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- #21
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Stray Cat just had kittens. Questions
- Thread starter jeapa507
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Their little personalities will begin to emerge in the next 2-3 weeks. It might be easier to name them at that point.
They are precious looking! I love the markings on their faces!
They are precious looking! I love the markings on their faces!
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- #23
Good morning. Momma and kittens are still doing great. Claire ate 3 cans of wet food and a little bit of her kitten chow yesterday so her appetite is good. Every time I come into the room she is excited to see me and she comes over for some petting and to chow down on what ever I have brought her. She has not left this room since having her kittens on Saturday and has not shown any desire to do anything except eat, drink, use the litter box, and lay with her babies. I have decided to just leave her upstairs in this spare bedroom because I am afraid if she was downstairs it would be much easier for her to accidentally escape outside. I know she has not shown any desire to leave her babies, but at some point I am guessing she might want a little longer break. Should I let her out of the bedroom if she shows a desire? I visit with her many times through out the day and it is a large (15' x18') room, but I do wonder at what point might she want to take a stroll around the house? She has never been inside for more than a few hours prior to this and has always preferred to be outside.My dog barks and whines at the door when I am in there with her and Claire makes this deep growling sound when she hears this. She doesn't get along with my yorkie, but they have never fought. They just do a lot of posturing and growling at each other. Claire is actually bigger than my 5 pound yorkie and usually after their initial growing they just end up ignoring each other when ever she has been inside before. I guess I will take this one day at a time and maybe give her a few minutes of freedom outside the bedroom when she acts like she wants it.
Another question I have is about the temperature of the room. It is warm in there, but not too uncomfortable. I have decided to leave the ceiling fan on low to just move the air around and have one window cracked just a tiny bit to let some fresh air in. There is no air conditioner in the room so in the late afternoon it gets a bit warm. Claire has not acted like she is uncomfortable in any way so I am guessing it is fine. I could open the windows more, but again I am fearful that if Claire wanted to escape she could push the screens out. She is a climber and has been on our roof in the past just taking a nap in the sun. I am just trying to think ahead and be prepared because everything I have read and been told by the posters is that she will go into heat soon. Will her desire to mate be stronger than her mother instincts? I don't want to make any mistakes and have her get outside and I also don't want her to get mean again like she was in the past. Prior to having her kittens she would not approach me for petting. I could feed her and she would be rubbing on my legs, but if I touched her all bets were off and she would hiss and try to scratch me. She has not shown any signs of this behavior returning and is a sweet girl right now.
I will end with the cutest photo yet of her little ones I took this morning.
Another question I have is about the temperature of the room. It is warm in there, but not too uncomfortable. I have decided to leave the ceiling fan on low to just move the air around and have one window cracked just a tiny bit to let some fresh air in. There is no air conditioner in the room so in the late afternoon it gets a bit warm. Claire has not acted like she is uncomfortable in any way so I am guessing it is fine. I could open the windows more, but again I am fearful that if Claire wanted to escape she could push the screens out. She is a climber and has been on our roof in the past just taking a nap in the sun. I am just trying to think ahead and be prepared because everything I have read and been told by the posters is that she will go into heat soon. Will her desire to mate be stronger than her mother instincts? I don't want to make any mistakes and have her get outside and I also don't want her to get mean again like she was in the past. Prior to having her kittens she would not approach me for petting. I could feed her and she would be rubbing on my legs, but if I touched her all bets were off and she would hiss and try to scratch me. She has not shown any signs of this behavior returning and is a sweet girl right now.
I will end with the cutest photo yet of her little ones I took this morning.
This is why I suggested leaving her alone - because she was not previously your house cat and is unfamiliar with the house and we don't need her getting upset.
The fan on low is fine. Cracking the window a couple of inches is fine too, but not more. The kittens need to be warm, especially the first 3 weeks, as they cannot regulate their own body temperature yet. Cats' normal body temperature is higher than ours - 101-102 degrees.
