First time finding stray litter in backyard...HELP!

Hi all...so, kitten season is a real thing and it's been happening right under our noses!

Today, my fiancé and I found a stray litter with their obviously protective mother in his backyard behind a very bushy, bush. We found out because his dog was eyeing something in that corner and she probably already had an encounter with mom because we've seen mysterious blood on her. Well, not such a mystery anymore..but I digress.

So, here's the sitch.

We fed them and boy, were they ravenous! The mom, especially and we're happy that she kept eating so she could nourish her young (they were probably no more than 3 weeks old). The mom growled, of course when we got close to the kittens and she would run off if we got too close (we were only trying to feed and give them water). So this went on for about a few hours...and then dad pops up, or at least we think it's dad.

Dad is another story. He is in bad shape. No raw or fleshly wounds, but definitely wounds, cuts, scrapes, misaligned jaw. Poor guy seems like he's been through a lot. Him and mom, both but he definitely is in worse condition. We fed him as well and he ate and is much more calm than mom and didn't run off when we got close to feed him.

So, my fiancé lives in the suburbs. He rarely gets coyotes or other wild animals. The weather is sunny, but they have a lot of shade and shelter. We are thinking of just continuing to feed them and help care for them, but we definitely want to TNR mom and dad...we just don't know how. Mom is scared of us, dad is still hesitant to trust us...and babies will eat but they don't come out of their hiding place unless we're gone (we recorded them..it was too cute!).

What also makes this matter more difficult is that my fiancé is moving in a month so that doesn't allow us much time. So, we re asking all of YOU for advice, counsel, help, tips, etc. We would greatly appreciate any sort of help as we are desperate to care for and find furrever homes for the entire family.

Thank you!

tisjaeso said:

What also makes this matter more difficult is that my fiancé is moving in a month so that doesn't allow us much time. So, we re asking all of YOU for advice, counsel, help, tips, etc. We would greatly appreciate any sort of help as we are desperate to care for and find furrever homes for the entire family.

Thank you!

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For doing the TNR, you dont need to be their best buddys, if you use a trap.   Even if you ARE buddies, using a trap has some advantages, alike they dont connect you with taking them to that bad smellying unpleasant vet.   So you can do this TNR of the parent part quite soon.

Especielly as you know exactly where the kittens are.

Are they eating on their own yet?  How old are they, do you think?

One bi-scenario is you do collect them and foster.  Collect perhaps when mom is away for spaying, and you can reunite them later, if you so want, when she is done.

But. As you are leaving, YOU cant foster.  You must find someone who can.  Some rescue group nearby?

Some thought in all hurry.

Good luck!

The kittens will be very easy to trap, but mom & dad will be a lil harder.  Hopeully you can trap everyone in your time frame, but are the kittens weaned from mom? If not you could try a drop trap so you can get multiple cats at once. But, when you use a drop trap, you have to then transfer to a regular trap; a tricky job that unless experienced requires a 2nd person.  I attempted a drop trap once: I wanted Willow and her final kitten (I already had the rest of her litter).  I caught them both in the drop trap, but lost Willow in the transfer process. I was by myself & it was my 1st time using a drop trap.

ok, enough about drop traps.  Hopefully you won't need one. 1st, you need a few traps. You can rent them from various rescues (idk where  u live, but in Michigan I go to All About Animals).  I also purchsed one from by Havaheart on Amazon for $60.00, but it is louder than the traps they have at All About Animals.  I caught and T.N.R.ed my whole colony a couple weeks ago, so I have some suggestions & tips. It took 7 days to get the last one (Willow, of course; she is the always pregnant, alpha of the conony and very "trap wise").

Establish a routine, try to feed at same time every day. First I put the traps near feeding area.  Then the food is right in front of the traps.  Then the food is in the trap, BUT the trap is zip-tied open, so they feel safe to come & go in and out of the traps.  (I bought zip-ties in auto section of meijers). When u 1st put food IN trap, start w/ food at front of trap and every day move it farther back, keeping traps zip-tied open.  Also, to make trap comfy, line the bottom w/ a towel, a folded up sheet, puppy training pads, anything to make it more comfortable for their paws to walk on.  The top of the trap should be covered w/a towel or sheet also. For some reason that calms them down.  once they are trapped, it should be covered comepletely and the volunteer who helped me had me zip-tie the trap closed, even though they shouldn't be able to get out of a closed trap.  She also had the back (if it is a trap that opens from both sides) permanently zip-tied closed.  Anyway, once they are comfortable going part way in trap and understand that is where their food is, u can put the food all the way back, remove the zip-tie(s) and trap some kitties! Like I said, the kittens will be super easy; u may get 2 @ a time in 1 trap! That has happened to me a couple times.  Once they r in trap, u need to get them to their destination a.s.a.p.  idk if u r going to keep them in a room in ur house till u have everyone or immediately take to a rescue, T.N.R. place.  But if u keep the kittens in a room in ur house, they need 2 b sequestered from any pets u have.  I won't get into that bcuz u asked about trapping and i have rambled on enough!This is my 1st time on this site, but hopefully I can follow up on ur progress. Good luck! Kacey  

