Semi Feral pregnant cat has adopted us-questions

A semi feral cat has adopted us, she is living in our addition to escape the elements.

She will come to us, and accepts petting, but not much beyond that. Basically not unfriendly, but very skittish, and doesn't want to be picked up.

She appears to be around 7-8 weeks pregnant from what I have read.

I am not really sure what to do. We have three cats that are up to date on vaccinations and are altered. But I am reluctant to expose our cats to this one, since we do not know if she has any other deseases. She is very hungry, but doesn't look unhealthy or malnourished.

Should we try to bring her inside? I can also confine her to the addition, where she has been sleeping/staying at night, although the addition isn't warm, it is out of the elements.

I not sure what to do when she has the kittens? Or even the best way of getting her people friendly/not so skittish (so far she has tolerated petting, and I was able to feel her belly, and you can feel the kittens-but she doesn't want anyone near the underside of her belly, and doesn't tolerate being picked up at all).

I would like to get her spayed, but not sure when it would be safe to do so after the kittens come, and not sure who to take her too, given the fact that she is feral at the moment. We live in New Hampshire, and the shelter here is a kill shelter. I am hoping to find a low cost spay/neuter clinic that will do feral cats.

Also, when is it safe to handle the kittens? We would take responsibility for the kittens, socializing them, and finding them homes, but given that all the pets I have ever had were neutered/spayed the kitten thing is new.

Any pointers would be appreciated.

Welcome to TCS...

Should we try to bring her inside? I can also confine her to the addition, where she has been sleeping/staying at night, although the addition isn't warm, it is out of the elements.

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Yes, you should confine her indoors as she will then be safe to have her kittens without worrying about other cats or predators. This thread is really good for providing advice on what to do to get the room ready for her:

http://www.thecatsite.com/forums/showthread.php?t=46743

As an extra precaution...it is a good idea to change your clothes between interacting with this mom cat and with your own. Perhaps have a change of clothes in the room you are keeping her in and keep them there.

I would like to get her spayed, but not sure when it would be safe to do so after the kittens come, and not sure who to take her too, given the fact that she is feral at the moment. We live in New Hampshire, and the shelter here is a kill shelter. I am hoping to find a low cost spay/neuter clinic that will do feral cats.

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It will be safe to have her spayed once she has weaned the kittens..at approximately 6 to 10 weeks of age. The kittens will let you know when they are done nursing. As far as finding a place or socializing mom...let's get through her pregnancy first...get her spayed..and take it from there.

Also, when is it safe to handle the kittens? We would take responsibility for the kittens, socializing them, and finding them homes, but given that all the pets I have ever had were neutered/spayed the kitten thing is new.

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It will be good to start interacting with the kittens as soon as possible...but definately take your cues from the mom cat. Some become extremely protective and may not like you touching the kittens...others don't have any issues once they see they can trust you. Again...once the kittens are born and you see how mom is with regards to you interacting with the kittens..we can provide guidance on the next steps.

As far as low cost clinics...here is a list for New Hampshire:

NEW HAMPSHIRE
N.H. Spay Line
Toll Free 1-800-990-SPAY
For residents of N.H., this service tries to help people locate a low cost or free s-n program.
New Hampshire Spaying & Altering Service
8 Hutchins Street
Concord, NH 03301
603-224-1361 before 2 pm

New Hampshire Dept of Agriculture
APC Program
State House Annex
33 Capitol Street
Concord, NH 03301
603-271-3697
Discounts for qualified low income families. Call or write for information about APC.

Spay Program for Mother Cats
8 Fox Hill Road
Belmont, NH 03220
603-524-6432
You and your cat must meet various criteria to qualify for this program. Call for information


We're the place for Tiger Toy swinging mobile cat toys.

Animal Allies
Manchester, NH
877-312-9595
603-228-6755
Helps people who have a large number of cats or people who need help and do not qualify for other programs. This organization does NOT offer FREE services. They provide certificates for discounts on s/n to people who qualify.

