Dilemma - Street cats and a Newborn Kitten

[kittywave]

I just moved to a new apartment, just a few blocks from my old one, and found out that there are about 15-20 stray cats our street.  The first week of moving in, I saw a pregnant cat always laying on our front door, so I brought her food numerous times.  About a week ago she gave birth (as her tummy was gone) and I knew that the local garbage man/caretaker of the street took care of the cats and fed them, so I asked him about her today.  He showed me the one surviving kitten, in a shack at the back of one of the houses.  One of his little eyes seems infected, although I am not too familiar with what it should look like, but it is crusty and completely covered.  His mom is constantly chased around by the other males in the street gang, and will probably get pregnant soon again.  I spent some time with the little kitten today, and gave him some newborn kitten milk.  I am getting worried about him and the mom, as I think the mom is pretty stressed out, and might not be strong enough to take care of him AND run away from all the male cats. (They literally take turns trying to mate with her)  I am really torn, and have been thinking of taking her in and the kitten, but I have a 10 month of cat myself.  Also, I am worried she might have deceases and can transfer them to my little guy.  I need advice, as I can barely take my mind of the little baby in the shack.  Today, when I went to check up on him after dinner, he had gotten out and had crawled out, laying behind a staircase.  Furthermore, there are a few other litters (about 3) with 2-3 month old kittens on our street, but they seem to be fending alright.  Should I just leave them, or...?

 

[ritz]

Thank you for caring.

You're in a tough situation, made more so because several things are going on at once.

Sick kitten: any idea how old she is?  Is she eating solid food, i.e., weaned?  She probably has herpes or a URI and needs to see a vet.   And both the mother cat and kitten need to be tested for FIV/FeLK.  Assume they have worms and fleas (easy enough to cure). 

Regarding the mother cat:  if at all possible, I would try to trap the mother cat and get her spayed.  Google for the nearest low cost spay/neuter clinic in your area and/or the local SPCA.  They may have traps you can borrow.

I'm surprised tenants haven't complained to the property management company about the cats; although, sadly, other than supporting (financially or otherwise) a TNR policy, there isn't much they can do.   The local SPCA/Alley Cat Allies might be able to help you trap/TNR the other cats, if you're up to it.

The local garbage man/caretaker might be a good resource--he might be willing to help you trap and to withhold food (easier to trap if the cat is hungry).  

Finally, you might want to post in the Caring for Strays and Ferals for more suggestions/help.

Good luck!

 

[kittywave]

Hey Ritz,

Thank you for answering.  The kitten is no more than 5-6 days old.  His left eye opens but it's still blurry, and he can crawl.  He fits smaller than the palm of my hand.  As i am a student, I don't think I could afford paying for the spaying, but I have been thinking of organizing a garage sale/something of sorts, to raise some money and get the females, at least, spayed.  I checked on him this morning and he was doing well.  I will contact a few rescue organizations in the area, but as far as I am reading, they are low on funds and spots for new cats.  I will see how it goes, and update here!

Thank you again!

 

[kittywave]

Ps; As for the tenants, almost everyone I have talked to is too scared to call the Humane Society.  (in case they end up putting them down, etc)

 

[StefanZ]

Ps; As for the tenants, almost everyone I have talked to is too scared to call the Humane Society.  (in case they end up putting them down, etc)

Oh yes, that is quite common they just pts homeless, unless they are used to work with semiferales, has fostering homes lined up, etc...   So if you ask for their help, you must  be verry sure they are of the "good type".  Make interviews, listen in betwwen the lines...

But most often the idea is to get help from indenpendent groups who DO work with rescuing of homeless and semiferales...

If necessary, you may perhaps build up a cell yourself?  Its you, the caretaker, perhaps one or two more, and Voilá!  You have a group of concerned citizens!

As a group, it will be easier to get some funds from the city, some sponsring from shop and business owners around, etc...

You say your neighbour are scared to call on Human Society, so it means, they do care. They dont know what to do, but they would prefer to help the cats, if it was reasonable easy.

What is needed, is TNR ing them as numro one.