Just a little addendum.  3 weeks old? yikes! too young 2 b separated from mom. I would still get them accustomed to traps and delay as long as possible.  I'm not a vet, but I would say 6 weeks old is a good time to trap, factoring in ur time restraints. u have 2 remember there is always a possibility that u will trap the kittens w/o mom or the mom w/o kittens or miss one kitten, etc.  the point being someone may get separated from mom.  Oh and if u follow all my previous tips, i forgot one: do not feed outside traps, once u start the process!  ok, good luck again, kacey

I looked in my T.N.R. handbook and it says to trap the kittens 1st (as opposed to mom 1st).  I am also waiting to hear feedback from the volunteer who helped me trap my whole colony; i told her your story.  It sounds like the litter is not very well hidden. and if mom knows you saw them, that may cause her to relocate the litter.  The kittens did not eat the food you provided, did they?  I would think mom and dad ate, then mom went back to litter to feed them.  My usual experience was: Willow would get pregnant, give birth somewhere, keep babies hidden, then babies would follow her to food source (my back deck / porch) when they were old enough to leave the den and eat solid food.  I didn't even expect my 1st sighting of kittens until approximately 6 weeks after she gave birth.  (I am happy to say that Willow's last litter was her LAST litter!  I FINALLY caught her & got her spayed about a month ago.  She is doing great.  My whole colony has been spayed & neutered, yay!).  If it's not too late, don't let mom & dad know that you know location of litter.  Feed them close, but not too close to wherever you fed them b4, gradually moving the feeding location to an area where it will be convenient for you to trap, and far enough from the litter that mom & dad don't feel the need to relocate the litter.  If they do relocate the litter, you will probably have no choice but to wait until the babies are following parents to food source (you!).  Also, try to avoid looking at the cats in the eye.  They will think you are a predator, watching for signs of weakness.

Any updates? Have you been trying to establish a routine?  Cats like routine.  Did you get traps and zip-ties yet?

Keep us updated!  Kacey 

kacey said:

 
I looked in my T.N.R. handbook and it says to trap the kittens 1st (as opposed to mom 1st).  I am also waiting to hear feedback from the volunteer who helped me trap my whole colony; i told her your story.  It sounds like the litter is not very well hidden. and if mom knows you saw them, that may cause her to relocate the litter.  The kittens did not eat the food you provided, did they?  I would think mom and dad ate, then mom went back to litter to feed them.  My usual experience was: Willow would get pregnant, give birth somewhere, keep babies hidden, then babies would follow her to food source (my back deck / porch) when they were old enough to leave the den and eat solid food.  I didn't even expect my 1st sighting of kittens until approximately 6 weeks after she gave birth.  (I am happy to say that Willow's last litter was her LAST litter!  I FINALLY caught her & got her spayed about a month ago.  She is doing great.  My whole colony has been spayed & neutered, yay!).  If it's not too late, don't let mom & dad know that you know location of litter.  Feed them close, but not too close to wherever you fed them b4, gradually moving the feeding location to an area where it will be convenient for you to trap, and far enough from the litter that mom & dad don't feel the need to relocate the litter.  If they do relocate the litter, you will probably have no choice but to wait until the babies are following parents to food source (you!).  Also, try to avoid looking at the cats in the eye.  They will think you are a predator, watching for signs of weakness.

Any updates? Have you been trying to establish a routine?  Cats like routine.  Did you get traps and zip-ties yet?

Keep us updated!  Kacey 

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Yes, but when you know exactly where they are, and they are too young to move, you can take mom first.  

Thank you for the tips, kacey and StefanZ!

So the kittens might actually be a little older than I assumed, probably 4-5 weeks. Mom is becoming more calm when we give them food. Oh, the weird thing is I saw dad eating and then on the other side of the fence saw dad's brother? They looked exactly the same just the dad is more beat up than the brother.

