# New to forum, New kitty!



## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

Hello everyone!
ive been lerking around here for a while now, reading on all sorts of topics.
my hats off you all of you for having such a wonderful informative forum.

ive learned so much during the course of my reading, and my 2 kitties thank you kindly....

right now i have 2 shelter kitties Shadow - a 7 year old grey female, she is the brains of the outfit... she is one of the smartest cats ive ever layed eyes on...
and Issac - a 4 year old male tabby, hes the muscle of the group... he may not be the sharpest pencil in the box, but he make up for it in love. hes the sweetest thing... a purring machine! not to mention hes ENORMOUS... hes just a tad bit overweight, but he really is big boned...
hes the size of a small dog....

these are the 1st cats we have ever owned, i guess we got really lucky because they have been perfect pets, no issues what so ever.

i finally decided to register here because we have a little one on the way.
im sure everyone here agrees that 2 kitties is just not enuff 
so we decided to purchase a bengal kitten...
hanzo the bengal kitten is 9 weeks old, and coming home with us this saturday.

since we have never raised a kitten before, this forum will be indispensible to us....

here are some photos of Hanzo when he was 5 or 6 weeks old.....
im sorry, but i dont have any photos of issac or shadow on my computer right now.... i will post some as soon as i can! 

























[hyp]


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## CyberPet (May 12, 2004)

Welcome to the forum, first of all!

What a darling cute kitten!   

I'm also waiting for our kittens to come home (they are almost 10 weeks now) and it was so long time ago I had a kitten so I'm a newbie when it comes to kittens as well.

This forum is grrrrrrrreat as Tony the Tiger would say!


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## Annissa (Dec 9, 2003)

Welcome to the forum!

Your kitten is so cute!


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## Aonir (Aug 18, 2003)

Welcome to Cat Forum! The kitten is cute indeed, I hope you get pictures of your other 2 soon *hint, hint*


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## CatAholic (May 19, 2004)

Welcome,I'm new myself!!! The pictures of your cat are precious! Hard to stop with a couple cats isn't it?!!!!! My husband said two would be fine, then he enjoyed them so much and then three,four and soon to be five! I promised to stop at five (I promised at three too!  ) My cats are shelter cats but one day I would love to have a Maine **** (so maybe 6 cats!!!!) I think 5 may be my limit, I guess I want to be able to give them each ALOT of loving---easy to do, isn't it?!!! Enjoy your babys from one Newbie to another in the Forum!


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## Lori (Jun 8, 2003)

Welcome! What an adorable kitten.


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

thanks for the friendly welcome!

id love to get more pics, buy my computer is on the fritz
so its not accepting my digi cam right now....
the pics of the kitten were from the breeder..

issac and shadow thank everyone here, because of this great forum, they are now eating wellness and nutro wet food, and chicken soup dried 
they also got one of those fancy water foutains today....

spoiled spoiled kitties 
nothing but the best for them 
they were eating iams before, i thought it was the best... but now i see the err in my ways...

thanks everyone!!

[hyp]


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## Mike (Jan 27, 2004)

Howdy, [hyp], and welcome to the Cat Forum. Glad to see you decided to go ahead and register. There are so many wonderful people here (I aspire to become one of them, actually) and so much to learn, as well. I hope you enjoy your time here.

Peace,
Mike


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## BoscosMum (Apr 29, 2004)

Welcome to TCF! It is nice to meet you!
Congrats on your new kitty! See you around the boards!


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## Jeanie (Jun 18, 2003)

Hi, hyp! Welcome! Your kitten is beautiful. I'm sure you're anxious for Saturday to come. I'm so glad you have found the forum helpful. Pleasel share your experiences with us! Isn't it great to be kitty parents? Kittens are so much fun!


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## kitkat (Sep 22, 2003)

Welcome to the forum! And yes you have a really cute kitten there. I must say there has been a lot of bengal owners appearing recently though..... :wink:


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

i think i know why the bengal breed has been taking off recently..

they are AMAZING CATS!!  

i fell in love when them a few years back just from hearing about them from a friend, then i read a few descriptions about them, and saw a few pictures, and that sealed the deal!

a year or 2 passed, and i found myself in the situation where i could afford a bengal, so i went for it....

