Stray Cat? + Kittens + in my garden = advice please!

RE*AC*TOR · 16-08-2006 12:39pm #1

Ok, so this morning found a cat (no collar) with (new born) kittens under a bush in my garden.

The cat hissed a little when I came close so I didn't get to see how many kittens.

I left a bowl of water out and headed for work.

Assuming they are still there when I get home - what should I do?

I'm in Dublin 15 - Carpenterstown/Castleknock area.

BTW - I don't want to keep them - so that option is out of the question.

Ruu_Old · 16-08-2006 12:41pm

Bring them to your local animal shelter if you can at all.

RE*AC*TOR · 16-08-2006 12:43pm

I guess I could try that. Any idea where my local animal shelter might be?

RE*AC*TOR · 16-08-2006 12:45pm

The Ashtown Pound? (i know there's a sticky saying not to bring animals to pounds)

MunsterCycling · 16-08-2006 1:09pm

If you bring them to a pound they will be put down IMMEDIATLY, better to take a picture of her and post it into a few doors and on a few lamps around the area and see if you get a responce if not then look for a shelter to rehouse them.

MC

cotton · 16-08-2006 2:43pm

Pounds are for dogs, not cats.

Have you tried Cats Aid? Don't know if they'll be of much help but they might know of someone that will.

Grem · 17-08-2006 5:38am

Oh please dont bring them to a pound! I wish i could take them for you - my family took in 2 stray kittens a few years ago, gave them a box under the carport to sleep in and fed them and they are so beautiful now, we dont let them in the house or anything but they are happy and if we had taken them to a pound they would be dead right now.

Maybe ask your neighbours if they would like a kitten?

RE*AC*TOR · 17-08-2006 7:19am

Rang the DSPCA - guy said if it was a stray, just ignore them and the mother will move them on after a while. Just don't feed it, or they will stick around. So that's my plan at the mo.

cotton · 17-08-2006 8:12am

Well done the DSPCA.:mad: Great advice from a "caring" organisation. Once again they don't give a ****.:mad:
If you ignore them they might move on alright. So kind of you. Then the cycle of breeding will start all over again, the kittens too. That's if they don't die of starvation, poison, run over etc. But hey, don't worry, it mightn't be your problem, it'll be next persons.
I hope to God they're more flipping caring than you are.

lphchild · 17-08-2006 8:26am

All it takes is a call to catsaid and they'll sort something out... cats best interest is their priority...

http://www.catsaid.org

RE*AC*TOR · 17-08-2006 8:32am

Jesus - cotton - calm the **** down. They are wild animals, not pets.

Anyway - I'll ring catsaid and see what they have to say.

RE*AC*TOR · 17-08-2006 8:36am

rang them - got a recorded message - can't take any more cats into care at the moment.

cotton · 17-08-2006 8:43am

RE*AC*TOR wrote:

Jesus - cotton - calm the **** down. They are wild animals, not pets.

Anyway - I'll ring catsaid and see what they have to say.

They are NOT wild animals, they're domestic strays.

delly · 17-08-2006 8:50am

cotton wrote:

They are NOT wild animals, they're domestic strays.

Dude, chill out. RE*AC*TOR has posted here to find out the best way of dealing with the cats and rang the DSPCA who gave advice. He is still trying to find the best solution with our help.

How about offering a few more solutions rather than being a sarky poster.

Tabitharose · 17-08-2006 9:48am

OK first off alot of the rescues are full to bursting at this time of the year. You will find a list of organisations who may be in a position to offer assistance on www.irishanimals.ie but please note that Kitten Adoption are unable to take in any cats / kittens at the moment.

There are some other cat organisations that are not listed on Irish Animals - try goggling cat rescue dublin.

Pounds only take dogs they do not take cats.

Would suggest ringing your local vets in case the mammy cat belongs to someone in the area & wandered off to have her kittens.

You could try posting on petsireland & irishanimals looking for assistance, but I think that most people who help out with cats & kittens are up to their eyes at the moment but it may still be worth a shot - if you want me to do this for you pm me some contact details & what you want me to post.

