whats wrong with this CAT!!!

Question
Hi jennifer,
i have a question.
i found this 6 to 8 month old cat on my door step
about 6 weeks ago and i fell in love with him so
i feed him, and he was very nice he let me play
with him and pet him, and it seemed like he loved
it, so i was gonna take him to the vet and have
him looked at and give him his shots. but before
i could do that he bit! me VERY HARD! i was bleeding, so now i am scared to touch him, but the thing i dont understand is, he is not a mean!
cat he's very sweet and he just wants to be loved
but most of the time when i touch him he claws me
and bites, so i dont know what to do, and i really feel bad for him i want to bring him in my
home, but i have a 3 year old female cat that doesn't like him and i have a 10 year old dog that im scared the cat mit hurt, i know my dog
wont hurt him im just scared that the cat mit claw his eyes out or something? please let me know what you think of this.....thanks

Answer
We see a lot of cats who come into the office and get very scared and upset.  The only time they go in a carrier and for a car ride is to get poked and proded.  Many times NICE cats will bite their owners out of fright so that is why we do not let owners hold their cats for shots.  Do not take it personal.  Their sense of smell is so much greater than ours, so when they are in the exam room to them it smells like their are a hundred cats in there plus now a stranger is touching them.  In his case, since he was outside since a kitten, he was most likely not properly socialized and that is part of the reason he does not know how to act all the time.  He will not claw the other cat's eyes out--they certainly will hiss and fight as cats are resistant to change until they learn to tolerate each other.  The dog should be able to hold his own weight and most likely the cat will be more scared of the dog than vice versa.  

Introducing a new cat to the house is a slow process and you should isolate him in a room by himself for several weeks to allow the other animals to adjust to the fact that someone else is in the house.  Then you can put 2 baby gates on top of each other in the door so they can see each other but not get to each other--do this for another week or two.  Then slowly let him out for 15-20 minute supervised visits.   When you and they feel comfortable with each other, you can let them alone.

I would also recommend getting FELIWAY/Comfort Zone diffusers to help reduce stress.