Nervous about a trip to the Vet

feralSuki

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Hello everyone!
I brought home a feral kitten home a little under a month ago (her name is Suki and she's about 12 weeks old now, and I've posted about her here before!) and she has come out of her shell a little bit! She will now play with me and let me sit right next to her when she eats, she will run out to meet me when I bring her food, and she will come sniff me (even without treats) but then retreat back to her bed to watch me for a few hours. I am so proud of her. She still hisses if I approach her too quickly, but she calms when I quietly tell her it's okay. She will eat in my lap if I hold her food bowl, but I haven't tried to pet her in weeks, I don't think she is comfortable with that. This is all great progress I think, but I am very worried because I need to take her to the vet for the rest of her vaccinations (she didn't weigh enough the first time I took her) and I know this can be quite stressful for cats, especially scaredy cats like Suki. I'm not too worried about getting her into her carrier, I leave it open and she likes to hide out in there sometimes. But I am terrified about how she will feel about getting a wellness exam. I am especially anxious about not being able to be there with her in the room due to Covid. I am very protective of her and I take her progress very seriously, so I've been researching the best clinics around me.

I'm wondering if you guys have any experiences with this and can share any tips on how I can make this trip less stressful for her? Thank you in advance :)
 

Jcatbird

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Cover the carrier with a towel or blanket but make sure she likes that and stays cool enough if you live where it is hot. I always face the carrier towards me so that I can talk to them during the drive.
This may actually be surprising to you. She is going to the vet in her safe carrier/ turtle shell.You did a great thing by letting her use it as her little house. That adds a level of security for her. Plus, plus! You could try some calming Feliway spray ahead of time and if she doesn’t mind it, spray it inside the carrier or on a towel before going. I always take an extra towel that smells like home to wrap around the kitty or to let them put their heads under it to hide while the vet is taking temp or giving shots, etc. it helps a lot. I talk to the kitties and tell them I am there and it’s going to be okay. I keep their carrier where they can see it so they know they can get back to it.
I take lots of kitties to the vet and all react differently. These have all been ferals. The one I was most concerned about, fell in love with the vet! :lol: When the vet and techs left the room he wanted to follow them. My fluff girl was very scared at first. She played possum and scared me! She pretended to faint and went limp. Then I saw that she was watching me through squinted eyes! Smart girl. She was fine. She did that for many visits!
One thing you can do with scared kitties is that when you bring them home, pet through the bars if possible and tell them it’s okay. Give a couple of little treats through the bars , reassuring words and release the kitty as you sit on the floor with them. The kitty may stay put or may run out but give some quiet time and then return with a nice plate of favorite food and you may discover that kitty is very grateful you brought her back to her home. You saved her again! Most of my cats will hide on vet day, ( they always seem to know! Lol) but once there,they are okay. Any meows by kitties are answered by me with , “it’s okay!” They do learn. It’s a lot like going to the doctor, we all feel a little stressed but once it’s over, we calm down.
Do you have other cats? If so, Scent swapping with others after the visit by rubbing the towels on all will keep the others from being upset by vet smells. I hope you don’t mind the photos but they show how I use towels or familiar blankets as a tool to reassure. Try not to anticipate too much because some cats do very well and you are doing the very best thing by getting vet visits done.

I have the vet offer a treat too.
06D6BF01-76B4-4A0E-AF5B-3A1A3D1F5DA8.jpeg

A towel from home carries a comforting scent.
DE2731A0-EC3D-4934-BA9F-4D52BEA36823.jpeg
9A801CD6-5F2B-4799-99F9-CE93B7C431CE.jpeg

After the exam ...
A6651283-CF59-48E7-AB86-7547A6AAE9B5.jpeg


You may find the kitten is very glad to retreat to a familiar human. It can be a chance for bonding.
36CCBCA9-5803-482A-9614-838BF8ADCA76.jpeg


