Emergency help needed with feral/stray mother & kittens

[jay levy]

Here's the situation: As I was walking into a convenience store, I watched a stray/feral Siamese drop a small kitten into a storm drain. I investigated and found she had set up her den in the drain pipes. She has two small kittens in there that won't be able to get out until they're older. The thing is -- the entire parking lot dumps all run off into that one small area. If it starts to rain, the kittens will have no chance. The volume of water will be massive. On the advice of our vet, I've provided food and water and the kittens have become somewhat accustomed to me. The mom stays a foot or two away, but she'll eat the food I bring. In fact, she's been ravenous -- she pushes the kittens out of the way to eat. I know that's to be expected, but I wanted to explain the situation.

And, yes, the kittens have been eating the wet food I bring, even though I believe they're still nursing.

I believe I can lure the kittens into a carrier to get them out. I'm not sure if I can with the mother. The depth of the drain, the small size of it, and the fact there are two pipes she can disappear into make it so she can get away anytime, and we'd have a hard time using a trap.

I've contacted a rescue group, but they've been slow to respond. Same with the humane society. We don't want the kittens or mother to be put down or die -- and we're willing to foster them if need be and pay for the mother to be fixed and checked by the vet.

So, I need advice or encouragement or whatever. This has been crazy stressful. My wife and I are literally losing sleep over it. We can't find help, and I'm not sure what to do. The options seem to be to try and capture the kittens and mom, but failing that take the kittens from their mother -- or, let them drown in the next storm. Forecasts are calling for rain early in the week. I'd like to also add, the area is really busy with lots of vehicles, people walking by, and the like. It's a pretty dangerous area for them.

Any suggestions? I'm in Tampa, FL, by the way. Please ask any questions -- I'd love any advice or support.

 

[red top rescue]

You can likely trap the mama with a Hav-A-Hart trap, easily purchased at any Tractor Supply -- in fact they have a sale which includes 2 traps, one cat size, one kitten size (the big traps are dangerous for kittens who can get caught in the slamming door).  You can probably catch the kittens without a trap, but if they are feral they WILL bite you so wear strong leather gloves.  You can then pop them into a carrier.   The last feral kitten I ended up with had posted tself beside the trap the mother was in and allowed itself to be caught and transported to the spay/neuter van along with the mother, and from there they both came to me to foster until they were ready to adopt out.  This mother adapted well to being in a rescue room.  She was obviously domesticated before she ended up being feral.  I'm not sure about the mama cat you are dealing with but you do have to get the familyout of the storm drain before the next rain!

If you scan the Strays and Feral forum threads I am sure you will find a lot of good advice there too, and maybe some even better advice about how to catch them.

 

[jay levy]

The thing I'm worried about is the drain may not accommodate a trap -- and if it can, I'm not sure how to stop the kittens from running in first. They're always the first to pounce on the food. They do have this one in stock near me: http://www.homedepot.com/p/Havahart-Large-1-Door-Live-Animal-Cage-Trap-1079/100336697 -- but i wouldn't be able to leave it, we'd have to wait and hope she ventured in while we were there.

I'll look in some of the other threads for ideas ... 

 

[jay levy]

Well, we had a bit of a miracle today -- I'm not really sure what else to call it when you factor in all of the coincidences. I don't work on Sunday, so I had to drive about 30 minutes to work to feed the kittens today. When I arrived, someone was working on their car right above the kitten's storm drain -- and, I spied the mother nervously watching from behind a dumpster. After the car left, I stayed between the mother and the den, thinking about what to do ... when I received a text from an experienced trapper the rescue group i contacted had called. She was literally at the corner light. She had no idea I was going to be there, and I had no idea she would show up.

She thought the kittens were somewhere else, so if I hadn't waved her down, she might have missed their location. I showed her where the mom cat was pacing and she said we'd try to catch her, but it might be difficult. When she was getting ready to bait the trap, I gave her the food the mom had shown a ravenous hunger for ... by the time the volunteer had walked over to me, the mom was already trapped.

So, next up was the kittens ... I had to pull up the iron grating which was literally 100 or 150 lbs, and we trapped one pretty fast. The second was a bit more of a pain, and we spent half an hour before outsmarting the little one. It had to be a snatch and grab ... but, it worked. So, the mom is off to the humane society  -- they're going to fix her tomorrow and release her back to the same area. We're fostering the kittens now until they can find a forever home. I'm very much hoping they can go to the same family. I'd like to keep them together.

Here's a little video of the cuties: 

 

[jennyr]

That is such wonderful news. Well done, everyone. I hope you find them homes quickly.

 

[betsygee]

Oh they are so cute.  So good of you to take care of this little cat family.  

 

[dandila]

Good for you and it sounds like you had some help from the serendipity gnome.  I am fostering a stray mother with two babies as well.  Its rough on them out there!  You get extra points in heaven for the kind thing you've done.  Those kittens each owe one of their nine lives to you.  Cute little devils.

 

[nansiludie]

Is the mother cat truly feral? if not, maybe she can be fostered, I would worry about her being run over on a busy street. Thank you trapping mother and kittens.