1 trip to the breeder was all it took....
after about 10 min of playing with some of the kitties she had in the house i placed my order...

now im just countin the hours till saturday 

[hyp]


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## BoscosMum (Apr 29, 2004)

Are Bengal cats larger than regular domestic cats?


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## Lilly (Nov 8, 2003)

I love Bengals! Your kittys are so sweet. Welcome to the forum!


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

BoscosMum said:


> Are Bengal cats larger than regular domestic cats?


i belive they are the same size, perhaps slightly larger.... 
my other 2 kitties are not very good to judge by because one is pretty small, and the other is REALLY LARGE.

they seem to have a bit more muscle than domestic kitties....
athletic looking is the best term i can think of....

[hyp]


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

*UPDATE!*

So i finally brought kitty home today, a few hours ago infact.....
hes so much better looking than in the pictures!!!

too bad i only got to see him for about 10 min...
i placed his carrier in a small room with a litter box and food + water....
i took him out of his carrier to show him the litter box, and he promptly scurried under the futon...
where he has remained ever since....

i figured ill leave him alone for a few hours and check up on him periodically....

should i be spending my time sitting quietly in the room with him?
or will it be easier for him to adjust by being alone?

on a side note, my female kitty shadow slipped into the room when he was out of the carrier, the second he went under the futon she scrambled after him.... 
i was so worried, but it seemed like she was just sniffing him and checking him out....
i seperated her anyways and made sure the door was shut this time :? 
its was a very breif accidental introduction, but all went well....
i hope the next FORMAL introduction goes as well 

[hyp]


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## Mike (Jan 27, 2004)

Congratulations on getting your new furbaby home!

It probably won't hurt to keep the furkids separated for a bit, just until your new baby can get used to his new surroundings.

As for you, I would suggest going into the room (take some treats, just in case) and sitting down to read aloud. Let your new baby get used to you and your voice. If he wants to poke his head out and join you, give him some treats. It won't take him long to associate you with the "good things" in life. :wink:

I bet we can get an expert in here... HEY JEANIE, can you c'mere a sec? What are your thoughts on the vanilla trick, here? (Sorry I yelled so loud, I forgot that you would be right here to check out the new kitty :wink: ) 

Keep us updated on how things are going, Hyp.

Peace,
Mike


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

*few hours later*

well i just woke up from a little nap, and went to check up on him...

hes still curled up in the corner under the futon....

i wish i could get him back into the carrier because theres a nice blanket in there he could rest on... plus i would be able to get to him if i had to....

it seems he found the 1 spot i cannot get to...
not that i have been trying to grab him or anything.....

he seems a little less disturbed than before... but i dont forsee him coming out from his spot anytime soon...

its so sad.. he cried the whole way home, but he has not made a peep since he got here..

man i feel like a just had a baby or something, im all worried about him....
every minute feels like an hour 

[hyp]


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## Mike (Jan 27, 2004)

You just need to be p-a-t-i-e-n-t, that's all. The little guy has to be able to trust you before he will be your lap kitty. Try to relax (I know, that's hard to do, isn't it?) and let time run its course.

Angel dove under my dresser when I brought her home. Didn't see her all evening. The next morning, she had taken up residence in my bedroom closet. She was using her litterbox and eating her food, but out of my sight. She would allow me to come in and sit with her and she would take treats from me, but she wasn't budging. The second evening she was CAUTIOUSLY checking out her new home, but the closet was her safe zone. Within a week, she was settling in. Even now, four months later, if she gets hincky, she heads for the closet.

Let you new baby have his safe zone and he will be OK. As I mentioned above, just sit with him and read to him. He will warm up to you, sooner than you know it.

Peace,
Mike


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

*brave little trooper!!!*

sooner than i expected indeed!!!

i followed your advice and took a book and started reading out loud... 
about 45 min passed when i noticed he was shifting about so i offered him a treat....

there was somthing diffrent about his eyes this time, he was still fearful, but somewhat interested in this hand approaching him....
he did not take the treat, but it seemed to spark something inside him...
slowly and carefully he made his way out from under the futon...
checked out the litter box, then ran back....

a few min later, he did the same, this time venturing a litter further...
then back to the litter box, use the bathroom!! then back under the futon...
a few min later he made a few laps around the room!!!

finally he stopped under the dresser... 
again i offered my hand to him....
he started purring loudly (probably trying to calm himself)
then, he got this look on his face like he was taking a huge gamble, and came out from under the dresser... he immeadeatly started nuzzling me and showering me with affection!!!!!!

im SOOOOO happy right now....
he even started mewing again.....

now, hes still very cautious... but his fear of me is diminishing rapidly!!!
he was even playing with one of the toys i brought him!!

such a brave little trooper! i guess his breeder was right when she said he was very confident and independent... its been less than 5 hours since ive brought him home!!!

thanks so much for the advice!!

