10 Scared Stray Kittens

Hi Everyone! My neighbors just moved a few days ago, leaving behind ten kittens and three mommy cats. They had been feeding them all once a day, and I have resumed feeding them. I have found homes for two of the kittens, however, they are all very skiddish and so scared, and I have no idea how to go about catching them to get them to their new forever homes/a no-kill shelter (will a no-kill shelter even take 8 kittens?!). I also know I need to get the mommy cats fixed ASAP. I'm a bit overwhelmed with all of this, not to mention heartbroken for so many sweet babies that need homes. I have one cat inside that is losing his mind at all the cats outside. This is the first time I have ever had to deal with something like this, and so any help or advice anyone could give is so welcomed and appreciated.

TiggsMommy said:

Hi Everyone! My neighbors just moved a few days ago, leaving behind ten kittens and three mommy cats. They had been feeding them all once a day, and I have resumed feeding them. I have found homes for two of the kittens, however, they are all very skiddish and so scared, and I have no idea how to go about catching them to get them to their new forever homes/a no-kill shelter (will a no-kill shelter even take 8 kittens?!). I also know I need to get the mommy cats fixed ASAP. I'm a bit overwhelmed with all of this, not to mention heartbroken for so many sweet babies that need homes. I have one cat inside that is losing his mind at all the cats outside. This is the first time I have ever had to deal with something like this, and so any help or advice anyone could give is so welcomed and appreciated.

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Welcome to TCS.  Thank you so much for wanting to help.  Is there a rescue group or Humane Society in your area that could assist you?  Often they will loan you traps that will be needed to catch the kittens and Moms.  The kittens shouldn't be too hard and sometimes you can trap more than one at once.  The moms are most important as you don't want them going back into heat and getting pregnant again.

Try doing an internet search on rescue groups in your area or the humane society.  Contact them and see if they can be of any help to you.

If you have a trap or know someone that does then you can go ahead and start trapping and taking the kittens to the shelter.  Are the Moms at all adoptable?

ShadowsRescue has good info.  I'll just chime in here to say "Thank you!"  You are doing a wonderful thing for these cats.

Thank you so very much, ShadowsRescue, for your response and help! I have a list of possible no-kill rescues/shelters to take them to, and now just pray that one of them do not have a waitlist and will take them.  I honestly don't know if they moms are adoptable.  My neighbors said they had been able to finally pet one of the mommies, and that she is super sweet, but she seems very scared when I see her.  One mom is super protective, but will let me get close when I feed her, and the other is very skittish, and won't let me even kind of close to her.  

The kittens and mommies used to live on the porch of my neighbors house, and they had begun to socialize them, but since the neighbors moved the landlords have been there cleaning and doing lots of work, and now I only see the kittens when they come out at night to eat.  I have two people that have agreed to give them a good, forever home, but I have absolutely no idea how I'm going to catch the two they want and get them to them.  I have tried to go outside when they are eating and just be near them, hoping they will associate me with food, but they all run away.  

Also, with trapping the kittens, you said I might be able to catch more than one at the same time.  Is there any danger in the trap closing on one of the kittens once the other has gone in? I am totally new and clueless to this, and have no idea how the traps work.  Also, we live in the country, with lots of wild animals.  If they are trapped during the night, is it safe for them to be in the cage until the morning when I can transport them?

Also I have a question about transporting them...this may be a silly question, but if I transport them in the cage in my car, is there a potential for fleas to get all in my car, on me, and then brought in to my home? We have a pickup truck, but am I correct in thinking that they would be traumatized and terrified if put in the bed of a pickup truck and transported (even with a blanket over the cage?) 

So sorry for so many questions! I am so grateful for your help! 

Thank you for your kind words, Ondine! 

TiggsMommy said:

 
Thank you so very much, ShadowsRescue, for your response and help! I have a list of possible no-kill rescues/shelters to take them to, and now just pray that one of them do not have a waitlist and will take them.  I honestly don't know if they moms are adoptable.  My neighbors said they had been able to finally pet one of the mommies, and that she is super sweet, but she seems very scared when I see her.  One mom is super protective, but will let me get close when I feed her, and the other is very skittish, and won't let me even kind of close to her.  

The kittens and mommies used to live on the porch of my neighbors house, and they had begun to socialize them, but since the neighbors moved the landlords have been there cleaning and doing lots of work, and now I only see the kittens when they come out at night to eat.  I have two people that have agreed to give them a good, forever home, but I have absolutely no idea how I'm going to catch the two they want and get them to them.  I have tried to go outside when they are eating and just be near them, hoping they will associate me with food, but they all run away.  

