After we got Sidney and I decided that he will stay here and
be cared for and spoiled like the other cats here, I began to see how he was
traumatized. I had written short
messages on Facebook about how he would bite me when he did not want to move
away from an area. Well, I thought that
was just the way that he was, but I was mistaken.
The first night (the second week in December 2014) that he
was here he stayed in his big carrier that the previous owners had given him to
us in. I would talk to him the first
night. Oh, he was so scared, the poor
little cat. He was adorable and still
is. I did do the stress reduction way of
introducing him into his new home. You
can find that here: http://allmyanimaltales.blogspot.com/2015/03/feline-stress-reduction-when-moving-or.html
We learned some things about him that I have found out that wasn’t
quite true. First thing is that he was
neutered a while ago. No, he had been
neutered about a month before they were going to take him to the pound. How I figured this one out was because he
would try to mount Charlie, my other male cat.
Well, Charlie didn’t move much the first few times that Sidney tried to
do this and I had to keep telling Charlie to turn around and smack Sidney. He eventually did do that and Sidney hasn’t
tried the maneuver since.
The next thing that we were told was the Sidney was a lap kitty. No he is not, at least not yet. I was also
told that Sidney was about 5 years old.
Not, he is about three and that is based on the fact of his activity
level.
The biting was a big Red Flag for me. The first time that he bit me I hit him over
the head and he cowered down and acted like I had beat him up and was going to
do more hitting. That was the biggest
indicator that he had been traumatized, aside from his move into our home. I did not hit him after that except for the
one last time. I would have words with
him about his biting and scratching.
The first night into his new home was just getting acquainted
with the other cats and Duke as he could peek out through the holes in the
carrier. The other cats also sniffed
around him and they kind of got to understand who this new sibling was going to
be. They didn’t realize that he was not
just visiting, but he was staying. I
would also go to the carrier and talk to him and call him by name and give him
food and water. He didn’t drink or eat
that whole first night. He was scared
and didn’t trust anyone. I didn’t think
that he would at first just because of the things that the previous owner had
said and how he told us about his dog and such.
He did tell me that the cat stayed inside and that he was an inside
cat. That was fine and then he changed his
story that he had kept the cat in his garage, which was not heated. Sidney was no fat cat and did not have the
proper insulation that an outdoor cat has for the winter.
Day two is when I would open the carrier door and actually
touch Sidney and pet him and talk to him and got him to eat and he did eat
lots. I gave him water and he finally
did drink that. I also put in a puppy
pad if and when he would go potty. He
did not do that for the first two days.
He was just too scared.
Day three I took him out of his carrier and put in the
bathroom where there are three litter boxes.
I closed the door and gave him lots of time to do his business. He did cry for a few minutes, but soon he did
use the litter boxes. Yes he marked all
three of them. That was a good
sign. I wasn’t sure how the other
members of the house would do with that, but it was all well and good.
I would also go in the bathroom and pet Sidney from 5 to 15
minutes so that he would calm down and get more acquainted with the house and
the smells and the other cats and people that lived here. It would also give him a chance to get used
to the new schedules and staying warm and dry and find out some other things
about his new surroundings. A few days
later I was picking him up and he really wasn’t too sure of that and then he
bit me and brought blood. That was the
day that I hit him over the head, not realizing that I would just make things
worse for him.
Finally I let him roam the house. I was a bit skeptical that night and slept
really lightly because I did not want any fights. I have one female that fights anything or
anyone for no reason at all. I was
wondering how she was going to get along with Sidney, or how he was going to
get along with her. They were fine.
I have an outside cat too and they needed to get acquainted
to. He will come in every once in a
while and so the first day that he came in Sidney was waiting for him. I think that he was going to try to tell
Mikey that he was going to be the top of the totem pole. Well Mikey didn’t think that way at all and
he went after Sidney. That was the first
time that Sidney ever tried to do that with the other male cat. Now when Mikey comes in Sidney goes and
hides.
Up until a week ago Sidney was to sleep on the rugs in front
of the litter boxes. I caught a picture
of him yesterday sleeping on the bed. I
loved to see that because it is a good sign that he is feeling comfortable
living here now and he truly is part of the family. We love Sidney…all of us. I am happy that he came to live with us.
He would bite me when I tried to move him away from the door
or just about anywhere that I didn’t want him to be. He tore my foot up one of those times and I
had words with him. Now some people who
have no idea about how animals think or work would throw him away or give him
to the pound. I believe that is what the
previous owners were doing. That was not working and Sidney bit one more time
and that was the last time that I hit him over the head and told him NO in a
stern voice. He has not tried that since
and that was about 6 weeks ago. He would
not let me pet his head and only pet his back a short time, but now I can pet
his head and he greats me every morning, whether on the bed or poking his head
around the bathroom door that opens into the bedroom.
It is good to see Sidney grow into this family and be cared
for properly. I think that he will stay
a while.
More next time!
© Debra K. Allen
a.k.a Lady Guinevere
I researched
and wrote this article. Please do not copy and paste any part of this article,
picture included for your own use. I will find you and report you for stealing.
It is my right to change any information
therein at any time and/or change the location of my article.
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