What should I do with the stray kittens I found..?

Question

I found three adorable, stray kittens in front of my house a few days ago. They hang around the bench and in my front yard which I don't mind at all. I left out bit of ham and bologna and cup of water for them. They are wary of me and are scared if I make any sudden movements or if I go towards them. My neighbor kid told me today that that there is a mother cat with some kittens down the street.

Should I just leave the kittens be and let the mother find them? Should I bring the kittens to the mother myself? (I'm not sure how I could do that since that cats run off if I make any sort move towards them.) Or should I call my local animal shelter?

I'm also thinking about maybe keeping one of the kittens as a pet if they start to get used to me. Is that a good idea since it's a stray?

Any advice or suggestions?

Answer 1

Well, you need to act fast. Socialization in kittens prior to 8 weeks is pertinent to their domestication. Cats who are not socialized properly or at all end up feral (wild). It sounds like you cats are going down this raod. Try to catch them. You may need to contact your local humane society for help in this. During this time of year, they are probably overwhelmed with kittens, so they may have their hands full.

They certainly need to be feed a decent kitten food regularly, whether you catch them or not.

As far as vet work goes, they will need, at the minimum, vaccinations, tested for Feline Leukemia and FIV (one of them is all that needs to be tested) and SPAYED AND NEUTERED!!! I emphasis that because someone not fixing their cat is how you ended up here, and if you don't fix these, then you may end up with 3 litters in 6 months.

If you cannot get close to them at all, and they seem older than 8 weeks (are their eyes still blue?--kitten's eyes are blue at birth but change color around 6 wks) then unless you have months to tame them, they are essentially feral. Many people feed ferals, but the imperative key to having outside wild cats is sterilzation, as I emphasized above, including the mom who had them. If you cannot afford this, many humane societys can assist you in this area.

I reccomend you contact one immediately. Offer as much assistance as you can (ie donation, help catching them, etc) as at the humane society where I volunteer, we are overwhelmed with kittens this kitten season.

Answer 2

The main thing is to get them into a vet, check for worms, get thier shots and basic health checks. They may not be from the mother cat and it could be that the reason they are stray is something happened to the mother. Call the local animal shelter and find out from them what your options are. It is important to keep stray animals fixed to prevent further breeding and causing more strays to be in the situation you are finding these three in... If you want just one and one does start to warm up to you, keep it and take to your vet and allow animal rescue to gather the other two. Adoption agencies can also help and if there are any pet-sitting services in your area, you can call and they might have some foster care for the kittens. I know in Atlanta we have several like this, in fact that is where I adopted my cat!

Answer 3

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What should I do with the stray kittens I found..?
I found three adorable, stray kittens in front of my house a few days ago. They hang around the bench and in my front yard which I don't mind at all. I left out bit of ham and bologna and cup of water for them. They are wary of me and are scared if I make any sudden movements or if I go towards...

Answer 4

I would continue feeding them and they will slowly warm up to you. Once the kittens are a little tamer you might want to check with nursing homes in the area to see if they would like a kitten. The positive response to pet therapy programs in nursing homes and homes for the handicapped have resulted in many homes adopting a pet for the residents. Cats are an excellent choice because they are easy to take care of and enjoy human contact. The kitten would bring a lot of joy these people who are often lonely or house bound.

Answer 5

Call your local animal shelter to find a trap, neuter and return program. If the cats are feral, the TNR program will trap them, fix them and return them. Then you can continue to feed them but they won't reproduce. If they are not feral, the program might be able to take the cats in and put them up for adoption.

There is nothing wrong with taking in a stray if you choose to do so. Just make sure to take them to the vet to get their vaccinations, fixed and checked for diseases as soon as you bring them into your home.

Answer 6

you should call the animal shelter. if you want to keep one then i think you should. it doesn't matter that they were stray. my first kitten was a stray. you just have to keep it inside for at least four months without letting it get out so it knows that your house is it's home and that you are it's owner. and if you decide to let it become an indoor/outdoor cat make sure it has a collar.

Answer 7

My best response to this is if they have their eyes opened, which it sounds like they do, and if you can get some cat food and they are not in any intimant danger try to feed them for a bit to calm them down and allow them to get to know you. Since you arent sure that the cat is the kittens mother, it is best not to take them to her. Just try to get some kitten chow and feed them until they become tamer and in the mean time look for some homes for the kittens.

Answer 8

Call your local animal shelter or animal control. They can get you a humane box trap (won't hurt the kitten) that will catch them and they can be removed. You can do this yourself by picking up one of these traps at a fram or tractor supply store, but be very very careful. You don't know what they have been exposed to and cat bites get infected easily. If you do manage to tame one, you will have a lot of work to do in its care with shots and constant handling. It will always want to go outdoors and it's life could be very short. Good luck to you.

Answer 9

I agree that the idea of taking them to the Humane Society is a good one, or you might check with your local newspaper about placing an ad. A lot of newspapers don't charge for classified ads if your giving them away. As far as your concerns about taking in a stray. If you get one of them to get friendly enough with you that you can catch it and take it in, go ahead. There is nothing wrong with strays as long as your willing to have it checked out by a veterinarian. They make good, loyal pets.

Answer 10

If you want one of the kitten's for yourself then I do suggest you let it get used to you. Be outside within eye vision of the cat and it should get used to you. Cats are great friends from my own experience. I have a male of sixteen years and he's been the best of friends. I hope you can find homes for the other two. I once had two cats, the male cat's sister, they were good for each other. He was a little of a bully to her, but he misses her now.