Feral kittens in Ireland - rescued last night

Isn't it amazing how EVERYTHING with ferals is a triumph of sorts? I just had a great few nights with them - all of them have just been amazing.

Paddington is happy to have his little head stroked all throughout dinner time and he purrs up a storm waiting in anticipation. He loves his treats and will happily climb all over me in search of them. Today, when we were playing, he was running all around (as normal) and when Steve got a hold of the toy, he just trotted over and sat in my lap, waiting for his turn. He is not a fan of having his back touched, but both my husband and I are often able to give him small little strokes, either on his head or his paws.

Stevie is doing well. He comes out for all play sessions and gets involved. I had him come very close to me in search of a toy and last night, when I was dishing out a few treats, he allowed me to put my hand under his face to give it to him. I had to then put it on the ground (the others take it straight out of my hand) but before that, he would only accept a treat from a distance, which required me to throw them to him. He is not as far along as the other cats, but he is really making progress.

And Conor! Oh little Conor! As I said in a previous post, she will allow me to pet her while she eats, but these past two nights...well, she has been great. She has started purring a lot. She purrs before dinner now, and my husband was upstairs getting dressed this morning, and she was just purring up a storm. He had never heard her purr before, so he just came running down to tell me. Then, tonight at dinner, she just went insane over the petting! Before I had dished out the food, I went in for a stroke, and she purred and rubbed her face on my hand. Paddy started to get impatient then, so I fed them and then during dinner, she was just amazing with the stroking. Before, she would sometimes slightly flinch or walk away, but not tonight. She just loved the petting. After she had finished, we had another pet and she purred and rubbed against me. Amazing. My husband also said that today, when I got home from the gym, she jumped off the windowsill the minute my key hit the door, and stood at the top of the stairs waiting for me. She likes to come down and spend time with me in the morning as well - if the husband is here, she is a bit more shy, but if it's just me, she just sits around with me, getting closer and closer.

I am on a high right now! So great. Just wanted to share with you all! Will have to post some pictures again soon - they are getting so big.

What a day!

...and it's so funny. Because they can be so hard to win over, every little step is so rewarding - and these are just huge! I'll bet you and hubby are busting.



Laurie

Feral babies can be such hard work - I spent hours with Ferocious when she first came coaxing and talking yes and feeding - I remember the first time she purred. She purred for Gary when he scratched behind her ears - the first time she ate a morsel of food from my hand.

I understand the "high" feeling - Ferocious is the star of most days - look forward to pics of your babies. Ferocious is the orange colored kitty stretched out on our white couch - she doesn't look very feral but she was when she first arrived.

Ah, sweet little Ferocious! Very sweet looking cat.

I will be posting some pictures very soon. I have some on the camera that are recent. Paddington is getting HUGE. He still has a sweet little kitten face, but his body is muscular and long. Oh, the other problem I am having with pictures - every time we get the camera out to take pictures of any of the cats, Paddington comes running up as soon as he hears that digital camera sound(like I have just got out their treats) and hogs the camera. It is HILARIOUS. He loves to have his picture taken, which means most of my recent pictures now feature a black and white cat darting in front of the lens. So, I am a bit short on Conor and Steve photos right now.

Things are still going well here. I had a bit of a scare last week as I broke out in hives (ah!). This has never happened to me before and we worried momentarily that it might be caused by the kittens - long shot, since I have no known allergies to any animal, but still. Anyway, turned out they were just stress related (my mom informed me that she used to break out during stressful times as well) and they have all cleared up. Phew. I couldn't deal with hives on a regular basis, but I also couldn't give up the kittens. Glad I don't have to make that choice now.

The kittens are still being superstars. Steve is much better with us. He comes down for an evening snack and has now mastered the art of calmly walking away rather than running straight under the bed. Steve was sleeping on the bed the other day, and while my husband waited for me to get ready, he sat down on the bed near Steve and he didn't bat an eyelid. Fantastic.

