Do feral kittens have dangerous diseases?

Question

I recently found 5 semi-feral kittens in my driveway.
They look a bit scraggley. Im sort of afraid to touch them because of diseases. Can someone help me as to what i should do?

Answer 1

The dangerous diseases they may have do not affect humans. The only thing they may have that can affect humans is
a. a skin fungus, called ringworm, that if you catch will go away after one week of putting a cheap anti-fungal cream on it. If the kittens have it they will have hairless areas on them. Even if you touch them, there is no problem if you wash your hands afterwards.
b. toxoplasma, which you won't get if you don't eat their poo or touch their poo and then put the hands in your mouth. nd even if you catch it, there is no problem unless you are pregnant right now or plan to be next month.It is very hard to get it though, you mostly get it from uncooked meat, not directly from the cats.
So don't worry, touch the kittens, and take them to a vet to treat them from kitty diseases that DONT AFFECT HUMANS. they will need de-fleaing and de-worming too.

Answer 2

There are very few diseases that you could get from the kittens. Fleas, of course. They might also have worms. If you notice bald patches they could have ringworm (which is actually a fungus) and that is the only thing that transfers between species. Any other diseases mentioned are species-specific. Humans might get their own form of some of the diseases, but the infecting organisms are different.

If you do decide to take the kittens in, don't give them full access to your house. Put them in a small room, which will be more comforting for them. You can visit them and let them come to you. That works best with the ferals. Sometimes if the kittens are young enough they can be tamed quite easily.

They probably look scraggly because they haven't been eating well. To be sure, they should go to a vet as soon as possible. If you decide you don't want to keep them but just want to be a foster parent, work with your local humane society. Kittens usually find homes very easily.

Answer 3

Hi, I've been live trapping feral kittens and adult cats, (fixing, rehabilitating, keeping )...no problem except that they may bite/scratch,... if they're really feral, momma prob. is too and taught them to fear man from the start.
You didn't say how old these little ones were?
The last kitten I trapped was in the middle of snowy winter in an industrial area,... he was so fearful and submissive (you either get 2 types of ferals,... 1 the submissive/scared outa wits, the other a fighter), that he went straight fr. the trap into a big kennel in my bsmt., he was not even litter trained, pooped in his kitten chow bowl. NOW he sleeps with me and is non-stop purrer, like a motor,... he is still so grateful 3 yrs. later. He was scraggly and puny also when trapped,.. thought he was 7 wks. old and a long hair,... vet said he's older, like 12 wks. and he ended up being a shorthair,..was that skin and bones that he appeared long hair.
Anyways, all this kitten got was a "snap test", which is some blood put on a slide to show he isn't a carrier of feline leuk/FIV or something.
He needed a bath, but was healthy,.. just so malnourished.
So please, if you're worried,..put some gloves on and tend to the kittens without fear,.. they need you.
And will be easy to re-domesticate at an early age into loving, ever so grateful cats.

Answer 4

A sick kitten LOOKS sick. An underfed one looks scraggly. Kittens have such high metabolisms that if they were carrying anything, they don't survive it after a few days to a week. So the ones you're seeing are perfectly fine in regards to disease, if they had ringworm you'd be able to see that (but then that's a parasite, not a disease). As to fleas, ear mites and worms, maybe not so safe, but those can all be easily treated.

Put some dry or canned food out for them and the mom, they can use it. And a bowl of water is a very good thing too. Stray cats have a hard time feeding themselves. Any reliable food source is cherished.

Answer 5

Kitten Diseases

Answer 6

You likely won't get anything from them if you just wash your hands with soap and water after touching them. I suppose you could use plastic gloves if it makes you feel any better. Most of the diseases they could have are more dangerous to them than they are to you.

However, they could have fleas and ringworm. Humans can get ringworm from kittens.

Don't wait too long before you do something with them, even semi-ferals are easier to turn into good pets if they are taken early.

Call some rescues in your area and tell them about them and find out if they have any foster parents that could take them. Make sure it is a no-kill shelter.

Give them some canned kitten/cat food mixed with water to eat.

Best of luck

Answer 7

Most animal diseases cannot be spread to humans w/out cosumption of the infected animals (such as like Mad Cow Disease) however, feral cats can often carry feline aids, heartworm disease, feline lukemia, all of which can have costly medical bills. Feline aids is not a death curse... many cats can live long healthy lives with this disease. However, feline lukemia has a very short sentence for our furry friends. Be careful around them and do not force them to do something they don't want to as biting and scratching will be their defense. Cats bites usually always become infected (their mouths harbor tons of bacteria) and that will be how they can spread their diseases to you. Just proceed w/ caution w/ feral animals as they do not completely trust humans.

What you might want to do (if you don't want them hanging around the neighborhood) is getting a humane trap and catching them. But before you do that, you might want to call around to vet clinic's and/or animal shelters to see if they take in strays let alone feral animals. That way you can be sure that they are getting the care and medical attention they'll need. Hope this helps!!

Answer 8

The don't necessarily have to have any dangerous diseases.

There's even the chance the mother cat belongs to someone and was well cared for, but had her kittens outside.

They could have even been born indoors and left by someone.

In any case, they don't necessarily have to any dangerous diseases. You could put cheap sandwich bags on your hands if you have to pick them up just to be safe (or else thick gloves that wouldn't allow accident claw pokes if they're big enough for that).

I wouldn't put them in my bed or on my couch, but if they have their own "quarters", and if you use a little bit of caution when handling them, I don't think you have to be afraid.

Wash your hands well.
Don't let anything go on that would result in your skin getting broken (they probably aren't biting at this stage anyway).
Don't put them up near your face.

Answer 9

The people above pretty much covered it all...but just in case you don't know much about cat diseases, feline leukemia and aids is only infectious amongst cats. It can do no harm to you. It is best to get them tested, though I must warn you that if they have either one, a vet will have to put them down. It is just so infectious and devastating to a cat, especially kittens.

Answer 10

If you are a kind soul you could put them in a box and take them to a vet- explain that you found them and maybe you might look after them, but that you aren't sure what to do.

Vets can be really helpful, if you are worried about cost ring a vet in the phone book, a vet nurse will be able to advise you :)

Good luck!