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[Nealh]

Well done for giving her a new home, she may well hideaway now for few days until she feels safe. Just leave her food /water etc,etc near by for now.
What is she a tabby , a tortie ?

 

[thelarkbox]

Well done for giving her a new home, she may well hideaway now for few days until she feels safe. Just leave her food /water etc,etc near by for now.

Thanks, My last cat s loss hit me hard and its been a few years since then but i found myself almost buying a box of cat food on finding a 'stray' only to discover on asking in the corner shop box of go-cat in hand that said'stray' was just a 'flirt' and had at least one good home, and that both neighbors each side of me also feed the same cat too. . (I will warn them off feeding Murphy .. nicely of course, we all get on well.. )

I figured its not too bad since she sought out the comfiest spot in the bedroom to hide rather than the first or nearest bolt hole to her release down stairs..

Though she is very quiet and is staying hid.. Ive moved her original bedding food water and a litter tray close to, and have talked myself horse trying to get her used to my company/voice. if she is still hiding all day after Monday i might start to worry. But i was warned that on arrival to the sanctuary it took her days to come out of hiding.

 

[thelarkbox]

She is a Tortoise shell but with black on one side and brown on the other so could be taken for 2 cats if viewed from both sides.. One day i may be able to provide photo proof of this claim Not today tho..

 

[guerney]

It took five days of continuous yowling (my cat, not me) in the dark closet my cat had leapt into when we last moved. And that was a well adjusted and very sociable adult cat, who didn't like any change in routine. His big brother adjusted immediately, didn't give a damn, practiced pulling doors open wide with his claw, and watched them automatically get closed again by a spring, over and over... and after his brother eventually ventured out (one morning the continuous yowling stopped and he seemed to have disappeared - I eventually found him sitting on the top of a kitchen cabinet, surveying a view of the garden, looking like nothing had happened), he opened a space in the curtain in the living room with his paw, so his little bro could climb through and look outside.

I wouldn't worry even if it takes your new cat weeks to adjust. Keep her indoors for a few weeks at least, lest she run away.

 

[Nealh]

Dry food/ biscuits is bad for cats and causes dehydration and kidney issues as they age , naturally they don't drink much as most liquid is obtained from the kill food in the wild . Our felines will get all the liquid they need from good quality wet food and not most of the sugar laden rubbish sold by supermarkets, some of the leading pet food makers in the UK are typically providing not only rubbish biscuit food but also rubbish wet food .
Some people think that the chewing if they chew (most simply swallow) will help with teeth cleaning but it is the opposite, biscuits is high carbs so it is detrimental to teeth health and care. It is similar to us if we tried eating crunchy hard biscuits , they would be of no benifit to us in teeth hygeine .

 

[Nealh]

Once she is settled and has got use to hearing your voice and moving around etc,etc, she will come out and be sociable when ready.
My older female rescue I gave a home to last xmas eve took about 4 - 5 days before coming out from the hiding at the side of the sofa, after that she claimed the sofa as her bed and resting place. Sadly she came with past history of cancer , poor diet and weight issues and passed away in early Sept from the cancer . She was only 11 and for the short time here showed that she was a sweet wonderful girl.

She never hit it off with my 13 yo Red tabby and 18month young torti calico and was always wanting to chase or fight them, my two are now much happier now she has now passed.

 

[thelarkbox]

Thanks for all the info, I am unfortunately aware of the problems a heavy dry pellet diet can have as my last cat had urinary issues aged 18 onward, which was My fault due to her diet, So i discussed this in detail with the sanctuary staff and am following their guidelines for food, she has 2 brands of wet food she likes 1 mainstream 1 i had never heard off and Purina #1 dry pellets will be available between meals for snacking unless she starts to get too plump, which she isn't atm and thats her current regime .

While un-nerving having her hid away is manageable, whats bugging me tho is she has not touched any food water or used the litter tray??

I took the opportunity of her selecting the bedroom to hide in to take a lazy bed n netflix afternoon/evening narrating the shows till hoarse expecting her to perhaps creep out while i slept to feed etc, but No!

Today i had to do things so i left her with radio4 (mistake?) and resisted the urge to check up on her every 15 minutes but did every hour or so.. and no sign of food getting touched nor the litter tray (3-4m away from the food) which has me concerned. (both wet and dry food, her brands/flavors and water are down for her..)

Good news is she has moved from the bottom bedding shelf right at the back to the shelf above with her bum poking out (tail tucked in and around herself) its very comforting to just pop my head round the door and see her

Just hope she eats/drinks something soon..

 

[guerney]

While un-nerving having her hid away is manageable, whats bugging me tho is she has not touched any food water or used the litter tray??

