Need Help About Pregnant Feral And Two Kittens

Dogncatlady

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Last December when I was on my way to work, I noticed an older blue and white kitten, but while she was clearly hungry, she quickly trotted away from me when we made eye contact. Despite being a dog owner, I oddly enough had cat food on hand and put out some for her just in case she came back. For MONTHS, I fed what I hoped was a cat with a mixture of wet and dry food every day until we finally saw her saunter up up on the property this past April. When we started to see her, she appeared much larger than she had been when I first saw her, which I first accounted for by her growth. I did notice she had slimmed down, but I thought I simply wasn’t feeding her enough and increased her daily meal. A few weeks later, she was meowing and trying to get inside when I prepared her meal, so I tried to slowly approach her until she became comfortable with my presence to no avail. She wouldn’t run away, but she still won’t eat without at least a screen door in between us. Unfortunately, I realized why she was meowing when I saw a few tomcats escorting her to her meal one day a few weeks ago, and since then, I have been trying to increase her daily food intake while also trying to gain her trust in hopes of getting her and her future kittens spayed.

What I didn’t realize was that I had already missed a litter. Like I said, it wasn’t until about two and a half months ago that we finally saw her, so I thought maybe the change in her size was my imagination playing tricks on me until I saw a little blue kitten, maybe 9 weeks old, wander up to eat from Jack Frost’s bowl. As I tried to entice her with food, she about hurt herself trying to get away, but I hoped she’d come back. Sure enough, I saw her following Jack Frost around the other day, but Jack Frost wouldn’t let her eat from the bowl with her. The kitten kinda hung out but waited for her to finish before it came to eat, but when I left extra food out for it, ANOTHER little blue kitten wandered onto my porch to eat it. How do I make sure these kittens come back and eat their food instead of attracting other cats? They look to be from the same litter, but they’re pretty young. I’d like to catch and trap them to keep them safe from the neighborhood foxes and coyotes, but I don’t know how to get them to come back. The other kitten that showed up appeared right when I was about to take up Jack Frost and the kitten’s food at night. This one seemed less scared, but I didn’t dare try to approach him since it was so late and my doors aren’t quiet. I haven’t seen that one reappear, but the one who wandered up with Jack Frost has been seen playing in the garden again. Help?! I want to take care of them, and I know that doesn’t necessarily mean being able to take them indoors. I just want to provide the best solution for them. We have four dogs, so I can imagine they’re even more scared with that. Nonetheless, we’ve begun to clear out a part of the house for the cats to come in at night if we can convince them. If anyone has any advice as to how to attract them to sleep in the property as well as how to slowly approach them when they run away on site of a human. Jack Frost has also become more skittish around me since the kittens have appeared, but I’d like to bring her inside before she gives birth or at least give her somewhere safe from predators and neighborhood dogs if it’s possible. Getting them all fixed and healthy is my priority, but first, I need to get them to start regularly coming over here to eat. Anyone have any advice or ideas?
 

Furballsmom

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Can you put a trap out with some Kentucky Fried Chicken? However, that'll likely draw every cat for miles...
What if you put a shelter in your yard for them?
I think if you continue doing what you have been, they will keep coming by a consistent food source.
 

catsknowme

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Bless you for looking out for those kitties. As you are wisely aware, routine is key in establishing a feeding station which leads to trust. Since cats are more prey than predator, they prefer sheltered feeding areas. You will probably wind up feeding other cats as you mentioned - can you reach out to a TNR group to help you out? It would be awesome to get the situation under control. You can lean a piece of plywood or a wooden pallet against a wall or fence to give them a sense of security.
 
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