Feral 6 week olf kitten

Hello, please excuse my English, I'm from Madrid, Spin and it's pretty rusty.

All my life I've wanted a cat, and last month a friend of my mother offered us a kitten, from a friend of hers, it was going to be a black cat.

It arrived today, it bas... black and grey and as soon as my mother opened, that box you use to transport animals with, it scratched her and went behind the washing machine.

It didn't move in a couple of hours but when the cleaner arived, even if we told her to leave the cat alone she went chasing it, the poor thing was terrified and went running to my bedroom, it's in the bookshelf next to my bedside table.

Now we've found out that that woman took it from a house in the Escorial (mountain village) that has been abandoned for three years and that the cat is feral. To be honest it's been a setback, this is my first cat and gone directly on hardcore, that doesn't mean that I'm not going to try but I'm scared of doing more harm than help.

I've tried to grab it but it's start's spiting as soon as I'm near the shelf, you can only access it from the front, so I've taken slowly the boxes from that shelv so it had some room in it, I've left food, water, the basket where he was suposed to sleep in and the litter box in front and went with my laptop to another room, I think it has moved a little because I can see paw marks on the sand.


You can't see much but I didn't dare to use a flash or star pointing light's at it

What should I do? Is it okay to sleep so close to it?

Do you like Gibbs as a name?... we don't even know if it's a he or a she...

Thanks for your time

He or she may not be feral, just frightened. After all, it's whole life had changed drastically. For the time being, leave it alone. You have made good preparations by providing food and water and the litter box. When you are in the room, stay low and move slowly. If she hisses at you, stay calm. She will not attack you unless she feels threatened. You will have to get her to the vet's for a check up soon, though. She will need her vaccinations and will need to be spayed (or neutered if a male). The vet may be able to help you determine if the cat is truly feral.

Thank you for helping this kitty!!!!

Well, while I was in another room whatching a film little Gibbs has drunk his milk, I think it din't touch the water, eaten a bit, tipped the clean clothes I had to put away and find another hiding place, maybe it's inside the armonium or behind the desk, no idea.

shal I leave my bedroom door open for it to explore around? If the answer is yes, should move the bows, litter box and basket back to the kitchen or better to wait?

Go easy on the milk as if can give issues to the kitten far as loose poop.  After the trup i am sure he is afraid.  How were they able to get him in a carrier?  That may help figure out how wild he is.

I would keep him contained in a small room to make working with him easier
 

Yes, let it be in a small room. Let it have some "legal" place to hide in. A cat igloo, or a sideturned cardboard box made cosy.  You shall NOT disturb it there, but you CAN reach in there if in need.

Time and patience at this moment, so it will land and feel safe and more confident. Later on you will go on more friskly.  He is afraid, possibly semiferale, but as he is so young, socializing should go easy.

There are now threads with similiar cases... Look up Catwoman707 advices there, they are often useful.

Talk a lot softly and friendly with it. Do you like to, so do sing some, friendly talk song.

Dont look straigh in her eyes [edit typo], look at the ears.

Vet visit is good, she needs surely deworming and deparasiting and an overall check up. Spaying a little later, yes.

Food: as said, some cats dont manage cow milk well. But some do!  Plain youghurt is although oK, cheese too...  Goat milk is always ok, cats manage it excellently.

Wet canned cat food or dry?  Wet is better!  Even cheap wet is better than most dry.

Good luck!

Thank you yery much for the advice, I supose that taking it into a basket to go to the vet it's going to be a setback in our relationship, though necesary.

Oh my, what a night, since three  o'clock the poor thing has been meowing, first little 5 meows in a row then later ir went into full blast, I went to the spare bed after an hour and something and you could hear him fron there, every meow was heartbraking. T_T

It also tipped a few thing, even my old playmobil pirate boat now its hiding behind the pedals inside the armonium, you can seee the top of its head.

You can also sit quietly in the room and read out loud. Make the sound of your voice soothing. Soon, the kitten will come out to see what you're up to. Don't acknowledge it, just keep reading. Most everything has to be on the kitten's time. That takes patience on our part.

Oh, and I have a nine year old cat who won't speak to me for hours after a vet visit. That's normal!

Mr Gibbs hiding placee

All the advice so far is good.

I also really like the name Gibbs!!

What I really want to know is, how do you know for certain this kitten is 6 weeks old?

I ask because at 6 weeks taming is quite simple, but older than that is a different story and can take much more time and patience.

Every day at this turning point of mental growth makes a difference in whether this kitten will tame easily or if it will always keep that shy of strangers way that ferals have.

Let me know if 6 weeks is the correct and accurate age and I will check back later.

