Posted on 11/11/2005 10:24:14 AM PST by Joe in Norfolk
I was told this is a site with expertise on cats so I came here.
My wife did not take our cat to be fixed like I told her to do and the cat got pregnant.
She went over to under an old shed to have the kittens and nursed them there, too.
Now the kittens are a couple of months old and are starting to move around some, but they are very afraid of humans even though they see the mother around us. They run under the shed when anybody comes near them.
They are starting to get too old to nurse, so I don't know what they will do for food since they want come near anyone.
Does anybody know what we should do about those kittens?
The shelter won't take them. I do know of a ranch a few miles from here, well away from the heavily traveled roads, that has a lot of feral cats...along with tame ones. They fare very well there and serve to keep the rodent population down. I've considered catching them and taking them out there and turning them loose. Perhaps a better thing to do would be to get the females spayed and THEN turn them loose. That could get really expensive though.
Around here, there's always a shelter that'll take them. Some spay for free if you did the work of catching them - it's sort of a catch and release program in some areas.
Cats are some of the best survivors on earth as evidenced by their large populations all over. Catch them and drop them at the farm.
Second, are these kitties truly feral, or are they just homeless? Huge difference, especially for the babies and the ones you suspect of being abandoned pets. I would say even if they are feral, most can become, at the very least , friendly with their feeder.
If you have youngsters or kittens out there now, trap them first. They are adoptable, plus they are cute, so people will want them.
Talk to your vet and look in your paper. There are probably kitty rescuers in your area, and maybe even groups who can help you if they are really feral. We even have houses that are dedicated to nothing but homeless kitties.
I'm really surprised at your Humane Society. Perhaps you should talk to another person there, or trap the nice ones and take them there to be adopted. Tell them they are abandoned, not feral.
Depending on how long it takes you to catch them all and disperse them, you might consider getting the mama kitties fixed, or the problem will just get worse. I know my vet will take in homeless pregnant mommies, delivers the babies, and adopts them out herself. She even has one kitty that lives in the office who was a feral pregnant mommy. She is not really fat, happy, and loving.
Good luck. You might even look on the internet to see if you can find more information, or perhaps a rescue group in your area.
I'm late to this thread and haven't read the responses yet. But a couple of VERY wild and feral cats came to me (actually more, but they all got eaten gradually or died of disease) and the two left produced two litters. Naturally Mom, being compeletely wild, wanted her kittens to be wild, too.
We tamed them. Mom never got completely tame, and finally got eaten. Dad who used to be very wild now lets me pat him and acts like a kitten. The one remaining cat of the first litter (we gave most away) is completely tame.
You just have to spend time with them, handling them, talking to them, and if you can, bringing them in the house. (I can't do that because of asthma.) You'll tame them if you want to - you just HAVE to put the time into it. Do it immediately before they get any wilder.
Let us know how it works out!
Collars with little bells. We got one for a bird eater and its eeems to have worked.
I'm afraid I'm in the "harm the cats" category. Look at it this way... if you trap them and take them to some shelter that's willing to have them, they'll be killed anyway because they're not adoptable. Surely there is an animal control agency nearby that you can take them to.
I'm going to make an admission here. I live way out in the country and I have a trap. If I'm having a problem with a cat, I catch it and take it for a loooong drive to an unpopulated area. The only other option is the animal control people, and that's a guaranteed dirt nap. I figure I'm at least giving the thing a chance.
Sounds to me like you've got some new cats :~D At least the very friendly female you could have spayed and keep :~D
We have cats, and birds and squirrels, the squirrels are pretty dang nimble and we have enough trees that the cats don't stand a big chance of catching them.
Oh and bell collars would really help, if you intend to keep them. Don't do it if you expect them to hunt and survive on their own.
Expense aside, it's the best thing to do, whether you keep them or not. You can perhaps find out about low cost spay neuter specials in your area... sometimes clinics do cheap fixing specials in the spring.
You lost me with this sentence.
I hope your stay here is short. We don't need anymore of what you're selling.
Anyone in need of an AWWWWW! fix, see post #112.
White one has very light blue eyes, and they always end up glaring pink, which I'm working on learning to fix in photoshop but haven't gotten to look good yet :~\
The little black one is easy to photograph. She's got great eyes even in the flash.
Awwww. Thanks, they're so cute. I need a kitten to keep my old cat company.
"The problem with a kitten is THAT,
Eventually it grows up to be a CAT!"
---Ogden Nash
The "awwww" factor for those two is just off the charts.
Awwwwww, indeed.
They are soooooooooo adorable.
When can I come over and pick one to take home? ;)
NOT my farm, please. Far too many people do this already. Just because people live on a farm it is not reasonable to expect them to be any happier to deal with feral/abandoned cats than you are. We already have as many cats as we can possibly accomodate. They are an expense for neutering and feeding and veterinary care. Either take care of them yourself ... or find some other way to dispose of them. Do not drop them at a farm where they are not wanted.
Hello there,
Have kitties? :-))
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