Feral kitten HELP & advice, please!

[~*mikie*~]

I so agree about the cat carrier, Hollis! Since Abie "lived" in one for a couple wks on the sunporch when he got here, loading him up for the vet is a breeze. Willie, our girl, *only* associates the cat carrier with the vet & she gets really distressed when being put in there & yowls the whole way. It *isn't* funny, but when they go to the vet, they go together..we place the cat carriers face to face in the back seat. Willie starts yowling as soon as she's in there...& Abie yowls in sympathy...& OMG, I am *grateful* the vet is only 10 minutes away, hehe. We're nervous wrecks by the time we get there. On the way home, not a peep out of either one. We're always all exhausted,LOL.

We were really careful introducing Abie to Willie (& at that time, Ginger,too). The cat carrier was invaluable & I kept it in the spare room with the door ajar for a long time.

Hubby got home & did *not* volunteer to go feed & water the baby, let alone adopt her (*yet*), so I hightailed it down there myself. No sign of her at all but she'd polished off yesterday's canned food & still had plenty of dry food & water. I left her fresh water & a fresh can of food & came home. I'll go early morning tomorrow when she feels safe. The druggies in that bldg (sigh!) sleep from dawn-noonish, & that's when she feels safest coming out to see me....so I'll take food & water & go sit w/her awhile.

Then I'll come home & keep working on hubby,lol. I keep asking the cats if they want a little sister , so he *knows* what *I* want...

mikie, hopeful mama to>>>>>

DSC00352(1).jpg (9.04 KiB) Viewed 3288 times

Lil Bits, who shall be known as Bitsy

[ladycattat]

Hi Mikie..........Not to be the sole devil's advocate here......but be careful *adopting* a feral furbaby. 11 years ago dh and I adopted 3 tuxudo rescue cats. 3 littermates, all sisters. All of them had been extremely well socialized by the woman that rescued them, so they are the 3 friendliest and most loving cats imaginable. All three are strictly indoor cats, since where we live there are lots of dogs and coyotes.
Anyway, 3 months after we adopted the first 3, dh discovered a pack?a nest?a herd? of feral kittens. One of them looked like she could have been our girls sister started *flirting* with dh. This happened for 3 days in a row. Finally he called and asked me if he could bring her home. I said ok, but only if her brought he to the vet and and had her de-flea-d and shot-ted first. I met him at the vets and I fell in love. She had the cutest white circle in her chin! She seemed a little shy, but I have a way with cats, and I knew I'd have no probs with her. We brought her home, and she immedietely went to hide behind the fridge for 2 days.
Well, our other cats tried to be friendly, but she just hissed and spit at them. After a while, she stopped being nice to dh, and the only person she would come out for was me. For 2 years we went on that way, hoping that she would relax, but she stayed so scared and jumpy and just darm mean. The last straw came when I was pregnant with my daughter, and she scratched the heck out of my hand when I went to pet her, and dh had enough. He took her to the humane society the next day. It broke my heart........but it seemed like she could never get over the fact she was a wild cat.
Laurie

[lcash]

