my interactions with my other cats.
I used to always bring a special treat into the room with me each time I visited. I wanted the cat(s) to associate me with something yummy. Shaking the treat bag alerted them that I was coming.
Composure comes in treat form and liquid. Some cats don't care for the treats as they are on the larger size and somewhat chewy. The liquid is easy to mix into wet food, but again some cats don't like the taste. It is supposed to be chicken flavored. When I first gave it to my feral boy, I doubled the dosage in the morning ( as directed on the bottle) and then gave a normal dose later in the evening. I had use this product daily for 6 months. It is often found cheaper online through Amazon or Entirelypets.com I think Chewy.com may sell it too.
Feliway plug ins are way cheaper online.
I too use cameras to monitor my feral cats. I used them when they lived on my deck and I now use them in their room. My boys are much much more active at night. They race around the room and play with toys. During the day they often sleep, but they do like to watch the birds too.
I used to always bring a special treat into the room with me each time I visited. I wanted the cat(s) to associate me with something yummy. Shaking the treat bag alerted them that I was coming.
Composure comes in treat form and liquid. Some cats don't care for the treats as they are on the larger size and somewhat chewy. The liquid is easy to mix into wet food, but again some cats don't like the taste. It is supposed to be chicken flavored. When I first gave it to my feral boy, I doubled the dosage in the morning ( as directed on the bottle) and then gave a normal dose later in the evening. I had use this product daily for 6 months. It is often found cheaper online through Amazon or Entirelypets.com I think Chewy.com may sell it too.
Feliway plug ins are way cheaper online.
I too use cameras to monitor my feral cats. I used them when they lived on my deck and I now use them in their room. My boys are much much more active at night. They race around the room and play with toys. During the day they often sleep, but they do like to watch the birds too.
