New (Ferral) Cat

BrookieD

Hi All
Just looking for a little advise here. we just got a little semi ferral kitten, 4 months old at a guess, Achilles (kittens name) has come up from Achill Island, stayed at the sister in laws for 2 weeks and made get strides, he was receptive to touch could be fed from the hand, and would let you pick him up and stroke him. Although he was still a little nervous he was coming on great.

Then he went to Anicare(good or bad vets?) on the Malahide Rd for a week and after collection came to our house, and we seem to be back at square one. We brought him back on sunday last, and only on approch he hisses but then lets me stroke him, after 3 days i can feed a bit of ham from the hand.
We are keeping him in the kitchen where it is warm and have a nice bed and scratch post for him, also this keeps my little boy out of harms reach. All he seems to do is sit under the Rad in the kitchen though. He let me pick him up last night for a few seconds and then did a runner again?


Is this normal? never had a feral cat before so we are all getting use to this change, and i think for the kitten things are up in the air as he was split from his brother on sunday.

This weekend should be better i think as my other half and little boy are away on Thursday night and back on sunday so we have some quite time all weekend were its just Achilles and I, bonding time me thinks.

Does anybode have experience with feral cats/kittens?

Alun

I can't really comment, since our two cats aren't strictly speaking feral, but they weren't exactly house cats either when we got them at about 3 months old. They came from a house in rural West Wicklow and had access to the house, but were basically just being looked after by their mother and being taught to hunt and didn't have a great deal of human contact in that time.

They settled in reasonably well, but neither of them will come and voluntarily sit on our laps. They spend all of their time indoors either on our bed, or on the chairs at the kitchen table. If you go up to them when they're in one of these places they both go all soppy on you and let you stroke them and tickle their tummies, but if you pick them up and place them on your lap or next to you on the settee, they'll sit there for about 10 seconds looking very uncomfortable and then jump off back to one of their favourite spots again. Very frustrating

They're nearly three years old now, and very, very slowly they're beginning to change but they're neither of them going to be lap cats I'm sorry to say.

Nala

I've tamed a lot of feral cats and I can tell you that the wild streak never really leaves them. All my ex-feral cats HATE to be picked up, however they love to be petted and tickled. The first few weeks of a cat's life have a huge influence on it, the most affectionate, cuddly cats I've had were all handled from birth.

BrookieD

Alun cheers for the reply,
Achilles was willing to be held before the week stay in the vets. i held him for a good 20 mins before i out him down and he did not fret at all. just seems like a big step back after the vets :-(

Alun

Yes, it's very frustrating, especially after the cat we had before these two was the soppiest, most affectionate cat you could ever wish for. But I guess we're stuck with them now, with all their little eccentricities.

Incidentally, he was a rescue cat so I don't know his history, but he had an incredible fear of small children and babies crying, so I'm guessing he was either thrown out or left voluntarily after a new baby arrived on the scene.

BrookieD

mm our cat was born on Achill but the mother and kittens always had human contact. so its a strat at least.

such a shame when a cat is just thrown out, i guess it takes a lot for them to trust again?

Alun

BrookieD wrote:

such a shame when a cat is just thrown out, i guess it takes a lot for them to trust again?

When we first got him he disappeared up into the top floor of the house and hid for a week, and he was incredibly nervous for some time afterwards. Strangely though when we went looking for a cat, he was the very last one we looked at (after all the others hissed and scratched when we went anywhere near their cages.) He was in a cage close to the ground and I knelt down and opened the cage door to see how he would react to me. Without any hesitation, he walked out of the cage, onto my knees and nuzzled his head up into my armpit! So in a way, he chose me, not the other way around:) Now, that's blown it, I've gone all weepy now

BrookieD

ok update on the Achillies the kitten.
got home last night and the mrs and baby are away in Galway for the weekend from last night so some quality bonding time was to be had.

Well after he scoffed the little piece of fish i gave him i sat down in the kitchen and got a shoe lace out and after 20 mins he finally got up the nerve to have a go at fighting and toying with the lace. i think he forgot where he was for a sec as he came out from under the rad and away from the table for a few mins, then looked up at me and ran away again.

Still i left him to it while i was getting my dinner and went back after dinner and after a small hiss i carried him into the living room and plonked him on the sofa and just sat in the other corner. He seemed a little confused but did not make a dart back to the kitchen, progress i think! after 5 mins here he got off the sofa and made he way to the patio doors where he saw his reflections and was not happy, he then went back into the kitchen and continued to play on his own for a good 2 hours with the lace i tied on his activity center.

I think we are making some progress with this little kitten.
good days ahead

morgana

Well done. Keep doing what you are doing, and maybe when he deigns :rolleyes:to play with you reward him with a nice little titbit so that he associates playing with you / contact with you with food.
I took one of our cats (around 2 when I got her) around 7 months to actually hop on my lap for cuddles. She sometimes grudgingly endures me picking her up for a few seconds but usually thats a no no.

BrookieD

yeah good idea, treats for play,
ahh bribes where would we be with out them