# New Hisaki Dilemma - update



## Jet Green (Nov 28, 2005)

There have been other threads like this in Health & Nutrition (there is one right now in fact), but I wanted to get an opinion from other feral-lovers.

I wrote a few months back about Hisaki, my difficult-to-handle former feral. He needed antibiotics, and I ended up boarding him at the vet for five days because I couldn't medicate him myself. A few weeks after that, my whole gang needed three days of anti-parasite meds, so I had a mobile vet come in and do it. Hisaki came through the boarding just fine, way better than I expected. But the three-day mobile vet experience so soon after kind of put him over the edge. Since then, he has shied away from me a lot more, acted more skittish generally, and hardly let me pick him up at all.  

But! Recently, just in the last week or two, he has finally forgiven me.  He let me give him extended cuddling twice over the weekend, and has been acting more confident again. I'm so happy to see him finally getting back to normal!

So here's the dilemma: In about two weeks, he's due for his annual vaccines. I really don't want him to miss those. But I also hate to damage his psyche again so soon. His socialization has always been fragile at best. It took months for him to bounce back last time, and I worry about the cumulative affect of all these experiences.  

In my circumstances, would you vaccinate Hisaki on schedule?


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## Sweetvegan74 (Jun 18, 2005)

If he stays in the house then he can wait a little with his shots, I know a few cat owners who do not vaccinate their cats as they are strictly indoors. Since my cats go out in the yard they get vaccinated.

If you feel very strongly about vaccinating, then perhaps you can give the cats the shots yourself. Because I have 14 I vaccinate at home plus several are also former ferals. It also saves money for instance one bottle of Rabies 3 years costs about 10 dollars and it is the same brands the vets use. :wink:


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## Nell (Apr 7, 2005)

Perhaps the boarding experience was less traumatic in terms of his relationship with you because he didn't associate it with you. If you were around or holding him when the vet gave the parasite medication, he might have become skittish around you because he knows you were involved. Maybe you could try having someone you trust (but won't be upset if Hisaki decided to hate him) help when he gets his vaccinations so it appears to him that you aren't involved in the whole thing.

just a thought...


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## Jet Green (Nov 28, 2005)

Thanks Gina! I've seen those vaccinations for sale through Dr. Foster's & Smith, but I think I would be too squeamish to give them. I have a hard enough time giving liquid meds, with cats squirming all over and medications going everywhere but in their mouths, that I can visualize the needle accidently going places that it shouldn't. I wish I were better with this sort of thing.

I agree that an indoor-only cat shouldn't be at much risk for rabies. My main concern is being late on the distemper shot (and FCV and whatever else comes bundled in with it). I have another cat who has been battling an ongoing illness, so he has not received his vaccines for this year, and he travels back and forth to the vet's office every few weeks. I worry that he will catch something new at the vet's office and bring it home.

So I think what I'm going to do is wait until early January, which will give Hisaki a nice long time to enjoy his newly refound confidence, and hopefully become more firmly grounded. When I think he's ready, I'll take him to the vet's office. Hopefully he will be OK.  

I don't think I'll bring in the mobile vet anymore, because I think the presence of scary people invading his territory may have been a lot worse for him than being taken to a scary place. So no more of that!


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## Jeanie (Jun 18, 2003)

Good luck! You've done a wonderful thing by taming Hisaki and giving him a home.


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## Jet Green (Nov 28, 2005)

Nell said:


> Perhaps the boarding experience was less traumatic in terms of his relationship with you because he didn't associate it with you. If you were around or holding him when the vet gave the parasite medication, he might have become skittish around you because he knows you were involved. Maybe you could try having someone you trust (but won't be upset if Hisaki decided to hate him) help when he gets his vaccinations so it appears to him that you aren't involved in the whole thing.


Oops Nell, somehow I missed seeing your post, didn't mean to not acknowledge it! I think you're absoutely right about the boarding vs. the mobile vet. With the boarding, I was the one who finally "rescued" him and brought him home, whereas with the mobile vet I was the one who handed him over to the scary people and then stood by and watched the whole time. I can understand him being more scared of me afterwards.

He also has the longest memory of any cat I've ever seen. His very first vet visit, I only got him into his carrier by distracting him with a pile of Tuna Flakes. Afterward, he wouldn't touch Tuna Flakes for something like seven months! He would hiss and run away whenever I offered them. So I think he just needs more time than most cats to recover from bad experiences.

I've also been threatening to make my husband handle the vet trip this next time. He's been enjoying being Hisaki's favorite for these last several months, but I think it's his turn to be the bad guy for a change!



Jeanie said:


> Good luck! You've done a wonderful thing by taming Hisaki and giving him a home.


Thanks Jeanie! But I know I haven't helped nearly as many ferals as the rest of you all who post in the Feral Cats forum. I appreciate everything that you all do for cats, and that you're willing to share your advice.


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## Nell (Apr 7, 2005)

Hisaki sounds a lot like a cat my friend and I rescued a few years ago... and his name is Aki. lol.  He is also a former feral who never really adjusted as well as his brother and sister. My friend kept the 2 boys, and Aki has always been very skittish and easily traumatized. We were roomates for 2 years and Aki would love interactive play, but he only let me touch him once in a while, and just barely. 
It takes a lot of patience to win over a cat like Hisaki or Aki. Its a difficult job that can take years... Its great that you have it in your heart to dedicate that to him


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## Jet Green (Nov 28, 2005)

Well, I just wanted to update that I finally bit the bullet and took Hisaki -- and his sister Hinata too -- for their first adult vaccine boosters yesterday. They came through just fine! 

It used to be an hour-long battle to get them into carriers, but my husband and I have a good routine now, so we got it done in less than ten minutes. It went without a hitch if you don't count the pathetic meowing and "why???" expressions, which made us feel terrible.

I was more worried about the vet's office itself. Hissy is legendary there after his first visit, when as a tempestuous pre-neutered adolescent, he got away from staff and knocked over a whole exam room. And I don't remember what Hinata did to them when she was a kitten (my husband was the one who took her in), but she has a big orange flag on her chart that says "WATCH!!" But this time they were both docile and well-behaved, just like regular cats!

The last and biggest hurdle was whether they would bounce back emotionally once I got them home. They both went streaking off for the coat closet as soon as we opened the carriers, and stayed there for a couple of hours. But by the time I went to bed, Hissy was back to his old self and mad for affection. By this morning, Hinata was back to normal and also love-starved.

I'm so proud of them both!!! I can't believe how far they've come in just one year.


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## Jeanie (Jun 18, 2003)

Gee, I hope their "criminal" records are now cleared! :wink:


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## Sweetvegan74 (Jun 18, 2005)

Great to hear they took their shots with flying colors. I forgot to suggest this but maybe you could locate a vet that does house calls. Their rare but are still around. I found a vet that comes to the house. It's a little more money but way worth the waiting and the car ride!


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