Day 29 - Adopting a cat

[Quincy]

Hello everyone, 

I’m sure some of you know the cat in the photo above 🙂. 

My significant other and I have been thinking of adopting a pet for quite some time. We have been looking around for a while, but we weren’t sure whether to look for a dog or a cat (I’ve got love for both of them). 

Personally, I prefer an indoor cat since we live in the city. All the dogs I’ve had in the past were dogs that were used to living near big open areas such as the woods, so if I’d ever take a dog, I would prefer being near the woods instead of in a big city (so that they roam freely).

Milky (the cat in the pic)

In 2020, when everything started shutting down due to COVID, we felt we were missing something in the house. Around that time, it seemed that everyone started buying pets as the pandemic started to cause everyone to work from home, but we preferred adopting one instead. 

We suddenly found an ad on the internet about a cat that unfortunately needed to go due to personal reasons. We decided to contact the number on the listing, and the owner invited us to a video call to see whether we were a good fit and to generally show us Milky at the time. 

We fell in love with him immediately and decided to pick him up asap after the owner told us we were a good fit, and so there we went. Upon arriving at the location, the owner told us that she was having issues getting Milky into the cage (as if he knew what was about to happen).  Finally, after she was able to get Milky into his cage, the kids of the owner were very upset to see him go, and some tears were shed. 

We loaded all his belongings into the car and waved a final goodbye to what were now his previous owners. 

The drive went smooth, and we set up all his stuff at home and all was well at first, however...

Day 1: Hiding.

Day 2: We were starting to get concerned as we didn’t notice him eating any food nor using the litter box, and so I set up an old security camera. 

Day 3: Noticed he started eating and using the litter box. 

Day 4: Carefully exploring the house at night.

Day 5: Hiding during the day, but exploring at night.

Day 6: Hiding during the day, but exploring at night.

Day 7: Started coming closer to us (see image)

…. Fast-forward to present-day….

(security cam footage - yes, he is actually wondering what it is!) 

(Carefully observing us from a distance) 

Present:

I've had a cat in the past, but I forgot how great it feels having a companion again 😃. I hope he’ll be around for many years to come! 

Take good care of yourselves and your pets this festive season, and give them a few extra snacks! ✨

Quincy

[Quincy]

Ha, Merlot went on a well deserved holiday it seems! 😂 

[Cathie19]

So handsome and so lucky to have chosen your household! 

[Nick]

I literally had to check where Tricky, my - black - cat was upon seeing this photo. Not only do they look identical from that angle, they even have a very similar colour cat tree 😁😻 @Mark116 

[Quincy]

Tricky went to @Huma0  for a well deserved holiday @Nick 😂

[Huma0]

@Quincy @Nick 

Yes, Tricky is here enjoying some Dreamies and a mechanical mouse. 🙂

[Michelle53]

@Mark116

Strays are the best !       By the way, I notice a print of Botticelli's "Primavera" in the background. I have a print of the full painting from a visit to Italy.    

[Quincy]

The squirt is lovely! He's got such an interesting name too! @Mark116! I very much enjoy reading the stories of how everyone got their cats 😃

[Mark116]

@Quincy  Ha ha.  Yes, my mother was scandalized that we would name a beautiful cat The Squirt, but, truly, it really fits his personality. He is also sometimes called Squirtino or Squirtzilla, but he def. knows his name is Squirt.  

[Mark116]

@Huma0  Beautiful!  We speculate that he had at one time had a good owner, because he's very affectionate and was actually more afraid of the other cats than of us.  For months, maybe years, after we got him, when anyone came into the house he would hide.  So, we further speculate that maybe person A gave him away to person B, and the B people are the ones who abandoned him and he was afraid that people were coming again to take him away.  He was not lost because there were never any notices of a lost black cat in the area, nothing on social media for the neighborhood either.  He was simply put outside and left to fend for himself, which, gentle giant that he is, he could never have made it on his own. I first noticed him when I saw a cat with a giant head on a tiny starving little body, which is when we started putting out food for him.  People are awful sometimes. 

[Huma0]

@Mark116 

It could also be that The Squirt got lost a long time before rather than abandoned. Perhaps he had bad experiences in the meantime, which is why he was hiding. Cats can travel quite large distances sometimes, especially if lost and they've lost their scent trail. Or, like you say, he was abandoned. 

When Merlot first came here, he was terrified of everyone. You couldn't get near him without him hissing and sometimes trying to swat you. Certainly, he was not domesticated at all, so I can see why the vet thought he was feral.