As far as who should keep the kitten - finders keepers! I'd say you have a distinct advantage if she will come only to you! I've had both good and bad experiences with feral cats. My neighbors had over 100 cats in their horsebarn that continued to inbreed. They were attacking one another, attacking other people's cats, and howling constantly. At one point the neighbor decided to trap them all (one at a time in a humane trap) and "give them away". He took them to the vet who agreed to give a discount on shots. The vet recommended they ALL be put down because of the inbreeding. He said that the possibility that they would ever socialize was very low, and they would put other domestic at risk for disease and physical harm. On a happier note, we found some very young feral kittens in our barn, raised them to about 16 weeks old, and they became wonderful mousers for other horse owners. These cats were well-attended by their mom and never had to fight for food or survival.
We've had as many as six house cats and four barn cats at a time. Inevitably, one of them will become sick or injured on occasion and require isolation. What works best for us is a large dog kennel/crate, about 4 feet long, 2 1/2 feet wide and three feet tall. We put a small cat carrier inside with a nice fuzzy towel or old sweatshirt for a bed and the door removed, plus a small litter pan, food and water. This gives the kitty room to move around, but keeps her isolated. I'd recommend that you take this one to the vet before you even bring her home, if possible, and ask for a thorough exam. She'll probably need de-worming, a flea bath, and eventually, the whole series of shots. Be careful with the flea products; many of them are toxic for kittens. Be sure to wash your hands after you handle her, and don't touch your other animals, kids or husband until you've done so. Feral animals often carry ringworm, which easily passes to people and other pets through contact. Until you have the vet's clean bill of health and she settles down, do not introduce her to the other animals or allow your children to touch her. When you do, introduce them one at a time over several days, with her safe in the kennel. You'll be able to tell pretty quickly if she'll be able to socialize successfully. Good luck with this little one. She's lucky to have you to worry about her. Lauren

[~*mikie*~]

You gals are wonderful, you know that? The voices of experience really help.

I hotfooted it to where she's living in that darned druggie-infested building, sigh. No sign of her this morning. Yesterday's canned food was gone & she'd been into her water, so I left her fresh food & water & hightailed it back home. Needed my coffee,LOL!

mikie

[zeebs]

1. you are doing the work
2. she already has a lot of cats
3. she can't afford the vet bills
4. did I mention you're doing the work?

keep the cat. she can adopt one at a shelter if she wants another cat.

[karen]

To me it almost sounded like they were offering to take the cat just to give it a home...not because they wanted the joy of another fur baby- I wouldn't worry too much about it.

I agree with you on the spitting kittens...they never really get over that. I found a litter of them once, and that was one of the most truly disturbing things I've ever seen. It was like coming across a den of fuzzy rattlesnakes. I really think they wanted me dead.

I hope you find her- I'll bet she will warm up to the other fur babies, and hubby.

[lcash]

Hi, Mikie,
What's the latest on Lil Bits? She makes a great avatar, by the way! Lauren

[EtherealJane]

Yes yes, please do update! I want the latest on Lil Bits and want to know if hubby has come around! (I'm currently trying to convince DF that we NEED a dog)

[JenW]

It is funny when I first saw this thread weeeks ago, I thought it was something that would never apply to me. I do understand the love Mikie has for her Lil Bit, though, and that she wants to bring her home. Our Mikie has such a big heart. I hope it all works out for you! Do you have an update for us, Mikie?

It all started after my DD went to Zoo Camp. She has been bugging me for another pet. We have one Persian and DS has allergies, so I have always been a little hesitant. Guess what? I now have a feral kitten on my porch in a cat carrier. It was raining this morning and cold. I was sitting on my porch drinking my coffee. I heard a wailing that sounded like a small cat. Needless to say, we got her inside our cat carrier and have fed her. (I am pretty sure it is a girl- she is mostly white with taupe and black spots- making three colors. We think she is between 4 and 8 weeks old. She is very thin.) I am taking her to the Vet later this week and DD will go along with me through all of it. She wants to be a Vet when she grows up. If we keep the cat, we might as well get an education in the process. I will keep you updated. Especially the results of the first Vet visit which is critical. It is also possible that she belongs to someone, but other neighbors have seen her wandering around the neighborhood, and she really is too young to be let out by an owner.

Thanks so much for all of your informative posts! I kind of felt like I knew what I was doing. The cats are seperated, one on the three season porch, and the other in the house. I am going to pick up a few supplies at the store to get us by for a bit. I know they will have to be seperated for a few weeks if our Kitten is healthy. I hate to think of the other scenario. She is getting to me!

[ladycattat]

Jen, not only are we make-up enablers, we are furbaby enablers! Lucky babykitty to come in out of the rain! What are you going to call her?
Laurie