- Joined
- Nov 20, 2012
- Messages
- 15
- Purraise
- 1
Hello! On Friday, Nov 9th I discovered a mama cat and her three kittens on my front porch. They kept their distance when I went outside - the kittens hid in the bushes. I put out food and made a little shelter on the front porch. They started visiting regularly and eventually started sleeping in the shelter. I loved watching them through our front door.
My husband and I were making progress with the mama cat. I would bring out some soft food in a little dish and set it on the front walk. Each time I'd be a little closer to the dish and last time she ate it while I was just 3-4 feet away. Then one day she came into the garage after I got home from work!
We were trying to work up to luring them into our laundry room so that we could find homes for them. We might have kept the mama cat or one of the kittens.
BUT then a big snag happened! An orange tom started showing up. He seems much wilder than mama cat. Once he showed up, mama cat stopped sleeping in our shelter. I've seen her stop by a couple times for food, but haven't seen the kitten at all. I've been chasing away the orange cat - I don't think I could tame him anyway. Yesterday I didn't see mama cat at all.
I'm so sad! And I don't know what to do. Should I stop putting food out so that the orange cat will go away? But then mama cat may stop coming, too. Should I setup a new shelter in the back of our house, hoping mama cat will go there? I've seen her in the backyard and she seems to have setup shop somewhere behind my neighbors house. (We live in a wooded rural area.)
Do you think mama cat will return? It's been so nice out, I'm sure she's finding enough mice to keep them fed.
And will they survive the winter if they don't return? We live in Minnesota.
Thanks.
My husband and I were making progress with the mama cat. I would bring out some soft food in a little dish and set it on the front walk. Each time I'd be a little closer to the dish and last time she ate it while I was just 3-4 feet away. Then one day she came into the garage after I got home from work!
We were trying to work up to luring them into our laundry room so that we could find homes for them. We might have kept the mama cat or one of the kittens.
BUT then a big snag happened! An orange tom started showing up. He seems much wilder than mama cat. Once he showed up, mama cat stopped sleeping in our shelter. I've seen her stop by a couple times for food, but haven't seen the kitten at all. I've been chasing away the orange cat - I don't think I could tame him anyway. Yesterday I didn't see mama cat at all.
I'm so sad! And I don't know what to do. Should I stop putting food out so that the orange cat will go away? But then mama cat may stop coming, too. Should I setup a new shelter in the back of our house, hoping mama cat will go there? I've seen her in the backyard and she seems to have setup shop somewhere behind my neighbors house. (We live in a wooded rural area.)
Do you think mama cat will return? It's been so nice out, I'm sure she's finding enough mice to keep them fed.
And will they survive the winter if they don't return? We live in Minnesota.
Thanks.