Scully/Ferrel Cats

[scorpiorav4]

I have a shelter-adopted cat that was a stray living with ferel cats. She's come a long way since last August (she was in the shelter for about 6 months). However, there are still times when she is very skiddish and runs to hide. Has anyone experienced this with a ferrel/now house-bound cat? I love Evie to pieces and she is one of the most sweet and demure cats I've ever had. I just wish she would trust me more.

[deebrrs]

We have 3 ex-feral and shelter cats, and they were adopted as adults. I suspect ehthey were not handled gently when they were kittens.
The 3rd one is still very shy- under the bed was her favorite hiding place when anyone and their big feet approached. But she is getting better. We've had her for almost a year.
None of the three like to be picked up and hugged. But they have their own ways of saying "love me" and we have learned what they are.
They show their appreciation for living here with little gifties - this morning we played "catch the live mouse". I won and he went back outdoors, hopefully to the neighbors.

Time always shows these cats special qualities. Be patient and keep on loving your beautiful kitty,; when she is 10 or so she may be everything you could hope for, and neither of you will remember these first years.

[scorpiorav4]

Originally posted by deebrrs:
We have 3 ex-feral and shelter cats, and they were adopted as adults. I suspect ehthey were not handled gently when they were kittens.
The 3rd one is still very shy- under the bed was her favorite hiding place when anyone and their big feet approached. But she is getting better. We've had her for almost a year.
None of the three like to be picked up and hugged. But they have their own ways of saying "love me" and we have learned what they are.
They show their appreciation for living here with little gifties - this morning we played "catch the live mouse". I won and he went back outdoors, hopefully to the neighbors.

Time always shows these cats special qualities. Be patient and keep on loving your beautiful kitty,; when she is 10 or so she may be everything you could hope for, and neither of you will remember these first years.

Thanks Deebrrs!

I know, patience is a lesson to be learned for me. Yes, she does not like to be picked up but in the last couple of months she has found the courage to jump up on me while laying on the couch watching TV. When she does run away, I walk slowly towards her and motion with my pointer finger, curling it back to indicate to come back. She now knows she will get a chin & cheeck rub if she does. She, she is quite content to sleep/rest on the chair out on the deck in the sun and watch the birds go by. One thing her Shelter Mom was afraid she'd jump off of, but never has. Thanks again for the kind words of encouragement and telling me your story with these loving cats.

[bettyinbc]

Could anyone resist giving Scully a tummy tickle?? She is sooo sweet looking. I agree with Deebrrs - time and patience will help Scully to overcome her fears. The saddest thing with feral kittens is a lack of human contact when they are most vulnerable - 3 to 8 weeks. After that they develop fears and tend to mistrust not only humans but other animals. Scully has already shown you she wants to trust - keep encouraging her and you will have an amazing friend.

My maine coon was a wild kitten, very strong willed and gregarious. However, when she selected me and our little family to be her own, her affection and loyalty was just unforgetable.

[scorpiorav4]

Originally posted by SpencerTheLion:
My there favorite feral cat sites: http://www.alleycat.org/front.html www.feralcat.org www.amby.com (also has lots of anti-declaw info)

Feral kittens are much easier than adults to tame than adults. Fostering a tuxedo (with a little Siamese) that's was a bundle of fear at 4 mo. that comes to me and other cats 3 mo later. An adult mom cat took two years to get to the lapcat threshold. Some of the things that help: 1) First few days ignore them and don't stare at them - give them distance. 2) Pet them with a feather on a stick - again keeping your distance. 3) Keep the room lighted, not dark. 4) When the cat can be picked up, don't give the cat hiding places and allowing a long chase to terrorize it. 5) If it's around other cats, make sure they are friendly, not bully or scardy cats.

Concerning the feral momcat, her first friend was a Chinchilla Persian mix. She is some character, afterwards, when thumbing through a magazine, she sits on it - with the only picture of Princess Diana! Most of the other cats hers are as modest...

Thanks for the sites. I adopted Evie when she was about 2 years old. She must have been someone's cat at one time but found herelf out on her own. I'm sure she hooked up with the feral cats for help. It took her a long time to find her voice again as she had learned from them not to draw attention to herself by humans. Her rescuers found her when part of her face had been ripped open by something. She is as good as new now, I'm happy to report. She still loves to "kill" those small toy stuffed mice - one of her favorite things. I've had her for nearly a year now, and she is a most gentle, kind cat. She no longer hides at the foot of the bed on the floor concealed by the bedding. I think she likes it here and feral cats do like to have other cats around. My other cat, Millie, who is about 13 makes a good companion for her. Millie doesn't take any crap and she is the head cat of the house, and Evie understands this. They are both asleep on the bed right now - just like babies - quiet and peaceful at the moment