Angry cat follow up

Question
QUESTION: Dear Tabbi,

A few days ago, a friend of mine brought her kitty to my home for my husband and I to care for her while she goes traveling for a couple of months.  We have had the kitty for and she has stayed hidden in the closet the entire time, hissing anytime we go near her, and bolting to a corner when we enter the closet.  She seems to come out when we are sleeping to eat and use the litter box, although the last two nights she has popped just outside the box.  We have not found urine in the box since then, so we imagine she must be urinating elsewhere.
A brief history on the kitty.  Last year, her owner drove across the country with this kitty and another kitty.  The owner moved in with her in-laws in and one of the kitties disappeared.  The in-laws keep dogs and so this kitty had to adjust to these new living situation.  Shortly after this, her owner left for a several month business trip, leaving the kitty with the in-laws and dogs, and when she returned she said the kitty seemed neglected and angry, but then seemed to adjust to having the owner back.  Now the owner needed to go away again and did not feel comfortable leaving her with the in-laws, so she asked if we would care for her.  We are both cat lovers, having recently lost two beloved kitties to old age/sickness, so we were happy to help, but are so worried about the kitty!  Please, is there any advice you can offer?  The kitty does not seem to be getting any better.
Thank you for your advice.  
Rose


Safe House for cat sit   ANSWER: Rose,

The poor kitty has been through a lot of trauma so far and is now having more. It is going to take a lot of time and patience to get the cat to learn to trust you. The cat is again in a new environment with new people and is very scared. Cats learn by experience and habit, and her experiences have not been very good, especially with dogs, new people, and not having a routine and consistant home.

Maybe it would be best for the cat to have a stable home where the absentee owner can come and visit her. Could could keep her? She will just learn to trust you then get uprooted again. The cat will probably have emotional problems for life! She probably needs a kitty friend too about her same age for comfort and companionship. That may help her calm down.

When I get a new cat, or cat sit, I use a large dog crate (48x32x30) that I got at Petco (I will attach a picture of it). You can let the new one out a little at the time. Plus the new one gets used to the noises and movements of the people in the home and is not secluded alone in a room by itself. For a new cat that is nervous, you can put a small cat carrier inside it with the door off for it to hide in. There is room for a place to hide, a litterbox, food and water dishes, and still room left over.

As it stands right now, I would leave her be until she is ready and comfortable enough to come out of hiding. Trying to force her will not help. She has to slowly learn to trust you which will take time and patience. She is extremely stressed.

Food is the key to taming and gaining trust. It also associates you with something pleasant. Treats like tuna, tinned sardines with oil, pieces of raw beef, etc. are favorites. Especially something they can easily grab and run with if necessary. The cat may hesitate to eat in your presence at first, but be patient. Put her food out then sit back quietly, speaking gently to her. Keep moving the food closer to you over a period of time until the food is right next to you and she trusts you enough to eat it. Then you can start touching.

There is a calming aid that you can put in your cat's water that is very popular called Bach's Rescue remedy. You can get it at a health food store (people use it too) or on-line. I calms a cat using natural ingredients.

More information can be found at these websites:
(copy and paste, or type, the whole links into your address bar)

http://www.bachflower.com/Pets.htm

http://www.nelsonbach.com/BFE_for_pets.html

http://www.petsynergy.com/flower.html

http://www.oes.org/page1/Bach-Rescue-Remedy.html

It is going to take patience and understanding. The litterbox accidents are a result of the cat being so upset.

I hope this helps.