 

[StefanZ]

About the mom and the kittens.  The optimal would be, if you took the mom and the kitten to you.  Had her separated from your resident, till you are entirely sure they are healthy, dewormed etc...

Most rescuers has such protegées in their bathroom.  You can also perhaps have a big dog crate, and the crate will be an essential part of the quarantine.

Or you can have this crate somewhere. The caretaker knows perhaps some nice cellar nobody uses where they will be safe in their crate??

The plan is of course to foster them, both mom and kitten, to get them vet checked and treated, to get mom spayed.

I hope you will find a low cost clinic. Perhaps the Human society can tell you...

Some vets who arent really cheap, gives a discount for found homeless. Worth asking.  Or they give discount if the Human society gives you a voucher - also worth asking.

Some shelters and human societies perhaps dont have place, but if you are willing to be the foster home for them, they help with the vet costs. This is quite common...

Tx for caring!

 Good luck!

Welcome to our Forums!

 

[kittywave]

Hey guys,

An Update: I got home from work today and passed by the cat shack.  The caretaker was there and told me he hasn't seen the mom since yesterday afternoon (24 hours) and asked me to take the kitten for the night.  I went and bought him some KMR and some feeding bottles (for kittens).  We succeeded in eating (ate a whole tablespoon-measured).  Two hours ago, as arranged, the caretaker contacted us on the first sight of the mom.  She was now chased by 5 males (it was 2 yesterday).  I brought the kitten down to her, and she tried to clean him but one of the males came and attacked (kind of) the mom, and slapped her away from the kitten.  Then the chase began again.  We decided to keep the kitten for the night.  I talked to a very nice man from the Village Kitten Rescue, who would spade the mom as long as I capture and bring her of course. Now, here is the problem: She has never been inside/around humans closely except for the caretaker, who has never caught her either. I am worried about the kitten, although, it seems that we caught on the hardest part - feeding. I am terrified about what is happening to the mom though...I will try to figure out how to capture her, as she needs to be spayed. Do you guys think anyone would take her in, as she is a wild cat?

Thanks!

ps; the perfect plan would be to capture, spay her, and keep her with the kitten as long as possible...

pps; my kitten tried to attack the baby (hit him with no claws) although it didn't even wake the baby up.  We are keeping them super separated as that happened with one second with my back to him.

 

[maewkaew]

 Definitely keep the kitten away from yours now ,  since  the baby kitten is sick.  He will probably need some medicine for his eyes.    and will need to be tested for FIV / FelV  ( it is possible that if he tests positive it may be a false positive  from his mom's antibodies ,  and may later be negative in a re-test in several months.  

Yes , the ideal would be to trap the mom,  keep her with the kitten for a while  and in that time you can see  if she is totally feral,  or if she is just a scared stray that could be socialized. 

Normally it is best if kittens can stay with their mom 10-12 weeks  but it the mom is  feral ,  the kitten can't stay just with her without human socialization for too long or it will learn to fear humans so they need to be separated younger.   There is differing opinions on what age.  i think just about everyone would say no later than 8 weeks .    but some think it is best to separate them around 6 weeks to make it easier to socialize the kittens. 

 Some shelters have humane traps.    One difficulty will be catching the right cat since there are so many.  

 Of course the other ideal thng is to trap and neuter / spay as many of them as possible both female and male. and return them to their area  if they are feral.    

Maybe talk to the guy  from the rescue   about that?  

 Or check and see if there is anyone in your area in the Alley cat Allies Feral Friends Network?   http://www.alleycat.org/page.aspx?pid=355      

or google "trap neuter return" and your location .  maybe you can find out if someone else is involved in helping outside cats. 

ACA  also have a lot of tips on their site.  Here is a FAQ page that will  may be a good start  http://www.alleycat.org/Page.aspx?pid=924#sectionTNR   

 

[catwoman707]

Okay so the kitten is absolutely in danger left outside with unfixed males.

As you can see, they are ruled totally by their hormones, and the one who gets to momma will claim her as his property, along with a specific area where she lives or hangs out.

So much territorialism that, male cats will NOT allow any newborn kittens to be around her either if the baby is a male, if female, he will attempt to mount her as well, which will kill her obviously.

