Baby Kittens

[suzyshopper]

I found 3 baby kittens living underneath my deck, one of the kittens has a weepy eye, I can't afford a vet bill, because I'm already taking care of 2 dogs and a cat, any suggestions what I can do fir the eye problem? I haven't seen the mama cat around, and one baby is still under the deck which runs under the house. Is there something I can get otc for the eye problem, any replies would be most appreciated?

 

[ashade1]

Hello! Does the eye goop closed? It is important that you keep the eye clean so that it doesn't stick shut! You can get a tube of terramyocin at a tractor supply store and put it on the eye a couple of times a day! It should clear right up!

 

[suzyshopper]

There's a little goop on but it not closed up or stuck yet?

 

[suzyshopper]

How do u put and ointment on the eye, and is it safe for a small kitten, I'm worried because I can't afford to take it to a vet, and it's been hiding under my deck for awhile I think. The other kitten seems to be ok. I'm trying to find someone who will take them, because I can't afford to take care of them. If I didn't have animals already I'd keep them, but there's just no way I can afford it.I can't bring them in the house because they might have fleas. The best I could do for now is,have a little bed for them in a cat carrier, to keep them warm and dry.Thanks for replying to my post.

 

[vyger]

How old do you think the kittens are? It is possible the mom is not that far away. She might be watching you waiting for you to put her kittens back.

 

[suzyshopper]

The mother is around but the problem is,we have a snake under the house and my son is afraid to put them back,apparently the mama is leaving them by themselves off and on. Even if we could put them back that won't take care of the eye infection one of them has. I don't want them under my deck where they could be attacked by a snake.I had this problem happen before and found a dead kitten under my deck steps, who we didn't even know was was there. Thanks for replying .

 

[suzyshopper]

Oh sorry bout not replying about their age, but I'm not sure how old they are, they ate a little of soft cat food, so they can't be newborn. I'm just guessing maybe 6 wks to month old.

 

[ashade1]

Here is a link where you can find the ointment online! Terramycin Antibiotic Ophthalmic Ointment
It is safe for kittens! Can you post a picture of them so we can see how old they are?
Are you able to bring them inside?

 

[ashade1]

Could you post your city and state? We could help try to find a rescue to take the kittens (although most are full since it is kitten season) and we could try to find a low cost spay/neuter clinic for mom!

 

[vyger]

Mom's don't stay with kittens all the time so her being gone for a while is not unusual. They go out hunting and things like that. If the mom felt there was a danger where they were at she would move them. But then also not all cats have good judgment.
I guess the real question is are you going to be committed to taking care of them now? Are you ready to take over for the mom? Although in reality the kittens staying with the mom would not give them the best chance of survival. I guess what I am saying is that you can't change your mind once you have started with taking them as your own. The ideal thing would be to trap the mom and get her fixed and keep the kittens with her for a little while so they can get the social skills they need. But you would need a place for them to be and it doesn't sound like you have that.
You could make a shelter for them out of cheap materials and see if you could locate them in a safer place. But if left alone, without contact with people, the kittens will go wild.
So, you have a dilemma. I would say what you really need is help and advise from someone who has dealt with things like this before in your area. But there is a danger with that also since some people would advise you to just kill the kittens and be done with them. Definitely not what I would recommend. When my feral cats had kittens what I would do is, once I found them, I would move the kittens into my entryway and leave the outside door open in the day so the mom could come and go and then close the door after dark so they were locked in together. But my feral mom was tamed so I could handle her with no problem. Not the situation that you have. I think what is going to happen is your going to end up with some kittens for a while. But don't worry, you will enjoy it and it will be a good learning experience for your kids.

 

[suzyshopper]

Here is a link where you can find the ointment online! Terramycin Antibiotic Ophthalmic Ointment
It is safe for kittens! Can you post a picture of them so we can see how old they are?
Are you able to bring them inside?

We can't bring them inside because they have fleas, and we have and older female cat .We are sending pics.

