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Help! Dog person trying to help friendly stray momma & kittens - Page 2

post #31 of 49
6/27/11 at 12:43pm
Go ahead and get on that !! It is completely frustrating that there are so many irresponsible cat owners out there in the world. Just makes the rescuers work so much harder. ..... BUT WOW! Just want to commend you highly for your efforts in rescuing all of these cats/kittens. Just fabulous. You are truly a cat champion.

Please do keep us updated ! I really hope that all of the cats/kittens find wonderful new homes, all thanks to you
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post #32 of 49
6/29/11 at 11:36pm
Thread Starter 
So, it's been a couple of days but here it is. I was supposed to hand off Phoebe and 2 kittens to a neighbor on Monday. Yes, today is Wed and no, she still had not come by to get them. So I went up there to see what the hold up was. She completely changed her story and said that was never her intention! What?!?!?! (Insert numerous bad words here!)

Ok so back to the drawing board. At least the 3 wildest ones had been placed with a foster for the summer. So, I called them and they said that they would take all 5!!! They now have 5 kittens at their house and I have one confused momma cat. She growls and hisses at me when I go in to feed and clean but as soon as I bend down she comes over purring. Poor baby, I feel so sorry for her. I have no where to put her, so I am letting her go back out to the neighborhood where people know her and will help feed her. I am actually going to try and keep her around my house so I can keep feeding her but also because if I need to release the 2 little wild orange-men, I will put them back near or with Phoebe and I can keep an eye on them all. But at this point I have my window in her room open, with the screen propped open so we will see if she will just jump out the window tonight on her own. I don't really want to put her in a crate to take her outside, she really doesn't trust me enough to let me do that again to her.

So, I will let you all know where we are as the gentling proceeds with the kittens and with keeping Phoebe around. Also good thoughts for our trapping on Friday night!!!!

Thanks, Terri
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post #33 of 49
6/30/11 at 11:43am
Not good news about your neighbor. Who knows what went wrong with her . But, GOOD news about the five going to foster. PHEW.. I am sure Phoebe will go out that window tonight and if not, then that means she might want to be an inside kitty and is comfortable and safe in that room. Too bad there was not a foster situation for her. She sounds very, very sweet. At least she is spayed now and will have the safety of your yard and your regular feedings. Let us know how that turns out with Phoebe tonight. And, of course, much luck with trapping on Friday
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post #34 of 49
6/30/11 at 1:57pm
It is different in different countries, here leaving window open to let cat go outside is against the law and doing so would result facing criminal charges and additional anger of every animal wellfare organization, probably also ban for keep any animals, but as I said countries are different and I'm not saying our country would be right in it's ways, just thought that it would add perspective to this subject to know how things are at other parts of world.

I think that Finland ranks one of the top countries in animal rights legistation and there it is going farther quite soon in future.

Sometimes I think it is overdone, but then I read how middle aged woman puts her cat to washing machine because getting tired of how much it sheds fur, people can be quite crazy.

I think that Phoebe will do fine with regular feeding and if you have own yard please put some shelter there first, just some box is better than no box at all.
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post #35 of 49
6/30/11 at 6:25pm
Thread Starter 
JTbo, yeah I think that regulations are different in different countries. They even differ state to state here in the US. Leaving a window or a door open for a cat or a dog is not against the law. We have pet doors specifically for the purpose of letting animals in and out of the house when they want, but I am guessing that is not what your law is meant to discourage. More for helping to keep people from just turning their pets loose on the street is what I am guessing.

Feralvr, you were right. She did go out the window on her own last night. Phoebe has been microchiped, so if by some reason she is picked up her owner (which is the cat rescue lady I work with) will be called and she can be turned over to her. As for letting her go or turning her back onto the street, she will be just fine, I am sure but still a little sad I had no where for her to go. We are in Hawaii where it is 75-85 F year round. This neighborhood is full of old houses that are built up off the ground so she will be living under the house again, just like she was before I picked her up. There are also people in the neighborhood that know her and will help to feed her but I just kinda hope that she will stay around my end of the neighborhood instead of heading back to where she used to live.

