Just rescued an almost feral cat. Could it be domesticated?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We successfully domesticated a feral cat who moved into our back yard with 4 kittens. (We also found homes for her kittens, who were very easy to domesticate.) It took a lot of patience but was worth it. The first step was just catching her and getting her (and the kittens) spayed/neutered and immunized. Eventually she spent about half of her time in our house and was really sweet with me and our child. When she was the slightest bit nervous (such as when guests came over), she would run to the door and cry until we let her go outside, where she was more comfortable. She had a dog house outside to use during inclement weather, when she would sometimes refuse to come in. Taking her to the vet was a huge challenge, and our discovery of the house call vet (there are now several in the area) was a minor miracle in our lives. Good luck!

Rehomed abandoned cat. poor thing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Cat professional here: I have worked with cat rescues, Alley Cat Allies, cat breeders. A cat that is feral cannot be domesticated. Ever. To become domesticated, a cat must interact with humans before the age of 16 weeks. If they are in the wild/ not socialized by people until then, they will be feral for life. Those cats can live comfortably outside for life, even in this weather. (Like a fox, squirrel or other outside animal).
A cat living with an elderly hoarder -- it is hard to tell whether they are really feral, or just have limited contact with people. It takes about 2-3 weeks to determine the status. A cat that will not come to you when you feed it after that time is probably feral. If it never lets you touch it -- it is feral. They will remain feral for life -- about 15 years. Feral cats do not make good pets. They tend to defecate in the back of your closet, or on your rugs to mark their territory. You can contact Alley Cat Allies and they will tell you what to do. You can also use google to double check this.

This is a fat load of nonsense. I have personally trapped and tamed several adult feral cats. They are batshit crazy at first and it takes a very long time and a lot of patience but it's absolutely possible.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:"Feral cat" is a specific term. It does not mean "lives outside"

Yes, feral cat may have a clinical or dictionary definition. But that does not mean that OP meant it that way and that you should respond as if she was using the clinical term the way professionals would so that, in responding, you deny an animal any hope of a home.

[Anonymous]

Two of the cats that live with me currently were feral cats. I spent years acclimating them to me, with the final portion of that process taking place once they were living in my house. I am also in the process of acclimating two more, with a goal to making house cats out of them. The two who live indoors now are very sweet and come to me for treats and petting every night. Even if the cat never becomes friendly with you it is possible for it to acclimate to the environment. If you can simply do this you are doing a great thing. Cat professional lady is nuts. I also know plenty of professional rescuers and some feral cats can be turned around. Are you an experienced cat owner OP? Your new cat might benefit from some Feliway to make it feel at ease as well as some catnip. A heated cat pad will tell it where it should set up and a covered bed will make it feel safer. You will also need a scratching post to save your furniture. Keep the cat to one small room while you acclimate him to the cat box. Do feeding times instead of free feeding to get him used to the idea that food comes from you.

[Anonymous]

Yes you can provide a loving peaceful home to a cat that will in turn feel comfortable enough to positively interact with the family members eventually. In my experience it is worth the effort but it takes time. They may never be truly social with other people but they will be very loving to you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes. Many such cats are quite ready to be tamed. Food, water, a safe calm and clean home and a clean litter box...you are already more than halfway there. You are a fantastic person, OP. Let your kitty explore your house and curl up and sleep in a calm warm sunny spot. She may want to be under the bed for a few hours or a day or two but she will emerge with some patience once she gets the vibe. Animals are extremely resilient.

Let us know how it goes.

+1

[Anonymous]

Yes. I domesticated a feral cat. It took months of throwing food to her, slowly moving it closer and closer. Then months for her to allow me to touch her, and months of getting her used to the confines of being indoors. She ended up being the sweetest most grateful cat I have ever had. Prior to this I would have said a feral cat could not be domesticated. She proved me wrong?

[Anonymous]

OP here. The vet called- she's a very tiny 2-3 yr old cat ( I was thinking more like one year) with no fleas ( which amazes me) and no other visible parasites. If the fecal tests come through, she"ll be able to go to my friend's home ( one of my girls is allergic to cats). My friend works all day, but I'm hoping to visit when the kids are in school and try to acclimate her to me as well as my friend and her husband. If this doesn't work out for the cat, I'll probably try FOHA and/or my shed idea. Thanks for all of the help!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Yes. I domesticated a feral cat. It took months of throwing food to her, slowly moving it closer and closer. Then months for her to allow me to touch her, and months of getting her used to the confines of being indoors. She ended up being the sweetest most grateful cat I have ever had. Prior to this I would have said a feral cat could not be domesticated. She proved me wrong?