This is extremely worying - she will die without water, and it'll happen fast, within a day or two her kidneys will be damaged. After several days, even an intravenous drip won't save her. Sorry, but she must have some wet food now, at the very least. Cats don't generally drink tap water unless absolutely desperate. Avoid talking to her, because from her catty point of view, you're meowing and establishing dominance. What's yours isn't marked by her scent as hers, and therefore hasn't become "Ours" yet. As the alpha cat of your clowder, you've got to avoid frightening her. Whichever room she's in, make it dark, close the door, leave fresh wet food often right next to her, dry food too, even if you have to throw loads of it away. Give her space, stay away from her as much as possible until she starts eating. Evaporated milk might be bad for her (cats are lactose intolerant), but it's also pretty irresistable and of course contains water. Keep leaving fresh evaporated milk near her. Although this might make her panic: if you dab a bit on her fur and leave her alone, she will lick it off, which might lead her to folow her nose to get more...

Good news is she has moved from the bottom bedding shelf right at the back to the shelf above with her bum poking out (tail tucked in and around herself)

She's terrified. Give her darkness, quiet, space and loads of lovely smelling food and drink.

 

[thelarkbox]

This is extremely worying - she will die without water, and it'll happen fast, within a day or two her kidneys will be damaged. Sorry, but she must have some wet food now, at the very least. Cats don't generally drink tap water unless absolutely desperate. Avoid talking to her, because from her catty point of view, you're meowing and establishing dominance. What's yours isn't marked by her scent as hers, and therefore "Ours" yet. As the alpha cat, you've got to avoid frightening her. Whichever room she's in, make it dark, close the door, leave fresh wet food often right next to her, dry food too, even if you have to throw loads of it away. Give her space, stay away from her as much as possible until she starts eating. Evaporated milk might be bad for her (cats are lactose intolerant), but it's also pretty irresistable and of course contains water. Keep leaving fresh evaporated milk near her. Although this might make her panic: if you dab a bit on her fur, she will lick it off, which might lead her to folow her nose to get more...

Thanks, I dont think its quite that bad yet and perhaps i have not painted a clear enough picture of the dynamic, Since posting the above she has surfaced from hiding and while surrounded with her own blankets cushions and bed/bedding is snuggled up on my old trunks n tshirts. I was chuffed to spot her up there.

very poor quality pic as its taken from the doorway and is all digital zoom in, but if i klunk across the room in my boots she will scoot back down..

I had emailed the sanctuary staff earlier regarding my concerns and have just had a chat with them, where they advised i would be very hard pressed to see the drop in level after 10 cats drank let alone 1, and being off food and toilet qualms are quite normal, I literally posted the above and the phone rang.. though leaving wet food out 24 hours is frowned upon, so i have scooped that up and replaced it.

Perhaps the bullied backstory paints a picture of a trembling skittish puss cat, Murphy isnt quite that bad more the type of cat that makes them selves scarce when visitors drop by until they have been round 30+ times.. The sanctuary gave me the impression of responsible folk who would not foster a cat with serious issues without full disclosure, the bullying Murphy received was from older neighbour cats forcing her to remain inside where toddlers wanted to play too eagerly.. I got the full story and she also came with her own blankets cushions bed bedding and toys.. she was a loved cat but for some reason her folks chose kids over her???

But thanks for the urgent input, your response was inline with my growing concern til the sanctuary staff talked me down. Certainly a good way to consider the cat/Phil dynamic going forward too.

 

[Saracen]

Our cats (including the neighbours who comes in) have 4 different wet foods a day and ALWAYS as suggested by the Cats Protection, dry biscuits to "graze" on in a large bowl and plenty of water

 

[AndyBike]

The horror. Big cat, initially the runt of the litter, but 10 years of feeding him chicken helped make him the cat he is today. The thing he's lying on is 30" wide to give some idea of scale.
His comfy blankie is one of the handwarmer pockets out of my old sailing jacket. Its velcro top and i periodically fill it with catnip. He really loves his blankie.

 

[Benjahmin]

What wet food guys? We're currently having trouble with our 11 year old ginger tom Smudge. We've swopped from Felix to something called KatKin. It purports to be lightly steamed fresh meat and is received frozen. When defrosted it has the consistency of pate.
At first he went for the chicken, reluctantly for the Beef, wouldn't touch Turkey or Duck. Now, on the second delivery of expensive food, he won't touch any of it. He does get Purina active dry food as a supplement, but he's getting too much at the mo.
What is a good quality wet food that actually has some nourishment left in it (i.e. not cooked for days with loads of additives 'cos it's made from grissle, beak and claw)?
Can any one help?

