Hello! I am new to cats and adopted one last week. I've honestly never even really interacted with cats before, being a lot more used to and familiar with dogs. My cat is around 4 years old found as a stray. He had been in a shelter and cat cafe for around 6 months before I adopted him.

He basically immediately seemed to acclimate, only hiding for 5-10 minutes when I got him, then immediately loving me and wanting to be out in the open. He is very sweet and sociable and loves being pet on his head and face and happily greets new people.

He does not generally like to climb or hide like most cats. He generally does not seem to like being in enclosed spaces but will occasionally like to hang out under the couch. There is nothing wrong with his mobility, as when he is incredibly motivated (like by food), he can jump very high. The couch and bed are his preferred spots, and sometimes the floor or under the couch. Jackson Galaxy would probably classify him as more of a "beach cat" with some occasional "bush cat" inclinations lol...except he prefers a soft couch to the floor. He likes to sleep in my bed and hang out near me to me altho he is not a lap cat.

I have tried to show him that there is a soft spot on my desk (I put a blanket there :)) where he can hang out with me and look out the window to the woods, but he is not interested. BUT he will actually watch TV and especially seems to be captivated by "cat tv" videos on YouTube! I play them for him when I leave for work. He is interested in that but not looking out the window lol.

Play

He does not react to catnip or silvervine.

I am trying to figure out ways for enrichment, exercise, and play. He doesn't seem interested in most toys. I have found that felt mice capture his attention the most when I occasionally manage to wiggle them in the correct way lol. Wand toys he seems to get interested in a bit, but he is also easily scared by them which I feel bad about.

He is not interested in a robotic mouse toy that I have, soft balls, bell balls, scratching posts, scratching posts with hanging balls or springs, ball rolling things that they can bat, etc.

The last couple of nights, he seems to have gotten comfortable enough in my home to get the zoomies in the middle of the night/early AM presumably after he takes a shit lol. This morning he also started batting my sheets/legs in bed.

I was kind of excited to try playing with him at this time before breakfast because he was active and seemed to want to be playful, but again I was having some trouble. I got out a new wand toy with a mouse and he initially seemed to be kind of interested, but then got a bit scared again. I think he gets most concerned when the wand toy gets too close to him (so I've been trying not to get too close) but he doesn't get scared when I get the felt mice I hold in my hand get close to him.

Is it just that he's still settling in? How can I figure out what other things he likes to stimulate him and not scare him? He is very sweet and loving. :)

Illness

Note that he also developed a URI a few days after taking him home. So he might be gaining more energy as he gets better. I have been giving him supplements and liquid antibiotics from the doc which are easy to put in his food. But they also gave me eye drops which he hates lmao. I'm wondering if the eye drops are making his trust a bit reduced with me. But I have managed to do it and give him lots of praise and some treats afterwards. He is a very good boy!

Thanks all!

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[–] Avalokitesha@programming.dev 4 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

Sticks may be something that he has been hit with before - or maybe it's the position above his head of something that scares him. You never know what a former stray experienced.

In my experience toy type matters a lot too. My current cat goes crazy over feathers at a rope that you can whirl around with a stick - I guess the sound the feathers make trigger her hunting instincts? Our other cat gets scared of that but hes always been sensitive to noise.

He loves those little snakes that are attached to sticks with a rope though. Leaves the feather cat completely cold. Catnip was meh for ours, but both lost their shit with Valerian, totally drugged up for five minutes (then the effect wears off and the cats won't feel the same even with fresh scent). Where I live it gets used to help people sleep so we buy a whole bunch at a pharmacy, fill it into an airtight container (that shit stinks, it could make me vomit) and marinate cloth toys in their that we give them every now and then.

At the end of the day, all cats are different and trial and error is best. Also, if you found a cheap toy that works, stock up - often it's not easy to get replacements once they break.

[–] ButWhatDoesItAllMean@sh.itjust.works 12 points 3 days ago (1 children)

A long piece of yarn or jute / hemp rope can be a great toy that doesn't have any bulk that might scare them. I make it swish around on the floor like a snake and drag it around corners / doorways and the cats go nuts trying to "catch" it.

