Young Semi-feral Cat/kitten Gave Birth But Disappeared?
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Hi, this wild little kitty arrived in my garden about two months ago and adopted me. She was very timid and wild when she first came but over the weeks she has become really attached to me (I noticed over the period of time that she was pregnant). I have tried to socialise her and I have just got to the stage where I can pet her head and she is becoming very affectionate. Yesterday at 4am she was crying at the door and I went down to her and she kept rubbing up against me so I gave her some milk and chicken thinking she was hungry. When I came down this morning she was skulking in the bush and when she came up to me she had blood all over her hind quarters. I could see she was very thin so she obviously had given birth during those short few hours. I felt really bad for her but as I can’t pick her up or get too close to her (without her hissing, biting or slapping me) unless she comes to me of her own accord … I just felt helpless. I gave her some milk and food but she didn’t really eat it. The blood looked pretty fresh and she was trying to clean herself. I tried to follow her to see where she had birthed but she just skulked around the garden cleaning herself and looking around. She went in behind our shed finally but when I tried to peep in behind there I couldn’t see her (there is lots of stuff behind there and it’s very hard to get behind there because of low trees and fencing. I think she must have had her kittens under the shed where its dry. My question is this I haven’t seen her since this morning and I’ve left water, milk and food down beside the shed for her in case she pops out at some stage but it hasn’t been touched. Later today I noticed a tiger striped Tom wandering around down there and I chased him off. I’m just worried about her and her kittens … is there anything I can do to help her? What would you recommend?
(p.s.) I have an old retriever who is very gentle and has never chased her but she has attacked the dog a few times and so I couldn’t let her stay in the house.
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Nina
Ah, feral cat-birthing. Never fun. I’ve dealt with a few feral litters, but I’m one of those natural “cat-charmers” so this isn’t a problem I encounter often.
My first recommendation is to make nesting material available to her to keep the kittens warm. Old towels, blankets, and T-shirts are great, and even newspaper will do in a pinch. Don’t try to stuff it under there yourself – you could inadvertently suffocate a kitten or scare Mummy Cat away. For that reason, you should also stop hanging around the shed – if she needs your help, she will come find you.
However, since you say this cat is very young, I suggest you make a supplement feed for her. The recipe I’ve followed in the past is approximately 1/3 dry cat food, 1/3 moist cat food, mixed together in approx. 1/3 Catmilk (you can look it up online; your local pet shop, like PetCo or PetSmart, should also either carry it, or be able to direct you to a place that does). This will give her the nutrients she needs while she nurses.
Good luck!