Feral kitten issues

[MeghansMom]

Some background-We have four pets. We have Happy who is almost 15yo and is a male Husky/Labrador mix. He is as his name states, "happy". We purchased him from the pound 14 years ago and he was already named Happy. We were going to change it, but he is so darn happy, lol. So we kept it. Next we purchased from the pound a male brown tabby we named Chance. Again, a very loving animal. He was in foster care for a bit with a very loving volunteer. He is just so loving and affectionate. We then ended up with a Russian Blue female that a "boyfriend" of my daughter gave her named Bella. Chance and Bella I would say are about 8 years old. Bella is a female cat through and through, but she does love my daughter to pieces. If my daughter is upset, she will run to her to comfort her. She gets along well with the other animals and Chance adores her, grooming her and such. She is the alpha cat of the household. We then bought a Chihuahua off of Craig's List about four years ago. A female named Allie. She is very submissive and loving, a lap dog. She sometimes gets great pleasure in chasing the cats, but it is all in good fun and they even groom her on occasion. They are all fixed and get along beautifully. Well, against my better judgment, we now have a feral kitten.

 

To say my daughter is an animal lover does not begin to describe her passion for animals. She is mostly vegetarian and wanting to be vegan when she is older. She looks through the local shelter and lists the names of the animals and prays for them to get adopted and when they are she thanks God and then adds more to her list. She will be thirteen in October and is literally counting the days that she can volunteer at the humane shelter. She gives a portion of her allowance to the humane shelter, collects newspaper around the neighborhood, buys needed supplies and pesters me to visit the shelter every day so that she may socialize the animals. She wrote her first persuasive essay this year on why one should adopt a shelter pet. She is very knowledgeable about animals. She wanted to be a vet at one point but now she wants to be an attorney and work for animal rights pro bono and open an animal sanctuary. She figures she would be more helpful on a grander scale fighting for animal rights.

 

We moved into our neighborhood about 22 months ago. There are a few feral cats around. We found out that there used to be a snake problem, so one of the neighbors across the street bought a pair of cats and the cats bred taking care of the snake problem. They then had a cat problem. They called animal control and they caught most of the cats. They did not catch the infamous Callie. She roams the neighborhood having litters. My daughter purchased a cat trap and has been trying to catch her so she can have her spayed. (she has set aside her own money for this) with no luck. However, last time she had a litter, we caught a male orange tabby. He is BEAUTIFUL. He was five weeks old and we feel we have socialized him well. He curls up around my daughter's neck or on top her head while she sleeps. The thing is, he attacks our two cats and our Chihuahua. The Chihuahua is 12 pounds and is a little sausage but he leaps in the air like a lion and tries to also bring her down by the neck. He does this to Chance too and to Bella some but she does not put up with it and really goes after him. Well now are cats are not coming home. They are going to neighbors and trying to get in their houses. We originally were suppose to foster the kitten and then talked about turning him over once he had all his shots and was neutered. My daughter loves the kitten very much and I love orange tabbies. He also has a bit of Siamese in him and he is long and lean with the Siamese eyes. But I can't lose my other cats. I was thinking maybe once he is neutered in several weeks he will calm down? Can he still be wild when we grabbed him and socialized him so early? He also licks my daughter's face like a dog, lol. You can hear him loudly purr when she is around and he meows and looks for her throughout the house if he does not see her.

 

Any suggestions?

 

Thanks!

[catz]

I don't have any amazing suggestions, but how old is kitty now? I've had many kittens and often they really do mellow by about age 1. Our 2 8 month old kittens are way more chill then they used to be. And on that note we have 2 old cats too and then kittens really only wrestle each other and don't mess with the older cats. So an age companion isn't a bad idea if you can do that.

 

I had one feral kitten that was my craziest kitten, but a was a sweet mellow adult lap cat.

Edited July 11, 2016 by WoolySocks

[hornblower]

I don't think your kitten is feral. I think he's being a jerk kitten. Kittens can be like that.  He'll calm down as he matures.  I'd probably do a bit of a forced socialization and make your cats stay home a bit. Don't let them out or build a catio. Healthier for them & for the bird population. 

Get a feliway plug in, make sure you have lots of beds, hiding places and numerous litter boxes (# of cats +1), supervise, interrupt inappropriate play, but also let them sort themselves out. 


