Very Timid Siamese

Question
We have just adopted two 2 1/2 year old desexed female cats - one an Oriental (Mickey) and a Chocolate Point Siamese (Ariel). They are highly bred and are retired breeding cats.  We have had them for 10 days now and Mickey is quite relaxed and coping well.  Ariel was great for the first few days - better than Mickey and then all of a sudden she started running away from us whenever we approached her.  She has clawed us if we try to hold her and runs away everytime we go anywhere near her even if we don't look at her at all.  We have gone back to keeping her in our bedroom where she started hoping that she will feel safe again and regain her confidence but its not working.  What do we do - its heartbreaking to watch this beautiful creature suffering and not being able to help.

Thanks
Alison

Answer
Hello Alison,

That is very odd indeed, for her to be OK for the first little while then to go into hiding.  Can you tell me a bit about the lifestyle she came from and the one she is living in now?  It is possible that the difference in households could be what is effecting her however, generally, retired breeding cats are more outgoing as they usually are also retired show cats and have had many strangers in the home looking at kittens etc.  How long ago was she spayed?  I would also be worried about a medical issue only because of the way it progressed, cat's are very good at masking the fact that they are ill.  Any changes in behavior are red flags that something internal is likely going on especially if they are hiding, so a thorough check up is definitely a good idea.

Have you contacted the breeder to see if they have any advice for you?  They raised her from kitten hood so they should have some insight into her personality.  Can you explain what you mean by highly bred?  Do you mean she has had many litters?

How was she integrated into the household?  Was it a gradual introduction?  It could be that it was simply too quick for her and you need to go back a step or two.  When one of my cats goes to a new home the first thing I tell people, especially with an adult, is that they need to remember that they are leaving the only house and people they've ever known and they WILL be scared.  You need to keep them in a smaller environment, like a bedroom, for up to three weeks and gradually introduce them to the rest of the house with small supervised outings.  I highly recommend feliway for transitional periods, it makes the process SO much easier on the cat.  Not every store carries it so you need to call around but it can generally be found at any Pet Smart and it is quite expensive but in my opinion worth it.  

Now all this being said, 10 days really isn't that long.  Some cats walk into a household as if they've always been there others take months to settle in.  Each cat is unique, once the vet has ruled out any possible medical problems she may simply need time.  What you can do until then is be gentle with her, let her come to you, chasing and grabbing a her will make things worse, in the quiet of the evening when she jumps up on the bed slowly reach out to pet her, if she runs don't chase, just try again next time with cats like this patience is key.

Good Luck and I hope this has helped.

Natoma