Re-homing 3 very shy oriental kittens

[BibiBlocksberg]

Hi all,

I currently work at a local cattery at weekends.

The lady who owns the cattery also owns and breeds siamese/oriental cats.

Found out last week that she has three oriental kittens (well, just over a year old now) who, despite her socialisation efforts have remained very timid and fearful of human contact.

They have been shut away in a bedroom of the main house together for some time now. They are healthy & will run around like little maniacs playing but as soon as a human enters the room they huddle together in their basket with eyes like saucers, trembling & hissing if you get too close.

Anyway, long story short, the cattery owner has not a spare minute in her day to help these kittens become less fearful of humans so I offered to try instead.

Thing is I've to realise that these three will need far more than I can provide (an hour after work each night, sitting with them quietly/talking softly/blinking/offering tasty tidbits etc)

They need to be in a home environment with someone who has the time to help them adjust to normal life and build up their confidence.

The breeder thinks this is a hopeless undertaking and no one will even consider these cats as pets. If that is true though then what is the alternative? They can't live out their lives in a bedroom with very little human contact.

Posting as i'm hoping for some opinions in the first instance - would you consider taking on a kitten like the above or are there any breeders here who have experience with homing timid pedigrees at all?

Sorry, cross posted with you WannaBe, completely agree, am still trying to feret out the details of how these three came to be left for so long.

Mainly due to aforementioned controlling husband :(

It was only meant to be a saturday job spending more time with even more cats, didn't think i'd end up with all these 'extras'

If i win the lottery i'm definitely opening a luxury cat hotel - with counselling services attached for the humans :) :)

A FlatCat screen can be really effective Cozie. Little Monsieur flings himself at it and sticks like velcro, using his claws. But I suppose 3 females on heat, flinging themselves at it, at the same time, could be a recipe for escape.

Also he has free access to the Great Outdoors, just not through that window.

I wouldn't have problems so much with a screen, Mantra. (Although you have the problem that any or all of them might come into heat at any time and they can be The Devil Incarnate when their blood's up.)

Earlier Bibi, you asked why folk ask for help, then reject your suggestions of help.

In Transactional Analysis (TA) it seems she has a case of the "yes...buts". In which a person doesn't really want help/solutions, and when offered them will turn them down, making excuses why that help/solution is not viable.

I might be tempted to report her to the GCCF

That's an excellent point, thank you RubbishMantra.

Do remember reading Eric Berne's book on TA.

Wonder what my counter game is called in the TA world as I do seem to attract the 'help me, not really' type of scenario & jump in with both giant feet only to be left utterly confused at the ultimate rejection of my efforts.

Don't mean that in 'woe is me, get the violins out' way, just musing on the dynamics.

In other news, went to see the lovely ladies at lunchtime yesterday & today. Nowhere near enough time (15 mins each visit) but something at least.

Dared to touch the jet black girl & got hissed at both times so played youtube cat videos to them all to apologise (birds pecking & running around etc)

That got a sideways glance of interest (my JJ loves these clips on a rainy day) :) & when I was at the door, Tauriel (the most shy of the three) sat bolt upright in the basket (where she'd been hiding under her sisters) & looked me square in the face.

It looked like a 'where are you going' expression to me but could just as likely have been 'that's it, bugger off & leave us in peace' :)

Tiny bit of progress maybe?

Have decided on Lord of the Rings/Hobbit names for them as none are named as yet so we have Arwen (white with chocolate tipped ears) Tauriel (all chocolate colour) and can't decide on a name for black girl.

Can't very well call her Sauron can I :) :)

Any suggestions most welcome.

Brenda?

Or Ingrid?

(Both names have ......connections.)

Lol @ Brenda & Ingrid & 'connections' :)

Neglected to share that Blackie is the the most couragous of the three sisters so needs a name to match :)

Courageous? Got to be Eowyn then

Eowyn, of course! How could i have forgotten that name, love her character in LOTR.

When the king of Rohan regains his senses and tells her 'i know you'

And 'i am no man!' as she beheads the leader of the nazgul

:)

Time to walk my cats (well, my boy & his mate) -not on a lead, they just follow me each night to the local river & back, climb a tree or tree or two then we all trundle home.

