Reptile & Amphibian Forums

Well, folks, some of you may remember the story of my cat Gracie, who was a feral cat injured by our car at work. We took her to the emergency vet, who amputated her leg, but we brought her home and she is now a loving adorable member of our family. A week later we found her brothers and mother. The brothers were adopted, the mother (and older sister, we think) went to live on a farm.

NOW we have a new situation. We have been feeding the remaining cats under a trailer at work. One we trapped, neutered and released. The others are new. Suddenly, the maintenance people at work started to blame the cats for the air conditioner not working and they called the local animal shelter. We are in an emergency trapping mode -- trying to get them before our animal shelter does (and euthanizes them). We have 2 kittens right now. The mother and a 3rd kitten are still out there. The father was caught 2 days ago. He is being boarded at the vet and scheduled to be neutered on Tuesday. I think we will have to release him somewhere....

My question relates to the kittens. One of them is OK - she can be petted even though she is scared. Her sister is another story, however. She hisses and spits. So any advice on whether she can be tamed is appreciated. Has anyone ever used Rescue Remedy? Is it helpful? Are there other things we can do besides trying to pet them every day? I was bitten today by little miss hostility (the Puss of Puss & Boots). I would like to get them adopted because I can't keep them, but if Puss is not adoptable I will have to find somewhere to release her. It is a difficult problem.

Thanks for any advice...

-----
ellen

gracie & voodoo

Ellen, I've never used Rescue Remedy but know others on the boards have. My parents had a couple of feral kits trapped at a ranch. When the people brought them in, they were in a cardboard box with air holes. It took about three weeks before they both tamed down but they became the most wonderful pets and lived to old, spoiled ages. So, I think both of them can be tamed; it will just take time and patience. Thank you so much for rescuing and helping so many of these ferals. I remember when you got Gracie and her story. I hope you are able to trap the others. I'd try the Rescue Remedy, even if you just get one of the plug-ins and put it in the room with her for a little while at a time while you are talking to her. Katc

>>I'd try the Rescue Remedy, even if you just get one of the plug-ins and put it in the room with her for a little while at a time while you are talking to her. Katc>>

Katc, Rescue Remedy is not a plug-in. That's Comfort Zone with Feliway. Actually, I have used Rescue Remedy with Ashley and Nicky. It did help calm them down somewhat. And since it a natural flower essence, it doesn't harm them. You can add it to their food or water. The Comfort Zone might also since it mimics the calmative hormone that cats put off when they rub their cheeks against something. I would plug one of those in, in the room you will be keeping the kittens.
-----
Dottie
Proudly owned by The Catnip Crew...Munchkin,Casey,Maddie,Harley,Meadow,Ashley,Nicky and Mushka

Ellen, how old are these kittens? The younger they are, the easier it wil be to tame them. We trapped Ashley and Nicky out of their feral colony when they were 4 months old. Those 2 hissed and spit like little tazmanian devils at first. They hid for weeks in my room, but eventually calmed down. Now they are a wonderful part of our family. You can tame these kittens, it just takes time and patience. The little ones have learned the defensiveness from their mom already. I have to laugh when the little ones try and be so ferocious. But I have also been bitten very severely, so I know it's not fun. If you keep them in a cage or a small room with their water and litter and bring them food at certain times of the day, they will soon get used to you. Sit in the room and just talk gently to them without trying to pet them. Let them get used to you, offer them some tasty tidbits and you can even try enticing them to play with a feather wand or something like that. Don't force them to you, let them come to you and you will be surprised how well they can adjust and become friendly.
Good luck and keep us posted!
-----
Dottie
Proudly owned by The Catnip Crew...Munchkin,Casey,Maddie,Harley,Meadow,Ashley,Nicky and Mushka

Hi Ellen,
How is it going with the ferals? I had four ferals when I lived in WA. I trapped both of the female and got them spayed. The boys were too smart and would not go any where near the trap.
Anyway one of the boys got really friendly after about 2 months of talking quietly to him on the porch. He was even starting to let me pick him up. They would not come in the house because we had three dogs. One of which didn't like the ferals.
But with patience I think the little one will come around.
The vet tech at the vet office I used to use in WA state always would catch the ferals at kittens and bring them home to tame them then adopt them out.
Good luck.

Jaime

Thanks so much for the advice and the encouragement. I forgot to mention that the kittens are 14 weeks old. Today I found out that the tomcat tested positive for FELV. We are trying to find a place for him. I hope it will work out. The vet convinced me we could find a place, so I agreed to go ahead with the neutering tomorrow. I hope she is right. She is always such an optimist about placing cats, but the truth is, it is very hard.

Now I am worried that my 2 darling kittens may be positive even though the FELV test is negative, since I am pretty sure the tomcat is their father. I emailed Alley Cat Allies and they said it is unlikely at 14 weeks of age. I am also concerned about Gracie and Voodoo, who are not vaccinated because they are indoor cats. I always wash my hands after I visit the trailer kitties. I hope that is sufficient.

Worries, worries... the good news is that the "powers that be" at my university have given us more time to trap the cats before they fumigate and board up the trailer under which the cats were living. They have been fairly understanding, all things considered.

Thanks for listening.
-----
ellen

gracie & voodoo