[hyp]


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## CatAholic (May 19, 2004)

What great news I have been following the progression of your new baby! What did you name this Mr. Bo Bengals? Just curious, your pics are adorable. I felt for you, I know how it is when we bring a new furbaby home, at least for me, I thought they should just see our home as kittyland, all this space, cat toys, cat condo's, new buddy's. NOT! Then I get to thinkin I don't do very well either when thrown into new situations, or even staying at hotels I don't care how great they are. I love familiarity, so can you just imagine how confused and scared a new kitty must be, EVERYTHING is so unfamiliar and they don't even have the rationalization we have to comfort us. What GREAT NEWS for you, it sures sounds like once he lets his guard down and becomes familiar and rubs his scent on everything, he will have the time of his life with you. When you love you care and it is soooooo obvious you love to care and your baby will come to know this, he is blessed you chose him! Enjoy, so happy for you


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

thanks so much for the words of encouragement!

it seems hes back to hiding again 
but im learing ways to coax him out.. (gental words, kissy/clicky noises, and pawing at the ground)
things are much better, but i can see this is going to take some time....
but im much more optimistic after he showed me that leap of faith.

ive noticed hes doing alot of kneading as well.....
thanks to this wonderful forum ive gathered that his purring/kneading is his way of calming and reassuring himself...
im assming this is normal for kittens?

i will post that question in the behaivor forum as well...
(oh man here we go with the worried parent complex again)

in an hour i think i will give him his evening wet food....
he hasnt even touched his dry food yet... but i expected as much....
i also have some medecine the breeder's vet gave me....
she said its to settle his stomach...

right now hes still in the "fuzzies" (he was in the fuzzies when those pictures were taken as well)
according to the breeder his color should darken some... and his rosettes are already forming...
as you can see, im much too excited...
i even did a switch at work so i could have sunday off (now i get to spend sat, sun, and mon with him )

oh i have 1 more question, how should i safeguard the electric wires in the room? do i really have to? how about the entire house??!?! i dont think it will be possible for me to get all the wires off of the floor!!!


oh i almost forgot, his name is Hanzo... in honor of the legandary ninja Hattori Hanzo...

[hyp]


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## Mike (Jan 27, 2004)

Well, well, well. I love reading all this good news. Don't fret if Hanzo is still wanting some time to himself, that's OK. Here's what I try to do with Angel - I try to see things from her point of view. And Hanzo has been removed from what he knew to be home, he's with a strange person in strange surroundings, etc. See things the way he sees them and the process will continue to pregress smoothly.

Just hang in there and be patient, you are already off to a fantastic start.

Peace,
Mike


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

*day 2*

well, its the 2nd day and hanzo is about 90% comfortable....
whenever i enter the room, it only takes about 20 seconds for him to see that its me, and he comes out 

hes eating his wet food no problem (tho he hasnt even touched his dry)
hes playing with EVERYTHING :shock: 

hes also getting very vocal.....
the second i leave the room he starts crying and crying.....
he even followed me out, but i was unsure if hes ready to meet the other cats and explore the rest of the house so i put him back.....

perhaps tonight i will introduce him to issac and shadow....
i think hes ready.... 
i just want to make sure there are no litterbox accidents..

i have another small litterbox, perhaps i will follow him around with it..

