I'm not sure it's fair to call the kittens semi-feral anymore

[conuly]

They were already a bit more semi than feral, and now they've been upgraded! Nellie is Sociable, and Kid Blink is Friendly But Shy. It is crucially important that we don't fall into the trap of giving Nellie more attention just because she is friendlier.

***********

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Comments

[alatefeline]

Yay for increasingly sociable kittens!

[conuly]

I opened the door just now to snuggle them, and Kid Blink jumped down from a shelf to say hi! And then she snuggled for a bit!

In light of this, I'm switching the routine. Instead of feeding them when I come in, I'm doing it when I leave. They no longer need to be lured, so why waste time on eating?

In bad news: they got into the antibiotics and I lost a pill somewhere. There's still enough for the week with a bit to spare, but I had to tuck them away much better. That was silly of me.

[alatefeline]

Hooray! Yeah, if people time has become a reward in its own right, that's pretty awesome, and being able to backstop it with the food reward without having to lead with that should save you some time.

[siderea]

Your car has just been crushed by hagfish: Frequently Asked Questions

So why is it all over my car?

The hagfish were likely alarmed by the presence of you vehicle. This was a stress reaction.

This is magnificent.

[8hyenas]

I love these link posts of yours, and also the kittens. I think the feral-semi-tame thing is very interesting and am enjoying your angle. Growing up we always had "barn cats" (spayed! but semi-tame/feral) I never knew a tame cat until adulthood. A revelation!

[chanter1944]

Yay friendly kittens! :D

*pets them both*

[conuly]

By far the best link on the story I've seen.

[conuly]

If you're interested in the subject of taming feral cats (or semi-feral ones - there's a whole spectrum there) you might want to read what Tiny Cats has up. Not many people are involved in adult feral rescue (mainstream advice is torn between "don't bother, just TNR" and "unless they're injured or sick, they're better off where they are - and if they are injured, consider euthanasia"), but they're having some real success in that area. Accordingly, their advice for handling ferals is different from most people's advice. (I can sum up most advice on the subject with the phrase "Stockholm syndrome". If you believe most people, an 8 week kitten is almost too old to rehabilitate, and you MUST separate it from its littermates and mother to do so, preferably at half that age. Frankly, I don't care if they ARE feral, I think separating a month old kitten from its mother for any reason other than urgent medical necessity is animal abuse, and if you must do so then it's best to see if you can find a foster mother. The Stockholm-y approach does work, more or less... if you have the ability to do it. Which you might not.)

Plus, they have livestream kittens most of the year.

[bibliofile]

It is. It really is.

It's also SCIENCE.

[flexagon]

That girl with the skirt & crop top has been arrested now. :-(

[conuly]

: (