Advice re Semi-stray

OldNotWIse

Hello, wondering if anyone can throw out some ideas. In short, we have a sort-of-stray. She came to us weak, sick and malnourished and we got her back on track - treated flu, had her spayed, and she comes around 2/3 times a day for food and has a bed on our balcony. The situation works well for all of us. She is still wild so she cannot be touched, and in fact goes a bit schiz. if you walk too close to her or if she feels cornered. Now it seems we might have to move and I want to figure out how to continue doing whats best for her. What I know:

* leaving her at a shelter is not an option. They are full to the brim and we dont want to contribute to the problem. Added to that, she is utterly un-rehomeable and would likely stay there for a long time, get stressed and possibly end up pts

* leaving her behind is out. She has come to depend on us. We cant just abandon her

*taking her to a new city centre apartment is risky - she is an outdoor cat. Being in an unfamiliar area she will be at great risk of being hit by traffic or straying/not finding her way back to us

...really don't know how to approach this situation. Any ideas?

ShaShaBear

OldNotWIse wrote: »

Hello, wondering if anyone can throw out some ideas. In short, we have a sort-of-stray. She came to us weak, sick and malnourished and we got her back on track - treated flu, had her spayed, and she comes around 2/3 times a day for food and has a bed on our balcony. The situation works well for all of us. She is still wild so she cannot be touched, and in fact goes a bit schiz. if you walk too close to her or if she feels cornered. Now it seems we might have to move and I want to figure out how to continue doing whats best for her. What I know:

* leaving her at a shelter is not an option. They are full to the brim and we dont want to contribute to the problem. Added to that, she is utterly un-rehomeable and would likely stay there for a long time, get stressed and possibly end up pts

* leaving her behind is out. She has come to depend on us. We cant just abandon her

*taking her to a new city centre apartment is risky - she is an outdoor cat. Being in an unfamiliar area she will be at great risk of being hit by traffic or straying/not finding her way back to us

...really don't know how to approach this situation. Any ideas?

Would it possibly be worth getting a trap, moving her, and containing her in the apartment (giving her space obviously) for a week or two until she adjusts? I know a girl in Dublin that had to move her semi stray the same way. She became a housecat of sorts. She enjoyed her comforts but steered clear of the humans, and when they were settled, she was let outside and she got back to the way things were before.

OldNotWIse

ShaShaBear wrote: »

Would it possibly be worth getting a trap, moving her, and containing her in the apartment (giving her space obviously) for a week or two until she adjusts? I know a girl in Dublin that had to move her semi stray the same way. She became a housecat of sorts. She enjoyed her comforts but steered clear of the humans, and when they were settled, she was let outside and she got back to the way things were before.

That would make sense. The only thing is at the moment we are in a gated complex. I'm not sure of her road sense if we moved somewhere near a main road. It may come to that though. Also OH is allergic (I know, match made in Heaven right?!) :P

ShaShaBear

OldNotWIse wrote: »

That would make sense. The only thing is at the moment we are in a gated complex. I'm not sure of her road sense if we moved somewhere near a main road. It may come to that though. Also OH is allergic (I know, match made in Heaven right?!) :P

Antihistamines are your friend :P
It's definitely worth a shot, if you trapped kitty with something that smells of whoever handles the food, they might be a little less crazy. Put the trap in a nice quiet part of the new place, no bright lights or loud noises, let things settle. Maybe even see if you could get a hold of a large crate to release her into after a few hours, again then she would have food and water and more room to move while she adjusts to your scent and voice. When she's due another feed, put bowls out somewhere she can clearly see them and try opening the crate in that direction. If she's hungry, she will eat and if she's frightened she might retreat to the crate for comfort, but I'm sure like all cats she'll eventually realise nothing happens between feeding and retreating, and will be overcome by curiosity and want to explore!

