Taming A Feral Kitten

[6kittymama]

Your situation is so similar to mine! I trapped 4 semiferal babies in my yard at the end of November and they are still in my bathroom. (Thankfully I have 2 bathrooms) 3 of them have really come around and are quite social but the last one “Shyboy” is also a hard nut to crack. I can not pet him except using a feather wand. If he comes out at all (while I am in there) he stays on the outskirts of things but he will use the litter box and play with toys on the outskirts while I am in there. I can place treats in front of him and he had sniffed my fingers but only when he is in his safe spot beside the toilet. He will play with wand toys with me as well. I would say my progress has also been super slow. Originally he hid under anything behind the toilet, then he just stayed behind the toilet. Now he is on the side and inches out to the edge to watch me play with the others. He does on occasion come out when I am in there but always on the outskirts. He also hisses sometimes and swipes and or tries to bite me if I reach into his safe spot and try to pet him with my hand Still and that’s been since the end of November so about a month or so. I am watching your thread for ideas and I feel your frustration too. Hang in there this site is so supportive and encouraging! And mine haven’t been to the vet yet either. I did not have a good experience when I attempted to get them in the carriers to take them to the shelter but that’s a whole other story. And I still don’t know what I am going to do with these babies.

 

[alphakitty]

Hey guys, so for almost 1 month now, I adopted 2 baby kittens (that were maybe a bit over a month old, I don't know for sure because I found them in my yeard). They were both scared to death of humans and I had to "trap" them to be able to take care of them. I managed to tame one of them (a white ball of fluff), I held her in my arms for a while, petted her and talked to her until she calmed down. And then I fed fer because she was starving. She still ran off after I let her down but in the next few days she became used to me and stopped running and hiding when she saw me. Her baby sister on the other hand, I had no such luck with her. To this day I am still not able to even touch her because she runs away every time she sees me. I tried to catch her but whenever I lay my hand on her she scratches/bites and hisses at me. I thought that giving her time, being near her, place food in front of her, being friendly with the other cats in front of her would make her more comfortable around me, but that doesn't seem to work. I really don't know what to do anymore. Do you guys have any suggestions?

Hey there,

I've found that playing with feral kitties, giving tastey treats and consistent, calm affection, will eventually win them over.

Kitties exhibit 'flash-memory' so-to-speak. They instantly remember behaviors that are shocking or in some manner stand-out to them.

I use a long tree branch...5ft long, with a cord duct-taped to the end of the branch and on the other end of the cord I've used all sorts of things, especially items having a little weight. One of the kitties' favorite has been a clump of red bird feathers. I can drag that around on the floor, and behind things, which gives the kitties' a hunter challenge. Eventually they forget their fear of you, and before ya know it, ya got a play pal!! After the kitty catches the toy on the end of the cord, complement the little character and give'm a treat.
Make it fun for'm.

Alpha Kitty

 

[Kristynne]

Your situation is so similar to mine! I trapped 4 semiferal babies in my yard at the end of November and they are still in my bathroom. (Thankfully I have 2 bathrooms) 3 of them have really come around and are quite social but the last one “Shyboy” is also a hard nut to crack. I can not pet him except using a feather wand. If he comes out at all (while I am in there) he stays on the outskirts of things but he will use the litter box and play with toys on the outskirts while I am in there. I can place treats in front of him and he had sniffed my fingers but only when he is in his safe spot beside the toilet. He will play with wand toys with me as well. I would say my progress has also been super slow. Originally he hid under anything behind the toilet, then he just stayed behind the toilet. Now he is on the side and inches out to the edge to watch me play with the others. He does on occasion come out when I am in there but always on the outskirts. He also hisses sometimes and swipes and or tries to bite me if I reach into his safe spot and try to pet him with my hand Still and that’s been since the end of November so about a month or so. I am watching your thread for ideas and I feel your frustration too. Hang in there this site is so supportive and encouraging! And mine haven’t been to the vet yet either. I did not have a good experience when I attempted to get them in the carriers to take them to the shelter but that’s a whole other story. And I still don’t know what I am going to do with these babies.

Oh my god, you found four of them? Did you look for their mother? Maybe she was still around somewhere. I've found mine in my back yard, I have no idea how or why they were there. At first I thought that someone threw them over the fence, because they seemed too small to climb/jump the fence, until I saw one of them do it in front of my eyes. It was freezing outside and they were running away from me, so I had to find a way to get them inside. The first day everything I tried failed and on the second day, I just left the front door open and waited for them to get inside. Surprisingly that worked but only with the shy one, Snowball (the white one), I had to catch, because he was only poking his head inside but was too afraid to enter.

Now as an update, I think I'm on the right track so far. Today I was playing with my other cats (including Snowball) and the shy one came pretty close to us and he looked like he wanted to play too, but he's still a bit afraid. He didn't run away, he just stood there watching the toy. I've listen to the advice people gave me here and completely ignored him. I stopped looking directly at him for more than a second and just played with my other cats. It seems like that's working!

