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Mother cat with four kittens


fulcrum
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I have discovered that a mother cat, with her four kittens, has taken up lodgings in my small rear garden. I believe the kittens are about a month old. Because we are not sure of how long we will be resident here I am reluctant to adopt them although they are extremely cute.

Here's a picture of them. http://s72.photobucket.com/albums/i172/unowaroona/?action=view&current=Catwithkittens.jpg&refPage=&imgAnch=imgAnch1

We are not feeding them as I don't want to encourage them to stay but obviously don't want to see them starve.

Can anyone offer any advice as to what is the best thing to do.



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At the risk of being flamed

 

If you are not prepared to look after them yourself, and if you cannot find someone else who can, the best thing to do would be to put them in a box, take them to the vet and as him/her to put them to sleep.

 

I'm sure that is not what you wanted to hear, but sorry that is my honest opinion.

 

The problem is that there are so many feral cats.  Kitten like this need to be neutered or spayed, but these are too young.  If they are not handled by the time they are old enough to be "done" (6 months or so), they will be totally feral.   You won't get near them.  The whole process then starts again with even more unwanted kittens.  And as a further problem feline AIDS is rife in many feral cat populations.  The kittens are not likely to have it yet even if mum does - but it's just a question of time if it's in your area.

 

And before I am shot down as a cat hater, we have just taken in a stray who has given birth to 4.  We have homes for 2 and will keep the other 2 ourselves.

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The best thing to do if you are not prepared to do anything positive is to not come on here with photos of them saying you do not want to feed them.

If you want to do something for them Fulcrum, do something.  As for the fright about "aids" which is leucose, not all cats have it.  You do not say if the mother is tame or wild.

You do not even say where you are.

Did you want to get the answers you got above or were you hoping for help in doing something for them?

 

 

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I can understand Fulcrum not wanting to start something he cannot keep up with, that wouldn't be fair on the cat and kittens. Perhaps the best thing to do is to take the mother to be spayed at the earliest opportunity and then take all of them, along with a realistic donation, to the local rescue centre or ask at the vets if there is anyone looking for a kitten (or two)

Otherwise andys solution maybe the kindest in the long term.

Where I live there are many fewer kittens during the winter months so hopefully we will not be reading about so many kittens needing homes soon, may be its different in warmer areas ?

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The pragmatic approach:

Have the female spayed as soon as a vet will do it - ie, if possible, now - don't wait.

If you cannot find homes for all the kittens, have 3 put to sleep by the vet and leave one (the friendliest - most friendly towards you) with the mother. Then you've only got one to find a home for and you may also end up feeling you can keep that one yourself.

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[quote user="Mrs MDW"]I'm inclined to agree with Andy.  I've just taken on one, wish I hadn't.[/quote]

Why keep it then? You've put a lot of time and effort (and worry) getting it to a healthy state so if you find you dislike the animal, why not find it a new home?

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I agree with you Catalpa. I have read this before from MDW. I find it to be pretty low. If you don't like your pet please find someone that will take it in and love it . I for one have heard enough of how you don't like this poor little kitten![:@]  By the way please change your name because you give people the first impression you are an animal lover [6]

 

As far as Fulcrum, I agree with the other posters. You seem to be a caring enough person to post a statement and a photo on here. I would assume you would want to do the right and humane thing and take them to the vet. If you do not have the time or cannot be bothered, have the Mother spayed and perhaps the vet can find homes for the poor kittens. Who is feeding the mother cat in the meantime?

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I don't want to hijack Fulcrum's problem, but re MDW's kitten, it's a fact that not everyone who likes (even loves) dogs will like cats. They are such different beasts. I do like both and tbh, if I could only have one animal, it would always be a Maine Coon cat, but I just think there's no disgrace in admitting you're wrong about taking in an animal - discovering that it just isn't right for you. In which case there's also no disgrace in finding it a new home.

MDW will now arrive to tell us she could never part with Biskit (sp?) and was only complaining in a loving, raising eyebrows to the heavens, sort of way! [:P]

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[quote user="Christine Animal"]

The best thing to do if you are not prepared to do anything positive is to not come on here with photos of them saying you do not want to feed them.

