Hello all. I have been feeding a stray cat for a couple of months. I was sure she was pregnant now I'm sure she has given birth. She is heavy with milk and has suckling marks around her teats. She is very scared and doesn't let me get near her. I can get her just inside the kitchen door to eat. Problem is I have no idea where the kittens are. I am willing to take them all in as I don't want them to grow up feral. But I'm not sure how she would react. I have an idea the area the kittens are in but have not found them yet. If I do what are the best options? Thanks.
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Stray Cat With New Kittens
- Thread starter Gemma l k
- Start Date
You have two options, You can sneakily watch the mother cat to see where she has the nest of kittens, then trap her and take her and the kittens inside. You might be able to borrow a cat condo from a rescue organization to keep them in (or have a spare room where the mother can not escape to keep them in) That's what I did. The other option is to wait till the kittens are old enough to be away from the mother at four to six weeks of age. Either way you should borrow a trap from a rescue organization to trap the mother and get her fixed. The first option is best for the kittens, the longer they are with the mother, the better for their health and socialization. And if you wait for the kittens to be old enough, you risk not being able to find them, as the mother may move the nest. If you have neighbors or kids around you could ask them to help you watch were the mother goes to discover the nest, but tell them not to touch the kittens as this will cause the mother to move them. I offered the maintenance guys beer at my apartment complex to find kittens.
Yes, I agree with what
surya
mentioned. It's also good to take momma cat off the streets and have her spayed too.
Does she allows you to pet her since it's nice to see her eating inside your kitchen as this is kind of a bonding time with her. Better still that if your house is her only stop for food.
If you plan to take them in, prepare a safe room beforehand so that once you get them, they can settle in earlier rather than to start moving stuffs while they are there and all the moving might make them uneasy.
surya
mentioned. It's also good to take momma cat off the streets and have her spayed too. Does she allows you to pet her since it's nice to see her eating inside your kitchen as this is kind of a bonding time with her. Better still that if your house is her only stop for food.
If you plan to take them in, prepare a safe room beforehand so that once you get them, they can settle in earlier rather than to start moving stuffs while they are there and all the moving might make them uneasy.
At about 2-3 weeks of age, it is common for the kittens to start appearing. Try to get a head count before you trap mom. If she is difficult to trap, you can try to find the nest, capture the kittens and put them in one side of a two-sided trap (block off the side with an old pet carrier gate or some wire mesh or something similar). Give the kittens a small nest to snuggle into, and if it is cold, add a rice-or-cornmeal sock, heated and wrapped in a terrycloth. You can use a towel to cover that side with the kittens. The maternal instinct is very strong and it usually doesn't take much meowing. But just in case she is really shy about going into the trap, keep a kitten-care kit at the ready so you can feed & "diaper" them (I strongly recommend using goats milk, raw if you can buy it from a local farmer or 4-H/FFA member [the county farm advisor and the local vets usually can direct you to a source] or canned or powdered goat-milk-kitten-glop). There is lots of excellent advice on our member Hissy's website: www.kitten-rescue.com.
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #5
Thank you all so much. I have found the nest. Only saw 1 kitten but I didn't hang around in case she got upset. In answer to above. No she doesn't let me let her. But I sit next to her whilst she eats. So she is familiar and comfortable in my kitchen with me close by. My plan is to socialise the kittens and then neuter the mother and keep her is she wants to stay. I'm hoping to get the mum on the next day or so then go collect the babies. Thanks again for the great advice.
Keep us updated 
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #7
Thanks all for the advice. It really helped. The mum cat came in to eat. So I just shut the door then went out another and collected the kittens. I had got everything needed in advance. I brought leaves from the nest and put them on the bed with the kittens. Took a couple of hrs for her to settle down. But she has eaten. Fed them and now all sleeping together. So fingers crossed now.
How many kittens ?
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #9
2. I am confident non were missed. As once I found the nest I had a neighbour keep checking from their window. Only 2 were seen a few times. Also there was no where any other kittens could have gone. I knew she was pregnant and my neighbour fed her whilst I was out of the country and when I returned she had had them. She wasn't massive so I was surprised it was that soon or suspected she would have a small litter. She conveniently totally ignored the outdoor shelter I bought. Just on case that happened ha ha
That's wonderful! 
It'll be good if momma stay on with the kittens
Shows us photos if you can
It'll be good if momma stay on with the kittens
Shows us photos if you can
- Thread Starter Thread Starter
- #11
I don't know if this will help...
I take photos with my phone. Then I send them by phone to my email account. From there I save them to my computer. Then I use "Upload a File" here to post them.
These two, Peko and Bootsy, are from my local feral mama kitty. We were never able to find homes so they are now part of the family.
We actually found Little Figgy here 4 months before Peko and Bootsy. Same mama and papa kitty. Mama kitty has since been spayed. We figure she was having 3 litters a year.
Kudos to the OP for taking such trouble to rescue momma & her babies. People like this make us forget all the cruelty in the world. 
