Trapped Feral Pregnant Cat - Now Has Kittens

lab mom

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Mar 8, 2017
Messages
72
Purraise
45
Location
Denver, CO
Hi Everyone,

I am new to this site but I am needing some helpful advice...

We have had a female feral outside of my mom's old house (no one living there at this time)....we have fed her consistently every day for well over 9 months.  After some time, she would come running up to my mom when she was feeding her and meow, she would let us get pretty close while she ate, but we never touched her.   In the fall we were planning on trapping her but then saw her with a kitten and I didn't want to take her away from the kitten.  She didn't have these in kittens in our back yard.  She would feed at our house every day, but a few weeks ago, she was looking a bit larger....and we knew she must be pregnant.  

Well we decided to trap her a couple of weeks ago.  She was very scared and freaked out,  but we put her in a empty bedroom with some blankets and boxes,etc.  she was hiding in a long box for the first week, and then I took that away from her, because I felt that we wouldn't be able to socialize with her.  She then went into one of those collapsable cube.  We started touching her with one of the sticks with a feather on it.  She would let "pet" her with the stick and really liked it, but we could never touch her...she hisses.

Then on Saturday she had 5 adorable babies.  She is being a great mom, she is nursing and loving the kittens  She is in a box with a blanket that we gave her and I think she feels the safety that we are providing her.  She has food and water and love.  We don't try to handle the kittens, we are trying to gain her trust.  She lets us pet her with the stick...but hisses when we first start, but then loves it...she kneads and purrs.  But again...no touching.

Our hope is that we can get the kittens socialized and adopted and hopefully get her socialized and adopted as well.

What do we do from here?  Any advice you could give would be great......

Thanks!!
 

abyeb

Charlie's Purrson
Veteran
Joined
Feb 18, 2017
Messages
7,565
Purraise
9,599
Have you talked to your local TNR group? They specialize in socializing feral cats and adopting out kittens. They have volunteers acting as foster families for the cats, meaning that you could keep the cat and kittens until they're ready to be adopted. They'll be able to provide you the training and instructions you need for how to proceed with care and socialization of the mother and her kittens. 
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #3

lab mom

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Mar 8, 2017
Messages
72
Purraise
45
Location
Denver, CO
Hi thanks for your reply. I have reached out to a couple groups in my area, but it seems that they are so overwhelmed they don't have much to tell me...except to trap and return. I might reach out again to see if they can help. I do have support from my awesome vet but again I am sure she doesn't specialize in feral cats. My biggest concern is how to get the mommy socialized and when do I start socializing the kittens. And any tips for doing so....
 

abyeb

Charlie's Purrson
Veteran
Joined
Feb 18, 2017
Messages
7,565
Purraise
9,599
The biggest thing with feral cats is to simply build trust. Hang around in the room with her and the kittens. Give her some of your sweaty gym clothes to cuddle with to help her get used to your scent. Finally, make sure to talk to her a lot to get her used to hearing human voices. You could also leave the radio on while you are at work to accomplish this. Best of luck and I would love to see pictures of this cat and her kittens!
 

abyeb

Charlie's Purrson
Veteran
Joined
Feb 18, 2017
Messages
7,565
Purraise
9,599
Start socializing the kittens as soon as you can get near them without mom getting distressed. Pick them up, hold them, pet them, and when they start playing with each other, you can join in on the fun with a fishing-pole type toy.
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #6

lab mom

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Mar 8, 2017
Messages
72
Purraise
45
Location
Denver, CO
So, I play classical music on the radio all day and night. I bought a plug in, using flower essence in her water. I am trying to build her trust by not pushing her, I want her to come to me. I am scared of getting bit or anything so I am being patient. The babies are only 3 days old so I will wait a few weeks before trying to handle them...i think that should be good timing. I am hoping that she will trust us after feeling safe with her kittens and us not hurting her or them. I know this is scary for her. The problem is it is the an empty house and so we go there 4_5 times a day but Noone is living there tr
 

splasha1

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
May 24, 2014
Messages
42
Purraise
17
Location
Florida
Two years ago I started feeding a cat that showed up at my back door. Each day I moved the food bowl closer and closer

to my back step and after reading about it, learned that unlike a dog, cats were not disturbed by petting them while they were

eating. I used a hair brush at first and she seemed to really love it.

After a few weeks I realized the skinny little thing was putting on a lot of weight and a photo to a vet buddy came back with the word,

"pregnant."

She had 6 kittens between an AC unit and a house, 3 houses down the block, and was using the sea wall on our water front

canal as the travel route. I bought an igloo cat house on eBay for my yard as I am allergic to cats, and after about 2 weeks, one

day while she was out back eating an extra large food bowl skipped out the front door, down the block and brought the kittens home. While walking past her to their new cat house out back she immediately heard them meowing and as I put them in the igloo she jumped in and

laid down with them. Well a couple hours later when checking on them I discovered there was only one kitten and there was mom

about 30 feet away transporting kitten # 5 back, as it turned out, next to the AC unit down the block, and then she came back for the last one.