She was abandoned, not feral. How do you think people get rid of unwanted cats?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Two of the cats that live with me currently were feral cats. I spent years acclimating them to me, with the final portion of that process taking place once they were living in my house. I am also in the process of acclimating two more, with a goal to making house cats out of them. The two who live indoors now are very sweet and come to me for treats and petting every night. Even if the cat never becomes friendly with you it is possible for it to acclimate to the environment. If you can simply do this you are doing a great thing. Cat professional lady is nuts. I also know plenty of professional rescuers and some feral cats can be turned around. Are you an experienced cat owner OP? Your new cat might benefit from some Feliway to make it feel at ease as well as some catnip. A heated cat pad will tell it where it should set up and a covered bed will make it feel safer. You will also need a scratching post to save your furniture. Keep the cat to one small room while you acclimate him to the cat box. Do feeding times instead of free feeding to get him used to the idea that food comes from you.

You are delusional. But the cats probably really appreciate your home. Where do you think your "feral" cat came from?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Cat professional here: I have worked with cat rescues, Alley Cat Allies, cat breeders. A cat that is feral cannot be domesticated. Ever. To become domesticated, a cat must interact with humans before the age of 16 weeks. If they are in the wild/ not socialized by people until then, they will be feral for life. Those cats can live comfortably outside for life, even in this weather. (Like a fox, squirrel or other outside animal).
A cat living with an elderly hoarder -- it is hard to tell whether they are really feral, or just have limited contact with people. It takes about 2-3 weeks to determine the status. A cat that will not come to you when you feed it after that time is probably feral. If it never lets you touch it -- it is feral. They will remain feral for life -- about 15 years. Feral cats do not make good pets. They tend to defecate in the back of your closet, or on your rugs to mark their territory. You can contact Alley Cat Allies and they will tell you what to do. You can also use google to double check this.

Interesting post. Alley Cat Allies does not appear to agree. We've adopted two fearless that were trapped with assistance from Alley Cat Allies, so I'm not really able to favorably judge the accuracy of what OP said. It went extremely well with both. One figured out the indoor-only, always-food-and-water, clean-box system within a matter of days. One took a good, solid year. We made sure that both were spayed, vaccinated, de-wormed (the full Vet treatment) before bringing them home. Probably helped that the copacetic, more easily-acclimated of the two was the first one home. And neither had a material non-box problem, especially after the first several weeks. And they're both sweet, dependent little animals that we're lucky to have.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Two of the cats that live with me currently were feral cats. I spent years acclimating them to me, with the final portion of that process taking place once they were living in my house. I am also in the process of acclimating two more, with a goal to making house cats out of them. The two who live indoors now are very sweet and come to me for treats and petting every night. Even if the cat never becomes friendly with you it is possible for it to acclimate to the environment. If you can simply do this you are doing a great thing. Cat professional lady is nuts. I also know plenty of professional rescuers and some feral cats can be turned around. Are you an experienced cat owner OP? Your new cat might benefit from some Feliway to make it feel at ease as well as some catnip. A heated cat pad will tell it where it should set up and a covered bed will make it feel safer. You will also need a scratching post to save your furniture. Keep the cat to one small room while you acclimate him to the cat box. Do feeding times instead of free feeding to get him used to the idea that food comes from you.

You are delusional. But the cats probably really appreciate your home. Where do you think your "feral" cat came from?

Born to an intact mother in a colony. Duh. I have also rescued a kitten--not abandoned but born in the wild. Luckily I domesticated before the situation was far along. The kitten was initially extremely resistant. Clearly you have not traveled much or seen active colonies. Cats leave and seek out new territory when there's competition for resources.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A cat that is feral cannot be domesticated.

You are wrong. 100% wrong.

It took me three years, but I domesticated a feral cat.

It's very difficult to domesticate a feral cat that hasn't been around humans as a kitten, but it is NOT impossible. I don't know if you have an agenda here or are just stupid, but you can't go around telling people the wrong information.

[Anonymous]

New poster; if it's been around humans as a kitten, it's not feral. I do, however, agree that this is semantics. OP is trying to re-socialize a former pet and may well have success.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A cat that is feral cannot be domesticated.

You are wrong. 100% wrong.

It took me three years, but I domesticated a feral cat.

It's very difficult to domesticate a feral cat that hasn't been around humans as a kitten, but it is NOT impossible. I don't know if you have an agenda here or are just stupid, but you can't go around telling people the wrong information.

Agreed. We domesticated a feral cat--it took months for her to be moderately trusting, and if we left for a weekend she would revert and it would take a couple of days before she would let us get near her again. It was probably five years before she would let herself be seen or touched by anyone other than DH and me. She was a very sweet kitty, once she got used to us, but she never got bigger than the adolescent size she was when we caught her (about 4-5 months old).