Cats are still scared of us
Posted: Wed Feb 01, 2017 11:14 am
Hi, I am new to this forum and a new cat owner.
Almost 4 weeks ago we adopted two 6 months old male kittens from a local Cat shelter. They are brothers and have been in the shelter since they were a month old.
They are gorgeous and have made a lot of progress since we brought them home as it is such a massive change from where they were. However they are still scared of us and are very timid. Is this likely to improve or is this how they will continue to be?
They both come out for a play in the afternoon and again late evening, we play with them using toys and ribbons and a lazer pen, and they race around the house and play lovely together. One of them, when out, will come and join us in whichever room we are in, and will follow us around, but he will not come to us and will run away if we get too close and is quite nervous around us. He enjoys playing with our eldest child (7), though again won't let her smooth him. They still hide in the day time, one under our bed and the under perched up high in the cloakroom. Our second cat will not come out if our children are around, he will only make an appearance when they are in school or in bed! He will come into the living room in the evening and will, but again he gives us a wide birth and will run away if we get too close. They both at night time will wait for me and follow me into my bedroom. They both walk around with their tails down.
We do give them space and we don't attempt to smooth them yet as they are too scared. We give them treats and play when they come out. Our children ages 7&5 adore them, and it would be lovely if they could see more of them!
We purchased a Feliway plug in diffuser, which I think helped a little.
If you have any tips on ways to help us to get them to trust us more that would be great.
Also how many times a day should we be feeding them as they are hungry kittens, and we are currently feeding them 4 times a day!
Thank you xx
Almost 4 weeks ago we adopted two 6 months old male kittens from a local Cat shelter. They are brothers and have been in the shelter since they were a month old.
They are gorgeous and have made a lot of progress since we brought them home as it is such a massive change from where they were. However they are still scared of us and are very timid. Is this likely to improve or is this how they will continue to be?
They both come out for a play in the afternoon and again late evening, we play with them using toys and ribbons and a lazer pen, and they race around the house and play lovely together. One of them, when out, will come and join us in whichever room we are in, and will follow us around, but he will not come to us and will run away if we get too close and is quite nervous around us. He enjoys playing with our eldest child (7), though again won't let her smooth him. They still hide in the day time, one under our bed and the under perched up high in the cloakroom. Our second cat will not come out if our children are around, he will only make an appearance when they are in school or in bed! He will come into the living room in the evening and will, but again he gives us a wide birth and will run away if we get too close. They both at night time will wait for me and follow me into my bedroom. They both walk around with their tails down.
We do give them space and we don't attempt to smooth them yet as they are too scared. We give them treats and play when they come out. Our children ages 7&5 adore them, and it would be lovely if they could see more of them!
We purchased a Feliway plug in diffuser, which I think helped a little.
If you have any tips on ways to help us to get them to trust us more that would be great.
Also how many times a day should we be feeding them as they are hungry kittens, and we are currently feeding them 4 times a day!
Thank you xx