[/quote]

I think that is being a bit hard.  They have arrived in Fulcrum's garden unannounced and uninvited.  To start doing anything would be to take on a commitment that you have to be prepared could last the lifetime of the animal.  That is major and no one in this circumstance should feel ashamed to have the courage to say I am not prepared, or cannot, commit to that.  Kittens like dogs are for life.

[quote user="Christine Animal"]

If you want to do something for them Fulcrum, do something.  As for the fright about "aids" which is leucose, not all cats have it. 

[/quote]

 

Not according to our vet.  Leucose can be prevented through innoculation.  Feline aids is similar but there is no preventative treatment and no cure.  And of course not all have it, but in our area very very many do.

 

As for the suggestion to let one live given by someone else; sorry if there is no one to look after it than this is sentimental folly.  These kittens are about 3-4 weeks old.  In a couple of weeks they should start weaning.  In 6-8 weeks they should essentially be fully weaned.  That means Christmas.  You remember Christmas?

 

as in:

 

Good King Wesaslas looked out

On the feast of Stephen

When the snow lay round about

deep and crisp and even.

 

That is:

deep enough to bury a small kitten

crisp enough to totally freeze its undernourished body

and even the most hard hearted of you cannot think that this is a good way for a kitten to die.

 

Born this late in the year they will require shelter warmth and food to stand a good chance of lasting through the winter.

 

 

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Yes, it may have been hard, but I do not understand why someone posts a picture of fluffy little kittens with their mother looking up saying "I don't want to feed them, but I don't want them to starve".  It is also hard for us to see such a picture in these circumstances.

I know it's not Fulcrum's fault if they are in their garden.  Fulcrum did not have to take on a lifetime commitment by feeding them until a solution could perhaps be found.  But they have not come back to say what area they are in to try to help find a solution.  Is the mother wild, is she tame, does she belong to the local farm, is she homeless?

I don't knw what you mean Andy by "not according to our vet" and "feline aids".  There is felv (Leucose) for which there is a vaccine.  There is fiv for which there is no vaccine.  But that does not mean that all cats  have it.

 

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Christine

I accept that not all cats have it.   But in some areas it is very prevalent.  I certainly don't want to scare people, but they should be aware.  And one way of protecting animals is to have them spayed and neutered which reduces sexual contact and also (in males at least) the contact through aggresive defense of territory.

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I'll agree with you on that one Andy  [:)]  The vets can easily do a test for felv and fiv.

As long as they are not in contact with other cats to spread the virus, they can have long lives (porteurs sains).  Sometimes they become ill and as you say, there is no cure.  But one day back in the Perche the most beautiful beige/cream coloured cat was trying to climb our gate and crying her little head off.  She was so beautiful I called her Marilyn.  We have all our cats tested before putting them with the others and Marilyn was positive felv.  We kept her separate from the others, spayed and tattooed, and we had her for years.  She finally died of old age.

Fulcrum, sorry if I was a little hard the other day, I was already a bit upset about another problem.  Can you let us have some news?

 

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Thanks for all the "helpfull" replies.

I didn't (Christine) come on here with any ulteria motive or post a picture just to make everyone go "Ooooh aren't they sweet". I really thought a picture would help in telling their age and that the mother may be ferule or not. Even though she looks calm in the picture. She spat at me when I came too close. When I took the pictures of them she had calmed down.

I am at present very busy trying to renovate my old small run down town house and am not sure of my movements between here and UK over the next few months. The last thing I need is to take on the responsibility of four kittens and their mother, however sweet they are, just to abandon them as real winter sets in.

Also there is another complication. The woman next door may have an interest in them as she was feeding one of them and told me also that the kittens had moved from down the end of her garden and had mysteriously ended up in our garden. I am not sure if I understood her clearly. I certainly don't want to fall out with the neighbours over vets fees etc...and will be asking them if they have any interest before I take action.

I live in Tonneins (47).

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Thanks Christine.

I have this morning spoken to the neigbour and she tells me her daughter wants one of the kittens and she will let me know if any others might be wanted. It also turns out that she is feeding the mother as well. So things are not all bad.

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