Advice on Trapping Feral Kittens

[supermax1943]

Thanks so much!!!

When I went to clean the litter boxes in the safe room today, discovered that Smudge has NO MORE

diarrhea, and she had such a bad case of it, I thought surely she had some terrible underlying condition.

What a relief to see nice healthy!! poops! That makes the outlook for Smudge so much better on Wednesday.

It is horribly sad at the moment, and I am feeling such awful responsibility for having interfered in Smudge's little family. Since there is no sight or sound of the outside two I am afraid something got them, or Smudge took them someplace and they can't find their way back, or they may have been run off by a dog or some other animal. The biggest problem here for little ones are the birds of prey who fly over all day, and very low over the fields. And great huge owls at night. Of course, I will continue to watch for them and feed in areas I know they can get to safely where they have eaten before.

But, Smudge's attitude of having no interest in leaving the safe room doesn't give me much hope.

My hysteria is no longer thanks to the help I got here. And, Feralvr, I would be in a funny farm now if it weren't for your help. And I just cannot thank you enough for all of your support.

I will continue to post here until Smudge is past her surgery, and of course I will update on any developments at all with the two outside kittens. Please keep them in your thoughts and prayers.

 

[supermax1943]

Saturday update....I got a picture on the Wildlife Camera last night of one of the outdoor kittens!

He/she was eating under the drop trap!!!

I am going to re-set the camera to see if the second one is eating there too, I didn't have the camera  set up so I could see the whole entrance and exit of drop trap, so it is possible the second one was there.

I will wait 24 hours to see if the second one is eating there..and then will monitor the drop trap to catch one or both!

Smudge and inside babies just as happy as can be.

I will update.....

 

[feralvr]

It is horribly sad at the moment, and I am feeling such awful responsibility for having interfered in Smudge's little family.

Please, do not ever feel you have made the wrong decision by trying to trap any and all feral cats/kittens. That is the only way possible to stop them from having more and more kittens. But I fully understand that very, very heavy responsibility in doing so although I do think of the future of these cats if I had not "interfered"! Then I would be thinking about the kittens having kittens and to me, that is worse than my intervening.

 

[feralvr]

Saturday update....I got a picture on the Wildlife Camera last night of one of the outdoor kittens!
He/she was eating under the drop trap!!!

I am going to re-set the camera to see if the second one is eating there too, I didn't have the camera  set up so I could see the whole entrance and exit of drop trap, so it is possible the second one was there.

I will wait 24 hours to see if the second one is eating there..and then will monitor the drop trap to catch one or both!

Smudge and inside babies just as happy as can be.

I will update.....

SOOOOOOO :high5: HAPPY to hear that you had a visual of one of the kittens on the video cam. I am thinking if you use/set up a Hav-a-hart trap, you will have that one or hopefully both of them very, very soon. Do you have such a trap? You can set it up for a day or two with the door tied up and feed in the trap. And, then unset the door at night, and check it periodically throughout the night. I have had a few sleepless nights doing it this way but by morning, I had four kittens AND their mother. OH MORE VIBES FOR THESE TWO BABIES !!

 

[supermax1943]

I do have Have a Heart traps (lots of them)...and will do that if drop trap doesn't work.

Keep those vibes coming. My goal is to have the whole family back together by the time Smudge goes in for surgery.

Can't be sure, but I may have caught the second one on camera last night. !

'

I will be taking pictures again tonight, and putting out the have a heart with open door and food.......

Thanks for your thoughts..... I know you know how hard it is to keep the emotions balanced between "I am doing a good thing, and I made a terrible mistake".

But I am still hanging in there!

Want to know if  I will ever do this again, this way?

I am going to spend my life patrolling for untipped cats who have large tummies!

Hugs.

 

[feralvr]

:bigthumb: VIBES-A-COMIN' !!!!!!!!!!

 

[supermax1943]

I am back to report on the final outcome of Smudge and her four kids. 

The summary is: Smudge is now spayed, and she has taken (as of this morning) the last of her kittens back outside.

I couldn't get a picture of the two outside kittens again, although I am sure I heard them, or at least one of them, a few days ago.

Everything was going well inside, with Smudge spayed and recovering nicely and still nursing her now 9 or 10 week old kittens that I brought inside.