My cat loving neighbour shouted out 'walking the cats again?' the other night and I felt like a proper middle aged cat lady (weirdo) :)

Can you sneak us a picture?! Pretty please.

A picture of walking my cats Wolfie or the 'bedroom three' (free the bedroom three, chant along with me) :) Oh, that rhymes :)

Lets make some placards & organise a gathering outside the cattery.

How to lose a part-time job in three easy steps.....

Did try to take pics of Arwen, Tauriel & Eowyn over last couple of lunchtimes but they were huddled so tightly together you can't really see them .

My feeble attempts in bad lighting are attached regardless.

Oh my lord that chocolate Siamese face has me melting.

That eye from the black one is very expressive!

orientals are lovely cats

if I didn't have multiple cats of my own I'd take them all

Also I have a cat that was t socialised as a kitten at all. He's very very fearful of people, apart from me. He loves me. I let him come to me and he did, and although he's very shy and won't come out of anyone else is in my house he is always all over me.

He's secretly my favourite as all the others will get love and attention from anyone, but this one is mine entirely.

Thoughts of 'surely, Jake wouldn't mind wrangling three kittens' had crossed my mind Wolfie, the choccie one is very gorgeous (well, they all are but ykwim :))

Also the most timid one - she'd been hiding under the wardrobe on previous visits wheras Arwen & Eowyn at least stayed in the basket until i got slightly too close & then 'hid' in the litter tray (clean, thankfully :))

Errm, they are open trays, I can still see you lol!

In reality I can't fit three more cats into my tiny flat sadly plus my gut says each would prefer to be a pampered only cat in a quiet environment with an infinetely patient & loving 'hoomin' to crack the scaredy shell.

Sure there's not room for one more minatiae :) :)

Time to feed the foxes (don't ask! :)) & bed for me & mine, wonderful chatting to you all again, you keep me going on the quest to improve the three 'stooges' lives!

Goodnigt purrs.

Don't know where the 'not' came from there minatiae, it's been a long day :)

Oh goodness, my heart is melting. We foster and rehabilitate ferals, and had Siamese growing up. Where are you located Bibi?

< hopes dearly that littleladyluna lives close to Bibi and The Bedroom Three>

Bibi, Adaptive Child* maybe? Or perhaps in Jungian terms, "The wounded healer".

Either way, I'm sure these kittens/cats will go on to a better standard of life with your help.

I don't think it's a psychotherapy term, but I think the breeder might fit into "Heartless Cowpat".

On reflection, it's most likely you just love animals and want them to live happy lives.

And has cowpat "breeder" even tried? ie, requesting help to socialise the little lasses from a reliable source, suggested by a pp upthread? I have a nasty feeling she will use them to breed from, until they are no longer useful to her.

I'm trying hard to imagine a situation where three cats could reach that age and yet not one of them even had names.

I wonder if you could find a lovely laid back cat that likes humans and introduce them? If you can get them to bond, it might help them learn that humans equal good things.

Hi all, sorry for late reply, absolutely manic day yesterday then cleaning at the cattery this am, sat with the lovely ladies now as I type this.

ladyluna - will PM you re my location, thanks for your post.

Managed to talk to breeder this am re having the girls spayed (in fact she brought it up first) she agrees they need to go to the vet to be sorted in that regard. Haven't been able to glean any details as to whether concrete plans have been made.

There is some avoidance on breeders part to discuss the details of the three, quite odd really, somehow the subject gets changed quickly then the phone rings or customers turn up. Will try again before i leave here today.

Good idea re the human friendly cat (sorry, on phone which refuses to scroll while writing a post so can't see who posted the idea)

Neither of my boys qualify sadly, they love humans but would definitely get arsey if they had to share attention with kittens.

A grown up kitten 'wrangler' cat would be brilliant, did ask if any of other breeders adults are up to the job but they would see them as competition only she says.

Agree with whoever said how is it possible for three cats to get to this age without even a name, that's one of the burning questions on my list.

More details later hopefully.