New Kitten - Cries constantly

[will scher]

Hello all,

I'm fostering a kitten for the local shelter. She's only about 6 weeks old and 1.5 pounds. Apparently she was turned in to the shelter by someone who found her crying in the middle of the road. No mom. No siblings. She cries a lot when I am in the house with her, unless i am in physical contact with her, in which case she purrs, and maybe yelps a little. I put her in a playpen with her box, some food and water when I go to work - and I cover the playpen with a blanket to make it dark and keep her a little warmer. The weird thing is, after I leave the room she will stop crying after a while, but when I come back the crying starts again. She only cries when I am around, but seems to just go to sleep when I leave. I assume the crying will go down after awhile...

 

[Primula]

She's frightened, scared, & too young to leave her mother & siblings. She will calm down eventually. Poor little thing.

 

[Sarthur2]

will scher

She wants companionship and comforting. Try to keep her with you as much as you can when you are home. Let her sleep with you and sit in your lap. Play with her. Does she have a ball or toy mouse in her playpen to play with?

Thanks for rescuing her! [emoji]128571[/emoji]

 

[foxden]

Some single kittens do well with a stuffed animal to cuddle with.

You need to find one without plastic pieces that can be chewed off, only sewn-on parts. I would choose one that is machine washable. Look at dog toys without squeakers or toys meant for children under 3.

I have not done this myself, but I would choose a toy larger than the kitten. You want the kitten to feel like it's cuddled up against someone larger.

The only disadvantage might be that the kitten could get very attached to the toy. Since you are fostering, I'd recommend keeping the cat and the toy together as she finds her furever home.

 

[will scher]

New Kitten - Cries constantly - UPDATE

Many thanks to all for the advice.  The little girl has a cuddly toy (larger than herself) for cuddling purposes, and a toy ball to bat around.  She has made vast improvements over the last couple days, and cries much less.  She plays a lot more and and overall seems less frightened, and much more confident.  She has even started to demonstrate very early stalking and pouncing behavior (mostly my wife's toes).  So perhaps it was just nerves... 

 

[Sarthur2]

The kitten is very young. It takes time and trust. Glad to hear that things are getting better! [emoji]128077[/emoji]