Conor still loves her before dinner petting. It is funny, because you have these lull periods where you just know a breakthrough is going to happen - it feels like that with her. She spends so much time just sitting in the room with us - it feels like she has a genuine affection for us now. I cooked quite a complicated dinner last night, requiring hours in the kitchen, and she sat there with me the entire time.

Breakthrough with Paddington! He has been getting jealous of Conor's before dinner stroking session - very jealous. He started rubbing his little head against my hand as I stroked Conor a few days ago. I would go to gently stroke him, he would back off, and then do it all over again. However, last night, he decided he did want to be stroked, and full body pets galore! Since then, he has been even more attentive to my husband and me. He spent the entire night downstairs with us - playing with toys, jumping on us and just sitting on the rug. My husband is just amazed at how far they have come - I think he was a bit doubtful as to whether or not we could socialise them, but with all the progress that has been made, I don't think he doubts it anymore.

My husband has been getting very involved with the kittens as well. He feels left out because I do the feeding, so he made them a scratching post which they love. They were scratching on an old rattan trunk we have, so we covered that up, provided the alternative and they are happy as can be. He is also trying to administer treats and play, so they learn to like him even more.

Will try and get some pictures up soon! Big thanks to everyone here - I really attribute all our success/progress to this site. When we took these little guys in, neither my husband nor myself really knew what to expect or how to go about taking care of these special little critters, but all you guys and your stories/advice have been more helpful than you know!

The rest of us here at TCS are celebrating your wonderful successes with your former ferals
One irresistible toy that I found is a lunging horsewhip. All my cats find it irresistable; it doesn't have the choke hazard of string; since a human is at the center of it, dancing it about, the cats are more likely to approach me and be less threatened. When my tame cats are feuding, I find that bringing out the horsewhip gives them a neutral area - they lay/sit about me in a circle, awaiting their chance to grab the end.

Lunging horsewhip, eh? Will have to look into that! All the kittens are getting so much more playful, I am sure they would appreciate another toy - particularly one that comes recommended!

Good night last night - Paddington and Conor compete for cuddles - something I never thought would happen two months ago! Amazing. My husband is just amazed and he is even floating higher than me as he got to have a good old cuddle session with Conor last night! We were just about to go out, and we went upstairs to get some stuff. Conor was sitting in a box and I could just tell she was receptive to petting - I don't know how I knew, but I did. Anyway, she came out of the box and over to her (nearly empty) food dish and just waited for some stroking. So, I pet her (she purred away, bumping her head against my hand, all that good stuff). The hubby quietly came over, let her sniff his hand and then he took over the petty. And she loved it. I think he thought I was lying before when I told him how much she enjoyed being pet! Paddington came and sat near us (purring) during this session, so I think he is getting even closer to wanting to be pet as well.

Both Conor and Paddington now spend the majority of their waking hours in the same room as us. Again - amazing. Even Steve will come down for periods of time and just chill out. Paddington and Conor have developed quite an attachment to me (which is expected) - they follow me wherever I go. Even the bathroom. Paddington will come in the bathroom with me and just sit near me. Conor has more manners and politely sits outside the door, waiting for me to finish up

In other news, I am calling the vet today to arrange to get the boys all fixed up. We had intended to do it last month, but a whole mess of stuff happened outside of our control meaning we couldn't get them in. Bah. However, neither of them have reached full sexual maturity, so I think we are still going to get them early enough. I am a bit nervous about it. Not as nervous as I was with Conor, but still! I am worried about poor Steve and getting him in the cage. I know how to get Paddington in - he has his weak spots and they involve toys, but Steve...well, I just don't want to it to be too traumatic. He is better, but still quite shy, and I just want to make sure it is as easy as possible for the poor little boy! Any tips would be appreciated!

Will let you know when the big day is - likely the next few days. I just want to get it over with, so fingers crossed they will be able to get us in very soon....

ETA: Just spoke with the vet - the boys are getting done tomorrow! We will be doing them in shifts - one will go in for the morning surgery, and then after we pick him up, the other will go in. I am thinking we might try and get Steve to go in first - get him over with, as Paddington is more compliant and easier to coerce into doing stuff. But either way, soon the boys will be all done. Phew!