Male cats (unfixed) are fighters, they fight brutally, they are the main spreaders of fiv and felv because of the fighting, and can do great damage to a smaller male cat as well.

The femal is obviously either newly prego or about to be. They will take turns with her and then fight to see who the tougher male is who will claim her.

It's ugly hon. Extremely dangerous for that baby!

The baby doesn't sound sick, but has an infected eye, which is extremely common and simple to cure, just need terramycin. Get it on ebay for about 5 bucks.

Meanwhile, do not pick the crust or pry the eye open, but hold a warm cloth over it to soften the crust, then very gently wipe it away. You will be doing this daily until the terramycin can be given.

You should easily be able to get momma trapped, she should be caged with her baby, covered with a sheet except a bit in the front, and left in a calm/quiet room or part of the home so she can unstress and feel safe.

There are local rescue groups who will help, I know because I have one !! That is what we are all about, helping with very low cost spay/neuters, fostering bottle babies, vet visits, TNR;ing, getting those males fixed, all that.

Please don't feed the baby on it's back, this commonly kills them from even a slight amount of milk being inhaled, causing pneummonia.

Baby should be on it's tummy/legs, and head slightly raised.

Should be kept on a heating pad until 3 weeks old, always on low, with a place he can scoot to if he feels too warm.

He can't maintain a body temp until then, so he should be kept no cooler than 96 degrees. Never feed a cool feeling baby, the organs shut down when cold and will not digest the formula.

 

[kittychick]

You obviously have such a good hesrt-mow you just need ingormation & help!! I STRONGLY reccomend calling the kind people at Alley Cat Allies at 1-240-482-1980. They're a group founded to help the stray & feral cats of the world (through Trap/Neuter/Release) & the people who care about them....& I have called them several times during my latest feral momma/babies adventure. They have returned every call---& been very kind and very helpful. They can even help you find organizations in your area that could help. You very likely have an organization that can either send someone to help you trap momma, or at least walk you through how to do it. Yes, it'd be best if you trap & neuter all you can (as obviously your momma cat probably isn't the only female being harassed -literally-almost to death). But I know from personal experience it's hard financially to do all of them yourself. But in many many cites there are organizations that will either spay/neuter very cheaply or even for free if you explain the situation thoroughly. Everyone's right-you HAVE to get the baby out of there/he won't survive as its likely either one of the males will kill him, or momma won't survive & that'd make it hard for baby. So taking him in is the right thing to do-but it'd definitely be best to have his momma for nutrition, etc as nothing is better for them than momma for st least the first 6 weeks! So I'd bring in baby & then trap momma ASAP (even if you catch other males first& have to release them if you can't find $ help immediately). . Yes, it's best to neuter/spay all-but momma is the CRITICAL priority!!! You can then bring her in, keep her & baby in a bathroom/large closet/large dog crate-someplace isolated & quiet where you can let her nurture baby safely. Then you can see if she's feral or a stray & procede from there. And keep reporting to this forum-people will definitely help you here!

 

[kittywave]

Hey Everyone,

Thank you so much for helping, I haven't dealt with something like this since I was a little kid; there were hundreds of homeless cats and kittens where I lived, and I would always bring them home and "surprise" my parents; Eastern Europe for you.  I tried to find Alley Cat Allies in my area, but I am in Canada  I will e-mail them and ask if they have a partnership with any groups in my area.  If not, I will rent out a trap from the Humane Society. I have a pretty big, almost walk in closet I can house them in, or in the kitchen.  I am worried about fleas/deceases the mom can have, but I could find out if the organizations in my area would cover some of the vet costs. As they would be separated from our kitty, it is not the number one priority, but in the long term that would be a point.

Update from Mom: I could hear her all night "crying" while the males were harassing her behind the building, I hope I can figure everything out today...I feel awful for her.

Update from Kitten: He has been eating ATLEAST every 3 hours, I feel like he eats too much at once, but he might be catching up from the days before when he didn't get as much.  He eats about half to 2/3 of a tablespoon of formula a seating.  He sleeps for about an hour, wakes up, eats and falls asleep again.  I read about how they do their business, so I helped him out before work (paper towel and massage to the area).  I hope I am doing everything right...

