How to Rehabilitate Feral Cats and Kittens

There may have been a time when you spotted a cat looking lonely and scared outside, maybe behind a trash can near a restaurant or out somewhere in your neighborhood. If you’re an animal lover, you may have wondered how you could help it.

If you want to get involved, you can join a community program that helps stray or feral cats, but if you’re looking to be more actively involved, maybe helping rehabilitate these animals is more up your alley.

Read on to learn about what feral cats are, how to rehabilitate them (if it’s even possible), and other ways you can help.

What’s the Difference between Feral Cats and Strays?

Biologically, there’s no difference between a feral cat, a stray cat, and a house cat. The biggest difference between them is in socialization. Feral cats experience no human socialization when they are young. On the other hand, a stray cat is usually a cat that has had some human contact in its life but has either been abandoned or run away from its home, possibly ending up in a feral cat colony. (You can usually identify stray cats over feral cats because a stray cat will likely meow and show less fear of humans.)

If you are in the business of rescuing stray and feral cats, that distinction will help you find the cats that are most likely to be successfully rehabilitated and placed in homes.

Is Rehabilitation Possible?

It can be difficult and sometimes impossible to rehabilitate adult feral cats. These are cats that have lived their entire lives without human contact, born in the wild to a feral cat and raised on the streets in a cat colony of some kind. Feral cats are afraid of humans and don’t trust them, so rehabilitating them is not always possible.

The younger the cat you are working with is, the better luck you will have with rehabilitation. Kittens between four and six weeks old have the best chance at rehabilitation. They shouldn’t be taken from their mother any earlier than this, as they are more vulnerable to diseases and are unlikely to survive. The mother cat should be captured as well, if possible, and spayed so she does not continue having litters of kittens. Feral kittens are often much better suited to rehabilitation efforts than adult feral cats, as they can develop into loving, affectionate family pets.

How Does Rehabilitation Work?

If you find yourself with some young feral kittens to rehabilitate, you can help them by following a few easy steps. Start with containment in a cage or a large pet carrier of some kind. Feral kittens will likely hiss and spit at you often; keep in mind, they are terrified of you. They will fight you, trying to scratch or bite if they can, and they will take any opportunity to escape. After all, for all they know, you are a large and scary predator out to get them.

Be sure to choose a container large enough to hold some bedding, food, water, and a litter box. Do not attempt to handle the kittens for at least the first two days. Talk to them and visit them frequently, but don’t touch them just yet.

After those first two days, pick up the calmest kitten in a towel and hold them gently. If they stay relatively calm, try gripping the kitten firmly by the scruff of the neck and placing them on the outside of the towel. Use a calming voice and pet the kitten gently on the back; reward the kitten for this first physical contact with a special treat. Start attempting to brush and comb the kittens, both for their health and because it will help them bond with you. Brushing mimics mama cat’s grooming behaviors. Play with the kittens as well, and be sure to repeat the handling procedure many times.

After about a week of this, you should see good progress in the kittens. Move them to a small room and kitten proof the area so they can’t hide in small spaces. Keep up the handling of the kittens, and once they stop biting or scratching, bring in other humans to handle them. This helps them adjust to people in general, rather than strictly bonding only to you.

What about Adult Feral Cats?

While there are always exceptions to the rule, most adult feral cats will not be happy in a home. Occasionally, these cats can be adopted out as barn cats, living in a warm barn on a farm somewhere and helping control rodent infestations. Otherwise, the best solution is to use employ the trap-neuter-return, or TNR, technique. This involves trapping feral cats, sterilizing them and giving them relevant vaccinations, and then returning them to where they were found.