It's great she's staying non-stop with her kittens. My cat did the same in a spare bedroom, at one point not coming downstairs for a solid week, and then it was for literally 5 minutes.
She will naturally growl at your dog, as she views him as a threat to her kittens, although they may become best friends down the road! And your dog is jealous when you are in with the cats!
I doubt she wants to roam the house right now, but if she wants to look around eventually, you can let her. When her kittens begin to leave the nest and explore, you'll need to put some toys in the room - balls and play mice. This room should be fine for them for a good 6-8 weeks. When the kittens finally come out to other parts of the house it will need to be supervised and kitten-proofed, as they can get stuck in places and not be able to get out. They also climb and knock things over! But you're not there yet!
The pregnant stray I adopted has never been back outside. She went into her first post-partum heat at 7 weeks, and I had her spayed at the end of that week. The kittens were neutered and spayed at 12 weeks. You've probably got a few weeks, but regardless, don't let her out.
Sounds like all is going great!
The fan on low is fine. Cracking the window a couple of inches is fine too, but not more. The kittens need to be warm, especially the first 3 weeks, as they cannot regulate their own body temperature yet. Cats' normal body temperature is higher than ours - 101-102 degrees.
It's great she's staying non-stop with her kittens. My cat did the same in a spare bedroom, at one point not coming downstairs for a solid week, and then it was for literally 5 minutes.
She will naturally growl at your dog, as she views him as a threat to her kittens, although they may become best friends down the road! And your dog is jealous when you are in with the cats!
I doubt she wants to roam the house right now, but if she wants to look around eventually, you can let her. When her kittens begin to leave the nest and explore, you'll need to put some toys in the room - balls and play mice. This room should be fine for them for a good 6-8 weeks. When the kittens finally come out to other parts of the house it will need to be supervised and kitten-proofed, as they can get stuck in places and not be able to get out. They also climb and knock things over! But you're not there yet!
The pregnant stray I adopted has never been back outside. She went into her first post-partum heat at 7 weeks, and I had her spayed at the end of that week. The kittens were neutered and spayed at 12 weeks. You've probably got a few weeks, but regardless, don't let her out.
Sounds like all is going great!
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- #25
The photo of your cat and kitten in your avatar are such cuties. I think one of my Claire's kittens will be orange striped and white too. Your advice has been perfect and I thank you for taking the time to help.
When I was in high school (too many years ago) i volunteered at the local Humane Society shelter for part of a summer. It was a rude awakening to the problem of overpopulation in cats and dogs. I learned that many were put to sleep because there was not enough space to keep them all. I could not deal with seeing an animal one day and caring for it, only to learn that its time was up and it had been put down. I don't understand how people could work there day in and day out. I was in tears the day that I first figured out what had happened to a dog I was fond of, and I lost it. I never went back as my heart could not take it, and every animal I have had since then has been spayed. A part of me feels very guilty for not taking Claire right away to be spayed. I know she was a stray, but as soon as we started feeding her we should have taken full responsibility for her. I was talking to my son last night and he told me she actually was coming around since April, but I don't remember noticing her until May.
I guess this is all going to work out fine now. I have so much respect and admiration for those who work in rescue for these animals welfare. This whole experience with Claire has really got me thinking about things I could be doing especially now that my own children are grown. I am hoping that my husband will consider keeping at least one of the kittens if not both.
If he isn't convinced, I will be very picky about who gets to adopt them.
When I was in high school (too many years ago) i volunteered at the local Humane Society shelter for part of a summer. It was a rude awakening to the problem of overpopulation in cats and dogs. I learned that many were put to sleep because there was not enough space to keep them all. I could not deal with seeing an animal one day and caring for it, only to learn that its time was up and it had been put down. I don't understand how people could work there day in and day out. I was in tears the day that I first figured out what had happened to a dog I was fond of, and I lost it. I never went back as my heart could not take it, and every animal I have had since then has been spayed. A part of me feels very guilty for not taking Claire right away to be spayed. I know she was a stray, but as soon as we started feeding her we should have taken full responsibility for her. I was talking to my son last night and he told me she actually was coming around since April, but I don't remember noticing her until May.
