New kittens - dumped or feral?

I work with a small, all-breed animal rescue in Indiana and have just gotten in 4 kittens. They came from my sister who lives in a rural area. She is not sure whether they are feral kittens or if they were just dumped in her area. I have gotten 3 dumped dogs/puppies from her so far this year, so it is possible they were just released because someone didn't want to bother finding them homes. Because of the coyotes (and the area dogs), cats in her area do not last long unless they are indoor only pets. Her husband is allergic, so there was no way to keep them safe and she did not want them to become coyote snacks. So she used my humane trap to catch all 4 of them one-by-one yesterday afternoon. I'm estimating that they are about 8 weeks old, although they have not been to the vet yet. They are currently in my large cat cage in my house isolated from my cats and the dogs - it is in the bathroom. Needless to say, they were all 4 petrified & traumatized yesterday by their experience of being trapped. All 4 were hissing, spitting & trying to attack (one actually managed to bite thru my gloves - couldn't find my leather ones when I needed them of course). My question is, is there any way to tell if these are feral kittens or just totally freaked out kittens? And no matter which they are, I could use some advice on handling them. They will all be spayed/neutered of course, but can anyone offer advice on settling them in & taming them? Should I leave them alone for a few days, just talking to them & feeding them? Or should I immediately start handling them to get them used to human contact? (with the proper protective gloves this time) Each one of them looks healthy with clear eyes & healthy looking coats. There was no diarhea or anything else unusual when I scooped their litter last night & this morning, so I feel safe in letting their first vet visit wait a few days until they are a little less upset. But they were all cursing me & giving me the evil eye as I got ready for work this morning. I want to do the best I can by them and if they are adoptable, find new homes for them as soon as possible.

Welcome....it does sound like these may be feral kittens. I would recommend you go here:

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

There is an article called "socializing feral kittens"...that should help you.

Here is a link to the direct PDF file:

http://www.alleycat.org/pdf/socializingferal.pdf

Katie

Im not experienced at this, but they dont sound as home raised cats for me.
But they are healthy, and dont seems to have parasites??

So they arent feral either. One guess it was someones shecat who gave birth outside in hide. When the owner found them - he choosed to dump...

I guess they are not tame, but as they are still young, they should be tame pretty soon.

I hope your home cats are friendly and fullvaccinated?
When you had the vet check them, let them be pals with your homecats. the socialization will be easier and quicker than.

Thanks for the advice and direction.

Yes, all my cats are fully vaccinated - since I regularly foster, I would never take the chance that my own animals would be unprotected. Unfortunately, I can't let the kittens run free in the house to socialize with the other cats - one of my dogs is fine with the cats, but will kill kittens - he has done it in the past and it was devastating. It was a kitten that he had played with in the past, but he is unpredictable & I can't take the chance that Karl would hurt one these little hellions.

Originally Posted by Jakie's Mom

Thanks for the advice and direction.

Yes, all my cats are fully vaccinated - since I regularly foster, I would never take the chance that my own animals would be unprotected. Unfortunately, I can't let the kittens run free in the house to socialize with the other cats - one of my dogs is fine with the cats, but will kill kittens - he has done it in the past and it was devastating. It was a kitten that he had played with in the past, but he is unpredictable & I can't take the chance that Karl would hurt one these little hellions.

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I would follow the advice in the PDF I provided for feral kittens. I also would not recommend you let these kittens run free as they could easily hide under something.

Katie

At this point there really isn't a way to tell since they've been quite traumatized. Being separated from their mother, trapped, and now being put in this strange place with unfamiliar smells and a strange person... Well, that's enough to traumatize almost any kitten!

Regardless of where they came from - dumped or feral - given the level of fear they have, they should be treated like feral kittens. Lower the lights in the room where they are kept, play classical (harp, if you have it) music at a very low volume, keep on a schedule for feeding, cleaning the litter, changing the water, etc. When you go in, do your duties (food, water, litter) and just spend time reading to them or talking to them. Avoid eye contact, as this is viewed as a threat. Then just play it by ear. They may calm down in a couple days of a regular schedule, and they may still be quite shy.

Here's a good article about handling ferals: http://www.thecatsite.com/Care/27/Ha...eral-Cats.html

And here's a more comprehensive look at the entire process: http://www.straypetadvocacy.org/html...feral_cat.html

You could have the kittens in a room together with the friendly cats - and you. Or lock the unreliable dog sometimes in a room, and let the kittens be in the other rooms (preferably not anywhere they can hide for good although some shelter is only good, they feel more safe if they know they can go aside, -...)

Originally Posted by StefanZ

You could have the kittens in a room together with the friendly cats - and you. Or lock the unreliable dog sometimes in a room, and let the kittens be in the other rooms (preferably not anywhere they can hide for good although some shelter is only good, they feel more safe if they know they can go aside, -...)

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If the kittens haven't been seen by a vet..this is not a good idea.

Katie

Originally Posted by TNR1

If the kittens haven't been seen by a vet..this is not a good idea.

Katie

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Right. I agree.:I DID said earlier above; after the vet checked them.