KNOWN HISTORY:: Homefries was brought in with no information on his behavior history in a home environment. Upon intake, Homefries was immediately placed in a den from their carrier. They did not try to flee, swat, hiss, nor nip when transferring.

ENRICHMENT NOTES:: 12.13.2024 Vol. In hidey box (with only a clear front, no den cover) relaxed, ears forward, head resting near entry. Ignored treat bowl. Approached with hard treat on tool, Homefries hissed- body still relaxed. Rested tool and then removed. Ended interaction. 12/20/24 Vol. Crouched on top of hidey box - ears slightly flattened, watching, hissed. Sat and sweet talked, opened cage to put in treat bowl - no reaction. Approached with hard treats on tool, Homefries hissed and swatted. Let it rest and started to remove when he looked away. He swatted again. Let tool rest momentarily and then removed to end interaction. 12/27/24 Vol. Curled behind litter box. Hissed when approached. Put squeeze treat bowl on shelf - he watched it carefully. Opened cubby door to approach with hard treats on tool - he hissed, flattened ears, eyes wide. Rested tool until he moved head - then ended interaction. Homefries came out to eat treats. This is third week with Homefries - while he did not swat this week, he did not really show any improvement. 12/29/24 Vol. Homefries was lying stretched on his side on the ledge in the kennel. He was wide-eyed and hissed when I bent down and looked in the kennel. He hissed when I pushed a food tray with squeeze-up in through the kennel bars, but he came forward to eat when I stepped away from the kennel. While he was eating, he knocked the tray off the ledge. He didn’t jump down to get it, instead he went to the ledge. 1/3/24 FB47 Home fries was in the den at the back appearing tense, and began hissing when spoken to. He followed the laser slightly through the cubby side door and then ate, squeeze up treats when given some near the cubby door. 1/4/25 Vol. Homefries was in loaf in the cubby. He hissed when the cubby door was opened, wide eyed but ears normal, and remained tense.  I closed the cubby door and dropped some meaty treats on the shelf in the main condo, and he stepped out to get the treats, eyeing me closely.  Showed no interest in the laser light, then retreated back into the cubby.  He continued to poke his head out of the portal after interaction to get the treats left behind. 1/24/25 FB26 Curious by the front with eyes wide. Sniffs the scratcher tool through the kennel door and swats when attempting to pet on the head. Ate offered treats and ended the interaction to reduce stress. 2/2/25 FB32 Homefries has been showing consistent behaviors in our care center and has not shown improvement with daily interactions or enrichment offered. For this reason, the feline behavior team is going to discontinue recording daily behavior notes in Shelter Buddy. He is still going to receive daily enrichment and we will continue to monitor their behavior. Notes will resume if we notice any changes in behavior.

ACTIVITY LEVEL:: Moderate,Subdued

VOCAL:: Quiet

CHARACTER TYPE: : Shy ,Calm,Curious,Timid,Skittish,Independent

POTENTIAL CHALLENGES:: Fearful,Other,New home adjustment period,Escape artist

Potential challenges comments:: 01/06/25: It appears that this cat attempted to flee his kennel in a fearful response to sounds and movement in the room at the time of the initial assessment. After spending a month in shelter, he still displays skittish behavior but will retreat to his designated hiding spot when looking to avoid attention. 01/29/25: There have been multiple staff and volunteer reports of Homefries lunging, swatting, hissing, and growling during cleaning and feeding times or socialization interactions. It appears that his behavior has been declining over the past month in the adoptions room. On 01/19/25, a volunteer was tossing a cat toy into the kennel and Homefries swatted at her. There was one scratch on the volunteer's right hand, with broken skin that drew blood. After moving Homefries from the high-traffic adoptions room to the quiet, low-traffic holding room, his defensive behaviors have somewhat decreased; however, he continues to display signs of high fear, anxiety, and stress and he has a history to potentially escalate. Homefries prefers contact and attention on his own terms.

BEHAVIOR DETERMINATION: : New Hope Only

RECOMMENDATIONS:: Adult only home

Recommendations comments:: Due to fearfulness, being an escape artist, and declining behavior in shelter.

BEHAVIOR SUMMARY:: 12/11/24 Upon approach Homefries had erect ears facing forward, wide eyes that were scanning the room and he licked his lips. Crouched in the back of his den, he couldn't be coaxed out for treats or toys. With a considerate approach, he eventually head-bunted the assessor's hand when it got near. He appreciated petting leaning in. He was then able to slowly be coaxed out and curiously looked around him. Just as the assessor was about to pick him up, he attempted to flee. After being caught mid-jump, he allowed the assessor to hold his tense body for 10 seconds. He then squirmed to get down, jumped into the kennel, then attempted to flee again. 01/06/25 Homefries's behaviors has slightly declined over the past month in shelter. Homefries is initially laying on the shelf in the main kennel area, focused on the assessor with wide, dilated pupils upon approach. When opening the kennel door, he steps back and hisses before retreating to the top cubby. Upon attempting to offer treats with the scratcher tool, he hisses and swats at it, not accepting offered treats. When opening his cubby door, he hisses with airplane ears, returning back to the shelf to avoid interaction. When attempting to pet him on the head with the tool, he hisses and swats at it again. With a slower approach, he tolerates petting on the head with the tool, but remains very tense, leans his head back into his shoulders, and keeps his ears flat. Pick up was not attempted in order to reduce stress. 01/29/25 Homefries is a shy, timid, and independent cat whose behavior has declined during his stay in shelter. He was lying down in loaf position on top of the den with a tense body and wide eyes. Upon approach, he hisses harshly and then climbs down from the den, walks to the other side of the kennel, and curiously greets the assessor. When spoken to and opening the door, he crouches down to accept treats offered in front of him. He allows brief petting on the head, cheeks, and body while distracted by the treats. When offering more treats on the tool, he repeatedly bats the tool, steps back, tilts his ears to the side, and eats more of the treats that he knocked off the tool. Pick up was not attempted in order to reduce stress. Homefries is displaying behaviors that preclude placement in the adoptions room and/or may require further investigation before placement in a home. He has tried to swat, scratch, bite, is extremely fearful in the shelter environment, and does not currently tolerate handling. The behavior department feels that placement with a New Hope Partner is the best option at this time.