Wild cat pregnancy

[RoostersAreAwesome]

I feed a feral cat that lives by my house.

She’s actually been caught several times, but still comes every night to be fed. She even stayed around when I moved and brought her with me. She is fixed, though she had a few litters of kittens before we could get her fixed. Most of those kittens would’ve probably died (some did) if I hadn’t caught them and cared for them early on.
If you don’t get your cat fixed, you’ll have to accept that most, if not all, of her kittens will die. Unless you manage to find and catch them to care for them, which is a lot of work. And a feral cat usually has kittens every year. She could also eventually suffer from reproductive issues.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

We are thinking to buy a trap cage for when she will be pregnant: so maybe we could save the kittens. But i fear that after be trapped and released she will not come here anymore.

I didn't read the entire post yet.. but gut, passionate response requires immediate response.. I WILL go back and read the whole thread though.

First.. thank you for caring enough to feed an animal that is feral.. a domestic animal gone wild and not an actual truly wild animal like loin or tiger. They are most often very adept WITHOUT human intervention.. and that would have POSSIBLY limited her offspring capacity.. but being fed means breeding UN naturally. Just a statement and NOT a judgement, please.

Now I am on my third generation of feral barn cat. The first mama (known as Mama), I used to feed "some" but regularly when she had kittens, took her babies to show them new hunting ground the DAY I got the trap.. by the time she returned I had given up.

The following year.. one of her daughters had stayed while Mama now comes and goes randomly.. the daughter, now known as Tortie cat.. went into heat and was yowling early last spring.. she were pregnant and gave birth to kittens inside a lay box IN my coop inside the pole barn while I was out of town.

My local Humane Society works with several organizations for low and no cost spaying or neutering. NO cost for feral animals, trapped! They have different requirements for timing of surgery.. AGAIN, the DAY I sat traps they ALL disappeared JUST like before.. BUT.. magically in the LAST half hour.. MAMA (from year 1) showed up in MY trap.. that was set with MY standard feed PER routine.. and completely avoided the borrowed trap set with yummy cooked chicken! She went to the spaying clinic.. and was released NONE the wiser and a lot healthier.. as they also do ANYTHING else that needs doing.. ie flea, worm, tape worm, wound, etc treatments!

I left the cooked chicken in the traps hoping Tortie or babies would show up in time for the next clinic.. I caught (and released in the SAME location) a raccoon, my coops are secure and coons are not of concern for ME. So the cooked chicken was eliminated AND humane society shared a different feeding routine that seemed MUCH better than my half cocked not wanting to over feed a barn cat in case it stops hunting.. QUACK.. a well nourished barn cat has plenty of energy to hunt to it's hearts content!

First I leave the trap in the environment.. locked OPEN and just let it become a familiar site/smell. Then feed near it in the morning.. then in it, then deeper in it.. keep locked open until actual trap DATE is desired.. shortest time possible is preferred. Collect any feed left (or the whole trap) before nightfall to avoid trapping or feeding undesired guest like the raccoon. In this manner they are now waiting for me to feed them EVERY morning and easily trapped!

Several days had gone by with no sightings when I got a report that one of the babies had been seen.. Sure enough just like before an offspring came back.. only 1 of the 3 survivors.. since she had lost the fourth during movement from my coop to another location before finally moving them back to HER original pole barn (not coop portion) setting.

The kitten had been feeding in the trap without triggering it.. tension is adjustable a little I think.. I saw her standing on the pedal eating! Finally Tortie came around and fed inside the trap tripping it and trapping them both, yay!

The clinic going on at the time wouldn't operate at 8 weeks old.. so Tortie was spayed and released once FULLY conscious.. Once she was trapped placing a cover over to block the vision helps to calm a feral/wild animal, immensely! I had to detain the kitten until the "other" clinic date a few days later.. Tortie was so upset looking for her kitten.. now called Ding Dong, a black kitten with white spot on the chest.. They were used to being together.. it was stressful for us all! I decided to put Ding Dong in her larger kennel out where Tortie could approach.. They were confused but SO happy to be back together EVEN with the separation. Tortie watched near by when Ding Dong was fed, litter scooped, etc.. and hung out on top of the kennel when no one was around.

In order to get the feral pricing orchestrated by Humane Society but performed by Public VET.. (www.pub.vet) I had put Ding Dong back in a trap.. always fun to work with wild animals! Yes, I did it without gloves and sustained one good puncture wound.. Luckily it was just a badge of honor and no infection ensued THAT time.

All 3 feral cats saw me put the feed in the trap, cover the trap, and release them. None were actually harmed though I'm sure all were scared AND sore after surgery. As I suspected, the papers confirmed it Ding Dong is yet another female that had come back to "Mama's" place!