I guess this is all going to work out fine now. I have so much respect and admiration for those who work in rescue for these animals welfare. This whole experience with Claire has really got me thinking about things I could be doing especially now that my own children are grown. I am hoping that my husband will consider keeping at least one of the kittens if not both.
If he isn't convinced, I will be very picky about who gets to adopt them.
What sweet words - thank you!
I hope you actually can keep both kittens. They need each other to tussle and play with. You'll see that two kittens can be easier than one!
It is a terrible problem out there with over-population, and I could never work in a kill shelter either. It's good you are thinking about things. It can be heartbreaking when you realize that so many cats have no home.
I had six cats over the last 25 years, all rescues, starting at ages as young as 4-5 weeks. All lived to between 18 and 21 years. I still miss all of them. The last I had to put down in April. So when Kitty Kitty showed up pregnant and hung around, I took her in. She is such a sweet cat and fantastic mama! She had 4 kittens, who are now 16 weeks old, and I have kept all of them! Instant cat family. And I am happy with my decision!
I hope you actually can keep both kittens. They need each other to tussle and play with. You'll see that two kittens can be easier than one!
It is a terrible problem out there with over-population, and I could never work in a kill shelter either. It's good you are thinking about things. It can be heartbreaking when you realize that so many cats have no home.
I had six cats over the last 25 years, all rescues, starting at ages as young as 4-5 weeks. All lived to between 18 and 21 years. I still miss all of them. The last I had to put down in April. So when Kitty Kitty showed up pregnant and hung around, I took her in. She is such a sweet cat and fantastic mama! She had 4 kittens, who are now 16 weeks old, and I have kept all of them! Instant cat family. And I am happy with my decision!
@Jeapa507, I have just caught up with your thread. What a great job you've done. I also joined the forum this year when a stray cat chose my place. She had 5 kittens, which I handed over to the RSPCA for checking and immunisations, then fostered 3 of them while another foster carer took two until they were old enough for de-sexing. The gorgeous mother was unfortunately too malnourished to keep feeding 5 hungry kittens, so she was spayed and adopted out.
My circumstances didn't allow me to keep the kittens after the foster period, and they were adopted out through the RSPCA. I was heartbroken handing them over for adoption. I still miss them SO much. The people who have adopted the kittens have not kept in touch so I don't know how they're going, and feel sad about that. So I do hope you get the chance to keep your beautiful two kittens with their mother. The good thing is, these are early days as the kittens are far too young to leave their mother yet, so in the next couple of months their personalities will emerge and you'll know so much more about them. In that time you and your husband will become even more attached to them, and can make your decision about keeping them then. In the meantime, enjoy them! You've won the stray mother's trust which is so beautiful to see, and the kittens, having been in your care from birth, will totally trust you if you keep handling them as you are doing. You'll be a vital and familiar part of their little world.
You have lots of kitty-loving and nurturing time ahead of you know until any decisions have to be made.
All the best! And well done! The mother and kittens are just adorable.
My circumstances didn't allow me to keep the kittens after the foster period, and they were adopted out through the RSPCA. I was heartbroken handing them over for adoption. I still miss them SO much. The people who have adopted the kittens have not kept in touch so I don't know how they're going, and feel sad about that. So I do hope you get the chance to keep your beautiful two kittens with their mother. The good thing is, these are early days as the kittens are far too young to leave their mother yet, so in the next couple of months their personalities will emerge and you'll know so much more about them. In that time you and your husband will become even more attached to them, and can make your decision about keeping them then. In the meantime, enjoy them! You've won the stray mother's trust which is so beautiful to see, and the kittens, having been in your care from birth, will totally trust you if you keep handling them as you are doing. You'll be a vital and familiar part of their little world.
You have lots of kitty-loving and nurturing time ahead of you know until any decisions have to be made.
All the best! And well done! The mother and kittens are just adorable.
