Rescue Cat Hopefully Coming Home Tomorrow

[francis223]

We have passed a home check with Cats Protection and we meet the cats tomorrow to hopefully bring our new family member home.

I need some advice on a safe room to help the cat settle in. We have a three bed home (our bedroom, baby's bedroom, husband's office), and downstairs we have a kitchen with double doors into garden, living room and small downstairs loo. So I have no idea which room we can use as a safe room. Has anyone got an ideas?

[Heyheyheygoodbye]

She's gorgeous, OP. I'm so jealous! I'm desperate for a new baby since my little girl cat died a few months ago, but we're moving soon and want to give our little boy cat a chance to settle in before introducing a new cat. Your new girl is absolutely darling

[cozietoesie]

Clever girl! (Cuddling DH.)

[francis223]

Yes, she had only just settled down to sleep on her spot on the sofa and our dishwasher disturbed her, so she's very alert but not jumpy.

She's certainly chosen her favourite human though!

[cozietoesie]

I give it 24 hours before DH starts referring to her as 'My Girl......'. (If he hasn't done so already. )

[Daftaboutthecat]

Francis she is beautiful looks at ease already.

[francis223]

So she's gaining confidence every day. She takes herself off to our bedroom in the day to sleep, either under the chest of drawers or on the bed. We are still restricting her to the kitchen overnight but we can hear her scratching the door on and off all night, she's not settling well in there, so am not sure whether to persevere and eventually she will learn to settle or whether to let her have the run of the house. I don't want her to access our bedroom at night because our toddler sleeps with us so am not sure if I should restrict her access to the room in the day too so she finds another sleeping spot she likes. Can anyone suggest the best thing to do?

[cozietoesie]

She wants to be close it sounds like.

I'm no help on this one because my Siamese boys don't even consider sleeping elsewhere than with me. It sort of tops up their 'love tanks' overnight and - incidentally - makes training a whole load easier. I'd automatically give her sleeping rights, therefore.

But - your call.

[francis223]

So I decided to give her access to the whole of downstairs last night which basically means the kitchen diner and living room and she was much happier. We have baby gates on the top and bottom of the stairs and only I heard her tapping the gate with her paw at 6am so she clearly is happier with the comfort of the living room and the sofas overnight. I've got no doubt that once my son is older, and in his own bed at night, he will be replaced by the cat!

[cozietoesie]

Sooner than that, I suspect. Once they have access to new territory, they usually investigate it pretty quickly and then go boldly forward.

Unless you have mice downstairs?

[francis223]

Eek I hope not. Here are some photos from yesterday evening

[francis223]

Love this one

[francis223]

And here you can see her beautiful green eyes

[cozietoesie]

She's such a lovely girl.

[lavenderdoilly]

What a lovely girl. Try your Tshirts in likely looking sleep spots. That or a pile of fresh laundry which all cats adore. well done for giving her a home.

[francis223]

I can't find any information on whether, like dogs, she needs to be kept indoors until a few weeks after her vaccinations?

She loves to watch the birds at our feeder through the kitchen patio doors and her whole body quivers and she makes this excitable noise!

[lavenderdoilly]

Sounds like a catio - thinking about killing birds, plotting and scheming is half if not most of the fun for cats.

[cozietoesie]

They make that noise indoors in my experience - it's a sort of 'Oh Boy - what I would do if I could only be out there!' (On the hunt, they're quiet and stealthy.)

It might be a good idea to check the position of your feeders by the way so that she can't get at the birds easily. (In fact, you might need to reconsider having them at all because bits/individual seeds etc drop down to the ground and can be picked at by young birds who are often the favoured prey.)

[cozietoesie]

PS - giving her a 'curfew' of - say - teatime till after breakfast should help a great deal. Cats hunt at their best in low light conditions such as dawn.

[francis223]

Mmm that did occur to me. We had two beautiful collared doves here earlier resting on the top of the feeding station. She was in her element watching those.

[cozietoesie]

You might find this interesting to read.

[francis223]

Thank you Cozie

[francis223]

I'm sitting here on the sofa watching her as she snuggles up to my husband, licking his hand! She has her favourite spot on his chair in his office.

[cozietoesie]

The wee sook!

Has he given her a pet name yet? Or is he just ('just') calling her The Girl?

[problembottom]

She's adorable.

[francis223]

Aaaand she's sleeping upstairs with us.

She's as good as gold.