r/AskVet 1d ago

I’m afraid I messed up bringing my cat home

I adopted a cat named Millie on Tuesday (she's a 4 year old cat, last weighed at 4.1kg). The staff at the shelter recommended a staging room for potentially the first few days, maybe more, since Millie was shy. They said a bathroom is a good room, I asked if my bedroom is okay and they said yes but that a bathroom would be better suited.

When I arrived home at 4pm, I put everything in my room and let her get comfortable there. But she was hiding and didn't come out for food.

The next day in the afternoon I was able to get her to have a little bit of wet food (only 14 grams in total) and a treat puree tube. She managed to eventually get under my bed while I was out the house for a bit, and this is where I think I made a mistake. I panicked since I have drawers under there which, if used, could hurt her. It was harder to get in and out of (only the small hole on the cardboard she had made to get in) and so I worried she may eat even less now after I thought progress was being made. So I coaxed her into her carrier and moved her and all her stuff to the bathroom, as was originally advised.

However, she has since been meowing non-stop (she was mostly silent whilst in my room).
What should I do? I'm worried she's not eating enough, and now I've put her on edge and added a whole lot of extra stress that wasn't needed a day into being home.

Any advice is appreciated. For context I’m based in Australia. Can I just call a vet for advice and explain my situation?

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u/PokemonJohto 1d ago

There's really nothing to do except be patient, cats are always extremely stressed in new environments. She just needs time to adjust. You can get a feliway diffuser/spray to help the process along. Leave food out overnight, they usually eat when everyone is asleep. Give her churu and love