Runaway Kittens

My husband and I were recently adopted by a pregnant stray cat. She spent most of her pregnancy with us and had her kittens on June 26th in our basement. It was a litter of five and one kitten died in the first week. The remaining four kittens are a little over five weeks old and are having a great time running and playing. We installed a electronic kitty door in our basement so that the momma could come and go as she pleased and the kittens would be safe and warm and dry. Over the weekend we noticed that the momma seemed to be calling the kittens to climb through the kitty door. One succeeded and the others were not interested but we knew we needed to do something before they all got a little curious and wanted to climb out the door. Well before we could come up with a solid solution to the problem, all four of the kittens ranaway. I went down to the basement Monday morning and they were all gone. I searched the neighborhood and was relieved to find them all, unharmed, sleeping on a neighbor's front door step. Since then, the momma seems to be feeding them hourly when she should be trying to wean them. At this point, we are not sure what she is trying do. Any info would be greatly appreciated.

Are you planning on keeping the kittens?Maybe the mom cat wants the to get use of the outside world.I am not really sure...sorry

No, we are not planning on keeping all of the kittens. We have already found new homes for all of them. We figure they will be ready in about three to four weeks.
Thanks Anyway!
Jane

Just bring them all back inside, and close up the kitty door. It is too dangerous outside for these precious babies. Momma will adjust to being locked in for the next few weeks.

Remember, they can get pregnant while nursing, so you will need to get Momma spayed as soon as she quits nursing them! At five weeks, it is still a little early-in a few weeks she will start to wean them.

It is great that you already found homes for the babies.

Thanks so much for the info.

This may sound silly but, if we lock her up will she get mad at us and try to hurt the kittens?

Originally Posted by kuma_jane

Thanks so much for the info.

This may sound silly but, if we lock her up will she get mad at us and try to hurt the kittens?

Click to expand...

No....however, if you do continue to let her out...she will become pregnant again. Best to keep her indoors and have her spayed before she has any access outdoors. She can be spayed after she has weaned the kittens and then you can safely let her inside and outside. Here are some low cost clinics in New Jersey if you need them:

NEW JERSEY
New Jersey Dept of Health & Senior Services
Pet Overpopulation Control Fund
PO Box 360
Trenton, NJ 08625
609-292-7837
When and if state funds are available, spay/neuter surgery is very low cost for pets of people with low income. Check the web site for more information about eligibility requirements and/or call by phone. Many veterinary clinics around the state are participating.
Monmouth County SPCA Spay/Neuter Clinic
260 Wall Street
Eatontown, NJ 07724
732-542-3125
Low cost spay/neuter, vaccines, and flea products.

East Coast New Jersey Spay Clinic
732-929-9449



Animal Welfare Association
Voorhees NJ
856-424-2288
Low cost s/n for ferals and pets.

People for Animals
Hillside, NJ
908-964-6887


Katie

Thanks so much for the info. We feel much better now.