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Question:

appears to be alway hungry, screams for more, is underweight. Has the kitty been tested for worms? Can you confirm that another cat isn’t eating the food intended for this kitty (and he/she’s actually hungry because he/she’s hungry)?  <"….We kept one of the females…We thought she’d come around naturally and she was until about 3 weeks ago…she acts like she’s never eaten in her life. The other cats do the cute "we want to eat" meow’s, she screams till she’s almost horse. Its not like we sit there and withhold food, I’m talking from the time she realizes she’s eating till we get the plates down on the floor.  When they have  a soft food treat we tend to hold back a little to teach them not to jump and reach which a few of them still do, she just goes nuts and has no fear of going after the food of the other cats. As I said, she was malnorished to some extent, the mother was real bad, the kittens probably were not as bad off, she has never wanted for food.  The first few weeks while they were gaining weight we fed her according to the vet which was as much as they wanted until they plumped up a little.  She is eating cat sized portions now. Yet another odd thing is her size.  All the other kittens have grown quite large, she is barely bigger than when we got her at about 5 months old now.  She eats a decent portion a day, the same as our 16+ lb Russian Blue and Burmese and never gains an ounce. …">

Response:

We watch them all eat, they all finish their portions.  If we feed them treats immediatly following her dinner she still screams the same way, put the food away and she’s quiet.  Its not like she begs.  She knows she eats at 5am and 4pm and is ready to go around those times. She’s been de-wormed and re-checked by the vet a few times.  We went to the vet again last time, said she’s perfectly healthy and don’t worry about her size or her habits.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – who > appears to be alway hungry, screams for more, is underweight. Has the kitty > been tested for worms? Can you confirm that another cat isn’t eating the food > intended for this kitty (and he/she’s actually hungry because he/she’s hungry)?

Response:

Boy, she is really cute! Really, really cute! What if you just sit down by her when she is calm (like with her Sylvester) and read or something quiet like that, and eat some food near her and the other cats while she is eating hers so that she kind of looks on you as an extension of the other cats. Just some thoughts. Man, she is just darling. Karen

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Karen, > She’s been to the vet every 3 weeks since we picked her up. > de-worming, shots, check up, etc…and if one of the other cats > has to go in we tag her along to have her checked. > Vet says she’s doing fine.  She’s very healthy, just not too big. > Here are some pics, you can pick out the kitten. > http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=1539915&a=13899064&f=0 > The one with her standing in between the scratching post was when > we got her close to 3 months ago, all the other pics were taken 3 weeks > ago.  There is some maturing in the face but thats about it. > BTW, whenever she is sleeping or near her big Sylvester or little Sylvester > she’s perfectly calm and likes to be petted… > I’ll try playing with her more and see what happens. > Can you mix something with kitten nutrients in it? She may be lacking in > some nutrition. That can cause behaviour changes. I’d consult with the > vet. > Karen

Response:

Can you mix something with kitten nutrients in it? She may be lacking in some nutrition. That can cause behaviour changes. I’d consult with the vet. Karen

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> We had her on kitten food and she didn’t like it, Vet told us to just > feed her regular food if she would eat it. > Science Diet Maintence is what she eats. > My question is "is she eaten KITTEN food?" becuase she really needs it. > Maybe longer than other kittens. She sounds like she is going through a > period to me. Some cats are just plain skittish anyway. She doesn’t seem > aggressive. My cats were never wild or starved, but it still took them > until > about a year old to stop *acting* like they were starved! I’m sure you’ll > receive all kinds of other good advice from those more knowledgeable than > me. > Karen

Response:

Karen, She’s been to the vet every 3 weeks since we picked her up. de-worming, shots, check up, etc…and if one of the other cats has to go in we tag her along to have her checked. Vet says she’s doing fine.  She’s very healthy, just not too big. Here are some pics, you can pick out the kitten. http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=1539915&a=13899064&f=0 The one with her standing in between the scratching post was when we got her close to 3 months ago, all the other pics were taken 3 weeks ago.  There is some maturing in the face but thats about it. BTW, whenever she is sleeping or near her big Sylvester or little Sylvester she’s perfectly calm and likes to be petted… I’ll try playing with her more and see what happens.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Can you mix something with kitten nutrients in it? She may be lacking in > some nutrition. That can cause behaviour changes. I’d consult with the vet. > Karen

