When I adopted a 6yr old cat from the local SPCA years ago, he spent months under the bed. He would use the box at night and would eat then too. I just let him be and then one day, he wanted to sit on my lap.
I would just leave him alone, make the space safe, and he will come around.
I’ll bet you are distraught. If Tater can’t relax and stays so upset you must do what is right for you. What has works for us is sitting down in the the cat area and seeing who comes to us and wants to sit on a lap. Lap kitties are fun. Our two newest came to us as kittens (found along the road) so we got them pretty young and boy are they lap kitties. We groomed them for lapability from the start!
COURAGE!
My Pollyanna take on your other cats is they’re not overfussed about the addition of a new cat.
Win!
As for Tater…
He’s only been in your house less than a week.
Logistically, it sounds harder on you - having to police the dog door, than on him.
He’s finding new “safe” places in exploring his world & making friends has moved down his List.
If you could make that dog door stay offlimits to all until Tater is visible regularly, it might help.
Says the Invisicat Expert 
, who closed off the basement for 4 Years while Cheeto made himself unseeable 
unbelievably, he has reappeared again-from the cat room! He walked thru the door, stood there, looking around. and I thought, ‘which cat is that…’ and realized it was him. His tail is shorter than normal. Not by a lot, just shorter than Bug for sure. He is also a bit rounder. Not fat, just a different shape. He turned around, trotted back into the cat room, and poof!
I CAN close the doggy door, I only have it open when I am SURE he is in there. I opened it and the velcro dog jumped thru it to go outside. he otherwise never leaves my side. That door has stood open for years now. Even with severe weather it has glass windows and is comfy summer and winter. They have both gotten used to having it open. I am going to go in to the cat room and sit for a while, put down a little kibble and see what happens.
Tater is progressing on the Invisicat Scale.
He is also Cheetos Tailmate - C’s tail was shorter too & had an odd end: no pointy bone, a rounded knob that seemed boneless.
I suspect he’d been “tail-tipped”, rather than ear-tipped < standard for shelter cats. No missing tip on either ear.
He was also a chonk.
His debut appearance from the catroom:
I knew given this thread you’d all enjoy this vid.
OP, since you’re in this for the long haul, you might consider reversing your closet door (reversing the hinged side) so you can add a door to the bedroom and the door nobs won’t bump together.
Glad you’ve had a sighting!
I have been thinking about it, but the cat room, where he is, (before he levitates to another dimension,) is a former bedroom. MY bedroom is the one without a door. It has never been a problem till I got this dog. Baby gates mean nothing to him. Although he worships me, it is like he is giving me the middle finger. He also gets on my bed when I am gone. I have started putting a big fan in the middle of the bed, but today I was gone for less than an hour, and I can see where he was on it. When I am gone I would like to contain him to my bedroom and kitchen. I do have a big dog crate, but he has shown little interest in it.
In fact, just before the arrival of the new cat, I put a hook and eye latch on the cat room door to keep him out. He raids their food bowls and sometimes carries them off. I assure you he isn’t starving.
No sightings today. 
Well, I haven’t seen him since that last sighting, until last night. I was getting a little worried and locked my other two increasingly disgruntled cats out of the cat room. I put their food bowls on the dining room table and dragged out a litter box to the living room. (Oh boy!) When I got home last night, I went into the bathroom and left the cat room door open a bit. Both cats came into the cat room, looking around and sniffing everything. I decided to leave that door open so they could both wander out again. About 10 minutes later, Tater came out of there like a freight train. He raced around the room, looking for a safe spot. He didn’t find one. He sat on a chair at the dining room table looking confused. He then bolted for the corner by the sofa and big bookshelf with a large end table. Far as I know, he is still there. I think he has had enough of the cat room, so I will just have to be careful when I let the dog outside to go to the bathroom, to make sure Tater doesn’t get out. I am beginning to think he should be called Phantom…
Listen, you may note need another cat, but it sure as heck needs you. The state of animal rescue is pitiful right now. Euthanasia rates are high and shelters/rescues are bursting at the seams. Please go adopt. It is a good deed.
Major update! I chirped to him Last night, he walked out of the cat room again, stood at the doorway, and looked around. I chirped to him, and he looked at me. Then he slowly turned around and went back into the cat room. This time, I followed him in and began to look harder for him. He was sitting on my albums, hiding under the hanging clothes. I picked him up, and he mewed in protest. I held him for a few minutes, and he relaxed a little bit. I then put him back down and put some dry food in front of him. When I came back this morning, it looked like the food was untouched. I am a bit troubled by that, I do not have any idea whether or not he has been eating.
But this morning, I picked him up, and he mewed in protest. I carried him out to the living room, and we sat down for a long session. I held him and began to seriously pet him and rub his face and ears, and he responded happily. He was still quite nervous, and after about 10 minutes, I was able to get a photo of him. It isn’t very good, but hopefully, there will be many more to come. He lay there and had a big smile on his face, but no purring! He is also shedding worse than any cat I have ever seen. I am wondering if it is just stress. He let me rub his belly and just responded to everything. But then I moved slightly, and he jumped down. Anyway, I think this is real progress.
Yay! Great progress!
I’m sure you’re seeing stress shedding. My cats seem to shed half their hair as soon as they’re plunked in a carrier to go to the vet.
Aww!! What a happy update on Taterdini!!
Tater is adorable!
What a great thing you’ve done for Tater. He’ll come around with patience. He just needs to realize he’s in his forever home, and safe.
That is such a good update. He’s a lucky guy and he’s going to come around. Maybe brushing him is a way to connect (and get that hair)?
That reminds me of when I moved to this house from my last apartment. One of my cats (Handsome) loved the whole boxes and packing thing, the other (Shredder) went into hiding. When I pulled him out of the wall where he’d gone into hiding in the bathroom by the shower, there was hair flying everywhere. I ended up wrapping him in a towel to transport him into the car instead of stressing him out any more than he was. When we got to the house, I don’t think I saw him for a couple of days, since there were so many places (lots of boxes and stuff) to hide behind. I had to go back to the apartment to vacuum after though.
I hope Tater settles in sooner than later. He’s beautiful!
Edited for spelling.
Thank you for opening your heart & home to him. He’ll come around. So many of these cats are overlooked & have unhappy endings.
I have decided to start bringing him out in the morning just to get used to his new surroundings. He didn’t protest this morning, but he growled at the sight of Bug. I was dismayed at that, expecting that maybe from Bug, but not Tater. I moved slightly, and he bolted back to his room. I guess I will just live Groundhog day for awhile.
He will come around! I take on hard case ferals that I think may come around. Two years later, this is Belly-Rub Bob…a cat that was supposed to be a barn cat. Now he’s a big black floppy cat that loves being spoiled. Just took my time and let him come around.
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