Getting a rescue cat - questions

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We're adopting an 11 year old cat. It's my first time as a cat owner. His current foster carer is bringing him to us, and has asked to stay in our house for an hour to help the cat settle.

I see that the advice is usually to shut the cat in one room. I was hoping to let the cat roam our (small) house freely. Will he find the litter tray and the food bowls without us showing him? He is currently an indoor cat and very clean. How long is it likely to take him to stop hiding from us? Thanks.

All depends on the cat. Some are confident some aren't. Ours was a kitten when we got him but we kept him in the kitchen for a short time then left him to do what he liked

Depends on the quality of your treats....

There are no definite answers but the foster carer is likely to have the best idea.

I’d be guided by the cat. I’ve had some fosters who have immediately been out & exploring and some who hid for a while at first (the longest was for 2 days) but then became confident.

He’ll find the bowls and tray. The idea about shutting them in one room is just so they feel secure. You might shut him in one room at first and then let him roam at night so he can explore. Can take hours, can take days - I used to just sit in ‘the room’ with a book, sometimes talking out loud so they got used to the sound of my voice.

Just give him time, the pleasure when they first emerge from hiding and make eye contact is fantastic! He’ll soon be driving you mad with his demands 😄 I wish you joy of your new feline overlord.

Hey you need to pay your cat tax!

I have seen cats hide for two weeks and others who are immediately exploring every nook and cranny, it depends on the nature of the cat.

Mine went under the sofa for an hour so he could check everything out from a safe place
He then ventured out for some treats and belly rubs
After that he explored the whole house and sniffed out everything, used his tray and decided the food was up to scratch

That night he clambered on the bed and dug his way under the duvet, wedged himself against me and fell asleep. That was that really!

My rescue was about a year old , he hid for a couple of days then very slowly started to find his way around .
You don't need yo show them food , water or litter trays . He will find them on his own
Don't worry if he doesn't eat for the 1st day or so but give him very small amounts of the same food he is on at the foster home.

And don't forget to pay the cat tax as soon as you get him 😹

Depends on the cat. A nervous cat will appreciate just being in one room to start with. A confident one will walk in like they own the place.

Regardless all cats can find a food bowl and a litter bin. Helps if you have the same litter they are used to but not 100% necessary.

Ours was in everything on the first night - used the tray pretty much immediately, ate, drank, played, wanted petting. Fab. We then had two full days of him either hiding behind the TV stand, occasionally hissing, or up on top of a bookcase, and he toileted/ate “secretly” at night. I was so worried I contacted the Cats Protection lady who forwarded my messages on to his foster carer - she said he had behaved identically at hers, and that it was a good sign he was in the living room with me rather than hiding away. By the end of day four he was back to how he was on day one, and 12 weeks in it’s like he’s always been here. Here he is “helping” me on a WFH day.

I've always started out with one room with everything in it, even if just for the first night. I do the same when I've moved house with cats. This is more important if your house is busy or you have external doors without an 'air lock' (eg a porch with an inner and outer door).

Oh, and I kept his food/water/tray in the living room for the first week or so but we didn’t shut him in there. We do still have a water bowl in the living room but the rest is in the kitchen now, and a second litter tray in the hall.

I think the one room advice is good. Also gives you an option if you’re going to have to (for example) prop the front door open for deliveries or something - have somewhere secure and familiar to shut him in.

Mine was very scared. He hid under the kitchen cabinets (we were missing a kickboard at one end!) for the first couple of weeks and explored at night. Took a couple of months for him to be relaxed enough to interact with us normally, and a year before he was really at home. He’d been through a lot, so I think that’s on the more extreme end of what you can expect.

The important things are securing external doors and windows, even the ones you feel are inaccessible, they might not be to a determined cat. I would add to that securing fire places as well, having had that experience!

For exploring the house be guided by the cat, some will be happy wandering from the start, others will find teeny tiny spaces to hide in so that you panic and then think they have Houdini-Ed themselves outside. One cat I looked after for a friend crept under a wardrobe , he was a black cat, and with his eyes shut was completely invisible, until I crawled around on my hands and knees with a torch.

It really all depends on the cat - some will come out and about right away, others take weeks (or months) to settle in properly.

I would set up one room as "his" to start, at least for the first 24 hours just to let him settle in. Make sure he has easy access to food, water and his litter, as well as some spaces to hide and escape to if he feels really scared or anxious.

If he's really confident then great, he can go off and explore, but it's always best to give them a "base" area to retreat to if needed. And don't feel disheartened if he hides for a few days or won't let you approach for a while, it takes time!

Most foster carers will be happy to stay in touch & answer questions while the cat is settling in, if that helps.

I had one that hid for a week, and one that was out and about straight away. Get the foster carer to bring some of his used litter to put in your tray.

We don't really have a suitable room that we could have isolated Elton in, so he had the run of the house from the start. It was tough for him, as he was used to a flat and didn't understand stairs, or where we disappeared to at night. He didn't physically hide, but he took to his furry donut, closed down and slept for about 36 hours, which I think was his way of escaping from the situation. After that he got bolder and more curious.