Cat Family

First, take a deep breath.  You are absolutely doing the right thing by these cats.  They will be a bit miffed at you for a few days but so what?  You are improving their lives 1000% percent.  Think of the times a parent has to discipline their child.  How often the child is convinced the parents hates them.  So untrue and the child eventually learns this.  Same in this case.

Cover the carrier the cats are in when they return to you.  This will help keep them calm.  Keep their room quiet (you can play soothing music) and their routine the same - food at certain times, litter box clean up at certain times, etc.

Unless you plan to keep them inside, if the other cat is a male, he can be released tomorrow.  Mom should stay inside and quiet for at least three days.  If you do not catch the kittens, they may try to nurse when reunited with her and you'll want that incision to be nice and healed.  

To catch the kittens - get a carrier or crate and tie a length of twine to the door.  Loop it through the top of the crate.  Place the food at the back and walk a distance away with the other end of the twine.  The kittens will go in after the food and you can pull the twine to close the door.  Move as quickly and quietly as you can to secure the door.  They may not even be aware you are there.

Mix a good smelly wet food with a little water to make a slurry.  This will be easier for them to eat.

Please try to catch them as soon as possible.  They may start to wander, looking for mother.  As young as they are, this will be dangerous for them.

I'm keeping an eye on the kittens and making sure they stay foot. I just went to the pet store and bought a bunch of things to keep them happy and near. I put a toy down for them. I will wait for these two adult cats to come in and then set the traps for the kittens. I think i will be able to get all three with one trap, one at a time. I do wonder if the mom will be aggressive towards me? I have never been close to her and im sort of worried to let her out of the trap when I get them from the vet. I have made a cat room. It's empty and quite, and in the upstairs apartment that nobody lives in. I put a litter box, toys, bowls, beds and bought a bunch of food to last several days. I might keep mom in the trap tonight and let the other adult cat loose because I know he will be nice. Then in the morning i will let him go and bring the kittens upstair with momma but keep momma in a kennel so the kittens can't feed off of her. I hope to get the kittens soon.

UPDATE: Tortoise Shell kitten has been captured with a cardbox self made trap. One of the other kittens had also gone in it but I didn't realize he was in there eating until I went to move the box, so he got away. He/she will go to the vet tomorrow.

Chochy said:

 
UPDATE: Tortoise Shell kitten has been captured with a cardbox self made trap. One of the other kittens had also gone in it but I didn't realize he was in there eating until I went to move the box, so he got away. He/she will go to the vet tomorrow.

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Good job!  You are on this!

I'm impressed!!  You are on a role!!  Keep up the good work!!

UPDATE: With the help of a portable camera i was able to capture the last two kittens easily. I picked up momma and the other adult cat (who is a male named Trix now) from the vet and both are doing fine. I put momma in the same room as the kittens but she is in a kennel, because i don't want the kittens messing with her surgical areas. The kitten that was trapped first is more relax than the later two but all three went out of their individual corners when they were alone with mom and went on to smell her. She seemed relieve to know all her kittens where there with her. The camera is now in their room and i can check it anytime and will keep an eye on them constantly as well as working on building trust with all of them. The male adult cat will be released tomorrow morning and get food and water today. All three kittens will be at the vet tomorrow!

Thanks for all the help in catching these beautiful animals! I'm excited to be working with the kittens now to try and socialize them and hopefully find good homes for all of them! Might even keep one myself! It has been great and now on to the next step.

Again thank you all! I couldn't have done it without your advise, tips, support and thanks for showing love to animals.

-Chochy

This is all such good news!! You have done such a wonderful thing for all of these kitties. Thank you so much for all of your hard work.

That is so awesome you were able to get them all safely!  I still have one last kitten to catch after TNR'ing mom, dad and 3 siblings last week.  

UPDATE: Both parents have been released and now we are working on socializing the kittens. Surprisingly, the biggest help with all of this has been the father. Although he is out doors, he knows that every morning he can come over to get food. He likes to come in the house too and i take him to the room with the kittens. The kittens see us playing and petting him and today, for the first time, the male kitten came out of the corner to come play! I took advantage of this and played with them for an hour. Calico is still very shy and refused to play but the other two (the ones that constantly hiss at me) played for a while! I will have play time two times a day and try to win them over this way. The girls reply well to food, while the guy replies well to playing. 

