Outside cat can't find her kittens?

A cat at my apartment had her kittens a week ago on my patio. The mom cat has been around me since she was a couple months old so she's not exactly wild, I figured she would have her babies close to my apartment because she trust me and is always by my apartment but about 2 days ago (kittens were about 5 days old) she moved them and I can't find them and she keeps coming up to me meowing and looking at the place to gave birth like she doesn't know where they are. Is this unusual? I'm very worried that they may not be eating.

are you feeding the mom? is it possible someone found the kittens and took them? have you looked?

Yeah, I feed every night and I don't think its possible that anyone took them because they were hidden from people walking by and the only other people that know about the kittens are my neighbors and they haven't seen them either. We've looked a little around our apartments but nothing and we've tried following the mom but she keeps coming back to were she gave birth to them or just walking around.

Hi Lisa,

What's your neighbourhood like? Any predators that could have got to the kittens? We have big hawks over here that are capable of taking kittens. If they are only a week old they're at risk from crows and ravens too.

Does the mother cat disappear for hours at a time? It's really unlikely that she forgot where she put them. She could still be feeding them and just coming back to you to beg for more food.

If it seems like she really has lost them keep a close eye on her. Cats can get a nasty condition called mastitis if they are still producing milk but have no kittens to feed. If her nipples seem engorged or if she is licking at them a lot she could be suffering from this. She will come into heat again really soon after losing a litter too, so now would be the best time to get her spayed.

Good luck, hope the kittens show up again.

lisa361 said:

A cat at my apartment had her kittens a week ago on my patio. The mom cat has been around me since she was a couple months old so she's not exactly wild, I figured she would have her babies close to my apartment because she trust me and is always by my apartment but about 2 days ago (kittens were about 5 days old) she moved them and I can't find them and she keeps coming up to me meowing and looking at the place to gave birth like she doesn't know where they are. Is this unusual? I'm very worried that they may not be eating.

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Are you SURE she moved them? You saw her move them, or essentially, they did disappeared?

As asked earlier, is she away hours at and, and visiting your place - if so, she has surely them somewhere.

If she wanders around without plan, seeking and grieving, someone fetch them.  Do you have foxes where you live?  Foxes use to carry away their prey.    Chickens is a classic, but kittens are surely fully possible, if mom isnt defending vigorously enough.

Anyway, proceed to feed her, hope it clears up in some positive way.

Good luck!

I didn't see her move them, the last time I saw them was around 1-2 am and the next morning around 10am they weren't there. We don't have any large birds around that could have taken them and they were well hidden in a tarp. She is away for a long time especially during the day and I've tried watching where she goes but it's always a different place. Another question, if her nipples don't feel full does that mean she's feeding them?

She just brought them back so they're safe and sound now

That's great news. 

Clever Mama Cat, she knew where she'd put them after all. It's quite normal for outdoor cats to move their kittens around, too long in the same place can attract predators and increase the chances of flea infestation. Is there any chance you cold let her bring them inside? If you leave the patio doors open she might bring them in her self. Or you could set up a safe room for her and her kittens and move them in their yourself. It sounds as if she's tame enough to be guided indoors by you, if not picked up and carried in.

Kittens do stand a much better chance of surviving if they are kept indoors. Much easier to socialise and eventually rehome too. I've been taking care of feral cats for about 7 years now and the only time a whole litter of kittens has survived is when I've been able to get them indoors.

I wish I could bring them in but my mom won't let me, she only allows the mom to come in and eat. I'm keeping an eye on them to make sure no other cats come around when she isn't there and one of the other cats, who is the momma cat's mom doesn't let any of the other cats close to our patio. So they should be fine.

Maybe you could look around for some rescue groups that do TNR or some No-kill shelters in your area. The kittens would stand a much better chance if they were adopted as house cats. Leaving them outside is exposing them to a lot of risk. You also need to think about getting the mother cat spayed. She'll be pregnant again by the time this lot of kittens are weaned. They really do increase in numbers at an alarming rate if you feed them without spaying. You could have around 30 cats by this time next year.

I'll look into that and I plan on getting the mom cat fixed soon.

lisa361 said:

I'll look into that and I plan on getting the mom cat fixed soon.

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Good job. Let us know if you need any help finding a low cost spay and neuter clinic. (The  Humane Society would be the first place I'd try.)

Thank you. We have a place here that cost $20 for cats. We've already had the older cats fixed there.