Three generations of feral born barn cats.. thanks to irresponsible neighbors with less resources.. (my kind way of not calling that family with children no longer next door ignorant squatters which is the sad truth).. trapped, neutered, AND released THIS past year.. ALL are content to hang around still and EVEN eat with the same trap in FULL view! YOUR mileage MAY vary as all animals are individuals.. but I hope this helps to encourage you in your considerations.. A neutered animal will *likely* suffer LESS overall health conditions LONG term.

YES, they WILL terminate any embryos on board if neutered during pregnancy. That MAY be the best thing for the cat's long term quality of life.. tough choice IF you have the resources to concern yourself with such things as spaying or feeding another species! All though I would not personally be comfortable with "abortion".. human notions do not often apply to animals.. and this would be one of those instances.. doing what is in the best interest of the CURRENT animal under my guardianship, according to my resources and CURRENT understanding is ALWAYS the right choice and with NO regret, even if I later decide I might not make the same choice next time.

Letting nature be.. would be not feeding it in the first place. Nature isn't actually "humane" or kind and is seriously brutal.. dog eat dog survival of the fittest.. for real.. everything eats (or converts energy) to live EVEN plants. Intestinal parasites and fleas etc.. man is PART of the food chain and NOT at the top of it as we are led to believe!

 

[TheAlrightyGina]

Cats are solitary so any kittens that make it to weaning go off to find their own territory. That's why you are only seeing her.

Feral cats aren't actually solitary. They form colonies up to 30+ cats of moms, aunties, daughters, and kittens. This is why relocating a feral cat usually results in death--they rely on their colony members for survival. The males can be solitary but usually form small bachelor groups.

It seems people sometimes confuse feral and stray cats. Stray cats respond to humans (ie they will look you in the eye, and mew) even if they aren't particularly friendly to them, whereas feral cats will act terrified of you, and only respond with hisses, snarls, and growling if you try to get too close. They don't mew at all because cats don't use mewing to communicate with each other, only people, apparently.

 

[Melky]

We have a catch and release program where I live you catch the cat tell the apl the come and get her fix her and bring her back so she isn't going through that maybe see if there are any programs like that by you

Fortunately no wild cats here. Our laws here though protect wildlife and only wildlife rangers would be called if found wild life of concern but we do not typically ever have a reason to call. If you called an animal would be gone by the time they arrived.

 

[Mylied]

Feral cats aren't actually solitary. They form colonies up to 30+ cats of moms, aunties, daughters, and kittens. This is why relocating a feral cat usually results in death--they rely on their colony members for survival. The males can be solitary but usually form small bachelor groups.

It seems people sometimes confuse feral and stray cats. Stray cats respond to humans (ie they will look you in the eye, and mew) even if they aren't particularly friendly to them, whereas feral cats will act terrified of you, and only respond with hisses, snarls, and growling if you try to get too close. They don't mew at all because cats don't use mewing to communicate with each other, only people, apparently.

I grew up on a horse farm so saw plenty of feral cats. I'm in a rural location and there's feral cats here. I consider myself pretty knowledgeable about cats. Maybe some live in loose knit colonies, but most just get together to breed.

 

[TheAlrightyGina]

I grew up on a horse farm so saw plenty of feral cats. I'm in a rural location and there's feral cats here. I consider myself pretty knowledgeable about cats. Maybe some live in loose knit colonies, but most just get together to breed.

I grew up on a farm myself, had lots of cats, both barn and house, and knew nothing about the phenomena until much later...probably in the last few years, and I'm in my 30s. Just goes to show you can learn something new everyday.

Here's something on the subject (the language is pretty technical though): Group-living in the domestic cat

 

[Marie2020]

Sorry could you explain me better why it is so important to fix her?
I am not in a situation of cat overpopulation, she is used to be pregnant, she knows how to do it, and i agree on the fact that she shouldn't have to many pregnancies but, if i could make her trust, i could fix her/keep her at home when she is in heat without traumatize her...
I see her like a hare more than like a cat.. and I'd never fix an hare..
But i know nothing of cats so i would be so grateful if you could explain me!




Oh wow! he is so cute
Thanks for all the advices! Do you think that being caged is a trauma that could make her not coming here anymore? It's the most suspicious animal i ever seen, so i can't imagine how she could react!

This little guy escaped the cage, after sleeping for hours on end then hide in my bedroom for two nights. He moved outside to the kennel after that and demanded food very loudly yeooowing until he was fed.

Does she have a chosen area? If so try and make it safer and let her go after a few days in a quiet space or cage, have a look for a cat rescue to borrow a trap. She will more than likely come back, if there's food about and sounds to me like she has a distant attachment to you, you should feel honoured, her being feral

 

[Waves]

In all this time (15 years) i saw only her and my neighbour's cat, definetly not a hunter

But, I read all your opinions and elaborated a strategy!
1) i buy/borrow a trap and try to get her familiar with it (since tomorrow!)
2) after some time (not too much), i trap her. If she is pregnant, she will give birth and i will take care of the kittens. If not, i will think about fixing her.

What do you think of this?

