Hey........I'm a Daddy! (sort of)

Well.......I feel a little stupid now (Ange......I know what you're thinking.......that's not nice), but up until this morning I thought I was feeding my feral barn cat too much...........cuz she was getting fat.  I just went out to gather the eggs and when I looked in what's left of an old coal stove I have in my barn (that my chickens just love to lay eggs in) I saw my once fat cat curled around 4 or 5 newborn kittens.  They're still wet in spots, so she just had them sometime this afternoon.

So does anyone out there know anything about cats and kittens?  Cuz I don't.  Do I have to do anything for momma?  How long do I have until the little guys start wondering around?  How long before they need to be neutered?  What do I feed the young'ens?  I'm guessing she'll take care of that for at least a few days, right?  Then what?  Anybody want one......or four?

HHHHELP!

bob

Cats are not my thing but I would guess you would treat them about the same as puppies. I am sure we have some cat lovers on here that will chime in. Stay safe

 Howdy Bob, 

Looks like you got some more critters. And I'm with lovely, they aren't my forte. Google it and I imagine lovely is right somebody will help you. I think you probably just let momma cat take care of them for a few weeks. Just keep feeding momma cat. That's all I can say. 

     ...mountain. 

the only thing i know about cats (aside from i dont like them) is that they reproduce about like rabbits. dont get me wrong, if you have livestock feed on hand its handy to have a (fixed) cat around, but if you aint careful you will be up to your eyballs in cats in no time.  i`v read that one feral cat can kill every bit of wildlife on a 3 acre plot...dont know if thats true, but i suspect it is. regards mmsh

Very cute.. feed Momma and make sure they are all in a secure place .. other animals ( raccoons, skunks or dogs will eat those babies) Yes and get them all fixed ASAP.. love kittens. They will start eating cat food at about 6 to 8 weeks .. someone correct me if I am wrong.

Hey Bob- Mountain is right about just letting momma take care of them. As far as neutering, check with your vet. I've had cats my whole life and was always told to have them neutered at 6 months. But the two cats I have now ( from the Humane Society) were neutered before I brought them home and they were only 8 weeks old at the time; this was 12 years ago. As I love all critters, I really enjoy the pics from your menagerie!

Hi Guys,

  Thanks for the replies!  My ex-girlfriend is swinging by tomorrow to help me get them situated.  I was heading down the path suggested of just let momma cat take care of them, but was told its been getting a bit cold out at night.........so I should get them and momma in a large tote and bring them in the house for a bit until the weather warms up some.  And they are really vulnerable to the nightime predators that often frequent my barn.  I'm a little hesitant to try to pickup momma or the babies to put them in said tote........so I'll let the ex do that tomorrow.  I will go toss a blanket over the stove tonight, as it's not THAT cold out there.  And I will Google the whole "how to raise kittens" thing.  And tomorrow I'll call the gal I got my pooch from at her no-kill rescue and have her put up a sign for free kittens.  And yes......I will have momma neutered ASAP.  I still feel kind of dumb that I was thinking she was fat because I've been feeding her too much.  Oh well.........ya gotta love nature!

thanks again,

bob

Aweeee Bob

Momma cat and kittens ..how sweet is that..momma will take care of her babies for a few weeks ..feed her and yes maybe take them into an enclosed warmer area..She is a lucky cat to have found your place to have babies.. Congrats  Bob now you have new babies to love and nurture.

Ange

Hello Bob.
It looks like she's been doing well without your help so far, and she seems to have found an ideal spot to be warm and cosy while being fairly predator resistant. Is that a toilet bowl she is in? The only cats I have ever had were two sibling Siamese, which the previous owners couldn't cope with because they were too high spirited and lively. they were lovely animals, one hardly moved from the house and the other was a hunter.
It seemed appropriate to capture her behaviour and personality traits in a rhyme,,so here it is:

DEDICATION TO A CAT

Before this thread comes to an end
there’s one more verse I want to send.
For it’s about my favourite cat
who knew full well what she was at.

She was a proper thoroughbred
though this did not go to her head.
A willing cat, true to her breed
for killing was her utmost need.

Indeed, she was the best of cats
at hunting and of killing rats.
Back then we hunted every week
when plagues of rats were at their peak.

The dogs had always had this role
and they were always in control.
But then she came and joined right in
and beat the dogs by a margin.

