Cat Chat Feline Forum

Hi
We adopted 2 young kittens from Cats Protection back in Feb 2018. They are brother and sister - she's very outgoing and bright, he was initially very shy and unsure of himself, wouldn't make eye contact. They'd been brought in with their mother (rehomed separately) having lived outside in someone's back garden. Approximate age at the time was thought to be between 4 - 6 months. There's just me and my partner in the house and we've worked really hard to create a secure, playful environment for them, giving them plenty of dedicated playtime with us. As a result, the boy, Jason, had really come on in leaps and bounds as has Willow. What we're finding now is that when either or both of us are in the house both kittens won't leave us alone - lots of demanding miaows, often just for attention. We're in the process of introducing them to the outside but the overall feeling is that they won't do anything without us. We both feel we've created a difficult situation just because we worked hard initially to increase our kittens' confidence. Any suggestions gratefully received in how to encourage a little more independence!

You're reaping the benefit of having bonded with them so well! I really wouldn't see this as a problem, as their confidence in the wider world develops they'll become less dependent on you, but far better the situation you have than cats that avoid you.

I do sympathise though, my little lad Toby (14 months) is just the same. While he's quite good at entertaining himself, ie reaping havoc round the house, he also insists we play with him a few times a day. I usually manage to wear him out after about 10-30 minutes, and it does get a bit tiresome, but I would far rather have it like this than a cat who just ignores you. We're not letting Toby out yet but once he starts wearing himself out outside, I suspect he will become less demanding.

You could try getting them some toys that don't need humans attached - balls that they can chase round the house (our house is literally littered with them) good quality cat nip (Yeoww is particularly good), and many of mine love the Undercover Mouse (although some cats ignore it) - to us it's the equivalent of sticking the kids in front of the telly for a bit of peace and quiet! It gets through a lot of batteries but to us it's worth it!

Are you two spayed/neutered yet? If not, please don't let them out until they are, or she is vulnerable to getting "molested" and adding to the kitten overflow in the rescues, and the lad will get into fights, roam far and wide and generally be much more vulnerable to accidents and injury. Neutering your boy will also probably calm his behaviour down in the house.

Hi
Thanks for your reply- very helpful advice! They are both neutered/spayed btw. Will keep hanging in there - your kitten sounds full of beans! Thanks again
Sally