Feral - Female Trapped in Garage 12/12/2012

This is the female that is trap-smart.  She has now given me three sets of litters.  That's a total of 11 new kittens!!!  Fortunately the kittens that I have been able to trap were two of the three known females - all the others in the first two litters were male.  (Yes, the males will get trapped too.)

I have a cat door in my side garage door, and that is where they have been going for shelter and safety.

When "Pepper" had her third litter and trapping her didn't look promising, I decided that I'd close up the door and keep her and the new kittens inside, hoping to trap her in there, and meanwhile not give her the opportunity to become pregnant again.  BTW, these new kittens all -very likely- may be female.

These are my questions:  

1.  Her belly: still looks pregnant - could it be that the bulge is that she's just gaining weight because of inactivity, or because she is nursing??  She appears very healthy and I doubt that she is carrying another kitten?? or a still born?.

2. I feel strongly that the kittens were born the last week of October, which makes them about 6 weeks old.

When should I expect her to come into heat now?


This picture shows her planning her escape.  I've had to be vigilant keeping the door blocked.  I'm trying not to underestimate her determination and am sure that she will surprise me in her effort to get outside. (She's been moving the board away from the door, and I keep re-placing the blockage.

Here is a picture of Pepper's latest (and I pray, last) production - they have med-long fur and I know they need forever homes as we're in the hot desert, but I am shy about asking around because I know that everyone is just overwhelmed with cats and kittens needing homes. 


Because they are trapped in the garage, they aren't as feral-like because I am around them as I'm caring for them.  They are litter trained, and enjoying healthy food - such as Wellness canned, and raw chicken, plus some other less expensive canned food, and some Taste of the Wild dry (very little).  Before they were born, their mommy also was given a good diet, so I suspect they are quite healthy.

A breeding female cat can get pregnant while still nursing her last litter.

Each time she gets pregnant - it makes her weaker. Each pregnancy takes a serious and increasingly fatal toll on her health and well-being. Some Breeding Female cats will spend their entire short life pregnant and nursing and then die before they reach their 5th or 6th birthday.

The sagging stomach is just the beginning of the toll that pregnancy has taken on her body.

I have personally TNR'd (Trapped, Neutered, and Returned) many Momma cats - I trap them AS SOON as their kittens will eat food. For some of them - they will always "look pregnant."

Give her the beat gift possible and let her get on with her own life - get her spayed (and if she is feral - let her back outside.)

Once she is spayed - the risk of her being assaulted by other cats is SIGNIFICANTLY reduced. I've seen colonies go from violence to group eating and sleeping!!

The kittens sound as though they are good candidates for rehabilitation.

You've done a wonderful job!

I noticed you said that this momma cat is "trap smart"

What have you tried thus far that hasn't worked?

I see that you are new to our forum - Welcome!  

Pepper's Belly: well, it sure makes sense that being continually pregnant stretches the belly out - just like a human.

I hope that she didn't become pregnant within the 7 weeks after she gave birth and when I trapped her inside the garage - but we'll see. ugh.  

As you may have gathered from my Title - I do have her trapped in the garage until I can get her to her surgery. 

I've already contacted the Clinic where I take my ferals to have their surgery, and I was advised to wait a couple more weeks until the kittens were a little older.   The Clinic was concerned that the kittens would open her incision while nursing. So, all I have to do is figure out how to keep the kittens from nursing until her incision heals - oh joy!

Trap Smart:  she avoids the trap like she knows exactly the dangers it represents to her 

I haven't been able to be creative in order to trap her because there has always been others around to take her place in the trap - and it costs me $$ with each surgery - so, I've been picky and preferred  to get the females if I can.  Although, next week I'm setting the trap for any volunteer.

Nursing:

Personally, I like to see the kittens nurse as long as possible - the female of the Gray family nursed after she had her surgery.  I think they nursed for a total of 4 months.    The kittens were older, and not nursing as often when Gigi had her surgery, I guess that's why we didn't have any problems?  I now have the family as inside cats.  The daddy tested FIV, and the mommy absolutely adores him - really neat to watch them be so affectionate with each other - so, now,  they are safe inside. I wish I could bring them all inside.

Here's a picture of the Gray Family before we brought them all inside:

http://www.thecatsite.com/g/i/18204...-feral-born-and-their-two-feral-born-kittens/

they are adorable!

Update of Pepper - Feral Mommy who wouldn't be trapped ...

I think I'm still stunned!!  Yes, it's been almost two years since I've been trying to trap this female feral-born cat.

We've made gradual steps to this point in time.  The first success was trapping her inside the garage with her third litter.  Fortunately there were only three!

As the Desert weather became warmer, and even though our garage is all insulated and usually about 15-20 degrees cooler than outside I cracked open the door from the laundry room to the garage. Just enough for them to come into the laundry area to get some A/C.

Pepper was able to sneak into the laundry area, and then into my LIVING ROOM!  ugh!    That was in Mid-August.  Well - who cares about all the furniture, etc., in the room, anyway?!  I closed the door to the living room so that she and her daughter would be trapped inside.  Now I could close the laundry/garage door and hopefully lower our A/C bills.

I didn't realize how long and how loud a female cat can call - I think she was yowling for the whole time.  She yowled when we talked to her, she yowled just because ... poor baby, poor us - my husband deserves an metal!

I had been able to socialize the kittens, and the female kitten had already been spayed, and one of the males - one male left - and  fertile,  but not as social as the other two.  One day we had a breakthrough and he began to allow me to touch him, then scrub on him until I was able to pick him up to put him into the carrier.  That's another story.  Anyway - I hear that males can be fertile up to 6 weeks, so I wasn't taking any chances to letting the mommy and this little boy playing together. ! The boys were already separated and in the Family Room Zone with Callee - another former feral-born I trapped.

On Thursday, September 11, 2013 I made an appointment for Pepper for her surgery.  The plan was to try and get her trapped for that appointment and if I failed I was to call and cancel the appointment.

I removed Paislee (female kitten) from the living room. I put the trap into the living room, put a cover over most of it, and put her favorite food inside - chicken pieces.  Pepper walked around the trap - she could smell the food but couldn't see it so she walked around to the opening and in she went.

I didn't place the food far enough into the trap and the door wasn't closing.  My heart began to beat out of my chest as I slipped into the room and quietly closet the trap door.


This is her daughter keeping her company: (part of the cardboard was kicked up as she was clawing to get out, so it made a place to hide, too - ? I guess??


This cat was/is my "waterloo", I sincerely hope that another cat is not sent for me to care for because I have no more space in this house.

Congratulations! AWESOME! Mommy-no-more. :heart2:

And for no more cats (or kittens) being sent your way. !!!

We have 2 males now that we've failed miserably to trap. We have to build another drop trap.

My friend and I were called to trap a savvy female. Of course, her 3 adorable kittens were there so we were determined to get her. She finally went under the drop trap, we had her! As I was getting regular trap for transfer, out pops her head, she broke a hole through the trap! Trying again next week!

What wonderful wonderful news.  I could feel your heart beating out of your chest.  It is such an experience to trap a cat that is trap savvy.  I had the same feeling in March when I finally trapped my trap savvy Patches.  He would come just inside my sliding door to eat when it was cold outside.  I decided to try the covered trap inside my door.  I had rigged a wooden spoon onto the trap plate so that as soon as he was far enough in, I could close it if needed.  I dropped tuna from up above and it worked. I was certain he could hear my heart beating out of my chest!!

Congrats on the trapping.  I had to put up a NO VACANCY sign too.  I do not want any more kitties!!!