Sunday, March 18, 2012

friendly feral?

Oliver greeted me this morning with one eye closed. It appeared as if he had been rubbing his eye quite a bit as the fur around it was gone. He's done this before and after awhile it gets better, but this time I thought I might take him next door to the vet to get looked over. I also wanted to inquire about Prozac (to stop the spraying), to get him microchipped and a nail trim as his claws were razor sharp.

Getting him into the cat carrier went fairly easily as he hadn't been acquainted with one before. I baited him with some nip, when he was mostly in I pushed his butt inside and zipped it up. For sure he didn't like it and he told me all about it.

I made the point to warn the vet staff that he was a friendly feral but he would probably wouldn't be showing his friendly side. When the vet tech came in to take his vitals and clip his nails all by her lonesome I thought she was crazy. As she started to unzip the carrier, I felt my heart in my throat as I envisioned blood flying after Oliver bit and scratched up her arm.


Oliver decided to make a complete fool of me! He was completely friendly. He let the vet tech and the vet do whatever they wanted to him and he didn't protest at all. Claws were trimmed, temperature taken, eyes examined - it didn't matter what was happening to him, he was kitty putty.

After a few minutes he even rolled over on the table and asked to have his tummy rubbed!

Some feral cat!

Who is this cat? What did you do with my Oliver?!

Oliver was better behaved than some of my indoor cats. I was thrilled to see him so easy going. He's such a great cat, sure would be a great indoor cat. When it was all over, he came home with a microchip, Prozac and some drops for his eyes. He doesn't spray very often these days, but some spraying is still too much. Hopefully the Prozac helps him curb this habit so he can come inside. I also picked up some Prozac for Buddy too.

When back home, I treated Oliver to some nip. He sure loves his nip!


With Laura's help, I moved Oliver's guest house into the enclosed back porch. With his heating pad inside the guest house. Hopefully he stays warmer this way, although it makes it harder for me to look out the back door window and see if he's on the porch. I might end up building him a little enclosed spot up on the wall. 

After it was all over, I had a pleasant feeling inside, like we are a few steps closer to possibly getting Oliver to be an inside kitty. Seeing him so lovey and sweet at the vet sure made me think he would make an excellent inside kitty.

11 comments:

  1. Reading this especially the end bit has given me a warm feeling inside, and I am so happy things are going so well!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Gees, Phil, Oliver's better at the vet than Annie sure was. LOL. Makes me think of Chumley, who was scared initially, but who would do the same, stretch out and roll over and go, "Whatever." :-)

    ReplyDelete
  3. What a lovely post..it's certainly brightened up my day...Oliver is gong to be just fine!
    Jane x

    ReplyDelete
  4. I think Oliver is a stray--not a feral. He probably had a home at one time. Unfortunately, some humans think nothing of abandoning pets when their pets become inconvenient. I hope all your cats will eventually get along with Oliver.

    ReplyDelete
  5. I agree with Terri Mar. Sounds more like he is a stray than a feral. My black cat, Ebony, showed up on my doorstep on Halloween a number of years ago. He walked right in the door and made himself at home. I'm pretty certain he belonged to someone. Whether he was abandoned or just decided he liked things better at Casa Cat Mom's he decided to stay and he's been with me for the past 7 years.

    ReplyDelete
  6. That Oliver is such a good boy! I mean look at him behaving at the vets. He does like his nip doesn't he! Glad that went well! Hopefully he will become and indoor kitty soon. Hugs, Linda

    ReplyDelete
  7. I just LOVE hearing how Oliver is becoming more and more of a people cat every day. I was feral, you know... That's how I KNOW that getting a home is the best thing that can happen to a feral guy like Oliver. 'Cause that's what happened to me!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Kitty Putty! I love that. Fingers and paws crossed that the 'zac works on the boys and Oliver can come indoors. Either way, he's a splendid boy and he surely has adopted you. Bless you for taking care of him.

    ReplyDelete
  9. love it when they mess with you....we had to warn the vet about our last rescue and she proved us wrong the entire time we were at the vet. :) Glad Oliver is doing so well....we certainly hope he and Buddy can work things out peacefully!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Love that kitty putty! I think that's a good idea to give Prozac to Oliver AND Buddy - I have to give medicine to both Skootch and Lucy (even though Skootch is the only one who needs it - the vet said it was okay) because they switch food bowls so much.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I haven't seen you in the Dashboard so I have missed too many posts. I love reading of your love and care for Oliver and any other kitty. You are a good person. And an excellent Cat Daddy.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for sending in your comments!