Unfortunately (and here is my so you can quit reading now if you want) my neighborhood has a ton of cats, so far I have trapped and fixed about 15 cats between my neighborhood and one other. Another lady caught and fixed 13 a couple of months ago, so like it or not, there is quite a large population of unwanted cats in the area. And those are just the ones that I've caught and kept because they needed to be fixed, not just re-released because they were already fixed. This is a very frustrating problem because it is a combination of people abandoning pets (because they know that there are neighborhoods that will continue to feed the animals when they are left behind) and because people do feed them and then they continue to reproduce and no one bothers to try and do TNR! And to make it worse, we are having to keep our activities fairly quiet because if we make too much noise then the authorities will realize there is an issue and then they will come in and trap and when THEY do it, it is trap and eliminate! I am not really a cat person but that to me just doesn't really seem fair either!!!!!! Ughhh!!!! Ok, so that was waaaaaaaaayyyyyy off the topic of Phoebe and the kittens, so I am sorry, but I needed a rant for a few minutes. Thanks.

As for the gang, I'll keep everyone updated on the progress and pictures once I can get some to post on Petfinder, craigslist, and everywhere else I can think of to post to try and find homes for these little guys before Aug and the fosters go back to college.
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post #36 of 49
7/1/11 at 2:05am
Ah, Hawaii, now there you are really having a feral problem, I remember reading of scientific research being done at Mauna Kea, they were trying to find out what is their effect to wildlife, that might lead some changes in there near future if it is found that ferals are causing impact to natural species, which probably is the case.

One friend told me once that there was cat everywhere where he did look, don't know if it really is that bad, but I can imagine their having more litter than anywhere else.

That SB13 of your state is crazy, what were they thinking!?

I did read that Humane society of Hawaii euthanizes 87% of cats they get which turn outs to be 13 000 cats each year, so it is really a lot of cats there are, it is not very big place and that amount of cats is just a fraction what amount of ferals there really are, that is always the case, so it is never ending important work you do.

Reminds me of rabbits in Australia, problem is bit similar, but cat is much more of problem in so many levels, even for person's mind that there will not be easy solution.

I really don't accept killing of cats, but in situation which is there, I don't know, for wildlife's point of view they can endager whole species really, sometimes it is better to pick lesser from two wrongs.
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post #37 of 49
7/1/11 at 7:40am
Quote:
Originally Posted by JTbo View Post
Reminds me of rabbits in Australia, problem is bit similar, but cat is much more of problem in so many levels, even for person's mind that there will not be easy solution.
They do have lots of legions of feral cats too, so they do have more or less a cat problem too.
Which of course makes the rescuers work troublesome. The TNR others perhaps do understand, but to try and foster these ferales on a regular basis, or save sick small kittens?? Nay.


Sending vibes to rescuers and people with good will, in Australia, Hawaii, and everywhere else! May the Force be with you!
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post #38 of 49
7/1/11 at 7:53am
Quote:
Originally Posted by StefanZ View Post
They do have lots of legions of feral cats too, so they do have more or less a cat problem too.
Which of course makes the rescuers work troublesome. The TNR others perhaps do understand, but to try and foster these ferales on a regular basis, or save sick small kittens?? Nay.


Sending vibes to rescuers and people with good will, in Australia, Hawaii, and everywhere else! May the Force be with you!
In Australia, they could use cats to hunt rabbits, small ones that is, but it would be too 'difficult' (difficult in people's minds perhaps more than in reality), so there are going to be some issues.

We here are in such position that there can't really be big feral problem in here, our winters make sure only the strongest survive.

At many places authorities should indeed do much more preventive work, it is almost impossible to fix problem on other end. Here one can read almost daily about how someone has been convicted from animal cruelty, that is including abandoning pets, but I don't know if that is really making people think about getting the pet in first place.