 

[kittywave]

ps; this is a picture of the little guy. 

baby.jpg

• kittywave
• Jul 10, 2013

 

[kittywave]

Also, the eye is so much better. The crust has disappeared, woo one thing out of the way! 

 

[maewkaew]

 You may already know this but make sure that when you feed him, don't hold him like a human baby,    have him with his back up,  stomach down .   his front part of his body can be a bit higher than his back feet   ( think in terms of the position kittens are in when nursing from their mother ).  This helps to avoid him getting formula down the wrong way which can cause pneumonia . 

There IS a risk of the same thing  from feeding too much , because their stomach is so small,  if overfed it is more likely to reflux and be aspirated into lungs.    The amount you are talking about , 2/3 tablespoon  which ( depending on which kind of tablespoon measurement that is - - UK, US or metric) is somewhere between 9 and 12 ccs,    is definitely too much for a kitten in the first week at one feeding.       It depends what his weight is.  but   the usual amt for a kitten under a week is  only about 3 ccs per feeding.  

 Here is a link to a feeding schedule.   This is a great site for other tips on caring for baby kittens.  http://www.kitten-rescue.com/kitten_feeding_schedule.html

 I sure hope you can manage to trap that poor mama kitty.       This might sound awful but .... would she come near you to get to the kitten?   Could you use the kitten  to attract her into a trap.   but with you standing guard to make sure the males don't get at the kitten  ?   If it could save the mom that would be good for both her and the kitten.

 

[kittywave]

Hey!  Yes I have been feeding him in that position  and the one tablespoon measured on the kitten milk bottle. Also, by comparing photos, we think he is between 1 week and 10 days old (http://members.petfinder.org/~PA16/kittenage.html)  Nevertheless, even for that age he is eating too much  

With the mom, we tried that yesterday!  She came up to him and licked him, but as soon as she did that, all the male cats started going crazy and one pushed her away from the kitten.  We can try that again today, and guard the other cats off her.  I know she wants to be with him, she did not abandon him, it is just the worst situation for both her and him(baby...could be a she )

 

[kittychick]

Alley Cat Allies still might be able to help you find an organization in your area to help. The woman I talked to there was beyond helpful - and I cried (OK, sobbed) through two entire conversations with her as we were dealing with a sort-of similar situation ---- we had TNR'd (trap/neuter/released) a mamma and 3 kittens, and since they were 8 1/2 weeks & ready to be weaned and she was VERY feral, we spayed & released her.....but she spent 48 hours crying at the top of her lungs searching for the babies. Which broke our hearts - and we couldn't figure out what was best to do (release babies and hope to retrap them soon to "fix", or keep them & socialize without her, etc---after much soothing & advice from the woman at Alley Cat, we kept the babies---although it's been a long road already trying to socialize, one was adopted just this morning! And mamma eventually seemed to come to terms with it and move on).

Raising the baby that young without mamma certainly will be harder - plus poor thing, she needs to be protected (which obviously it sounds like you know). When you say you tried luring mom with the baby - did you have a humane trap set? What we did was set one humane trap for mamma...and then placed the babies in a trap (closed) right behind it, so the traps were end to end, covered all with towels except the open end of the trap that we wanted her to go into and then we stepped back. She came right over, and after exploring around the outside briefly, went right in the open end and sprung it. Worked perfectly! That way - the kitten would lure her but be PROTECTED by the closed trap from all the males. I'd put him in a towel inside  so that he won't try to wobble over to the side of the trap where he could get whapped by another cat (although if you do cover the traps - it will make it tough for him to be touched anyway). Even if you trap a male first in the open trap, you can just let him out. Hopefully eventually she'd be the first one in the "trap shoot." And she'd spring the trap almost immediately once inside - so it'd be hard for a male to follow her in - it'll snap shut first. But trying without a trap(s) will be much harder! You'd just need to stay right there through the process as you may need to release one or more males during this process as it sounds like they're everywhere!

