Archive for the ‘Cats’ Category

Our little feral kitten, Nancy, continues to grow, but is remaining pretty darn wild and fearful. For those of you who aren’t sure what the definition of feral is: existing in a natural state, as animals or plants; not domesticated or cultivated; wild (Dictionary.com).

We had her spayed and her 2nd round of vaccinations (I hate all of these vaccinations, but that’s another subject) this past Wednesday at the Spay and Neuter Clinic in Lawrenceville in Honest Alley. I’m afraid that the little bit of progress that I had made with her has disappeared because of the stress of being crated, taken to the vet, spayed and then brought back. We did have her in a very small bathroom and have moved her to our larger master bathroom, so that probably didn’t help, either. At least this way, we have more room to hang out with her for longer periods. We’re going to bring chairs in and a t.v. and watch some movies in there a couple of times a week. This will get her used to humans and the usual sounds of general home life.

I had gotten to the point before where I could pet her when she was distracted by a toy and she actually purred a couple of times. I can’t tell you how much my heart leapt when she started purring! Eureka! It’s going to take a lot more time, patience, and persistence, but Denny and I really believe that we will get through to her one day. We’ll slowly but surely have to introduce her to the rest of the pack. That’s going to be quite interesting, I’m sure, and a far way down the road.

Needless to say, I have a lot of scratches and scars from attempts to pet her before she was spayed. I haven’t tried again since then, because she has such a look of fear on her little face. I’m just keeping the faith in hopes to get through to her.

Do you have experience or stories with feral cats? I’d love to hear from you! Please feel free to share your stories, thoughts, comments, questions, and experience.

I’m only a cat,
and I stay in my place…
Up there on your chair,
on your bed or your face!

I’m only a cat,
and I don’t finick much…
I’m happy with cream
and anchovies and such!

I’m only a cat,
and we’ll get along fine…
As long as you know
I’m not yours… you’re all mine!

Author Unknown

One definition of feral is: Existing in a wild or untamed state, either naturally or having returned to such a state from domestication.

That perfectly describes our new foster kitten.

Let me say first that Penny and Carolyn from Huff’s Flowers in Lawrenceville, are angels. They catch the stray cats around the shop and either give them homes (Carolyn has 5 cats, and I’m not sure about Penny, but I do know that she has quite a few, and most of them are FIV positive) or find them good homes.

That being said, these good ladies informed me of a really cute cat coming around. Well, it turns out that this really pretty kitty was also really pregnant. Penny and Carolyn waited to catch these 2 kittens and Mama until the kittens were wiened off of breast milk. Once they were wiened, they were able to catch the mom cat first (who is only about 8 months old), and get her to the vet to have her tested for feline leukemia and other diseases. They also had her spayed and vaccinated. She is pretty sweet they tell me and going to be pretty easy to domesticate.

Well, once they caught the kittens, they were already around 7 weeks old. I’m not really sure how they went about doing this and I imagine someone got hurt, and I’m betting it’s not the kittens.  The first time I met the kittens, Penny and I rode together where she had taken the kittens to have their first round of vaccines in a little spay and neuter clinic in Honest Alley in Lawrenceville. On the way there (it’s about a 2 minute drive), Penny was describing these kittens to me. One is a flame tip (cream colored with some yellow) with blue eyes and is a male; he seems like he won’t be too difficult to tame. The other kitten is a medium length haired tortoise shell, or so the lady at the vet told me. I lowered my head to peek into the cage of the second cat, as she was all the way in the back of the crate and I could barely see her, and I heard a growl, a hiss and she lunged at me. I naturally jumped (out of my skin) back from the crate. The lady at the desk (who apparently has feral colonies that she cares for) was telling me what a minx this kitten is. I was intrigued by this kitten and decided that she was the one that I would bring home.

We’re on day 3 now and we have to keep her in a crate still, but this is a large crate that has a cubby hole bed, a litter box (which she’s using very well), water, kibble, tuna, and fuzzy mouse toys. Anyway, she still spits fire everytime she sees us and we have to use welding gloves that Penny was kind enough to lend us when we take things out of her crate and replace them with fresh things.

