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 Two days ago I took?7 replies Anonymous: Two days ago I took in a traumatized 11month old Ragdoll cat. She was mistreated by the previous owner (a young girl), I'm not sure what's happened to her but she is absolutely terrified. I've put her in her own room. She is finally out from under the bed but has chosen to stay in the cat cage that she came in. She has just started eating and last night I noticed that she was out of the cage & watching me sleep, she was meowing sweetly. Although once I spoke to her she quickly scurried back to the cage. When I try to pat her, she backs right away, she usually growls or hisses at me. She didn't use the kitty litter, she used the floor. I was hoping that someone could give me some ideas on how I can make a bond with her? Hi anon, Patience is your best friend in this situation. You'll need to develop a bond basing on HER pace and the time SHE needs. Two days is too short a period for her to recover from mistreating and to get used to a new home. These are very good signs that she was out watching you sleep. Let her get used to your smell and the new environment as slowly as she needs, don't try to speed up the process by trying to pet her when she's not ready. When you notice she trusts you more (spends more time out of the cage exploring the house, comes closer to you and maybe rubs against your feet - read the body language), try to stroke her. Do not do it by approaching her all of a sudden and from above, though. Squat or lie on the floor so you don't look very big and terrifying, stretch our your hand towards her slowly, palm up, and let her approach and smell it if she likes. If she comes and smells it, you can stroke her under the chin gently. She'll let you know if she likes it! Avoid touching areas like the lower back, belly and legs because it can scare her away. Basically, you just need to give her more time and let HER make the first moves and connections, when she comes to smell you ignore her and let her take control.  I think rusland covered everything ! I would also recommend you take her to a vet as soon as possible especially because she was owned by a young girl she might of not meant it but she could have physically hurt her . If shes in pain she might not want to be touched or use the litter box and that might make her very scared on top of that. We just got a very sick kitty and she wasnt at all qgressive she is cuddy and sweet but it took her a few weeks to feel comfertable n her room until we started intreducing the rest if the house bit by bit so just imagine if its that hard on any cqt it must be extremely hard on a traumatized one. Just give ger pleaty of time piace and quiet and a lot of tlc!! Poor kitty I hope she'll be doing fine! I agree with everything what the girls said. She's really lucky to be in a new home, well done anon! How did you find her? Anonymous: I found my ragdoll kitty thru a friend. The people that had abused her were going to put her in the pound. When the lady that originally sold her to them found out, she took her back. She was no longer selling Ragdolls due to family circumstances but she needed someone who could put the time in with her. So here I am!... Thank you to all the people that replied to me & for the great advice. I really felt relieved to know that I was doing the right thing & that I just needed to have patience. Especially about petting her, I think I was going a bit fast for her. Knowing to put my hand palm up to her I would never have known, so thank you.... I have an update for you. She is eating all her food, using the kitty litter, still watching me sleep, but now peeking over the end of the bed at me. All I can see are these two little ears poking up then quickly popping down when she sees me. It's so cute! Will keep you posted! I'm so glad to hear she's eating fine and getting more and more curious! This means her fear is going away little by little. She's trying to decide now if she can trust you, and what she should expect from you. Don't make abrupt movements when she's around so that you don't get associated with something big, scary, and unpredictable (if she was mistreated by a kid, he or she was most likely unpredictable). Keep emanating peaceful and friendly energy, and she'll feel the vibe. Cats and dogs have a great ability to recover from many things. We just need to give them time, and to choose correct actions to help them recover (like the ones I wrote about in my earlier post).  I don't understand how some people can be so uncaring to treat a pet disrespectfully and then to try to get rid of it as the poor animal didn't match up to their expectations.  How did you name her (or what was her name before you took her)? | Have a question? People are waiting to help. Interesting stuff |
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