Kittens Born Under House

[PCB]

Hello everyone. We had been trying to catch a beautiful calico that has been living under our house for months. Our local rescue gave us a trap and she eluded that no matter what we tried (she even figured out how to get to the food without springing the trap). We went on to plan b, and tried getting friendly enough to catch her. In the last several weeks we have been very successful and she was coming out to be petted when we brought her food. I noticed her tummy getting larger, but thought it was from eating all the food we left. About a week ago, we were leaving for the weekend and she was extra friendly. I was petting her, and felt nipples under her tummy. We made the decision to grab her when we got back and bring her into our house, as I was convinced she was pregnant. Well, when we got back, she came back out with a smaller tummy and matted fur on her hind quarters. I'm guessing she had her babies under our house, but there is no way for us to get to them. We bought her a heated cat shelter some time back, so I feel better about them being kept warm and safe. The reason for this very long preamble is that I'm dying to know if the kittens are ok, how many she had, etc. Since she is very friendly now, will she eventually bring them out to us, and if so, at what point?

Thanks for any advice you can give. We want to trap them all and get them spayed/neutered, including momma.

 

[Sarthur2]

She will probably bring them out when they are about 4 weeks old. They will be ready to start weaning around 4-5 weeks, and mom will want to introduce them to her food source, which is what you provide for her to eat. The kittens will need to eat wet cat food several times a day in addition to nursing.

Your best bet at this point would be to sit nearby and speak softly and make no sudden moves. Hopefully mom and kittens will be friendly and learn to trust you. I would not pick them up yet at this point as they are too young to be separated from mom unnecessarily.

I would also suggest that you begin feeding mom inside the trap but not set it. This way she learns that the trap is a safe place to eat, and will hopefully bring her babies inside the trap to eat eventually. Then one day when they are comfortable with you and the setup, you can gently close the door and bring them inside your home.

In the meantime, feed mom wet food liberally, and leave dry food and water in the "trap" at all times. She needs as much nutrition as she can get for nursing.

 

[Rachel Warner]

If you make her another private area outside or on the porch she will take them there.. Mine moves hers around to two to three places she feels safe..