Hello,
First I should say that I've always had dogs, and I've never had a cat. I've had friends with cats and my sister has a cat, but I've never had one until this past Saturday. My complex absolutely forbids dogs of any size or breed (sticks in my craw and one of the big reasons I'll be moving in the fall... wouldn't have moved here if I had a better chance to house-hunt after getting a new job in Detroit while I was living in Philadelphia), and I wanted a companion, so I visited the local PetSmart last month during an adoption event and spoke to a woman working for the local cat rescue about cats.
Well last Saturday night I brought home Shyla, a 10-month old brown tabby. What I know about her is she and her brothers were found in a feral colony last spring (born March 12, 2012, in the care of the rescue by June) and were raised together in a foster home last summer. Last fall they were put in the adoption cages at that PetSmart. Last week her brothers were adopted. The family wished they could keep them all together, but three cats was too much for them all at once and so Shyla was left behind. Needless to say she was depressed for days according to the store employees and the rescue volunteers, and everyone was ecstatic when I decided to adopt her. When I visited her behind the cages, she was very affectionate. Cautious, and the store manager needed to use a stick-toy to coax her out, but she let me pet her, play with her, and even demanded attention a bit. She was there for almost four months. Everyone was very excited and happy for her because she's such a sweetheart.
Naturally when I brought her home she was immediately scared/frightened/timid around new surroundings. She wouldn't even leave the cat carrier I brought her home in. I let her stay in there while I setup her new box and her food/water dishes (her eyes were glued to me). Then I had to make her get out of the carrier. I opened the other end and pushed her on the rear to get her out. She hugged the ground and ran down the steps to the entrance (second floor apartment, ground level private entrance), seemingly trying to get out of the apartment. I went down to get her, she zoomed back up and hid under the couch. I let her be. Found her under a different couch sectional the next morning. I spoke to a lady at another pet store who suggested I try to pick her up with treats and show her around her new home... well needless to say that didn't well. Glad I have band-aids!
She piddled the carpet in the bedroom that night (1-bed apartment), and I used the soiled paper towels to plant her Urea in her litter box. That worked as I found her litter disturbed and piddled-on the following morning. I also found her behind the toilet, which meant I had to wait until I got to work to use the toilet. Each time she hides I try to offer her a few chicken Blue brand treats. I offer them to her near her mouth, get no response from her, and then leave them near her. She never eats them. I put a bunch of treats on her scratch post (complex demands she be front-paw declawed, but I want to try to get away with not doing that... kinda inhumane) and I think she ate one of those. I also spread catnip around the post, on top of the post, and around her food dishes near the post, 8 feet away from her litter box, sort of catty-corner to the rest of the room (dining, living, computer nook, hallway all one giant room with vaulted ceiling). At some point one piece of kibble sprouted legs and went for a swim in her water bowl, so I hope she's at least nibbling her food while I'm gone. Last night she hid under a deeper section of my L-shaped sectional, such that I doubt she could even see me, and this morning she was under the recliner section. The couch has no skirt, but there's maybe 2-3" clearance so I feel like she can't see me at all. With her under the recliner I fear she might catch herself on the mechanism. I never recline it, but the fear is still there.
She doesn't hiss, growl, scratch, bite, or anything. She stares me down when she can see me, backs away if I get near, breathes heavier, and her pupils are the size of saucers, so clearly she's frightened (doesn't help that I'm 6'4"). I've already decided to try sitting or laying on the floor in the room where she can see me, place her food and water between us, maybe toss a few treats over to her hiding place, and just read on my tablet or watch netflix with headphones and pretend I'm completely oblivious to her presence in the hopes she'll realize that I have no intention of "getting" her. I've currently watch Star Trek: the Next Generation, Lost, and Heroes, so there's no shortage of entertainment on my Nexus tablet.
Am I on the right track? I'm used to dogs being super excited and ready to play the instant they meet you (my German shephard, Sammy, practically busted down the chainlink fence door when we first went to see him; the old man [16] lives with my parents in south FL now), so this behavior is completely alien to me and heartbreaking. Everyone says it's normal, to give it a few weeks or a month, so I'm trying to be patient. Any tips? I've heard to lock her in her own room, but that's not possible. My galley kitchen is too tiny for her to live in and me to use every day, same story with the bath/laundry combo, my closet has all my clothes and tools and snowboard equipment in it. She hid under the hutch on my nightstand once and waited for me to sleep before leaving it for the toilet space... and last night I could swear I felt something small walking on my bed, but I'm sure I was imagining it in my half-sleep haze. Neither her food nor her litter box were disturbed this morning.
I've decided not to bother her at all. I'm torn between cold/cruel ignorance and possibly frightening attempts to pet her. I did gently stroke her behind the toilet and she was tense, but did not try to run.