I didn't know what to do with them either, because I already have 4 cats of my own and at first I didn't want to keep the little ones. But now I think I'm starting to change my mind! They are absolutely adorable!

 

[Kristynne]

Hey there,

I've found that playing with feral kitties, giving tastey treats and consistent, calm affection, will eventually win them over.

Kitties exhibit 'flash-memory' so-to-speak. They instantly remember behaviors that are shocking or in some manner stand-out to them.

I use a long tree branch...5ft long, with a cord duct-taped to the end of the branch and on the other end of the cord I've used all sorts of things, especially items having a little weight. One of the kitties' favorite has been a clump of red bird feathers. I can drag that around on the floor, and behind things, which gives the kitties' a hunter challenge. Eventually they forget their fear of you, and before ya know it, ya got a play pal!! After the kitty catches the toy on the end of the cord, complement the little character and give'm a treat.
Make it fun for'm.

Alpha Kitty

Hey!

Thanks for the reply and tips. I already have some toys (because I have four cats of my own) and I'm playing with them all the time. I tried playing with the shy little kitten as well, but he's too afraid to play yet. He's just staring at the toy from a distance. He looks like he wants to play, but he doesn't trust me enough yet, I guess. He's still playing with my other cats, so that's good. Today he came pretty close when I was playing with my other cats so that's some progress!

 

[Kristynne]

Hi. My neighbor is dealing with something similar - 2 strays, although we think the young cat might actually be the baby cat's mother. But, we think the baby is nearly feral. Anyway, despite drawing in the young cat who now lets us pick her up, pet her, etc. the baby, up until a week ago, ran anytime it saw my neighbor. This has been going on for about 3 months or so. Now, the baby will watch my neighbor from several feet away but no longer runs away for the most part.

I saw on another post where a member caught a feral, actually got him neutered, and then kept him in her garage. Only just recently, after not being able to get near him, she had him cornered him in his hiding spot and put baby food on her finger and he licked it off. He liked it so much that he came out to eat some more - and, she was able to pet him!

As soon as my neighbor feels like she can do this with the baby, she is going to try it. Just another suggestion, along with all of the wonderful tips you have already received.

Thanks for the reply! I've only tried placing food in front of him, but he would back up and if I try to move the food closer, he just runs away. I don't think he's ready to lick it off my finger yet!

 

[Kristynne]

Hello and welcome to TCS. And thanks for rescuing those 2 little kittens, as well as your other cats.

It probably would have be best to put them in a room of their own, separate from your other cats, until you could get the kittens vet checked, but it's too late for that now. Have you been able to give them meds for fleas / worms? Are they litter box trained?

How old do you think they are? Here's the TCS article How Old Is My Kitten? that may give you an idea of their ages.

Here's a couple other article with tips on ferals:
I Found Abandoned Kittens - What Should I Do?
Handling Feral Cats

Hey, sorry for the late reply but I didn't get a notification for some of the posts (including yours).

First of all, thanks for the help with the links! I've completely forgotten about the changing in eye color for kittens. It looks like their eye color is in the process of changing right now. Snowball (the white one) has a dark shade of blue and the shy one has a shade of green/yellow showing. So I guess they are somewhere around 2 months old? When I first got them, they were not litter trained but now they are both using the litter.

I didn't give them any meds yet. They don't have fleas, I've checked Snowball because he's the only one I could get my hands on. I'll take both of them to the vet as soon as I can!

 

[rubysmama]

First of all, thanks for the help with the links!

You're very welcome. TCS has several different articles on various subjects, so if you have any other questions, just ask, and we may have an article to help. You can also check out the articles here: Articles | TheCatSite

Good luck with them. And feel free to post pictures.
How To Add A Picture To Your Forum Post

 

[6kittymama]

Oh my god, you found four of them? Did you look for their mother? Maybe she was still around somewhere. I've found mine in my back yard, I have no idea how or why they were there. At first I thought that someone threw them over the fence, because they seemed too small to climb/jump the fence, until I saw one of them do it in front of my eyes. It was freezing outside and they were running away from me, so I had to find a way to get them inside. The first day everything I tried failed and on the second day, I just left the front door open and waited for them to get inside. Surprisingly that worked but only with the shy one, Snowball (the white one), I had to catch, because he was only poking his head inside but was too afraid to enter.

Now as an update, I think I'm on the right track so far. Today I was playing with my other cats (including Snowball) and the shy one came pretty close to us and he looked like he wanted to play too, but he's still a bit afraid. He didn't run away, he just stood there watching the toy. I've listen to the advice people gave me here and completely ignored him. I stopped looking directly at him for more than a second and just played with my other cats. It seems like that's working!

I didn't know what to do with them either, because I already have 4 cats of my own and at first I didn't want to keep the little ones. But now I think I'm starting to change my mind! They are absolutely adorable!