Over the next couple weeks I visited them twice a day; bringing them a bowl of cat food, AND a couple of those little jars of

Gerbers Chicken flavor baby food. At first she would play the defensive mom and hiss at me, but once she got a whiff of the food she turned off

the act and while she was eating, one at a time the kittens came over and they all "fought" over that baby food which I tried

to feed to them only but mom preferred that too. At about 4 weeks I again brought them home and that time they stayed and I eventually had a yard full kittens chasing various toys around the yard while mom brought back live lizards she released for them to all chase. Here in Florida we have tons of lizards in various sizes. Long story short at around 6 weeks I had all but 2 adopted out; took mom and the two remaining kittens to the vet to

be fixed. Next day the vet called saying someone would love to adopt the kittens and mom became a very spoiled indoor only cat

here. Allergies were hell for some months but I guess my system got used to her. The funny thing is she has had NO interest

in going outside. The vet said she was about 18 months old originally and easily made the adjustment since outside life can

be tough. So my advice=  small jars baby food, a teaspoon, & a hair brush.
 
 

ashade1

Wild and Wonderful Animal Rescue Director
Top Cat
Joined
Jul 9, 2016
Messages
2,306
Purraise
3,363
Location
Morgantown, WV
A lot of the advice I was going to give has already been said. Mostly sit in the room and talk to her. Sit with her while she eats. Make sure if when you do go in for a pet that you do it confidently- I have seen people approach former ferals with fear for pets and they react back in fear- even if they have been socialized. I think you sitting and talking with her will get the kittens used to you as they grow- and in a few weeks they will be more independent and want to investigate you. That is the best time to start socializing them more!
 

Sarthur2

Cat lady extraordinaire
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Mar 8, 2015
Messages
35,963
Purraise
17,627
Location
Sunny Florida
You should be able to begin handling the kittens at around 3 weeks of age when they leave the nest to explore. Let them crawl all over you, and offer them toys such as balls and play mice. You should have no trouble socializing the kittens for adoption, and as mom sees you with them and trusts you, she will hopefully grow friendlier.

You can do as much if not more than a group can working on your own with the cat family. It's good you have a vet who will work with you.

Can you can eventually move the family to where you live so that they get accustomed to a household?
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #10

lab mom

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Mar 8, 2017
Messages
72
Purraise
45
Location
Denver, CO
Splasha1 I love your story so much!! Thanks for sharing!! Hairbrush are the key!!
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #11

lab mom

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Mar 8, 2017
Messages
72
Purraise
45
Location
Denver, CO
Ashade1 and Sarthur2 thanks for your advice. Do you think it is promising that the mommy let's us pet her with a feathered stick? And that she kneads and purse when we do it? I am really hoping that I can get them all socialized and homes. But I know I have some work to do.
I could probably bring them to my mom's new house but don't know how I would get the mommy there??? But we could do that in a few weeks if it is possible to bring the mommy. Alsohow long should the kittens be with the Mom before finding homes?
 

Sarthur2

Cat lady extraordinaire
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Mar 8, 2015
Messages
35,963
Purraise
17,627
Location
Sunny Florida
You should bring the mom and the kittens to your mom's new house. Can you get mom into a crate with her kittens? That would be the best way.

It would be good to move them sooner rather than later so they are living with people around. But you cannot take the kittens without their mom. Perhaps she would go in the crate to nurse her babies and you could close the door?

Is there a spare room for them at your mom's? Or in the bedroom with you?

Mom will need to be spayed eventually, no matter what, so she will have to go in a crate for that. She does not need to get out and get pregnant again.

It's a very good sign that she lets you pet her with the feathered stick! Continue working with her.

The kittens should stay with mom for 10-12 weeks before going to new homes.
 
Last edited:

Sarthur2

Cat lady extraordinaire
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Mar 8, 2015
Messages
35,963
Purraise
17,627
Location
Sunny Florida
She is incredibly beautiful! The second picture is dark, but I do see kittens in it! [emoji]128522[/emoji]
 
  • Thread Starter Thread Starter
  • #16

lab mom

TCS Member
Thread starter
Young Cat
Joined
Mar 8, 2017
Messages
72
Purraise
45
Location
Denver, CO
Hi again, so everything is going well. The kitens are 2 and half weeks and just adorable!! The mommy is very relaxed , she lets us "pet" her with a stick, but not with our hands and loves it when we do it but still skeptical and cautious. The kittens are becoming more and more active and look up at us when we are there and talking to them. So, we are hoping that when the kittens start getting out of the box, we can socialize them and love them. That should be happening soon.
My question is...i have been feeding the mommy Purina Pro Plan....is this good food? Or is there something better for both her and the kittens when they start eating.
 

splasha1

TCS Member
Young Cat
Joined
May 24, 2014
Messages
42
Purraise
17
Location
Florida
I would look into Halo Brand and when switching foods, do it gradually, taking about 10 days for the complete

change. Link is where I buy mine, but am presently using one of the Halo "weight" mixes. I also avoid

any with fish. Before my cat became full time Indoor, she used to love RAW chicken legs & wings, eating bones and all.

As the weeks passed she became extremely picky and will basically only eat dry food these days.

 

ashade1

Wild and Wonderful Animal Rescue Director
Top Cat
Joined
Jul 9, 2016
Messages
2,306
Purraise
3,363
Location
Morgantown, WV
Mom should be eating kitten food- it has extra nutrients in it for while she is nursing. Also it will be good for when the babies are weaning because the pieces of food are smaller! I use Purina One Kitten Chow!
 

Sarthur2

Cat lady extraordinaire
Staff Member
Advisor
Joined
Mar 8, 2015
Messages
35,963
Purraise
17,627
Location
Sunny Florida
Purina Pro Plan is fine. Is it for adults or kittens? They make a kitten chow. Also, mom needs wet food. Is she getting daily wet food? The kittens will need both when they wean too.

Glad to hear that everyone is doing well. You should have no trouble socializing the kittens. Perhaps mom will relax more too! [emoji]128522[/emoji]
 
Last edited:
Top