Stray Cat Family

There has been a stray cat living in the wooded area across from my apartment building for several months. A few people have been feeding it, but it's pretty wild and won't let people come too close. Well, this cat has had three kittens! I'm not sure how old the kittens are, but I'd say at least a month old, though I haven't seen them until just a couple days ago. I don't know what to do. The lady next door and I have both been giving them food, though the mother won't let us get too close to them. I have a small apartment and a cat of my own (who came to me as a stray), so I can't adopt them. Also, I can't find a place for them to live. The wooded area is actually big enough for them all to live now - it's reasonably safe, but I worry about them crossing the street (they do at night). I know once the kittens are grown, there won't be enough room for them in the woods.

I'd like to get them all spayed and neutered at least. My dad talked about us gathering them up, taking them to the shelter to be fixed, then releasing them back, but I'm afraid the mom would have a fit. They really do seem happy and healthy, and I know moving them would be a shock, but I don't want them to grow, separate and keep re-producing. There is not much traffic where I live, but there are so many mean people out there... I'm already growing attached to them. The little gray and white one will come to me when I bring food, and I've been able to pet her some. I just will worry every single night they're out there. I would keep them all in my apartment if I had the space. My family lives in a large house - I thought they could keep them in the basement, but my mom doesn't like animals very much. I feel she's just being selfish. I think, maybe with some coaxing, my grandma would allow them all to stay in her roomy basement for awhile. I am willing to pitch in for the shots and supplies. I have no idea what to do - what move to make at this point. They are also all bobtailed cats - I'm not sure if that makes a difference in demeanor or not... There is one adult and three babies. Any advice would be appreciated. I'm glad I found this board. I hope I am posting this in the appropriate place.

Also, FTA - I live in a small town, and there aren't many resources available for stray cats. The humane society will only come to get dogs - I'd have to bring the cats to them. I really don't want to see them caged in that type of environment. I know our vet has limited space as well... We are going to speak with the vet tomorrow to see what he will do, if anything.

Wow, there are no kill rescue in the next town? If you could find someone to keep them the rescue may put them on the website and notify you when they have someone wanting to see the kittys. Depending on the vet he may do it cheaper if you tell him they are strays. I hate to hear of the animals caged but i 'd rather see that then them laying aside the road hit by a car. I understand its not busy but all it takes in 1 person in 1 car. Can you afford to get a dog crate? You could catch them get the mommy fixed only if the kittens are weaned and have them all in a carrier and maybe you can tame the mother and babies. The kittens may be to young to be fixed. Its great you are trying to take care of them and find the best help possible.

Maisey...for now, getting this family (including mom) fixed is the best thing you can do for them. You should use a humane trap to catch mom (ask your local vet if he knows anyone who is working with strays/feral cats) and the kittens. Make sure that the clinic uses disolving stitches so they will not have to be trapped again to have the stitching removed. Also...you can look here to see if there are any TNR groups in your area:

http://www.alleycat.org/orgs.html

Katie

Check the AlleyCatAllies site. Maybe someone near you is doing TNR-trap neuter release.
http://www.alleycat.org/index.html
Maybe they can help tame the babies, so they can become housecats, and spay the Momma so she won't keep having babies. Good Luck!

Thank you all for replying. My grandma says that the Humane Society has humane traps for stray cats. I want to definitely get the mom spayed, though I don't think the others are old enough to be spayed/neutered. We checked around, and we may be able to get homes for at least 2 of the cats. We will get them the shots and checked out, and maybe once we do that, they'll have a better chance at getting homes. I think the mom may be best in the wild, though. It is her home, and she knows how to get around, though, the kittens won't have good luck there, I don't think. The black and white ones are pretty wild, but I've seen ones more timid than those that have adapted well to households. Wish me (and the kitties) luck!

You won't know until you try the Mom inside, how she will do. If she is truly wild, she may be happier back outside, but spayed. But definitely homes for the babies!

Originally Posted by maiseycat

Thank you all for replying. My grandma says that the Humane Society has humane traps for stray cats. I want to definitely get the mom spayed, though I don't think the others are old enough to be spayed/neutered. We checked around, and we may be able to get homes for at least 2 of the cats. We will get them the shots and checked out, and maybe once we do that, they'll have a better chance at getting homes. I think the mom may be best in the wild, though. It is her home, and she knows how to get around, though, the kittens won't have good luck there, I don't think. The black and white ones are pretty wild, but I've seen ones more timid than those that have adapted well to households. Wish me (and the kitties) luck!

