Pregnant Deaf Feral Cat

[Cathi b]

Hi all, just wondering if anyone has been in this situation. I believe that at one point about 2 yrs ago this cat had a family, and I believe they left her when they moved. About 6 mos ago I started just leaving food out because I had noticed this cat getting very skinny. This last month I finally got her to come in the garage and I can now get close enough to see she is pregnant and probably due in a couple of weeks. She is deaf and has finally aloud me to touch her head but when the wind blows or something startled her she reacts by slapping me. I have made two spots in my garage that hopefully she will pick one to have her kittens in but what do I do to help cause her to have them here. She is now sleeping most nights in the garage with the door open just enough so she can get out but freaks if I close it. Any suggestions would be appreciated!

 

[StefanZ]

while thinking on my answer, I want to comment on the slapping.
Its really a good sign. She isnt freaking out nor she is fleeing in panic.
They do slap their relatives and their kin to foster and teach manners.

And if they slap with a soft paw - oh, you have won, its just some leftovers to clean up... So to speak.

So apparently you are on a good way, Your only drawback you cant use your main tool, a friendly voice and friendly crooning...

Use gestures. Dont look into her eyes, look little aside. Blink slowly. Yawn. Held low near her. Standing on all four, strech yourself forward or backwards.

If she is difficult to stroke with your hand, use a wooden spoon. Wooden because it feels almost warm, and spoon because its nicely curved and smooth...

 

[Sarthur2]

She will most likely desire the safety of the garage to have her kittens. Perhaps once she does, you can close the door and put out a litter box.

If she does not give birth inside, let us know. The fact she is sleeping there at night is a good sign she feels safe.

See that she has unlimited dry food 24/7, water, and several wet meals a day.

Eventually, she’ll need spaying.

Thank you for taking her in!

 

[ArchyCat]

You are feeding her into garage? If not, I would move the food into the garage, with a water dish. You might want to put out a saucer of KMR (Kitten Milk Replacer) from now until she weans the kittens. She needs the extra nutrition, plus maybe kitten kibble and canned food.

Also set up a litter box now, maybe in a corner of the garage, away from the food, water, and the beds you have set up.

Are there beds in covered cardboard boxes? Cats prefer closed places for beds and kittens.

Good luck! Hope things work out & keep us updated!

 

[vyger]

Cats that are completely deaf develop a behavior of constantly looking behind themselves. A hearing cat uses it's ears as sentinels for watching behind itself. A deaf cat cannot tell when something comes up behind it and will be turning and looking every few seconds to see that it is safe. It might also prefer having a wall behind it, or something like that, a box with only one door, so nothing can come up behind it.
I have been feeding a feral cat that I believe is mute, which I found out is pretty rare. I know she can hear, she responds to being called, but I have not heard her make a single sound. Her kittens are also totally silent. I have heard them make sounds but only very soft ones, like a response to play. But they don't "talk" at all to either their mom or to each other. They also can hear but I think that because she never talked to them they grew up silent. Like someone learning sign language more than speaking.

 

[Cathi b]

while thinking on my answer, I want to comment on the slapping.
Its really a good sign. She isnt freaking out nor she is fleeing in panic.
They do slap their relatives and their kin to foster and teach manners.

And if they slap with a soft paw - oh, you have won, its just some leftovers to clean up... So to speak.

So apparently you are on a good way, Your only drawback you cant use your main tool, a friendly voice and friendly crooning...

Use gestures. Dont look into her eyes, look little aside. Blink slowly. Yawn. Held low near her. Standing on all four, strech yourself forward or backwards.

If she is difficult to stroke with your hand, use a wooden spoon. Wooden because it feels almost warm, and spoon because its nicely curved and smooth...

Hi, and thank you! We are becoming friends. I have tried the blinking and she does not respond at all, usually is distracted. I will try the yawning and all that you suggested. I have had a deaf cat but not feral, amazing how different they are. I also have worked with many feral cats and won. I am so thankful for your help!!

 

[Cathi b]

She will most likely desire the safety of the garage to have her kittens. Perhaps once she does, you can close the door and put out a litter box.

If she does not give birth inside, let us know. The fact she is sleeping there at night is a good sign she feels safe.

See that she has unlimited dry food 24/7, water, and several wet meals a day.

Eventually, she’ll need spaying.

Thank you for taking her in!

Thank you first for your reply!

She will most likely desire the safety of the garage to have her kittens. Perhaps once she does, you can close the door and put out a litter box.

If she does not give birth inside, let us know. The fact she is sleeping there at night is a good sign she feels safe.

See that she has unlimited dry food 24/7, water, and several wet meals a day.

Eventually, she’ll need spaying.

Thank you for taking her in!

 

[Cathi b]

Thank you first for your reply!

I did put a cat box out last night, and she has constant dry food and also wet in the am and the evening. I will definitely need help if she does not have her babies in the garage. Oh yes, she will be spayed ASAP. I would have loved to been able to before she was pregnant, she was not having the traps at all. She is truly smart and amazing at defeating my efforts. Thank you for your reply!