Response:

We had her on kitten food and she didn’t like it, Vet told us to just feed her regular food if she would eat it. Science Diet Maintence is what she eats.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> My question is "is she eaten KITTEN food?" becuase she really needs it. > Maybe longer than other kittens. She sounds like she is going through a > period to me. Some cats are just plain skittish anyway. She doesn’t seem > aggressive. My cats were never wild or starved, but it still took them until > about a year old to stop *acting* like they were starved! I’m sure you’ll > receive all kinds of other good advice from those more knowledgeable than > me. > Karen

Response:

My question is "is she eaten KITTEN food?" becuase she really needs it. Maybe longer than other kittens. She sounds like she is going through a period to me. Some cats are just plain skittish anyway. She doesn’t seem aggressive. My cats were never wild or starved, but it still took them until about a year old to stop *acting* like they were starved! I’m sure you’ll receive all kinds of other good advice from those more knowledgeable than me. Karen

Response:

> I posted on here a few months ago about a family of 5 that we rescued from > under a house at the onset of winter in Michigan, even though its 65 outside > right now  :) > We found a home for the mother and her 3 kittens and after one of them > became > very attached to our male Russian Blue we decided to keep that particular > kitten. > (snip)

Well, Eric,  we have a small black & white female cat that we kept from a group of rescued kitties and although we don’t have as extreme reactions as your kitty we can tell it’s going to take a bit of time to "cuddle" Oreo. How long have you had your kitty?  We’ve had Oreo since early August and while she squirms like all get out when you try to pick her up and put her in your lap she loves to play and plays very well with two of my other cats, Omar (a big orange tabby) and Midnight (a black female).  We get some play sessions going with all 3 kitties and she really seems to enjoy them.  You might try initiating lots of play sessions with your little one and I bet you’ll find she will be anxious for more.  Oreo, too, from her background is the first to meow for food in our group and wolfs her food down quickly — your kitten also may have some growth issues that are a result of her early malnutrition and she just may turn out to be small because of it.  I’d second Karen’s kitten food idea. We don’t know if Oreo will ever be a lap cat but it is encouraging if your kitty is sleeping on the bed at night.  Oreo sleeps in bed with my daughter Celeste.  You have our best wishes for getting your little one to come around; it’ll probably take a long time, but you’re doing the right thing. Take care, Christine (and Omar, Midnight, Shetra & Oreo)

Response:

I posted on here a few months ago about a family of 5 that we rescued from under a house at the onset of winter in Michigan, even though its 65 outside right now  :) We found a home for the mother and her 3 kittens and after one of them became very attached to our male Russian Blue we decided to keep that particular kitten. First off, they were all frightened the death of people, it took us 3 days, a couple of cages and alot of food and patience to catch them all while worrying about them freezing during the night. I took my share of bites and scratches getting them to our house where they spent the next 2 weeks in a spare room getting healthy and gaining some weight, they were all malnourished. One of the kittens came right around that night with  a few treats, slowly the others would at least stop biting them we went to catch them for their medicine each night.  One by one they left and all of the new owners say they’ve turned into fantastic cats, especially the 2 males. We kept one of the females and for the first few weeks she would run and hide everytime we came near her, she’d spend time with the other cats(we have 4) and got along fine.  She’d come running for dinner and beg with the rest of them, let us handle her after a while and even started sleeping on the bed with us.  We thought she’d come around naturally and she was until about 3 weeks ago. Now she runs at the sight of us heading towards her, but she doesn’t hide, she stays 2-3 feet away or runs in a mad panic like we’re coming after her.  Other times usually on her scratching post she’s let us pet her.  When we come out of the shower in the morning in the basement we have another scratching post outside of the bathroom, she sits right there waiting for either one of us and lets us pet her.  She’ll come up and sleep with us, purr the whole bit.  But a majority of the day she runs in fear of everything except the other cats and food. I get her to come by for a treat and try to grab her she runs…if she see’s the treat in my hand I think she wouldn’t care if I set her on fire, she just keeps coming and purrs like mad.  I can handle her and hold her as long as I feed her or she at least see’s treats, but once the foods done she’s wants to run. Its odd, its not a terrified look when we hold her, just anxiousness to get away, and when she’s let go she just climbs down normally, but take a step towards her, even in casual walking by and she flips out. She also won’t run if she’s laying/sleeping with our other cat…and one last thing, she acts like she’s never eaten in her life.  The other cats do the cute "we want to eat" meow’s, she screams till she’s almost horse. Its not like we sit there and withhold food, I’m talking from the time she realizes she’s eating till we get the plates down on the floor.  When they have  a soft food treat we tend to hold back a little to teach them not to jump and reach which a few of them still do, she just goes nuts and has no fear of going after the food of the other cats. As I said, she was malnorished to some extent, the mother was real bad, the kittens probably were not as bad off, she has never wanted for food.  The first few weeks while they were gaining weight we fed her according to the vet which was as much as they wanted until they plumped up a little.  She is eating cat sized portions now. Yet another odd thing is her size.  All the other kittens have grown quite large, she is barely bigger than when we got her at about 5 months old now.  She eats a decent portion a day, the same as our 16+ lb Russian Blue and Burmese and never gains an ounce.  I don’t know how strong she is, she never shows her strength.  I’m sure everyone has an idea of how strong their cat is from them trying to push off or fight when its medicine time, she won’t fight to get loose when held, just has an anxiety about her and walks away. Its a very puzzling situation, I can see it if she didn’t socialize at all, but its the pattern to her behavior.  We’ve never disaplined her, its not neccessary, at the first word she runs if she is doing something wrong and honestly she never does anything wrong, she plays without ruining anything. Any idea’s?

