Feral/Stray Momma Cat

You are awesome! I found them! How do I get them out of the nest without her killing me?

Where are they and how many? Did the mewing sounds work?

Do you have a pet carrier or dog crate? Line it with something soft. Put the babies inside at the back. Mama kitty will go in to try and retrieve them. Close the door so she is inside with her babies. You'll have to be quick about it. Take them all home and put in a nest in a private room.

If you fail the first time, mama may not fall for this trick again.

Let me know how it goes!

PS: Mama may hiss or yowl once trapped, but move her and babies anyway. She will ultimately be happier and better off. She would not come in before because she was not going to risk being trapped and unable to get back to her babies.

mrsrincon said:

You are awesome! I found them! How do I get them out of the nest without her killing me?

Click to expand...

  Good Job @mrsrincon  .  How many kittens are there?

We have 3 beautiful babies and momma seems relieved!! I'm so happy! She did hiss but she let me drag her right out of the bushes. I got a big dog kennel with a sheet in it in our spare room closet (very quiet and dark). Okay guys, because she's a stray...what do I need to do for her and her babies. It's not like she's gonna be roaming the house.

The cat sounds worked like a charm! Best suggestion ever

We are going to socialize these babies so they can go to a good home and TNR momma so she doesn't have to suffer through all this again.

Hallelujah!

I will write what to do shortly. I feel relieved also.

Litter box, food, lots of food and water nearby.  The kittens need to be warm so if you have a/c can you close the vent in the spare room?  They may have flees, which you cannot treat yet.  I don't think the mom can be treated yet either.  Combing and/or washing w/dawn will kill the fleas.  

As you've seen the mom will take breaks so maybe a bed or cat tree nearby.  Is there a window in the room.  If you can put something near it so she can look outside.

Congrats on the additions to your family!

sarthur2 said:

Oh, she will not come in?

You can type "newborn kitten sounds" into youtube, and come up with videos of newborns mewing. If you play this next to her, she will likely go to her kittens. You'll need to keep playing it while you follow her.

Click to expand...

was trying to find the kittens?

M mrsrincon

Can you post a picture of the kittens when you get a chance?

I would put a litter box in the spare room in a corner. Also put her dry food, wet food, water, and KMR in the spare room as well, just not right next to the litter box. Cats don't like their food next to their toilet.

You can go ahead and put a tube of Advantage on the back of her neck to kill fleas. Did you notice if the babies have fleas? Fleas are very dangerous to tiny kittens, as the kittens have a small amount of blood and can quickly become anemic. If you see fleas on the kittens try to pick them off gently with a flea comb.

If the babies are nursing well, mama will take care of their needs these first few weeks until they are big enough to try eating kitten chow and wet food, but we'll get to that down the road.

I am assuming you will let mama kitty have the run of this room for now, and it will eventually be the kittens' playroom as well. Go ahead and buy some balls and play mice and a stick toy. You'll be needing those in about a month.

Otherwise, just feed mom well and see that she is nursing well. Pet her and visit her, and occasionally change the bedding in the crate. A soft blanket is nice.

And let us know how it's going! So glad you were able to get this family. Nice job!

handsome kitty

Checkers' stray was not a cat she had been feeding for six months, so no clue where her babies were at the time. Turns out they were about three streets away. And Checkers had already ordered a tracker collar.

I knew that M mrsrincon 's cat had her kittens nearby because she had been feeding this cat for several months and the cat was familiar with her. In fact came to her to let her know she was in labor. Just a different situation than @Checkers.

You guys are so helpful!'

Thanks! That's what we're here for!

And you are very kind to this kitty, who will likely settle down and become a very sweet cat who will also appreciate a "furr-ever" home herself eventually, rather than just being put back out.

The room isn't ready for much roaming, it was mostly storage but I'll be cleaning it up today. My toddler will be excited but our dogs not for a little bit. Off to the pet store now. You guys are amazing! I'm so glad I reached out! Picture to come

Please don't let your toddler handle the kittens the first few weeks, and then only under supervision - kittens are fragile! But he can do lots of looking with his eyes right now!

Surprisingly, some dogs are very good with cats and kittens, but your kittens are too small right now for introductions, and mama kitty is too new and too busy with her babies. The dogs will just have to have their noses out of joint a bit for now!

Yeah, I don't think we'll TNR after today. She was just so willing, poor girl. We may not keep her but we will ensure she does go to a good home. And she will be spayed for sure! I would keep her in a heartbeat but it took my husband enough convincing just to let me rescue. She's the first cat I've ever taken care of (or tried to) so I'm very new. How often do I need to check on them for the first few weeks until their eyes are open?

I'd check them frequently this weekend to make sure they are latched and nursing well, and that mom is relaxed, happy, and not sitting or lying on a baby. Less frequently after that. Whatever your gut instinct tells you for your own comfort level.

As their eyes/ears open and they begin to toddle, and eventually leave the nest to explore, they will melt your heart with cuteness. Maybe hubby will eventually come around and see that cats make purr-fectly wonderful pets!

There are some articles at the top of this forum on kitten care.  

Here is a link to an article on Cat Litter Maintenance.  http://www.thecatsite.com/a/litter-box-maintenance  I'm surprised how many articles there are about Litter Boxes etc.

Thank you so much y'all!! I will be posting photos as soon as I can (nap time! Woohoo)