If You Find New Born Kittens
During kitten season in the spring and summer, it’s not unusual to discover a nest of unattended kittens or a single kitten seemingly abandoned by the mother. You want to help, BUT... Before jumping to the rescue, consider these recommendations.
WAIT & WATCH
You might have come across the kittens while their mother is off searching for food, or is in the process of moving them to a different location. Try to determine if the mother is coming back for them, or if they are truly orphaned. To do this, stand far away from the kittens — 35 feet or more. If you stand too close, the mom will not approach her kittens. You might need to go away completely before the mother cat will return to attend to the kittens. It might be several hours before the mother cat returns — until she no longer senses the presence of humans hovering near her litter. If you need to leave before the mother cat comes back, carefully evaluate whether the kittens are in immediate danger: Is it raining? Are dogs or wild animals that might harm the kittens running loose in the neighborhood? Does the neighborhood have kids or adults who are likely to harm the kittens? Are the kittens located in an area with heavy foot or car traffic? To help with your decision, it is important to know that it might take several hours for the mother cat to return, and healthy kittens can survive this period without food as long as they are warm. Neonatal kittens are much more at risk of hypothermia than they are of starvation. During spring and summer months, waiting a longer time to see if mom will come back is much safer than during frigid winter months. THE MOTHER CAT OFFERS HER KITTENS THE BEST CHANCE FOR SURVIVAL!!! So wait and watch as long as you can. The best food for the kittens is their mother’s milk. DO NOT HANDLE THEM OR MOVE THEM. Remove the kittens only if they are in immediate, grave danger. Wait and watch as long as you safely can for her to return before removing them.
IF THE MOM CAT RETURNS:
If mom returns and the area is relatively safe, leave the kittens alone with mom until they are weaned. You can offer a shelter and regular food to mom, but keep the food and shelter at a distance from each other. Mom will find the food but will not accept your shelter if the food is nearby, because she will not want to attract other cats to food located near her nest. Once the kittens begin moving around or walking about, check in with us to see what our availability is to assist. Female cats can become pregnant with a new litter even while they are still nursing, so don’t forget to get the mother cat spayed or you will have more kittens soon! Talk to us for help and guidance!! Learn how to socialize kittens and how to successfully trap a mom and her kittens. IF THE MOM CAT DOES NOT RETURN: If you discover that a car has hit the mom cat or if for any reason it appears that she is not coming back, then you should remove the kittens. This is crucial to the kittens’ survival. Keep them warm! Bottle-feeding kittens is a 24/7 job and there is limited availability of people who can commit to this.
Contact us immediately… Peace/Love/Meow Ripon Project Alley Cat Pam McIntire