The kindest thing to do in the long run if you cannot get any help from any other source, may be to get back in touch with the dspca, who will offer to come & collect them & put them to sleep - it is by no means an ideal answer by anyone's standards, however when faced with the alternative of not having a permanent food source, no vet care, and all of the usual day to day hazards that strayed domestic cats have it may be the kindest. We have all seen recently that there are people out there who get enjoyment from shooting these animals, - a slow painful death from a bullet that doesn't kill outright or being put to sleep humainly.......

Sorry I am not offering more & good luck

eachtrannach · 17-08-2006 9:55am

Tabitharose wrote:

... a slow painful death from a bullet that doesn't kill outright or being put to sleep humainly ...

Sorry, slightly OT, but you are comparing a remote possibility to certain death? Any cat that is not an indoor cat is facing the possibility of a slow painful death (or a quick, but nonetheless painful) death every day (cars, dogs, other cats, poison, eejits ...). Shouldn't they all be mercifully put to sleep in this case?

Even the DSPCA advice makes more sense to me, at least it leaves the cats with a chance.

CookieCat · 17-08-2006 10:23am

I apologize for starting this post with some boring facts.
Ex domestic stray cats can be traced at some point in their origin to one source. An irresponsible owner.
This year there will be over 300,000 kittens born in Ireland 189.000 will die within a week of life. So I find the DSPCA'S advice rather pointless.

In affect cats are hard wired to do 2 things breed and feed. Remove the food source and they may wander off and find another but this does not stop the cycle of breeding. An ex domestic stray cats life expectancy is 2 years if unaltered a harsh 2 years and 4 if altered and returned not great odds.

So what can you do. You do have choices. You can trap the mother and kittens and take them to be PTS. Harsh some may say but that is the end of your problem.

Find a welfare group willing to take them in. As you have found all the welfare groups are overflowing with cats and kittens at the moment so you can possibly forget that.

You can trap the mother and take in her and the kittens. Worm her de flea her, buy or get a large Argos crate. And let her rear her kittens providing food and care for her. The is info on www.kittenadoption.ie.
You can begin to socialise the kittens and when they are approx 8 weeks old (After they have been wormed and had flea preparations and perhaps vet checked and vaccinated. Advertise them on Irish animals and kitten adoption and find them homes.
It is a solution.Have the mother spayed to stop the cycle and release her back or re home her.

There is another option. Get on to ANVIL's web site and start to lobby for change.

As for a humane passing versus being left to their own devices. I would rather see a human passing than some of the sights I have to deal with in animal welfare. PTS is not a welfare issue IMO.

Wokie · 17-08-2006 10:24am

Tabitharose wrote:

The kindest thing to do in the long run if you cannot get any help from any other source, may be to get back in touch with the dspca, who will offer to come & collect them & put them to sleep - it is by no means an ideal answer by anyone's standards, however when faced with the alternative of not having a permanent food source, no vet care, and all of the usual day to day hazards that strayed domestic cats have it may be the kindest.

I'd go with Tabitharose's suggestion of DSPCA (after exhausting all other options of course!) HOWEVER and this is hearsay, it's possible the DSPCA will only offer to take them if you can trap them. I know of someone who rang with a similar problem and this is what they were told. PM me if you want help with them.

cotton · 17-08-2006 10:27am

Sorry, but it makes my blood boil to see an organisation just moving a problem onto someone else & doing nothing to help.
Plus I did offer advice in my first post.
Taking the dspca's advice might help the person but not the cats.
1 in 4 cats are killed on the road. 180,000 kittens will die in Ireland every year. They stand such a small chance as it is.

Here's another option. It's not ideal but everywhere is bursting at the seams. Keep them where they are, try to socalise the kittens. Then when they are old enough, try to find homes for them & tnr the mother so this can't happen to her again. There are people that can help you with this.

RE*AC*TOR · 17-08-2006 10:28am

I am not taking in these cats as pets. I am willing to put in a little effort to move them on in the best possible way.

At the moment I've left out a bowl of water. To avoid dehydration. I'll make some more phone calls.

If anyone else has any suggestions for places that might help - please let me know.

