I got Tora last week. He's in my closet.
When Mi-ke first realized he was there, hearing or smelling him in the carrier, she disappeared under the bed for hours. There was then a gradual reduction in the amount of time she spent under the bed, and she was clearly apprehensive about him.
A couple of times when I went to visit Tora, he escaped. Both times, he ran straight for Mi-ke's canned food. I grabbed him and put him back. In both of these instances, Mi-ke saw him and just watched. The most reaction was her back fur raising a little, but he really charged by, so that's no surprise. After that, though, she was even more nervous, sometimes hiding in the cabinet above the fridge when I went to see him. And she'll just stare at the door from the next room.
In the midst of all this, Tora has developed a cold. I haven't taken him to a vet, I admit. But he's managing with it. He eats and drinks. And like in humans, it seems to be mostly one-sided, with his left eye watering and left nostril snotty. He sneezes quite a bit. This is clearly a bit of a setback as far as introductions go, although Mi-ke's current on her vaccinations as of a week ago.
She's never minded his smell much. She's curious but doesn't get mad.
Tonight, I decided to bring him out (even though I knew I shouldn't), carrying him into the living room. When I'd done that once before, Mi-ke stared but didn't comment on it. This time, she stared, but when I got a little closer, she hissed and growled. And later on, she crept towards the closet a bit, but at one point, she hissed at the door (he hadn't made any noise to provoke it).
So...what's the next step? I feel awful about keeping him in my closet. I know he's lonely and bored in there, and it's inconvenient for me. But as Mi-ke hasn't really sniffed under the door or played pawsies with him, I don't suppose they're ready to meet. Giving her his blanket won't help much as she knows his smell already and doesn't raise a fuss about it. There's no treat in the world that would convince her to go up to that door so they could have a "through the door" experience. I'm just not sure what to do. I don't want her to think that this is all there is to it--scary kitty in the closet = avoid the closet forever.
When Mi-ke first realized he was there, hearing or smelling him in the carrier, she disappeared under the bed for hours. There was then a gradual reduction in the amount of time she spent under the bed, and she was clearly apprehensive about him.
A couple of times when I went to visit Tora, he escaped. Both times, he ran straight for Mi-ke's canned food. I grabbed him and put him back. In both of these instances, Mi-ke saw him and just watched. The most reaction was her back fur raising a little, but he really charged by, so that's no surprise. After that, though, she was even more nervous, sometimes hiding in the cabinet above the fridge when I went to see him. And she'll just stare at the door from the next room.
In the midst of all this, Tora has developed a cold. I haven't taken him to a vet, I admit. But he's managing with it. He eats and drinks. And like in humans, it seems to be mostly one-sided, with his left eye watering and left nostril snotty. He sneezes quite a bit. This is clearly a bit of a setback as far as introductions go, although Mi-ke's current on her vaccinations as of a week ago.
She's never minded his smell much. She's curious but doesn't get mad.
Tonight, I decided to bring him out (even though I knew I shouldn't), carrying him into the living room. When I'd done that once before, Mi-ke stared but didn't comment on it. This time, she stared, but when I got a little closer, she hissed and growled. And later on, she crept towards the closet a bit, but at one point, she hissed at the door (he hadn't made any noise to provoke it).
So...what's the next step? I feel awful about keeping him in my closet. I know he's lonely and bored in there, and it's inconvenient for me. But as Mi-ke hasn't really sniffed under the door or played pawsies with him, I don't suppose they're ready to meet. Giving her his blanket won't help much as she knows his smell already and doesn't raise a fuss about it. There's no treat in the world that would convince her to go up to that door so they could have a "through the door" experience. I'm just not sure what to do. I don't want her to think that this is all there is to it--scary kitty in the closet = avoid the closet forever.