On Fri, 05 Nov 2004 14:04:52 -0800, Shana Cooke wrote:

I'm trying to find out information on how to teach a semi-feral cat to
like being picked up (or at least tolerate it).

Patience, and technique. The cat may never come to like it, but the point
is to make the experience tolerable and non-threatening.

1. Know how to pick up a cat. (Amazing how many people get this wrong,
typically picking the cat up by its midriff, like a towel.) With the cat
facing away, you want one hand from behind a foreleg cradling the chest,
and the other under the haunches or butt. The idea is to use the front
hand to lever the cat backwards onto the back hand. The heaviest part of
the anatomy (the pelvis) is firmly supported, and there is no discomfort.

2. Accustom the cat to your hands. The cat should associate your hands
with petting, and this should apply to all parts of the body. So, try
scritching the chest from behind a foreleg from time to time. This is
preparation for the front hand of the two-handed pickup.

3. Develop the chest petting into occasional upward pressure (preparing
for the levering backwards). Try for just enough to lift the forelegs
momentarily off the floor. Since this is part of a petting session, the
cat should get accustomed to it as "part of the game".

4. Eventually try the two handed pickup, again for only a moment. They
will panic, just keep your cool, and keep on interacting with them.

5. When, later, the panic reaction subsides, the idea should be short
lifts where the cat is put down somewhere pleasant, e.g. in front of a
food bowl, into its favorite napping spot, etc. The point is to make the
experience something the cat should not fear, because something "nice"
always happens.

6. Be prepared for this to take a year or more before you can carry the
cat across the room.