As I said previously, my husband built a scratching post for the kittens. They love to climb up it - all of them - but Paddington loves to climb up it and then sit on the banister! The husband took this photo...(I was going to rotate it, but my husband took the photo while lying on me, so I kind of like the fact that this was the view he had!)



I will try and get some of the others up very soon. We still have the problem of Paddington running in front of the camera....maybe tonight at dinner I can get a few!

Say, you know who Paddington looks like?

Take a look here:

http://www.catenamanor.com/comics/03/20031101.html

This is from a webcomic called "Catena Manor."

that's great, MrBlanche! He seems to have the same attitude as our little Paddington!

So, eventful day yesterday. Going to be brief (the reason will become apparent in a sec!). Got the boys in cages no problem and a friend and I took Steve in. Got the call to bring in Paddington a few hours later, so the husband and I took him in. He was acting super calm and relaxed at the vet, so we just went to move him into the other cage and he panicked! He bit the husband and after flinging himself against a window (whereby I tried to capture him) and he bit me. While we cleaned up with surgical soap, the vet and vet tech captured him and put him in the cage. After we picked him up a bit later, the husband and I went to the doctor where we got tetnus shots (needed them anyway!) and antibiotics. He bit me right on the wrist, so typing and everything is difficult, but when it comes down to it, he was acting on instinct. Mine is a puncture wound, whereas the husband has a huge horrible gash. And, of course, we were both bit on our right hands (and we are right handed). Makes things a bit difficult! But, we will be fine and are taking it all in good humour. I am just glad they are all fixed and healthy! Everyone at the vet thought they were very cute cats (if a bit wild...).

They have been very sleepy, but seem good. Conor has found it all to be very difficult as well. Poor girl!

Okay, in pain. Antibiotics should start fully kicking in tomorrow so hopefully will be able to type more then!

For whatever it's worth, our old Wicket cat, when he was about 10 years old, developed bladder stones. When we took him to the vet for the initial diagnosis, when the vet inserted the thermometer, he panicked and bit me HARD on the wrist. We was a big cat, over 20 lbs, and he bit nearly all the way through (that is, the puncture from the bottom of my wrist nearly met the puncture from the top!). He was, as you say, reacting on instinct; he had never even bitten me in play before that, to speak of.

It was a nasty wound, got infected, all that fun stuff.

Now I let the professionals hold the cats down!

Yeah, I think we will leave the handling to the pros in the future! Steve was wild, but no biting. The vet tech was able to keep him under control, so I think we will just let them take care of all of it in the future!

We are all feeling better today. Husband and I have somewhat regained use of our hands and the boys are looking good. Steve is not a particularly happy bunny - hiding under the bed- but Paddington is acting like nothing ever happened. It was funny - after we let them out of their cages, Steve ran straight upstairs to go hide, but Paddington just strolled out and went straight for the food dish. He is a bit tender, I think, as there has been a lot more grumbling than normal, but I suppose that is to be expected! He is happily playing with his sister and running around like a madman. All normal.

He is a bit more affectionate as well. He stayed down here for his evening nap last night and dinner was just a pet-fest. Since I only have one good hand, I had to call the husband up to help me out with all the required petting. He loved that.

Conor has discovered the wonders of television. Her favourites are cricket and tennis. Will have to post some pictures later...

Here is a picture of Conor watching tv. Silly girl.



They are all doing very well. Steve is coming around, thankfully. Conor and Paddington love petting before dinner and Conor let us give her a good ol' stroke last night before bed. Purring away. The husband and I are nearly recovered as well! I went to the doctor today (for an unrelated check-up) and we got chatting about our unexpected visit last week. She looked at my wrist and told me that it was really good that we had come in - she was nearly positive that if we had waited (or not come in) we would have got blood poisoning. Phew!

What a cute pic of Connor watching TV!!! It's hard to imagine that they were once feral

Thanks, catsknowme! Conor loves the television. She sits on a crate next to it and watches and watches, batting at it. Paddington went to see what all the fuss was about, but he is not as interested.

