Twitch
Twitch is not a nice cat.
It's not his fault. I am sure he started out a sweet little kitten just like any cat, but whoever had him before he found himself outside looking for shelter last fall, they did a number on his head. I mean, you can just tell he is used to being roughly handled and hit--he is short-tempered and always ready to defend himself. He can be pleasant enough around Denny and me--but it is not a pleasantness that I trust. At any time he might take it into his head to lash out or bite. And he remains aggressive toward the other cats--most of them senior citizens who don't need his attitude.
I am afraid he is going to eventually have to take that one-way trip to the vet, and I don't want to have to do that to him, but he isn't a cat you can hand off to some other unsuspecting stranger. He is unadoptable.
So, we are trying a new approach for him. Now that it is warmer, we are going to put him outside during the day--starting with a few hours and building up to how ever long he wants, hoping that it will help mellow him out. I know it could be a modified death sentence, that we are risking that one day he just may not come home--but he is a young cat and cannot spend the rest of his life in a cage.
So, I bought him a collar and we have let him outside.
The first time, he was hesitant and needed to be reassured that he would be let back inside. Understandable. The next day, he seemed more prone to explore, still sticking close to the house and coming when we called him.
I just hope it helps him.
It's not his fault. I am sure he started out a sweet little kitten just like any cat, but whoever had him before he found himself outside looking for shelter last fall, they did a number on his head. I mean, you can just tell he is used to being roughly handled and hit--he is short-tempered and always ready to defend himself. He can be pleasant enough around Denny and me--but it is not a pleasantness that I trust. At any time he might take it into his head to lash out or bite. And he remains aggressive toward the other cats--most of them senior citizens who don't need his attitude.
I am afraid he is going to eventually have to take that one-way trip to the vet, and I don't want to have to do that to him, but he isn't a cat you can hand off to some other unsuspecting stranger. He is unadoptable.
So, we are trying a new approach for him. Now that it is warmer, we are going to put him outside during the day--starting with a few hours and building up to how ever long he wants, hoping that it will help mellow him out. I know it could be a modified death sentence, that we are risking that one day he just may not come home--but he is a young cat and cannot spend the rest of his life in a cage.
So, I bought him a collar and we have let him outside.
The first time, he was hesitant and needed to be reassured that he would be let back inside. Understandable. The next day, he seemed more prone to explore, still sticking close to the house and coming when we called him.
I just hope it helps him.
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