Re-homing a stray cat. Hiding away

[simon+delilah]

Hello!

This is my first post on here, so first a quick hello to everyone on here!

I picked up a cat yesterday who has been homeless for a number of years, she had been fed (but not housed) on and off by someone for about 3 months. So she has had a hard time really.

So I brought her home with me at about 9am with the intention of keeping her in the front room for a few days while she adjusts. I spent all day in there with her, she was so content I got down on her bed with her stroking her with her being all snuggly and lovely. (she was purring like crazy!) I didn't have the heart to leave her so stayed with her. To my surprise after I had dosed off I awoke to her using the litter tray all by herself which was amazing, then after that she came straight back to her bed for more cuddles.

So by about 8-9pm I decided to let her have a mooch about the flat as all was going well, I went to lay down on my bed and she quickly followed me and stayed with me all night. Had a look at the litter tray this morning and she must have got up in the middle of the night, used the tray then got back on my bed! Even this morning she was all snuggly and lovely.

Then she decided to get up and go for a wander, and since about 9am she has been hiding under the kitchen sink behind the kick board.

I realise I may have made an error in giving her free roam of the house a little too soon, and the reason I have written a detailed post of yesterday is to give a clear idea just how well things was going. Could it just be that yesterday as nice as it seemed, overwhelmed her a little?

Would appreciate your thoughts.

Many thanks
Simon

[Janey]

Hi Simon, welcome. It could be that she was a little overwhelmed and found a little hidely hole to get into. My current cat used to get on top of the kitchen units. I also remember when I fostered, the rehoming officer telling me of a story of a woman who adopted a cat and the she couldn’t find the cat in the house, then found her behind one of the appliances. She said she went and they got her out and made it so she couldn’t get in there otherwise she would have probably kept hidden. I would get her back out from the kickboard and put her back in one room for a little while to get her used to being in there. It sounds like she is doing very well though, just as most cats are in a new environment

[simon+delilah]

Thanks for your reply. The one thing i worry about tying to get her out is that I would have to pull the large kick board out and that could scare the carp out of her. I had put some food down outside where she is in case she comes out, but was thinking of maybe putting the bowl under the cupboard with her, just to reassure her that she is in safe place.

My one gripe with her picking that spot is that having never seen what it looks like under there until now, it would seem that whoever installed the kitchen has left loads of sawdust under there! when she does resurface she is going to look like a sawdust snowman / snowcat! I wouldn't mind if i could have got in there and given it a clean for her!

Another problem I am having is that her hearing is very bad to non-existent. She seems more able to respond to physical cues rather than verbal ones, but if she can't see me....

[Janey]

I personally would definitely get her out of there, and I would try to block it up, as even if she does come out she will probably keep going back in there if she can access it, especially if she can eat in there as well. She does need somewhere safe to go such as an igloo bed or a room where she can be on her own if she likes and so she has her own space, but I wouldn’t want her going in there or anywhere where it’s difficult to get her out of.

[Ruth B]

I have to agree that unless you want the hidey hole under the sink to become her 'safe place' you need to get her out sooner rather than later. Is it possible to reach her with out taking the kick board off, she could obviously get in, and you can see into the area, if you can reach her then I would advise just reaching in and getting hold of her by the scruff of the neck (the top of her neck just behind the ears where the head joins the body), you should then be able to pick her up just holding the skin tight to pull her out. Its undignified but doesn't hurt them and is the way a mother cat carries her kittens so they are hard wired to to just hang limp and not struggle.

Once out, keep her in her room for a few days so she gets the idea that that is a safe place and then let her explore slowly, shutting off areas so she can only go in one new room at a time. I would advise the kitchen being the last place once she is happy and calm in the rest of the house. I would also suggest trying to block the area under the sink to stop her going back there, but if she is happy in her new home by the time she gets in the kitchen then she is less likely to want to hide anyway.

While she did seem to get on well to start with the fact that she did go into hiding when she found somewhere does indicate to me that she is still rather insecure in her new surroundings which is only natural.

I would also advise getting her to the vets to be checked over, particularly her hearing. Hopefully it would prove to be something simple and treatable like a wax build up but the sooner it is checked the more likely that treatment could be effective. If she is deaf or has only partial hearing you would need to think long term about whether she was just kept indoors only or if you could cat proof your garden, as letting a deaf or partially deaf cat out would not be fair to the cat and would put it at high risk of a road accident if it couldn't hear the traffic.

Just to mention that while we always think of a purring cat as a happy contented cat it doesn't always mean that, it seems that it can also be a way of saying that all is not well and they don't want to cause any problems or for anyone to have a go at them. There is the theory that this is why an injured cat will purr, to let every one know that it isn't a threat in hope of being left alone to heal.

[simon+delilah]

Well I just managed to get her out, I carefully removed the kick board she was behind, and tempted her out with some tuna. Poor little thing was a bit sketched out.

I fed her and sat in the front room with her for a bit and she has changed since yesterday. Not just in how she is in herself, but her breathing.

She did sound a little sniffly yesterday but only a little tiny bit, today that seems a little worse, she also been sneezing a little. Cat cold maybe? I am on the lookout for more symptoms in case it could be a Respiratory Infection, in which case I would seek vet help ASAP. I already have her booked into the vet on Tuesday morning as that was the soonest they could fit her in when i called. Had she not have been hiding and this presented itself a bit earlier i would have maybe pushed to have them check her today if possible.

I did wonder if maybe having been homeless for so long to go into a centrally heated flat on top of a cat cold may not be helping, so i have turned the heating down a bit. (i know as human too much heating can dry the air too much)

Simon

[Alice]

Simon, I wonder if the sawdust in her hiding place may be the cause of her sniffling and sneezing being worse today. You'll obviously be keeping a close eye on her in the next few days, and hopefully, she'll be better now that she's not among the sawdust.

[Janey]

Simon, I wonder if the sawdust in her hiding place may be the cause of her sniffling and sneezing being worse today. You’ll obviously be keeping a close eye on her in the next few days, and hopefully, she'll be better now that she's not among the sawdust.

Yep I wondered that, along with the change, hopefully she feels better very soon.

[Mayday21]

Hi I'd try & get her into a vet before Tue just to settle yourself which she may be picking up on. Keep us posted.