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I have a kitten (15 weeks) that has to be isolated while she's being treated for ringworm (for six weeks). She's from a shelter, and I don't know when she was separated from her mother or littermates.

The problem is that whenever there's nobody else in the room she makes a fuss and scratches at the door. Not just for a few minutes after being left there or whenever somebody passes by, but more or less all night.

How to keep her suitably socialised (considering her age and developmental requirements) without spreading the disease around?

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Is there anything to do in that room? We had to do something similar for our kitten but we had a lot of toys and stuffed animals in the room with her. We also left the TV on in that room. A bubble machine, or automated laser device would also be good option.

Kittens are designed to being nocturnal, so giving the kitten as much attention as possible during the day may help the problem as well by getting her to sleep at night instead of craving attention. Try to spend as much time in the room with her as possible during the day; if you can do your chores in the room.

It is very important that she get interactions at this age. I'd contact the vet that told you to isolate her and ask for advice on top of whatever answers come from this thread.

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  • There are a few things; and the oddest part of the situation is that if I just walk into the room and sit down then she'll start purring and then happily pick up and play with some of her toys and ignore me. If I leave then she goes back to making noise and scratching at the door. I'd try to visit her more regularly, but every visit has to be followed with a bit of a scrub-down to control the ringworm.
    – sh1
    Jul 27, 2015 at 19:09
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    Remember how human infants behave. Not having adult around is stressful . Even when the adult is uninvolved with the kid's activities, they're protection and assistance if needed. Cats certainly have enough situational awareness to feel the same way.
    – keshlam
    Jul 28, 2015 at 18:36
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An old rescue trick is to take a book/magazine/newspaper into the room and read to her. Since you're worried about contamination, just take something into the room and leave it there until after isolation is over. She'll get used to your voice and presence, and if she wants attention from you she'll come over.

If you plan to spend an hour or so with her each day, and make it at the same time, she should learn that she will get attention at this particular time and hopefully not pine for it at other times.

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