Response:

appears to be alway hungry, screams for more, is underweight. Has the kitty been tested for worms? Can you confirm that another cat isn’t eating the food intended for this kitty (and he/she’s actually hungry because he/she’s hungry)?  <"….We kept one of the females…We thought she’d come around naturally and she was until about 3 weeks ago…she acts like she’s never eaten in her life. The other cats do the cute "we want to eat" meow’s, she screams till she’s almost horse. Its not like we sit there and withhold food, I’m talking from the time she realizes she’s eating till we get the plates down on the floor.  When they have  a soft food treat we tend to hold back a little to teach them not to jump and reach which a few of them still do, she just goes nuts and has no fear of going after the food of the other cats. As I said, she was malnorished to some extent, the mother was real bad, the kittens probably were not as bad off, she has never wanted for food.  The first few weeks while they were gaining weight we fed her according to the vet which was as much as they wanted until they plumped up a little.  She is eating cat sized portions now. Yet another odd thing is her size.  All the other kittens have grown quite large, she is barely bigger than when we got her at about 5 months old now.  She eats a decent portion a day, the same as our 16+ lb Russian Blue and Burmese and never gains an ounce. …">

Response:

We watch them all eat, they all finish their portions.  If we feed them treats immediatly following her dinner she still screams the same way, put the food away and she’s quiet.  Its not like she begs.  She knows she eats at 5am and 4pm and is ready to go around those times. She’s been de-wormed and re-checked by the vet a few times.  We went to the vet again last time, said she’s perfectly healthy and don’t worry about her size or her habits.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – who > appears to be alway hungry, screams for more, is underweight. Has the kitty > been tested for worms? Can you confirm that another cat isn’t eating the food > intended for this kitty (and he/she’s actually hungry because he/she’s hungry)?

Response:

Boy, she is really cute! Really, really cute! What if you just sit down by her when she is calm (like with her Sylvester) and read or something quiet like that, and eat some food near her and the other cats while she is eating hers so that she kind of looks on you as an extension of the other cats. Just some thoughts. Man, she is just darling. Karen

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Karen, > She’s been to the vet every 3 weeks since we picked her up. > de-worming, shots, check up, etc…and if one of the other cats > has to go in we tag her along to have her checked. > Vet says she’s doing fine.  She’s very healthy, just not too big. > Here are some pics, you can pick out the kitten. > http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=1539915&a=13899064&f=0 > The one with her standing in between the scratching post was when > we got her close to 3 months ago, all the other pics were taken 3 weeks > ago.  There is some maturing in the face but thats about it. > BTW, whenever she is sleeping or near her big Sylvester or little Sylvester > she’s perfectly calm and likes to be petted… > I’ll try playing with her more and see what happens. > Can you mix something with kitten nutrients in it? She may be lacking in > some nutrition. That can cause behaviour changes. I’d consult with the > vet. > Karen

Response:

Can you mix something with kitten nutrients in it? She may be lacking in some nutrition. That can cause behaviour changes. I’d consult with the vet. Karen

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> We had her on kitten food and she didn’t like it, Vet told us to just > feed her regular food if she would eat it. > Science Diet Maintence is what she eats. > My question is "is she eaten KITTEN food?" becuase she really needs it. > Maybe longer than other kittens. She sounds like she is going through a > period to me. Some cats are just plain skittish anyway. She doesn’t seem > aggressive. My cats were never wild or starved, but it still took them > until > about a year old to stop *acting* like they were starved! I’m sure you’ll > receive all kinds of other good advice from those more knowledgeable than > me. > Karen

Response:

Karen, She’s been to the vet every 3 weeks since we picked her up. de-worming, shots, check up, etc…and if one of the other cats has to go in we tag her along to have her checked. Vet says she’s doing fine.  She’s very healthy, just not too big. Here are some pics, you can pick out the kitten. http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=1539915&a=13899064&f=0 The one with her standing in between the scratching post was when we got her close to 3 months ago, all the other pics were taken 3 weeks ago.  There is some maturing in the face but thats about it. BTW, whenever she is sleeping or near her big Sylvester or little Sylvester she’s perfectly calm and likes to be petted… I’ll try playing with her more and see what happens.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Can you mix something with kitten nutrients in it? She may be lacking in > some nutrition. That can cause behaviour changes. I’d consult with the vet. > Karen

Response:

We had her on kitten food and she didn’t like it, Vet told us to just feed her regular food if she would eat it. Science Diet Maintence is what she eats.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> My question is "is she eaten KITTEN food?" becuase she really needs it. > Maybe longer than other kittens. She sounds like she is going through a > period to me. Some cats are just plain skittish anyway. She doesn’t seem > aggressive. My cats were never wild or starved, but it still took them until > about a year old to stop *acting* like they were starved! I’m sure you’ll > receive all kinds of other good advice from those more knowledgeable than > me. > Karen

Response:

My question is "is she eaten KITTEN food?" becuase she really needs it. Maybe longer than other kittens. She sounds like she is going through a period to me. Some cats are just plain skittish anyway. She doesn’t seem aggressive. My cats were never wild or starved, but it still took them until about a year old to stop *acting* like they were starved! I’m sure you’ll receive all kinds of other good advice from those more knowledgeable than me. Karen

Response:

> I posted on here a few months ago about a family of 5 that we rescued from > under a house at the onset of winter in Michigan, even though its 65 outside > right now  :) > We found a home for the mother and her 3 kittens and after one of them > became > very attached to our male Russian Blue we decided to keep that particular > kitten. > (snip)

Well, Eric,  we have a small black & white female cat that we kept from a group of rescued kitties and although we don’t have as extreme reactions as your kitty we can tell it’s going to take a bit of time to "cuddle" Oreo. How long have you had your kitty?  We’ve had Oreo since early August and while she squirms like all get out when you try to pick her up and put her in your lap she loves to play and plays very well with two of my other cats, Omar (a big orange tabby) and Midnight (a black female).  We get some play sessions going with all 3 kitties and she really seems to enjoy them.  You might try initiating lots of play sessions with your little one and I bet you’ll find she will be anxious for more.  Oreo, too, from her background is the first to meow for food in our group and wolfs her food down quickly — your kitten also may have some growth issues that are a result of her early malnutrition and she just may turn out to be small because of it.  I’d second Karen’s kitten food idea. We don’t know if Oreo will ever be a lap cat but it is encouraging if your kitty is sleeping on the bed at night.  Oreo sleeps in bed with my daughter Celeste.  You have our best wishes for getting your little one to come around; it’ll probably take a long time, but you’re doing the right thing. Take care, Christine (and Omar, Midnight, Shetra & Oreo)

Response:

I posted on here a few months ago about a family of 5 that we rescued from under a house at the onset of winter in Michigan, even though its 65 outside right now  :) We found a home for the mother and her 3 kittens and after one of them became very attached to our male Russian Blue we decided to keep that particular kitten. First off, they were all frightened the death of people, it took us 3 days, a couple of cages and alot of food and patience to catch them all while worrying about them freezing during the night. I took my share of bites and scratches getting them to our house where they spent the next 2 weeks in a spare room getting healthy and gaining some weight, they were all malnourished. One of the kittens came right around that night with  a few treats, slowly the others would at least stop biting them we went to catch them for their medicine each night.  One by one they left and all of the new owners say they’ve turned into fantastic cats, especially the 2 males. We kept one of the females and for the first few weeks she would run and hide everytime we came near her, she’d spend time with the other cats(we have 4) and got along fine.  She’d come running for dinner and beg with the rest of them, let us handle her after a while and even started sleeping on the bed with us.  We thought she’d come around naturally and she was until about 3 weeks ago. Now she runs at the sight of us heading towards her, but she doesn’t hide, she stays 2-3 feet away or runs in a mad panic like we’re coming after her.  Other times usually on her scratching post she’s let us pet her.  When we come out of the shower in the morning in the basement we have another scratching post outside of the bathroom, she sits right there waiting for either one of us and lets us pet her.  She’ll come up and sleep with us, purr the whole bit.  But a majority of the day she runs in fear of everything except the other cats and food. I get her to come by for a treat and try to grab her she runs…if she see’s the treat in my hand I think she wouldn’t care if I set her on fire, she just keeps coming and purrs like mad.  I can handle her and hold her as long as I feed her or she at least see’s treats, but once the foods done she’s wants to run. Its odd, its not a terrified look when we hold her, just anxiousness to get away, and when she’s let go she just climbs down normally, but take a step towards her, even in casual walking by and she flips out. She also won’t run if she’s laying/sleeping with our other cat…and one last thing, she acts like she’s never eaten in her life.  The other cats do the cute "we want to eat" meow’s, she screams till she’s almost horse. Its not like we sit there and withhold food, I’m talking from the time she realizes she’s eating till we get the plates down on the floor.  When they have  a soft food treat we tend to hold back a little to teach them not to jump and reach which a few of them still do, she just goes nuts and has no fear of going after the food of the other cats. As I said, she was malnorished to some extent, the mother was real bad, the kittens probably were not as bad off, she has never wanted for food.  The first few weeks while they were gaining weight we fed her according to the vet which was as much as they wanted until they plumped up a little.  She is eating cat sized portions now. Yet another odd thing is her size.  All the other kittens have grown quite large, she is barely bigger than when we got her at about 5 months old now.  She eats a decent portion a day, the same as our 16+ lb Russian Blue and Burmese and never gains an ounce.  I don’t know how strong she is, she never shows her strength.  I’m sure everyone has an idea of how strong their cat is from them trying to push off or fight when its medicine time, she won’t fight to get loose when held, just has an anxiety about her and walks away. Its a very puzzling situation, I can see it if she didn’t socialize at all, but its the pattern to her behavior.  We’ve never disaplined her, its not neccessary, at the first word she runs if she is doing something wrong and honestly she never does anything wrong, she plays without ruining anything. Any idea’s?

Response:

appears to be alway hungry, screams for more, is underweight. Has the kitty been tested for worms? Can you confirm that another cat isn’t eating the food intended for this kitty (and he/she’s actually hungry because he/she’s hungry)?  <"….We kept one of the females…We thought she’d come around naturally and she was until about 3 weeks ago…she acts like she’s never eaten in her life. The other cats do the cute "we want to eat" meow’s, she screams till she’s almost horse. Its not like we sit there and withhold food, I’m talking from the time she realizes she’s eating till we get the plates down on the floor.  When they have  a soft food treat we tend to hold back a little to teach them not to jump and reach which a few of them still do, she just goes nuts and has no fear of going after the food of the other cats. As I said, she was malnorished to some extent, the mother was real bad, the kittens probably were not as bad off, she has never wanted for food.  The first few weeks while they were gaining weight we fed her according to the vet which was as much as they wanted until they plumped up a little.  She is eating cat sized portions now. Yet another odd thing is her size.  All the other kittens have grown quite large, she is barely bigger than when we got her at about 5 months old now.  She eats a decent portion a day, the same as our 16+ lb Russian Blue and Burmese and never gains an ounce. …">

Response:

We watch them all eat, they all finish their portions.  If we feed them treats immediatly following her dinner she still screams the same way, put the food away and she’s quiet.  Its not like she begs.  She knows she eats at 5am and 4pm and is ready to go around those times. She’s been de-wormed and re-checked by the vet a few times.  We went to the vet again last time, said she’s perfectly healthy and don’t worry about her size or her habits.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – who > appears to be alway hungry, screams for more, is underweight. Has the kitty > been tested for worms? Can you confirm that another cat isn’t eating the food > intended for this kitty (and he/she’s actually hungry because he/she’s hungry)?

