Hissing spitting feral kittens

gleason

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Have 4 feral kittens in our garage that are 5 weeks old. I've been trying to get close to them but they hiss and spit at me. I don't want to stress them too much so I leave them pretty much alone. I just poke my head in where they are every day and talk to them. Any suggestions to get them tamed down? Mama cat is around. She comes to me in the morning when it's feeding time but other than that she keeps her distance.
 

NY cat man

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Do you have a chair in your garage? If so, just sit in it. Read a book or something, but ignore them. Let them come to you. Place the food dish a little closer to you each time they get comfortable with a given location. Treats help. Just don't try to rush things. This is what we did for 5 of our 6( the other was a 4yr. old TNR). It took us on average about 4 months before the kittens trusted us enough to follow us into the house, where they still are. Good luck with your endeavor.
 

fionasmom

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The biggest thing is it takes time. Go slowly and do what N NY cat man suggested, getting a little bit closer as the days go on. My avatar Alice and her sister now live inside only. They were born 2 years ago under my neighbor's house...and no, it would not have taken 2 years except for issues going on around here which meant that we had to TNR and release rather than tame. My point is that they were wild; I put on a big jacket and gloves and goggles just to release them from the trap as expected a direct attack. But little by little the house became interesting to them, I talked to them through the sliding glass door, created little games like tossing a ping pong ball against the door so they could bat at it, gave treats, and both because completely domesticated. Don't run right in with toys immediately though as some might be perceived as scary, like a wand.
 
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