Stray Cat Gave Birth

[vanellym]

Continued good luck with your kitties. I call mine kitty most of the time too, sometimes my kitty and only about 10% of the time Luciano (his given name).

Its funny because my friends and family never know which cat im talking about , but a little update : they are all about 190 grams! Friday is a whole week since they were born! Today I let the black cat roam more time in the whole room that we fell asleep together! I love her so much , its going to be bittersweet saying goodbye to her when she goes to a forever home

 

[ileen]

More pics please, individual ones if you can.

 

[vanellym]

Trying to get more pics of individual kitties , but its so hard! Specially since its just me since she only trust me to handle them and my family came to town so im not even home as much as I used to... but finally the weekend is here and I get to spend my whole day trying to take pictures

 

[vanellym]

This is them! Only the little black one lets me carry her now... I put a little rat toy as a prop since the tabby are closer to each other than with the tuxedo kitty. The mom seems to be tired already of being a mom , lol.

I'll post these pictures again on my instagram ! @catsofvm Hopefully the quality shows better there than here...

 

[vanellym]

Hi..

So I've been caring for a mom cat with her 3 kittens , they're 2 weeks old!

In my local facebook group , I posted an update about them. This women messaged me if I could take in 3 ( 2 week old too) kittens to see if my cat would nurse them.

Currently they're outside since her daughter allergic and she also made a post saying this:

Their mom hasn't been back for them and I'm not experienced with kittens. We live out on a ranch and their mom comes and goes. If anyone could please take them in and care for them I would appreciate it. My youngest daughter is severely allergic to cats so I cannot take them into the house to care for them.

She said now that the cat has been missing for a week now and she suspects that an aggressive cat attacked her or someone took her since she never goes far.

Right now , the kitties are outside in a ranch. She bottle feeds them now.


Im new to kittens and nursing cats , whats the probability that my cat will accept those new babies..

Best part , she said she will be helping with food / care for the mom while the kittens are under my care. She said she will find them 3 a home once weened.

I still need to ask my mom for permission ( cons of living with parents.)

But if she says yes , any advice anyone can give me?

 

[golondrina]

Hi Vannellym,
It is very nice and generous on your part to be considering the possibility of taking care of the 3 additional kitties. However if I remember rightly in your other thread you mentioned that your mom cat is already rather tired and that she treads sometimes on her 3 little ones. She would now have to feed and deal with 6 kitties instead of 3. Also should she refuse to nurse the new kittens they would have to be bottled fed something you cannot do since you are away at school. Also you haven't said how far from you lives the person who is asking you for help. What will happen if your mom cat refuses them? will she take them back?

My advice is that you discuss all this with your mother fully before making any decisions.

 

[Wile]

Hi Vanellym,

I agree with golondrina that you taking these kittens might not be for the best. You have to put the wellbeing of your own cats first. Unfortunately you do not know anything about these kittens and it sounds like their current owners also know very little about them. I suspect that these kittens haven't been vetted, and it is possible they have parasites or some kind of illness that could be transmitted to your cats. It just isn't worth the risk.

I'm sure this other family could look into a local shelter if they aren't able to take on the responsibility. If you want to help you could offer to spread the message for them on social media.

 

[vanellym]

hat your mom cat is already rather tired

Yes , thats what I thought when she first mention it to me , but I thought it was worth a shot

they would have to be bottled fed

And if she did refuse them , the women will take them back since I dont have time to feed them. I was thinking of them coming on the weekend for I can really observe them.

I will be discussing it with my mom since I think we are passing the pet limit in my apartments now ... honestly I would loved to be able to help but I guess I dont know if the cat or even me are capable of looking after another 3 kitties due to lack of resources and space. Thank you for bringing me back to earth , sometimes I think only about the positives and forget that there could be negatives...

 

[1 bruce 1]

I'm unfamiliar with the other thread golondrina mentioned.
You're very sweet to even consider this or wanting to do this even though it would be extra work for you all.
Is your cat that has the two week old babies a first time mother?
What these kittens might need is a very experienced mother cat that loves being a mom. Even if the owner of the cat needs to bottle feed them (which they will unless she's lactating), the kittens can nurse/suckle anyway and get comfort from the mother cat that bottle feeding just can't always do.
Could you keep sharing on your social media page to hopefully find someone who would have a suitable mother cat? If there are any animal or specifically cat groups in your area that you're not a member of (their page/group), you could ask to join and keep spreading the word.
Your intentions are very, very good. If you do decide to take these kittens, I would make sure they go from the ranch straight to the vet before bringing them home so the vet can make sure everyone is healthy enough to mix.

 

[vanellym]

The thread she's referring too is a long thread I made 2 weeks ago when she gave birth , basically I post all my cat related stuff here always!

s your cat that has the two week old babies a first time mother?

She was a stray about a year old , I suspect this is her first time on how she's acting.

the kittens can nurse/suckle anyway and get comfort from the mother cat that bottle feeding just can't always do.

Yes, I know there nothing better than the real deal of a nursing mom and her milk ,thats why I wanted to help.

Could you keep sharing on your social media page to hopefully find someone who would have a suitable mother cat? If there are any animal or specifically cat groups in your area that you're not a member of (their page/group), you could ask to join and keep spreading the word.

I was stalking a bit the women's facebook page and she does seem to keep spreading the word. The group were in has found nursing mom so I hope that those kittens find one soon :/

 

[1 bruce 1]

The thread she's referring too is a long thread I made 2 weeks ago when she gave birth , basically I post all my cat related stuff here always!

