One year later: the abandoned cat

Printable View

10-04-2009, 03:55 PM
nancielle

One year later: the abandoned cat

Today is the one year anniversary of Hunter (aka's Widget, Houdini, Baby Boy, Brat Cat, Brat Boy, Little One, Sleepy-bye Kitty and Pudgcicle) moving in with Chloe and me.

Some of your may remember that he had been abandoned by tenants in my building after they had been evicted. He had been literally put out on the street. I hadn't seen him for a while then one morning, while taking Chloe for her walk, his little head popped up from under some plants in this meditation garden across the street from our building (it's slightly bigger than the picture shows and it's been cut back quite a bit for the season).

http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/b...SDC10144-1.jpg

I found myself buying cat food and making sure I brought some on our walks so that he'd have something to eat. I'd sneak him inside when it rained. The landlord really didn't want him in the house after he found that the vacated apartment was crawling with fleas :eek: . I'd keep tabs on him and continued to sneak him in when the weather got bad.

At the end of last September it seemed that it didn't just rain, it poured! He was soaked and looked pathetic. I kept sneaking him in and trying to make a case for him being allowed back in. I contacted Chloe's vet about having him checked out and de-flea-ed. Then advocated for him again. Got the green light for him to move in.

Fortunately Chloe and Hunter got along before he moved in. It's been difficult for him not to be outside all the time as he was before. He's my other perfectly imperfect pet. He developed a habit of spraying my bedroom door. I've gotten to the point where I can recognize most of the behaviors that lead up to that (and I've been using a spray to help combat the problem) so that behavior has been diminishing. He's a bottomless pit with food and will steal some of Chloe's (usually the home cooked stuff) if she's not looking. He's not a lap cat but he has been increasing his requests for attention and a little stroking. He's got a ton of cat toys but prefers to do battle with rubberbands and shredding paper. His scratching post is shredding and he hangs upside down from it. He hates the car so trips to the vet are a challenge (yesterday's was so anxiety provoking that he had an accident in the cat carrier. The car has only so many windows that open to air it out. If I could've punched a hole in the roof I'd have done it, rain & all.)

He loves lying in wait for Chloe then pouncing on her (which she tolerates amazingly well), his weight has gone up (and is now in a healthy range), his flea-borne issues are resolved. He loves sitting in windows and knows how to open the back door (he had let himself out several times before I figured out how he did it.)

(Here he is none too pleased that Chloe and I snuck outside without him)
http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/b...SDC10145-1.jpg

(Engaging in his favorite activity)
http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/b...SDC10140-1.jpg

(His special treat for his special day)
http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/b...SDC10146-1.jpg

I never considered myself much of a cat person but I can't imagine our lives without him now. :D
10-04-2009, 04:48 PM
smilingcat

Thank you for the update. Gives me lot of joy to see that he has found a wonderful home.

And what a treat!!!

smilingcat
10-04-2009, 05:12 PM
bambu101

That is a wonderful update! ! am so happy that he found a great home with you.
10-04-2009, 06:13 PM
snapdragen

He looks like a very handsome cat. Happy anniversary Hunter!
10-04-2009, 09:46 PM
lph

thank you for making an unwanted cat happy and loved!
10-05-2009, 04:58 AM
bmccasland

So glad to hear a happy ending story!

Those were lovely looking birthday shrimpies too.
10-05-2009, 06:36 AM
Biciclista

aw, great story.
tell me what you do to get him not to spray.
10-05-2009, 03:23 PM
nancielle

Quote:

Originally Posted by Biciclista

aw, great story.
tell me what you do to get him not to spray.

I had called the vet to see if anything physical was going on with him, (infection, etc.) after several suggestions here, but he passed with flying colors. They suggested I use a spray called "Feliway". There's also a similar plug-in available (a bit too $$ for me :( ) The spray seemed to work ok. I found a similar spray in Petco called "No Stress" which seems to work ok as well.

I've learned that if he begins rapidly pacing the apartment and darting from window to window that spraying will commence very shortly. Sometimes I can distract him with a rubberband. I'm thinking of trying a cloth with his scent on it (wipe a damp cloth on him then on the door) to see how well that will work if he detects his own scent.

