tips for blocking off our cat's (potentially unsafe) hiding space

[Anonymous]

OP here with an update: We are one month in, and we still have never seen the cat, never been in the same room with the cat, never touched the cat. The cat ONLY comes out when no one is home, or in the middle of the night. About 2 weeks ago, she peed or pooped in her hiding space, which is completely inaccessible to me. It smelled AWFUL. it seems to have been only a one-time thing... so far. But I can't get into the space to clean it. I can't see her. I don't know if she's hurt or sick. She still is eating and drinking the litter box. But, I go to bed every night wondering if she's sick, injured, or dead. This poor cat is miserable or terrified or both - she spends 20+ hours per day in a dark, dirty, cramped space. I am miserable and stressed out, which I know isn't helping the situation. How long is a reasonable amount of time to expect this to go on? Here's a list of everything I've done to try to lure her out of this unsafe, inaccessible hiding space, so she can find another space to hide and hopefully acclimate:

Used Feliway Spray and Feliway diffuser
Put Rescue Remedy drops in her water
Built alternate hiding spots (a box with holes cut out and treats inside, a small table with a dark cloth draped over it and treats inside, a "cat cave" that I bought on Chewy.com with treats inside)
Leave treats just outside the hole: cat treats, tuna, sardines
Put catnip around the apartment - she didn't even touch it
Left out some old tshirts of my daughter's and mine, near where she's hiding and where she used to eat
Sit on the kitchen floor for a few minutes throughout the day and talk to her, read to her, etc.
Put on classical music when no one is home
I stopped leaving food out for her all the time - now, there's only food out when people are home
Last night, I also stopped leaving food out for her in the middle of the night. There are a few pieces of dry food in her usual food bowl spot (so she'll still associate that spot with food) and inside the cat cave I bought her (which I hoped would become a good alternative hiding space for her), but not the usual full amount of food
Moved the food to the furthest away point in our home from the hiding hole. It's now in the bathroom. Which I thought she might like because it's a smaller space
I made a flap to put over the hole. When she pushes the flap, she touches cardboard, but when she lifts the flap to go back inside the hole/hiding spot, she would have to touch scrunchy aluminum foil (which I know cats don't like). It hasn't deterred her. The first time I did this, she just ripped off the whole flap! And the second time, she went in and out. So I've removed the flap.
Had my handyman come over to see if we could just remove the wood beneath our kitchen cabinets (it's called a "toe kick" - it's like baseboards) so I could get to her or at least see her. It won't work. The only way to get to her would be to remove our kitchen countertops and rip out the kitchen cabinets. A $10,000 kitchen renovation is not in the cards!
Blew air from the lowest, coolest setting of a hair dryer into the hole. I read that cats don't like this. She didn't budge.
I just bought a bunch of tiny "jingle bells." I'm thinking I'm going to hang some in front of the hole, so when she exits I'll hear her - she'll have to brush against them. So if I know she's left the hiding spot, even if it's 4 a.m., I can wait until she's in the bathroom eating and hopefully have enough time to dash into the kitchen (on the other side of the apartment) to quickly block the hole. I'm willing to sacrifice my own sleep to get this done!

Help! What else can we do? How long should we expect this to last?

[Anonymous]

Are you sure your friend who rescued her wasn’t gibbing when she said the cat sat on her lap? Perhaps in an effort to get her a home?

I would consult with a vet - not sure if there are any behavioralists in the area. It may be that she needs to remain a feral, outdoor cat. You can leave your front door open and maybe she will run out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Are you sure your friend who rescued her wasn’t gibbing when she said the cat sat on her lap? Perhaps in an effort to get her a home?

I would consult with a vet - not sure if there are any behavioralists in the area. It may be that she needs to remain a feral, outdoor cat. You can leave your front door open and maybe she will run out.

^^fibbing, not gibbing

[Anonymous]

PP here; I’m a huge cat lover and would call it a day. I’d call a vet to help with transitioning this cat back outside. This isn’t sustainable, especially with the pooping.

[Anonymous]

Though you mentioned you are in an apartment so I suppose you will have to trap her to get her back outside.

[Anonymous]

What about a trap when you’re not home and then once trapped you can close the hole?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Are you sure your friend who rescued her wasn’t gibbing when she said the cat sat on her lap? Perhaps in an effort to get her a home?

I would consult with a vet - not sure if there are any behavioralists in the area. It may be that she needs to remain a feral, outdoor cat. You can leave your front door open and maybe she will run out.

^^fibbing, not gibbing

Nope, it's for real. I've got photos!

[Anonymous]

Get the cat into the bathroom. Then you can spend time with the cat so she gets used to your presence. It might seem cruel to lock her in a room for a few weeks but that's the only was to socialize the cat. Feed the cat in your presence so she associates food with you.

[Anonymous]

Any chance you can put a humane trap at the exit to her hidey hole, and bait it with lovely stinky cat food you know she finds compelling? If that is the only exit, and there is great food in there, she will eventually enter it.

What you do with her after that is another question. Block up the hole, of course, once she has been removed.

[Anonymous]

I agree. You need to do a humane trap to get her into the bathroom. Find a way to seal the hole in the meantime. Then give it another few weeks before reassessing. I commend you for what you’re doing — it’s amazing and admirable — but this is a stressful, unsustainable situation for both of you. Something has to give. Good luck.

[Anonymous]

You need to put her in one room for ten days. Then another room for ten days. Cats need time to acclimate room by room. You can’t just let them run or they will hide.

[Anonymous]

Once you find a way to get the cat out of its hiding place, get rid of the cat. The cat doesn't want to be a pet, then don't waste your time with it. She was a neighborhood stray and doesn't want to locked up in apartment.

You have a good heart, but I'm sure that the first chance the cat has to escape your home, its gone.

[Anonymous]

I have an elderly cat that belonged to my sister, who had to give it up when she was having chemo. Midnight hid for the first 2-3 months but was eating her food, using the litter box, etc. She had been a largely outdoor (rural) cat before. It took a long time, but slowly she started spending more time in public and eventually bonded with the dog and started sleeping on my bed (the dog also sleeps there at time and when I'm at work).