The two kittens were getting really friendly, and not afraid of me at all.

I was thinking how nicely everything was going, although still hoping to get the two outside kittens inside; when yesterday morning while I was working on the computer, Smudge, took one of the kittens outside.

I didn't realize it until I did the 2nd feeding of the day.

Of course, I didn't know what to do, and was so sad to have one of the kittens gone, hoping to heaven she would be okay.

Later in the day at the evening feeding, I found Smudge outside with the last kitten (I had named him "Charlie").

But, Charlie was not going easily. He seem terrified to be outside.

Smudge, of course, was furious at me, hissing and spitting at me, as I tried to help Charlie get back in the house.

Finally, I decided to open the sliding glass door into the safe room just enough so Charlie could get back inside, if he wanted.

When I checked a little later, Charlie was back inside, scared to death, shaking from head to toe.

I held him for awhile to calm him down, which he finally did. Smudge came back into the room at one point, but left, and stayed outside for the night.

I played and held Charlie last night, and when he seemed really sleepy, left him for the night.

This morning, first thing, I went to the safe room and found Charlie on one side of the sliding glass door, and Smudge on the other.

I opened the door again, just wide enough for Charlie to fit through.

I checked one time, and he was on the deck with Smudge.

About an hour later, Charlie and Smudge were both gone.

So, the saga has ended. With me, sadder, but wiser, and I suspect Smudge finally happy to have all of her little family back together.

I know no "bad" mistake is ever really "bad": if much was learned, and I learned so much.

The most important lesson was the realization that leaving Mom and her babies alone is really the best. The feral Moms, know what they are doing. Their instinctual knowledge, even for a first time Mom, is much more valuable than my wish to intervene for the safety of the kittens. I put myself and Smudge through holy hell this past month,and I will never interfere again unless their is an emergency situation.

The best way to handle a feral Mom, from my experience, (if she hasn't already been spayed, which, of course is the best option), is to bring Mom inside and let her have the babies inside.

There is abortion too, if you can get Mom in the really early days of her pregnancy, but, when faced with a pregnant female who is too far along for abortion....trapping and bringing Mom inside is the next best thing.

And, also in my experience...there is nothing more fun than having a Mom with kittens in the house. Mom does all of the work, while I get to just watch which is so much fun, and such a great learning experience!

I know I will see the babies eventually. Smudge is still nursing, but I think that will end soon.

Obviously Smudge has made it clear where the babies can get food.

There are five feeding stations for the colony...all quite separated from each other. I have seen Smudge at each one, so the babies could be feeding at ony one of the stations.

I will keep the camera active, in hopes of a sighting.

By the way, I caught a picture last night of what might be either a bobcat or a red tail fox. Really hard to see since I got just a side view. I have wildlife friends in the neighborhood, so I will try and find out what it is.

To everyone at the Cat Site.com especailly Feralvr, thank you from the bottom of my heart for all of your help. I felt so alone and worried about this saga. 

Even the 16 years of caring for the feral colony and it's 50 cats, didn't protect me from the emotional roller coaster this put me through.

Without you all helping, I don't know how I could have coped.

Hugs!! to everyone here.

 

[supermax1943]

I just re-read your post, hope you will read my last post so you can see what happened to me

It is hard to imagine how I could have created more trouble for myself that I did.

I kept hoping Smudge would bring the 2 outside kittens inside, but that was not to be.

And, with no success in sighting them in order to trap. I was left feeling I wished I had left things alone.

But, they are now all together, and I am so happy for that.!

thanks for your support.

 

[feralvr]

I have been checking in here and was going to ask today for an update and here it is!!! :high5: :high5: :bigthumb: SUPER news and great job that Smudge is now spayed. Way to GO!! I am sorry about the kittens getting taken back outside by Smudge but I am hopeful that you will be able to trap them and get them all neutered too as I am sure you will still be seeing them around hanging out with their mom. I think it is always better to intervene with a stray mom and kittens as you did rather than doing nothing at all. As we know - kittens can and do begin breeding as young as five months!! :shame: So just keep trying to catch them, hun. Confining them indoors with no way to get back outside until they are all TNRd is for the best and next time I am sure you will be successful at doing so. Not to worry - your efforts are never for naught or nothingness. for all your doing and keep up the great work on behalf of the stray kitties AND do keep us posted.