If so, it will be easy

Six weeks is an approximation from the information the woman gave us, the only thing we know for sure is that she was taking care of the mother in a garage and rescued the kittens, I can’t contact her directly.

 

The son of one of my mother friends it’s a vet so he’ll send his wife to come and take it to him when they can

 

It hasn't touched its bowls or sandbox today; I don’t think it even left its hiding place, my room it’s in the middle of the flat and the harmonium it’s in the same wall as the door one next to each other.

 

 I checked the litter box and there wasn't anything solid, I'll sleep tonight in the spare bed so he has my room all for itself (I hope he loses its shyness soon, I miss my bedroom XD)

----------Edit------------

Ok, It's eaten the half a terrine, the dried kitten foog and there are paw marks on the sand in less than an hour... more or lees the same hour it eat yesterday

It sounds like it's just scared. Think about it this way. You are about six years old and someone comes and takes you away from you mom and siblings and brings you to a strange smelling place where no one speaks cat! I think you should sleep in your room, as this is how it's going to be. The kitten should come out at night after you're asleep and get used to the routine.

Glad to hear you will have help from the vet's wife. You really need to get the kitten to the vet for a check up and make sure he or she is healthy.

I took your advice of seeping in my bed... and what a night.

It didn't wait for me to go to sleep, it kept me awake auntil 5am meowing, howling, climbig to my bed to snifle me, trying to go throught the window...poor thing, it was hard to resist not trying to grab it and hug it to sleep XD

It also left me a "present" by the side of the bed.

Even if she's feral, she is young enough to where she will be like a normal sweet cat, as soon as she gets over the trauma of being boxed up and shipped.

I strongly believe kittens should always come in pairs. If its possible to get one of her siblings, she will be so much happier. I never knew this until recently when I went to get one kitten boy, and it turned out he had a twin sister, which I could not leave behind.

They are 18 months now and so happy and loving and best of friends. They were feral kittens in a field, and now they live like king and queen of our house.

See if you can get a second kitten sibling. Or if not, another same age. Two are almost the same amount of work as one, and their quality of life will be much happier.

Good luck.

Ps. Your English is great.

Pps. Forgot to include picture of my two brother/sister feral babies. Cats belong in pairs.

Disculpe said:

I took your advice of seeping in my bed... and what a night.

It didn't wait for me to go to sleep, it kept me awake auntil 5am meowing, howling, climbig to my bed to snifle me, trying to go throught the window...poor thing, it was hard to resist not trying to grab it and hug it to sleep XD.

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So it was essentially a big step forward.  As long as you are still and lying down, your company is better then being entirely alone.  

Soon it will be time for next step, what CatWoman707 learned us, and what you are instinctively thinking on:  You take a soft towel or little thin blanket, wrap the kitten upp like a toga or a burrito, all legs immobilized, up to the neck.  So it gets helpless. And carry the kitten at your chest, where it feels your warmth and hears your heart beating. You talk sweetly and sing softly, and carry it, half hour, perhaps even a whole hour.

Being helpless, it cease resisting, and lets the friendly impressions come in....

A couple of such sessions, and its done.

After hearing about this Catwoman trick, I believe in this, and Im now myself an advocate of this.

Good luck!

Sorry you had a bad night but it really was a good one. I don't think the kitten is so much afraid of you as she's simply disoriented and fearful. Maybe it is time for the burrito idea.

Now you have to remember not to be afraid, too. The kitten will pick up on it, and not knowing what YOUR fear is all about, she will assume she needs to be afraid of you!

Good luck!

My2twins - if those two aren't Siamese mixes, I'll eat my hat! Beautiful babies

Ondine said:

You can also sit quietly in the room and read out loud. Make the sound of your voice soothing. Soon, the kitten will come out to see what you're up to. Don't acknowledge it, just keep reading. Most everything has to be on the kitten's time. That takes patience on our part.

Oh, and I have a nine year old cat who won't speak to me for hours after a vet visit. That's normal!

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I've been doing that for a couple of hours and little Gibbs has honored me by getting out of it's hiding place, walk around the room, eat, get into the litter box and even lie a little on a chair, my mother is jealous because as soon as it hears her it goes running back behind a library XD

We still haven't had any physical contact but things seem to go alright. Still trying to get a decent photograph but it's a master in perching in a dark corner XD

I've got earplugs for tonight.

Another meowing and explroing night, this time it was more interested on the rooms door, if it wasn't because the frame needs some work and you have to give it a good pull it might even been able to open it.

Now when I'm en sleep position it takes less wories in walking over me, though as soon as I moove my hands it leaps back

Good news! Keep up the good work. Pretty soon, everyone will be able to hold her. But I bet you will always be her favorite.