Update and more

About a week or two ago I posted about the semi-feral kitten we rescued from under my school. She is healthy and safe, although she still will not come out of hiding willingly. She can be pet without hissing and biting if you reach under her hiding spot, or if you scare her out. She has even purred. 

At the time, I could not find Momma cat or Hillel, the other two cats that were part of the trio that the girls had been feeding since the start of the year. Well, Momma and Hillel turned up a week ago, and now I am contemplating trying to reunite the family. Problem? Momma could very well be pregnant or nursing, and I don't want to doom some poor hiding kittens to death by taking Momma away. 

What should I do? Trap Momma and take her to a vet right away and see if she could be nursing?

At the end of the year, which is in about 5 weeks, I will be leaving this job for another and I really cannot imagine just leaving the cats. No one else is stepping forward to take care of them, and I'm afraid they will go hungry over the summer with no one there to feed them. I think relocating them to my house, and then eventually outside my house if they cannot be socialized, is the best plan. However, that means I would have 5 cats, two indoor and three outdoor, in my responsibility and my daughter is worried everyone is going to start calling us "cat people". 

Although I don't take her concern too seriously, I do worry about taking on too much, but I already feel we are involved by taking in the one kitten.

Don't let anyone put you off doing the right thing.  You are great,  if only there were more kind  hearted people like you around how much better it would be for the animals of the world.

My kitten Scooter was a rescued semi feral we found crying pitifully under a piece of corrugated iron apparantly abandoned by his mother,. He was tiny, malnourished and very cranky when we found him.  He would hiss at us and bite our fingers for the first couple of days.  The photo attached was taken the first week we had him and you can see he was no beauty. 

He is now a beautiful, sleek loving 6 month old who as I write is curled up asleep in the middle of my daughters bed. 

I know it won't be easy looking after so many cats but it seems no one else is going to bother.

Good luck and thank you for caring. 

Don't worry what others think.  You are doing a wonderful thing for these cats.  I would try to trap them and get them immediately to the vet to see if Mom is nursing and if not, get her spayed.  Then you can relocate them to your home. 

Yes, people will call you the crazy cat people, but who cares.  I have an indoor dog and cat and 3 outdoor feral/semi ferals.  I also feed the birds, squirrels and family of ducks that come every year.  I love animals and do my best to care for them. 

You will be worried to death if you leave behind the other cats.  It will be hard work, but you can also get them spayed/neutered and have them live outside your house. 

I wish you the best and hope all turns out well.  Please keep us updated.
 

Eve Shtern said:

About a week or two ago I posted about the semi-feral kitten we rescued from under my school. She is healthy and safe, although she still will not come out of hiding willingly. She can be pet without hissing and biting if you reach under her hiding spot, or if you scare her out. She has even purred. 

At the time, I could not find Momma cat or Hillel, the other two cats that were part of the trio that the girls had been feeding since the start of the year. Well, Momma and Hillel turned up a week ago, and now I am contemplating trying to reunite the family. Problem? Momma could very well be pregnant or nursing, and I don't want to doom some poor hiding kittens to death by taking Momma away. 

What should I do? Trap Momma and take her to a vet right away and see if she could be nursing?

Click to expand...

First, dont scare the little one out...  Best is if Hillel jr comes out voluntarily...   Try and make for her a couple of "legal" hiding places, say a cat igloo, or a sideturned cardboard box, and make it impossible for her to hide anywhere for good in some hole.

A trick some of our rescuers and fosterers use, is to wrap such a kitten in a thick, soft towel, just head free, and carry around it at your chest, talking sweetly and singing softly, half an hour, even an hour perhaps...  A couple of such sessions should do that.  

So Momma and Hillel are a pair?  Do you have a feeling Hillel does protect the kittens (if they are) too?  Some males do, especielly if they live as pair or family group.

Anyway, your plan to trap mom and go look & see to the vet sounds good.  If she is not nursing, you proceed.  IF she is nursing, you can perhaps try to get immediately spaying with flank incision, let her rest 24 hours, and release.   Semiferales are made of tough wood and do have a good "healing meat". If they dont have, they dont get semiferales, they do die off.

Similiar with Hillel.   IF you think he is protector and co-nurser of the kittens (if they are there) you do have an extra valuable variable to play with.

Otherwise, I agree with these above.  Dont think about the mindless people heckling you for your soft heart.  You ARE a mom after all, arent you?  It costs sometimes to be a mensch.

Good luck!

If you can somehow lift momma's front off the ground you can see yourself if she is nursing, the hair will be flattened and matted around her nipples. I had a cat I even took to her new adopter and when I looked at her tummy and saw two of her nipples had flattened hair I quickly took her back and let her go. Sure enough 2 weeks later she brings one kitten in to be fed. Ther's no mistaking a just nursed mother.

Hello, everyone!

I have not been to this thread in awhile, but I wanted to update.

Turns out kitteh #1 that we rescued was actually a boy! He will come out and let us pet him, and I was able to get him to the vet to get fixed and all his shots last week.

The school hired someone to come in and trap all the animals on campus and remove them. I got him before the captured the cats, and when he did, I was able to get the cats and the traps and take them immediately to a vet to get them spayed and checked over. Momma was not nursing, and now all three cats are in my back room.

They use the litter box, but the littlest kitten, who is a girl not a boy, just hides in the closet. Momma will come out from time to time, and the little boy is very social.

Now I have five cats, all rescues. Three that were young kittens that are just like normal house cats, and three that were semi-feral and mostly hide in the closet.

Thanks for all your suggestions!