Magnificent floofball Chester was a short term emergency foster that needed a quiet place to wait out the noisy refurbishment of the shelter’s cattery. When we picked him up from the shelter he was hiding under his bed, where he had been since arriving at the Animal Welfare League.
As we already had an existing foster group set up in the kitten room we settled Chester into the workshop. I set a covered kitten pen under a table to hold his carrier, food and tray and provide him with an enclosed safe space to settle in.
While Chester was a bit nervous of the strange new house noises it quickly became clear that he was a seriously affectionate cat that wasn’t afraid of humans. Instead his fears came from other cats which would cause him to suddenly hiss at the air, mid cuddle, if he heard one of the fosters.
Chester was only with us for a week but he was a beautiful affectionate cat to foster and despite his size was quite the lap cat given half a chance. I was nervous that it might take him awhile to find his humans but luckily he quickly found a family that realised timid cats can make wonderful family members and just need a little bit more time and patience while they settle into their new home.
If you’re fostering or adopting please consider the shyer and older animals as well as the young friendly ones. Many people think their home are ‘too noisy’ for a timid cat but any house is going to have strange new noises for them to get used to and it’s just a matter of setting them up somewhere they can feel safe and giving them time to settle in.
Nxx
Datcats 