Ideas?
First I should say that I've always had dogs, and I've never had a cat. I've had friends with cats and my sister has a cat, but I've never had one until this past Saturday. My complex absolutely forbids dogs of any size or breed (sticks in my craw and one of the big reasons I'll be moving in the fall... wouldn't have moved here if I had a better chance to house-hunt after getting a new job in Detroit while I was living in Philadelphia), and I wanted a companion, so I visited the local PetSmart last month during an adoption event and spoke to a woman working for the local cat rescue about cats.
Well last Saturday night I brought home Shyla, a 10-month old brown tabby. What I know about her is she and her brothers were found in a feral colony last spring (born March 12, 2012, in the care of the rescue by June) and were raised together in a foster home last summer. Last fall they were put in the adoption cages at that PetSmart. Last week her brothers were adopted. The family wished they could keep them all together, but three cats was too much for them all at once and so Shyla was left behind. Needless to say she was depressed for days according to the store employees and the rescue volunteers, and everyone was ecstatic when I decided to adopt her. When I visited her behind the cages, she was very affectionate. Cautious, and the store manager needed to use a stick-toy to coax her out, but she let me pet her, play with her, and even demanded attention a bit. She was there for almost four months. Everyone was very excited and happy for her because she's such a sweetheart.
Naturally when I brought her home she was immediately scared/frightened/timid around new surroundings. She wouldn't even leave the cat carrier I brought her home in. I let her stay in there while I setup her new box and her food/water dishes (her eyes were glued to me). Then I had to make her get out of the carrier. I opened the other end and pushed her on the rear to get her out. She hugged the ground and ran down the steps to the entrance (second floor apartment, ground level private entrance), seemingly trying to get out of the apartment. I went down to get her, she zoomed back up and hid under the couch. I let her be. Found her under a different couch sectional the next morning. I spoke to a lady at another pet store who suggested I try to pick her up with treats and show her around her new home... well needless to say that didn't well. Glad I have band-aids!
She piddled the carpet in the bedroom that night (1-bed apartment), and I used the soiled paper towels to plant her Urea in her litter box. That worked as I found her litter disturbed and piddled-on the following morning. I also found her behind the toilet, which meant I had to wait until I got to work to use the toilet. Each time she hides I try to offer her a few chicken Blue brand treats. I offer them to her near her mouth, get no response from her, and then leave them near her. She never eats them. I put a bunch of treats on her scratch post (complex demands she be front-paw declawed, but I want to try to get away with not doing that... kinda inhumane) and I think she ate one of those. I also spread catnip around the post, on top of the post, and around her food dishes near the post, 8 feet away from her litter box, sort of catty-corner to the rest of the room (dining, living, computer nook, hallway all one giant room with vaulted ceiling). At some point one piece of kibble sprouted legs and went for a swim in her water bowl, so I hope she's at least nibbling her food while I'm gone. Last night she hid under a deeper section of my L-shaped sectional, such that I doubt she could even see me, and this morning she was under the recliner section. The couch has no skirt, but there's maybe 2-3" clearance so I feel like she can't see me at all. With her under the recliner I fear she might catch herself on the mechanism. I never recline it, but the fear is still there.
She doesn't hiss, growl, scratch, bite, or anything. She stares me down when she can see me, backs away if I get near, breathes heavier, and her pupils are the size of saucers, so clearly she's frightened (doesn't help that I'm 6'4"). I've already decided to try sitting or laying on the floor in the room where she can see me, place her food and water between us, maybe toss a few treats over to her hiding place, and just read on my tablet or watch netflix with headphones and pretend I'm completely oblivious to her presence in the hopes she'll realize that I have no intention of "getting" her. I've currently watch Star Trek: the Next Generation, Lost, and Heroes, so there's no shortage of entertainment on my Nexus tablet.
Am I on the right track? I'm used to dogs being super excited and ready to play the instant they meet you (my German shephard, Sammy, practically busted down the chainlink fence door when we first went to see him; the old man [16] lives with my parents in south FL now), so this behavior is completely alien to me and heartbreaking. Everyone says it's normal, to give it a few weeks or a month, so I'm trying to be patient. Any tips? I've heard to lock her in her own room, but that's not possible. My galley kitchen is too tiny for her to live in and me to use every day, same story with the bath/laundry combo, my closet has all my clothes and tools and snowboard equipment in it. She hid under the hutch on my nightstand once and waited for me to sleep before leaving it for the toilet space... and last night I could swear I felt something small walking on my bed, but I'm sure I was imagining it in my half-sleep haze. Neither her food nor her litter box were disturbed this morning.
I've decided not to bother her at all. I'm torn between cold/cruel ignorance and possibly frightening attempts to pet her. I did gently stroke her behind the toilet and she was tense, but did not try to run.
Ideas?