Nebula - A Profile in Patience
We walked into the Lincoln County Humane Society (LCHS) and asked "what is your most difficult cat up for adoption?"
This was after we had lost a couple of our older cats and had room for a new companion in our household. If possible, we try to adopt middle-age cats because they are the least likely to find a home. In addition, some cats are not as friendly as others and they rarely stand a chance at adoption, and thus the question for the staff at LCHS.
Nebula is a tiny, cute, shy cat
They pointed at a little black cat sitting on the top of the cat tower not interacting with any of the other cats in the playroom. Her original name was "Mary Jane" and she had a rough life up until that point. She was "out on the streets" for the first year of her life and had a litter of kittens by the time she was one year old. She was then adopted - and returned - to the humane society three different times. It still makes me sad to think about her tough times in the past.
The problem is that she (now named "Nebula") is a very shy cat and does not like to be held. These are two major problems for the typical person or family who is looking to adopt a cat. Most people want a friendly animal they can cuddle with. Trying to hold Nebula is difficult as she will squirm and try to jump out of your arms, likely scratching the person trying to "cuddle". A cat that hides all the time is not all that fun either.
It is sad that she had such a hard life early on because we found out that she is a very friendly cat once she got settled into our place and we figured out how to interact with her - which took a long, long time.
Nebula hiding in her cubby hole in the basement ceiling.
We did the standard separation of the cats when she arrived at our house. She was placed in one room with food, water, and a litter box, while the other cats lived in the rest of the house. This is supposed to give the cats time to smell and "talk" to each other through the crack in the door. After a few days, we let them interact. It didn't go too well. Nebula is a tiny cat and was scared of our other bigger cats. They tried to fight with her, which is typical at first. We kept trying short instances of interactions over the next couple of weeks but the situation was not improving so we decided to move Nebula into the basement. It was there that she found a nice spot to hide from the other cats. She would sit in a cubby hole in the floor joists (the boards that make up your typical unfinished basement "ceiling"). Lucky for her, the place where she jumped up to hide in the floor joists was a little too small for the other cats. So she would spend most of her time up there. We put a blanket there for her which she enjoyed. We would visit and pet her each day and she would come down from her perch at night for food, water, and to use the litter box. This went on for about 6 to 8 long months. She was comfortable in her spot but did not want to venture further. She was still very afraid of the other cats, except for Apple, who is another small female. They started to interact just a bit during this time.
Eventually, we decided to move her food and water a little farther away, week by week. This worked and she started moving around in the basement more and we were able to play with her. It took more than a year before we moved her food to the top of the stairs where she felt comfortable eating next to Apple. She still had trouble with the larger male cats but slowly found ways to "tolerate" them.
Nebula on her favorite chair outside
After 2 years, she finally became fully acclimated to the household and goes outside with the other cats. Because she is shy, she stays close to the house and sits on her favorite chair next to the back door. She walks around with us in the backyard, always keeping a wary eye out for the larger male cats. They have treated her better lately and we have a happy pet family.
Getting Nebula to trust us and the other cats was a long journey, but it was worth it. She is still a shy cat, but she brings plenty of joy to our lives. Keep this in mind if you ever adopt a new cat. Patience is a virtue. We are glad we had the patience to help her adapt. Thankfully, her 4th adoption was her last adoption.
To get an idea of how happy she is now, check out her video on Rumble.
You can also find pictures of Nebula and the rest of the Rejuvecat family on Instagram
Do you have a difficult yet successful pet adoption? Share in the comments below.