Help! How To Catch A Mother And Kittens

[wannahelp]

I have posted before about a stray, possibly feral cat that may have 4 kittens. I hadn't seen her for a while but tonight, she was here with at least 2 of her kittens. I would REALLY like to be able to get the kittens, take them to the vet and try to get them adopted AND get the mother fixed.

However, I have no idea how to do this. If I approach a kitten in the presence of its mother, I'll probably be attacked. Or, the kittens may be afraid. The kittens appear to be 6-8 weeks old. I cannot find any shelters, rescue, etc to help me, so I'm on my own. Please advise!

 

[surya]

Do you have a cat carrier you could use to catch the kittens? A trap would be even better, can you borrow a trap from and organization? Are you feeding them? If not you should start feeding them every day. If you have a carrier, you can put a long cord on the door. Practice shutting the door in advance if you use this method. Put food in the carrier and try and get as many kittens in the carrier as you can before you pull the door shut on them.

 

[tabbytom]

Can you try feeding the mommy cat and assess how friendly she is? The more friendly she is, the more easy for you.

If she's friendly, feed her and try to get near her and see if she comes to you when you have food. See if it's possible to pet her after she have confidence in you. If she can be petted, it'll be easier for you to lift her into the carrier otherwise you have to use a humane trap to trap her.

Do the first step first but do not rush as once mommy cat gets frightened and loose confidence in you, it'll be harder to get her.

Let us know what's the situation is like and from ther it's easier to guide you.

 

[surya]

Here's another thread on the same topic, it might help:

Trapping Mom And Kittens - Help!

 

[wannahelp]

Here's another thread on the same topic, it might help:

Trapping Mom And Kittens - Help!

I just looked at that thread. I thought about trying to get them into the garage. The problem is, my garage door opener is semi-broken. By the time the door closes, the mother could have another litter. I'm not sure if it's possible to disable the automatic opener and shut it manually but I don't know if they'd go into the garage. I've never put food in there before. Time is of the essence. The kittens won't be with the mother much longer. I have to figure something out!

 

[WaltS]

I've had success multiple times luring kittens away from the feral mother at 6-10 weeks. The older they are the harder it gets but it's not impossible. Depending on where she has them, you can sit with a toy and some food. You need to get their attention. I've laid in grass with a stick and a string playing with them. They'll concentrate on the string so much they don't realize they're within arms length of you. Take it slow, gain their trust. It's easier to adopt them if they aren't stressed from the capture in a trap. Even young kittens can be spooked from trapping and it makes it harder to socialize them.

Our first two rescues were trapped. One is a perfectly social loving indoor female, her brother could live without us. 6 years on and we still have to sneak up on him to get some strokes in. He was a violent trap at 12 weeks. He trashed about in the cage before we let him out in a quarantined bathroom. We spent a lot of time with both of them in the bathroom daily. Picking them up, playing with them. He would poop on us when we held him. Totally opposite of his sister. He comes to us when we're eating dinner and wants some treats but he will always stay 3-5 feet away when we move around the house. He doesn't lash out to scratch or get anrgy, he's just a scared cat for lack of better words. If we can manage to sneak up on him to stroke his back and neck, he tenses up and freezes. Some cats just aren't social no matter how much you try.

Tray to trap mom as soon as possible if you can. Kitty season is just around the corner. The kittens will survive a day or two without her at 8 weeks. No worries. It could make it easier for you to gain their trust too since they'll be hungry.

 

[1CatOverTheLine]

I'm not sure if it's possible to disable the automatic opener and shut it manually

wannahelp - Unplugging the motor and giving a yank on the emergency release rope (the cord with the T handle hanging from the center drive belt rail) is all that's required to disable the automatic door opener, but be cautions - garage doors are heavy, and can easily get out of control when closed manually.
.

 

[surya]

If the kittens will not come too close to you I would borrow a trap from a rescue organization and use the bottle with the string method. Unless you can figure out the garage door thing, if so that seems like a good idea.

I caught a mom with two kittens recently using the string method. I waited till both the mom and two kittens were in there and got them all together. Practice pulling the string on the trap a few times before you do it, so you get the hang of getting the tension right and you are sure everything is working correctly.

 

[wannahelp]

This cat is driving me crazy! I'm wondering now if the cat I saw last night with the kittens was the same orange cat that I've been feeding for the past few months. It was dark, so I couldn't see very well last night. However, tonight, I was waiting and one of the orange cats, possibly the kittens' mother, showed up alone. Unfortunately, my mother had the brilliant idea to move the trap, and hence the food a little closer to the house. I disagreed but it did reluctantly. Of course, the cat would not come to the new location, which is really only a few feet away from the old spot.
I went outside through the garage and called to it and held out a can of cat food. I placed it on the ground and walked away-nothing. I tried talking to the cat some more and eventually it just ran off. I saw it again about a half hour later but it didn't come back .I hope it's not permanently scared off. That's what I get for not going with my gut.
Meanwhile, I'm still trying to figure out how to trap the kittens. I have one trap but I'm not sure yet, if any of the kittens will be willing to go in, as I've only seen them once so far.
I only have about a week to do this and it's going to rain for the next 2 days.
I tried a trail cam but it didn't have live feed and it just didn't work well, in general. I bought a new wifi camera but it was defective. If I could carry my phone or tablet around and see when they show up, that would help immensely.

 

[surya]

Do you have some smelly food to use as bait? Canned seafood flavor, tuna, sardines are all good. Definitely go with your gut and stay still and be patient. It might go more easily than you think.

 

[tabbytom]

wannahelp , it's ok if the trap is nearer to the house. Leave a small trail of food leading to the trap instead of just leaving the food at the trap. Place a spoonful of food a few feet apart of each other like one spoonful a few feet away from the cage and another spoonful one feet from the cage and more in the cage. This will lead the cat into the trap.

The other thing is you have to be sure if it's the momma cat and not others but usually the kittens should be nearby.