Adopted kitten trouble

Question
I adopted brother and sister kittens almost a month ago - they are coming out of their shells a little bit finally, but they still run away whenever I come near and hide much of the time. The male is fine at times, but sometimes freaks out, biting, scratching and hissing out of nowhere. It doesn't seem to be getting any better and I am wondering if I should return them before it's too late. The other factor is that since I received them, they have had colds and need to be given medicine twice a day. So I'm not sure if this is causing the alienation or not. They were found abandoned as babies and were in a foster home with eight other cats previous to my receiving them - I think they are about 4 months old. Any suggestions before I give up? Please help!

Answer
The age of socialization in cats is very young, when they are about 3-7 weeks of age.  This is the time when they are most impressionable, and if they are not exposed to much human interaction during that time then they tend to be very aloof as adults.  Sometimes they can still become great pets, but even at 3 months old, the age you got your two little guys, is pretty old to be trying to get them used to people.  You're right though, that giving them medication daily is definitely not helping.  They are smart and they will want to stay away from you since you give them the medicine.  I wouldn't give up on them, though, until they have finished their medication and you can start working with them without the unpleasantness of forcing nasty tasting stuff in their mouths.  They will probably never be cuddly little kittens, but it's definitely not too late to turn them into friendly companions.

Amanda