However, it turns out that he is extremely affectionate. He will always be a little bit skittish, but for a long time, he has been confident enough that he loves to greet and befriend new guests as soon as possible. The latest development is that you can put him on a guest's lap (he hasn't figured out how to get there himself) and he will be happy as Larry. 

So, my theory is that he was abandoned as a kitten or lost very young and had been living rough for most of his life, during which time he had some bad experiences with humans. I just don't believe that a feral cat could transform so totally and at the speed that he did. Out of my three cats, he's the one who spends the least time outside (except for summer when he loves to sunbathe as above, but he stays on my terrace or in the little back garden and doesn't go wondering).

He used to be terrified of feet (I am sure someone must have kicked him - yes, people are awful sometimes) but is totally over that now. The only time he gets really scared now is if there is someone very loud and heavy footed in the house, especially if they are moving around fast. I had a cleaner who was very sweet and liked cats, but he was completely petrified of her. 

[Mark116]

@Huma0  I can't see The Squirt traveling a very long distance, he's not the brightest cat and our neighborhood is surrounded by heavily trafficked roads. I also keep a pretty good eye out for what strays there are around in our back yard area.  So, I am pretty confident someone dumped him.

Pete, who was feral, is quite smart.  He was too smart for the trap in fact, because he had been TNRd as a kitten.  He is extremely affectionate to his people and isn't scared of strangers, and was affectionate even before we lured him inside.  But even we cannot pick him up and he's about 7 now,  and it took us YEARS to get him into the carrier, so difficult that we ended up home treating him for a couple of illnesses because we literally could not get him in the carrier no matter what we did, even two people working together.  Once he had wriggled out 1 time that was it for the day, you could not get him close to the carrier no matter what.  But he sits on laps, sits next to us on the couch and sleeps on the bed.  Also very vocal.  The Squirt, one of the reasons for his name, has a tiny, squeaky kitten meow despite his massive size.

[Huma0]

@Mark116 

Love those tiny, squeaky kitten meows 🙂 Merlot does try to meow. Sometimes he tries really hard and it breaks my heart because he just squeaks. Well, it's more like an 'eeeeeeek!'.

He doesn't love being picked up, but will let you and won't scratch or bite and might even purr before wriggling to be released. I don't push his limits. But, like The Squirt, he is a nightmare to get into the carrier. I could not take him to the vet for years. Now I have to sedate him (vet gave me the necessary medication) and it's still a two people job. You also have to wrap him like a burrito before putting him inside. Poor little floof. I always feel so guilty, but would rather he is healthy. He does also get over the experience very quickly and tends to have a lovely, sleepy day afterwards.

[Mark116]

@Huma0  We begged our vet to give us something to sedate Pete, so we could bring him in, but they wouldn't do it.  We offered to pay for a home visit too, but they wouldn't do that either and they refused to authorize any meds without a visit, so not helpful. Thankfully he recovered on his own, but he never would have done if he had still been out in the wild, as in one case he had a fever and would only eat cat treats out of my hand or about 1 teaspoon of wet food and the water bowl had to be put right in front of him for over a week! But, he still muscled up the energy that sick to wriggle out just before you could close the door him. 

[Huma0]

@Mark116 

That's interesting. I guess it varies from vet to vet. It was actually the vet's suggestion to sedate Merlot. Having said that, this was after years of me failing to get him into the carrier.

Their first suggestions involved leaving the carrier out, putting his food in front of it and then gradually moving it closer, then inside the carrier and then further inside and then eventually trying to get him in. I tried this numerous times and it did not work. He was wise to it!

I also tried Felliway, but that didn't help either. I do still spray the inside of the carrier with that when vet trips are about to happen in the hope that it helps to calm the cat, but I don't know if it does or not.

Strange that your vet won't do a home visit. Mine said they would, but that it would be costly.  However, they also said that if I booked an appointment for him and couldn't get him in the carrier, I wouldn't be charged for cancelling.

[Mark116]

@Huma0  It also might have to do with US medical community general paranoia/regulation about anything that could be classed as an 'opiate' although I doubt a human could get high from a cat size tranquilizer.  The only vets here that I am aware of who will do home visits are the ones who come to euthanize, which is what we did for Poppy, much better way for them to go at home in their normal surroundings.  But, it's expensive.  I actually hate my vet now, but can't find a better option, I had done research, found another one, and they were even worse, the place smelled bad and the dr. forgot to mention that the cat couldn't eat anything at least 12 hours before surgery!!! Of course I knew this, but what if I hadn't?