Tabbi

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Dear Tabbi,

Thank you so much for your prompt reply.  I do also believe another kitty could help her, however we are not in the situation to offer that to her, and at this time, can only be a temporary home to her.  I wish it could be different.  Her owner is also at a loss and is out of the country for the next two months.
In the meantime, I did use the rescue remedy and it seems to have helped a bit - she is slowly coming out of her shell, although she often acts as if she has a split personality, hissing one minute and curious and semi friendly the next.  She did not use the litter box last night at all and peed in a shoe plastic mat we keep by the door.  What could we do to help her use the litter box?  She used it the first night but has not used it since then.  In fact, we found the pee in the shoe mat but it seems she did not poop at all, or if she did, we can't find it.  And now we have discovered that she has peed in the heating vent in the bathroom where we keep the litter box.
We really want to help her.  She seems to respond better to my husband than to me, he has even been able to rub her belly once!  She has rubbed against his feet and weaved against my legs yesterday evening, but then this morning she was back hiding in the closet hissing.  I should tell you that when she hisses, it is a silent hiss, not aggressive.  She is jumpy, though, and can seem relaxed and then will jump at any little sound, sometimes imaginary.  It's as if she sees or hears something we don't.
One thing we were also wondering is if we should lock the closet so she can't use it as a hiding spot?  What do you advise?
I appreciate all the help you can offer this poor, sweet, traumatized kitty.  :(

Thank you,
Rose

ANSWER: Rose,

It is just going to take time, patience, and understanding with her. She has been through a lot and now distrusts people. A dog may have scared her when she was using the litter box previously and now she is scared to use it because she would associate something bad happening to her with the litterbox. You may want to try using puppy pee-pads, or the human kind that they put under incontinent older people, and put them next to the litterbox. She may use those instead, or even newspaper. I would also put a small litter box in the closet where she is hiding. She may be scared to come out and go as far as the bathroom to use the litter box.

It sounds like you are going to have to make some concessions with this poor overwrought kitty. Is it possible to clean out the floor of the closet and just leave somewhere for her to hide and a litter box? And newspapers on the floor of it? I would feed her somewhere outside the door of the closet. I wouldn't close the closet on her because that is the one place in her topsy-turvey world that she feels safe.

You can get a prescription for kitty Prozac for her from the vet to help calm her, but you would need to be able to give it to her. It is commonly given for stress and emotional issues.

Tabbi

---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Dear Tabbi,

I wanted to ask a follow up question regarding Naiobi, the stressed out kitty.
She is doing A LOT better, and just now as I am typing she is weaving between my legs, rubbing her cheek against my bag, and flopping on the floor so I can rub her belly.  It breaks my heart to think she will have to go through this again when her owner picks her up.
Anyway, the question is regarding the litter box lack of usage.  Naoibo is still spending most of her time in the closet but comes out when we are around, plays a bit, although she is very jumpy and jumps or takes off at a quick movement or loud noise, but she is so much more relaxed.  But she now is pooping on the floor, and only using the litter box once a week, poop only.  She is peeing in the same spot every day, next to the litter box on a pee pad.  And now the pooping the last few days.  She is also definitely constipated, maybe pooping every other day.  I have tried giving her softer food and such to help her out but she won't eat it.  If it was my cat, I would be feeding her a different diet but she is addicted to this awful dry food and I think that and the lack of exercise are making her constipated.
Is there anything I can do  now that she is more relaxed to encourage her to use the litter box?  I am at my wit's end having to completely clean the bathroom floor every day.  
Thanks so much.
Rose

Answer
Rose,

I'm happy to hear that Naiobi is doing better. I also hate to think of her having to go through all the stress over again when she is starting to relax and be happy. Poor baby!

If you can afford it, I would suggest taking the kitty to the vet for a checkup. When a cat avoids the litterbox that could signal a medical problem. Yes, she may be constipated, but she could also have a bowel/intestine issue. If a cat has pain when they use the litterbox when they poop or pee then they associate that pain with the litterbox and avoid it, going elsewhere. With cats, it's all about association. The vet can give her medication if she is constipated, and he can also give you suggetions.

As far as her diet, I would change it immediately! She needs a good quality cat food that has the needed vitamins and minerals, etc. in it and not a lot of fillers. She also needs a high fiber diet if she is constipated.

I put a strip of mayonnaise or butter periodically down each front leg. They naturally will lick it off and the oils in each help keep the cat 'greased'.

Make sure she is drinking a lot of water too. Even try Swanson's chicken broth to get her to drink more.

I'm not a vet so you may want to Google: CAT CONSTIPATION and get some further information.

I hope this is helpful.

Tabbi