Response:

Boy, she is really cute! Really, really cute! What if you just sit down by her when she is calm (like with her Sylvester) and read or something quiet like that, and eat some food near her and the other cats while she is eating hers so that she kind of looks on you as an extension of the other cats. Just some thoughts. Man, she is just darling. Karen

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Karen, > She’s been to the vet every 3 weeks since we picked her up. > de-worming, shots, check up, etc…and if one of the other cats > has to go in we tag her along to have her checked. > Vet says she’s doing fine.  She’s very healthy, just not too big. > Here are some pics, you can pick out the kitten. > http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=1539915&a=13899064&f=0 > The one with her standing in between the scratching post was when > we got her close to 3 months ago, all the other pics were taken 3 weeks > ago.  There is some maturing in the face but thats about it. > BTW, whenever she is sleeping or near her big Sylvester or little Sylvester > she’s perfectly calm and likes to be petted… > I’ll try playing with her more and see what happens. > Can you mix something with kitten nutrients in it? She may be lacking in > some nutrition. That can cause behaviour changes. I’d consult with the > vet. > Karen

Response:

Can you mix something with kitten nutrients in it? She may be lacking in some nutrition. That can cause behaviour changes. I’d consult with the vet. Karen

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> We had her on kitten food and she didn’t like it, Vet told us to just > feed her regular food if she would eat it. > Science Diet Maintence is what she eats. > My question is "is she eaten KITTEN food?" becuase she really needs it. > Maybe longer than other kittens. She sounds like she is going through a > period to me. Some cats are just plain skittish anyway. She doesn’t seem > aggressive. My cats were never wild or starved, but it still took them > until > about a year old to stop *acting* like they were starved! I’m sure you’ll > receive all kinds of other good advice from those more knowledgeable than > me. > Karen

Response:

Karen, She’s been to the vet every 3 weeks since we picked her up. de-worming, shots, check up, etc…and if one of the other cats has to go in we tag her along to have her checked. Vet says she’s doing fine.  She’s very healthy, just not too big. Here are some pics, you can pick out the kitten. http://albums.photopoint.com/j/AlbumIndex?u=1539915&a=13899064&f=0 The one with her standing in between the scratching post was when we got her close to 3 months ago, all the other pics were taken 3 weeks ago.  There is some maturing in the face but thats about it. BTW, whenever she is sleeping or near her big Sylvester or little Sylvester she’s perfectly calm and likes to be petted… I’ll try playing with her more and see what happens.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Can you mix something with kitten nutrients in it? She may be lacking in > some nutrition. That can cause behaviour changes. I’d consult with the vet. > Karen

Response:

We had her on kitten food and she didn’t like it, Vet told us to just feed her regular food if she would eat it. Science Diet Maintence is what she eats.

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> My question is "is she eaten KITTEN food?" becuase she really needs it. > Maybe longer than other kittens. She sounds like she is going through a > period to me. Some cats are just plain skittish anyway. She doesn’t seem > aggressive. My cats were never wild or starved, but it still took them until > about a year old to stop *acting* like they were starved! I’m sure you’ll > receive all kinds of other good advice from those more knowledgeable than > me. > Karen

Response:

My question is "is she eaten KITTEN food?" becuase she really needs it. Maybe longer than other kittens. She sounds like she is going through a period to me. Some cats are just plain skittish anyway. She doesn’t seem aggressive. My cats were never wild or starved, but it still took them until about a year old to stop *acting* like they were starved! I’m sure you’ll receive all kinds of other good advice from those more knowledgeable than me. Karen

Response:

> I posted on here a few months ago about a family of 5 that we rescued from > under a house at the onset of winter in Michigan, even though its 65 outside > right now  :) > We found a home for the mother and her 3 kittens and after one of them > became > very attached to our male Russian Blue we decided to keep that particular > kitten. > (snip)

