stray behaviour

[simmone]

Hello, I have recently taken in a stray and have followed the advice about letting her come to me, stay down at her level etc and its going well. She will now come out and greet me when I walk into the room she's in. She hisses if I'm standing up but I can see how scary I must look to her! I have given her a cat bed which she now won't let me touch! She hisses and swipes at me if I even touch the top of it and she is becoming the same way with her food bowl. Should I be picking her bowl up every time I feed her and putting it back down or is it a phase of her settling in? I can see that she's had to protect her food before as she's always looking around whilst eating and I can see how she panics if she thinks I am getting at it.
Also she sprints fast at my hand to rub herself on it...it worries me as I never know if she's coming to attack or for affection...
And advice much appreciated thank you!

 

[lamiatron]

I guess don't pick up her food bowl until all the food is gone??

I adopted a stray kitten, she was 8 weeks old. and was not socialized AT ALL, as she was living in the streets a couple weeks prior to ending up at the shelter.

When i brought her home she would always hide, and hiss, at anyone and everyone. for anything and everything. You just have to give her time. One thing i did to some what gain her trust, is when i bring her the food, i let her get a bit antsy for it. She sees me holding it, but I don't give it to her right away. When i finally do, she's about crazy and wants to eat, so she'll only be focused on that. once she's eating, i sit next to her, or behind her, and I just pet her, and praise her. she's too busy eating to run off from me. She notices me, but doesn't hiss, cus again, she's busy eating. I've been doing that for the past 2 months now, its been helping a lot. She trusts me now, and will come up to me on her own for pets and cuddles. She "talks" to me when i come home. lol. its weird. and recently she has started sleeping on my face. not my head, or hair, just on my face -_____-

another thing i did, sometimes when she hissed at me, and say i was holding her, i wouldn't put her down. i just looked at her and said no. she would hiss a could more times, and then just give up. then after a while, she just stopped hissing at me. she'll just be whatever. and now she never hisses at me. She still hisses at my bf and my room mates, but never at me, or my other cat. hissing is something that i believe can be reinforced, because if you give her what she wants whenever she hisses which is "let me go" then she'll continued to hiss every time she wants to get away from you. So i just decided, the hissing's gotta go, and i've done similar behavior modifications with dogs, and i just tried it on my cat, and it worked. I would not recommend this thing to you if your cat is older, and you are afraid, and your cat is known to bite. My cat just hisses and looks at me like "i'm gonna eff you up!" but doesn't bite or scratch. 

My cat is still skittish. I've only had her two months. I'm continuing with the feeding+petting, and just letting her come to me thing. She's my problem child seriously, but she's such a beautiful kitty. I'm glad shes in my life. I"m so happy you've taken in a stray and you're giving her a good home. 

give her more time, and let her feel comfortable with you. If your cat does bite you, I would recommend crating her for a few mins. That's what i did with my cats, and they don't bite anymore. maybe once in a blue from over stimulation from being pet....but not out of aggression. You gotta teach her that biting and hissing are not acceptable forms of communication. over all be patient. and consistent.

 

[shadowsrescue]

I would leave her food bowl down until it is empty.  She is used to fighting or competing for food.  She will adjust when she realizes there is no competition and that she will always have plenty.  With the strays/ferals I have worked with it usually takes 4-6 weeks for them to settle. 

It sounds like the two of you are adjusting to each other and that you still are getting to know her.  The trust will come from both sides with time.  Do you play with her?  Make sure the play doesn't involve your body parts.  Have on hand balls, catnip toys, laser pointer, feather wands and most cats love da bird.  She may be afraid to play at first, but keep the play quiet and short at first. 

Also is she spayed?  Has she been to a vet for a check up?  You will need to make sure she has shots and also if she previously lived outside, she could have worms. 

Thank you for taking in this little one.

 

[simmone]

Thank you guys. Yes she has been to the vets it was the first place I took her. We haven't organised to have her spayed yet as waiting for her stomach to reduce in size. Yeah, it's a steep learning curve!

 

[lamiatron]

her behavior towards you and her new environment might change after she is spayed, so i hope that helps you.

What do you mean you're waiting for her stomach size to reduce? is she over weight or pregnant? If she's pregnant, than maybe she's very over protective of her self and her belongings. She might not trust you 100%, that's why she's hissing a lot and is skittish

 

[simmone]

Thatswhat we ththought but they have said she's not. It's either worms or fip so we are waiting and talking to the vets daily (and I have put a thread on it in cat health on here too) keeping all my fingers crossed, she just wants to be loved. I have tries playing with a balk and a fishpole type toy but she just isn't interested....can it be that she doesn't know how to play? Do I just keep trying? Will catnip help?

 

[lamiatron]

yea keep trying. maybe entice her into play with some treats. my stray kitty didn't play at first. she used to just hide and watch my other cat play, and after a while she joined in too. and her way of playing was definitely different from my other cat. i found that my stray kitty found pleasure in the simple things. like little balls of paper, or foil. try making a little paper ball and put some cat nip it in. she'll chase it for a while. my stray kitty loves krinkly stuff. but she was definitely AFRAID of playing at first. this could be the case with your kitty too. definitely keep the play easy and limited, and always reward with treats. i hope you guys get good news from the vets in regards to her health.