 

[suzyshopper]

Mom's don't stay with kittens all the time so her being gone for a while is not unusual. They go out hunting and things like that. If the mom felt there was a danger where they were at she would move them. But then also not all cats have good judgment.
I guess the real question is are you going to be committed to taking care of them now? Are you ready to take over for the mom? Although in reality the kittens staying with the mom would not give them the best chance of survival. I guess what I am saying is that you can't change your mind once you have started with taking them as your own. The ideal thing would be to trap the mom and get her fixed and keep the kittens with her for a little while so they can get the social skills they need. But you would need a place for them to be and it doesn't sound like you have that.
You could make a shelter for them out of cheap materials and see if you could locate them in a safer place. But if left alone, without contact with people, the kittens will go wild.
So, you have a dilemma. I would say what you really need is help and advise from someone who has dealt with things like this before in your area. But there is a danger with that also since some people would advise you to just kill the kittens and be done with them. Definitely not what I would recommend. When my feral cats had kittens what I would do is, once I found them, I would move the kittens into my entryway and leave the outside door open in the day so the mom could come and go and then close the door after dark so they were locked in together. But my feral mom was tamed so I could handle her with no problem. Not the situation that you have. I think what is going to happen is your going to end up with some kittens for a while. But don't worry, you will enjoy it and it will be a good learning experience for your kids.

We are a middle class family, we are not poor,but we also can't afford to take on the care of another 2 animals, we already have a cat and 2 dogs, that cost enough to take care of. Other cats have left kittens under our deck and we found their dead carcasses, so the mothers don't always come back, I'm in a real pickle of what to do, now I just discovered they have fleas, so there's no way i can bring them into the house, I don't even know how old they are, so I can't give them any kind of fleas meds.I just don't know what to do, Thanks for replying.

 

[suzyshopper]

Could you post your city and state? We could help try to find a rescue to take the kittens (although most are full since it is kitten season) and we could try to find a low cost spay/neuter clinic for mom!

We are located in Dover de.

 

[talkingpeanut]

You can easily treat them for fleas and bring them in. A bath, for starters, will help. You can simply use dawn dish soap. Make a ring around their neck with soap first and then use a comb. The fleas will drown in 5-10 minutes. After that, they can be kept in a bathroom or another easily cleaned room.

Please don't leave them to die.

 

[vyger]

We are a middle class family, we are not poor,but we also can't afford to take on the care of another 2 animals, we already have a cat and 2 dogs, that cost enough to take care of. Other cats have left kittens under our deck and we found their dead carcasses, so the mothers don't always come back, I'm in a real pickle of what to do, now I just discovered they have fleas, so there's no way i can bring them into the house, I don't even know how old they are, so I can't give them any kind of fleas meds.I just don't know what to do, Thanks for replying.

I don't have a lot of resources either. I had to take 2 of mine to the vet last month and it pretty well busted my budget. But you can make a simple shelter box from foam boxes that stores get their meat in (boxed beef) which they usually throw away. And you can get a 24 can box of special kitty wet cat food for $8 at Walmart. That should last a few kittens for almost a month. In just a few months they will be tame and grown enough that you can adopt them out. The big problem I see is doing something about the mom because she will start working on the next batch pretty soon.
Here are some instructions on making a cat shelter.
Feral Cat Winter Shelter

 

[talkingpeanut]

Untreated fleas can kills kittens very easily. These kittens need medical attention for their eyes as well. These should not be expensive appointments.

 

[Sarthur2]

Please take the kittens to a no kill shelter since you cannot care for them. Their eyes need help ASAP.

 

[talkingpeanut]

Do you need help locating a no kill shelter in your area?

 

[Willowy]

Clean the kitten's eye with warm water and cottonballs (you can use a cloth but you have to be more careful because cloth is a bit scratchy). Hold the damp cottonball over her eye until the goop softens and can be wiped away. Do this as often as you need to, to keep the eye open. If it gets crusted shut for too long she may lose the eye. I have 2 cats who lost eyes to untreated eye infections as kittens :/. The terramycin will clear it up much faster but if you keep the eyes clean the infection may clear on its own. Most kitten ailments are caused simply by lack of care. So just keeping them warm, well-fed, and clean will be a huge improvement. But absolutely don't let her eyes stay crusted shut. A bath with Dawn dish soap will drown most of the fleas. And I think they're old enough to use a decent flea medication. You could split an adult-sized tube of Advantage or Frontline among all the kittens.

She looks to be at least 6 or 7 weeks old so I think you'd be OK removing them from the mother at this point. And at this age they're probably safe from snakes, unless you have boa constrictors in the area . Although of course there are all kinds of other predators, even more so now that the kittens are old enough to be playing around. Cars are a big danger at this age.

 

[suzyshopper]

You can easily treat them for fleas and bring them in. A bath, for starters, will help. You can simply use dawn dish soap. Make a ring around their neck with soap first and then use a comb. The fleas will drown in 5-10 minutes. After that, they can be kept in a bathroom or another easily cleaned room.

Please don't leave them to die.

I will try your suggestion, I don't want them to die, like other kittens have under my deck.Thank you for replying .

Do you need help locating a no kill shelter in your area?

Yes please.