Can someone reassure me this is normal

[Allthegoodhorses]

Morning, it’s a bit of a saga but I acquired a cat on Sunday. He’s about a year old, neutered a month ago and was living in a very chaotic situation.

We ‘rescued’ him and he’s now in my house. Currently he is in a quiet part of the house in an igloo bed inside a dog crate (dog crate was used for transportation purposes as it was easier to lift him inside the igloo into crate than put him in a cat basket). The crate is open and he has water, food, a litter tray (further from the food).

He has not moved. There looks like no sign of him using litter tray or eating or drinking.

I have googled and apparently this is normal. We have not tried to interact too much with him as advice I’ve read he’s in frozen survival mode and have to let him decide when it’s safe to come out.

But can anyone offer any more advice or reassure me this is normal. I’m starting to get concerned and not sure of next steps.

Totally normal but I know just how you feel! That period is always agony. I've adopted around 15 rescues over my lifetime and all but one of them has hid initially, usually 1-3 days.

You're doing everything right. I know it doesn't feel like it but he WILL come out and start exploring. Often they never look back, but sometimes it's baby steps until they feel safe enough to integrate into the house.

Absolutely normal. And may be the case for a while longer. He just needs patience.

ICC are good for advice. Some of this will not be relevant but there's a section on new adult cats:

icatcare.org/articles/helping-your-new-cat-or-kitten-settle-in

Thank you both so much. I’m reassured. Just starting to panic a bit

I would be worried about how long this has been going on - especially the not drinking. It's been over 24 hours now. Has he been to the vet for a check over? I'd be inclined to get him looked at

We rehomed 2 cats (1y old brothers) they didn’t have a very good previous home. When we brought them home, one was very friendly probably because he didn’t get attention before but the other one hid under a bookcase for 2 weeks. He allowed my daughter to hand feed him bits.

2 months on and the shy cat is the most needy with cuddles! He’s now the boss of the house and even claimed his rocking chair infront the fire! 😂

It sounds like it's not yet 48 hours. So while not using the litter tray is not normal behaviour, it does happen in this situation.

If it continues you should talk to a vet, OP. But a vet visit is very stressful to a cat in this situation. It's a balancing act.

Are the litter tray and water inside the crate, OP?

We had the exact same issue and our new arrival appeared to be too frightened or confused to leave the safety of the cat box. Out of curiosity, I left my laptop on a shelf with the camera pointed at the crate. I then synced my phone to the laptop using the free version of TeamViewer (I imagine WhatsApp video will work equally well) and watched what our new arrival did when we weren't in the room with her. It turns out that unbeknownst to us she was taking small baby steps, exploring the immediate area in front of of the cat box and slowly over a few days, exploring further afield. When she heard us climb the stairs, she'd pop back inside the carrier. It took a few weeks until she was happy to explore with us sitting quietly in the same room.

Not eating, drinking, and therefore not using the litter tray for a day is totally normal. A vet trip would be incredibly stressful for him at the moment.

The water is in the crate but not the litter tray. It’s too small and advice I’ve read is to move litter tray away from food. It’s not miles away but it’s not on top of the bed and food.

i really don’t want to take him to vets if I can help it. Purely because I think it’ll be really stressful. 😥 I am registered with a vet though as I (had) a dog who passed away in March and I have horses. All registered with same vet so I know them well if I need advice or any help.

This is the setup.

Cats can go weeks without drinking: that is not good, obviously, but I wouldn't worry about a few days of no apparent liquid intake, anyway.

I'd move the litter tray to under the table so it's in a covered spot. Perhaps move a chair away to allow it to fit.

Could also squeeze a churu onto a saucer and put in crate opposite water. They smell very tempting.

Yes, food, water and litter should all be separated usually but probably not so important in this initial stage. Rescues have cats with all three in a crate when necessary.

Thank you for the advice, I have done that now so it is nearer to him but covered under the table.

Thank you, I had not heard of Churu before but I have just ordered some. Should arrive tomorrow. I'll try him with some of that as you suggested.

👍 These are same as churus and stocked in some supermarkets, Pets at Home etc

groceries.morrisons.com/products/dreamies-creamy-no-sugar-cat-treats-with-chicken/112680936

You're doing a wonderful thing!

Thank you all. I have just come back from doing the horses and he has eaten the dreamies I left in the crate. No other sign of using litter tray, he may have had a drink, I am not sure but at least it is a step forward!

Thank you, I will see if Tesco stock them.

Very normal . I work for a rescue and have also adopted cats and they all do this at first . Just leave him be and occasionally talk to him in a quiet voice to get him used to you . He will come out when he feels safe .

Give it time. Buy a Feliway plug-in and put that in the room too.

Excellent! He is feeling safer. You're doing a grand job.

I should have mentioned earlier that I also have plugged in a Feliway Plug in. It is near the table with the router on it - so quite close to him.

Good news that he he eaten a little. I would put a selection of tasty foods/ treats close to the door of the crate so he can snatch a bite without having to fully leave his igloo. Nervous cats don't like feeling exposed.

His curiosity will eventually get the better of him, especially when it's dark and the house is quiet.

Favourite bribes for my lot include Dreamies, Lick-e-lix, tuna (not the salty type) and roast chicken (no bones).

I have some tuna (in spring water), I might try putting the food in the crate when we go to bed tonight so he can snatch a bit as you suggest. Excellent thank you.

Just to say, I have never seen my cat drink his water - the level never seems to go down, anyway! He mostly eats wet food, but if he’s had some dry, and needs a drink. he’ll always go for cat milk. I put some out every day, and most of it gets wasted, but if he’s thirsty, he’ll drink it. You could try some of that, even just temporarily, if you’re worried.