 

[supermax1943]

Thanks for your reply. Sorry I wasn't posting for awhile. Life was happening!

Little Smudge really lured me into complacency after being spayed.

I had a gate on the safe room,and Smudge was making no attempt of any kind to take or lure the little ones over the gate.

She would go in and out, and be pleased as punch to come back in, sleep all night with them, and hang out with them during the day.

She would go out for a minute or two once in the morning and once at night.

Then out of the blue, with no warning...she took the baby out. I was astonished!

It just seemed wrong to keep the last one in all by himself, which is why I let Smudge take him.

The start of this whole mess was due to my not being 100% sure how many kittens there were before I started trapping.

And, that is my advice for anyone attempting to do what I did. Count and double count and don't trap until you know positively how many kittens there are.

Catching the kittens should be no problem once they start showing up.

They were too small and too young to get fixed yet.

But I will be on top of them, don't worry.

Just wish I knew where Mom has taken them

I am moving the wildlife camera to different feeding stations..so far no luck, but I will update when I find them

Once again, hugs and many, many thanks.

 

[feralvr]

Catching the kittens should be no problem once they start showing up.
.

AND, they WILL show up because Smudge lives in your yard/area so as will the kittens. :nod:

 

[prince meow]

supermax1943


I've really enjoyed reading your posts about your feral family.

I have quite a few ferals that I will be TNR'ing this week. It's definitely going to be an adventure.

 

[supermax1943]

I sooo wish you luck!

Actually, trapping young or adult ferals is not all that bad, aside from the incredible amount of time and work it can take.

But, this latest batch of kittens and Smudge, their Mom, almost did me in! Due, mostly to my mistakes.

You can find the information and support here that you need, I don't know of any place that provides such solid advice with so much "in the field" expertise.

On a couple of occasions, I found information here about treatments for sick cats that my vet didn't know about, but when she checked, she confirmed the knowledge was "right on".

I think the hardest part of caring for the ferals, for me, is the emotional part. The worry that I will do something to harm them in some way.

For others, it is the physical part, the daily grind of caring for the ferals that is hard.

But, in the end, our love for them overcomes everything.

I hope the same will happen for you!

 

[supermax1943]

Happy information!!

At last night's feeding....who showed up, but little Charlie, the kitten who was so scared when Smudge, his Mom, was attempting to take him back outside.

He came running up to the feeding station, so happy, so confidant. He ran up and down a tree in joy...I almost cried I was so happy to see him.

He looks wonderful! I think if I had one of his favorite toys with me he would have come through the fence to play...but, he remembered me, and was happy to see me too!

You cannot imagine how happy it made me feel.

I am pretty sure I caught a glimpse of his sister, Susie, as well.

Still no sign of the other two kittens, but fingers still crossed.

Smudge looking happy, relaxed and still putting on weight.

So, things are

good here today.

 

[supermax1943]

Well, I thought I had written the last chapter of this novel

 but I guess we have more chapters to go....

So, Smudge came to the sliding glass door which has a cat door in it, trying to say something to me.

Since my "cat language skills" are limited..I guessed she needed more food in the feeding station for the kids.

The neighborhood skunks have had I don't know how many litters lately, and the skunk babies are eating all the food.

Just to add to all of the excitement around here, the night before last I got really skunked by two tiny ones I didn't see. We practically ran into one another!

So, I leave to go get food and when I come back, Smudge and the two kittens, Charlie and Susie, are all in the safe room, just as happy as can be.

I thought I was seeing things.

The babies seemed happy to see me.....Smudge hissed at me so loudly my own cats got scared!!

I hated to say "I told you so to Smudge", but I couldn't resist, and she hissed back again.

I guess Smudge wants the kittens to go in and out,  but, who knows?

I  will just have to see what happens tomorrow.

I will leave the gate up, it helps to keep everyone else out of the room, and since the kittens seem to have no problem going over the gate, it will stay.

I took all of the "kitty" equipment out of the room, so tomorrow I guess I will have to put it back.

One other piece of good news is that I am pretty sure I captured one of the other kittens on the wildlife camera last night, but since it is all black, I can't be sure.

I don't think I have seen the fourth one, but it is possible I have mistaken him for Charlie on the webcam since they look alike.

I will update, when I catch my breath!

