My name is Vinny!

Vinny was surrendered to ELPO after his owner got a new cat. Vinny wasn’t getting along with the new addition so poor Vinny was shipped away. This was Vinny’s second time being surrendered to ELPO! Cats do not like change and for poor Vinny this was all very traumatic. Shelter environment also proved to be very stressful for him. Vinny had been at ELPO for 7 months when a wonderful foster parent opened up her home to him. Vinny has been in his foster home for about a month now but he can’t stay much longer. Poor Vinny has been through so much that we’re doing everything we can to find him a real home where he can settle in, get into a routine, find a nice pile of treats, and spend the rest of his life. Vinny needs someone to show him that the first part of his life, as terrible and chaotic as it was, is over and happy days and lots of treats are ahead.

The following is his foster mom’s experience with him… You will see that, even though Vinny has had a tough time and doesn’t like change, once he finally gets a home that is all his forever and learns that, he’ll settle in and be a wonderful companion.

I picked Vinny up at ELPO on Friday, July 11 and brought him home with me. He has been in his own bedroom since then. The first 4-5 days he was hyper-alert and nervous. He was hissing and swiping his paws, licking his lips, yawning, and flipping his tail. I really didn’t do more than feed him and leave him alone during this time. He didn’t eat any of his food for the first two days. He would occasionally turn on me and attack my legs but didn’t do any real harm.

He seemed to be settling down some by Thursday/Friday last week so I started spending some time with him. He likes to play laser tag and chase the ribbon and that seems to drain some of his nervous energy. I had a scratch mat that I put down for him which he enjoys and seems to see as a safe place. He uses his crate as a safe place as well. He has not been aggressive for several days now.

I have been giving him a little can of wet food and adding a few drops of Rescue Remedy as well as using some calming pheromone spray in the room twice a day. He is a very affectionate boy and seems to like human interaction. He likes his chin scratched and sitting in my lap where he will often nap for a short time. He likes to jump and be high up to look out of the window and this morning he jumped up on the dresser and reached over to put his paws on my shoulders and lick my neck. He likes his treats and will do just about anything to get one. I have started brushing him which he seems to enjoy but he likes biting the brush too (not aggressively, my boy does this too).

However, I have not introduced him to my two cats as he seems to get very anxious when he hears them in the apartment. The one time he tried to bite me was when he heard my boy cat at the door. I think he would do better in a place where he is the only cat and can be top guy. As my cats are older (11 and 12) I don’t want to do anything to upset them in their golden years. They don’t even go near his door now and have been ignoring that there is another cat in the house.

August 16th
Vinny continues to make progress and is learning to trust. He is a very smart cat who learns behaviors quickly. This is a typical Maine Coon trait. He has a lot of energy and giving him the opportunity to burn this energy is important. I have been giving him 2-3 directed playtimes a day for about 10 to 15 minutes each. He likes to play laser light and will chase the light up the walls, around the room, and under the bed until he flops down. He also likes a stick toy that has some string and feathers attached. I have found lately that he is a big fan of a soft hairbrush and likes his cheeks brushed with this – he also likes to play bite and wrestle with it.

Vinny has become a big purr monster in the last week. This is especially newsworthy, because over the weekend I moved from my apartment to a new house. I had to coax Vinny into his crate to transport him which he was not a big fan of but with the encouragement of some food, he went meekly into his crate. Once we got to the house he made himself at home in his bedroom and purrs up a storm.

Vinny is not yet the perfect cat (no cat is!) but he is a long ways from where he was 3 weeks ago. Some of his likes and dislikes I have found:

• He does not like to be picked up.
• If you rub his tummy when he rolls over he will grab your arm with all four paws and play wrestle. He does use his claws but I am trying to train him not to do this.
• He will do just about anything for a treat. This has made it easy to train some behaviors and get him to go where I need him to.
• He enjoys human interaction on his terms – he will tell you when he wants to be petted, he climbs into my lap for a quick nap, he talks a lot when he wants you to do something.
• He likes high places and loves to jump up to be level with his human. He would ideally like a high window seat to watch the action outside.
• Fear and not trusting seem to be his buttons. He has learned to trust me so I don’t see the fear signs anymore – big eyes with lots of white, excessive grooming, restlessness, yawning, pacing, tail flipping. He has not had any outbursts since the first week I had him.
• He likes structure – once he knows the rules, he abides by them. He likes a schedule for food, playtime, naptime, quiet time.
• He does need his claws clipped. I am not good at this task and usually leave it to the experts even with my cats.
He likes his string toy almost as much as he likes to chase the Red Dot! He is a beautiful boy and I hope someone recognizes how special he is.

I am still keeping him separated from my two cats as they are not in the least interested in getting to know a strange cat. I think he would be happiest if he was the only cat in the house as he does have a strong personality and lots of energy. I don’t think kids would be a good idea – he would like to be the primary focus in the house. I think once he gets to know the rhythms of the house and how he fits in, he will be a great cat.

I think a lot of Vinny and would keep him in a heartbeat if my two cats would allow it. But Vinny needs his own place with more than just a spare bedroom to call home.

If you’d like to meet Vinny, his foster mom will work with you to set up a visit. Leave us a message on Facebook, email the adoption coordinator at elpo@welovepets.net, or call (214) 342-3100.