Less ideal: I let him out and he sprays the plants. He's gotten better about being inside the majority of the time, the complete opposite of his former life, but still hasn't accepted it totally. He tends to come in after a couple of hours (about the time I'm taking Chloe for her last walk). He joins up with us for the walk then races her into the house. :rolleyes:
10-05-2009, 04:25 PM
nancielle

My human has been remiss in one detail of my story. Smilingcat was very instrumental in helping my human make sure I was able to have a home. We are very grateful that someone way across the country took an interest in a stranger and a scraggly cat to help give the story a happy ending.

Hunter

http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/b...HPIM1592-2.jpg
10-05-2009, 05:56 PM
smilingcat

Quote:

Originally Posted by nancielle

My human has been remiss in one detail of my story. Smilingcat was very instrumental in helping my human make sure I was able to have a home. We are very grateful that someone way across the country took an interest in a stranger and a scraggly cat to help give the story a happy ending.

Hunter

http://i207.photobucket.com/albums/b...HPIM1592-2.jpg

You're very beautiful boy. And quite welcome. Gives me great joy to see you well.

Smilingcat
10-05-2009, 07:23 PM
Eden

Hunter is a very lucky kitty to have found you.

Please do be very careful letting him play with rubber bands - if he eats one it could make him very, very sick or even kill him :(
10-06-2009, 08:24 AM
runningteach

Happy Anniversary! It is wonderful that you took Hunter in and he is a sweet looking kitty. I could be careful with the rubberbands as they can cause issues if ingested. I have 4 kitties and 2 pups. We just got a new puppy and my kitties are not happy.
10-06-2009, 08:33 AM
short cut sally

When we adopted our "little boy" he was an indoor-outdoor cat in his previous home, prior to that he was a stray younster. We live close to a busy road so he was made into an indoor kitty. NOT by his choice. I was afraid of fleas, another animals starting to come and spray around if he was out, or he would take off. After 5 years of being indoors, I couldn't torture him like that anymore. I love being out, and even though he was in the windows daily, I still felt like that he was missing something. I used to take him for rides in his cat carrier which he would beg for, but this year he seemed to have issues with riding. He would vomit and poop within like 2 minutes of riding. So, he accepted a harness after many attempts. Daily we go out for the morning and night trips around our yard. Granted, I'm sure he hates the harness but it's the only satisfying way I will let him out. Now that it's getting cooler out, he makes a quick trip around the yard, and heads right for the door to come back in.
So where this story was going,was have you considered putting him on a harness (not a collar with leash but a harness with leash) and letting him out? It's more controlled. It took me a little bit to find the right harness size. I ended up with a adjustable medium sized dog harness but it's thin and not bulky (my cat has a wide load attached to him:D). I tried several and this was the only one that he didn't immediately fight.
Im very glad you got to keep him and take the effort to welcome him into your home...I think strays/abandoned cats realize how lucky they are when they find a good home...
10-06-2009, 08:59 AM
Becky

Quote:

Originally Posted by nancielle

I had called the vet to see if anything physical was going on with him, (infection, etc.) after several suggestions here, but he passed with flying colors. They suggested I use a spray called "Feliway". There's also a similar plug-in available (a bit too $$ for me :( ) The spray seemed to work ok. I found a similar spray in Petco called "No Stress" which seems to work ok as well.

We've had good success with the feliway plug-in. A refill really does last 4 weeks. The cheapest place I've found it is kvvet.com- about half of what Petco/Petsmart sell it for, and free shipping if you spend $50+.
10-06-2009, 12:50 PM
tribogota

Chloe is pretty darn cute herself
--from human Chloe
10-07-2009, 01:53 PM
nancielle

Hunter thanks everyone for their good wishes. He only gets to play with rubberbands when I'm playing with him. Then they are stashed away where, despite his best efforts, he can't get into them. Chloe becomes his favorite plaything then (loves to jump all over her... she just lays there and gives me this look: :confused: or they chase each other through the apartment, sounding like a herd of buffalo charging through. I pity the people in the downstairs apartment but they claim they don't hear it. ) I've heard too many horror stories from others about items cats (and dogs for that matter) ingest that do incredible damage to digestive systems or worse, kill the pet.

Tribogota, Chloe thanks you and her human here agrees that she is darn cute too! :D

I've considered a harness but haven't tried one out yet. I had put collars on him but they end up "disappeared". Since he likes shadowing Chloe on our walks (should've named 'em velcro because they are truly stuck together at those times) it might work.