For your feral mom, the roast chicken that you buy from grocery stores is one of the preferred baits.  

 

You have to be patient with trapping - set the trap and don't move it, put fresh food out daily. If you buy a lot of the chicken, freezing it in small portions & then heating it gently in microwave can be an economical solution. Putting a tarp or some plywood over it sometimes helps. It's too late now but if you thought that was her kitten, you might have been able to lure her using the kitten.  Of course you can only do it for short periods and you have to make sure kittens stay warm and dry so their traip is outfitted with blankets and hot water bottle & covering. You double up traps, one behind the other. Kittens in the back, set empty trap in front.  mom will often come to check the crying kittens. 



(p.s. <3 your dd. Our entire house is an AR home. Pet animal rescue, wildlife rescue, fostering, volunteering for various orgs... my kids do it all.. :)  ) 

[ktgrok]

Well, first, how old is he now? Young kittens are jerks. Seriously. I was like your daughter, went vegetarian at age 13, became a vet tech, love animals hugely. I have two rescued cats right now. Worked in veterinary medicine for 20 years. But kittens are jerks. I'd use a stronger word but don't want to offend anyone. They really are nothing but trouble wrapped up in fur. I would never purposely adopt a kitten, although we did take in one that ended up on our doorstop meowing to get in. Sigh. And he was a total jerk, lol. 

 

Anyway, if it's just a young tiny kitten it will probably grow out of it. HOWEVER....orphaned kittens can have lots of behavioral issues because mom isn't around to tell them to knock it the heck off. To the point that veterinary behaviorists have realistically said that orphans might be better off euthanized rather than bottle fed, because they end up so messed up. Now, if this kitten was of an age to eat solid food, MAYBE that isn't the case...the one we ended up with is fine.

 

So I guess the issue is, how old is he now? And can you keep him separate from the other cats for large portions of the day to keep him from stressing them out?

[MercyA]

I don't know enough about cats to advise you, but I just want to say your daughter ROCKS.  :thumbup1:

[MeghansMom]

The vet said he was about five weeks old when we brought him in on May 13th. I have had kittens before and they did not act like lionesses bringing down prey, lol.

 

I don't know if he is trying to dominate the other animals or what.

 

The big dog he rarely messes with but he is 60 pounds and basically ignores him now that he is not new.

 

Once I get my adult cats back to the house, I plan on keeping the kitten away from them.

 

They are given no peace, especially Chance when they are inside.

Edited July 11, 2016 by MeghansMom

[Tanaqui]

If he was 5 weeks in May, then it's past time for him to be neutered. Get him done now, the sooner, the better.

 

I would also keep the kitten isolated from the other animals until he mellows out, if your daughter is not willing to rehome him to a family where he'll be the only cat. He might mellow out when he gets older, or he might not. 5 weeks is very young to be separated from mom and his siblings, and that sort of thing does a number on a cat's psychology.

[Tanaqui]

To the point that veterinary behaviorists have realistically said that orphans might be better off euthanized rather than bottle fed, because they end up so messed up.

 

Handrearing a kitten is also something prone to failure on a physical front if you don't know what you're doing. The best thing to do with orphans, if they're healthy, is foster them with another mother cat. You don't need to jump right to euthanasia :)

 

But yes, I'd say that in general, a kitten separated from mom at a young age is a cat for a special home, especially if they were also separated from their littermates.

[redsquirrel]

We unknowlingly adopted a kitten that was feral.  It's not something I would ever do again. She was....not a great housecat.  But we kept her for her whole life, and treated as well as she would let us.

 

Feral cats are often inbred and can be mentally unstable.  Ours was NUTS. She bit and scratched as a kitten and as an adult cat. As she got older she spent about 95% of her time hiding. She would come out after the kids were in bed and eat.  If she wasn't under my bed she was in the basement.

 

But we couldn't pet her or she would bite etc. We did have other cats for the first half of her life (she outlived them) and fortunately she was the sort to just hide from other animals. But, her aggressiveness towards humans that she manifested as a kitten never went away. She just got bigger and more likely to hurt us so we just left her alone. If she had treated other animals the way she treated us, or if she went after people or animals, we would have had to get rid of her.

 

 

It was weird when she died. I've always been heartbroken when we've had to put a kitty down. But, this one? It was just an appointment we had to make. She was a cat that lived with us, but she was never a pet.