[hyp]


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

well, he was out and about for a while, exploring the upstairs portion of the house, he also got to meet issac and shadow....
issac sniffed at him and seemed quite intersted for a while, then he just wandered off....

whereas shadow followed him around for a bit, then begain hissing at him...

i seperated the 2 and tried to calm things down to give it another go.....

again i let the 2 meet under my supervision....
and sadly shadow bopped him on the head with her paw, and gave him a little hiss....
ive NEVER heard this cat hiss before.... i expected her to be a mother to him 
oh well.. i think she came from a 1 cat household before we got her...
she seems VERY attached to humans, whereas she does not care what issac is up to.....

sigh.. back to the drawing board...

on a side note, is there anything i can do to help with his crying?
whenever he is left alone, and sometimes even when we are with him he cries....
its breaking my heart!


[hyp]


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## CatAholic (May 19, 2004)

Hyp, I know what you're probably thinking right about now, I have experienced this almost everytime we adopt a new kitty---"why didn't I just leave it with 2, 3, 4 cats, everything was going just fine!" Well you didn't and you know that truly it will turn out just fine. They told me at the animal shelter it can take as long as 8 weeks for everyone to adjust. That didn't mean they would like each other but they would tolerate each other. I'm sorry I can't offer any assistance about the crying perhaps it's just about being scared. Do you have a blanket or something with the scent of your present cats on, to get Hanzo familiar with their scent and the same with Hanzo's scent to give to your other babys to check out. I did that it it seemed to get them first familiar with the scent and a bit more comfortable when they are around each other. I know it is very important to introduce then slowly. If it was me i would first work on the new environment and then introduce your other kitty's. Afterall this must be very overwhelming for little Hanzo, I can understand his whimpering/crying. I realize I'm know expert but I have been shown that slowly is the key word in adapting to the new environment, adapting to you, adapting to new brothers/sister. Let him register a sense of safety and comfort with you first and I pray the rest will gently come for you. You really are doing all the right things..... you are caring, concerned and giving love, the rest will come! Looking forward to following your posts! Hang in there, slowwwwwwwwwwwwwwly  Susie


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

thanks for the words of encouragement...
hanzo has had a blanket with shadows scent on it from day 1.
which may be part of the problem...
after they seperated, shadow went halfway down the stairs to get a safe distance from hanzo and still be able to see him.
but hanzo just made a bee line towards shadow.
he doesnt seem to care about issac at all

eventually his crying stopped (thank goodness, i was finally able to get some rest)

i am going to try feeding them on opposite sides of the door tonight...

i want to take things slowly, but hanzo does not.... hes always trying to get out of his little room now....
with each hour his confidence grows.. and with that his curiosity grows
i dont know how much longer he will tolerate being in one room.

[hyp]


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## CatAholic (May 19, 2004)

Hows it going today Hyp? Hang in there, everyday is a day closer to harmony at your Kitty land!


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

well, they REFUSED to feed near the door.. so i scrapped that plan....

instead ive just been letting hanzo out under my supervision while the other cats are around....
shadow is still scared of him... so i dont want him to approach her (hes always trying to approach her)
and he got a bit TOO friendly with issac the otherday... 
issac is very laid back, so he let hanzo sniff him and get right in his face...
then hanzo playfully took a little swat at issac, which scared issac off!!
now remember issac is about 4 times the size of hanzo!!!
its cute and all, but i dont know if issac knows that he has to be VERY gentle with hanzo...
i think he may be a good father for hanzo because the shelter said when they caught him he was running with a pack of kittens (and they were sure they were not HIS kittens)


its seems like hanzo always wants to go where i dont want him to go.. hes becoming quite assertive....

i will play with him for an hour, and put him back in his room, and he crys and crys...
id love to spend more time with him, but i cant neglect my other cats, plus he has to get used to someone not being there for him all the time.. i work 12 hour shifts so i wont be around for several days in the week...
i will have my GF and mother stop by some of the time to take care of him, but they cant be around all the time either....

whew... kittens sure are a big responsibility!
how long will it be untill i can safely let hanzo have free run of the house?
someone give me a rough esitmate please.... hes about 10weeks now....

