Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Hi all,

Last night I brought home my two new cats, Katrina and Ivan. They are 3 year old sibblings and spent the summer in a shelter at a pet supply store. For the past week they were fostered by a volunteer from the shelter, who said they had just started being comfortable with her family when it was time to pack them up and bring them to me.

Last night they were out exploring the house. They alternated hiding under beds and chairs with sitting out and playing with me. I saw each of them this morning, but around 10am, couldn't find either of them. I discovered that they had both gotten behind the access panel by my bathtub and were actually hidin inside and under the tub. I think Katrina was in there this morning and came runnin out when I entered the bathroom. But it's been over 6 hours now, and they are both in there and showing no signs of moving. We can't see them, and in fact the only reason I know for sure where they are is because we were able to lower a video camera and flashlight into the hole they went through, and captured video of the Katrina sitting there staring at it.

I know that it's normal for cats to hide for hours or even days in a new situation. My question is, how long should I wait before getting concerned about the cats getting out? They are both very big (especially Ivan), and I'm worried that one or both may actually be stuck.

Thanks in advance for your help!

This morning I was able to lure Katrina out from her hiding spot with some food. I now have her locked in my bedroom with food, water, and her litter box. Her brother Ivan is still hiding, but with Katrina out of the way, I was able to put my camera down under the bathtub and take a picture to confirm that Ivan is definitely in there, and appears to be sitting comfortably (not stuck). He is the more skittish of the two, and with his sister no longer there to protect him, I'm worried he might never come out! I have food and water in the bathroom for him, should he choose to come up and eat - as far as I know, he hasn't eaten, or had an opportunity to eat, since yesterday morning.

Once he comes out of hiding, I'll lock him in the bedroom with his sister until they get used to us - something I should have done to begin with. Meanwhile, I'm still wondering how long I should wait before I really worry about how to get him out of there.

Thanks for any suggestions you may have!

Leaving the food and water out was the exact suggestion I would have come up with to tell you to try. Completely leave him alone in there for now and avoid going in and peaking to see if he is out. Give him today alone. A big guy like that can't refuse food too long. Maybe toss a couple fo kibbles under there and make a trail out to the other food.

The other thing you could do is put some smelly food on the outside so he knows it is there. (Like tuna or a can of food).

You are great for adopting these two. They will be fine. Just give them some more time.

When you do get them out I would block off those holes the first opportunity you get.

Julie

Oh what a horrible place to hide. I wonder if he came out last night while you were sleeping. I bet he did. Cute kitty by the way.
I think if he gets hungry enough he will come out. Once he is out grab him and lock him up with his sister like you said. Then figure out a way to block up that hole so they never get back inside there!
If he isn't out by tomorrow maybe a call to your vet might be in order. Or maybe the foster lady who he is comfortable with.
-----
Jaime owned by
Mya the dog
and the cats:Crash, Moxie, Gabby and sometimes Tucker

Thanks to everyone who offered me suggestions yesterday. We left Ivan alone as much as possible yesterday. (Unfortunately, he's chosen to hide in our one and only bathroom, so we can't completely avoid the area.) I left a very aromatic dish of tuna out for him last night, but it was untouched this morning. I did stick my camera down this morning to check on him, and he's sitting up and looks comfortable, but hasn't moved forward any.

How long can cats go without food or water?

Meanwhile, his sister Katrina has turned out to be a sweet, loving little kitty. My boyfriend and I woke to find her sleeping between us this morning. Hopefully her brother will join us soon.

After making some phone calls to various animal rescue agencies today, we discovered that apparently nobody could really help us retrieve Ivan! The best advice we got was from the SPCA, who said we should just tear up the floor. With the help of my uncle, we pulled off the floorboards in the hallway just outside the bathroom, and discovered that Ivan was actually right there below the hall floor, rather than under the bathtub!

After a few boards were pulled off, he jumped out of the floor and made a dash for the access panel in the bathroom, through which he'd originally entered - luckily, we'd put the cover firmly in place beforehand. I grabbed him and placed him in the bedroom with his sister, where he's currently hiding under the bed. But I'd much rather have him hiding under there than below our floor!

Thanks again to everyone who offered advice and well-wishes!