Marmite.

Marmite was only six weeks old, when he came to us, much too young to be separated from his mum. He was found abandoned on a car park in Warrington. Poor little Marmite was in a terrible condition with a sore eye and very dirty ears. Worst of all, he was wild (feral) and would hiss and spit at anyone trying to get near him. In order to socialise him, we had to wrap him up in a blanket to stop him from biting and scratching us. After a few days of sitting wrapped up on our laps at every break time, Marmite allowed us to stroke him. Despite this progress, every morning he would revert back to his feisty self, hissing and attempting to bite members of staff. Half an hour twice a day just was not enough time to socialise a feral kitten effectively. Claire, a member of staff, volunteered to take Marmite home, so that he would be around people all the time.
From then on, Marmite was in constant human company and soon grew accustomed to their attention. Very shortly afterwards, this former feisty feline became a totally different kitten. Now instead of shying away from everyone, he would cry for attention, if he was being ignored and not in the centre of attention. Marmite was happiest when sitting on someone’s lap and getting his belly rubbed. He even enjoyed having his dirty ears and eyes wiped daily. It may have reminded him of when his mother used to wash him.
After a fortnight, at the age of nine weeks he was finally old enough to find a new permanent home. Marmite found a home on the first day of being moved into our adoption section. He now lives happily with a nice family, who already has a cat for him to play with.

Feral kittens take a lot of time, patience and determination to get them ready for adoption. But if you put in the effort, they become wonderful pets and often have a closer bond with their owners.