rescued kitty behavior Options

[followerofcat]

Hi im new here , cat owner from w.a , i don't know if im posting in the right section but , i have 3 cats and the newest addition is a rescue cat.
we have had her about a month now and she is the sweetest little thing yet she really goes after the other 2 cats at times but at other times she's chill..
she will also be sitting with me and suddenly hiss and scratch at my face , but then go back to being calm

is this behavior brought on by her less than kind kittenhood , is it something she will grow out of as we gain her trust more , or something we have to learn to live with and love ?

thank you kindly

[Furrballz]

Welcome to the forum :)

I think this situation will be a wait and see thing for this girl.
If I was in your position, I would be calmly placing her in a time-out room when she is inappropriate with you so she gets to know that she wont be hurt, but its not tolerated, too.

Good luck!

[Catsfriend]

More details needed, followerofcat! How old is your new cat, what do you know about her 'less than kind' kittenhood, and in what way exactly does she behave? The more precise your description is the better advice we can give.

[followerofcat]

Thanks for your replies ,

i have been putting her in a time out bedroom when she goes for the other cats , so hopefully that helps!

as for her history , well she was left behind at a home when the owners left , she was never desexed
she had a litter of kittens previous , and when we took her in and to the vet , she was with kitten again
but in a very early stage , the vet said she wouldnt have the strength for it again(she was skin and bone ...and mats) so the desexing procedure would "take care of it" , she also had ear mites very badly and infected eyes.
she is all better now except for some itchy ears.
according to the vet she is around 3 years old ( but she is tiny )

as for how she was treated all i can say is not well..

[Furrballz]

i think its going to take time for her to be prooved to that people dont always hurt you in one way or another

Good on you for giving it a go with her!

[Catsfriend]

... she was left behind at a home when the owners left , she was never desexed
she had a litter of kittens previous , and when we took her in and to the vet , she was with kitten again
but in a very early stage , the vet said she wouldnt have the strength for it again(she was skin and bone ...and mats) so the desexing procedure would "take care of it" , she also had ear mites very badly and infected eyes.
she is all better now except for some itchy ears.
according to the vet she is around 3 years old ( but she is tiny )

as for how she was treated all i can say is not well..

This is sad but, very sadly, all too common. I would say that in our rural neighbourhood about 90% of all the once 'free kittens' are being treated this way. They never ever see a vet in their entire life and produce litter after litter if they are females, and get 'kicked out of the house because they stink and are left to God's mercy if they are males. Their kittens are being killed or given away for free, again, to like-minded people.

I took on a mother cat with 8 newborns last January who was probably similar to yours. In my care, she has undergone an absolutely amazing transformation. There were several health problems (all extremely undernousrished, cleft lip, bowel disease, etc.) and the mother who used to live outdoors on a remote farm was very scared of everything. She retained her wee and pooh for 3 days until she found out what the litterbox was for. Since then, she has been very clean all the time. After a quarantine period of about one month I introduced her and her kittens to my other cats and my 2 dogs, and mum was very aggressive with everyone. It took about 6 further months ... then she started to accept other creatures, fattened up beautifully, and is now a very pretty and - guess what - 90% of all times FRIENDLY cat! She even climbs confidently over our White Shepherd Dog when the bitch is in her way, and won't let the big dog or anyone else take away her chicken wing. She is a strong character, and now a very healthy and confident one!

In short - it takes time and patience, but finally, I am sure that you will get there, too, and have a lovely companion cat.


Our Marble in January, just submitted (undernourished and scared):
http://img560.imageshack.us/img560/9117/ma...stsubmitted.jpg[/url]

Our Marble in August, spayed, vaccinated, microchipped and fed premium brands:


By the way, Marble is available for adoption - and she looks very much like a Norwegian Forest Cat now!

[Lee Lee]

Hi Followerofcat

It sounds like your rescue girl has had a hard time...good on you for taking her on and trying to give her a normal life.

I would try some Rescue Remedy (from chemists or health stores) in her water...and also a Feliway diffuser that can be plugged into a power point and emits pheromones which cats find comforting. It can also be bought in a spray...one of the vet practices I use recommended it and uses it at their clinic.

As TA has said hopefully in time when she gains some trust and finds she wont be abused any longer she will start to calm down.

[followerofcat]

thats a wonderful thing you're doing catsfriend
and i hear you about the attitude of people , the people who had her before actually had the nerve to say
"she didnt look after her last lot of kittens very well" after neglecting and starving her.

@ Lee Lee , thanks i didn't even know such a thing existed! i will definitely check both those things out.

myself and my family growing up have had a few rescued animals , and they have each had their little quirks
but the reason im trying to nip this in the bud is because the eldest cat in the house is a rescue cat also,
and she tends lick herself alot when she's stressed out , which ive been noticing more since leelu came into the house and started chasing her around.

thanks guys for all your help

[Jacobdixon]

I think she will be fine and calm as the time goes as she had already being rescued and she came from such bad times in her life, I hope she will be fine in upcoming time

[Heather Sharada]

Good on you for Rescuing the little cat - she is very lucky....you will probably find the other cat will respond to the Rescue Remedy and Feliway to reduce stress as well.

Can I suggest you keep the new girl away from the other cats for a while and set up her own safe room...try shuffling them for a fGew weeks - one cat out in the house - one locked in a room - so tht they take time to get used to the presence of each other.

Cats are territorial and the original cat needs to feel safe with the new cat in the same area. Integration rules are to move slowly and really respect the first cat as it is their territory that is being invaded, don- t chastise the first cat if it is not friendly.