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- #28
Thank you so much Checkers. I am pleased to meet you. I will have to look for your thread on your momma and her kittens. It is funny how life tends to throw us curve balls at times. It is amazing to me that Claire literally just moved in on our porch and never left. I mean she was always there and I don't think she ever left our yard. I wonder if she was treated badly by a woman in her past? My son and my husband were always able to pet her.
I am sure your stray cat was very blessed to have had you take care of her. I can only imagine how hard it was for you to give up those kittens. I know sometimes the best thing to do for our circumstances can be the hardest. I wish you could know that they are doing well in their new homes. I am trying not to worry that far ahead, as you said we have some time to make the decision. I have not even mentioned to my husband yet that I am even thinking about keeping the kittens. He had already agreed that we will keep Claire, so one step at a time.
I am looking forward to watch these cuties grow. I am off from work for at least another 3 weeks so they are keeping me company. Thanks again for your kind words.
I am sure your stray cat was very blessed to have had you take care of her. I can only imagine how hard it was for you to give up those kittens. I know sometimes the best thing to do for our circumstances can be the hardest. I wish you could know that they are doing well in their new homes. I am trying not to worry that far ahead, as you said we have some time to make the decision. I have not even mentioned to my husband yet that I am even thinking about keeping the kittens. He had already agreed that we will keep Claire, so one step at a time.
I am looking forward to watch these cuties grow. I am off from work for at least another 3 weeks so they are keeping me company. Thanks again for your kind words.
Thank you for your lovely comments, @Jeapa507.
You might be right about Claire possibly being treated badly by a woman, or someone who reminded her of you. I guess you'll never know.
I hope those two kittens creep into your husband's heart and maybe before long he'll be wondering how he'll make the suggestion to you that you keep them! Play cool. Tell him you'll think about it!
I must say, that kennel he made Claire was very impressive!
You might be right about Claire possibly being treated badly by a woman, or someone who reminded her of you. I guess you'll never know.
I hope those two kittens creep into your husband's heart and maybe before long he'll be wondering how he'll make the suggestion to you that you keep them! Play cool. Tell him you'll think about it!
I must say, that kennel he made Claire was very impressive!
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- #30
I've just finished reading through your thread @Checkers. I had to grab a tissue when I got to the part where you had to return the kittens to the shelter. I could feel your love for them expressed in the many beautiful photos that you took. You have inspired me to take out my camera and get something better than an iphone photo of mine. You have a talent in capturing the personality of your subjects.
Thomas was a very handsome kitty and I am so very sorry that he was not able to recover from the flu. Is this cat flu the same virus that dogs get?
Are you going to foster again? I hope you will because it is obvious that you have a caring heart for these animals in need.
Thomas was a very handsome kitty and I am so very sorry that he was not able to recover from the flu. Is this cat flu the same virus that dogs get?
Are you going to foster again? I hope you will because it is obvious that you have a caring heart for these animals in need.
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- #32
@sarthur2 Wow six cats in 25 years! That is amazing that they all were able to live such long and happy lives. I pray that Claire and her kittens will also enjoy long happy lives. I was finally given the ok to drive today by my doctor so I headed to the store to pick up some needed supplies for mamma and babies. Claire has been kicking a lot of her litter out of the pan so I purchased a deeper box for her. I hope this works as she was not happy with me using the broom and dust pan to clean up. She attacked the broom so much that I just stopped cleaning up so she would calm down. I could not convince her that the broom was not an evil thing that would harm her babies...
I was able to purchase a scale today and finally got weights on the kittens:
Kitten 1 Calico born 7/4/15 at 1:00pm- 5.4 ounces
Kitten 2 orange born 7/4/15 9:15 pm- 6.0 ounces
They are 4 days old today. Do these weights seem good? I will try to weigh them everyday to ensure they are gaining as they should be. They both have nice round bellies and Claire barely leaves them so I think they are going to thrive with her good care. Here are a couple of photos from this morning.