Well, Eric,  we have a small black & white female cat that we kept from a group of rescued kitties and although we don’t have as extreme reactions as your kitty we can tell it’s going to take a bit of time to "cuddle" Oreo. How long have you had your kitty?  We’ve had Oreo since early August and while she squirms like all get out when you try to pick her up and put her in your lap she loves to play and plays very well with two of my other cats, Omar (a big orange tabby) and Midnight (a black female).  We get some play sessions going with all 3 kitties and she really seems to enjoy them.  You might try initiating lots of play sessions with your little one and I bet you’ll find she will be anxious for more.  Oreo, too, from her background is the first to meow for food in our group and wolfs her food down quickly — your kitten also may have some growth issues that are a result of her early malnutrition and she just may turn out to be small because of it.  I’d second Karen’s kitten food idea. We don’t know if Oreo will ever be a lap cat but it is encouraging if your kitty is sleeping on the bed at night.  Oreo sleeps in bed with my daughter Celeste.  You have our best wishes for getting your little one to come around; it’ll probably take a long time, but you’re doing the right thing. Take care, Christine (and Omar, Midnight, Shetra & Oreo)

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I posted on here a few months ago about a family of 5 that we rescued from under a house at the onset of winter in Michigan, even though its 65 outside right now  :) We found a home for the mother and her 3 kittens and after one of them became very attached to our male Russian Blue we decided to keep that particular kitten. First off, they were all frightened the death of people, it took us 3 days, a couple of cages and alot of food and patience to catch them all while worrying about them freezing during the night. I took my share of bites and scratches getting them to our house where they spent the next 2 weeks in a spare room getting healthy and gaining some weight, they were all malnourished. One of the kittens came right around that night with  a few treats, slowly the others would at least stop biting them we went to catch them for their medicine each night.  One by one they left and all of the new owners say they’ve turned into fantastic cats, especially the 2 males. We kept one of the females and for the first few weeks she would run and hide everytime we came near her, she’d spend time with the other cats(we have 4) and got along fine.  She’d come running for dinner and beg with the rest of them, let us handle her after a while and even started sleeping on the bed with us.  We thought she’d come around naturally and she was until about 3 weeks ago. Now she runs at the sight of us heading towards her, but she doesn’t hide, she stays 2-3 feet away or runs in a mad panic like we’re coming after her.  Other times usually on her scratching post she’s let us pet her.  When we come out of the shower in the morning in the basement we have another scratching post outside of the bathroom, she sits right there waiting for either one of us and lets us pet her.  She’ll come up and sleep with us, purr the whole bit.  But a majority of the day she runs in fear of everything except the other cats and food. I get her to come by for a treat and try to grab her she runs…if she see’s the treat in my hand I think she wouldn’t care if I set her on fire, she just keeps coming and purrs like mad.  I can handle her and hold her as long as I feed her or she at least see’s treats, but once the foods done she’s wants to run. Its odd, its not a terrified look when we hold her, just anxiousness to get away, and when she’s let go she just climbs down normally, but take a step towards her, even in casual walking by and she flips out. She also won’t run if she’s laying/sleeping with our other cat…and one last thing, she acts like she’s never eaten in her life.  The other cats do the cute "we want to eat" meow’s, she screams till she’s almost horse. Its not like we sit there and withhold food, I’m talking from the time she realizes she’s eating till we get the plates down on the floor.  When they have  a soft food treat we tend to hold back a little to teach them not to jump and reach which a few of them still do, she just goes nuts and has no fear of going after the food of the other cats. As I said, she was malnorished to some extent, the mother was real bad, the kittens probably were not as bad off, she has never wanted for food.  The first few weeks while they were gaining weight we fed her according to the vet which was as much as they wanted until they plumped up a little.  She is eating cat sized portions now. Yet another odd thing is her size.  All the other kittens have grown quite large, she is barely bigger than when we got her at about 5 months old now.  She eats a decent portion a day, the same as our 16+ lb Russian Blue and Burmese and never gains an ounce.  I don’t know how strong she is, she never shows her strength.  I’m sure everyone has an idea of how strong their cat is from them trying to push off or fight when its medicine time, she won’t fight to get loose when held, just has an anxiety about her and walks away. Its a very puzzling situation, I can see it if she didn’t socialize at all, but its the pattern to her behavior.  We’ve never disaplined her, its not neccessary, at the first word she runs if she is doing something wrong and honestly she never does anything wrong, she plays without ruining anything. Any idea’s?

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