[hyp]


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## CatAholic (May 19, 2004)

Good morning Hyp, hope it's all get a bit better at your kittyhaven. You know if it was me, I would let Hanzo out and place Issac and Shadow in the room Hanzo was in. Let Hanzo wonder around not threatened by the resident cats  After an hour or two, I would just let everyone together. Watch and say "No" or use a squirt bottle if they should get into serious confrontations, besides the hissing and occasional pops, those will happen. As long as Hanzo has a hiding place she will probably go there to retreat if it gets too much. That is what I would do, each new addition has been different, you just have to give it a try. They got to tolerate each other eventually....................................When right? Hard to tell, hang in there! Susie


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## Payge (May 12, 2004)

Envy was 11 weeks old when we got her, for the first few hours she hung out under the bed then I laid down next to the bed and put my arm out, she came and sniffed it and after that she took over the bedroom, a couple days later I left the door open and she slowly explored the house. I'd say it took about a week, but we don't have any stairs or other cats. 

Oh almost forgot, Welcome! It's so nice to see other Bengal owners and see their adorable babies! Hanzo is too cute for words!


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

well, one room at a time 
first he got used to his room, then the hallway, now hes exploring my room....
i have to lock shadow up while he explores....
every time they meet it results in hanzo going right up to shadow, they stare and sniff for a few seconds, then shadow tries to swat or nip at him..

its so funny seeing him running around the house... his room is so small he cant run around at full speed, but with the whole upstairs portion of the house, he doesnt know what to do with himself, he just runs around and around meowing as he goes...

hanzo met issac again today.... hanzo's body language showed fear. (ears back, low posture) but as soon as issac turns away, hes trying to bat at his tail... issac took a few swipes back... hanzo runs away, then when issac turns away hanzo goes for the tail again... etc...

i guess it could have been worse... issac seems to be pretty gentle with him, considering he could probably eat him in one bite if he wanted :shock: 

time is running out for hanzo to be cooped up in the little room... he loves rampageing around the upstairs....
i think i shall try your advice cataholic... 
with his energy level i cant leave him in that room all day for much longer.

[hyp]


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## CatAholic (May 19, 2004)

Hey Hyp, whats happening with the kitty situation. Hanzo and Issac best buddys yet?


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## baggy (Jun 19, 2004)

Beautiful kitten!


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## hyper_dermic (May 19, 2004)

*friends?*

Well, the situation at home has finally come to a plateau.

Hanzo (also dubbed with the name punky monkey due to his climbing habits, and constant teasing of the other cats) has had full run of the house for quite some time now.

hes getting QUITE big.. i wish my digi cam was operational because he has become quite teh handsome kitten.

Issac and shadow no longer hiss every time they see hanzo.... infact, they really dont care about him.... BUT the problem is, hanzo is always jumping on them, and biting them.
shadow wants nothing to do with him, so she will run away or bite and bunny kick back...
issac is somewhat lazy, so he will tolerate it for a few seconds, then hiss and run away (or pin hanzo to the ground with one paw)

i kinda feel bad for the older kitties, hanzo always wants to play, and they dont... but they have learned to co-exist... hes become a nusance rahter than something to fear....

now my plants on the other hand, fear hanzo...
he killed my 2 mini-palm trees
he wanted to play with the leaves at the top of the little trees so he kept climbing the trunk like a little monkey, eventually the weight was too much to bear and they snapped 

of course a week later my kitty tree arrives....
he loves the tree but its too little too late....

ah well...
hopefully ill get some more pics up when i get my cam to work again!

[hyp]


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## CatAholic (May 19, 2004)

Hey Hyp, sorry for leaving Shadow out  of the message! So, sounds like you still have your hands kinda full but getting better, huh? Hanzo sounds like my cat Tasha, my husband calls her "Trasha". This 2 year old female is wound. Two speeds FAST and sleeping. If she wasn't so comical and cute, I think I would be at wits end with her some days! My palm tree is trashed, she ATE the leaves all off, I'm just keeping this the trunk, waiting to see if the leaves grow back, I've had this plant for six years, then came Tasha! Spider plants, forgetta bout it, gone! I just ordered last week some stuff called Bitter End, I got it online but you can get it I was told at Petsmart/co to spray on my indoor plants, for all the remaining greenery, I hope it works! If not I guess I switch to silk plants, makes it easy on the watering and no dirt to vacuum up when they tip the plants over! I'll let you know if it works!
Sounds like perhaps Hanzo needs a playmate 8O , no I'm just kidding! Not another cat right?? :roll: 
You know I have found that catnip actually makes them mellow after the initial scent wears out of their system. 
Well keep us updated, I just happened to wonder what has become of the Hanzo story! Hang in there!


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