Tips for socializing semi-feral kittens?

[Calicokittens]

I recently got 3 semi-feral 10 week old kittens. They are now 12 weeks old, and will play with teaser toys, sit on my lap to eat, and purr around me. They stay in a huge dog cage so when I go to pick up or pet them they don’t have much of a choice to escape, therefore I can’t really judge if they would run/hide or not in a room. I would sincerely appreciate any tips on getting them more comfy with me, thank you.

 

[ArtNJ]

Even street rescued kittens aren't really feral per se. Kittens are too young and too adaptible to deserve the feral label. More like they just might take an extra day or two, perhaps play a bit more roughly until trained. Perhaps some statistical differences in other words, but you can just treat them like any other kitten, which is basically what they are. Even a home raised kitten might sometimes take a week or so to warm up to humans.

If you have an available "safe room" like an extra bedroom, kitten proof it, let them get used to it, and when you go in there, just be quiet and chill and let them come to you at their pace. It may take a week or so, but as long as you let them be the boss of the process, thats best.

A small minority of folks will approve of your forcibly handling the kittens when they may not consent, but I think most of us here think that is counter-productive and bad. The strategy I'm recommending is to imagine the kitten as a shy member of the opposite sex you are trying to court -- and you can imagine how forcibly grabbing a shy member of the opposite sex would go! Not helpful.

 

[rubysmama]

Hello and welcome to TCS. Three kittens! You're going to have a lot of fun watching them grow up.

Since they'll play with toys, sit on your lap, and purr, I don't think they sound all that feral. Do you know their history?

About socializing them more, I agree with A ArtNJ that if you have a spare room you can kitten-proof, you can probably let them have free run of it, like you would any other new kitten you adopted.

Here's a TCS article on Kitten Proofing Your Home: 13 Practical Tips | TheCatSite

As well as 9 Tips That Will Help Your Kitten Adapt To A New Apartment or House – TheCatSite Articles

Keep in mind, all cats have different purr-sonalities, so some of your kittens maybe be more independent than others.

Oh ...are they litter box trained?

 

[Calicokittens]

Yes, they are. Idk, because they aren’t really feral or socialized would you just consider them unsocalized? I think they had been brought in as strays at around 7 weeks, so taken from their mother a little early. The calico is pretty independent lol.

 

[rubysmama]

If they were taken in as strays at 7 weeks, is that just around the age, or slightly older than the "best" age to socialize feral kittens. So as long as whoever had them, spent time with them, they should be used to humans. However, even adult ferals can be socialized, so no "rules" are set in stone.

Here's what the Kitten Lady has to say about How to Socialize Feral Kittens<br/> — Kitten Lady

And some more TCS articles, that might be helpful:
10 Must-know Tips For Happy Living With A Shy Cat – TheCatSite Articles
16 Top Cat Experts Share Tips For Dealing With Timid Cats | TheCatSite
14 Cat Experts Reveal: How To Get A Cat To Like Me – TheCatSite Articles

If you have any pics of these sweeties, we'd love to see them.
How To Add A Picture To Your Forum Post – TheCatSite Articles

 

[ArtNJ]

Here's what the Kitten Lady has to say about How to Socialize Feral Kittens<br/> — Kitten Lady

I've only adopted a few street-raised kittens and rescued one adult stray, so not some great expert, but it seems very nutty to me that she says it might be better to just TNR a 12+ week old kitten.

 

[rubysmama]

I've only adopted a few street-raised kittens and rescued one adult stray, so not some great expert, but it seems very nutty to me that she says it might be better to just TNR a 12+ week old kitten.

I guess I should have read more carefully, as I missed that. I'm quite surprised, actually, as I would have thought she would advocate for rescuing and socializing all kittens, since as I posted above, even adult ferals can be successfully socialized. Thanks for pointing that out, A ArtNJ . If I'd seen it, I wouldn't have posted the link.

 

[ArtNJ]

100% agree that all (or maybe close to all?) kittens have the potential to become great pets. I think of 6 cats we adopted as kittens, only 1 was home raised, and the others were between 12 and maybe up to 20 weeks. So 5 street kittens of varying ages (most but not all spending a couple weeks in a shelter), and they all turned into sweet confident cats. Our most nervous cat was the home raised kitten. We have only taken in one adult rescue, but she turned into one of our sweetest most beloved cats, although yes, it did take a lot longer than with a kitten.

I'm not sure of the age where you have to start considering a kitten a feral cat in terms of difficulty of adjusting, but its sure not 12 weeks.

 

[danteshuman]

I know my mom adopted a 4 or 5 month old kitten that came up for food. He reacts differently (even as a old man) then kittens raised with humans. He only stopped being a garage cat by watching my two very tame house-cats interact with me. He is ?15? Years old and didn’t start asking my mom for nightly cuddles until he was around 10 years old. He doesn’t talk as much as ghd other cats and you have to watch the top of his tail when you pet him (he gets overstimulated and will attack if you don’t stop when the tip twitches.) He still
My house cats and her house cats use bigger body language then him. Could he have been a house cat with a lot of work when he first showed up as a kitten? Maybe. I know my cats served as a bridge kitties for Chester. They taught him to sit quietly for treats, to play with toys and that he could use humans for snuggles.

Since the socialization window is so small (16 weeks I believe) I guess I can kinda understand what she is saying.

My advice for the kittens? Give them a room, feed them set meals, give them tons of TLC & once the vet says it is safe, let the kittens see you interact with older tame cats. Maybe clicker train your cat.

 

[Calicokittens]

If anyone has tips on getting their kittens to associate their owner with good things- I would appreciate it, thanks

 

[JamesCalifornia]

~ Cats have their own personality — like people. Some are very human friendly, others are more distant. I have experienced abandoned/ feral cats eventually warm up when they realize they can trust you. Kittens should respond fairly soon to their human. Sometimes it's amazing.
Having said this — I have a cat for over 12 months that is just recently letting me get close. You can't predict.
Good luck ...

 

[danteshuman]

Clicker training and those tube treats (or a spoonful of baby food (in turkey or chicken, onion & garlic free) always works well. With kittens it is all about the play, so lots of play with wand toys.