Anywho, I'm going to try and trap mom with the food method and then take the babies and foster them inside the house in a large dog crate. Question is, when mom returns from the vet..do I put her inside the crate too or put her back where I found her? I don't want to separate her from her babies. :/

tisjaeso said:

Thank you for the tips, kacey and StefanZ!

So the kittens might actually be a little older than I assumed, probably 4-5 weeks. Mom is becoming more calm when we give them food. Oh, the weird thing is I saw dad eating and then on the other side of the fence saw dad's brother? They looked exactly the same just the dad is more beat up than the brother.

Anywho, I'm going to try and trap mom with the food method and then take the babies and foster them inside the house in a large dog crate. Question is, when mom returns from the vet..do I put her inside the crate too or put her back where I found her? I don't want to separate her from her babies. :/

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You reunite them.  You let her wake up on her own, say in a carrier, and reunite them in this cage.   If you are afraid the smells from the vet are bewildering her, you can have that carrier outside that cage, and see her reaction.

Let her out where she was you do only if the kittens are too there, not collected.   

OR if you TNR her, and collect the kittens for fostering yourself.  This being thus the separation.

Also, if you collect the kittens, but one of them manage to hide away, you let mom seek him out also here.   This is a little of butchering, but  what to do if the operation was partly a failure?

BUT.  If the kittens ARE older, 4-5 weeks, it gets a little touchy, even if you know where they are.  They are movable, and may try to flee or hide.  At that age they are easy to get, but isnt no longer just to collect them into a basket...

If you can, I would definately keep kittens with mom until they r weaned.  BUT, (I asssume your r getting her spayed? so she will need time to recover.  If you live in a cold area, remember she will b w/o fur on her belly.  when cats get fixed, they get shaved, so part of their natural fur coat is missing.) Mom, since feral, will teach kittens to be fearful of humans, so as soon as kittens are ok w/o her and she is recovered from surgury, if she is not socializable (adult ferals rarely are), she should b separated from kittens if you hope to socialize kittens so they can be adopted.  The younger they are, the easier & faster you can socialize them.  I strongly reccomend the site alleycatallies.com or maybe it's alleycatallies.org for tips on socializing feral kittens.  also just search "socializing feral kittens" for other sites.  Sometimes there is 1 or 2 that won't socialize.  That happened to me once.  2 of the 5 I was working on socializing were regressing the others.  I tried keeping them separate, but finally I put them back outside, after gettting them spayed & neutered.  They are happy, healthy and come to my at least 2x a day for their meals.  If you have one that is hard to socialize, try separating him from litter  & work on him one on one.  The fastest I ever socialized a litter was when I caught them one at a time.  So their only social interaction was me! W/in 24 hours, the 1st kitten was crawling all over me & we were best friends!  Got him adopted, caught a littermate, same fast results.  I was his or her only source of social interaction.  The people who adopted the 1st came back for the 2nd one!

Anyway, definately get feedback from your vet, but his knowledge may be more focused on cat health as opposed to working with ferals.  If the kittens are young enough for you to just pick up, that is wonderful!!! 5 weeks is a little young in a normal situation, but the sooner you get them away from feral mom, the easier they will socilaize and the more adoptable they will be.  Get those adults fixed though!  If you could trap the mom 1st, then just pick up the kittens, that would be amazing.  If the kittens are not weaned, there is K.M.R. (kitten milk replacement).  I am not experienced with dealing with kittens that are not weaned.  My areas of expertise are: trapping, caring for a feral colony, socializing feral kittens and T.N.R. (trap, neuter, return).  I have trapped approximately 30 kittens in the last 4 years.  But no more. Everyone in my colony is fixed, yay!  Out of all of those kittens, only 2 were not socializable.  Damien & Godiva are now part of my colony.  ok, keep us informed. Kacey  

Mini update-

So, mom and kittens are roaming around a bit more. Mom is apparently still breastfeeding her babies even though they look pretty big to me. They do eat the soft food that we put out.

Is it okay to get kittens while mom is still around? Like, I don't want to take kittens and then have mom wonder where her kittens have gone. That's why I wanted to trap mom to take to vet and then bring her back to the house and put her in fostering crate with kittens.

Any ideas? Thanks!

Also, kittens are not going to be easy to tame/domesticate since they were hissing when my fiancé tried to get them earlier. ):

We had a failed attempt at trapping mom so that we could get her fixed...she got in, the gate closed, and then she managed to get out somehow. Going to try again, but I'm sure she's scared and her trust level just went down a few. :/