Abandoned Brothers

I adopted two 7-9 week old abandoned kittens (brothers) that were in very poor health and petrified. Someone dumped them in the road. When I brought them home, they were so scared of people, I thought it was because they were abused. Now, I think they may have been feral I don't know what to do to help them overcome their fear. They have been with me for 4 months and still donâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t want to be touched. In fact, they run if they think I am going to touch them.

I keep them indoors and they come to me when I call them. They climb in my lap (but only when I place the food bowl there) and they come close to me when I have toys to play with. But if they see my hand approaching them, they run. They are even more afraid of anyone but me. If company is over, they hide and don't come out until it's quiet.

My boyfriend loves cats, but feels so bad because if they just see him, they run and hide. He has tried to get them to become friendly by picking them up when they aren't looking. They "freak out" and have become more afraid of him. Thank goodness, they don't bite or hiss, they just shake with fear.

My Vet said they are “feeding off of each others fears†and may never become friendly. I canâ€[emoji]8482[/emoji]t take them to the humane society because no one would adopt them. However, they aren't exactly what I had in mind when adopting kittens. IF I could find someone to adopt one, should I split them up so they will stop "feeding off of each others fear"? Or should I continue to be patient with them and hope they become loving pets? How do I help them?

With Aloha,
Lynn

First off neutering will help to calm them a little bit. So if that isn't done yet I would get on that asap. I don't know if splitting them up would matter a whole lot. They may also be devistated without each other. It is hard to say really.

Where are they staying at now? Do they have free run of your house? That could be overwhelming them as well. How are you handling them?

What you should do is keep them maybe in your bedroom, somewhere that you are a lot like that. Feed them and have their litter box in there too on opposite sides of the room. Do they hid all the time or just not like to be bothered?

If they are running from you when you approach, then ignore them. Talk to them, read to them, spend time in the room with them (sleeping is fine too, that is why I suggested your bedroom) but don't look at or approach them. Even if they are watching you or approaching you. Just ignore them. And be patient.

I once took in a little kitten at about 8 weeks of age that had been born outside and it took almost 9 months for him to actually come to me for pets and love, be patient and let them come to you, its frustrating, but will be worth it in the end

I have to second all the be patient advice - the rewards are worth it, both in that you will know you did a great thing by helping two kitties who would likely never have made it without you and it seeing them play and grow into more friendly cats. They may never be the friendliest cats; some cats (like some people) are more aloof than others any way. On the other hand, my feral grew into the (second) friendliest cat I've ever seen - bunts and cat kisses for all.

Oh, and I wouldn't split them up. Risking that degree of devastation isn't worth it. You could always seperate them for a few minutes or hours per day and see if that helps, while letting them have the comfort of playing with each other and sleeping the rest of the time.

My boys, whom I found as ababdoned/dumped, only wanted each other for ages. I kept them in a b edroom and talked to them and slowly they came to trustme and hte other cats. They still prefer each other to anyone else, but they are very affectionate now. So don't give up hope. And I would not let your BF pick them up - that will scare them more.

Mahalo for your advise! I don't want to split them up and won't. They love each other. My Vet said they are too young to be neutered, but as soon as they are old enough, I'll have it done.

I am very patient and will continue to let them come around on their own. My BF is not as patient, but is willing to try anything I ask. He stopped picking them up and joins me for evening feeding. We each take a bowl in our lap. Kaimi (seeker) is the braver of the two so he goes to my BF. Laku (gentle) is definitely the scaredy cat and the first one to run.

They don't hide except when we have company over. They love to roam and play. I can walk past them or play with them and they don't run. It's just when they think I am going to touch them that they run.

I would love to include a picture of them as they are so cute, but I don't know how. One more question, is it normal for their tummy to hang low? Am I feeding them too much?