I’ve been reading as much as I can about feral cats. All three of our cats were strays, and I’d say Chili was feral when we found her, but I have never seen a little, tiny kitten as seemingly viscious as this one! It turns out, that the more frightening the kitten acts, the more frightened she actually is. I’ve learned that by keeping a t.v. on for a couple of hours at a time in the room she’s in will help her get used to the sound of human voices and that I need to spend as much time with her, while leaving her alone at the same time, as possible. I read that it can take anywhere from 2 to 6 weeks for her to even get used to our presence without looking at us as a predator.

So, the key is, as I’m finding is with almost everything in life, patience. This poor little girl has been living in the wild her whole 7 weeks, so it may take that long  just to get her used to the good life here with us. Our other cats have been allowed in the room with her crate while we’re in it, but Ajax and Comet have opted out. Chili seems very curious and the kitten doesn’t hiss at her, so I think that’s a good thing.

If any of you have any advice or stories to share about feral cats, please do!

Check out Huff’s Flowers at www.huffsflowers.com

There is no off switch on a tiger

~ Proverb quotes

My husband, Denny, and I have cut some holes in a few cardboard boxes, taped 2 of them together, and the cats are going nuts! I added some catnip, a few of their toys and shine the laser pointer in there one in a while. It is so fun to watch and basically hands free! The best part is, our cats are getting some exercise. Here are a few more ideas for your kitty’s exercise plan, whether they are actually indoor or outdoor cats. Lots of fun and bonding for you and your feline friend!

• Bring out your cat’s primal side and buy some toys with feathers. If they make some sort of noise, even better! Our cats really go for a rattle sound or a bell sound. I suggest something on a string attached to a pole. I can’t tell you how many scratches that I’ve gotten playing with Ajax with a toy in my hand. Ouch!
• You can use that toy on a pole to get your cat to chase it up a tiered cat tree, up and around the furniture, and down and up the stairs. Getting them to move and use their balance and coordination skills is important.
• I also LOVE the laser pointer. Be sure that you don’t shine it in anyone’s eyes, they can do some real retina damage. Get your cat to chase the laser pointer up a tiered cat tree; all the stretching and climbing helps to strengthen and tone the muscles in your cat’s shoulders, legs, hips and back.
• You don’t have to spend extra money to get your cat something fun to play with. Use the cap from your milk jug or water bottle, or even a piece of ice and throw it on the floor so your cat can chase and scoot it across the floor. Be sure that you supervise your cat so that he doesn’t try to swallow the cap or anything. Also, if you have dogs, be sure that the pup doesn’t pick up the caps. Major choking hazard!
• Before you play any of these games with your cat, be sure that they have a clean bill of health. Monitor your cat’s behavior and be on the watch for signs of change in personality, eye color, smell or behavior. Playing with string or yarn with your cat may be funny, but if he swallows the string, thread or yarn (or any other similar object), it could get wrapped around his tongue and if he swallows much of it, the string can wrap itself around your cat’s intestines, causing serious illness and eventually death.

Our cats are now all pooped out from playing. They’re still all 3 a little overweight (well, Ajax is a lot), but we’ll continue to work on it and keep you updated! Please feel free to comment with suggestions, comments or anything that you want to say on this subject!

“The reason cats climb is so that they can look down on almost every other animal…its also the reason they hate birds. – KC Buffington

I realized one day as one of our 3 cats, Ajax, was weighing down my lap with his 17 lbs, it’s time to get this kitty moving! Once I started trying to get this docile senior off of the chair and down on the floor, I immediately recognized that this is truly a daily task that I have ahead of me, and not an easy one!

I bought a laser pointer and had him really going all over the house like a kitten! When our other two cats jump in, though,  Ajax backs off and returns to his horizontal position. I also put some cat nip in the toe of a panty hose knee high and all 3 of our cats enjoyed that, especially when I tacked it up a little high.

Ajax and I spend some one-on-one time together almost daily; me with toy in hand, and he with a kitten look in his eyes. He is 12 years old and still looking good! Since I started this play time with him, he’s gotten down to 16 pounds. I know one pound doesn’t sound like a lot, and it certainly isn’t enough, but it’s a great start in my opinion!

I’ve also started harnessing and leashing our cats one at a time and giving them some time in the backyard. Comet, Chili and Ajax all three really enjoy this time.

What do you do with your cats to keep them active? Any fun games or favorite toys you can suggest?

When I play with my cat, how do I know that she is not passing time with me rather than I with her? – Montaigne