KNOWN HISTORY:: Shadowpaw was brought in with limited information on his behavior history in a home environment. Shadowpaw lived in a home with 30+ cats.

ENRICHMENT NOTES:: 4.29 Shadowpaw is laying at the back of his kennel with wide, round eyes. The handler opens the kennel door and gives him slow blinks. He watches the handler as they move his bowls around. A Temptations treat is placed near him and his ears go down. Shadowpaw watches with airplane ears as he is given more slow blinks. His ears perk up and a scratcher tool is extended out to him. He darts to the opposite side and sits with his tail wrapped around his paws. 5/6 Upon approach, Shadowpaw is lying underneath his karanda bed, he is in a loaf position with his tail wrapped around his body. His eyes are open wide, and his ears are slightly to the side. His food tray is still full and not touched. The food is pushed closer to him, where he then flinches but doesn't run off. He stays still as staff cleans around him. 5.19 Shadowpaw was in his top cubby, curled up when staff approached. When opening his cubby, he tensed up and tried to get further back in the cubby. Staff slowly removed the dirty linens and then left him alone to prevent further stress. Staff cleaned his kennel without any issues and kept the interaction short. 5.21 Shadowpaw is lying curled up in his litter box. He lifts his head and squints at the handler. They give him slow blinks before extending out a scratcher tool. He lifts his paw into the air and then places it back down. The handler lets the scratcher tool sit there for a moment before picking it back up. When they reach the scratcher tool out to pet him, he swats at it. His nails were not extended. The interaction ended there to avoid increasing FAS. 6/5 Shadowpaw is lying in his cubby when staff approaches. As staff cleans, Shadowpaw does not move from his spot in the cubby as staff cleans. Staff opens the cubby door and offers Shadowpaw some slow blinks. He is lying at the very back of the cubby with tense body language. Staff leaves him with some slow blinks and hard treats before closing the cubby door, ending the interaction. 6/16 Upon approach, Shadow paw is lying on top of his den in his kennel. His ears are up and alert, and his tail is falling onto the side of the den. When staff went to grab his old food tray, he flinched and seemed to back up further, and his tail wrapped around his body. Staff gave him a tray of salmon and treats. He paid no attention to the enrichment when staff was present. Once the staff left and came back later, they noticed Shadow paw had eaten their enrichment.

ACTIVITY LEVEL:: Moderate,Subdued

VOCAL:: Quiet

CHARACTER TYPE: : Bold,Skittish,Independent

POTENTIAL CHALLENGES:: Fearful,New home adjustment period,Adult cat socialization

Potential challenges comments:: Fearful: Shadowpaw has displayed fearful behavior during their stay in the care center and has displayed distance-increasing behavior with extended handling. Fear aggression can occur when a cat perceives a threat and may escalate if they cannot escape. A fearful cat will feel more relaxed when given options, so provide him with the chance to move closer, investigate, or interact with you. Be sure to offer incentive such as treats or play time whenever the cat makes a small positive step. Please speak to an adoption counselor for additional information on methods to desensitize your cat to their fear stimulus. Adult Cat Socialization: Shadowpaw is an adult cat that may not have had many interactions with humans from an early age. He is very apprehensive of people and while showing no aggressive behaviors, he does attempt to flee and avoid human contact. It is difficult to predict if he will respond to socialization but we recommend offering high value treats and food to help build a positive association to humans. Please be mindful that older cats will require more time and skill in order for them to be comfortable around people. Please speak to an adoption counselor to learn more about socialization techniques.

BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION: : New Hope Only

RECOMMENDATIONS:: Adult only home

BEHAVIOR SUMMARY:: 6/26: Shadowpaw is sitting at the back of the cubby with constricted pupils and airplane ears. As the handler opens the cubby door, he pushes himself further back. The handler remains still and gives him slow blinks. After a moment, his ears perk up slightly. A scratcher tool is then slowly extended out to him. Shadowpaw hisses and lunges forward, smacking the tool with nails extended, many times. As the tool is being removed, he lunges forward again and continues to swat at the scratcher tool. He then darts out of the top cubby and moves to the bottom cubby where he sits with his tail wrapped around his front paws. 5/26: Shadowpaw is laying stretched out at the back of the kennel. His eyes are constricted and ears are outright. The handler gives him slow blinks and he slow blinks back. As a finger is slowly extended out to him, he pushes himself to the back of the kennel and sits up. He is given slow blinks again before a scratcher tool is extended out. Shadowpaw remains still as he watches the tool. The tool is used to give him a few gentle pets along his back. He tolerates the pets before quickly getting up and darting through the portal. He sits on the opposite side of the kennel with his tail wrapped around his body. Shadowpaw is displaying behaviors that preclude placement in the adoptions room and/or may require further investigation before placement in a home. He has been swatting, lunging and is extremely fearful in the shelter environment and does not currently tolerate petting or handling. The behavior department feels that placement with a New Hope Partner is the best option at this time.