A covered carrier but I allow a view out if the cat desires it.
20053C3F-D211-4CA9-AC00-AFB10DFCFBFD.jpeg

Please do let us know how it goes.
 

fionasmom

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I do think that Jcatbird Jcatbird has covered everything that might be helpful. We just took one of our former ferals who was recently brought into the house on a permanent basis. She had tapeworms and I stressed about dropping her off in the lot, putting her in the carrier, the usual stuff. She cried for a minute in the carrier and then decided on some level that it was interesting and relaxed. Vet always calls from the office to the lot and said that she was fine and behaving. When we brought her home it was like nothing had happened. You can never tell. Good luck with your baby!
 

moxiewild

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This is normal to be concerned about!

She will be stressed and terrified in all likelihood, but remember - that’s most animals at the vet anyway. They may not understand it’s temporary, but the fact is, that it is temporary (and necessary!) and she will be okay!

Feliway is a great suggestion, and covering the crate and keeping the car quiet while you drive always helps.

I would encourage you to try petting her beforehand if you can, though.

Are you free feeding her or doing scheduled meals? Scheduled meals - and being there the entire time she eats - help with socialization because it strengthens the association between you and a good thing (food).

This can be a bit of a hassle with a kitten since they need to eat so frequently, but it’s worth it and you can stop doing it once you can reliably pet her in most cases.

It sounds like she’s far enough along to where she would allow you to hand feed her, too. I would try it and see. This helps her better associate your hands specifically with something good.

Switch between hand feeding and having her eat right in front of you.

During meals where she eats right in front of you, slowly push her challenge line by making movements as though you are going to pet her, without actually doing so.

So movements at first may start very small. Just calmly lifting your hand off the ground a few inches, then back down. Keep doing doing that until she no longer reacts, then lift higher. Then toward her more. Keep going until you’ve gone a meal or two with you able to lift your hand up and over her without touching her and she’s still ignoring it. Then try to pet her.

She might recoil and hiss at first, but be persistent and keep petting so long as she isn’t trying to bite or seriously swat.

With a kitten so young, I usually don’t spend too much time on this process. Sometimes, they just need you to go for it, even if they’re still hissing and posturing.

Aside from food time, another good time to sneak a pet in is when they’re in an especially playful (almost social) mood, or very, very sleepy!

Getting her used to pets and being handled prior to the vet will help make the trip a lot easier for her.

And honestly, from what you’ve described, she seems ready or extremely close to it!
 
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feralSuki

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This is normal to be concerned about!

She will be stressed and terrified in all likelihood, but remember - that’s most animals at the vet anyway. They may not understand it’s temporary, but the fact is, that it is temporary (and necessary!) and she will be okay!

Feliway is a great suggestion, and covering the crate and keeping the car quiet while you drive always helps.

I would encourage you to try petting her beforehand if you can, though.

Are you free feeding her or doing scheduled meals? Scheduled meals - and being there the entire time she eats - help with socialization because it strengthens the association between you and a good thing (food).

This can be a bit of a hassle with a kitten since they need to eat so frequently, but it’s worth it and you can stop doing it once you can reliably pet her in most cases.

It sounds like she’s far enough along to where she would allow you to hand feed her, too. I would try it and see. This helps her better associate your hands specifically with something good.

Switch between hand feeding and having her eat right in front of you.

During meals where she eats right in front of you, slowly push her challenge line by making movements as though you are going to pet her, without actually doing so.

So movements at first may start very small. Just calmly lifting your hand off the ground a few inches, then back down. Keep doing doing that until she no longer reacts, then lift higher. Then toward her more. Keep going until you’ve gone a meal or two with you able to lift your hand up and over her without touching her and she’s still ignoring it. Then try to pet her.

She might recoil and hiss at first, but be persistent and keep petting so long as she isn’t trying to bite or seriously swat.

With a kitten so young, I usually don’t spend too much time on this process. Sometimes, they just need you to go for it, even if they’re still hissing and posturing.

