Fostering kittens that don't meow

[vervainandrue]

I am always confused as to where I should post questions about my foster cats...I hope this is right.

I am fostering 6 kittens who came to me at 7 weeks (they are 9.5 weeks old now.) Their mother was feral and they were picked up in a TNR job, and mom was spayed and returned to her colony. Obviously, they were in need of socialization. At first, they were all hissy and terrified of me, and they meowed a little bit. Now, 2.5 weeks later, all but one has become affectionate (and I'll win the last one over, I'm determined) but they don't meow at all. Not a peep. Last night I played some YouTube vids of kittens meowing, and they reacted with very strong curiosity, but they didn't meow back. I was thinking of playing meowing vids for them that last a couple of hours at a time, so they can "learn" from the cats on YouTube, but I don't know if that will agitate them. They are growing into cute, healthy, sweet little critters, but the not meowing thing to me says, "I'm still feral." Does anyone have any insight or advice? Do you think exposing them to adult fosters who do meow would be helpful? Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[Jcatbird]

Meowing comes from babies mostly to attract Mom. They ask for food, affection, attention, care or out of some need. I am guessing you are providing for all their wants and needs so maybe they don’t feel they need to meow. Assuming all are healthy and no problem with throat are the ability to meow then I am betting they will meow when they desire something. I think exposing them in person to other cats that meow might stimulate them. Do you talk to them? It might help. If you are worried I would get a vet check but I think they will meow at some point if they have vocal abilities.
One thing to keep in mind is that kittens raised outdoors tend to be quiet because of predators. If they were produced from a long line of ferals, this is not surprising. I’ve had some very quiet babies at times. Hopefully they are just following instinct and are just very content little babies. You might try bringing in a highly scented and tasty treat a few times. Once you know they really love that treat, try holding it above them and announcing it. Kind of ,” I’ve got x! You babies want some X? “ Do that each time and try leading them a bit with the dish. They may begin to anticipate whatever it is and mew in order to get you to put the dish down. I often use all meat baby food that is warm to get the kittens excited. My little guy Whistle got his name because he got so excited he practically Whistled for the baby food. He had been a very weak and sickly kitten so getting that reaction when he got better was a true joy. Please let us know how it goes!

 

[vervainandrue]

Jcatbird, thanks for the reply! The little dudes sure do love meat tubes, and I have baby food in the house, so I'll try your trick. And I talk to them tons, and when I'm not in the room I put NPR on so they will constantly be exposed to human voices (maybe they are depressed by the state of the world.) Interestingly, I contacted a very prolific foster I follow on Instagram (Nikki Martinez in LV) and she hasn't seen this before. So we will see what happens.

 

[fionasmom]

Absolutely none of my ferals have ever meowed and friends have had the same experience. I do believe that as Jcatbird says, ferals have to be wary of predators and so it is a survival instinct verging on adaptation not to meow. Only Jamie, who was abandoned and rescued by me at about 4 weeks meows and I can't prove that he was feral, but he is a big talker. He may be the exception as he was tiny and sick and I got him vetted then basically carried him around in my bra talking to him all day.

Alice who is my avatar was from a feral litter. I TNRed the parents along with the kittens; the parents were true unadoptable ferals. Because Alice and her sisters have "known" me their whole life and have known that my property was their first source of food, they will give me very teeny tiny little meows if it is really necessary, but never anything further and they are so faint that you don't hear them if you are not listening.

 

[kittychick]

Big props for fostering!!!! I've fostered a ton of feral and semi-feral kitties, and probably 99% come here completely silent. It often evolves - but some stay pretty darn silent. And if it helps ease your mind a bit about them finding a home (I know the worry of anything making it less likely your fosters will be adopted) - - I really don't think many people associate "silent" with "feral." I've worked at several shelters, and I can't think of a single time anyone expressed that as a concern. And the people that do only know that are or have been involved with ferals, or know alot about them, so they'd be the people least likely to feel there was anything 'wrong' with them. Plus you've got the biggest advantage of all as far as finding homes - - - - they're kittens!!!

And as always - Jcatbird spelled it out well. It's not usually anything to be concerned about. Most feral cats and kittens make VERY little noise at all. Moms quickly teach their babies that meowing can attract predators, so most are virtually silent. Moms will call for babies if they can't find them, but otherwise, they know silence generally means safety! I've read several studies that say a huge portion of meowing is done for humans. That they hear us talking to each other, and, since they know we're the reason they're fed, sheltered, etc. - they mimic our speech by meowing to "fit in."

If you want to encourage them to be a bit more vocal, first - keep talking to them alot (as you do already). I also recommend (as Jcatbird does) - offer them Gerber "2nd Foods Chicken and Gravy" baby food (as a treat - not a meal). Most kitties (adult and kittens) love it so much that many of us call it "kitty crack!" But only that flavor (Beechnut has a similar flavor - but I've had less luck with it) - other flavors and other brands sometimes have ingredients kitties shouldn't have. And I too approach the cat/kitten saying - in a soft, high tone (like "baby talk") "I've got a treat for you" - and then offer a bit of the baby food. Eventually they'll look forward to it so much they'll start to jockey for a position to get to it ASAP - - and they'll start being vocal (in my head they're saying "that stinky baby food is MINE - thanks mom!").

It sounds like you're doing a wonderful job with them - - keep us posted on how they're doing! (kitten pictures are always appreciated!)

And fionasmom - Alice is just gorgeous!

 

[msaimee]

The last feral kitten I socialized didn't meow for the first few months. However, she learned to meow from one of my other cats, Sonny, who is very vocal. Now the two of them are always meowing, mostly just because they want to, and it drives me crazy! My other 4 cats rarely meow. Exposure to other cats who meow is the only way to get a feral kitty to learn this behavior (YouTube and videos won't do it), but my question is, why would you want them to start meowing? Enjoy the peace!

 

[moxiewild]

I have a litter of fosters about the same age. They’ll be 10 or so weeks this week. I’ve had them since they were around 7 weeks as well.

They and their Momma were only semi-feral, but I’ve only heard one make a peep on perhaps 3 occasions in these past few weeks. 2 just started purring this past week, and that was a big deal. One is still spitting at me and is a little on the violent side

Don’t worry about it. Ferals and semi-ferals rarely, if ever, meow. The adult ferals I’ve tamed never meowed, and if they eventually learned they always ended up with god awful meows and vocalizations it’s never quite a “meow” like our strays do. I’ve literally had people walk into my house and ask “What the he’ll is that” because they can’t imagine what sort of animal would make the sort of noise they’re hearing.

I agree that most potential adopters won’t even notice. The woman who’s been taking care of my kittens Momma for the past year had never realized Momma didn’t meow until I asked her when I was trying to figure out whether she was feral or not - it’s something that had never even occurred to her before.

So unless you suspect a medical issue, don’t give it another thought

 

[dcatboss]

This is so interesting to me! My kitty, Luna, was a kitten from a cat colony that was trapped as a baby and fostered. She was bottle fed. She has no meow! She is my 7th cat, and she is with my 6th cat, who likes to rough house and she never meows. She does "talk" with loud purr noises when she sees birds or jumps but no meows. I worry because she can't scare off my other cat when he gets rough, but she is twice his size. But she obviously from a long line of ferals.