~ 3 month old ferral kitten , questions

I agree with the theory that she has not deemed you as safe yet. The last feral cat I had, I gave treats to at about the same time every morning, we had a window that we would leave open, after about 2 weeks of morning snacks he started coming in the window and meowing from the kitchen because I didn’t get up early enough, then it was the hallway, then the doorway, then the bed….. soon, he just never left ….. so my advice is start a routine… or give lots of treats with playtime or both, but do give it time, and don’t try to do too much, let your kitty go at her own pace

The best way to socialise a feral kitten is to house it in a large cage with bedding, litter tray, water & food bowls for a couple of weeks. The cage should have a blanket or some sort of covering at the back so the kitten can hide a bit at first as it will be frightened. Handling the kitten regularly throughout the day and evening so he/she comes to trust and love you. The cage should be in the room where you and your family spend most of your time and can be moved between rooms if needed. It should preferably be placed on a table (on newspaper to prevent scratching) so it can observe you all and you can sit comfortably on a chair to stroke and play with it. Here it will learn to use the tray, get used to household sounds such as the telephone, vacuum and TV. At first a feral kitten will be frightened in a cage but soon comes to see it as home, a safe place to be; when you do let it go free it will still need access to its cage for a week or so as its refuge and safe place to be. You should pick the kitten up inside the cage after a few days of gentle but frequent stroking so that it gets used to you holding it. Once it is out of the cage in a couple of weeks you should continue to regularly pick it up, holding it a few inches off the floor and each day raising it a little higher until it is happy at waist height. This is important so you will be able to put it in a carrier when you need to transport it to the vets or such like. Remember, it’s like the movie King Kong where he picks up the woman and she is terrified. The kitten is terrified of you, you have no fur, only two legs and are lifting it high up off the ground. In nature the only time it is off the ground is when it jumps from one place to another. The whole reason for the caging is because a feral kitten left free will keep running and hiding so you are unable to touch or handle it. Now that’s fine for the kitten but most people want to interact with their kitten, spoil and love it. If that’s what you want/need then this is the quickest way to achieve that. By caging it you are pushing it through the fear barrier in a fast and safe manner. Once the kitten does that it will love you and be the most loyal cat ever. It may still run from strangers but it wil adore you!