 

[Cathi b]

You are feeding her into garage? If not, I would move the food into the garage, with a water dish. You might want to put out a saucer of KMR (Kitten Milk Replacer) from now until she weans the kittens. She needs the extra nutrition, plus maybe kitten kibble and canned food.

Also set up a litter box now, maybe in a corner of the garage, away from the food, water, and the beds you have set up.

Are there beds in covered cardboard boxes? Cats prefer closed places for beds and kittens.

Good luck! Hope things work out & keep us updated!

I have set up a cat litter box and yes I have 2 little homes for her and the kittens. One is a box turned upside down with rugs and towels that she has laid on also with styrofoam siding on the roof and the sides for insulation. Box is 35”x35”x16”. And I have a wood one built on an end table that I built for a cubby (breeze way type) area by the front door. Also with insulation and door in front and back. I can take the top off of this one. She has not given birth yet. But when she does I will do the other things. Thank you so much for your help.

 

[golondrina]

I have been following this thread with great interest Cathi b. You are doing a marvellous job with this deaf mom cat. I very much look forward to you further news and hopefully a photo when you can.

Hasn't she got a name yet? Are you plannng to keep her?

 

[Cathi b]

Thank you for your words of encouragement! They mean so much. I am going to keep her/him because I don’t believe this cat would do well with a change of their whole invirerment . Not to mention I have gotten very attached to this cat. As far as names...yes..at first when I thought it was a boy I named him lumas, but now that I am not sure of the sex, and leaning towards her being a girl, I have named her Magnificent, Maggy for short. Although the cat can’t hear and will never know what I call her, i have named her. I am now using hand gestures and movement to speak to her, which she seems to understand much better than my words (I am always talking to her and then I think to myself why?). I am new on here so need to figure out how to put pics on. Thank you!

 

[Cathi b]

Cats that are completely deaf develop a behavior of constantly looking behind themselves. A hearing cat uses it's ears as sentinels for watching behind itself. A deaf cat cannot tell when something comes up behind it and will be turning and looking every few seconds to see that it is safe. It might also prefer having a wall behind it, or something like that, a box with only one door, so nothing can come up behind it.
I have been feeding a feral cat that I believe is mute, which I found out is pretty rare. I know she can hear, she responds to being called, but I have not heard her make a single sound. Her kittens are also totally silent. I have heard them make sounds but only very soft ones, like a response to play. But they don't "talk" at all to either their mom or to each other. They also can hear but I think that because she never talked to them they grew up silent. Like someone learning sign language more than speaking.

Wow, this is interesting! I have heard of a couple mute cats through the years, although I didn’t believe they honestly didn’t meow. I thought it was instinctual to cry when hungry or wanting their mom. So do you think they don’t have a voice box? It must be very rare because like I said, I have only heard of a couple.

 

[vyger]

Wow, this is interesting! I have heard of a couple mute cats through the years, although I didn’t believe they honestly didn’t meow. I thought it was instinctual to cry when hungry or wanting their mom. So do you think they don’t have a voice box? It must be very rare because like I said, I have only heard of a couple.

The mom is feral and from appearances she has a rough life. The tips of her ears have been frosted so they are more rounded than they should be. That happens here to a lot of cats, including barn cats since the temps get to as low as 40 below F. About 2/3 of her tail is missing and at the base of it there is what looks like mostly scar tissue with no fur. Since I can't touch her yet I can't tell. I was wondering if she got caught in a trap, but it's hard to know. She might also have lost it in a fight for her life with a something like a weasel or a coyote. That might have also been what effected her voice. She might have gotten bit in the throat. Again I can't tell yet. But even when she went into heat (and still might be) she has never made a sound that I ever heard. Even when scared or fighting with my other cats she makes no sound. I hear mine squalling away but it is only one sided. She got scared and what is left of her tail got all puffed up and it was really funny because it looks kind of like a poodle. She is progressively getting more at ease but she is hard to read because she makes no sound. Most cats will growl if your getting to close in their space but she is totally blank, a fantastic poker face. I have learned to watch her paws more than anything because she has batted my hand a few times when she was uncomfortable. Not with claws out but just a "your to close" thing. She really likes being inside. I think she has figured out she has protection there. When we had some nice days I left the door open (when there was no tom around) and her and the kittens wander out and climb trees and play in the leaves but as soon as they hear the inner door open they dash back inside and hide. I try and make sure they are all in before I close up for the night but since they hide it's sometimes hard to tell. One night one of the kittens got locked outside. These 2 kittens are like inseparable and the one inside was really upset. The one outside was crying it's lungs out which was the most noise I ever heard coming from it. So the kittens can make sounds but they mostly don't. I bought a few wands to try and get them to play and it didn't work. They were afraid of them. But then I found something that does work, half of a fishing pole with a long wide boot string tied to it. They love it but are still trying to figure out how to play. One grabs the string and tries to run away with it and won't let go. He growls softly and just tugs with all his might. Once I get it away from they all chase it a little until it is caught again. Even the mom has been interested in this toy. So I have been using the pole end to poke and stroke them. At first they were afraid but now it's part of play so they are getting used to being touched, even if it is with a pole. I think we will have a breakthrough moment soon. Partly because they are getting tired of jumping up and running everytime I open the door and walk by. In fact one of the kittens has just stayed put in the bed a few times and watched me walk by. Progress in baby steps.

