help - kittens rescued - what now?

looking for a bit of advice and reasurrance...i recently took in three kittens who had been living behind the building where i work. they are six months old and have been neutered, have a clean bill of health, etc. i have been doing everything that all of the websites suggest: they are confined to a room with access to litter box, food, and water, i am playing soft music for them and visiting often, speaking in a low voice. this is their fourth day with me, and they are still sitting in the corner, seeming scared to death. they allow me to pet them, but they never make a sound, and certainly don't purr. at night though, they come alive. every morning i'm faced with a new mess to clean up. they are banging and scratching at the window, scratching the floor, throwing litter all over the place and running around like mad. but during the day, they don't move an inch. or sleep it seems. i bought them a small scratch post yesterday and some toys. where do i go from here? any suggestions? THANK YOU!

btw, what is the difference between a feral and a stray and how can i tell if my kittens will ever adapt to house life?

Originally Posted by virgilio

looking for a bit of advice and reasurrance...i recently took in three kittens who had been living behind the building where i work. they are six months old and have been neutered, have a clean bill of health, etc. i have been doing everything that all of the websites suggest: they are confined to a room with access to litter box, food, and water, i am playing soft music for them and visiting often, speaking in a low voice. this is their fourth day with me, and they are still sitting in the corner, seeming scared to death. they allow me to pet them, but they never make a sound, and certainly don't purr. at night though, they come alive. every morning i'm faced with a new mess to clean up. they are banging and scratching at the window, scratching the floor, throwing litter all over the place and running around like mad. but during the day, they don't move an inch. or sleep it seems. i bought them a small scratch post yesterday and some toys. where do i go from here? any suggestions? THANK YOU!

btw, what is the difference between a feral and a stray and how can i tell if my kittens will ever adapt to house life?

Click to expand...

Honestly...it sounds like they are feral given the fact that they don't make a sound and are active at night and scared during the day. There is a good article put together by the Tompkins SPCA regarding socializing kittens:

http://www.alleycat.org/resources_care.html#10

Remember, these kittens have lived their entire life outdoors and have probably learned from their mom to not trust humans...so please be patient. Don't try to pet them...sit in the room with them, read to them and let them come to you when they are ready. Socializing feral kittens takes time.

Although they are commonly confused, stray cats and
true ferals have different behavior patterns. A stray cat
may be seen at any hour, will likely approach a human
even if cautiously, is often vocal, and will eat food if you
put it down. A feral, on the other hand, generally will only
be seen from dusk until dawn, will not approach humans,
is silent, and will not eat food you have put down in
your presence.



Katie

First of all, thank you for rescuing these kitties!

Here is a great link to information on socializing feral kitties: http://straypetadvocacy.org/html/soc...feral_cat.html

Cats are territory-oriented. Right now, the corner is their territory, though they're making the room theirs. They don't understand yet that they can trust you - and that's something that only comes with time, and it works on the kitties' clocks, not our people clocks.

Since they're using the litter boxes, you may want to consider making one of the litter boxes a covered box. That'll help prevent the litter from flying everywhere. If they use it, make all the boxes covered boxes.

You can also consider using a rubber maid type container as a litter box - something with tall sides. That'll help too.

Make sure you don't leave any "wand" type toys out for them to play with. Little balls, furry mice, etc. are great. If you get to the point where you can interact with them with wand toys, take them with you when you leave the room. Ferals tend to chew on string (reminds them of mice tails) - and if they swallow it, it can get wrapped around their intestines and require surgery to fix.

You may also want to consider some other types of scratching implements - a scratch pad, a cardboard scratcher that lies flat on the floor. Cats love to scratch and stretch when they wake up, so placing scratchers near where they sleep is always a good idea.

Ferals are taught by their mums not to talk, so not talking is normal.

You may want to consider putting some empty boxes in the room so they've got hidey places. This will help them feel safer.

Also, don't reach out to them, try to touch them, or even look at them. If you look at them, look over their heads or at their foreheads. Looking at cats in the eyes is a sign of aggression.

Take an old t-shirt or sweatshirt or something and go jogging or biking or something to get it good and sweaty. Leave treats out for them on it. Even do this to a second shirt and put it under their food dishes. This will help them come to associate your smell with good things.

Mostly - spend as much time in the room as you can. Read out loud. Knit and talk out loud or sing. Work on your computer or laptop - just be in there without trying to interact. The idea is to get them used to your presence. To let them learn that you are no threat at all to them. There is nothing you want from them. They need to learn they are safe with you.

And ignoring them - but being in there with them - is the quickest way to do this.

It can be difficult and frustrating - but that's what we're here for! Write to vent, write to ask questions - but know that with time and patience, anyone can socialize a feral that is less than a few years old. The older they are, the longer it tends to take. If they've had bad experiences with people, that will affect the amount of time it takes.

But they have no idea that petting is wonderful - let alone who they heck you are and what you want from them. With time, they'll figure out that you just want to love them and that love is good.

The most incredible thing, however, is that bond you have with a feral once he/she/they do come to trust you. And it WILL happen!

Laurie

I agree with the others. DONT pet them. Not yet at least.
They letting you pet them istnt no evidence their halftame - apparently quite the opposite!: they are letting you as a way to survive... They apparently being truly semiferal or perhaps even feral.

Let it take time... etc.

They throwing the litter all around? They dont recognize it as litter.
Try with a more natural litter: Common sand. Or to have common earth-dirt or some dirt in the cat-sand. (although I vaguely remember somebody warning against the use of dirt. Probably som contagion-risk).
Later on classical cat-litter of baked clay, no fancy litter.

You may try with feliway in the room.
And felifriend if you must take them with your hands (used shortly before).
This not necessary but will prob make the whole a little easier.

Do you have own friendly homecats? When you are sure all the shots are working, try to let them met. The fostering process is usually a lot easier and often quicker with help of own friendly homecats.
Why, sometimes a friendly dog may do the honours...

thinking on. They evidently more or less ferale, it is of course very good thing they are docile, and not aggressive. Makes it a lot easier for everyone.

But once again. Dont mix up their being docile and their surviving strategy with being almost tame...

One important thing.
You gave them a stratching post. Good.

They must also have somewhere to hide a little. A cat igloo.
You can make these of simple cardboard-boxes, turned around. Something in to lie on...

This should do a lot for their wellbeing - and thus for them stressing down.

Good luck with your admirable work!

I hope things are going good with the kittens that you rescued, I also think that you just hafta be patient, they don't know how to act, and I think that you showing them love and kindness they will come around to you.

Please keep us posted on how they are doing.