Last night we had another wild storm- this one worse than the one yesterday. I heard frantic meowing from the gazebo and raced out to see what might be wrong with Slade. He was fine, but terrified by the high winds and the howling rain. I sat with him most of the night and by about midnight, he was huddled in my lap and I wrapped both of us up in a blanket and we slept. This morning, it was business as usual and he hissed at me when he woke up to discover he was still in my lap! LOL Then he jumped down and demanded breakfast.
I also discovered a canned cat food he will eat. Fancy Feasts Medley collection. He really dives into this food so I can stop giving him baby food now. He is back to running from me when I go in there- but at least, last night I could offer him some comfort as the weather raged around us.
That’s a start. I always like to think that if they take a step like that, they won’t take another back. Cammie was the same way. When she first got on my lap, she stay for a few minutes, then hiss and jump away. I learned that she wasn’t hissing at me, but in general dislike of the situation. She’d had enough; time to leave.
Hah, reminds me of a feral cat my neighbor and I have been feeding for the past 3 months. We’re waiting until warmer nights to try and trap him as he definitely needs to be neutered! We’ve named him Mica and every morning when I open my front door around 7:00 he is in a covered heated cat bed I have on my front porch. He sticks out his head, I say through the storm door “good morning Mica!”, he hisses and jumps out of his bed and sits waiting for his Fancy Feast wet food. If I’m slow in getting it to him (I do after all heat it in the microwave a few seconds so it is slightly warm on these cold mornings), he will stand on his back legs and look in the storm door. I will see him and wave from the kitchen, telling him I’ll be right there. He then hisses again and sits back down. I bring him his food and put it right in front of him and tell him to have a good breakfast. His reply is another hiss and then we waits for me to get behind the storm door again before he tucks into his meal.
One thing I have learned (among many other lessons) working with cats who have been rejected/abandoned/abused you can take two steps forward with them on Monday and by Friday that same week, they have taken four steps back. Gaining their trust is never easy or quick. Unlike dogs who can be beaten by someone and then turn around and lick the face of the abuser, cats hold on to the bad things that happen to them. I know Slade will trust me one day- but we are working on his time clock, not mine