 

[Kflowers]

Cathi b - One thing you can do for inside cats and dogs who are deaf is to slap the floor when you want to call them. They can feel the vibrations. Start with a slap and a treat thrown in front of them pretty much as you would for calling them.

I did this with mine in case they went deaf at some point. I also taught the dogs hand signals.

 

[Cathi b]

The mom is feral and from appearances she has a rough life. The tips of her ears have been frosted so they are more rounded than they should be. That happens here to a lot of cats, including barn cats since the temps get to as low as 40 below F. About 2/3 of her tail is missing and at the base of it there is what looks like mostly scar tissue with no fur. Since I can't touch her yet I can't tell. I was wondering if she got caught in a trap, but it's hard to know. She might also have lost it in a fight for her life with a something like a weasel or a coyote. That might have also been what effected her voice. She might have gotten bit in the throat. Again I can't tell yet. But even when she went into heat (and still might be) she has never made a sound that I ever heard. Even when scared or fighting with my other cats she makes no sound. I hear mine squalling away but it is only one sided. She got scared and what is left of her tail got all puffed up and it was really funny because it looks kind of like a poodle. She is progressively getting more at ease but she is hard to read because she makes no sound. Most cats will growl if your getting to close in their space but she is totally blank, a fantastic poker face. I have learned to watch her paws more than anything because she has batted my hand a few times when she was uncomfortable. Not with claws out but just a "your to close" thing. She really likes being inside. I think she has figured out she has protection there. When we had some nice days I left the door open (when there was no tom around) and her and the kittens wander out and climb trees and play in the leaves but as soon as they hear the inner door open they dash back inside and hide. I try and make sure they are all in before I close up for the night but since they hide it's sometimes hard to tell. One night one of the kittens got locked outside. These 2 kittens are like inseparable and the one inside was really upset. The one outside was crying it's lungs out which was the most noise I ever heard coming from it. So the kittens can make sounds but they mostly don't. I bought a few wands to try and get them to play and it didn't work. They were afraid of them. But then I found something that does work, half of a fishing pole with a long wide boot string tied to it. They love it but are still trying to figure out how to play. One grabs the string and tries to run away with it and won't let go. He growls softly and just tugs with all his might. Once I get it away from they all chase it a little until it is caught again. Even the mom has been interested in this toy. So I have been using the pole end to poke and stroke them. At first they were afraid but now it's part of play so they are getting used to being touched, even if it is with a pole. I think we will have a breakthrough moment soon. Partly because they are getting tired of jumping up and running everytime I open the door and walk by. In fact one of the kittens has just stayed put in the bed a few times and watched me walk by. Progress in baby steps.

OMG do I feel where you are coming from. Once the deaf cat through herself down on the rug by my feet and I wanted so bad to just touch her below her neck, but then she jumped up. When I was married and raising my 4 kids we would get 1 maybe 2 come around at a time. So we started a challenge, who can be the first to touch the cat, then who could be the first to go outside and the cat would come, then it was who can get the cat to the vet (to be fixed), then who can find this cat a home. I am so thankful that they loved the cats, and would be so patient with them. To this day, my daughter Caitlynn was at work (paramedic in Los Angeles) and was on the frwy, a very busy frwy, she noticed all these cars were stopping and thought oh crap, an accident, nope there was a dog running in the middle of all the lanes, weaving back and forth, so my daughter turned on her siren and got past the few cars in front of her, opened her door and she had him. (She is a manager, so is not in a rig but a work type truck). She took him back to the station and her superior said call animal control we aren’t keeping him, my daughter told him, if you call ac and if he is gone when I get back from this call, “I quit”. When she got back he was there animal control had been there but nothing was done! I was so proud of her!! She brought him home we cleaned his wounds and got him fixed and found him a home in big bear on a 9 acre ranch. This is my life, I love them all and they are all welcome. I work so hard to fix the ones that are broken, and try this day I have not failed. I don’t know if this cat will ever feel safe in my home, but she is curious and comes right to the door that she knows my dogs are at when I open it. I don’t want her to be alone, scared, cold, when winter hit, although we do not get as low temps as you. It an be quit cold. I would love for her to be a part of my family, 4 dogs, 2 cats, and myself. Where are you that it gets so darn cold?? Thank you for your time and wisdom. Working on getting pics up.

 

[Cathi b]

This is her... MAGNIFICENT “!

 

[Cathi b]

Cathi b - One thing you can do for inside cats and dogs who are deaf is to slap the floor when you want to call them. They can feel the vibrations. Start with a slap and a treat thrown in front of them pretty much as you would for calling them.

I did this with mine in case they went deaf at some point. I also taught the dogs hand signals.

Thank you, I have done this. I don’t think I mentioned that I have had a deaf cat a while back. I am using hand signals once she sees me. And to call her I do stomp my feet so she knows I am in the garage and I don’t startle her. I am almost learning all over since it has been 20 some years since I had my snow. Thank you so much for you suggestions, and time!