If You Can't Bring A Feral/stray Kitten In, Should You Feed It, Can You Do Anything?

[saleri]

Hello, so I was reading a different forum today and a person mentioned that they found a random kitten, and somehow found a colony of cats to stay with. They have no idea if the kitten will stay with the cat, but there didn't seem to be any animosity. And fed the kittens.

I mentioned that it's not recommended to feed non-neutered cats since the cycle will just continue, and they should bring all the kittens in and the older cat if possible. But the person said all the shelters were overflowing at this point.

Not sure what one is suppose to do at this point. Should they keep feeding the cats, or just leave it along? Anything?

Thoughts?

 

[msaimee]

I know that I can't not feed a hungry cat or kitten. I can't stand to see any creature suffer from hunger. Also, once a caregiver has been feeding a feral colony of cats, the cats become dependent upon the food and it's heartbreaking to stop feeding them at that point. Is there a local Humane Society that can do TNR for the cats that are old enough? Can the cats be fed and protected until a shelter is available to take them? You might also want to try to call shelters that are not in your immediate area. There may be one farther out willing to take at least some of them.

 

[saleri]

I know that I can't not feed a hungry cat or kitten. I can't stand to see any creature suffer from hunger. Also, once a caregiver has been feeding a feral colony of cats, the cats become dependent upon the food and it's heartbreaking to stop feeding them at that point. Is there a local Humane Society that can do TNR for the cats that are old enough? Can the cats be fed and protected until a shelter is available to take them? You might also want to try to call shelters that are not in your immediate area. There may be one farther out willing to take at least some of them.

They said they can't get any outside help. Just curious if people say in a situation like this where they have to keep kittens outside, if they should still try and feed. I thought with non neutered cats, it's best to just not feed?

 

[msaimee]

I think the answer is decided by a person's own conscience and what they feel they are able to do. I personally have never turned away a hungry cat that has shown up on my porch or block. Adult feral cats are able to survive on their own much better without human intervention than stray cats or young kittens, so for some people that factors into the decision-making as well. If you are looking for a single, standardized answer from people who rescue cats, I'm afraid you're not going to find it. Every situation is different. In the case of feral kittens, I think everything should be done to help them, because they can be socialized and adopted.