As for the eye drops, I'm currently pilling my one cat for an issue and I know she HATES it, but we don't focus on the event and quickly move past it. We pick her up, I pill her, she growls and struggles, we set her down and then pretend nothing happened and give her a bit of space. She gets over it relatively quickly. The eye drops are probably temporary and I don't believe this would cause lasting damage to your relationship.

One week is very quick for a cat to adjust to a new living situation, I bet he's still getting used to things and may become even more playful and relaxed over time.

Congrats on the new kitty!

[–] dingus@lemmy.world 7 points 3 days ago

The eye drops are probably temporary and I don’t believe this would cause lasting damage to your relationship.

One week is very quick for a cat to adjust to a new living situation, I bet he’s still getting used to things and may become even more playful and relaxed over time.

Lol I hope so! He has been hiding from me more lately and I think it's mostly from the drops but hopefully once he's done with them he will be more chill again haha. Also he got scared when I opened the door to the back patio. I'm wondering if he is not interested in the windows and scared of outside because he didn't like living on the streets!

Yeah I'm a bit scared to push too hard for the playing initially. I think today especially he seems overstimulated/scared (there is also a bit of rain happening outside), so I'll let him just do his own thing for the day!

[–] a_wild_mimic_appears@lemmy.dbzer0.com 6 points 2 days ago (1 children)

every cat plays differently. you might try "hiding" the toy - i have felt mice on a "fishing rod", and for one of my cats i have to let the toy slide along the floor and disappear slowly behind a corner and then wait for her to hunt it - making small movements so she can hear the target. took a while for me to find out, try it.

[–] pebbles@sh.itjust.works 3 points 2 days ago

This is the best way to get one of my cats playing as well

[–] truite@jlai.lu 9 points 2 days ago (1 children)

I have a cat who plays with strings and only with strings. I better not put something noisy at the end of the string.

Is he scared by noise, speed, a part of you (you're big for him) when you play too close? I have another cat who can't stand human faces near him. He's a purring machine, but no faces.

And, yes, he may be just tired because of the URI, and anxious of all the new things even if he's sociable. It's one week, it'll be ok for both of you.

[–] dingus@lemmy.world 3 points 2 days ago* (last edited 2 days ago)

He seems to not mind if I play close or quickly when I am physically the one holding the toy in my hand. But when the same thing occurs on a wire or string, it seems to spook him (maybe because it looks like they are moving on their own)? He will watch at a distance with the toys on a string/wire, but doesn't interact with them much and hates when they get too close. But then occasionally randomly he will be ok with that (I think when the sting/wire toys look less "realistic" he doesn't get as uncomfortable).

Yeah I'm gonna give him some more space and not try to play with him as much until a bit later. I'd just feel a bit bad if he is not getting enough to do! Maybe just the kitty TV, pets, and treats are the way to go for now until a bit later on!

[–] jordanlund@lemmy.world 10 points 3 days ago (1 children)

Cheap toys are often the best. Rings off milk cartons, tinfoil balls, hair ties, that kind of thing.

On the other end, I have had cats that needed a 12 step program to break the laser pointer habit. LOL!

[–] dingus@lemmy.world 5 points 3 days ago (2 children)

Tbh I'm a bit scared to try a laser pointer with him because of all the stuff that the internet says about it causing them mental issues or something.

[–] truite@jlai.lu 7 points 3 days ago

Just reward him at the end of the playing session, so he didn't "hunt" for nothing.

[–] null@lemmy.nullspace.lol 6 points 2 days ago

That's mostly an issue with dogs. Cats hunt for play and don't get as distressed if they don't end up with a final "catch".

[–] HurricaneLiz@lemmy.world 5 points 2 days ago (1 children)

From your op and comments it sounds like you're doing great and he's adjusting faster than usual for a cat. It's good you're giving him some space today too - he might have been rained on a lot when he lived outside and just want a safe space inside without playing too much

[–] dingus@lemmy.world 4 points 2 days ago

Thank you! I put the "cat TV" back on which he seems to love. :)