Help!!! New Kittens!!

[twokittenstwo]

Hi,

I have NEVER owned a cat before and have no idea how to deal with 2 rescued kittens.

My girl friend and I just rescued two kittens who were part of a litter of three. These kittens were birthed by a stray cat (from which the people we got the kittens from have a kitten from her last litter). The Stray cat moved her babies to the cavity of a rock waterfall that feeds into a pool. The kittens are about 8 weeks old maybe 9. We got them on Thursday Nov. 3rd and it is now Monday. One of the kittens seems to be the dominate of the two given she hisses if you come within 3 feet of her but wont try and bite or scratch you. They would not come out of their carrier that we transported them in until later in the evening. That next day we tried to incorporate them a little by bringing them in the living room and creating a fort for them. One of them (Diesel) let a friend hold him and pet him but about 20 minutes after the friends left I tried doing the same thing with Diesel and he freaked out and got away and hid through out the apartment. So we put them back in the bathroom. I tried one more time to incorporate them to the rest of the apartment and diesel jumped out of the fort we built and the chasing in sued again. They try everything they can to get away and not let us pick them up. The other kitten (Sheba) still hisses but won't bite or scratch you. I've read a couple places to go in the bathroom and play with them or just sit so they get use to you. I have done that a few times and this past time cornered (Diesel) and wrapped him in my shirt and pet him between his ears for like 10 minutes. he got spooked and tried to jump out a couple times but he managed. The other cat just watched and fell asleep. But as soon as I set him down he bolted away again.

Really we want them to be ok and were trying to get them to trust us. Little knowledge on what to do is making me think we are going to fail and have a two constantly scared cats that don't like their owners.

BTW they use the litter box great and are eating and drinking regulary. We also have a scratching pad a few toys and a bed with some of our clothes on it.

any Idea what we should do?

Thanks you for your time,

Greg

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[cat person]

Hi,

I have NEVER owned a cat before and have no idea how to deal with 2 rescued kittens.

Welcome to the world of

ownership.

My girl friend and I just rescued two kittens who were part of a litter of three. These kittens were birthed by a stray cat (from which the people we got the kittens from have a kitten from her last litter). The Stray cat moved her babies to the cavity of a rock waterfall that feeds into a pool.

That was very nice of you both to rescue the two kittens that needed a home

!

The kittens are about 8 weeks old maybe 9. We got them on Thursday Nov. 3rd and it is now Monday. One of the kittens seems to be the dominate of the two given she hisses if you come within 3 feet of her but wont try and bite or scratch you.

If the female kitten is doing that to you, she is frightened by you. But, if she is doing it to her sibling, then yes she is likely to be dominant.

They would not come out of their carrier that we transported them in until later in the evening.

That might or might not be normal. Depends on how the kitten was acting after.

That next day we tried to incorporate them a little by bringing them in the living room and creating a fort for them. One of them (Diesel) let a friend hold him and pet him but about 20 minutes after the friends left I tried doing the same thing with Diesel and he freaked out and got away and hid through out the apartment.

It is a new environment, so I am not that surprised. Just try and play with that kitten with toys, and touch/pick up the kitten while doing so.

So we put them back in the bathroom. I tried one more time to incorporate them to the rest of the apartment and diesel jumped out of the fort we built and the chasing in sued again. They try everything they can to get away and not let us pick them up. The other kitten (Sheba) still hisses but won't bite or scratch you.

Part of this, as previously said is due to the kittens being in a new environment. However, to me the kittens do not sound like they have been handled much, so have some feral tendencies.

I've read a couple places to go in the bathroom and play with them or just sit so they get use to you. I have done that a few times and this past time cornered (Diesel) and wrapped him in my shirt and pet him between his ears for like 10 minutes. he got spooked and tried to jump out a couple times but he managed. The other cat just watched and fell asleep. But as soon as I set him down he bolted away again.

I am going to assume, they are at least semi-feral. So I would say, play with toys with them. Get them some food they like and hand feed it to them. Or place the food on a dish near you, only allow them to eat it when you are touching them.

Really we want them to be ok and were trying to get them to trust us. Little knowledge on what to do is making me think we are going to fail and have a two constantly scared cats that don't like their owners.

I would say, try and hand feed them, play with toys with them, touching them while doing so. Also you might want seperate them via a dog crate or bathroom. The reason for that is so they can bond with you, while doing the above activity.

BTW they use the litter box great and are eating and drinking regulary. We also have a scratching pad a few toys and a bed with some of our clothes on it.

That is great news

.

 Please note, my answers are in bold face type.