 

[LightedPrism]

Sorry could you explain me better why it is so important to fix her?
I am not in a situation of cat overpopulation, she is used to be pregnant, she knows how to do it, and i agree on the fact that she shouldn't have to many pregnancies but, if i could make her trust, i could fix her/keep her at home when she is in heat without traumatize her...
I see her like a hare more than like a cat.. and I'd never fix an hare..
But i know nothing of cats so i would be so grateful if you could explain me!

Thanks for all the advices! Do you think that being caged is a trauma that could make her not coming here anymore? It's the most suspicious animal i ever seen, so i can't imagine how she could react!
But, I read all your opinions and elaborated a strategy!
1) i buy/borrow a trap and try to get her familiar with it (since tomorrow!)
2) after some time (not too much), i trap her. If she is pregnant, she will give birth and i will take care of the kittens. If not, i will think about fixing her.

What do you think of this?

Hey i can actually give some good information! even though im new here, im not new to dogs and cats. So.... 1st, being caged / trauma. If she gets feed at your home, she will be back. it will take a bit, again, to get her to trust you but In my semi humble opinion its worth the risk.

First, pregnancy is not an easy thing, nor is it a great thing for the body when you do not have proper care during and after. almost all animals that nurse will lose calories and body fat as their babies grow (just like humans.)

a lot of people think that feral cats can be extremely healthy, but its actually the opposite. a feral cats average life span is 6 years. an indoor cat? almost 20. yes, cats can eat from the wild and survive, but not near as well as an indoor cat.

You may not have a cat problem now, but letting a queen (what a female cat is called over here) give birth twice a year (if not more often depending on weather) will change that really, really fast. 1 queen tends to have 4 kittens, if even 1 of those kittens lives to 4 months old, you have a new cycle. its not pretty and it really is That fast.

Cats effect your native wildlife as well. even if they are feed constantly they will still hunt and catch things either gorging themselves or saving for later.

ultamitally it is, of course, up to you. but that is my 2c on the subject. and I've dealt with feral cats for a living, have helped tnr colonies (which yes, to someone else's question they do have. think of an apartment complex, but for cats. not everyone gets along, but they all see the food and stay for the food.) I've dealt with the aftermath of cats being hurt by other animals, humans, and all kinds of other objects.

your plan sounds great. getting her used to the trap is a great start! having it covered and some food inside every day will make it a lot easier later on. cats can turn into schedule Freaks. they learn really, really fast when food should be out and will remind you if you forget.

If you have potential homes available for kittens before they are born, i would really think hard about keeping them. kittens can be partly exposed and socialized to things but genetics do play a large part. you could easily get stuck with 4+ cats who are not ok with other people and harder to find homes for.

I apologize if this is to much, or a little... odd. its almost 2 in the morning and i dont always think straight at this point. please if you have questions feel free to tag or message me.

 

[Marie2020]

Hey i can actually give some good information! even though im new here, im not new to dogs and cats. So.... 1st, being caged / trauma. If she gets feed at your home, she will be back. it will take a bit, again, to get her to trust you but In my semi humble opinion its worth the risk.

First, pregnancy is not an easy thing, nor is it a great thing for the body when you do not have proper care during and after. almost all animals that nurse will lose calories and body fat as their babies grow (just like humans.)

a lot of people think that feral cats can be extremely healthy, but its actually the opposite. a feral cats average life span is 6 years. an indoor cat? almost 20. yes, cats can eat from the wild and survive, but not near as well as an indoor cat.

You may not have a cat problem now, but letting a queen (what a female cat is called over here) give birth twice a year (if not more often depending on weather) will change that really, really fast. 1 queen tends to have 4 kittens, if even 1 of those kittens lives to 4 months old, you have a new cycle. its not pretty and it really is That fast.

Cats effect your native wildlife as well. even if they are feed constantly they will still hunt and catch things either gorging themselves or saving for later.

ultamitally it is, of course, up to you. but that is my 2c on the subject. and I've dealt with feral cats for a living, have helped tnr colonies (which yes, to someone else's question they do have. think of an apartment complex, but for cats. not everyone gets along, but they all see the food and stay for the food.) I've dealt with the aftermath of cats being hurt by other animals, humans, and all kinds of other objects.

your plan sounds great. getting her used to the trap is a great start! having it covered and some food inside every day will make it a lot easier later on. cats can turn into schedule Freaks. they learn really, really fast when food should be out and will remind you if you forget.

If you have potential homes available for kittens before they are born, i would really think hard about keeping them. kittens can be partly exposed and socialized to things but genetics do play a large part. you could easily get stuck with 4+ cats who are not ok with other people and harder to find homes for.

I apologize if this is to much, or a little... odd. its almost 2 in the morning and i dont always think straight at this point. please if you have questions feel free to tag or message me.

I forgot to mention to cover the cage, I left the trap for a fair few days and he ate from inside as I was lucky to borrow my trap from a rescue they waited patiently as I had to wait for a vets appointment.

This thread will hopefully help others searching for advice.