OldNotWIse

ShaShaBear wrote: »

Antihistamines are your friend :P
It's definitely worth a shot, if you trapped kitty with something that smells of whoever handles the food, they might be a little less crazy. Put the trap in a nice quiet part of the new place, no bright lights or loud noises, let things settle. Maybe even see if you could get a hold of a large crate to release her into after a few hours, again then she would have food and water and more room to move while she adjusts to your scent and voice. When she's due another feed, put bowls out somewhere she can clearly see them and try opening the crate in that direction. If she's hungry, she will eat and if she's frightened she might retreat to the crate for comfort, but I'm sure like all cats she'll eventually realise nothing happens between feeding and retreating, and will be overcome by curiosity and want to explore!

Not a bad idea. We actually have a crate that we kept her in before (when she had really bad flu and we had to make sure she got her meds twice a day) so I might need to resurrect that! SHe's verrrrrrry noisy when she's confined tho! :P

ShaShaBear

OldNotWIse wrote: »

Not a bad idea. We actually have a crate that we kept her in before (when she had really bad flu and we had to make sure she got her meds twice a day) so I might need to resurrect that! SHe's verrrrrrry noisy when she's confined tho! :P

You never know, she might end up getting a bit more tame! Cudos by the way, many a person would just abandon a cat like that!

taytobreath

Yeah I agree with ShaSha, Cats are a very home bird type creature. It will take them allot of time to adjust, especially confined to your apartment. I'm not sure would I ever leave it outdoors after a good few months at least especially when it has no road sense.

But I bet after a few months confined to your home your cat will be up in your lap like a tame kitty, its all about trust with them.it will take alot of time though.
Theres plenty other posters here will give you way better advice than me You've come to the right place. Just wait!

good on you for doing that for a defenseless creature

OldNotWIse

ShaShaBear wrote: »

You never know, she might end up getting a bit more tame! Cudos by the way, many a person would just abandon a cat like that!

Hope so. She came in today and I put her brekky down on the rug and then closed the door. She went asleep on a fleece under the table! When the OH came out to see her she was mooching around and then ran back under the table to her "safe spot" - so I think you are right about establishing her own space if we do bring her with us. Some people said she will survive if we leave (she survived before) but I could not bear the thoughts of her coming around and waiting to be let in for brekky and not being looked after! Also she may have "survived" without us but she was in a right state when she turned up at ours.

username123

This is such a nice thread, I left a feral behind when I last moved, she wasnt dependent on me at all but we had become "friends". She would come and miaow at me for a bit every few weeks and Id feed her then I mightnt see her for a month, then she would show up again. She would come in and walk about but never settled in or relaxed indoors.

I thought about bringing her when I moved but I think she had had kittens and I hadnt seen her in a while, but on moving day she came just as I was loading up the last bits of stuff and I was hugely upset to leave her behind.

OldNotWIse

username123 wrote: »

This is such a nice thread, I left a feral behind when I last moved, she wasnt dependent on me at all but we had become "friends". She would come and miaow at me for a bit every few weeks and Id feed her then I mightnt see her for a month, then she would show up again. She would come in and walk about but never settled in or relaxed indoors.

I thought about bringing her when I moved but I think she had had kittens and I hadnt seen her in a while, but on moving day she came just as I was loading up the last bits of stuff and I was hugely upset to leave her behind.

Aw, it is hard to know what the right thing to do is. They do often stray. When ours did this the first few times I was up the walls. In spite of thinking I wasn't that attached to her, many a night I found myself going out checking the roadside for a dead cat, half afraid to look, or standing out on the balcony freezing my backside off in the middle of the night banging a food bowl and generally driving the neighbours mad. I think its something in a stray, that you have to give them the freedom to come and go. Now, she goes off for 1 or 2 days at a time (maybe every couple of weeks) and then comes back. After we had her in the crate for 2 weeks we had a ceremonial release and were a little upset to say goodbye - convinced she would never come back, having being imprisoned for a lengthy period - sure she was back for dinner that evening! Sometimes when I look at her I just want to pick her up and cuddle her and tickle her ears etc. She's so plump now, and super cute with her bandy ears lol but...she'd take my arms off!

username123

I think in your case OldNotWise that you definitely have to bring your little pal with you. Mine was an infrequent visitor, but yours is a part of the family.