Advice please re feral kittens

Queries and discussions about cat rescue & rehoming
Post Reply
kittenwoman
New Cat Chatter
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Jun 13, 2014 9:27 am

Advice please re feral kittens

Post by kittenwoman »

Hi
Im Linda and have fostered kittens for many years but usually just one litter at a time. I rescued 3 little ones the other night and their mum, thats working well. I last night have been asked to help 5 feral kittens from a rescue , I have no problem with this as have some experience re socializing them. Im just not to sure the best was to do this :
1. A separate room on their own in a kitten pen ( just for now )
2. Or bring them into my living room area , where the other 3 are now enjoying the cat trees etc. I would of course cover the pen and gradually reveal more to them once over the initial shock of being picked up tonight and driven to my home. My feelings are telling me that perhaps feral's seeing the litter I have enjoying themselves they can perhaps learn from them
Can any one advice me please as to what I should go for , a separate room , or my living room area with the others, I would appreciate some tips please if you can help me. Litter I have are 7 weeks , i have got mum booked in for next week to be done, feral's are 7 weeks and there are 5 of them, just want to do what's right for them , all are wormed and flea treatment
Thanks
Linda
User avatar
KittyWitty
VIP Cat Chatter!
Posts: 415
Joined: Mon Apr 07, 2014 6:31 pm
No. of cats in household: 2
Location: Edinburgh

Re: Advice please re feral kittens

Post by KittyWitty »

I have no experience with feral kittens but I do have experience with kittens.

Put them in a separate bonding room firstly.

Second, I would treat the kittens just like any other kitten - feral cats are scared of humans more than other cats so the socializing will be mainly focused on you and them.

If you want to introduce them to your other cats you would go about that as usual.
Hunnybunny
VIP Cat Chatter!
Posts: 119
Joined: Wed Mar 26, 2014 7:31 pm

Re: Advice please re feral kittens

Post by Hunnybunny »

At 7 weeks old if aged correctly you are in a very small window of opertunity to socialise them and earn their trust so the more you can handle them the better.

I would put them initially in a large dog crate so you have easy and regular access to them without having to chase them around a room. Nothing breaks a kittens confidence more than being chased by a human ;)

Give them a big comfy box to hide away in and jut keep giving hem **** bits and stroking and picking them up and hopefully after a week they will start to trust you and you can open the cage in a closed room and give them some more space. They should keep using the crate as their safe space.

At this stage food and play are your best tools. A laser mouse is a must and even a cotton glove with catnip. Get them running over your legs and just drop your hand as they rush past and all boing well they will come on beautifully. There is always one that is determined to not like people but do persist.

Another thing I would consider if they are not coming on as quickly as they should is neutering at about 12 weeks, it does make a difference and also the use of Zylkene can be a necessary tool as well

Good luck.
User avatar
Jacks
VIP Cat Chatter!
Posts: 767
Joined: Fri Mar 14, 2014 5:40 pm
No. of cats in household: 7
Location: Enfield, North London
Contact:

Re: Advice please re feral kittens

Post by Jacks »

Very good advice from HunnyBunny - another 'toy' you can try is a stick with a string on the end - very simple - I use the wand from 'daBird' which has lost the 'toy' - even my wild-boy adult finds it irresistible just trailed or jiggled on the floor. The dog crate is an excellent idea.

Good luck with your babies - I managed with a 4 1/2 month kitten; she's fine with us and people she trusts, but she still doesn't like most new people. With your kittens they should be able to become fully socialised which will really help in finding them homes eventually.

Please let us know how you are getting on.
Post Reply