It’s easy to fall in love with an adorable homeless kitten or cat, and you may be tempted to rescue it on the spot with the good intentions of providing it with a home. But before you do, keep in mind that if you’re dealing with a feral cat or kitten, you need to understand what you’re dealing with.
What is a wild cat?
There are several different types of wild cats. Some wild cats have gone wild. These cats may be lost or abandoned, and can tolerate some human contact. Other cats were born and raised in the wild and are not fully socialized: they fear humans and human contact.
Ferals often form colonies wherever there is shelter and food supply, such as farms, garbage dumps, and other areas where they can find food. Urban savages congregate near garbage cans, markets, or where food is provided by animal lovers. They can perform a useful function by hunting rodents attracted to edible waste.
The dangers of bringing feral cats home
Wild animal colonies can act as reservoirs for diseases such as FeLV/FIV that can be transmitted to domestic cats that come into contact with wild animals. There is also the fear of toxoplasmosis and (in some countries) rabies, which can affect humans. They can become unhealthy and unsightly due to continued breeding, poor nutrition, and fighting.
For these reasons, many groups, such as Ally Cat Allies, advocate the Trap Neuter Return, or TNR, program as a humane alternative to euthanasia of cats. This program is internationally recognized as a best practice initiative to reduce the feral cat population. Animal experts agree that taking home feral cats is not the answer.
Bringing home a feral kitten is almost always a big undertaking.
Most people who take in the feral choose to rescue kittens because they are adorable and hard to resist. But this often leads to problems because kittens are afraid of humans, difficult to socialize, and some will never tame no matter how much love, effort, and attention you give them.
Research shows that the socialization stage in kittens is from 3 to 9 weeks of age, and they become progressively more difficult to housebreak each day for 8 weeks. While kittens up to 12 weeks can be tamed, older kittens often retain some degree of fear and a small percentage of kittens (approximately 10%) can never be socialized.
Consider adopting a kitten from a local shelter!
In addition to the right environment, the taming process takes time, commitment and patience, and there is already a large surplus of unwanted socialized cats in shelters awaiting adoption. In a shelter situation, it is recommended that ferals older than 5 months be neutered and returned to the colony, otherwise they take up space needed by kittens who can be more easily socialized.
In general, the most reliable results are with ferals who approach humans of their own volition in the outdoor environment. If the taming process begins outdoors in this way, it can continue for a much longer period of time with much more reliable results as the cat makes the decision to enter your home.
