When can you pick up feral kittens?

gleason

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A feral cat had kittens about 3-1/2 weeks ago. I've been able to pet her when she comes up to the house to get food along with the other cats. She won't let me pick her up tho. She won't come near me any other time. I found the kittens right away. They are in the front seat of a junk pickup truck. She got in there thru the hole in the floor where the transmission would have been. She has no problem with me looking in on her thru the window. Yesterday we were able to get the door partially opened. She was not there at the time. I closed the door and waiting until today. I went out there and she was with the kitties. I talked to her and opened the door slowly. She growled at me and then jumped out the hole. I opened the door and picked up each of the kitties. There are 4 of them. I would like to keep touching them every day so they get used to me and get tamed. I'm concerned she is going to move them now that I touched them. Are they too young to be handled?
 

fionasmom

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Most feral cat advice sites will say that 4 weeks is a good time to start to handle the kittens so that they become socialized to humans. Years ago a very feral mother had kittens in my garage and despite her complete hatred of me, she allowed me and my neighbor to handle the kittens with no problem and never moved them. This is not always the story though and you have to do your best to make a decision for this family. Yes, feral mothers can move kittens if they feel threatened and there is not much of a way to determine if they will do that. How afraid of you does she seem? Just irritated but somehow connects you to the idea that she was able to find shelter for her family? Really defensive? I would go slow with this but try to proceed unless you think that she is about to move them. If that seems not to be happening I would continue to try to forge a friendship with the kittens. Feral moms can sometimes do dumb things when they move a litter in fright.

Do you have any rescue groups near you that can help you with TNR for the mom when the time comes? If the kittens become socialized enough you might not have to trap them in order to get them fixed.
 
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gleason

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No rescue groups around here. Last year I had a similar situation. I had a feral cat that had 5 kittens. I managed to get her tamed and her kittens. When the kittens got big enough I was able to take her and 2 kittens in to a low cost spay/neuter clinic. 2 more went the following month and 1 kitten found his forever home when he was only 8 weeks old. (I stay in touch with the people.) I hope to do the same with this bunch.
I'm just concerned if she will move them as I touched them. We live out in a rural area so there are acres where she could take them and hide them.
 

fionasmom

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You have done a good job with these ferals in a difficult situation. I understand your concern about her taking the kittens who knows where. In your case, I think I would err on the side of caution and not handle the kittens quite as much as you might like to until you see what the mom might do.

Two years ago a feral mom had kittens under my neighbor's house; evidently I live in a pretty dense urban area. No chance of domesticating anyone under those circumstances. One night a coyote came by and grabbed one of the kittens and the mom moved them all from under the house. It was hours of walking the neighborhood asking people to open their garages, call me if there was a sighting, etc. However, she did return them to under the house once she realized that was the best place and we proceeded from there. Even at that, two of them are now indoor pets. If you are the food source for the family, or at least the mom right now, that will be in your favor.
 
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gleason

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Yup I'm her food source. A week and 1/2 ago we had a snow storm with 9" of snow dumped on us. I took a dish with food out to her every day for a couple of days. I could see she was eating it. Snow melted within a couple of days and now she is coming to the garage with the other cats again.
 

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Our local shelter has had many feral cats have kittens at the shelter or brought in with a litter. They're confined to rooms, so they don't have any opportunity to take the kittens elsewhere. It's the same if they're put in a foster home, i.e., they're confined.

The kittens are picked up and handled as soon as they're moving out of their bed(s) on their own. If mama is aggressive, we wait until she's eating before touching the kittens. Generally speaking, if there are more than two kittens, they run in all directions, so the mother cat rarely tries to keep humans away from them all the time or move them much.

If the mother cat is allowing herself to be petted when she comes for food, she may not be a true feral, or she's had enough contact with humans that she won't try to get the kittens completely away from them, IMO.
 
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gleason

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She was a true feral. She started coming in with the other cats last winter along with her sibling. It's a heated garage.. She was quite young at the time. She wouldn't come near me. Always hid behind the car tires till food went in the dishes. When I would go out there, the friendly ones would crowd around me to get a pet and she accidentally joined them in all the excitement. Of course the first time I touched her she ran away. But slowly over time she joined the others for a pet. In the garage, is the only place she will come by me. Hopefully over time that will change.
 

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We've had several young feral moms become tame after watching us interact with their kittens for 3-4 months. Sometimes it doesn't even take that long. I often think it's because they appreciate the babysitting while they eat or nap. :lol:

:vibes::vibes::vibes::vibes:
 
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gleason

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Sad news. Sometime today she moved the kittens to who knows where. They were there this morning but when I went out there just a few minutes ago they were gone. I did not handle them this morning. So not sure if she moved them because I touched them or if she felt threatened by another cat or animal. There was only one way in or out of the cab of the pickup.
 

jcat

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They'll be close by. It probably has nothing to do with you touching them. Mothers - feral or tame - instinctively move their kittens to new nests all the time as some protection from potential predators. Their scent builds up too much if they're left in the same place all the time. We always set up a number of beds and hiding places in the "nurseries" for that reason. An "abandoned" nest is usually reoccupied after the bedding has been replaced and some time has passed.
 

moxiewild

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I’ve had Momma cats move kittens from this too (and even just from trapping), it’s such a hard decision sometimes.

The good news is, she has always stayed nearby.

The bad news is, sometimes by the time you find them or they come back, a kitten or two is missing :( Not always, but it does happen.

What we’ve done in the past is set out or add 2-3 other shelters in the area as soon as we realize she’s moved them - preferably some place that seems very private and blends in with nature, like placing a plastic tote shelter in some shrubbery. So long as we do it within a few days of Momma moving the kittens, she usually always moves them into one of the shelters.

Just keep feeding and place a few smelly snacks like tuna out 1-2x a day to help encourage her to stick around.
 
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gleason

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Well I found her today. She is in a pile of scrap that is next to the pickup cab. I did not see the kittens but she was sitting right there looking at me. She won't come to me but at least I know where she is.She's pretty safe for right now. I can't get to them. She comes up to the house to eat and get water.
 
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gleason

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Today she brought the kittens up to the house into the garage. She brought 2 this morning and then I saw her carrying 1 this afternoon. Now just a little bit ago she brought the 4th one. So they are all here. I made up a little spot for them and they have a place to scurry off and hide if they get scared. She's been growling at me and is hesitant to come close but I think that will change as the days go by. She used to come by me before she brought the kittens to the garage. I hope she keeps them there but with activity in and out of the garage and other cats coming in to eat, I'm not sure she will keep them in there. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
 
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