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Good Luck..and thank you so much fdor caring for this family.

Katie

Well, you are not going to believe what happened! We prepared to get the trap, but yesterday, I did not see the cat or kittens at all, or the night before. I walked around the area several times and asked around, but got no leads on them. We decided to wait since the humane society said they had no traps to loan out, and after explaining the situation, did not seem willing to help. They told us where we could purchase the traps however, and gave us the name of an agency: Cause for Paws who told us they would give the babies shots and spay the mom, and hold them there until we found homes! We had no idea where to put the trap, though, as they had apparently abandoned the area I'd seen and fed them at. This morning, my dad saw the mom (I named her Sami) and one of the black and white babies (I named him Phillip). They let me come close and feed them. I got my cat carrier while they were eating and put some food in the back in order to trap them. I was VERY concerned and worried at this point, as the other kittens were no where in sight. I was hoping to at least get Phillip. Well, we were successful - he took the bait. The woman at the agency said we could bring him out later this evening. I put him in the small storage area downstairs, but found some places in the wall where he could get out - bad move. My dad and I took him out to his house for the time being. We kept him in the carrier on the deck so he could settle down before we got a place ready for him indoors. We weren't prepared, as we kind of acted before we thought it out - I was just so worried about him being out there any longer! I thought maybe he was the last to leave his mom as he was the smallest and most timid - I'm not exactly sure how that works. Anyway, he was fine until my dad opened the door of the carrier to put some newspaper in. Arghhh, I warned him to not do that until we got him indoors, but he looked pretty tired and calm. Big mistake - he made a run for it!!! I thought it was a lost hope. My dad claimed he saw him go under a pine tree, though. We tracked him down and kept watch as we didn't want to startle him by grabbing for him. The stupid kid next door discovers what we are doing, and yells for his mom to let him help. The cat runs to the next tree - I see him under there, but hardly, since the tree was so dense. Somehow, I slowly managed to get underneath the boughs, and have my hand on him - he flies out of there like a bat out of heck and goes flying toward our house.

We spend about an hour looking everywhere imaginable in the yard, but figured he went into the fields as that's where he was headed. Ahhh, I was so upset and frustrated at that time. Can you imagine?? We feel, though, that he did not go too far, as the first two times he fled only far enough to take cover. If it's any consolation, I feel much better about him being in that rural area than in town in my neighborhood. There is only our house, a neighborhood street, and fields. There is the highway, but we are far enough away from that, that I think he'll be safe from that for the time being. Hopefully, he goes over to my grandpa's farm as he has cats and that is where he'd probably end up anyway after getting his shots. I hope poor Phillip is ok. Like our neighbor said, I've never seen such a wild one. Even his mom is more tame - I found out that there were four babies originally, as a store clerk at the nearby center said he adopted one that was hanging around. I just hope that the others met a similar fate! Sami is still out there - I'd like to have her get spayed soon, but my dad thinks that she will be too wild and might hurt herself or have a stroke or something in the process. I have never heard of that myself, but I thought I would ask you guys if that is what's best for her at this point. I know SHE should be ok and probably is best re-released, but I do not want there to be future litters. This, as you can imagine, has been a painful experience for me and the others who care about cats. I am still putting food out for Sami, and we think that it's possible the other two cats could still be accompanying her, but hiding. She didn't seem upset being separated from Phillip - we fed her afterwards and she seemed calm. From what I've read, the mom would not suffer any trauma after the kittens are at the age they can eat on their own. I hope that I did the right thing, or I guess tried to, as it didn't really work out. We are hoping that Phillip will hang around maybe enough to get comfortable, but I guess there's no way to tell. We've alerted everyone nearby - if someone calls the shelter on him, we're keeping in contact with them. Thanks for listening and for all your helpful advice and good wishes. I will keep you all updated on the situation.

Sami is still out there - I'd like to have her get spayed soon, but my dad thinks that she will be too wild and might hurt herself or have a stroke or something in the process. I have never heard of that myself, but I thought I would ask you guys if that is what's best for her at this point. I know SHE should be ok and probably is best re-released, but I do not want there to be future litters

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She needs to be trapped so she doesn't have any more litters. There are plenty of feral cats that are trapped and have not experienced a stroke from the experience...but were spayed and rereleased so they could continue their life outdoors without having any more litters...having many litters outdoors is hard on a cat. Please continue your work to try to trap her.

Katie