Thanks, Chochy.

Wonderful news!  Thanks so much for the update.  Smart going to use dad to help the kittens recognize you're their friend.

Yeah dad has been crazy lately. It's hard to walk inside now because he's always on my feet when i go outside! I don't even pressure him to come in, he just volunteers, stays for a bit, and then goes out. He did pee on my couch today though, so i'm not sure if i want him back in! Although i probably will let him in and watch him as he helps with the kittens. Mom is still finicky and runs as soon as I open the door, if she is outside.

Do you think dad knows what a litter box is for?  If you have one in the room where the kittens are, hopefully he will use it if he needs to go.

UPDATE:

It has been about a week and a half since i've captured the kittens. Socializing them has been exhausting and they are nowhere near ready. The male seems to be making the most progress, as he is always eager to come play and seems more relaxed when i'm in the room. Tortoiseshell is the total opposite, sometimes I feel like she is holding the other two back. There are times where I can't even get a bowl of food out in front of her without her throwing a hissy fit. She is still very feral, i can see it in her eyes and her movements. Calico has never hissed, but she is very shy and doesn't do anything unless her sibling do it first. I can (sometimes, if he wants too) get them to eat treats from my hand, to play, and sometimes I can pet them while they are eating. Some visits are better than others and sometimes it feels like i've made no progress. I'm sticking with it and working hard with them. I might have to separate the male and socialize him alone because he seems to be held back by his sisters.

That's why they say tortoiseshells have "tortitude."   You may have to separate him.

Remember, she may never be a lap cat.  Our tortie went five years without a pet.  She even had her own room because she hated the other cats.  She's as integrated now as the others and loves her pets - will even seek them out.

You're making progress, even though it doesn't seem like it sometimes.

Yeah their personalities are starting to show! My cousin has a tortoise and she still bites me every time I go visit, even though i've known her for years now! The black and white one is very playful, he reminds me of dad big time. Every time I go into their room, I have to win them over by winning him over. He hasn't hissed in a while and seems more comfortable when he is close to my arms when we are playing. Right now i'm studying in the room with them (mostly to spend as much time with them as possible) and he's very curious about my notebook and calculator and is the only one that's outside of their bed. The Calico will probably be a lap cap but she's very very shy. She's very scared of everything but has never hissed. I know it's only been a little of time and will take longer. I'm just very eager for the day that I can come in the room and just pet them and play without their fears. However, i'm giving them their time and letting them come to me. I can get tortoise to climb on my leg for treats, so she's got that going for her but hopefully in time they all feel comfortable with me and I see more progress with all three. I want whats best for all of them.

UPDATE:

So it has been a very LONG month since I brought the kittens in and tried to get them socialized. They had made progress the first few days and it looked promising, but  they have gotten worse. They still hiss at me, and spit and bite and scratch anytime I get close. I have lost most hope in getting them socialized and adopted. I knew coming into it that it would be hard to accomplish but they just seem impossible to deal with. Calico is scared of everything, she will always run to the opposite side from where i'm located. She still has never hissed but I can't be anywhere near her without her running away. She refuses to eat anything from my hand, play with me, or get food/water if i'm anywhere near. Tortoise is still showing tortitude and hisses at me every single day. She will jump up to my legs for food but she leaves if I try to pet her or move too much. She will stop eating and run away with any movement from me. Tuxedo is still doing the best but even he is nowhere near. He likes to play and won't always run away (although he will half the time) if I move a little or he hears something, even if I do it everyday. Everyday i get more attached but everyday I realize more that they are probably too old to be socialized. I don't know what to do at this point. I wouldn't mind keeping them another month, however it is getting significantly expensive, and harder to find the time to spend with them. I have sacrificed a lot of money, effort, good spirits and most importantly time on these babies and it feels like i'm getting nowhere. Part of me think it's better to let them go back outside where they will be happier. Mom still lurks around and i've been feeding her but people are about to move in next door so I don't think that will last long. I also don't want to give up on them but they haven't given me a single chance yet and I don't want to waste my time, nor theirs as they are missing out on learning stuff from mom. Please help, what is best for them? Is this task too much for me? Try more to get them socialized or let them be?

Thanks, Chochy.

OK.  Deep breath.  You have done a phenomenal job so far, really.

