New Cat, Maybe

[jyl]

We did a road trip from Portland to Tahoe, spent a week with friends in a cabin, picked up the daughter from her summer camp, drove to Yosemite for a couple nights, then Monterey, just got home yesterday.

In a campground in Hardin Flats, around Groveland CA (on Hwy 120, near Yosemite), we met a little cat. The camp folks said it had been abandoned there a few months previously. Friendly, hungry, skinny. We decided it wouldn't survive the winter, so we took the cat with us, to drop it at a shelter on the way to Monterey. So now the cat - identified by a vet in Monterey as a 10 month old female - is at our home in Portland, getting introduced to the home and, soon, the existing cat.



Hoping the introduction goes well. Worst case, the young cat will go to our local humane society shelter, which is an excellent one and a no-kill facility. Wish us luck!

[wildthing]

Good luck!

[billybek]

Abandon and shelter cats make the best pets.
They know how lucky they are.
Hope it goes well.

[mattdavis11]

Having had numerous cats and dogs that came from neglected or abused backgrounds, most tend to adjust accordingly and find a way to fit in.

You might want to check the no kill status, it's probably not what you think. Normally, it's percentage based.

It weighs on you if you have to drop them off. I've only had to admit one to a shelter, a miniature dobbie, who, due to its raising, was constitutionally incapable of being a normal dog.

Good luck!

[scottmandue]

Originally Posted by billybek

Abandon and shelter cats make the best pets.
They know how lucky they are.
Hope it goes well.

I a pet lover so I say keep her, majority of my pets are from shelters and they are gold.(a few kittens form friends that had unexpected litters)

[vash]

wait.

you found a cat and drove her back from some camp in CA..all the way to portland?

did the cat ride in a kennel? or it was leashed and rode in the car all "cool like"?

she didnt meow bloody murder the whole way?!!!

that is a cool cat! i'd be tempted to get rid of the old cat and keep the new cool one. hahah. just kidding. smart money says the new cat transitions smooth as butter. i cant go to the vet without imagining a detour to drop my yammering, hissing cat off at the shelter instead. and i love that cat.

[creaturecat]

lucky find!
nice looking cat.

[5String43]

Wonderful! Best of luck with this great-looking little kitty!

[Halm]

Sounds like a great cat. Good temperament. Keep her, if you can.

[Flieger]

Sounds like a very well behaved cat and you've got quite a story on how you got her. I think you have to keep her.

[Jim Richards]

Yep. You've been adopted, John.

[jyl]

Cat was amazing in the car. Miao'ed for the first 15 minutes, then got used to it and rode happily the remaining 800 miles from Yosemite to Monterey then Monterey to Portland. We needed a place to board her in Monterey, since the Monterey Plaza Hotel wouldn't take pets. That required getting her vaccinations, which we did at the Monterey SPCA (right by Laguna Seca Raceway). Then she hung out in a kennel for 24 hours while we did the aquarium thing. In the car, she ate from a little bowl and drank water from another, and either slept on suitcases and laps, or looked out the window with varying degrees of interest. In Redding the Best Western motel took pets, so she got to sleep on a bed. Now she is in the family room, exploring and snoozing, while our existing cat wonders about the weird new scent. I'm trying to prepare Old Kitty for the New Kitty's adoption. I've told Old Kitty that this adoption is really for her, when she's old with failing organs, we'll harvest the needed organs from the New Kitty. Old Kitty seems receptive to This Plan.

[Rodsrsr]

Cats are really easy to introduce to other cats. They'll just hiss at and avoid one another for the first week and then they'll be fine.

[Jim Richards]

Evil genius! Muhahahaha!

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Awesome! Hope it works out - I'm sure she knows how lucky she is. Cats can be amazing with the gratitude they show.

[Laneco]

Very pretty and "chill" kitty! Glad you took her home!

angela

[jyl]

We chose the family room for the introduction, because Old Kitty spends less time there than in the bedrooms. Put New Kitty there for a day with food, box, etc. Played with her to tire her out. Then brought Old Kitty up. New Kitty was sleeping, hidden under a shelf. Old Kitty didn't notice her, and went to sleep. We all fell asleep watching TV. Eventually Old Kitty woke up, walked around, found New Kitty. They hissed at each other, Old Kitty sulked for awhile then went back to sleep, New Kitty went back to sleep right away. I think this is a promising start.

[billybek]

I might have mentioned my old cat Pablo.
Adopted when Pablo Escobar was killed. Pablo kitty was a bit of a bad ass so the name stuck.
This little orange kitty grew to be a great big cat. He was 18 lbs and didn't have an ounce of fat on him and when he jumped off the counter he made an impressive thump when landing.
He was also a retriever. If you put a fountain drink or slurpee down anywhere in the house for a short moment, the straw was gone. He would run around with it and bring it to you expecting the straw to be thrown so he could go get it.
Sadly my asthma was badly aggravated by his presence in the house and he went to the farm. (really he did!)
He cleaned all the mice out of the house and was turned loose in the barn. Last I talked to the new owners, he was bringing back jack rabbits from the fields.
He was a handful but he was an interesting and colorful character.
Really liked having a kitty or two in the house.

[bri450sl]

Cats can be wonderful pets/companions. We adopted a cat few years back because my daughter wanted a pet badly. That one became very close to my wife and daughter. Unfortunately, she had decided her time was up sooner than we wanted. Moving on, I decided I never want to go through that again. My daughter didn't feel the same so here we are with another adoption and a big tomcat. I wasn't to attached to him until I had some health issues. When I was stuck in bed for a couple of days, I swear he knew I wasn't well and laid with me the entire time. As it turns out, my 12 year old daughter knew that a good pet is good for the entire family. Looks like you found one that will be good for you as well.

[jyl]

Second meeting between the cats. New Kitty crouched down and exhibited submissive kitten behaviour. Old Kitty watched warily for awhile, from a distance, then lost interest. They didn't otherwise interact n. I think this is generally progress.