Also, with trapping the kittens, you said I might be able to catch more than one at the same time.  Is there any danger in the trap closing on one of the kittens once the other has gone in? I am totally new and clueless to this, and have no idea how the traps work.  Also, we live in the country, with lots of wild animals.  If they are trapped during the night, is it safe for them to be in the cage until the morning when I can transport them?

Also I have a question about transporting them...this may be a silly question, but if I transport them in the cage in my car, is there a potential for fleas to get all in my car, on me, and then brought in to my home? We have a pickup truck, but am I correct in thinking that they would be traumatized and terrified if put in the bed of a pickup truck and transported (even with a blanket over the cage?) 

So sorry for so many questions! I am so grateful for your help! 

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If you are able to find a rescue group to help you, they would bring out multiple traps in hopes to get most of the kittens right away.  Sometimes more than one will try to go inside and there is always the danger of the door hitting one of them.  It is best to always be watching while you are trapping.  You could try a drop trap where the idea is to get many at once.  You just need to have traps or carrier to then transport them in.

It is also very important that the moms be trapped as soon as possible.  They will go into heat again and before you know it there will be more kittens.  If the moms are not adoptable you could just have them spayed and continue to feed them on your property and possibly provide them with some shelter.

As for transporting them, I would not put them in the open of a truck.  I would be sure they are safely inside.  All of the wind blowing on them would be very very hard for them.  As for fleas getting into your car, of course this is possible.  You could get a flea spray to use after the transport if you are concerned.  I have taken lots and lots of cats in the back of my van and never had a problem.  Once the cat/kitten is securely in the trap, you want to cover the trap with a sheet or blanket to help them feel calm. 

Here is a great video on trapping provided by Alley Cat Allies.  Some groups like to trap at night and others will try any time of day.  I prefer to trap in the morning if possible so I can take them straight to the clinic. 

http://www.alleycat.org/resources/trapping-cats-how-to-trap-an-entire-colony/

@TiggsMommy   Can you feed the cats more than once a day?  Nursing mom's and growing kittens need a lot of food. 

The trapping people will probably ask you to stop feeding the cats the day of trapping or the night before so the cats are hungry and will be more likely to enter the traps for food.

The shelter in my area spays and neuters feral for free. I trapped the mommy of three tiny kittens using a 'Tupperware' container and can of tuna fish, staying close by to pop the lid on once she was inside. I transported her to the shelter in this container and brought her back to the kittens just hours later in the same container. Now, the kittens are grown and will be leaving my back patio to go live on a ranch to hunt mice. (Poor mice). The mommy will be going to the shelter or maybe I have a home for her soon. I'm looking. Patience, trust in nature's abilities, accurate information, God.

@ShadowsRescue  Thank you so very much for this information! I'm so sorry I'm so clueless, and have so many questions.  I so appreciate your time and patience in answering them all for me! I can't tell you how helpful everything you shared is to me! 

So, all of the no-kills shelters I have talked to are full, or we are "out of their area" and won't take the kittens.  I talked to a low-cost spay/neuter clinic today, and they said if I'm having to trap the kittens, then no shelters will take them, because they won't have time to tame them.  

More bad news, the first available day that I can have the daddy and mommies fixed at the low-cost center is August 29     I already can't afford to pay the $30/cat to have the three mommies and the daddy fixed there (I was given a number to call for financial aid assistance in getting this taken care of, so I'm hopeful), but taking them to a regular clinic to have the procedures done is, sadly, not an option for me.

Also, as mentioned earlier, I have two amazing people that have offered good, safe, and loving forever homes to two of the kittens.  However, I have NO idea how I'm going to catch these two kittens to get them to their forever homes.  All the kittens stay hidden and have disappeared during the day, and come out to eat at night on my front porch.  I stay out there while they eat and talk to them sweetly, but if I breathe wrong or move a muscle they all start to run away.  

@Handsome Kitty  Thank you! Yes, I absolutely agree! I was thinking that once a day is not enough for the kittens, because they are growing and probably haven't learned to hunt yet.  Plus, I noticed one of the mommies is still nursing (the kittens would go from eating the food I put out for them, to nursing from mommy, back to the food, etc), so I have started putting food out in the mornings as well, however only the mommy has come back to eat.  Most of the food is still there, and there is still no sign of the kittens during the day. 

@yummy520  That is absolutely amazing that there is a shelter that spays and neuters ferals for free in your area! I so wish there were one of those in my area as well! At this point, I'm struggling, but I'm doing my best to do exactly as you said...patience, trust in nature's abilities, accurate information, and I'm doing A LOT of praying and trusting in God about this situation.  

I honestly feel so overwhelmed, but am so grateful to you all for your kindness and help! Thank you all SO much!!