What to expect when you adopt
When you Get Your Kitty Home
- DON"T release them into your whole home. We recommend that new cats are started out in a small space/room initially (such as a bathroom or laundry room) as larger spaces can completely overwhelm them. The space should be one with no hiding spots (places you can't easily access them such as under a bed). If they are hiding, they aren't engaging which makes the overall process take longer.
- Keep him in a small room, where there are no big hiding spaces (like under a bed or couch). Place their food, water and litter box in there with them. Introduce them to the litter box by just placing them inside of it, they'll find it again when they need it. Go in there to play with him, until he feels comfortable and is coming to you for affection and snuggles. Giving them a bed of some sort, and something they can hide behind if they feel threatened, is a good idea.
- Every cat acclimates on their own timeline. An adopter needs to be assertive, not aggressive, patient and loving to help them thru this phase forming a lifelong bond between you and your new cat.
- Remember it will take some time for your pet to feel comfortable. Imagine being taken away from everything you knew and felt comfortable with? It can be scary, stressful and overwhelming all at the same time.
- The time you know when they are ready for more space is once they are comfortable in their acclimation space and comfortable with you while in the acclimation space - this is easily seen based on the cats behavior and body language.
- It takes 2-3 days on average for a cat to go thru what is called decompressing. During this time, they are trying to process and absorb everything that is happening to them. Once thru the decompression stage, that's where they begin to acclimate to you and the new environment and you start experiencing more of the cat's personality.
Introducing them to other pets
- If introducing it to other pets, let them get acquainted slowly from either side of a door. It’s a good idea to put a blanket with either of them and then swap it so they get used to each other’s scent. Take it slow, if you rush it, it will likely go badly and stay that way.
- Adding a cat into an existing pet household then adds the additional layer of introducing the new pet to the existing before the new cat is given full range of the home.
- It is normal for cats to hiss at each other when they are first introduced, do not interfere unless there is a danger to one or both of the cats. Hissing and even batting at each other is a cats normal way of establishing the "pecking order" in their world. The behavior should decrease until it is totally gone, after a few days.
Lastly
- Register their microchip
- Set up an appointment with the veterinarian of your choice. Your kitty has just come from a large space with lots of other kitties, although we do our best to keep all of our kitties healthy, it's a good idea to start off with a wellness exam.
- Set up a folder of some sort to keep all of your cat's medical records so that you are certain that they are up to date on their shots. If you need to change vets, you will be certain that they are not missing shots or having more than they actually need.