How to get feral Mama cat to stick around when I let her go?

I captured a feral Mama cat and her 4 or 5 week old kitten, and kept her in a cage for a few weeks until the single kitten was old enough to be taken away from her and she could be spayed (vet wanted kitten weaned 2 weeks before the spay). My brother adopted the tamed feral kitten.

I brought her to be spayed, and the vet discovered she was already pregnant again, apparently just a couple days before I caught her, so I have kept her in a bigger cage with perches in one of my outbuildings. Now she's had her single kitten, a real cutie tiger tabby with white face and socks. So that's another little feral kitten, but my brother wants it, too, so that's great it has a home already. Mama cat seems to be a single kitten mama.

Now I won't be able to get her spayed and let her go until the middle of October, in central Minnesota, and it's getting cold then.  How can I get her to stick around my property when I let her go?

I've been taming her up somewhat, but still can't pet her without a lot of hissing and spitting and swatting.  I would like her to live in an outbuilding with an insulated box.  There is no friendly farm within about a mile of here, so if she leaves, she'll probably die.  Lots of predators around here.  I've tamed a feral before, and I do not have the facilities or resources to do that again, right now.  I can use a good mouser and I have nice wood outbuildings.  

Will she just take to the insulated cat shelter? Or do I have to feed her in it? Do I put a litter box in the outbuilding? Or only when there is a lot of snow?  

I hate keeping her in a cage all this time. It's a very nice, large cage, but not big like a dog kennel. But I don't have a safe room to put her in. She would just take off with her kitten if I let her loose in my granary.

Thanks for advice!!

They usually stick around the place where they got food and people are friendly.  So she will prob do it too.  

But she must be spayed.

A little peculiar the vet didnt spayed her, when her pregnancy was absolutely fresh.

Some vet handbooks even do recommend just exactly this situation for spaying - better than to risk spaying when they are in heat.

Dont pet her if she is actively hissing etc. Let her come herself for petting. Which she will after some time.

You can though try to wrap her up in towel into a toga / burrito. Wrapped up, they are submissive. In that postion you can try to pet them some. 

Talk a lot with friendly voice...

Good luck!

Yeah - usually the vets just do a spay abort when they get in a feral femal cat. BUT since she only had one kitten and the kitten already has a home - then that is just great!!! Please don't worry about the cage right now. Best this way for her. Once you get her spayed after the new kitten is weaned, then I would move her into the "out building" you mention. Keep her in that cage for another week inside the out building. Have a insulated shelter already set up in there and get her used to just being comfortable and safe in there while she stays in the large crate for at least a week or so. When you open the cage door, leave the door propped open and allow her to come and go as she pleases. Another words, don't remove that crate UNTIL you know she is sticking around and eating. Feed her witht he same bowls and leave the bowls inside the crate just like you have been doing when she was living inside the crate. After you are sure she is eating and hanging around, move the bowls out of the cage for a day or so. Then move the bowls towards the shelter you have already set up. At that time, you can take down the dog crate and remove it from the out building. I think this will work. You won't have any control over her decision to stay - but she is smart and will already know that is her new safe house. She should stay around. :nod: Good luck and wonderful of you to care for her this way.

OH - sure - you could keep her litter box in that out building too and will only solidify that is where she needs to stay. If you find out she is not using it at all after a few days - then you can remove that as well. But I would leave it in there - she might use it during the winter months, if you don't mind scooping and cleaning :lol3:

Thanks to both of you for the very specific advice!  I will worry less now.  

The kitten fetus was already like 5 weeks along by the time Connie went to the vet for spaying, cuz her first kitten  was only 5 weeks old when I caught them.  Well, I wanted him to be with his mama for awhile and not be psychologically messed up, so at 7 or 8 weeks, I called to make an appointment for the spay, and he had to have been weaned for 2 weeks, and besides that, this low cost vet was booked out a very long time. Cats sure have a short gestation period! 

As a follow up question, do you think the large styrofoam cooler idea is a good one, for a winter home? And I see that folks recommend straw - is a lot of fleece or some other alternative ok if her home is in a nice outbuilding? The roof doesn't leak.  I don't have any idea where to buy straw.  

Thank you again for the tips.

You can get straw at a local nursery :nod: Now is the time of year that they sell the bales of straw with fall around the corner. Don't use anything other than straw though. The straw will help keep the cat warm and will dry out if the cat drags in rain or snow. Here are some suggestions for feral cat winter shelters. http://www.urbancatleague.org/WinterCatShelters Hope all is going well