Aside from food time, another good time to sneak a pet in is when they’re in an especially playful (almost social) mood, or very, very sleepy!

Getting her used to pets and being handled prior to the vet will help make the trip a lot easier for her.

And honestly, from what you’ve described, she seems ready or extremely close to it!
I' m actually so glad you mentioned feeding and such. I feed her four times a day at specific times, and I was hand feeding her for a couple weeks when we got her. she will eat in my lap if I hold the bowl with no issue. But recently she has been exhibiting new behaviors that I'm not sure are good or not so good. When I pick up her food bowl to go get the food, she will run out and meet me at the bowl (sometimes hissing while she comes over- I usually just try not to react) and when I put her food in and set it down she will run over to me against still hissing. I'm not sure if this is a good thing (maybe she's being more confident but still warning me not to move or startle her) or if this is something else. another thing, recently when she sniffs my hands, she will sniff for a second and pause, then hiss and swat at my hand. This is a little confusing for me because I never approach her to have her smell me, she approaches me on her own. I've read that sometimes this just means I need to increase her playtime, which I have but I just want to make sure I'm not doing anything that is causing her to react poorly. Thank you so much for the response!!!
 
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feralSuki

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Cover the carrier with a towel or blanket but make sure she likes that and stays cool enough if you live where it is hot. I always face the carrier towards me so that I can talk to them during the drive.
This may actually be surprising to you. She is going to the vet in her safe carrier/ turtle shell.You did a great thing by letting her use it as her little house. That adds a level of security for her. Plus, plus! You could try some calming Feliway spray ahead of time and if she doesn’t mind it, spray it inside the carrier or on a towel before going. I always take an extra towel that smells like home to wrap around the kitty or to let them put their heads under it to hide while the vet is taking temp or giving shots, etc. it helps a lot. I talk to the kitties and tell them I am there and it’s going to be okay. I keep their carrier where they can see it so they know they can get back to it.
I take lots of kitties to the vet and all react differently. These have all been ferals. The one I was most concerned about, fell in love with the vet! :lol: When the vet and techs left the room he wanted to follow them. My fluff girl was very scared at first. She played possum and scared me! She pretended to faint and went limp. Then I saw that she was watching me through squinted eyes! Smart girl. She was fine. She did that for many visits!
One thing you can do with scared kitties is that when you bring them home, pet through the bars if possible and tell them it’s okay. Give a couple of little treats through the bars , reassuring words and release the kitty as you sit on the floor with them. The kitty may stay put or may run out but give some quiet time and then return with a nice plate of favorite food and you may discover that kitty is very grateful you brought her back to her home. You saved her again! Most of my cats will hide on vet day, ( they always seem to know! Lol) but once there,they are okay. Any meows by kitties are answered by me with , “it’s okay!” They do learn. It’s a lot like going to the doctor, we all feel a little stressed but once it’s over, we calm down.
Do you have other cats? If so, Scent swapping with others after the visit by rubbing the towels on all will keep the others from being upset by vet smells. I hope you don’t mind the photos but they show how I use towels or familiar blankets as a tool to reassure. Try not to anticipate too much because some cats do very well and you are doing the very best thing by getting vet visits done.

I have the vet offer a treat too.
View attachment 350225
A towel from home carries a comforting scent.
View attachment 350226View attachment 350227
After the exam ...
View attachment 350231

You may find the kitten is very glad to retreat to a familiar human. It can be a chance for bonding.
View attachment 350230

A covered carrier but I allow a view out if the cat desires it.
View attachment 350232
Please do let us know how it goes.
Thank you so much for all of this advice! I do have some feliway spray that I will use in her carrier! I really appreciate you taking the time to respond so thoroughly, it makes me feel a lot more prepared for our trip to the vet. I'm still trying to figure out if there is a vet around me that will let me come in with her, but if not I still think I've found a good vet to take her to. I'll definitely update you!
 

