What a joy it is to be part of stories like this!
The way she dances around the house as her fear fades... It is music to our souls! That beautiful flowing black tail swooshes around like a victory flag!
Wing was born to a Feral MammaCat is a suburb in Moreleta Park where cats have been poisoned. 'Feral' is not a breed. It simply means that the cats are not socialized with humans. Even 'housecats' can become feral if they are abandoned and become unused to human care and interaction.
When we became aware of these kittens, we felt it was urgent (for their safety) that we remove them from the area, even though they would be trapped at an older age than we can normally take in. Wing and her brothers, Bing and Ting, were about 12-14 weeks old at the time that our SpayItForward team was able to trap them and they were taken into foster care with CatzRus. Sterilizing them and returning them to where that came from was just not an option.
They went into a foster home together and started to become comfortable in a human environment. They made friends with the family dogs and cats and played around near the humans, but always just out of reach. They made huge progress in their foster home, and we always thought, 'soon they will settle fully'.
But that just didn't happen. When, after a few months, the three were still not allowing their human foster parents to touch them, we decided it was time to start splitting the siblings so that they would be forced to find comfort and company in the humans instead of in the 'community' of one another. They were (in their feral cat brains) happy to remain skittish and elusive and to follow their fear-instinct and to run away every time a human got too close.
We all know that there's a better life for the cats who can break through from fear to trust.
It is a hard journey for them at first. And the older they get, the harder it becomes. It is hard for the foster-tamer too because we see how scarey it is for the cat at first. We just want them to be happy. So we push through the fear for the happiness ahead.
Wing was removed from the comfort of her two brothers who always protected her and allowed her to hide behind them whenever she was scared. We put her in a pet tent in our spare room - she was familiar with the tent. It was a relatively safe space for her. We played soothing music with purring cat sounds. She hid in her cat carrier inside the tent. And then we started pushing our hands into her safe space and touching her! She gave a few half-hearted hisses and she trembled at every touch. But never once did this brave girl bite or scratch us.
It wasn't long before we got the beautiful first purrs. She just needed to feel that the fingers that were running through her soft fur were kind and gentle. There was still a long way to go. For almost a week she was too scared to eat properly. Her previous foster mom had managed to teach her to eat out of her hand and for the first week all she would eat was hand-fed treats. We figured that wasn't a bad thing, but it was still a joy when she ate her first kibble meal out of a bowl. It showed progress.
Slowly slowly the fear started fading. Wing progressed from the tent to the whole spare-room with safe hiding spaces. Then we let her explore the main bedroom and the bathroom. At each new step, Wing had to push through her fear. She was starting to realize that being 'brave' opened new doors of fun and adventure. We tried not to push her too hard or to move too fast. Even the foster family learned to walk slowly and talk softly so that Wing's ingrained fear wouldn't be sparked.
Wing has been with us for a month now and it is hard to describe the joy of her 'unfurling'. She no longer runs every time she is approached by a human. She now rolls over, stretches, and shows her belly for rubs. She is sleeping on a bed for the first time in her life. The purrs are frequent and the playful joy is evident in her movements and her fun-loving little prrps. She now asks for food and spontaneously comes for cuddles.
The way she dances around the house as her fear fades... It is music to our souls!
There have been two major 'tools' in our journey to Wing's freedom from fear.
Firstly our own cat, Wing's big male foster brother, Jedidiah. His calm example has helped so much. He has now fostered almost 100 cats and kittens with us. Wing adores him and would love a big brother cat in her new home. Or maybe even a double adoption with one of her own brothers now that the fear is fading.
And secondly, the discovery that Wing loves String! Her favourite game in the whole world is chasing a string and the fun of playtime helps to disarm her fear in the most wonderful way. Wing loves string a little too much - she will eat it if it is left lying around! We've learned to be very careful about packing away the toys!
Wing is now ready to finish her journey to trust in her forever home. If you think you are the right family to be part of Wing's ongoing adventure, please contact Brenda on 0845427251.
Comentários