But I'm very curious to hear if Phoebe will be around for food
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post #39 of 49
7/1/11 at 1:43pm
Thread Starter 
JTbo, the problem of stray/feral cats in Hawaii really is as bad as your friend suggested. It's sad and because people think that it's too expensive to spay and neuter (and because some people think it's cool to have an unneutered male) and because of the mild climate people think their animals will be just fine if they leave them behind, AND it's kitten season year round here so the problem never really goes away. So, yes, it is bad and I'm trying, but sometimes I am not sure that we are getting anywhere.

On a happier note, Miss Phoebe did come back last night. She made her presence known!!! hahahaha I walked outside when I heard her start calling under the kitchen window (just a couple windows down from where she got out) and took her some food. She wanted loving and was rubbing on me so I pet her for a while and showed her where the food was. Then she thought she was going to follow me right back into the house! hahahahaaa My dogs would have LOVED that! But, she hung out on my front porch and under the window calling for quite a long time, so I think she will stick around. What a different cat she is when she doesn't have kittens around her. Almost makes me want to adopt her myself.

The process with the kittens is reportedly good....no bites yesterday and some are being easily handled. So, hopefully pics soon and I'll be posting them!!! If anyone would like a kitten/cat, I have some sweet ones for you!!! hahahaha
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post #40 of 49
7/1/11 at 2:33pm
First of all, you say you are not a cat person. Your a better cat person than most true cat people. Again, I commend you for your efforts. You are only one person and can only do so much, especially if there are so many cats near you. It is a concern to hear that the authorities will just trap and kill if they find out about all of the cats. Just keep up with what you are doing, you are making a difference. you can get on your anytime, I will join you

I am glad to hear Pheobe is well and I think you DO have a new kitty. What a great place to live, Hawaii, though if you are an outside cat. Wish we had that weather here in Chicago . Good news about the kittens then and glad to hear about the little ones. Oh boy, kittens are so tempting and I want them all. But I can only look and no take Keep updating and good luck with the trappings
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post #41 of 49
7/2/11 at 4:26am
Quote:
Originally Posted by Feralvr View Post
First of all, you say you are not a cat person. Your a better cat person than most true cat people. Again, I commend you for your efforts. You are only one person and can only do so much, especially if there are so many cats near you. It is a concern to hear that the authorities will just trap and kill if they find out about all of the cats. Just keep up with what you are doing, you are making a difference. you can get on your anytime, I will join you

I am glad to hear Pheobe is well and I think you DO have a new kitty. What a great place to live, Hawaii, though if you are an outside cat. Wish we had that weather here in Chicago . Good news about the kittens then and glad to hear about the little ones. Oh boy, kittens are so tempting and I want them all. But I can only look and no take Keep updating and good luck with the trappings
Indeed and do I envy climate of Hawaii? Oh boy, even weather's of Chigago would be nice, we are here having quite bit colder winters (Jan and Feb can be easily both colder than 3F as an average temp -40F being possible for day or two) and our very short summers can sometimes have few days of 90F but it is very rare, not good to be outside kitty here.

Really nice to hear that Phoebe came back, I have read that dogs and cats can be taught to tolerate each others, but don't know how possible it is and especially with adult creatures it might be impossible because of already set ways.
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post #42 of 49
7/2/11 at 1:11pm
Thread Starter 
Well, I set 9 traps, caught 3 that needed to be fixed, 4 that were already fixed and someone ate all the food out of one trap without setting it off! Oh well, 3 is better than none, right?

Miss Phoebe is apparently a well known little kitty. A lady from another neighborhood told me last night that she has known her for the last 2 yrs and has seen her have 3 litters of kittens (we think that the little I have in foster is either her 3rd or 4th litter) and so now that she is fixed people will be happy to have her back in their neighborhood! What??? Why didn't you fix her before?!?!?! Oh well, it's done now. But I still need to keep tabs on her because my gut is telling me that we will have to send one of her orangemen out with her. He still is not having anything to do with the taming. 3 of the 5 are doing really well, but the #2 orangeman and stumpy tail gray are not doing as well. Makes me sad, but I want to make a decision on them sooner rather than later so that we can let them go with Momma before she won't take them back. Ohhhh.....how do you guys do this over and over????

BTW ~ I can't be a cat person....my dogs won't let me!!! hahahahaa So, I'm undercover, please don't tell anyone!
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post #43 of 49
7/2/11 at 9:17pm
Someone out-smarted that trap and got away "scott free" with a full belly!!!. Congratz on the three you did catch. You are making a huge dent in controlling the cat overpopulation problem in your area, one cat at a time. Just fixing one saves many, many, many lives down the road. Phoebe has been around the block a time or two. Now she can just concentrate on keeping herself happy and safe, no more kittens!!!!

p.s. Ok, so you are an "undercover cat person" , I won't tell
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post #44 of 49
7/4/11 at 2:17am
Thread Starter 
I finally have some pics of the kittens. I just posted an ad on Craigslist for them and have signed up for one for Petfinder.com but that isn't running yet. Here is the one for Craigslist...I hope I can find them good homes. They are doing well at this point.

http://honolulu.craigslist.org/oah/pet/2476257273.html
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post #45 of 49
7/4/11 at 3:07am
What a sweety-pie´s!

Looks almost abessynians, a couple of them.

Im sure they will find homes. Good you mention some fee. If you find it embarrassing to charge money, let the fee go to some good cause in the name of the cat.
Thus making a magical bond; the cat connected with giving money to a noble cause - and thus - connected with noble feelings.

Lets hope the fostering of the two remiaing will go well too. Perhaps you are lucky to find someone accepting to have a shy cat who needs fostering many month on...
OR - you manage to turn them into outside cats. If momma will give them protection it may work.

Good luck!
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post #46 of 49
7/4/11 at 10:45am
Thread Starter 
StefanZ,
They do seem to be sweet cats. They were all strays born under a house, so I have no idea what breed besides Domestic Short Hairs they are.

As for the fee, yes, I am charging one, but it will go to Barbara, the lady that runs the rescue that I work with. She does it all out of pocket and I know that any little thing will help her out. I did have a hit off the ad last night. Hope it's a good hit! Keep the fingers crossed.
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post #47 of 49
7/4/11 at 4:06pm
Fingers and Toes are crossed that some good homes are found through your craigs list ad. Thanks for posting the so we could see them. They are absolutely beautiful, stunning kittens and I thank you so much for saving them. I would tell the new adopters that their adoption fee is going to this other rescue organization - Barbara. Most will be so willing to donate to such a great cause. Mega "adoption" vibes coming your way tonight!!!!!
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post #48 of 49
7/4/11 at 5:52pm
I'm glad we don't have a feral problem in Australia. We have a magpie that lives in the neighbor's yard who has a broken wing and can't fly. He's at least a year old now, and he wouldn't have made it long at all if there were any feral cats around here, unfortunately.

I don't know why we don't have a feral population, as many people are still under the impression that they don't have to spay or neuter and can let their cats wander outside at all hours!
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post #49 of 49
7/5/11 at 8:43am
Quote:
Originally Posted by schneidermen View Post
I'm glad we don't have a feral problem in Australia. We have a magpie that lives in the neighbor's yard who has a broken wing and can't fly. He's at least a year old now, and he wouldn't have made it long at all if there were any feral cats around here, unfortunately.

I don't know why we don't have a feral population, as many people are still under the impression that they don't have to spay or neuter and can let their cats wander outside at all hours!
Depends from area probably, but you do have quite bit of space there, so it is not getting crowded so easily.

I have seen video's at youtube where was told that at one area there was tens of cats trapped in few weeks time, oh and there are Dingo dogs, that is at least what I did read from that vast land some time ago, Australia is really really big place, there is quite large areas of land where cat's probably can't survive very long, even without enemies, people from there has told me that there also is lot of different weather at different part of country.
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