Kittens and Human touch

Brok · Oct 17, 2020

Hello, I got 2 female kittens (around 4 months old) and I'm trying to introduce to them the human touch. I got them quite recent (about 1 month ago) and they improved a lot since i got them. The first few days both were hiding and only came out at night. Now they don't hide anymore but still seem to be a little scared of me, especially when walking past them they usually run a little bit away from me.
One of them is also still injured because she fell from the balcony when she was still with her previous owner.

Now to my question:
I'm trying to pet them but they don't like the hand at all. Like, they don't let me pet them. They move away quickly and sometimes hiss.
What would be the best way to get them used to petting and the hand?

klunick · Oct 17, 2020

Associate your hand with good things like treats/food. Throw a treat out far enough from you that they will come and get it. Then try throwing it a little closer and closer each time until you can hold it in your hand and they will come to you.

susanm9006 · Oct 17, 2020

Spend time sitting and laying on the floor. You are much less scary when you are closer to their height. You can offer them treats, toss toys to them, play with their toys or just sit there until they get interested and start climbing on you. At first you will need to ignore them and let them make the first moves towards you. Using a wand toy is also a great way of having fun with them and when they are fully engaged in play they forget there is a human at the other end of the stick.