moxiewild

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I' m actually so glad you mentioned feeding and such. I feed her four times a day at specific times, and I was hand feeding her for a couple weeks when we got her. she will eat in my lap if I hold the bowl with no issue. But recently she has been exhibiting new behaviors that I'm not sure are good or not so good. When I pick up her food bowl to go get the food, she will run out and meet me at the bowl (sometimes hissing while she comes over- I usually just try not to react) and when I put her food in and set it down she will run over to me against still hissing. I'm not sure if this is a good thing (maybe she's being more confident but still warning me not to move or startle her) or if this is something else. another thing, recently when she sniffs my hands, she will sniff for a second and pause, then hiss and swat at my hand. This is a little confusing for me because I never approach her to have her smell me, she approaches me on her own. I've read that sometimes this just means I need to increase her playtime, which I have but I just want to make sure I'm not doing anything that is causing her to react poorly. Thank you so much for the response!!!
That’s great! Start the hand feeding again and switch between that and her eating in front of you and practicing desensitizing her to the “petting” movements.

What you describe doesn’t sound at all aggressive, so that’s good!

In your opinion, when she swats at you, is she seriously swatting you? As in, she has intention to do harm? Or is it more of a “warning swat”, like “I don’t like that, get away!”

So long as it is a warning swat (which it sounds like it is), you’re okay!

What’s happening with the hissing and posturing is that she is gradually getting over her fear - enough to explore her curiosity and even seek you out.

However, she’s still scared and uncertain, and because of that, she hisses.

But any increased interest in you and interaction with you (other than overt aggression) is definite progress!

I trapped a ten week old feral kitten about a month ago, and didn’t start to really work with him until he was 11 weeks old.

At first, I couldn’t get anything out of him, he was just frozen.

Then came the hissing, spitting, charging, swatting, etc. Total drama queen!

While he became more tolerant of me overall, he was still doing all that posturing until the day I pet him, and even a couple days after!

It’s been a couple weeks now, and he’s still improving, but also hisses quite a bit still too (especially when first walking in the room or getting up and making big movements).

We just ignore it and pet him and then he’s like “oh yeah, I like this” and things are fine! He’s one of the most affectionate kittens we’ve had in fact - there are just times where we still need to remind him that humans are good so that he can relax.

So just because they hiss, it doesn’t mean you can’t pet them. You have to challenge them a bit sometimes, especially at this age.

Keep allowing her to sniff you, and stick out your index finger to welcome/encourage it. Repetition is what it takes for her to understand that sniffing your hand isn’t dangerous.

When she eats in your lap, I assume she crawls on it herself? Does she seem apprehensive when she does it?

Like I said, do the feeding stuff, and keep playing with her. You’re doing a great job!

Some kittens will eventually come to you to be pet when they’re well and ready, but at her age, I’m more inclined to force it a bit after several weeks.

Don’t do anything you aren’t comfortable with, but for very young kittens like this, it’s not a hard and fast rule that you need to wait for them to come to you.

And getting her used to petting will be very helpful with her vet visit!
 
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feralSuki

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That’s great! Start the hand feeding again and switch between that and her eating in front of you and practicing desensitizing her to the “petting” movements.

What you describe doesn’t sound at all aggressive, so that’s good!

In your opinion, when she swats at you, is she seriously swatting you? As in, she has intention to do harm? Or is it more of a “warning swat”, like “I don’t like that, get away!”

So long as it is a warning swat (which it sounds like it is), you’re okay!

What’s happening with the hissing and posturing is that she is gradually getting over her fear - enough to explore her curiosity and even seek you out.

However, she’s still scared and uncertain, and because of that, she hisses.

But any increased interest in you and interaction with you (other than overt aggression) is definite progress!

I trapped a ten week old feral kitten about a month ago, and didn’t start to really work with him until he was 11 weeks old.

At first, I couldn’t get anything out of him, he was just frozen.