Remembering that they may never be lap cats, you can still keep them inside.  Of my seven cats, only three show themselves when we have company.  The other four are under the bed and stay there for at least an hour after company leaves.  People have actually questioned whether they exist.  Of those four, one will only allow a ten-second head scratch every week or so.  He is the sweetest cat but is simply not social.  And he will hiss and swipe if we invade his territory.

If you really feel keeping them inside won't work, I would try to find a barn situation where they can patrol the premises and keep it rodent-free. Breweries and some factories will also host cats.

To put them back outside in your neighborhood seems a little dangerous now, especially with people moving in who may not understand and who may object.

I have forgotten whether they have been spayed and neutered (especially mom and dad).  If not, get that done ASAP - or you'll have more cats than you can possibly deal with!

I wonder if separating these kittens would be for the best. One on one socialization might be more intensive and effective, without the others to fall back on. Could you find other fosters willing to help?

I agree that spaying and neutering will help, and that putting them back outside isn't the answer.

Please, please, please don't get discouraged. One month isn't very long. Can't blame the poor little things for hissing at you seeing that you are a huge scary animal in their eyes.

I can't promise your kittens will turn out like my two kittens but I can say it is worth trying. I have two kittens living in the building I work at and all my patience is paying off.

A bit of details :

I started feeding approximately 2 month old feral kittens at the start of November last year. I used a time lapse camera to monitor them because they would run off when I tried approaching them.

Last seen the mom when they were approximately 3 1/2 months old. Was getting dark out early and camera doesn't work in the dark so the mother may have been around longer.

February-March the larger of the two kittens would come watch me put food out, he would hiss at me. I ignored him, no reaction from me. After a while he stopped hissing, a couple weeks maybe longer.

Towards the end of April the smaller kitten started to come watch as well.

Early May the larger cat got an eye infection and cold so I trapped him and took him straight to the vet. Trapped the smaller kitten when I got back from the vet because I didn't want her outside without the larger sibling. She had the eye infection and cold as well but not as obvious. I had planned to bring them in the building anyways but would have liked to work on trust with them a bit longer before I did. The smaller one was just starting to come watch me put food out and the larger one was getting closer and closer to me. They got sick and I had no choice.

I setup a safe room for them in the building I work at when I got back from the vet, that was May 3.

I call the larger male cat Rusty and the smaller female cat Kitty.

The vet got their cold and eye infections cleared up. I had to put gel in their eyes, Rusty was not so bad but Kitty was difficult. Shots on May 14 and spayed and neutered on May 17.

Rusty warmed up to me rather fast. Kitty took 3 weeks to "start" warming up to me. They hissed a bit but I was in the habit of ignoring them so not sure how much or how long. I ignored them because I figured they are just scared or testing me. Possibly testing me to see what my reaction would be.

After feeding them for several months it still took Kitty 3 weeks to "start" warming up to me.

I have them on the second floor of the building and first week I had them Kitty pulled a metal register off the floor and went down the duct. I had to pull a section of duct work out the ceiling to get her out. When I started letting them roam the upper floor of the building they climbed on top of shelves, pushed up a ceiling tile and went up in the ceiling. I got Rusty out easy but had to trap Kitty to get her, she was running around and I think she wanted me to play with her.

It has now been 2 1/2 months and they are not fully socialized but close. I have applied a lot of patience and it is paying off slowly. They love the heck out of me and not the least bit scared of me anymore. After about a month and a half most of the fear Kitty had of me was gone, Rusty much earlier. Now I just need to work more on them trusting my co workers. That and Kitty still plays a little rough but only when she gets overly excited.

I was in last Saturday to feed and check up on them. I took a nap on a couch for an hour or so with them laying on top of me, they were out cold. They seem to love me a lot and that is a very nice reward for all my patience.

Kitty is a little calico, she  was scared of everything, and it took her longer to come out of her shell but she is now surpassing Rusty. She is becoming fairly gutsy. She let me pick her up before Rusty let me pick him up and she ventures around my co workers upstairs more than Rusty does.

I wish you the very best and regardless of if you do or don't give up you are an awesome person for at least trying which is more than most people would do.

Kitty, Rusty and Mommy (not centered because it was taken with time lapse camera)


Kitty (recent photo)


Rusty (loves fresh litter)