stray kittens a few days old advice please x

ktflosspot

Well this morning we found 3 wee tiny kittens in an old car in our garage. Mama cat is a stray but obviously used to human contact and is taking care of the babies just now. I called the srspca who told me to call CP but all I get is an answerphone saying they are full. Obviously I don't want the wee babes to have to fend for themselves as strays and have all day every day to try and socialize them. Basically I'm looking for any advice from anyone who may have been in this situation or any one who knows about kittens !
Thanks so much x
KT

secondhandsusie6cats

Hi there and bless you for helping these babies. Is there anyway that you can provide a tray for the mommy cat and contain her in the garage as a short-term measure? Mommy will be taking excellent care of her babies if they are so young and won't wean onto solids until they are at least 5 weeks old. If Mommy cat goes on walkabout, (a) she can get pregnant again straightaway, (b) she could pick up infections from other cats and pass them on to her babies who have very little immunity for now and (c) there is the potential that Mommy cat could get shut in someone's shed etc. by mistake when on walkabout or worse still,could be run over It's very important that she be contained as up until a week old, the babies need feeding every couple of hours by mommy. If you have a large cardboard box which you could line with some old newspaper and an old towel and place the kittens in there away from any drafts, that would be marvellous sadly, kitten season is very much underway thanks to people who don't neuter their pets and dump them which means the rescues are full to overflowing. I would suggest contacting these amazing people http://www.animallifelineuk.org/ who have contact with most of the rescues up and down the country. They will also check to make sure that the rescue has a 'no kill' policy. I have used them many times before to find spaces for strays and pregnant cats etc. and they have always come up trumps, though in this current climate it is much harder It usually means that the cat/kittens may have to travel to another part of the country to get their rescue placement but they also have volunteers who arrange transport runs They will arrange for Mommy cat to be spayed when in rescue and also find Mommy a home. If you are on Facebook, they have a page on their too. In the meantime, would you also be happy to give Mommy cat some fresh water and food? Kitten food is best but if not, any wet or dry cat food is better than nothing. if you aren't in a position to provide food or cat tray/litter, I would get back straight back onto your local CP branch and ask if they will provide these things until you can find them all a rescue space. I used to volunteer for CP and know that the public donate food etc, and they will usually help out with these under the circumstances. I would beg you though not to advertise them or give them away to members of the public as they will be far better off in rescue where they will arrange (once 8 weeks+) to have the kittens vaccinated, chipped and vet checked and will do home checks before placing them with an adopter. They will also spay Mommy and vaccinate her etc. Kittens can be wormed from 5 weeks usually but must be with a kitten wormer (panacur paste). They can be de-flead from 2 days old but only with Frontline spray and not with ANY other product. If the kittens have fleas, I would just suggest using a metal flea comb in the interim as that is safe. It is fine to touch the kittens but as they are so young, handling should be kept to an absolute strict minimum and only when absolutely necessary. This should only be done adults - no matter how appealing it is for youngsters to hold these bundles of gorgeousness. They don't open their eyes until they are around 7-10 days and at the moment won't be able to hear. I would also suggest that any other animals (if you have pets) do not come into contact with the mom and kittens as it can stress them and may pass on infection. It's great that you want to help and if you end up having to hold on to them for a few weeks until a rescue space can be found (it may be more feasible for a rescue to take them once fully weaned so they can be re-homed and in foster for the least time possible) then that may be the longest you have to wait for help. Kittens should not leave their mother's until they are at least 8 weeks old as their Mothers teach them very important socialisation skills. I am sorry if this is really long and comes across as a bit brusque; I'm just trying to relay advice and think of the welfare of the cat/kittens which has to take priority. Please keep us updated and let us know how you get on? If you are unable to contact Animal Lifeline UK, do let me know and I will contact on your behalf. many thanks. Susie (Former welfare team leader for local CP, cat trapper, cat lover and cat mommy to 17 cats including special needs)

spacey2012

The Authorities will destroy the lot.
Sorry if this upsets, but they will.

secondhandsusie6cats

Spacey2012 that is not a very helpful nor entirely truthful answer! The authorities? You mean the council??? The Mom and kittens are in someone's private garage and no one has a right/authority to go in and take/destroy them. I've been involved in rescue for many years and whilst it is fair to say that some animal charities ie RSPCA (main office, not talking about all the local branches as some of them are worth their weight in gold) disgustingly will just take and destroy them due to overflow/abundance of abandoned animals, most bonafide rescues will not. If you do hand the kittens over to a rescue, before doing so or signing anything, check that they have a no kill policy. Some branches of CP will destroy cats or kittens who have FIV/FelV even though it is their main policy not to do so with the former so long as they are not symptomatic or suffering so do also check this. I have 1 x FIV foster cat and 2 x FelV rescue cats who very much have a good quality of life and so were not 'destroyed' ( I would not have allowed it). I am no longer with CP so have no allegiance to them and some of their local branches DO euthanise cats/kittens with FIV. These cats aren't feral (and ferals also have a right to life and can be neutered and released) and there is no reason for them to be destroyed whatsoever. I really don't know what purpose your response was meant to serve spacey2012??? KT if you can't get through to CP by phone, do they have a local charity shop? You will find staff there who may be able to provide food as that is usually where it is donated (to the shop). You can also try going on the waiting lists of as many of the local rescues as possible. A new mom cat with nursing kittens is a priority case. I'm glad Mommy cat found you as I dread to think what may have happened to her and her babies if they had turned up in a garage at a less compassionate person's house! Keep up the good work! http://www.catchat.org/adoption/ here you can click on the map and find rescues in your area. x

ktflosspot

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ktflosspot

Sue thanks so much for your advice x You are a star ! They are all curled up in an old car so wont move them to a box till needed , they can't get anywhere :-) Mama cat is a lovely wee thing ! Neighbour gave us cat food but sent the lads out for kitten food . We are willing to look after them as long as need be ( maybe even keep them ) I just wanted to make sure we were doing the right thing to look after them properly x Thanks again so much ! Will update as I can :-)

ktflosspot

link to a wee picky sue x not sure why it wont show up :-(

secondhandsusie6cats

How gorgeous I would think about the box still though as although Mommy cat has chosen a warm spot for them, there may be chemicals in the car which the kittens could absorb through their skin. Anything like anti-freeze/oils/brake fluid can be fatal if they absorb or ingest it I used to have old Dolomites and boy did cats love camping out in those if you left the window open You can't beat the comfort of an old car with proper carpet in the footwell, lol! Mommy won't mind you touching them to move them, you could still keep them in the car, in the box, until they start crawling around. Oh bless you! If you do keep them, definitely get CP to help you with neutering costs for them all! Also, if you don't get a rescue space/decide to keep them, ask CP again if they can lend you a kitten pen/cage which means you could still keep them in the garage but they could be safely contained in the pen/cage with their litter tray and dishes etc. once they start becoming mobile. They are purrfect x

skintandscared_2

I have nothing remotely useful to say or add but just had to say ... oh my goodness they are the cutest little bundles of fluffy kittenness!!!

ktflosspot

got a basket/box & towels and a lovely blanket , just waiting for mama to go a wonder and will transfer the babies :-)

delain

take them in and find homes for the kittens yourself when they are using a litter tray and eating solids?