Then came the hissing, spitting, charging, swatting, etc. Total drama queen!

While he became more tolerant of me overall, he was still doing all that posturing until the day I pet him, and even a couple days after!

It’s been a couple weeks now, and he’s still improving, but also hisses quite a bit still too (especially when first walking in the room or getting up and making big movements).

We just ignore it and pet him and then he’s like “oh yeah, I like this” and things are fine! He’s one of the most affectionate kittens we’ve had in fact - there are just times where we still need to remind him that humans are good so that he can relax.

So just because they hiss, it doesn’t mean you can’t pet them. You have to challenge them a bit sometimes, especially at this age.

Keep allowing her to sniff you, and stick out your index finger to welcome/encourage it. Repetition is what it takes for her to understand that sniffing your hand isn’t dangerous.

When she eats in your lap, I assume she crawls on it herself? Does she seem apprehensive when she does it?

Like I said, do the feeding stuff, and keep playing with her. You’re doing a great job!

Some kittens will eventually come to you to be pet when they’re well and ready, but at her age, I’m more inclined to force it a bit after several weeks.

Don’t do anything you aren’t comfortable with, but for very young kittens like this, it’s not a hard and fast rule that you need to wait for them to come to you.

And getting her used to petting will be very helpful with her vet visit!
To be quite honest, I think I'm terrified to push her in case I break the trust I've built with her already, and maybe that's why I haven't really tried to pet her. I will resume hand feeding today! And yes she crawls into my lap for her food on her own, last night she did it even though I had no food or treats (that was followed by a little swat, but no claws were showing). I'm relieved to read your thoughts, so thank you. I had no idea she was born feral and had no real interaction with people until I got her, so I was thrown for a loop when I realized I had no idea how to go about socializing a kitten, I didn't even know it was a "thing" (I chalk that up to being a dog person for most of my life). So yes, I really appreciate all your feedback and helping me out! It seems like your feral kitten and mine have some things in common :)
 

moxiewild

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Here is a video of our guy.

I had pet him through the bars of a crate for the first time about 10 minutes before this.

It was just like any other time sticking my index finger up to the crate to allow him to sniff if he wanted. But this time, he rubbed the side of his face on my finger...... then backed up and hissed!

I persisted and kept my finger there. The next time he came to sniff it and was close enough, I rubbed his cheek and chin with my finger, and he turned to mush!

So we let him out of the crate, and he went up to my boyfriend, who he had very little interaction with prior to this moment.

Right before I started recording this video, he hissed and swatted at my boyfriend, but he pet him anyway!

 

moxiewild

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To be quite honest, I think I'm terrified to push her in case I break the trust I've built with her already, and maybe that's why I haven't really tried to pet her. I will resume hand feeding today! And yes she crawls into my lap for her food on her own, last night she did it even though I had no food or treats (that was followed by a little swat, but no claws were showing). I'm relieved to read your thoughts, so thank you. I had no idea she was born feral and had no real interaction with people until I got her, so I was thrown for a loop when I realized I had no idea how to go about socializing a kitten, I didn't even know it was a "thing" (I chalk that up to being a dog person for most of my life). So yes, I really appreciate all your feedback and helping me out! It seems like your feral kitten and mine have some things in common :)
I completely understand your fear and nerves about it!

Kittens are just very, very forgiving though! It usually piques their interest (even if it’s still a little startling) rather than breaks their trust, at least st this age and how far along she is already and how long she’s been with you.

And don’t worry, I totally get it! I was an avid and loyal dog person my entire life and actually hated/feared cats before my first!

This forum was actually a lot of help on my journey to understanding them, and especially feral cats. It’s a process, but you’re doing an amazing job, and especially for someone unfamiliar with cats to begin with!
 