Yay for progress! My newest babies Mama was done with them. She had been bringing them to my backyard to eat since Labor Day. Once she was done they just stayed. Mama still came to eat but no longer payed attention to her babies and it was getting colder so I trapped them. Mama had an appointment to get spayed on dec 3 but she has not been here for at least 5 weeks. I am hoping someone else trapped her and rescued her.

 

[Kristynne]

Yay for progress! My newest babies Mama was done with them. She had been bringing them to my backyard to eat since Labor Day. Once she was done they just stayed. Mama still came to eat but no longer payed attention to her babies and it was getting colder so I trapped them. Mama had an appointment to get spayed on dec 3 but she has not been here for at least 5 weeks. I am hoping someone else trapped her and rescued her.

Same thing happened to me with the first cats I've had. Their mother brought them into our yard because I would always leave food for her outside. And when they were old enough to feed themselves, she left. I kept 2 of them and gave the rest to family friends that wanted a pet. I always have to make sure that if I give them away, they'll be well taking care of.

Just like in your case, their mother never returned. She had some sort of collar on her neck, so I hope she had some owners somewhere that took her back. She was such a smart cat! She knew how to open doors, she was so protective with her babies and even with us. Whenever we had someone over she was acting almost like a dog, if that makes any sense. She was always there to protect us. I really hope she's okay!

 

[Kristynne]

He guys!

Just a quick update, my little shy one played with me today, for the first time! I was playing with my big cats and Snowball (her sister) with a long teaser and she looked at us for a while and then she joined us! She was so into the toy that she didn't even pay that much attention to me. I'm so happy right now! Thank you for all the tips and advice, they really helped!

I've also included some pictures of Snowball and her sister and 3 of my other cats. Fluffy (the white one), Buttons and Billie.

 

[rubysmama]

Awww...precious, all of them.

 

[Kristynne]

Awww...precious, all of them.

Thank you! The little one is starting to spend a lot of time around me. A few hours ago when I brought them food, she came to her bowl while I was still near it. She didn't eat though (until I walked away) but it's still some progress!

 

[Kristynne]

Hey guys, happy new year!

Just wanted to give you an update on my shy guy, Dots. Yesterday I finally manage to pet him!! I was so excited that I wanted to hug him for hours! But he's still pretty shy and I didn't want to push my luck after making this huge progress. He's definitely more comfortable around me and we have our twice a day playtime. During this playtime he would let me pet him for a few seconds at a time. Then we play again and then a few moments of petting and so on. You have no idea how happy I am that he's finally coming out of his shell! We still have a long way to go, but this is a good start!

Sorry if this is not the way to make updates, I didn't know if I should make a new thread for it, so please, let me know if that's the case!

 

[white shadow]

.
I much prefer to read the updates in the same, original thread.....so, from me, thanks for this! (There are many trappings/socializations/homings going on at any given time that a single thread for each helps us observers keep track of who's whom.)

Isn't is so hard not to push your luck

Now, you know, more pictures would never hurt............
.

 

[Kristynne]

.
I much prefer to read the updates in the same, original thread.....so, from me, thanks for this! (There are many trappings/socializations/homings going on at any given time that a single thread for each helps us observers keep track of who's whom.)

Isn't is so hard not to push your luck

Now, you know, more pictures would never hurt............
.

Oh my god, it's so hard!! I can barely keep myself away from him, haha! A few minutes ago, his sister (Snowball) came to sit on my lap, and Dots wanted some petting too I guess, because he came near me a few seconds later. He's so funny though, he's trying to act "all cool" about it, like "heh, I don't need a petting from you", but then, when I'm petting him, he's wiggling his tail all over the place. He's sooo sweet and adorable! Can't wait for him to get used to the petting. I'm gonna pet him until my hands will fall down, haha.

I will post more pictures of him soon. I only took the ones that I've posted here on the first day I've found them outside my house. I was too afraid of spooking Dots again by putting the phone in his face so I decided to wait until he's more chill and comfortable.

Meanwhile, here's a photo of Snowball sleeping on my lap!

 

[rubysmama]

Thanks for the update. Good to hear he's making progress.

And, yes, as long as the topic doesn't change, updating the original thread is best.

 

[Kristynne]

Thanks for the update. Good to hear he's making progress.

And, yes, as long as the topic doesn't change, updating the original thread is best.

Thank you guys for the help and support!

I will post more updates with his progress and pictures when he's ready!

 

[Kflowers]

I'm with White shadow I like updates in the same thread so I can find them. Especially for happy stories.

 

[Kristynne]

Hey guys!

It's been a while and I wanted to make a final update of the situation.

My little buddy Dots is now a fully domesticated cat. And to my surprise he is such and awesome pet! He's so well behaved, lovable and adorable! He loves me so much that he's always beside me. He loves sleeping next to me and he's no longer scared by anything. I swear that I can feel how much he trusts me sometimes . He's so calm around me, I honestly cannot believe it.

Thank you all for the advice and here are a few pictures of my beautiful boy!

 

[FeebysOwner]

Love it!!! So glad you gave us an update. Dots looks sooooo happy, as I know you are too! Pics are great - thanks!!