Some of my most popular posts on my blog and social media are my adventures with peach kitty. And people often ask why they didn’t just take him, or trap him, and bring him inside. The truth is, it’s not that easy, and it’s not that easy.
The peach kitty is at least a second generation feral cat. His mother is wild, and we don’t know where she came from. Feral cats cannot be taken off the street and tamed within days or weeks. Maybe less than a month. Or ever.
Yes, it happens, but not without a lot of preparation, conscious or not. And not all street cats that become house cats are feral.
The Difference Between Feral Cats and Stray Cats
Maybe you have a friend who saw a cat on the street, or a cat showed up in their yard, and they brought it in and they adapted right away. A cat that does this is a wild cat, not a hardcore feral cat.
A feral cat grows up with some kind of human contact, and then becomes separated from the people they live with. Even if they have been through a traumatic situation, they still have a human connection rooted in their nature. With patience and love it is usually not too difficult for them to become friendly again.
A feral cat has no human contact with their nature. It is something completely foreign to them. As far as they know, humans are just like any other potential predator – something to be suspected and feared. They rely on their survival instincts, which tell them to avoid human contact at all costs. That was a pretty big hurdle to overcome.
Why is Peach Kitty Friendly?
Well, he’s just friendly! Of course he is super friendly to me because I am a cat. But he doesn’t really understand my inner life. He wondered that I was tied to my person by a rope. He’s just really friendly with my human because he’s there every time he sees me, and he gives him treats. When I’m not around and he’s doing something like taking out the trash, he won’t come near her.
However, he is friendlier than most feral cats out there. But that’s mostly because he’s had years of exposure to people who haven’t hurt him, and because he’s more curious about me than the other cats out there.
Peach kitty, her siblings, and their mother were trapped, neutered, and returned to our place in the summer of 2021. By then, our neighbor was feeding them. So that was the beginning. And as for the rest of his family, regular meals are enough for them. They really don’t need or want human contact anymore.
Peach kitty is always a little different. He would look inside the glass door of our neighbor and our house. And although he was the last of his family to be TNR’d, he was one of those rare kittens who didn’t immediately make it out of jail to freedom when he was returned. He lingered for a moment, as if unsure of what to do before walking out and back to his family. Those are the wild ones that you always have to wonder a little bit about.
So Are There Some Feral Cats That Can Socialize?
Yes, if you emphasize “some” and add “after working with them for possibly several years.” I’ve helped peach kitty a lot because she loves me, and she’s forced to contact my human if she wants to be with me. And remember that at this point, he is about three years old, and my man has been actively working with him for almost half of his life. Meanwhile, his family would not come within a few feet of me or my person. When my man wants their pictures taken, he has to use his zoom lens.
So What Do I Do If There’s a Feral Cat I Want to Adopt?
Here are some tips. These are not easy tips, as there are no shortcuts when it comes to socializing and taming a feral cat (if you can do it at all).
- Understand that you are committed to a project that may take years. That is, if you legitimately want a cat that’s quite friendly. Sure, you can trap a cat and take them off the streets, but you’ll probably end up with a cat that has spent its life hiding in dark corners and not interacting with you. They will usually act like they are in jail, locked up. I wouldn’t call that a good quality of life for the cat, or you either.
- Be their food source. The only way you can reach a feral cat is through food. They don’t want human contact. They don’t want your touch or your love. In fact, all of that threatens them. They only understand food. And that will be the way for a long time.
- Leave the cat outside for the entire socialization process. Any attempts to bring them indoors without their permission will backfire, big time. Betrayal of a feral cat’s trust can damage a budding relationship beyond repair.
- When you get to the point where they are coming in, Acclimating them as an indoor cat is another long-term project that should be approached gradually, and in small steps.
- Accept that the cat you socialize with will become your cat. Feral cats that become friendly with a caretaker will bond with that person and no one else. They are not candidates for adoption, full stop.
The process of working with a feral cat involves more details than I’m willing to go into here. You can find some great resources from scaredycats.com.au and americanpetsalive.org.
I don’t mean to sound so discouraging. But it’s important to be realistic. If you want your wild friends to have a good quality of life, many times indoor living is not the answer. Sometimes you have to love someone enough to give them freedom, and that’s the reality for many feral cats.
Here’s more about peach kitty and her wild family:
