Cat Won't Let Me Take Collar Off

[Norman O.]

Hi,

I just adopted two cats about a week and a half ago from an animal shelter. They're both still shy and adjusting to the new environment. One is about five months (female/the one I'm experiencing the problem with) while the other is about four months (male).

The five-month-old female is incredibly shy and hides from me and my girlfriend, and hardly ever plays with us. Even while the other cat is showing some improvement, he still doesn't let us pet him -- but at least he still plays with us and, even though it's at a tortoise pace, is slowly coming out of his shell.

The five-month-old, I discovered a few days ago, has a pink plastic ID collar from the shelter that they forgot to remove when I adopted her. I didn't notice it after a few days after she came to my home because her fur covered it. It looks a little tight on her, but she is still able to eat/drink, and she does play with the other cat throughout the night. They both jump on furniture and run around the apartment.

I want to remove the ID collar from her neck, but when I tried to yesterday, she acted very feral. She growled, hissed, jumped off the wall, slammed into the closet door, and flailed her arms around. It was very disconcerting. When my girlfriend tried to pick her up a few days ago, the cat ran and slammed herself against the window trying to get away (if the window had been open, she would have met her demise). When my girlfriend and I step within three feet of her, she runs away and hides under the couch or the bed. There is no way to pick her up.

I called the shelter and notified the person I spoke to that they forgot to take off the collar. I was told that the cat needs more time to adjust, and that due to her size when she got adopted ( a week and a half ago), the person I spoke to doesn't think that she should be feeling too much discomfort, but to call back in about a week to see if we could think of options on how to rectify this dilemma.

I'm writing hoping anyone could have a possible solution/idea how I could feasibly remove this collar. I thought about throwing a towel on her and creating some sort of "purrito" whereby I could wrap her in it and try to remove the collar, but, I know she'll flip out and make it very difficult -- if she even stays still long enough for me to wrap her in the towel. That will also further compromise the trust she has in us. I keep thinking that after our failed attempts to pick her up so we could remove the collar, the cat's trust in me and my girlfriend has deteriorated even more.

I'm planning on getting soft/mushy treats for her to eat as a form of bribery for cooperation, but not sure if she'll respond to them or help in warming up to me. Naturally, it's up to the cat when she chooses to warm up, but I can't wait like six months or so because the collar is going to become increasingly cumbersome as the weeks go on.

I ordered a pheromone diffuser, hoping that could help, but am not very optimistic about it.

So, in short, does anyone know of any possible tricks/techniques on how I could remove this collar from a cat that at this point is totally unwilling to hold still and trust me?

Sorry for the long and drawn out message, but would seriously, whole-heartedly appreciate any suggestions.

 

[ArtNJ]

Kittens grow fast, but you can surely wait a week unless the shelter screwed up, put it on weeks ago and didn't check it. If it is actually choking her, she'll probably scratch at it. I definitely wouldn't forcibly do it unless your sure its medically necessary, because you might get scratched and any progress you have made with the cat will be zero'd. Even if you have made close to zero progress, you can still go negative...better to wait a week while you bond.

I think the main issue here is that you may need tips on how to bond with the cat over the coming week. Agree, or do you feel like you know how to go about this?

 

[Norman O.]

Thank you so much for your reply! I would definitely be open to get tips on how to bond with the cat over the coming week. Any suggestions are totally welcome!

 

[susanm9006]

If the collar is really too tight then it needs to come off as soon as possible and you don’t want to wait until she is starting to settle down and then get her all riled up again. I would go,the towel route. The two of you will need to tag team it and do it quick. Wait until the kitten is sleepy, then grab the cat in a thick towel and one holds while one removes the collar.

 

[furmonster mom]

It's possible that the collar is just uncomfortable enough to cause the behavior. If you can get it off, even if it's a little traumatic, the relief of having it off might allow her to be forgiving. Definitely have treats on hand, as if to say, "there now, isn't that better?" Don't be discouraged if she doesn't forgive right away, let her come to it in her own time.

 

[ArtNJ]

Thank you so much for your reply! I would definitely be open to get tips on how to bond with the cat over the coming week. Any suggestions are totally welcome!

The main key with a nervous cat in a new house is patience. You can lure the cat out of hiding with food/treats, getting as close as the cat is comfortable with, and only gradually getting closer. You can lure the cat with play. Da Bird & Cat Dancer are two good cheap toys. You can get down on the cats level and just wait. What not to do is equally important: don't do stuff the cat doesn't like or isn't ready for. "I'll hold her in my lap and show her how nice it is to get petted" is a huge no -- the cat thinks your a Harvey Weinstein. When the cat is ready, try and lure them to the lap, you don't put them there until they are your bestie, and even then, only if they are ok with that. Same with picking up. The cat has to be the boss. When things progress a little, the cat may allow petting in only certain situations or certain spots. Like when tired, or when on a certain dresser. Work with that. Develop a noise to signal you are ready to pet them in that spot and call them to it. Use the noise and/or treats to lure them to similar spots and broaden it.

It may actually end up being pretty easy once the cat gets less scared. Or it may be a slow process and you may need to follow all the steps I discuss above. Don't be discouraged.

I appreciate folks being cautious about the collar, but if you adopted from a responsible shelter, it seems very over cautious to think you need to act immediately. At least give it two days and see if you can get closer to the cat and check and see if there is space, which there probably is.

 

[Norman O.]

Thanks so much for your insightful advice. I will give it a few days and see how it goes. I bought treats yesterday, and placed them somewhat close to her under the bed. She smelled one of them and didn't do anything about it; at which point, the other cat came and ate them.

The collar seems like it's tight on her, but so far, I haven't seen her try to get it off. The shelter did say that they usually take it off before handing the animal off. I was also told that since she was picked up a week and a half ago and isn't so small, that it could be ok to have the collar on her.

I'm just annoyed to be in this situation in the first place. It's beyond me how a shelter could forget such a thing. Understandably, not all creatures as extremely skittish and would allow you to get close to them. However, I have been constantly thinking about her possibly being uncomfortable with it on throughout the day.