 

[feralvr]

I think the hardest part of caring for the ferals, for me, is the emotional part. The worry that I will do something to harm them in some way.

You are not alone in your dread and worry, hun. :nod: Although, I don't worry so much about harming them because I have been doing this for soooo long that I have come to realize that me doing nothing is more harmful to them. Believe me, the feral cats have a VERY, VERY strong self preservation which makes it even harder on us when we see how fierce and wild they can become once trapped but knowing how resilient they are makes it become much easier on my heart. I also always think of the kittens I am saving from being born out in nature by just getting that one cat TNRd. - Male OR Female feral cat. AND the feral cat will be a much happier, and more calm little soul once altered because there will be no more desire to breed, fight with raging hormones thus allowing all of their energy just to find food. They are healthier all around by being altered even though they don't understand it once trapped. SORRY for the ramblings. :lol3: It really is very emotional on the caretaker of feral cats. We do become quite attached to them. :heart3:

 

[feralvr]

The babies seemed happy to see me.....Smudge hissed at me so loudly my own cats got scared!!
I hated to say "I told you so to Smudge", but I couldn't resist, and she hissed back again.

I guess Smudge wants the kittens to go in and out,  but, who knows?
I  will just have to see what happens tomorrow.
I will leave the gate up, it helps to keep everyone else out of the room, and since the kittens seem to have no problem going over the gate, it will stay.
I took all of the "kitty" equipment out of the room, so tomorrow I guess I will have to put it back.:doh3:
One other piece of good news is that I am pretty sure I captured one of the other kittens on the wildlife camera last night, but since it is all black, I can't be sure.
I don't think I have seen the fourth one, but it is possible I have mistaken him for Charlie on the webcam since they look alike.

I will update, when I catch my breath!

:lol3: I am trying to catch my breath too. SERIOUSLY!!!! This is a riot, actually. Kittens in and Kittens out. And the little ones were happy to see you! This is great news. Can you keep the two little ones locked up once they are inside? Close the door? Call the vet and get them fixed? Once they are two pounds, they can be neutered. Smudge will just have to deal! Her kittens will be returned to her once neutered. OH WOW!!!!!! This is quite the story for sure. I had a feeling you would be seeing the kittens again too. With Smudge living there, so will her kittens. :nod:

YAY - on the possible sighting on the camera of the third kitten. Who knows - maybe all four are there and since they are black it may be hard to tell who is who.

 

[prince meow]

supermax1943

Most of our feral colony is neutered. We feed and visit with them every night along with all the new comers.

For some reason, people have just been abandoning their family members leaving them with no food or water. And they're not nuetered.

They leave the cats collar on which puts the cats life in danger because they could get caught up on a branch or anything else.

They are all very sweet meows. I feel lucky that they trust us enough to help them, some of them will even let us pick them up and pet them.

 

[supermax1943]

Cat collars can be so dangerous!! I agree that people don't realize what can happen with them.

How nice that you spend time with the feral cats you care for! I'll bet they love you a bunch!

 

[supermax1943]

IMG_0127.JPG

• supermax1943
• Jun 18, 2015

Sorry the photo is not better/clearer....Smudge (looking at you with the clipped ear) didn't want me to get much closer.

Hard to see, but in that box with Smudge is Susie Q (you can just see her ears at the rear end of Smudge, and

Charlie is under Smudge's head (his tail hanging off the right side of the box)

And, there the three of them slept all day. The kids were exhausted and so was Smudge.

She obviously really loves these two little ones (can hardly blame her' they are just so sweet and fun.)

By my count the kids are at 3 months now, and Smudge is still letting them nurse.

Our SPCA won't allow them to be neutered until they are four months, so another month to wait, although I have made their neuter appointment.

I think something happened outside, or maybe Smudge just learned it was easier to have them inside.

Smudge went out a couple of times this afternoon, but came right back in.

And tonight, all are sound asleep in safe room. Glad to have them all here.

I just don't have the heart to separate them.

I am going to keep doors to the outside shut unless I am in the room, so if Smudge decides to encourage them over the gate, they won't be able to go anywhere but around the house.

Smudge is so smart though, I don't think she will even try to move them unless she knows the door to the outside is open.

I will keep you all updated, but for now, all is quite at my crazy cat home.