Sara is
a one-person cat. You know the type, they’ve been only
cats and become overly attached to their caregiving companion.
One-person cats like Sara are incredibly loyal. When that bond is broken
by death, as it was in Sara’s case, cats like these are
nearly impossible to comfort. Sara was, in time, able to connect
with her caregiver’s spouse, but when that person died,
Sara lost her home in addition to losing the person she trusted. She was one help-rejecting, depressed
cat.
Sara accepted our pats, along with food, water, and litter
box changes, but she was adamant (bites, screams, spits) about
not allowing anyone to pick her up. This severely limited the
time she could spend out of her cage. We worked hard on this
key aspect of her behavior and also used some flower essences
to help her out of her depression.
Since
her cage at the Clinic was at floor level, Sara saw many other animals throughout
the day. This did not appear to bother her much, but it struck us that she needed to be an only cat. When a spot opened up in a foster home, Sara started out in a kitty haven, sharing a bedroom with Abby.
She graduated out of the haven after a few weeks and had the run of the room. The moment she was uncaged, Sara became a totally different cat! She was no longer bitey-territorial. No more low growls or spitting. Her anger seemed to disappear. She showed an interest in toys. Sara even became friendly with her roommate, Abby!
—not
much