[MeghansMom]

If he was 5 weeks in May, then it's past time for him to be neutered. Get him done now, the sooner, the better.

 

I would also keep the kitten isolated from the other animals until he mellows out, if your daughter is not willing to rehome him to a family where he'll be the only cat. He might mellow out when he gets older, or he might not. 5 weeks is very young to be separated from mom and his siblings, and that sort of thing does a number on a cat's psychology.

 

 

He is about thirteen weeks old?

 

My daughter does not believe in spaying/neutering too early.

 

She wants to wait until he is six months old.

[MeghansMom]

Handrearing a kitten is also something prone to failure on a physical front if you don't know what you're doing. The best thing to do with orphans, if they're healthy, is foster them with another mother cat. You don't need to jump right to euthanasia :)

 

But yes, I'd say that in general, a kitten separated from mom at a young age is a cat for a special home, especially if they were also separated from their littermates.

 

He was his only surviving littermate. One was hit by a car and the other two were eaten by predators a few days after we caught him.

[hornblower]

I'd neuter him now. I haven't seen any convincing evidence in support of waiting.  

[redsquirrel]

You can neuter at 2lbs. They have a much faster recovery time and it is less likely that he will pick up the spraying habit. Plus, if you spay or neuter before there is any chance of puberty/maturity, the incidences of reproductive cancers is much smaller.

[gingersmom]

I'm convinced orange cats are crazy! It sounds like my brothers crazy cat he adopted at 1 year old. He died at 14 and was cuckoo till the end.

Edited July 11, 2016 by gingersmom

[MeghansMom]

I have talked to her and we are going to get him neutered. She does strongly believe in spaying/neutering animals to control the pet population, she just really hates it when the shelter fixes them too early.

 

Now, when he goes to pounce on the other animals, should we take him by his scruff like his momma cat would do and tell him no, possibly put him in another room?

 

I know I tell him no when I am eating (on the couch, etc) and he knows not to mess with my food, he walks away and leaves me alone.

[ktgrok]

I have talked to her and we are going to get him neutered. She does strongly believe in spaying/neutering animals to control the pet population, she just really hates it when the shelter fixes them too early.

 

Now, when he goes to pounce on the other animals, should we take him by his scruff like his momma cat would do and tell him no, possibly put him in another room?

 

I know I tell him no when I am eating (on the couch, etc) and he knows not to mess with my food, he walks away and leaves me alone.

 

Honestly, the other cats/dogs can probably discipline him way better than you can. I wouldn't try to mimic mom, you won't be good at it, lol. But yes, if he is being too crazy just put him in the other room. But first, try to distract him with lots of toys, the kind on a stick/string. He probably needs way more play time. 

[Terabith]

We found and rescued a stray kitten who was about five weeks old. Jerk is an understatement. He's almost one now and still kind of jerky but much mellowed. The 17 and 9 year old cats aren't in constant terror anymore. Feliway helped, as did giving everyone space and once he hit about six months, we started kicking him outside some. I've never had a cat that went out before but everyone is much happier. We also neutered him early. Not sure if it helped but certainly didn't hurt.

[Terabith]

We also found growling at him to be by FAR the most effective discipline. It was like, "Oh! You don't like that? Sorry! My bad!" He didn't have the impulse control to keep from doing it again but over time it was genuinely effective.

 

He never messes with the 17 year old cat who growls and lunges towards him. He does harass the 9 year old cat who runs away. She's lost weight, which is a good thing.

[hornblower]

you can try clicker training. It gives them fun things to learn & tires them out. Making animals think & problem solve really exhausts them LOL 

How to Tame Your Kitten Clicker Style http://www.clickertraining.com/node/1709

& 

Edited July 11, 2016 by hornblower

[Tanaqui]

Your daughter is wrong. Neutering earlier means they recover faster, with fewer complications, and they seem to have less pain. It also means they are less likely to escape the house and pick fights with other toms in an effort to get some tail. Three months is not "too early", it's right on schedule. Six months is too late - for queens, it means they may have already gotten pregnant. For toms, it means they may already be developing bad habits that make it hard to rehome them, like roaming or spraying. Edit: Here is a study on pediatric neutering in cats. They didn't find any medical reason not to castrate or spay earlier. And castration *does* reduce aggression in cats, whenever you do it.

