Help on Taming Stray Kittens?

Hi everyone,

I recently came across a family of kittens living in a shed beneath my school. For the past two weeks, I've been going in daily to feed them and trying to get them used to my presence. The principle has no problem with me doing this but they don't want stray cats to be hanging around the school and I've convinced my parents to let me take them in until we can socialize them and find them homes. I can't really tell their age, they're definitely not full grown, but they can eat hard food and they seems quite independent of their mother who I've only seen a few times. I've managed to catch a kitten just tonight and am hoping to get the other two within the next few days. I was hoping to get the momma cat as well, as she doesn't seem like much more than a kitten herself but I think she's too feral at this point and it would be impossible to get near her. The kittens have accepted me being in quite close proximity to them but still run if I come too near. The one I managed to catch is the boldest of the bunch and seems like it will be easiest to tame.

I was just wondering if you guys had any tips on taming these little buggers. The one I have now is understandably terrified and I've left it alone in a quiet room. I've been looking online at different ways of doing this, but I was just hoping for some insider info.

Sorry for blathering on Any help is appreciated

Thanks!

There are a lot of great tips to be found here in this section. More than I can cover!

What you need to do is try to borrow a humane live trap, you also need to talk to the principle and make sure it's ok to put the trap out. Do so during a time when students wouldn't be around - ie: weekend or after school and pick it back up in the morning.

Do you have a spare room that you can put these cats in? Like a bathroom? The easier to clean, the better. Mother cat may or may not tame. You'll have two choices if you catch her - spend months taming her and keep her or spay her and try to find her a home somewhere. A farm wouldn't be ideal, but it's better than nothing if she's truly wild.

The kittens will take approximately the same time to tame as how old they are. (not a set rule, but usually pretty close). For example a 12 week old kitten could take close to 12 weeks to tame to the point you can adopt it out. You have to be willing and able to put a lot of time into them. They'll all need to be treated for fleas, dewormed, and vaccinated at the vet. Later you'll need to spay and neuter them.

It is a big undertaking. I'm not sure how old you are but it's wonderful that you want to step up and take responsibility this way. (and that's how you work on the parents "hey look, I'm being responsible!" )

Thanks

My problem is that I'm an Army Kid and right now we're living the country of Georgia (next to Russia). The amount of stray animals here is appalling (which only makes me more eager to try and help the ones I can.) The vets here aren't the most reliable (except for one very good man who's taken care of our pets many times before) and I highly doubt that they have any good traps they would lend out. I managed to catch the one right now just by luring it into a kennel with food and shutting the door behind it, but the other two aren't quite so inquisitive or brave, so I think I'm going to have to figure another approach. I really want to help the momma cat but I don't know if it's possible for me at this point.

Haha, thanks I'm sixteen but I've always been an animal freak. My parents have constantly had to put up with the "Mommy, Daddy, can we keep it?" We've taken care of quite a few stray cat and dog families, but they were all taken in from a very young age and the momma's were always very friendly. This is the first time I've had to deal with the "taming" process.

Heck of a place for the family to be stationed. I hope it hasn't been too difficult for you.

I'm sure someone has a humane trap. You'll probably just have to beg and plead a bit. I don't know the cost there, but here if you went to buy one new it would cost around $35-45USD.
It's really the only reliable (mostly) way to catch a human weary cat.

I wish you a lot of luck on this. It's a big thing to take on at 16 but I bet you can do it!