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Even if vets aren’t allowing humans inside yet, You might call the vet and ask if you can enter if you are the last appointment of the day. I found that the vet here would make that acception for us since I have ferals that need me with them. If the vet is good though, the kitten will be fine and be very glad to see you afterwards. ;) As mentioned, you’re doing a great job!

moxiewild moxiewild That's a darling video. It’s just impossible to resist a good massage! Lol Kittens do love it when they feel the loving! :catrub:
 
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feralSuki

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Here is a video of our guy.

I had pet him through the bars of a crate for the first time about 10 minutes before this.

It was just like any other time sticking my index finger up to the crate to allow him to sniff if he wanted. But this time, he rubbed the side of his face on my finger...... then backed up and hissed!

I persisted and kept my finger there. The next time he came to sniff it and was close enough, I rubbed his cheek and chin with my finger, and he turned to mush!

So we let him out of the crate, and he went up to my boyfriend, who he had very little interaction with prior to this moment.

Right before I started recording this video, he hissed and swatted at my boyfriend, but he pet him anyway!

For some reason I didn't see this video until this morning! Thank you! Suki rubbed up against me this morning when I was bringing her food so maybe it's time we give this a go. I practiced moving my hands around her while she ate, and while she did look up every once in a while to see where they went, she didn't seem to mind too much. She didn't swat at me at all yesterday but she did three times to my boyfriend when he was feeding her by hand. I think it is about time I try it out again, we are starting to have a lot more good days then stressful days, and we spend a lot of time slow blinking at each other. She's still quite hissy but I think she may just have a little bit of a spicy personality! She is also getting quite curious about what goes on beyond my room, but we are going to wait on that one until we figure out how to pet and our trip to the vet :) Thank you for this encouragement. Seriously! It's been such a journey with my girl, trying to figure out the best plan of action to help her adjust. I feel bad for her sometimes, as I really didn't know what I was doing when I first brought her home. With the help of wonderful people like you, we've made a lot of progress that the vet I took her to originally had said would be nearly impossible. Just goes to show with time, commitment, and support, these cats can live happy and safe inside! Thank you!
 
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feralSuki

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Even if vets aren’t allowing humans inside yet, You might call the vet and ask if you can enter if you are the last appointment of the day. I found that the vet here would make that acception for us since I have ferals that need me with them. If the vet is good though, the kitten will be fine and be very glad to see you afterwards. ;) As mentioned, you’re doing a great job!

moxiewild moxiewild That's a darling video. It’s just impossible to resist a good massage! Lol Kittens do love it when they feel the loving! :catrub:
this is a fantastic idea! I'm absolutely going to try this. Thank you!!!!
 
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feralSuki

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I completely understand your fear and nerves about it!

Kittens are just very, very forgiving though! It usually piques their interest (even if it’s still a little startling) rather than breaks their trust, at least st this age and how far along she is already and how long she’s been with you.

And don’t worry, I totally get it! I was an avid and loyal dog person my entire life and actually hated/feared cats before my first!

This forum was actually a lot of help on my journey to understanding them, and especially feral cats. It’s a process, but you’re doing an amazing job, and especially for someone unfamiliar with cats to begin with!
I don't know where I'd be without this forum, full of helpful people such as yourself! Seriously, I think Suki and I would still be in the beginning stages if it weren't for the kindness everyone has shown me by taking the time to reply to me with such amazing information. A lot of things I found online were helpful, but also made me feel like my situation with Suki was grim, like she would never come around. Thank you!!!!
 
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An update unrelated to the vet situation but I JUST PET SUKI WHILE SHE ATE!!!! she didn't even look up at me, just continued eating and started purring! When I had been getting her food, she swatted at me so I turned away to face the wall and she started rubbing up against me. So when she crawled in my lap for food, I just decided to go for it cautiously and she liked it! We are making progress!
 

moxiewild

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An update unrelated to the vet situation but I JUST PET SUKI WHILE SHE ATE!!!! she didn't even look up at me, just continued eating and started purring! When I had been getting her food, she swatted at me so I turned away to face the wall and she started rubbing up against me. So when she crawled in my lap for food, I just decided to go for it cautiously and she liked it! We are making progress!
Ahh, so exciting!!! It’s the best part of the entire process, that moment of trust!
 
