Help: Kittens!

Sure Stelly just send me a trust message. I can't help very much with what to do with the kittens as I haven't had to foster any yet. But I can certainly ask advice of the fosterer who is taking care of kittens for you.

Also I don't know if you have factored in all the costs you are going to incur with them? I.e. all the vets visits for vaccinations, flea and worm treatment, neuturing (you should get them all done tbh) and that is all times 5 if the kittens survive and the mother will need vaccs, neutring etc.

Don't want to put you off but caring for 5 cats is expensive, but it is rewarding, just want you to think about it all :)
 
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Great I'm at work at the moment so will email you back this evening. I'll also txt the other fosterer with a link to this thread so she can hopefully give me some advice for you.
 
You could put some sort of pen around the inside of the door, where you enter it and the place the mum gets in and out of. That would give the kittens a bit of a space inside the garage when they start wobbling about without allowing them to get out at all. It would only need to be 8 inches tall or so, going from the plank I put across the bottom of my stairs to stop my two 12 week old ones from trying the north face of the Eiger.
 
...For what it's worth I have "raised" two litters of kittens. I already posted my advice earlier in the thread though.

Regarding the DIY work - I agree that the best bet is to make the garage 'cat proof'. This is a much better idea than building a small pen. For the first 6 weeks or so, the mother will keep a tight leash on the kittens. When they start to wander too far from her "nest" she will pick them up and return them. The issue comes after that, when she starts to give them a little more leeway and starts teaching them to 'hunt' etc. For a house cat this generally involves playful activities around the house. I imagine that a feral cat will look to take her kittens outside though - and as you say, this could cause a problem with cars etc.

Once the kittens are old enough to leave their mother (technically 8 weeks, but 10-12 would be better) you shouldn't have too much problem giving them away. Yes you can take them to an animal shelter, but I never had any trouble getting rid of them. 10 week old kittens are among the most adorable creatures on the planet - simply invite over some of your friends who are potentially in the situation to adopt one. Once they spend a couple of hours around them they tend to fall in love! I never had to sell the concept - I only ever had to mention that they are available to a good home. Tiny fluffy kittens sell themselves really...
 
Stelly, I would be happy to donate a little cash to help pay for kitten food etc.. if you need any help.
 
Duff-Man said:
...For what it's worth I have "raised" two litters of kittens. I already posted my advice earlier in the thread though.

Regarding the DIY work - I agree that the best bet is to make the garage 'cat proof'. This is a much better idea than building a small pen. For the first 6 weeks or so, the mother will keep a tight leash on the kittens. When they start to wander too far from her "nest" she will pick them up and return them. The issue comes after that, when she starts to give them a little more leeway and starts teaching them to 'hunt' etc. For a house cat this generally involves playful activities around the house. I imagine that a feral cat will look to take her kittens outside though - and as you say, this could cause a problem with cars etc.

Once the kittens are old enough to leave their mother (technically 8 weeks, but 10-12 would be better) you shouldn't have too much problem giving them away. Yes you can take them to an animal shelter, but I never had any trouble getting rid of them. 10 week old kittens are among the most adorable creatures on the planet - simply invite over some of your friends who are potentially in the situation to adopt one. Once they spend a couple of hours around them they tend to fall in love! I never had to sell the concept - I only ever had to mention that they are available to a good home. Tiny fluffy kittens sell themselves really...
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I personally would give them to a shelter as they will do checks on the homes the kittens are going to which you can't do so you have no clue unless they are close friends what their environment is going to be like. But if you have 4 close friends who want them and you know there not by a main road etc then go for it, but wait till there around 12-13 weeks.
 
AFK_Matrix said:
I personally would give them to a shelter as they will do checks on the homes the kittens are going to which you can't do so you have no clue unless they are close friends what their environment is going to be like.
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I've only ever given them away to friends. I can't imagine any of them mistreating the animals - if I thought they might then I wouldn't have given them away. Frankly, I don't have any friends that I can imagine mistreating animals.

As for shelters doing background checks... Well I have heard that the RSPCA do this, but none of the animal shelters that I (or the rest of my family) have ever adopted from have done anything resembling a background check. The most that I have ever had to do is sign a form stating that I live in accommodation allows me to keep pets. This was done when the cat was "all boxed up and ready to go", as something of an afterthought.

It's virtually impossible to guarantee kittens going to a "good" home - giving them away to friends and co-workers that you trust is probably the closest bet.
 
I think 8 weeks is really a very bare minimum for a kitten to leave mum. 12 or even 16 is much better.

If you want to give the mum especially some proper balanced cat food which is affordable, consider ordering something like this:
http://www.zooplus.co.uk/shop/cats/canned_cat_food_pouches/rafine

She will need maybe 200-400g a day depending on her size and it will give all the nutrients she needs, which may not be present in plain tuna or chicken.

I didn't see how the cat got access into your garage in the first place, but if you can kitten proof it but the mum can get out that would be the best.
 
I had to have a home check (a lady came round for a chat) when I adopted my two from Bristol and Wales cat rescue as kittens.

Was very relaxed and informal, but they just wanted to check I didn't live on a busy road, and that I had basic knowledge about what cats would need.

They also rang me again 3 months after I got them to check everything was going well.
 
Yep CPL do the same knip and I have seen people putting kittens on freecycle for goodness sale. I was only giving stelly another option incase he didn't have any friends willing to take them.
 
I've not got too much to say other than i have great respect for what you are doing. Good on you for looking after them :)

Cats rule :D and they will have you well trained before you know it! :D
 
AFK_Matrix said:
Yep CPL do the same knip and I have seen people putting kittens on freecycle for goodness sale. I was only giving stelly another option incase he didn't have any friends willing to take them.
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... Certainly wasn't having a go at you mate :) It's a good option if there aren't friends or family members who can be tempted into taking a little furball. I'd certainly never advertise a cat on freecycle (etc).

I've generally adopted from a local animal sanctuary. When I was younger we adopted cats from the RSPCA, but I guess that was before the time of household inspections.

I'm sure that most places would inspect the prospective homes, in an ideal world, but there's also the issue of money. A lot of small animal shelters are running on a shoestring budget, and can't spare the expense.
 
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