CookieCat · 17-08-2006 10:36am

The bigger organisations that get funding are. Numbers in phone book.
Cats Protection. May PTS. ASK.
DSPCA. You trap them they will PTS.
Cats Aid No kill but as they are full no help or advice given to public.
Kitten Adoption. Advice give on what the public can do for themselves only at the moment due to Jan being un well. Note no funding.
Vets. Will PTS some may re home kittens if they are old enough.

What are you actualy looking for I doubt if you are going to get anyone to take the mother and kittens in and look after them. So can you state what you expect and maybe folks can advise accordingly.
Claire

delly · 17-08-2006 10:44am

CookieCat wrote:

What are you actualy looking for I doubt if you are going to get anyone to take the mother and kittens in and look after them. So can you state what you expect and maybe folks can advise accordingly.
Claire

Its crystal clear what he wants to do

. He doesn't want to take them in as pets and does not want to leave them in the garden over a long period of time, therefore he is hoping to get an organisation or persons to take them and possibly rehome them, i.e. a humane solution to a problem which he didn't ask to occur.

Wokie · 17-08-2006 10:48am

RE*AC*TOR - have pm'd you:)

CookieCat · 17-08-2006 10:51am

Well that is not an option is it NO SPACES. With over a quarter of a million ex domestic stray cats in the Dublin area alone where can we put them all NO POUNDS FOR CATS. It's a lottery for both the public and these cats alike. So that option is a no starter as he is finding out.
There have been other solutions offered as in self help and then re home the kittens and mother. That is what an orginisation would do if they had room and a no kill policy. What is the problem with trying to get the public to help solve the problem themslves?

RE*AC*TOR · 17-08-2006 11:13am

CookieCat - your suggestion requires me essentially taking these animals on as pets, and looking for someone else to take them on in the future.

Its not happening. OK? I thought I'd made that clear.

My opinion at the moment is that letting nature take its course and allowing them to move on of their own accord is preferable to giving them to someone who will kill them.

Until I find someone who will take them off my hands to rehome etc, I will leave them be. If they look like they aren't going to move on, I will have to bring them somewhere to be euthanised.

CookieCat · 17-08-2006 12:28pm

I was indeed not asking you to keep these cats as pets

Only providing some solutions to your question.

If you choose to ignore, just keep in mind that the mother can come back into estrus very quickly (A matter of days) and produce another litter on your door step. The kittens born to breed can also go on to reproduce (In particular the females at 20 weeks or younger)
So your cat problem may not just go away and become someone elses.
Any good luck with what ever you decide to do.

I do wish that all rescue/welfare groups would give educated advice if they can offer nothing else. I am off to call the DSPCA regarding their misinformation on this.
Claire.

eachtrannach · 17-08-2006 5:07pm

RE*AC*TOR wrote:

My opinion at the moment is that letting nature take its course and allowing them to move on of their own accord is preferable to giving them to someone who will kill them.

Applause! And thanks for actually using the word "kill" and not some "nicer" term to hide the facts. I can understand your problem, had the same last year ... fortunately I was lucky to be able to find places for a number of cats via Last Hope (www.lasthope.ie - they have a no-kill-policy) and also to take two into our home (no, this wasn't planned). Sorry to have no other solution for you ...

RE*AC*TOR · 19-08-2006 2:07pm

ok I'm a little worried now.

2 more kittens came out the day after (6 in total)

This morning I saw the mother take one over the fence. There are only two left now - she obviously took the others elsewhere.

Its been like this for hours now. I hope to **** she comes back for the last two.

At which point do I need to step in and feed them? I'd assume they wouldn't manage the night on their own (cold etc).

Help?

RE*AC*TOR · 19-08-2006 2:16pm

ok there's only one left now - mother must have grabbed the other.

last one is doing a lot of whinging. hopefully she'll take that one quickly.

tracy1002 · 19-08-2006 11:14pm

I had the exact same problem a couple of weeks ago. Had a young stray cat with 4 newborn kittens. I made a home for them in the shed and kept them warm and fed. was able to find homes for 2 of them. I contacted cats Aid who were unbelievable. They sorted out a cattery for mum and her kittens and they stay there until they are rehomed

Stray Cat? + Kittens + in my garden = advice please!

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