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feralSuki

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Ahh, so exciting!!! It’s the best part of the entire process, that moment of trust!
She is very scared of hands still, I believe. She rubs against my arms while I hold her bowl before she gets into my lap, or when I sit down to hand feed her, all while purring! She still swats at my hands so I am not trying to push her too much, but little by little she's becoming more comfortable. Last night I had my friend (who Suki has never met) sit next to me while she ate, and Suki was nervous at first but then went up to my friend to sniff her, then they started playing! I am currently switching between hand feeding and pets while she eats. I think she is going to be a very affectionate kitty once we show her that hands are safe!
 
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feralSuki

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An update: Suki finally got into the vet yesterday and wow did she surprise us. The vet told us based on her teeth, Suki is actually about six months old! She has all but one adult teeth. The first vet I took her to told us she looked to be about 8 weeks when we got her mid august, she only weighed 1.5 pounds. Come to find she's much older, she is just a tiny cat! I'm completely dumbfounded, this means she spent the first 4 months of her life outside with the others ferals! Happy to report Suki now weighs in at 3.5 pounds and is a clean bill of health. She did great at the vet, though the vet thinks she has an issue with men, as she was hissing at men inside the office but when doing her examination ran over to the vet tech and curled up next to her. Suki must not have been THAT angry at me for taking her ti the vet, as I woke up to her rubbing against my legs and arms this morning. What an awesome kitten!
 

moxiewild

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An update: Suki finally got into the vet yesterday and wow did she surprise us. The vet told us based on her teeth, Suki is actually about six months old! She has all but one adult teeth. The first vet I took her to told us she looked to be about 8 weeks when we got her mid august, she only weighed 1.5 pounds. Come to find she's much older, she is just a tiny cat! I'm completely dumbfounded, this means she spent the first 4 months of her life outside with the others ferals! Happy to report Suki now weighs in at 3.5 pounds and is a clean bill of health. She did great at the vet, though the vet thinks she has an issue with men, as she was hissing at men inside the office but when doing her examination ran over to the vet tech and curled up next to her. Suki must not have been THAT angry at me for taking her ti the vet, as I woke up to her rubbing against my legs and arms this morning. What an awesome kitten!
Wow... wonder how the first vet aged her? For kittens, they do take weight into account, but looking at teeth is the primary way to age any cat, and that’s a big thing to miss!

Did you adopt her from a rescue?

It does explain why she’s a little more hot and cold than you’d normally expect an 8-12 week old to be, though.

Congratulations are in order, because socializing a 4+ month old is no easy feat for a total beginner!!!
 
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feralSuki

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Wow... wonder how the first vet aged her? For kittens, they do take weight into account, but looking at teeth is the primary way to age any cat, and that’s a big thing to miss!

Did you adopt her from a rescue?

It does explain why she’s a little more hot and cold than you’d normally expect an 8-12 week old to be, though.

Congratulations are in order, because socializing a 4+ month old is no easy feat for a total beginner!!!
I took her to a petguard as soon as I got her, and they only weighed her and looked at her, but didn't look in her mouth. I got her from an old coworker, who at first just said that his cat had kittens and he didn't want them. Only after I brought her home did he admit she was feral, the only contact she'd really seemed to have with people was the day I got her, when he snagged her from his yard. He didn't use a cage or trap, but only his hands. I think that is exactly why she is so terrified of hands (but every day becoming more relaxed around mine!). Ah yes but I will never take her back to that pet guard because they really didn't handle her stress well, they even seemed rough with her. I am so proud of her though, she has come so far and I love her personality! I think we already have a strong bond even though hands still freak her out. she now greets me every time I enter my room by rubbing up against my legs and crawling into my lap when I sit down. She shows my partner and I love in the best way she can and I am so thankful for her!
 
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