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Re: feral kitten

  • 21-07-2010 9:20pm
    #1
    SeanBurke69
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2 ✭


    We recently had a feral kitten, move into our house.
    It seems to have bonded with our 15month neutered tomcat.
    Any advice on domesticating it would be welcome.


Comments

  • #2
    The Sweeper
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 10,658 ✭✭✭✭The Sweeper


    Hey Sean

    There's a thread with all the details of domesticating feral kittens currently in the Animal Welfare forum.

    http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055966961

    That's got a lot of tips, hints and guidelines.

    In terms of putting an age on the kitten:

    Tiny with blue eyes, it's up to four weeks of age.
    Between four and five weeks of age, their eyes start to change colour.
    Six weeks onwards, their eyes will be more green than blue.
    Up to six weeks, they tend to weigh about 100g per week of age, so a 450g kitten with murky blue-green eyes is most probabaly between four and five weeks old.

    They then go on to develop to their full size (moggies, this is) at about one year of age, and spend the next year filling out into that frame, so they're fully grown at two years.

    What you do to domesticate the cat will depend on its age. Younger is easier, but they CAN be domesticated at any age.

    If you read the above and think the cat is much past six months of age, it's important to always allow it to approach you, but you may have better success domesticating an older feral if you withhold food, and bribe it to come to you with handfeeding (wear a glove initially, or put the food on the end of a spoon or a stick because they'll try to swipe the food out of your hand with their claws out.)


  • #3
    SeanBurke69
    Closed Accounts Posts: 2 ✭SeanBurke69


    Thanks Sweeper

    The kitten is 13 weeks old. Its mother is a feral cat we have fed, since we moved in over seven months ago.
    About three weeks ago, its mother abandonded it. Since then the kitten has been living in our coal shed.
    Only three days ago, during all the wet weather we had, it decided to move into the house and has bonded with our lovely neutered tomcat:)
    So far we have given it a worming treatment, and once we can tame it somewhat, it will be time to get it vaccinated and neutered.

    We are worried about our tomcat, as it follows him and is constantly demanding attention, and purring constantly untill he eventually bites the kitten gently on the neck. It then will retreat, for a short period of time before begining again.
    So we can only hope, our lovely tomcat won't grow tired of the kittens behaviour and find nicer accomadation elsewhere.

    At least this kitten has been using the litter trays, we always had one upstairs and another downstairs.
    Although our cat usually deficates in the garden. Since the kitten arrived, he has started using the litter trays again (marking territory I guess)


  • #4
    blondie7
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 582 ✭✭✭blondie7


    Dont worry about the biting, thats just the kitten trying to play. Your cat will soon put him in his place and show him who the boss is. I wouldnt worry about to much about it. They will be the best of friends in no time, im sure. My three have now adjusted to our latest (and last) addition to the household there now even sleeping cuddled up with him.


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