She was a stray about a year old , I suspect this is her first time on how she's acting.

Yes, I know there nothing better than the real deal of a nursing mom and her milk ,thats why I wanted to help.

I was stalking a bit the women's facebook page and she does seem to keep spreading the word. The group were in has found nursing mom so I hope that those kittens find one soon :/

I hope they find one, too.
Did you manage to talk with her vet on this one? They might have some more ideas.
Another shot in the dark idea is a dog (I know, weird) that's a long time brooder and has had pups and is kitten friendly. It's a 1 in 100 shot in the dark, but weirder things have happened because really motherly types don't usually have a species barrier.

 

[vanellym]

No , the vet is closed on weekends. And I went ahead and told her about a organization that could help , they even sometimes take cats to other non kill shelters outside our town. The vet I go to also fosters other cats so hopefully they have a nursing one or know of one. Since I cant personally help her , I'll be on the look for another nursing mom.

And I'll go ahead and read more about dog nursing a kitten and tell her the idea.

 

[vanellym]

So what I was hoping wouldn't come , came...

FLEAS!

So im caring for a stray cat and her 2 week old kitties.

I bought her in when she deliver the babies so I never got to shower her. I wiped her with some cat wipes , I mean they just clean the surface not really for fleas or anything else.

I never see her scratch herself so I was hoping I got lucky and she had none. But now while looking at the kitties , one of them had a flea walking on his stomach.

Can I shower the kitties , if so, with what and how?
Can I shower the mom with oatmeal shampoo for cats? It's the one I bought for my cat for whenever he would be dirty from the outside.
Is flea shampoo safe for both cats and kittens?
BTW here in texas , we are getting cold weather (50-40'sF) and our house is a bit colder despite our efforts on keeping it warmer... should I take extra precautions because of the weather?

The mom cat during the day she's out comes lays in my bed ... should I stop that in order to prevent them from spreading to my cat?

Advice please! And I added an updated picture of the kittens! They are now starting to really walk

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi!
They are darling!

You're right you do want to make sure they stay warm.

How To Treat Fleas In Young Kittens

How To Safely Bathe A Cat: The Complete Guide

How To Bathe Small Kittens The Safe Way

 

[BlueJay]

I'm not sure about flea shampoo on kittens, many flea products shouldn't be used until 8 weeks of age. The oatmeal shampoo should be fine for mom, but read the label, if it says it's not safe for younger kittens I might avoid it. As for the bed and spreading to your cat...if they have been sharing spaces at all, beds, couches, etc, they have probably already spread. Showering all of the cats will not be enough to get rid of the fleas. They lay eggs quickly and scatter all over. I'm not sure what you should use since the kittens are so young, hopefully someone else has ideas, otherwise call your vet and ask for recommendations. At the very least comb through the kittens every day with flea comb and wash all of their bedding/any bedding the cats come into contact with, vacuum everything including furniture, any thing that can be cleaned should be. Every day. Cleaning and combing probably won't be enough to get rid of fleas, but it will certainly reduce the number of them. Also watch out for anemia in the kittens, they are at a higher risk from the fleas.

Oh and someone mentioned recently that they leave pans/bowls of soapy water out at night with a night light over them. This attracts the fleas and drowns them. But it can also drown kittens and be harmful for adult cats to drink, so be careful, and don't use it in their room unless they are in a crate where you are absolutely certain they can't get to it. Fleas are more active at night.

 

[vanellym]

lso watch out for anemia in the kittens, they are at a higher risk from the fleas.

Ive read about it, so tmmrw I will be starting the process on trying to get rid of them , also will be calling the vet to see what they recommend me to do. I went ahead and showered my cat today and switched my sheets. I wish I had seen them earlier instead of 9pm -.-

Oh and someone mentioned recently that they leave pans/bowls of soapy water out at night with a night light over them.

Coincidence:I literally just got some little decoration lights for water... I might try it and see how the mom reacts to it. Do you know how close the bowl has to be to the kittens?I'm not that worry for them to drown since the mom always puts them back when they try to escape their bed.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi! Just checking in to wish you good luck, and let us know how things go

 

[vanellym]

Hi! Just checking in to wish you good luck, and let us know how things go

Its the end of the day , and I got to shower all kittens and mom cat! Thankfully she did not scratch me, she did escape the bathtub several times but it wasn't anything hard to deal with. I went ahead and took her back to the closet to shower the kitties.She seems to really trust me only so I had to do everything alone.The b&w one was the best at handling the water.I was so scared of them getting hypothermia , I think I was shaking more than them.

They are now dry, sleeping, and drinking milk.

I went ahead and put them all together when they were all dry in the closet, I remove their bed ( to wash it) and I put blankets.

The top blanket is white and there is a bit of blood...just a little drop of it.
Someone ( I think the mom) also left drops of blood when I first put them in , then it stopped, and now its back. Not sure how to feel about it, or to take her to the vet or not.

 

[Furballsmom]

Hi again-can you call your vet about that blood?

 

[vanellym]

Hi. Any ideas what this is?
I know ( most likely) the mom bleeds every once in a while but its just a dot and its visibly red.

This looks orange and is somewhat spread in other places of the blankets.

Is it poop or throw up? The Kittys are 3 weeks old and seem to smell the mom's litter box ( they cant get in since its taller than them)

I checked their private parts and everything seems fine...

Is it time for a vet visit?