Hello,
A week or so ago, I started feeding a stray that was hanging around my parents' house looking skinny and pathetic. She was around all the time, and polishing off half a can or more of Evo at one sitting. Anyway, it's getting cold here, and I decided to take the cat to our local shelter, which I foster for. The cat had one nipple that looked somewhat like she could be nursing, but it also looked infected. In any case, I searched high and low for kittens and tried my hardest to find any, but couldn't. I took the cat to the shelter earlier today, and the vet said that he didn't think she was still nursing. Then tonight, low and behold, my mum found a kitten in the garage. The kitten's eyes are fully open, she's walking and trying to climb, and she's pretty small. I called the shelter to see if I could bring the kitten in, and they said not until the morning. I took the kitten to emergency at my vet's, and bought some kitten milk and bottles. I've been bottle feeding her and trying to keep her warm (I have a hot water bottle in her box), and I've put her in my spare room and locked my cats (2 owned and 2 currently being fostered) out. ANYWAY, my question is this -- how do I up my chances of getting the mother cat to take her kitten back? Have I messed everything up? I feel so horrible about this; I just wanted to make sure the mother cat didn't have to stay out in the cold. Any suggestions?
A week or so ago, I started feeding a stray that was hanging around my parents' house looking skinny and pathetic. She was around all the time, and polishing off half a can or more of Evo at one sitting. Anyway, it's getting cold here, and I decided to take the cat to our local shelter, which I foster for. The cat had one nipple that looked somewhat like she could be nursing, but it also looked infected. In any case, I searched high and low for kittens and tried my hardest to find any, but couldn't. I took the cat to the shelter earlier today, and the vet said that he didn't think she was still nursing. Then tonight, low and behold, my mum found a kitten in the garage. The kitten's eyes are fully open, she's walking and trying to climb, and she's pretty small. I called the shelter to see if I could bring the kitten in, and they said not until the morning. I took the kitten to emergency at my vet's, and bought some kitten milk and bottles. I've been bottle feeding her and trying to keep her warm (I have a hot water bottle in her box), and I've put her in my spare room and locked my cats (2 owned and 2 currently being fostered) out. ANYWAY, my question is this -- how do I up my chances of getting the mother cat to take her kitten back? Have I messed everything up? I feel so horrible about this; I just wanted to make sure the mother cat didn't have to stay out in the cold. Any suggestions?
