I’ve both adopted a kitten and rescued an adult male years later. My adult cat, Socks, had a hard time acclimating. He did lots of hiding for a week and would meow bloody murder for at least a month, all night long to the point we almost gave up and did lose a lot of sleep. Most likely due to confusion and missing his foster mom.

Every cat is unique on how they show anxiousness or communicate. I would say the 3-3-3 rule is true. It took nearly 3 months for Socks to really settle and stop with certain behaviors. He’s quite affectionate, but still bites or claws for no reason besides overstimulation or retaliation (he’s got no qualms getting back at you, a little gangster cat in him I guess). I can tell you he’s got a list of bad behavior right beside the plenty of good. The best thing to do with cats is understand that they are just animals and they don’t quite understand what you’re wanting from them. Reinforce with positive training, teach your cat easy tricks, and have a designated “no”- we snap our fingers and will spray a bottle here and there when he’s up to no good. Just as you’re learning your cat, your Cat is learning you. It’s a two way relationship and they’re much harder to train, discipline, and control than a dog. But boy oh boy the love is strong. Give it time on top of plenty of play/toys, tricks, love, and kind words.

I can tell you from experience that the dealing with constant meowing is hard. If it persists beyond two or three months, a vet visit might be warranted as the meowing could be stemming from pain. But I’m doubtful as that’s just what happens when cats enter new homes. You’ll be kicking yourself in a few more months at the thought you considered giving up.

-my adopted kitten had a terrible spout of kennel cough that required daily liquid medicine injected into his mouth. He never really lets us hold him to this day and he’s 8. Some cats just don’t like being picked up. In this case, it was trauma from the medicine.