 

[thelarkbox]

My mams recipe for Coley fish for cats,
The fish comes frozen on square blocks or did? take one block and put in a bowl pour over just boiled water to cover the fish fully (at least 1/2 pint-3/4 pint) 1 or 2 mug fulls.. cover the bowl with a plate and leave for 15 minutes, drain, mash with a fork and let sit for the time it takes to make a cup of coffee and sit down and enjoy it, .. feed the cat warm fish..

Ive not seen the coley fish in supermarkets for years tho but any frozen fish will work, Ive done it with cod and haddock fillets ok as a treat for our cats before,

I have recipies for chicken and rabit too (basically boil on the bone, strip cool etc..)

My mam couldnt cook anything fit for human consumption, but for cats she was a gourmet chef..

As for off the shelf recommendations the brands ok-d by the shelter are 'purina gourmet', and 'seriously good', but thats what the our new cat is used to.. and they did warn me off go-cat.. and whiskers.

 

[Nealh]

She's not any ordinary tortie but a calico /tricolour girl, their Red /white/black markings are beautiful.
Though quiet and peace is needed, one will need to try and interact with her if she allows . Soft talking or even low tone whistling so not to make her jump and gently try to pet /stroke her lightly with your hand, befriend her offering a meaty treat stick or even a smear of lickilix on your finger.
Also add a worn unwashed bit of clothing that has your secent, reasons for hiding may be previous experience/treatment or she could just be plain scared.
Don't force the befriending but one I believe should try and gain her cofidence through patient interaction to show you are no threat.

 

[Nealh]

My Red tabby is a fuss pot always likes the crap food with sugar and gravy, so felix shreds or sheba. I have tried raw and countless brands of grain free which zooplus/bitaba sell. He does nowadays like a bit of Blink or sainburys shredded chicken and also some cosma nature supplementary chicken /ham food in it's own juices. Also tinned sardine or mackeral in plain spring water.
For treats he gets grain free catessy meaty sticks the only brand he will eat.

 

[thelarkbox]

Litter tray use confirms she is drinking, and his house trained. And im sure i heard the crack of a pellet between teeth last night too

She is indeed very pretty @Nealh hopefully sometime soon she wont feel the need to hide away, and i can post proof. Im happy to let her hide away as long as she feels the need to now i have evidence she is drinking and not withering away.

She is even happy to sit out looking around the room with me sat on the bed now but is still a little skittish and will disappear into her nook as soon as i get off the bed..

OMG just realised tesco bags the litter tray contents disposal vessel of choice are no longer free AARRGGHH!!!!!! (attempt at humor to express relief.) tho i will have to add bags to the pet shop shopping list..
Sorry for the thread hijack btw .. oops.

 

[Nealh]

Great news of some progress.
She will come around soon.
What thread hijack ? After all she is a BF bargain and a better one then any gadget for a bike.

 

[saneagle]

What wet food guys? We're currently having trouble with our 11 year old ginger tom Smudge. We've swopped from Felix to something called KatKin. It purports to be lightly steamed fresh meat and is received frozen. When defrosted it has the consistency of pate.
At first he went for the chicken, reluctantly for the Beef, wouldn't touch Turkey or Duck. Now, on the second delivery of expensive food, he won't touch any of it. He does get Purina active dry food as a supplement, but he's getting too much at the mo.
What is a good quality wet food that actually has some nourishment left in it (i.e. not cooked for days with loads of additives 'cos it's made from grissle, beak and claw)?View attachment 55273
Can any one help?

As cats grow older, they become more fussy about the food they eat. At first, a switch of brands works, even to one's that they wouldn't eat before, but as they get older still, that no longer works. When they're that fussy, they will still eat the really expensive delicacy food, where you only get a tiny amount in tiny packets and they might still eat real fish and chicken. Eventually, they only want to eat treats and lick-e-licks. It's very sad when they get to that stage.

Just a reminder that cats are pure carnivors. They can't get nutrition from vegetables even if they like to eat them, and when they only eat chicken, it doesn't give them other vital nutrients that they need.

 

[guerney]

My elderly cats loved roast chicken - the bones must be removed, because cooked bone is too hard and can break cat teeth. Taurine must be added, because cats can't make their own, and it's a completely necessary amino acid they would get from fresh kills in the wild. Cooking meat destroys taurine. Dogfood doesn't get taurine supplementation.

Fish causes thyroid issues, which causes other issues.

Every tortoiseshell I ever met ran away. They seem to bond with their owners well, and nobody else. Or perhaps I smelled of tomcat...

 

[Saracen]

Bones will choke animals not damage teeth