 

Additionally, for the animals at the shelter, neutering them before they get adopted means that you don't have to rely on the new owners to remember, which is good, because they won't.

 

Sorry, I should step off my soapbox now.

Edited July 11, 2016 by Tanaqui

[MeghansMom]

So with my daughter we looked up the pros and cons of fixing an animal. I did see where she had read that some animals have continence issues by being fixed too early. However, there were also a lot of pros, so yes we are getting the kitten fixed this Friday. In the mean time, when the two adult cats are in the house, the kitten goes into the classroom with his food/water bowl, kitty litter, toys and his extra soft kitty blankets. When they are outside which they mostly are, Kylo has free reign of the house. Meghan has ramped up with playing with him and the situation is much better. Our other cats come home more and stay on our property more too.

 

Thanks for the suggestions and such. Appreciate it.  :wub:

[Okra]

Personally, I would keep fostering and adopt kitty to a different home.  Sometimes it is just best for all the animals in the house.  Your house may not be a good fit.

 

Yes, I know this will be hard for DD, but as much as she might want to, she cannot adopt all the animals.  Fostering and giving away to adopt can be a good experience also, although hard in the short term.

 

 

[ktgrok]

Personally, I would keep fostering and adopt kitty to a different home.  Sometimes it is just best for all the animals in the house.  Your house may not be a good fit.

 

Yes, I know this will be hard for DD, but as much as she might want to, she cannot adopt all the animals.  Fostering and giving away to adopt can be a good experience also, although hard in the short term.

 

I wouldn't give up yet. Cats take months to accept a new feline in the house. Months. My old tom cat HATED the kitten we got. Spit and hissed if he came anywhere near him. Now they snuggle on the bed together all afternoon and groom each other for a good part of the day. Best buddies. It just took time. (and the kitten growing up a bit). 

 

In the beginning it was kind of funny, because the kitten would come up to snuggle and the older cat would hiss, and the kitten would ignore him and keep snuggling, until the older one just gave up and snuggled. It was like after a while, he couldn't resist. My husband called it hate snuggling.

[Pippen]

My 10 year old cat was that kitten out of a feral mama, found in the backyard when he was a week old. I also was originally going to foster him--had a home lined up and everything--but of course fell in love with him and kept him instead. 

 

Friends who knew cats well took care of him when he was about five weeks old and told me to look out because he in constant play attack mode. I believe the words they used were "mighty little hunter."  For that reason we neutered as soon as the vet would allow it (think around 9-10 weeks of age). I do think it was a combination of his own feisty temperament and lack of discipline by his own mama, but it took years before he settled down and even then he was a more temperamental. For those first few years he attacked everything that moved, and even things that didn't--such as spots on the wall or wallpaper. From the beginning my husband was firmer with him than I was--flicked his fingers on his nose when he'd try biting or striking--and he's much better behaved with him than with those of us who were just nice to him and didn't discipline him. The spray bottle of water than is often recommended didn't work with him because he loved water, as in he'd stick his face in the shower stream.

 

Of course he had a fun, sweet, adorable side too, but he doesn't like handling and isn't a lap cat, even though he was very cuddly when he was little. Because of allergies I'm totally fine with the non-lap cat part, but the family honestly would have preferred a "nicer" cat. He's social and likes to be with me most of the time--just doesn't like holding and petting much. Being resistant to handling makes grooming, giving meds, etc. difficult. It's also made vet visits challenging and he has to be put to sleep in order to have a thorough exam done. His aggression also improved when we started letting him outside--being an indoor/outdoor cat worked out much better so he could burn off some of that energy.

 

Because I had young children and their friends, I did have to be more vigilant when he was little, but it turned out he was calmer with new children coming around than adults. Even now that he's older and more settled I don't let a repair person in without putting him away first, just to be on the safe side. We didn't/don't have any other inside pets when he came into our lives, but if he hadn't been mixing well with them I might have gone a different direction and let him go. I haven't regretted keeping him, but he's definitely MY cat since I was his mama, and not a family pet.

 

Since this is more than a passing interest for your daughter, I'd suggest inquiring on this board where you'll find many knowledgeable people. Even if you do wind up finding another home for him, it would be good for her to learn what steps might help socializing the feistier ones.

http://www.thecatsite.com/