Hi. I adopted two kittens back in August. Both came with their share of problems, and I feel that I may have made them worse. Both kittens suffered through the feline flu, intestinal worms, and ringworm. From the age of 6 weeks (when I got them) until about 16 weeks they had to be bathed and medicated, processes which both kittens hated.
One kitten, which has been totally antisocial from the start (it hid in my closet for its first three days at my home,) runs from the sight of any other human being than myself. It recently was so spooked at the sight of a human that it ran directly into a child-proof gate and got its neck stuck. I have noticed a very slow improvement with this cat around me (it approaches me so its neck can be scratched, then it disappears,) but her behavior around everyone else has earned her the name Xena, for xenophobe. She spends most of her time under my bed or in the corner of my room.
So how was the problem with the above kitten worsened by me? I believe the answer lies in the behavior of my second kitten. This kitten was wonderful in the start. It was adventurous, curious, affectionate, and didn't mind being picked up. Unfortunately, medicating and bathing the kitten resulted in nothing but Herculean squirms and shreaking meows. It does not avoid people anywhere near to the extent of the other cat; in fact, it still wanders all over the house and plays with the dog. However, any attempts to pick this cat up without wearing gloves, heavy pants, a thick sweater, and a full mask would be a dire mistake on any human's part. Unfortunately this cat will lie in the center of my kitchen, and such comfort in public decieves people into believing that it will liked to be picked up.
I guess what I am trying to say is that I feel that these cats are afraid that somebody is going to harm them like we did before. (It took about 4 people to get these cats to take their medicine.) I never meant to do anything unconfortable, but there really was no option because they were dropping weight and losing all their hair. So what I would really like to know is if anybody has any advice on how to help these kittens get out of such antisocial tendencies before they become cats. They are about 7 months old now. I hope it isn't too late. I would appreciate any suggestions or recommendations that any member of this board has. Thank-you for your time.
Steve.
One kitten, which has been totally antisocial from the start (it hid in my closet for its first three days at my home,) runs from the sight of any other human being than myself. It recently was so spooked at the sight of a human that it ran directly into a child-proof gate and got its neck stuck. I have noticed a very slow improvement with this cat around me (it approaches me so its neck can be scratched, then it disappears,) but her behavior around everyone else has earned her the name Xena, for xenophobe. She spends most of her time under my bed or in the corner of my room.
So how was the problem with the above kitten worsened by me? I believe the answer lies in the behavior of my second kitten. This kitten was wonderful in the start. It was adventurous, curious, affectionate, and didn't mind being picked up. Unfortunately, medicating and bathing the kitten resulted in nothing but Herculean squirms and shreaking meows. It does not avoid people anywhere near to the extent of the other cat; in fact, it still wanders all over the house and plays with the dog. However, any attempts to pick this cat up without wearing gloves, heavy pants, a thick sweater, and a full mask would be a dire mistake on any human's part. Unfortunately this cat will lie in the center of my kitchen, and such comfort in public decieves people into believing that it will liked to be picked up.
I guess what I am trying to say is that I feel that these cats are afraid that somebody is going to harm them like we did before. (It took about 4 people to get these cats to take their medicine.) I never meant to do anything unconfortable, but there really was no option because they were dropping weight and losing all their hair. So what I would really like to know is if anybody has any advice on how to help these kittens get out of such antisocial tendencies before they become cats. They are about 7 months old now. I hope it isn't too late. I would appreciate any suggestions or recommendations that any member of this board has. Thank-you for your time.
Steve.