The mission was taming the feral family seeking shelter in our yard so that a rescue group could foster and rehome them for a happier life.
The good news is that the sweet mother was once a tame cat making our job easier.
Watching five kittens bouncing across our lawn chasing butterflies was adorable, but the cruel reality is that winter is coming and worse, the females will go into
heat.
We took precautions to protect our 19-year-old inside kitty, Whyspurr, from the ferals. During feeding time, we put Whyspurr’s treats on the inside of the sliding screen door. The cats watched each other eat without hissing or feeling threatened.
We rolled Whyspurr’s combed fur remnants into toy balls. The fur-balls were placed outside to familiarize the kittens and their mother with Whyspurr’s scent. We took this purr-cautionary measure in case
Whyspurr darted outside; so the ferals would paws-ibly sense she was family. We also wanted Whyspurr safe in case the mother, Patty, snuck into our house.
One afternoon, a kitten was playing with a fur toy, two were tight rope walking on their jungle gym (the laundry drying rack), and two chasing a butterfly.
Pati-O Patty, was named because she had taken refuge on our ‘pati-o’. Four of the kittens are identical black quadruplets; Paddy Katie (Patty-Cake),
‘Jet’ Black, Coal and Pepper. Dusti is the gray kitten.
It’s important to socialize the kittens to improve their chances for a successful adoption. This is done with incremental, small steps.
First, I placed cat food down, then walked away. This familiarized the kittens with a feeding location.
After a few days, I sat at the open door talking to them.
Later, I patted Patty so her kittens could witness safe
physical interaction and caresses.
Two days later, I reached over the mother to pet a feeding kitten. The kitten initially thought the hand strokes were its mother. When she realized it wasn't, she dashed away as if her life depended on it. The kittens soon became accustomed to my touch. We were making purr-gress!
Animal homelessness is fraught with dangers and Patty is a heroic mother! When a hawk swooped down to grab a kitten, Patty charged the bird,
then leapt onto a six-foot fence, successfully scaring off the feathered danger. She is also a dedicated mother nursing her offspring during 100' weather.
When we first fed Patty, she’d bury her head in the bowl of kibble to gobble it down. She instinctively tried to hoard her food, not knowing if or when she would get another meal.
Like people, animals feel panic, fear and pain when deprived of food. To prevent overeating, I lifted her up and twelve kibble
dropped from her mouth! Patty was thin and nursing until the end of the first week! Now she’s fed and . . . pregnant again!
It is imperative to catch/neuter/spay ferals. Every 64 days Patty and other female cats can deliver another five or six kittens! Kittens begin reproducing at six months of age. The felines on our porch, plus the crippled stray male, Kody, that comes to graze, totals seven cats. How many cats do you think will be begging in four months? eight months? a
year? It is cruel to let kittens suffer this reproductive fate, starvation or like Kody... a painful crippling injury.
Kody’s hind paw had been trapped in something. His struggle to escape broke his leg, and partially severed his paw. This is no way to live: starving, in pain, fighting off predators facing many dangers.
Now, just like the cats, this article is over word count. Stay tuned for Part II’s happy news about the cats being safely placed in a foster
home! Please spay and neuter your pets! The community and animals depend on you!