Thanks so much for caring for this mom.

Katie

Thanks for the link-and the list, I will try to contact them soon.

Question about bringing her in-should we bring her inside the house (not sure we can keep her away from the other cats) or should we just confine her on the addition, which is indoors, just not finished completely? She has been staying in the addition or our garage off and on.

I did purchase some kitten food to feed her, and she is eating quite a bit.

Question about bringing her in-should we bring her inside the house (not sure we can keep her away from the other cats) or should we just confine her on the addition, which is indoors, just not finished completely? She has been staying in the addition or our garage off and on.

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If you can contain her in the addition without her having any access outdoors AND you believe that she can safely deliver her kittens there...then that should work. When I fostered a mom cat and her kittens...I confined her in my bathroom....it was hard to keep my two cats out...but it did work.

Katie

What kind of floor does the addition have?

Yes bring her in!!! Put her in a place where your cats can't make contact with her!

Of course you don't want to expose your cats to any diseases, so you wouldn't want to mingle them if you can help it. The problem with the addition is mostly the temperature. Newborns kittens cannot regulate their own temperature for at least a couple of weeks. I can't remember the temperature they need to be at; I think one of the stickys at the top of the thread has that information.

I did the EXACT same thing with a semi-feral I found at work. I had a little more chance to work with her and was able to pick her up and actually took her to the vet to have her tested. So she was able to come into my house. I found the way to her trust was sharing food with her. I would just sit and share whatever I was eating with her - turkey, yogurt, etc.

Let us know how it all goes!

Can you maybe make her an additional shelter inside the addition? Something like a large appliance box on its side, with a couple of blankets thrown over it and some towels on the floor? If she gets used to it now then it would be somewhere dark and safe for her to have the kittens.

The addition has a sub floor.

The nights are getting colder (mid 50's most nights) the days are 70's/80's, but I am not sure how to bring her in, and get her into a room where I can safely contain her and keep my other cats away from her. We are making friends, but not friends enough that I am going to attempt to pick her up.

She does tolerate more touching/handling than she has previously, but she is still very nervous. She will come if you call her, and she inhales the food we put out for her.

I just wish I had a good idea of how close she is to having kittens (she has no hair around her nipples, and she is pretty fat right now-she won't let me touch her tummy too comfortable, so I can't get a good feel of the kittens-she also has medium to long hair, so it is hard to get a look). She has been staying pretty close to our house though, even if she goes outside, we went ahead and put her on the addition for now.

I can built a temporary shelter with a box and blankets out there, at least for now.

She has been staying pretty close to our house though, even if she goes outside, we went ahead and put her on the addition for now.

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I would suggest an end to the "going outside"...only because she will go back into heat after her kittens are born and I'd hate you to have her pregnant again.

Katie

Originally Posted by TNR1

I would suggest an end to the "going outside"...only because she will go back into heat after her kittens are born and I'd hate you to have her pregnant again.

Katie

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I second that - also because my vet warned that she may disappear to what she perceives to be a safer place when her time comes...and you may not be able to find her.

We definitely are keeping her inside, especially since we don't know how close she is to her time.

We created a couple of boxes for her, one is a little more open, and the other is larger, and enclosed except for an opening, we covered it with a couple of blankets, and I cut up an old flannel sheet that we could no longer use. She seems to like both boxes.

She seems to be a little more trusting. She actually let me lay my hand on her stomach, and I could feel movement. She also went to sleep next to me, while I was petting her.

She doesn't like being kept inside, she keeps going to the door to leave, and she seems a bit more agitated or nervous-it may be the change in us keeping her inside-is that common, when you bring a feral cat inside?

My cat definitely got nervous coming inside to the trailer where I found her, but for some reason was perfectly happy staying inside when I took her home. So, it's just not what your kitty is used to, and it makes her nervous. I think that's nice that she fell asleep when you were petting her.