Most humane/TNR organizations will loan you traps with a deposit that you get back the minute your bring the trap(s) back. Most TNR places here will also apply flea treatments when they spay - and spaying her will only take her out of nursing commission for a day. If the TNR/humane place knows she has a tiny baby - they perform the surgery with a lighter anesthetic so that she can get back to nursing more quickly. I missed if you're worried about diseases that YOU might catch - or if you have other pets and that's what you're worried about. There are very few diseases that humans can catch from cats, so long as she and the baby are kept in a seperate room, and you wash your hands thoroughly after touching anything (food bowls, baby, etc) you shouldn't pass any diseases along. And if she's treated for fleas at the vet, just check the baby for fleas with a flea comb, and you should be ok.

Keep us posted!

 

[kittywave]

Kittychick! That's such a great idea! I will do that tomorrow.

I am going through exactly the same thing, I feel like I am hurting him by taking him away, but at the same time, I don't think he will survive with what's going on outside.  Just seeing how much time he takes from my day, i can't imagine his mom, after being harassed and exhausted, keeping him as safe.  I spent hours weeping the other day, because my boyfriend made me leave him outside (as he thought he would be better off with his mom) and then when we took him in, i weeped again, because I thought so too.  It's such a weird issue...i can't put him back there, these cats are so aggressive, but it's a 24/7 job for me and I am not even sure I am doing everything properly.  I will feel so awful if he doesn't make it, and left thinking I should have left him with the mom. 

Also, I was worried about my cat catching something.  He has only gotten his first shots and has been neutered, he is an indoor 1 year old.  I should get his second shot when I save up some money, but that's besides the point at the moment.  

I will try my best with the mom!

Also, if my kitten only pees but never poops is that problematic?

 

[StefanZ]

As the mom DOES come near and licks him, you really dont need to use any trap.

Have a big towel with you, and lay it over her.  So she wont risk to scratch you. Immobilized in this towel, she ceases fighting and lets her be carried away.

Train at home on this laying of towel, so it goes quickly.

Take her to the new room / cage, with food, litter, place to lay on, let her out, let her calm down during several hours. Done.  She will copy thereafter.

Re pooing: you must stimulate more...  I wont write about it now and here, but you must.

You can also try and have a drop or two of food oil in the food.

Some say mineral oil - but what minerale oil is OK to intake?

Good luck!

 

[kittywave]

Hey everyone,

so we basically did what StefanZ suggested yesterday.  I wan't planning to take her then, but the caretaker of the building had caught her so we just brought her in...I wasn't prepared to take her yet, so I had nothing set up...I ran to the kitchen got out a box, he put her in the kitchen but she ran away and sat on the window of the living room.  My cat was freaking out, he was in the bedroom where the kitten was - in the closet at that time. i put a blanket by her, and she attacked it pretty viciously.  Anyways, I didn't know what to do...and I was alone, my boyfriend wasn't home yet so I asked the caretaker if he could bring her down - All he did was call her name from downstairs (Mama) and she ran down.  Later in the night I heard meowing and i looked out of my balcony and it was Mama meowing at my front steps...I went downstairs with a bowl of dry food and we stared at each other for good 10 minutes, she ate a little, and as the door was open, she slowly climbed up one flight of stairs towards my apartment - then came down.  This happened 2-3 times last night, where she would meow and want to climb up.   (she would also touch me when she would go towards the stairs..it was wierd, i've never been able to touch her) There is no way she smelt the kitten because it has not been anywhere but the bedroom, and I wash my hands like CrAzY before and after touching him (for safety for him and also not to piss off my other cat) I am not sure what it means...but now I know i can bring her in, I just need to be more prepared.  

 

[ondine]

Sounds to me like she thinks she can trust you but isn't quite sure yet.  Can you get a large dog crate and set it up in the bedroom, letting your cat roam the remainder of the house?  Until mom and kitten are vetted, I wouldn't let them and your resident cat meet face to face.

Also- when you said you stared at her, remember in the feral world, a direct stare is a challenge.  She may not be truly feral but she's been part of that society.

Good luck and thank you for helping!