A few days ago, my family stopped by to meet the kittens. The kittens were not enthusiastic about meeting new people. They scattered and hid under the treadmill.
Although the smallest of the bunch, Shortie was the bravest. After an initial scamper away, she quickly returned. While she wasn't too interactive with my sister, her husband, my nephew, and my father, she wasn't afraid, either. She amused herself, playing with toys.
After a bit, some kittens ventured out but did not stay out for long. Double Stuff found himself out in the open, darting about, trying to find a place to hide. The longer he searched, the more panicked he became. He soon decided he could escape the room, even though the door was shut. He spotted the gap under the door. He made a beeline towards the door, ramming his head under the door, trying to slither out to the other side. But his head is bigger than he expected. And the gap isn't as wide as he gauged. He quickly became stuck. And then the panic REALLY set in. With his head wedged under the door, he began screaming and his panic manifested in hissing. Nadya thought another cat was attacking him from the other side of the door and flew into super protective momma mode. She launched herself at the door, puffed up and hissing herself, trying to attack whatever was on the other side. Double Stuff's hysteria intensified. My sister ran over and tried to pull him out but since he didn't know her, he was terrified even more. I intervened and tried pulling him out but he was firmly wedged under the door. I had to open the door to free his head.
One bright thing that came out of this scary incident - all of the kittens came out of hiding (many were all puffed up) due to the commotion. They were gawkers on the scene.
So.... because we can't have Double Stuff ramming his head under a door every time a stranger comes into the room, I have arranged people playdates for the kittens. There will be new people coming over a couple of times a week to sit with the kittens, play with the kittens, and just be a person.
On Monday (6/23), the kittens met the wonderful Peggy, who is also a foster caregiver for Feline Rescue. She came bearing treats. As I walked into the room, all of the kittens ran to greet me. But when they saw Peggy behind me a second later, they all scattered, hiding under the treadmill again. Shortie stayed. She wasn't afraid! She's a tough and brave little girl.
Nadya was incredibly friendly. She purred and rubbed all over Peggy. She was also quite interested in the treats. Moments later, Stroopy came out of hiding. He was afraid and kept darting for cover but the allure of treats resonated with him. Biscoff was the next to venture out. Both kept fighting their fear, pulling their braveness up by the bootstraps. They'd sit out in the open for a second, shyly duck back behind something, come out a second later, nervously take a few steps forward, until they reached the point where they could be comfortable being visible as long as Peggy didn't make any sudden movements or, heaven forbid, try to touch them.
Zotz watched from afar. She came out from under the treadmill, walked to the back of it (the furthest point away), and peered out at us. We could only see her eyes and her ears. Zagnut crawled out from under the treadmill a few times but ducked back under after a moment or two. He forgot to tuck his giant paws under so we could see them sticking out. Double Stuff knows his name so when I would call out to him, he'd peek out.
After about a half hour, Nadya walked over to the treadmill and chattered at the kittens underneath, as if scolding them. They all came out of hiding. Momma told them to come out so they did! But none wanted to approach Peggy. Double Stuff clung to his momma, hugging her and begging for licks of comfort.
I got out a wand toy. That did the trick. Biscoff wanted to show his new best friend all of his graceful moves. Zagnut just wanted to steal the toy. Even Fudgie, who hates me, came over to play with the wand toy.
Interestingly enough, Zotz, who was the first to do everything and is incredibly adventurous, was one of the last to fully approach Peggy. Double Stuff kept needing his momma to reinforce his courage. He would dart back to her, get his head licked, and then he would venture a couple steps further.
After the hour long session, Peggy was able to see, interact, AND touch all seven kittens. She even held Fudgie. Biscoff draped himself over her feet, keeping close to his favorite toy and the woman with treats.
The next visitor is scheduled for Wednesday (6/25), a little after 5:00pm Minnesota time. I'm hoping that with each new visitor, the time it takes for them to come out of hiding is shorter to the point where they don't even hide. There is hope.
In other news, the kittens will be three months old on 7/2. This is a momentous date because in the Feline Rescue world, this marks the spay/neuter age (with the caveat that they are three pounds; this is also the time when they're FIV tested). And once they're spayed/neutered, they can be adopted. Two of the kittens (Fudgie and Shortie) are not three pounds yet. They're just a tish over two and a half pounds now. Since kittens typically gain about 4 ounces a week, this means neither will be three pounds by next week. I had tentatively scheduled their spay/neuter surgery for 7/7 knowing that the smaller kittens wouldn't be ready on their actual 3 month birthday, however, it looks as though it will need to be pushed out until at least 7/9.
Every day with the kittens brings something new. They're learning. They're growing.
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