hi i am a new member too and found this site while searching for answers abt my rescue cat...an enigma wrapped in a stress bundle! Shes come a long way in the 4yrs we've been together. Shes probably close to 16yr old (tho when i adopted her4yr ago, her records indicated she was 7!). Shes come a long way. Her knee jerk response to any kind of affection was to attack. My response has always been NEVER scold her or b loud bc i know it ws her only defense against whatever past history she ws subjected to. I know she has a rapid heart beat and what that means. My dilemma has been with her appetite. Its always been an issue and has been to vet numerous times about that, but again, due to her stress level, we see the vet only when necessary (nail trim, shots). She is pretty healthy and does eat her dry. Since iv had her shes lost weight (shes a big cat was 13+ now 9). When she does eat wet food, she likes it soupy, but is down to water down chicken flavor baby food and a can of ff chic sometimes tuns. Again its less than half a can occassionally and mostly soup. Yes, iv tried everything including making my own for her. Sometimes i think she doesnt know how to be a cat, you know the natural cat behavior of affection, but again with unconditional love and reassurance shes made huge progress. Maybe i just have to make peace with it. I just started giving her xanax small dose, only when absolutely necessary like thunder storms, but my recent living situation has been disruptive so im monitoring her.