Gaining trust of a kitten

[The Chickadoodles]

There's a mother cat with her kitten that lives near my house. The mother cat is so friendly and loving and doesn't mind following me to my house for me to give her food. I usually go to where she lives to bring food then I saw her nursing a kitten. She allowed me to get near the kitten and interact with it but it's a bit scared. How do I earn the kitten's trust so I can give it food without it getting scared? (I'm thinking about adopting them)

 

[Rose Quartz]

There's a mother cat with her kitten that lives near my house. The mother cat is so friendly and loving and doesn't mind following me to my house for me to give her food. I usually go to where she lives to bring food then I saw her nursing a kitten. She allowed me to get near the kitten and interact with it but it's a bit scared. How do I earn the kitten's trust so I can give it food without it getting scared? (I'm thinking about adopting them)

It'll see you being nice to it's mom and warm up to you just give it some time. When it's about 8 -10 weeks old it can leave mom. If it's still nursing it should stay with her. We were able to bring kittens and stray mom inside when the babies were about 5 weeks old this spring. Having mom be human friendly was a huge factor. Good luck with the tiny bebe.

 

[CalBickieMomma]

Hello! I've had lots of experience with stray kittens and taming them down. Most of the time, they are totally wild and I am able to ''capture'' them by placing food in an open cat carrier, then sneaking up and closing the door. I then take them into the house and put them in a small room - the bathroom because there is nothing for them to hide under. I then sit in there with them for a while, then gradually pick them up (by the scruff of their neck usually) and place them in my lap and slowly pet them. They are usually growly and scared, but I often get them tamed down within an hour or two just by holding them and petting them. You basically have to ''force'' them to trust you .

Now, your situation is a bit different. The mother cats of my strays have always been pretty feral - won't let me pet them or come up to them and I catch the kittens when the moms bring them over to eat adult cat food. Can you try picking the kitten up by the scruff and putting him/her in your lap, while sitting there with the mother? That might help. Or will the mother let you hold her in your lap? That would be a good first step.

But in my experience, when I've had multiple kittens, the other ones need to be handled as much as the first one - they don't tame down if they see me being nice to the other kitten. But there must be a way for you to tame down the kitten and not lose the trust of the mom. I'd try sitting where the mom keeps the kitten and picking the kitten up and petting it. Remember to hold him/her close once you have them settled so they feel more secure. If you do this enough, it might get the results you're looking for and if they start purring, then you'r definitely on the right track. Good luck!!!!

 

[KaleIAm]

How old is the kitten?

 

[The Chickadoodles]

How old is the kitten?

I'm not quite sure but they look like they're a month old or so

 

[The Chickadoodles]

I can only take a kitten, but I can visit Wish (name of mother cat) and feed her everyday. I just saw there's 2 kittens and one of them trusts me more than the other.

 

[Eggscaping]

I can only take a kitten, but I can visit Wish (name of mother cat) and feed her everyday. I just saw there's 2 kittens and one of them trusts me more than the other.

Also, if there's any way to get the mom cat spayed, please, please do that.

 

[The Chickadoodles]

I will try to get her spayed

Also, if there's any way to get the mom cat spayed, please, please do that.

 

[The Chickadoodles]

Thank you all for the advice! I managed to gain a the trust of 1 kitten but I will just repeat the same thing with the other.

 

[cassie]

I would take them by the scruff of the neck, put them on my lap, and in a few minutes when they calmed down a bit I would put a small bit of tuna on my finger and put it under their nose. Tamed a lot of barn kittens this way.