I was able to purchase a scale today and finally got weights on the kittens:
Kitten 1 Calico born 7/4/15 at 1:00pm- 5.4 ounces
Kitten 2 orange born 7/4/15 9:15 pm- 6.0 ounces
They are 4 days old today. Do these weights seem good? I will try to weigh them everyday to ensure they are gaining as they should be. They both have nice round bellies and Claire barely leaves them so I think they are going to thrive with her good care. Here are a couple of photos from this morning.
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- #33
They are so cure!
Yes those are good weights Healthy kittens should gain at least .4 ounces a day.
Congratulations on regaining your wheels.
Yes those are good weights Healthy kittens should gain at least .4 ounces a day.
Congratulations on regaining your wheels.
Super cute! They look like tiny hamsters!
Congratulations on spending time with such tiny and cute creatures! Just wait until they start learning to walk! All their but wiggling and tumbling around is a sight to see!
Thanks so much, @Jeapa507! Yes, you must take out your camera and capture those beautiful and funny moments coming up for you and the kitties. I hope you stay with the forum and post them. Everyone loves kitty photos!
I'm no expert, but as far as I understand the cat flu is quite separate from the viruses dogs get. It's solely a cat thing. Dogs can get kennel cough and other more serious viruses, but they are different conditions.
I certainly hope to foster again. I'm waiting on some surgery dates (sound familiar?), and after my rehab, I hope to foster but it will probably be an older cat as my elderly mother can't take the leg climbing and inevitable little scratches from kittens. She loves them, but her skin is too fragile for their claws.
Looking forward to more updates on Claire and her babies.
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- #37
@checkers I will definitely keep this thread updated with my kittens progress.
I certainly understand going through surgery and recovery. I am pleased to be able to drive again. I will be going back to work on the 27th and as much as I am looking forward to it I am sure I will miss being able to hang out with Claire and her kittens.
I was watching the kittens tonight and I was amazed that even though there are only two of them they fight over the same nipple. The calico is smaller, but she makes the most noise and she was meowing bloody murder when her brother stole her nipple. Claire just lays there and let's them figure it out. Almost like a human family lol...:lol3:
I certainly understand going through surgery and recovery. I am pleased to be able to drive again. I will be going back to work on the 27th and as much as I am looking forward to it I am sure I will miss being able to hang out with Claire and her kittens.
I was watching the kittens tonight and I was amazed that even though there are only two of them they fight over the same nipple. The calico is smaller, but she makes the most noise and she was meowing bloody murder when her brother stole her nipple. Claire just lays there and let's them figure it out. Almost like a human family lol...:lol3:
Ha ha, @Jeapa507. That's hilarious. All those nipples to choose from and they fight over one!
I've been told kittens always choose the same nipple to return to. It's like their names are on them. Maybe that ownership happens when they're a little older. Otherwise, you might have an ongoing fight on your hands!
I'd be tempted to shift the kitten who got to the nipple second and keep putting it on another nipple (the same one each time). But I'd prefer an expert on this forum to give their views here.
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- #39
You know @Checkers I thought about moving orange guy cause I felt sorry that he shoved his sister away, but I wanted to see what she would do. It was kind of funny because Claire just laid there with this lazy contented look on her face and her kitten was meowing and frantically trying to climb all over her brother to move him. Then the little girl ended up rolling over right next to mamma's face and Claire started licking her to stimulate her and bathe her and she protested loudly the whole time. That little girl is going to be vocal and feisty, she is showing her personality all ready!!! I will weigh the kittens again this afternoon to make sure that both of them are gaining weight as they should be and if she isn't I will definitely intervene and supplement her. I think she is fine and I just happened to witness the first disagreement between siblings. I have watched them both nurse side by side many times with no issues so I think they are fine. However, this is my first time with a cat and her kittens so if anyone thinks I should do anything different please tell me. I am learning so much from this site and everyone here!!! I have to run some errands this morning, but I will update later hopefully with some photos taken with my Nikon.
Looking forward to your update on their weights!