My husband and I keep saying how amazing it is that a mere two months ago they were feral kittens who wouldn't even let us get anywhere near them. They have always been 'good' - no hissing, biting or scratching - but now. Wow. Conor curled up on the sofa yesterday next to me while I did some work - so sweet! We have also been petting Conor outside of feeding time. She purrs away. Paddington gave me his first head bump yesterday too. And, as far as Steve goes - well, he has forgiven us for last week's altering and he is back to playing. He even let my husband put a treat right under his nose for him last night - a pretty big step as before, whenever my husband would join us for treats/play, he would scamper away.

Just a quick update on Mama cat. We have started seeing her around again. Stress levels rise! I have contacted the Animal Care Society here in Cork in hopes that they can help out. They seem to be an organisation that advocates TNR, so hopefully we can help her...

Just a quick update on Mama cat. We have started seeing her around again. Stress levels rise! I have contacted the Animal Care Society here in Cork in hopes that they can help out. They seem to be an organisation that advocates TNR, so hopefully we can help her...

Click to expand...

I hope so too - to be able to relieve them of the burden of reproduction is a wonderful thing - even if they can never be tamed. Good luck and keep us posted on those lovely babies.

They got back to me within minutes of sending my message! They said that there is a possibility of them helping out with trapping, where they would then take her to their vet facilities to spay her. I noticed that she is just not looking too good as well. She is very young herself and barely bigger than Conor and the hair on her back legs is almost totally gone. She mews at me whenever she sees me, but runs away if I get close to her. She is a beautiful all black cat. I don't know if she is a candidate for re-homing - she might just be a stray who has gone feral - but I will let them see what they think. I am going to give them my phone number (all contact so far has been done via e-mail) and hopefully they will get back to me and we can proceed with helping her out.

I have to be honest, I am a bit nervous about this! I don't know why, but I feel anxious. I also feel very strongly that we should do something, so the nerves are not going prevent me from getting her fixed. I worry about her health and I worry about her reproducing. I just know I couldn't deal with another group of kittens around the house - I would find it really hard, since we wouldn't be able to take them in. It would just be a huge cycle of kittens, kittens and more kittens, so it really is for the best....my husband thinks I am a bit crazy but he also loves that I am getting so involved in this sort of thing - he says my passion and love of animals play into why he married me.

What a sweet thing for your hubs to say.
You have a heart of gold.

I hope Mama can be helped.

My friend with cats just popped by and I told her what I was planning to with Mama and she thought that was great - she used to do the same thing in Canada (where she's from) and she has heard nothing but good things about the organisation I am hoping to work with. Phew!

I just realised that you all might not be aware of the full Mama story! I know I had posted a while ago (when we first took in the kittens) that she is a pub cat. As it turns out, this is only partially true. I wish I had found this out sooner so we could have helped her before! Anyway, she DOES kind of live at the pub, but she is not one of their official cats that they care for. Hmph. They feed her (if she comes by) and let her sleep there if she wants, but they haven't fixed her or taken her to the vet or anything. Anyway, I am happy to report that at least we are taking steps towards doing it, and I totally understand how miscommunications and confusion can happen, but it is still slightly frustrating that we could have done this months ago....it was this discovery that prompted me to contact the organisation to help her out....

In Conor, Paddington and Steve related news - still doing well. They now have three favourite times of day. Dinner time (of course), play time (which is occasionally followed by a treat) and litter box cleaning time. That last one is a new one! It started about a week ago. I usually clean out the litter boxes twice a day - once in the morning and once at night. It is the night cleaning they like best. They hear me get my plastic bag and scoop and they run to the upstairs box. They sit there patiently while I remove the lid and then one of them hops on top to watch. The others usually hop in the lid and play around inside the lid. Then, they come out to watch me scoop and bag, and inevitably, one of them hops right in and does some business right in front of me (all three of them have done this now...). Then they return to playing with the lid. It means I spend more time cleaning the box, but it makes box cleaning so much more fun, since I am surrounded by three curious kittens!

Mine do that very same thing!
They look at me like Thanks Mama. Cleo even licks me so I know it makes them happy.

I love with your kits! So cute.