Advice on neighborhood cat in my garage.

barb1910

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All through the summer a mother cat would visit from across the street. She is very sweet and lets me pet her. About 3 weeks age we found 3 kittens in our car engine. They would go into the under carriage when you would open the hood. They moved to the neighbors car. These folks are not cat lovers. The kittens were estimated to be about 7 weeks old. I was able to get one of them and a friend of mine, who is involved in rescue, took that kitten. I could never get the other 2. The neighbor drove off in his car on Sunday and the kittens were gone. Mama cat looked and looked for her kittens.
She seems to have settled down and spends most of her time in our garage on a chair. I feed her there.
We are retired and doing fine but do not have the $600 to get her spayed and evaluated at our vet. I have an appointment on 11/2 to get her spayed, her shots, etc. with a local vet that works with folks trying to help cats.
My question is: should I lock her in our garage for 20 days. She gets upset at night if she cannot get out. She may already be pregnant again. any thoughts or advice would be welcome. We have always had cats but they were gotten as kittens and spayed or neutered immediately and inside cats. We hope to transition this sweet girl inside after her spay.
 

fionasmom

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Welcome to The Cat Site and thank you for helping these cats. The part about the neighbor driving off in the car and the kittens meeting their fate is quite upsetting and certainly was out of your control. You really did a great thing in having your friend in rescue take the single kitten. I don't think that you should be looking at $600 for spaying and shots and an evaluation. You aren't having ultrasounds done, or serious diagnostics. Three weeks is a long time to have the cat locked in a garage and there might be repercussions from doing that, such as you accidentally open the door and she bolts out and now finding her becomes a big chore. Are you concerned that she may have more kittens in the next three weeks? Signs of pregnancy? If she is not pregnant now, or just so, I would let her be spayed as scheduled. If she is safe around your property and friendly to you, as you say, it might just be best to let that continue on for the next three weeks and then get her to the vet. The garage is her safe haven and hopefully she will continue to sit in her chair and get her food there as she has done.
 
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barb1910

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I cannot tell at this time if she is pregnant. She is eating well here but has a bit of a belly and seems to be getting some milk. Not very experienced in mama cats. We have always have had cats but got them as kittens and had them altered and vaccinated immediately. However, before our bad rains here in Texas I did lock her up. I do not think she brought the kittens to our cars. They were out and about and I believe the kittens found the cars as a safe haven. Before the rain when she was out and about she crawled up into the under carriage of the other neighbors truck. I find that worrisome. We do not need any more kittens in vehicles. I am the only one in the neighborhood who seems to care about our rapidly increasing cat problem. The vet who reduces their rate for helping cats will call if they get a cancellation. Thanks for your thoughts.
 
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barb1910

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The Texas Coalition for Animal Protection will spay her for free but you have to show up and stand in line and maybe you will get in and maybe you will not. They only give rabies shots to community cats. That was an option until I broke my foot. They will spay a cat that belongs to you and give an exam and shots but the first spay opening is in December. The vet that is helping will charge $200 to spay, vaccinate, and check for all diseases. Miss Kitty, as we call her, is very sweet. She lets me pick her up and loves to be held. The first time I saw her this summer is when I opened the front door and she thought she could come in. Obviously someone just dumped her.:mad:
 
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barb1910

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We have lived in this neighborhood for 20 years and have only noticed a stray cat problem this summer.
 
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barb1910

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More help please. I decided to let Miss Kitty out this morning. The neighbor has gone in his car. Miss Kitty still goes and sits under his car. Today she sat under my car and sniffed the under carriage. I know for a fact that her kittens were in the neighbor's car when he drove off on Sunday. However, she must still smell her kittens or instinct tells her where they have been. Like I posted earlier, she seems to be attracted to cars. Not sure how to tell if she is pregnant.
 

fionasmom

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Can you keep her inside your house or start to work on that? You said that you might after she was spayed. Yes, she still remembers where she last saw her kittens and is lurking around cars, which is not good in the case of your neighbor. If he does not like cats in general, that could also bode badly for her.

You are not alone, sadly, in the fact that you are the only one concerned about the cat population.

How To Tell If My Cat Is Pregnant? – TheCatSite Articles
 
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barb1910

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I would love to bring her in. However, we have an indoor cat. I really need Miss Kitty evaluated by the vet and spayed before I bring her in. Unfortunately, we have her in the garage at this time. She has a kitty tower, toys, and a snuggly bed. It is Texas so the temperatures are moderate at this time. I am first on the list for a cancellation at the vet for her spay and evaluation. Also, we put her in the garage because she went up in the under carriage of another neighbors truck and ran across the street. I have heard there is a large feral car colony 2 streets over and I was fearful for her. She is so sweet and lets me hold her and jumps in my lap. My husband and I feel awful about confining her but do not know what else to do.
 

fionasmom

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I think that under the circumstances you are doing the best for her. Many, if not most, of these issues with ferals/strays are not ideal and she is very lucky that you are helping her.
 
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