Should I foster a kitten?
I met this young lady while I was out at Petsmart, and she had the teeny tiniest black kitty. It was soooooo Cute!
Anywho, so she was getting help from one of the employees there who was giving her tips on how to take care of it, and it turns out that she has four of them! She found them somewhere outside, and has taken them all in with no prior knowledge, bless her heart.
They are only four weeks old, I don't think she knows where the mom is and it doesn't sound like she can keep any of them after she raises them. I wanted to take it home with me right Then and There but knew that I couldn't.
I just stood there transfixed and followed her to the cash register and held it while she paid for the formula. I was saying how I wish I could take it so badly and she asked if I wanted her phone number and I said yes.
I know that I couldn't keep any of them because when I move in with my boyfriend (eventually) he will only let me keep one animal. (He originally wanted nothing, but he sees how much I love Grimalkin so he wouldn't make me give him up.) But I want to help her out so badly, she doesn't know what she's going to do with them all and I know this is kitten season..
So my related questions are:
How long should the kitten stay with its litter mates before it can be fostered?
Is there something special in kitten food or is it basically just higher calorie/higher protein than regular cat food?
If that is true, then couldn't a high quality food (Merrick, Wellness, EVO, etc) be a healthy substitute? Because those brands will be higher protein/calories than kitten food of say Iams, right?
Would I need to have her vaccinate and test them for parasites before I took one, or would that be my responsibility?
Do you think an adult male cat would have a hard time getting along with a young kitten? Or is it that baby syndrome where he won't see it as a threat?
Is it my responsibility to adopt out the kitten/help her adopt it out?
What else do I need to know about fostering?
Thanks in advance!!
I met this young lady while I was out at Petsmart, and she had the teeny tiniest black kitty. It was soooooo Cute!
Anywho, so she was getting help from one of the employees there who was giving her tips on how to take care of it, and it turns out that she has four of them! She found them somewhere outside, and has taken them all in with no prior knowledge, bless her heart.
They are only four weeks old, I don't think she knows where the mom is and it doesn't sound like she can keep any of them after she raises them. I wanted to take it home with me right Then and There but knew that I couldn't.
I just stood there transfixed and followed her to the cash register and held it while she paid for the formula. I was saying how I wish I could take it so badly and she asked if I wanted her phone number and I said yes.
I know that I couldn't keep any of them because when I move in with my boyfriend (eventually) he will only let me keep one animal. (He originally wanted nothing, but he sees how much I love Grimalkin so he wouldn't make me give him up.) But I want to help her out so badly, she doesn't know what she's going to do with them all and I know this is kitten season..
So my related questions are:
How long should the kitten stay with its litter mates before it can be fostered?
Is there something special in kitten food or is it basically just higher calorie/higher protein than regular cat food?
If that is true, then couldn't a high quality food (Merrick, Wellness, EVO, etc) be a healthy substitute? Because those brands will be higher protein/calories than kitten food of say Iams, right?
Would I need to have her vaccinate and test them for parasites before I took one, or would that be my responsibility?
Do you think an adult male cat would have a hard time getting along with a young kitten? Or is it that baby syndrome where he won't see it as a threat?
Is it my responsibility to adopt out the kitten/help her adopt it out?
What else do I need to know about fostering?
Thanks in advance!!