How do you tame a not so tame kitten?

Question

we just recently introduced 2 new members too our family, 9 week old tabby and a 6 week old tabby both female.

the trouble is the 6 week old tabby, she is literally unaproachable, she will hiss, scratch, bite, when ever you go near her, im worried that she wont tame and wont eat. i know its a little kitten but really this one is quite vicious and im not quite sure what to do, please help!

Answer 1

Lots and lots of patience.

And lots more....

And maybe a bit more...

In May I adopted 3 stray sibling that had lived on the street for 5 months, then lived with a foster mother who was rarely home for another 6 months.  The foster mother beat it into my head over and over that I would NEVER make lap cats out of any of them... 3 months later I have 2 lap cats and one curious cat. So "HA!" to the doubting foster mother.

I used several techniques to get the cats used to me and to become friendlier to me.  The best thing I did was treats.  They rescuers and foster mother had used Baby Food as a treat for them.  They LOVE it.  Gerbers makes a "2nd Foods" line that has meat flavors.  My cats prefer that to tuna.  They started off getting it on a little plater, then off a spoon while with the foster mother.  Once I got them, I gave it to them off my finger tip.  They were so greedy they didn't care.  That got them used to being near me and less afraid of my hands.

Another thing I did was move freely, talk regularly and bounce around carelessly.  All of the commotion scared them at first, but they eventually figured out that none of my noises or movements hurt them.  I had one kitty that was particularly prone to hissing, so I kept doing jazz hands at her whenever I walked by especially when she hissed.  She started to look more confused than scared, the she just got plain bored and stopped hissing.

A last thing I did to win them over was bribe them with toys.  Lots and lots of toys.  I would always be sure to rub my scent over the toys before tossing them out to be played with.  I also got a few different stick toys to play with.  Those meant that I actually was engaged with them in play.  They would often forget I was even there and just be near me without being scared.

When I first got them, they would all run whenever I got within 5 feet of them.  Now they don't bother.  Its taken several months, lots of baby food and more than a few toys.

Your kitten needs to learn to trust you.  She needs to learn to be used to you being around.  She needs to learn that running and hissing really isn't going to change your behavior and that your behavior is not going to hurt her.  That will take time.  It will be worth it though.  I've discovered two sweethearts who used to disguise themselves as feral cats and I am close to winning the third over.  Just don't get mad at her if she hisses.  She mostly doesn't mean it.  And she will eat more when her stress levels are down.

Answer 2

This method has never failed me:  Put the kitten in a room with water, litter box, toys. Do not put any food in there. The room should have no beds or anything to hide under. Go in at feeding time with some yummy wet food. Put it on the floor and sit a few feet away. If the kitten does not come to eat soon or hisses at you, take the food and leave. Go back in a bit and try again. Each time she eats, move the food bowl closer to you next time. Eventually, you should be able to pet her while she eats. It's always a good idea to keep a new kitten in a nursery for a few days at first so they don't get scared and overwhelmed by the big house and new sounds and smells let alone big cats. Hope this works out for you.

Answer 3

The great things about kittens are that they quickly come round very quickly with the right handling.

Try feeding her little treats by hand and talking quietly to her she will get used to you being near her.

she is very young to be away from her mum and needs to learn that you aren't a threat and you won't hurt her.

If she hasn't had very much contact with humans then she will be naturally scared.

She's only six weeks old so the hissing and biting really isn't to scary.

With a little bit of time she will soon come round.

when you pick her up make sure she is held feels safe by holding her under bottom with her facing you.

Give her lots of attention and she will be fine.

Answer 4

ok calm down i had 18 kittens before and 3 right now its not that its vicious its that its scared try to give it room not all kittens adapt to there enviorment trust me if you leave it alone for 48 hours the kittens will get the hang of things thats what happened to my kittens and i left them alone  and it worked.