Dog Person Caring For A Feral Cat Need HELP

Hi guys. That tortoiseshell you can see above is "my" girl Duo. She gave birth in that decorative clay barrel (behind her in the pic) two weeks ago and since then I cared for her kittens and herself. She moved the kittens a few days ago now but Duo still hangs around my yard so I continue to feed her. Here's the thing: I'm a dog person and--prior to Duo--have no interest in felines whatsoever. I totally know nothing about cats. So far I feed her canned food but I don't really know the best way to store them so I have to toss all of the remaining food today because they got maggots!! I feel really bad so now I'm looking into homemade cat foods. But no two websites I read today give me the exact same info. Some others give me a recipe too hard to follow.

I need help. The internet is so full of conflicting information and I've no experience or sufficient knowledge about cats. So I'm hoping you guys can teach me about feline's behavior, body language, nutrition and so on. Especially feral ones like Duo. She warms up to me pretty quickly. She has stopped running away when she sees me but still moves away when I come too close.. I wonder if I'll ever be able to touch her? I need her spayed..

Thanks in advance xxx

Canned food usually doesn't get bugs or maggots unless it's been opened.  Storing it in the house should prevent that - in the heat or cold, the cans may burst open due to temperature fluctuations.

I use canned and sometimes dry food and store it like I do my own food.  I have no experience with homemade or raw food but there's a separate forums for that here on TSC.:

http://www.thecatsite.com/f/65/raw-home-cooked-cat-food

Visit that site - you should learn a lot.  At some point, someone with more experience than I have will chime in here.

Your kitty is gorgeous.  Feed her regularly and go slowly with her and soon, she will not be so skittish.

Have you been able to contact any local rescues?  They may have traps they can lend you.  If you feed her in the unset trap for a week or so, she'll be used to eating in there.  The night before you make your appointment, set the trap and when she goes in, she'll be ready to go.  It is a little traumatic but better than having more kittens!

Thank you for helping her.

Hi thanks for your reply. I put the opened can in a plastic bag and secure it with rubber bands but apparently that's not enough. A cat owner posted in Yahoo Answers that you're not supposed to put canned food in fridge?? Btw I did push my luck and try to make one can last 7 days so maybe that's why. No more experiments from now on! How long does a canned food ideally last anyways? Does three days sound sensible? 

I live in Indonesia. It's a developing country yet to be good enough to care for its humans let alone its animals. So, sadly, I have no animal shelters I can contact. But at least Duo is warming up to me pretty quickly. It's only week two and she has stopped running away already. Yes her tail is still down (have just read that in petfinder) and she's still glaring at me cautiously but at least she didn't take off full speed like other feral cats do. I sure hope I know where her kittens are. They lived in my yard for nine days before Duo moved them. Is there a chance of her moving the kittens back to my yard? 

Btw I can't get a pic right now because it's night-time but Duo has this abnormally large abdomen. I thought she was pregnant at first but how is that possible her kittens are only 2 weeks old today. She's definitely not lethargic or anything... it's just that I find the large belly rather odd. 

Sorry for bombarding you guys with questions.. but I want to make sure I don't make any mistakes

Any unused food must go in the fridge. You can put it in a plastic container or cover it with plastic or foil. Even in the fridge, you should try to use it up within three days.

Duo may have worms - that's a reason bellies are big in feral cats. There are products you can use for deworming (you put them in her food). Be careful with them - some can be too harsh.

She can get pregnant almost immediately after she gives birth. Please explore how to get her spayed as fast as you can. Otherwise, you're going to be over run with kittens.

If you want to store wet food in your cold storage / fridge, you must take it out from the can, and keep it in something better.  Say a good quality plastic can with a lock on it.   (cheap plastic leaves its smell on the food or water).

Although keeping it seven days is a trifle too long unless you freeze it.

I suppose you do have access only to big cans?

This is perhaps what they meant, you cant keep opened can more than a very short time...

Another tip is you can give the rests to someone else, other cat or your dogs.  Share, so to speak.  Cat food is probably no ideal food for dogs if its their only food, but  once in a while its no problem at all.

Yet, canned wet food is almost always of better quality than dry cat food, so your choice was wise.

Re spaying; you DO apparently have access to a decent vet?  Good!

Like Ondine hinted, you dont need to wait till you befriend her and can put her voluntarily into a carrier as your guest.

You use a "human trap" (or rig up the carrier as a trap).   Begin with having her food in this trap at least one week, and then...

Dont wait till the kittens are almost grown, as she can get pregnant anew soon after delivery.  Ferales do have a good healing meat - they wouldt survive into adulthood if they hadnt!   So she doesnt need any long time for recovery.  Three days at most, perhaps even one day if there seems not to be any complications..    After it you release her back to her kittens...  With food water etc nearby...  

We dont know what  dewormers are accessible at your place.  Please write down what you do have access to.  Probably best to ask this vet who is there?

Some sorts arent so good, may be dangerous, that is why we ask for info, to help you pick among them.

The sorts are sometimes the same as for dogs, but different dosage.  But some sorts are NOT the same as for dogs; some dog medicines are dangerous for cats, even some animal medical factories dont understand it completely, and make products essentially OK for dogs, but sell them as for dogs and for cats...

Good luck!

yes I do know an experienced vet that does house visits but it's the trap that I don't have

Ouch worms poor girl. I don't know what cat deworming products are available in my local pet store (because I usually go to the dogs section only) but I can pay a visit soon and check what brands they have in store. 

Here's another problem: I'm only 17. I live with my parents and my mom doesn't believe in spaying or neutering. She believes it's an act of cruelty because "it's a lethal procedure and highly unnecessary". So far my best plan is to wait until my parents go out of town for a few days but I know that's not the best for Duo. Right now I focus on providing her with nutrition and as many medical care I can give. Does Frontline work on cats? If not, what flea treatment brand do you guys recommend? I don't know if she has fleas or not but since she's a feral I assume she has.... 

Frontline works with cats too...  Im not sure what exact differences are there comparing with the dog version, I shall try to look at it tomorrow evening...

And Im awaiting your report on what you think there are you can find and get...

But if you can get for example Revolution spot on, it takes both fleas, mites, and most worms...

Your plan with doing the spaying when your parents arent at home is a good practical doing here...

Good luck!

So.. this is day two of Duo not showing up. I just don't see her anymore. Maybe because I ran out of food right now and can't find anything in my fridge that she might like. I'd still put some food outside for her once I buy a new can of wet food, but these days she just don't hang around my yard anymore

Well done for caring for her. Ferals will go wherever there is food, so get some quickly. Or she
may have given birth and be hiding with her kittens somewhere. Either way, she will be hungry

Do not use dog products on her - Frontline and Revolution make cat versions. And it is better to buy wormers etc from the vet - store versions can kill cats.

Good luck