Original Article: https://blog.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/hostile-senior-cat/

Wild and stray animals often resort to feral behavior whenever they feel threatened. And even when no danger is around, they respond aggressively due to trauma. This includes stray dogs and cats that are difficult to rescue when they show hostile behavior. They bark or go feral at the first sign of contact and will act like they don’t need your help. For this reason, you need to do a background check or observe the stray to determine the cause of its response. It’ll make the rescue mission easier, especially with a solution that can calm them down. Moreover, you need to be patient with them. Once the dog or the cat realizes they need help, they’ll be the first ones to break down their walls.

Lindsay Raturi went through a similar experience with a tomcat from their neighborhood. She named him Mr. Belvedere, and he was about ten years old when she fostered him. The senior cat unbelievably reached his age, although he is a tomcat that lived for long in the streets. Citizens were concerned for his health that several attempts were made to rescue him. Until one day, Mr. Belvedere voluntarily approached the humans to be saved from his condition. The senior cat was feral making it difficult to touch or carry him somewhere safe. But he took the step by finally entering Lindsay’s cat trap — he was ready to be attended to and be given the best treatments.

“He had really bad mange, he had ear mites. I remember him looking at me through that trap, like, with his big old eyes, just looking at me like, ‘All right, what next?’ When I took Mr. Belvedere to the vet, they took one look at him and they said, ‘He’s really sick, you need to test him to see if he’s positive for FIV, and probably euthanize him.’” Lindsay shared. Later on, the tests showed that he was positive for FIV, but the foster mom recalled how Mr. B looked at her with determination. Lindsay understood that he was willing to fight and still had many days ahead.

However, attending to his needs was difficult because Mr. B still showed signs of aggression. He was still untouchable, but he needed ear treatments and eye drops. So Lindsay came up with a plan to soften him and earn his trust. “So I started to use a wooden spoon to kind of scratch his paw or scratch his back. And after a few weeks of that, he started to trust me. It was amazing. It was an incredible experience.” Lindsay said. Little by little, Mr. B allowed his foster mom to touch him and safely received medications. It wasn’t just the senior cat’s health that improved but also his personality. From being hostile, Mr. Belvedere became the sweetest feline that loves pets from Lindsay.

Aside from his foster mom, Mr. B healed through the help of his forever human, Jenna De Cristofaro. Lindsay found the perfect retirement home for Mr. B and gave him away after seeing his progress. They talked about Mr. B through emails before the adoption — Jenna fell in love with the senior cat at first sight. “I saw those big tomcat cheeks and I just instantly fell in love. I cried when I saw him. We brought him up to my apartment and let him roam around. Just thinking about the moment, I get teary, because it was so special. I wanted him to live a long, happy life, and I wanted to be a part of that.” Jenna lovingly shared.

Since she was a new human companion, Jenna ensured that Mr. B completely trusted him before actually getting close to him. She talked to him, played classical music and other genres, and even sang to him. Surprisingly, it worked, and Mr. B became the softest senior cat who loves his human mom. He’s now playful as if he was also healing his inner child. Perhaps because Mr. B felt safer after encountering genuine people like Lindsay and now, Jenna. The senior cat was now far from who he used to be, and you can see that transformation in the video below.

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Source: The Animal Rescue Site Blog