feral kittens and momma

sunryse1

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Hello to everyone.

I am new here so please forgive me if I post incorrectly. I need some advice about some feral kittens.
A feral momma had some kittens on July 22 in my neighbors yard. He has been gone for 5 months and is coming home tomorrow. I let him know about the kittens in an email and he was not happy and said he would take care of it.
I was worried that he would harm them and so I took the kittens and tried to get the mom but she went nuts when I closed her into the dog run ( where I had put the kittens). I let her out fearing she would harm herself the way she banged against the cage.
Well I have her kittens inside now, they are warm, fed and sleeping. She is pacing my yard and has attacked both of my adult cats.

I don't know if I should keep these kittens or return them to her. If I let them go I dont think they will have much of a chance. If I keep them I don't know if momma will be okay. She is so mad and sad. I feed her daily but she has yet to let me touch her. She spits and hisses at me so I just put her food out and say hi to her.

I need to know what I should do for the best interest of them all. I do want to try to trap the mom and get her spayed.

Any advice would be appreciated. Thank you.
 

mrblanche

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Well, my counting says they are about 6 weeks old. That's kind of young to be away from mom, but it may be the best you can do. She would be weaning them completely in less than 4 more weeks, anyway. If they get much over 6 weeks old, they're hard to tame.

Others may have some advice.
 

icklemiss21

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If you can get her to stay with them it is better. All ferals will freak out when first confined but they will usually calm down and if her kittens are not getting regular meals they will probably still be nursing and need her. I would give her another chance with the kittens in the dog run if you can get her in there and try to find a TNR group in the area who are willing to TNR her and get the kittens to a shelter.

If it doesn't work out, try to give them kitten rather than cat food if you can get it so they are getting the nutrition they need.
 

cc12

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I took my girls inside at 5 and 6 weeks. They were already on kitten food because I had been feeding them. Lucia, their mother was not happy. But some say after 8 weeks they are on their way to becoming feral.
My feeling is to keep the kittens inside and try to trap Mom. You can confine them to a crate if you can. You should also get her spayed at a low cost clinic. I have a link to resources in my signature line.
If you feel like you can't keep Mom inside then I would at least get her spayed.

The kittens can be socialized and adopted out at this age. They have their siblings with them so they will have playmates. Sometimes feral mothers will move with their kittens and with an unhappy neighbor in the mix who knows what could happen.
 
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sunryse1

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Thank you so much for the advice on my little ferals.
I have kept them in my spare bedroom and momma seems to be settling into the dog run, at night anyway and is coming for the food in there. She does let me go in there without her running away to bring the food. Sadly though her little baby from her previous litter will not come around if I am out there.
I am hoping I will be able to enclose her and her other baby one day and get her spayed. I will get a trap tomorrow to set out for her.
For now I will continue to care for little Mehling & Panda. I still am not sure if they are girls or boys. They are balls of fire which makes me feel pretty certain that they are healthy as can be for starting out so rough outside.

I will make them an appt tomorrow ( my vet is closed today). I am a little concerned about how little they eat but I guess that is normal for babies their size.
They get up every few hours to eat and play and then go back to sleep after about 2 hours of play. They are very busy. Oh and very very messy when eating, which is pretty cute.

Thank you again...and sorry I started to ramble on.

Have a great day,
sunryse
 

ldg

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Fighting for ferals in NW NJ!
and thank you for rescuing these kitties and working to help momma and (at least one kitten from) her previous litter!


If you want to look for help, like a foster org with an adoption network, the best way (I've found) is to go to http:/www.petfinder.com. Fill in just "cats" and nothing else but your zip code. It will come up with pages and pages of cats up for adoptin - but each cat has an org listed for it, and you can click on the org links to read either their website or their web page on Petfinder. Hit the phones and e-mails, and keep track of which e-mail goes with which org (most of the e-mail addys are personal ones). We sent out 22 e-mails and got three responses over five days, so you do have to be patient.

The other option is to include that you're willing to become part of the foster network (if it's true) - but that will at least help with getting them adopted out, as they'll get more access to potential adopters.

...unless, of course, you're pretty confident friends, family or co-workers will take them.
I think just about everyone we work with has at least one of "our" cats!


Laurie
 

icklemiss21

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Originally Posted by sunryse1

I will make them an appt tomorrow ( my vet is closed today). I am a little concerned about how little they eat but I guess that is normal for babies their size.
They get up every few hours to eat and play and then go back to sleep after about 2 hours of play. They are very busy. Oh and very very messy when eating, which is pretty cute.
Eating little is fairly normal (and better than when they eat too much and puke and poop all over you
) but you can try warming their food if you need to encourage them to eat. Just give them lots of small meals


The rest sounds like normal kittens
 
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sunryse1

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I just wanted to update on my little ferals, who are now part of our family....of course.
They had their vet check up and were treated in case of worms. Mehling weighed more I think, 1.5 lbs and Panda was 1.2. I am continuing my battle with their fleas which I comb them for when they eat. The vet said I can't use flea products yet.
They eat and play and thankfully nap alot. Constantly into something, they are having fun hanging from clothes, curtains and such,
they are little wizards the way they disappear so quickly. They are also very tiring. Well I just love them so I wanted to share.
Thank you for your advice and once I can post pics of them I would like to share.
 

siobhan

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You could trap mama again and keep light music on and keep in an area with a towel over so she is not panicked. I is a normal reaction for a feral kitty to jump at the walls like that but over time, some can be socialized. I have yet to meet one who cannot be unless they are sev rely ill and have been feral for many many generations. I know you love the kittens but my heart goes out to mama who needs to be spayed and is probably young herself!

Good luck helping her and thanks for taking in the kittens!
 
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