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One month ago, I adopted a 2 year-old rescue cat

Sent to Cat Experts April 07 04:28 PM

One month ago, I adopted a 2 year-old rescue cat that had been used for breeding (with 8 others)and apparently was not used to human touch - Troy. Though he hid, hissed and clawed at me, I was told that once I got him in a stable environment, he would calm down. This was wrong. Based on advice, three days ago, I put him in a large cage so I could interact & be close to him - I talk to him and personally feed him. His conduct is unchanged. He rushes to the back of the cage with flattened ears and hisses at me when I open the door to see or feed him. When I first got him, I allowed Troy to roam the house. He followed my other cat, Sandy, everywhere. They even played by chasing each other around the house. Now, in the cage, he meows all night and tries to get out when he sees Sandy. I would like to keep him since I know he is upset but cannot unless I can get his behavior to change so I can touch him. Should I try tranqualizers? Is it even possible to change him?

 

Optional Information:
Age: 2; Male; Breed: Persian

Already Tried:
Just tried to talk sweet when Troy was by Sandy, and putting him into the cage

Customer (name blocked for privacy)
Status:  Closed   Value: $15
Answer
April 7 4:57 PM (28 minutes and 49 seconds later)
         
ACCEPTEDCheck Mark
You might try Feliway cat appeasing pheromone
http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=1061
You can also try holding Sandy on your lap near the cage area and pet and make a fuss of the friendly cat. Even use a spoon to feed Sandy a nice treat like some chicken baby food or a small amount of tuna.
Let Troy see you are not only not dangerous but might be nice.
I think expecting a change in 3 days is a bit optimistic particularly since he has had a month to practice being afraid of you. I'd count him as feral as he is not really used to human handling.
This article goes over feral kitten taming but may have some useful advice
http://www.feralcat.com/taming.html
more info here
http://www.for-the-love-of-cats.com/TameFeralCat.html
http://www.indyferal.org/index.php?page=tame1
See if the Feliway helps, discuss the possibility of a med to help calm him with your vet. It may be hard to find something you can get him to take though.
And work on patience as he's had two years before you and a month with you to believe that hissing and aggression is the way to respond to people.
Hope this helps you!

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NancyH -- Cat Health, Behavior, Care Expert -- 100% Positive Feedback on 2169 Cat Accepts
30+ years cat owner, rescue, breeding, study of behavior & health care
Reply
April 7 5:54 PM (57 minutes and 43 seconds later)
         
Should I try to touch him with anything like a stick, etc so he gets used to being stroked?
Customer (name blocked for privacy)
Answer
April 7 6:01 PM (7 minutes and 7 seconds later)
         
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NancyH -- Cat Health, Behavior, Care Expert -- 100% Positive Feedback on 2169 Cat Accepts
30+ years cat owner, rescue, breeding, study of behavior & health care
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