President Theodore Roosevelt is credited with saying, “Speak softly and carry a big stick” in reference to foreign policy. Paraphrasing that for cats it would read, “Walk softly and carry no stick.”

Cats by nature are easily startled. Just try running through a room of soundly sleeping pets and watch them jerk awake and scatter. For minutes, nay hours, they may peer at you from behind the sofa with big round eyes filled with trepidation. If you were carrying something large in your hand when you made the dash, the fear will have been even greater.

Foster kittens are often freaked out when I show up to feed and scoop and I look different. My hair may be up or I’m in a fluffy robe. The normally purring kittens will greet me with a hiss instead. Think about it, cats can’t change clothes or hairstyle, so part of socializing feral kittens is introducing them to actual human home life and lots of wardrobe changes.

Bringing a kitten inside for the first time, they will be faced with all manner of scary things. Obviously the vacuum cleaner is especially frightening, but kids yelling and running around, doorbells and strangers entering, strange cats and barking dogs in the house…. Just the up close and personal everyday household hum can be overwhelming.

For this reason I have dedicated an upstairs bathroom as a kitten nursery. In this way the cats are removed from the mainstream but can still hear everything that is going on downstairs. Since my office is nearby, I am able to pop in frequently for play sessions. Also, any of my cats that are curious can drop by for a visit through the baby gate bars. If need be, I can close the door and make it an isolation room in the case of illness.

Our foster parents all do things differently, depending on their lifestyles. Some of them have their own pets in the house that will not tolerate kittens. Even if the other four-legged family members like newcomers, it is not advisable to let them intermingle unless the kittens have first been tested for FeLV and FIV and been treated for parasites. There is no right way as long as the kittens are handled and played with and readied for adoption.

So put your sticks away, slow down your life, and fill out the foster volunteer application on our website. During kitten season we always have more than enough to go around!