The smartest, fastest, killing machine
that rats and dogs had ever seen.
She surely put the dogs to shame
once she deemed to play the game.

This was something unexpected
so, instantly she was respected.
I’m not sure what the dogs did feel
for watching her was quite surreal.

The rats were taken by surprise
at this cat’s speed and enterprise.
They’d no idea what was in store
once they’d bolted from their door.

So, I’d like to dedicate
a verse or two to my dogs’ mate.
I’d like to make a salutation
to this feline’s reputation.

                            B. Withers 2013

I LOVE cats as well as Puppies! I have three cats, or should I say, they have me. The above advise is perfect. Keep them safe and bringing them inside will help to domesticate them as well as keeping them safe.  Without that, you may have more feral kitties in you hands and then have a wild time of trying to capture them later to spay and/or neuter. I have long volunteered with an animal rescue and times vary on the spay and neuter time. Three to four months may be a good time to shoot for. Vets will do it earlier especially on feral cats for capture and release. Momma will take care of all their needs until about 6 weeks and then she will kick them to the curb. You may have to soak their food to soften it at the beginning. Good luck with them. They should keep your property free of mice, moles, gofers, snakes, and any other unwanted critters! My kitties bring me presents all the time. Unfortunately, it is sometimes bunnies or birds but it is all in a days hunt. 

Keep us posted on their progress. 
puppy

Pup- My two cats, Patrick and Clifford, allow me to live with them!

Hi Pup,

  Well, as they say.........the best laid plans of mice and men...... So I went out there yesterday morning with a nice big plastic tote.  When I got there momma decided to get out of the stove and go get some food.  So I figured here's my chance.  I put a big fluffy blanket in the tote and scooped up the lot of kittens and put them in.  I put the tote right next to the stove so momma could easily find it.  A few minutes later momma came back.  She looked straight at me....then at the tote...then back at me again.  Then she hopped up to go back into the stove........peered in and saw no kittens.......and then looked at me again, this time with that WTF look on her face.  I leaned the tote over so she could see her babies wiggling around.....which she did.  Then she hopped in the tote and I'm thinking....that was easy!  But then she glanced back at me, grabbed one kitten by the back of the neck and bolted out of there!  I was like.....oh shit!  I didn't know if she was going to kill it or what.  So I followed her back to the tack room and she dashed behind a big feed box I have in the corner.  The box isn't moveable as there's a lot of heayy feed in it.  So being there's no way I can see behind the box I ran inside, got my flashlight and called the gal I got my pooch from (from the no-kill rescue). She said not to panic, but to put the tote with the other kittens near the feed box. Then momma would come and get the other kittens and keep them all with her behind the box. So I did....and she did.  So now I just keep food and water near the box for momma and she's going to have to do her thing.  As you said, I've got a few weeks to figure it all out before the young'uns start getting ready to leave.  But my friend is going to set up a spay for momma in about 2 months and will find homes for the kittens.  Anybody want one.....just shout. Aw, come on...............there SOOOO cute!! 

regards,

bob

Hey Bob now that you mention that I do remember hearing someone saying if you messed with them the momma would move them. I guess she thinks they may be in danger. Mommas are like that, they will do what they have to for their babies. Stay safe

Well Bob, 

Mamma knows best and you just have to figure out how to get her to think it is her idea to set up housekeeping in the new tote. Lol she will take care of her babies and keep them warm. Sounds as if she has chosen some pretty crafty places to reside! She is a good Mamma. 
Pup

Do you still need to know or have you been helped through private message? If you'd like, you can send me a message. I just typed a whole big response only to loose it all when I tried to use a question mark. So, I'm going to send this now 

Hey, is this in response to needing supplies? 
i would be glad to private message you if it is. 
Pup

Hi V,

  That's happened to me more than a few times on here. So now I type my response into Microsoft Word first......then cut & paste into here.

Regards 

Bob

Yes! That is so irritating, to lose stuff like that. My trouble is, that once I've written down what I want to say, I forget it almost as quickly as I'm writing it, so it gets 'lost' in the ether forever!! I'm with Bob, in that if I'm likelto write a lot, I'll use MS Word to do it. 

Best wishes

Bill

Hi Bob 

Any new pictures of the kittens?

Hi Maried,

  No......because she took her kittens behind a big feed storage box in my barn and I can't see behind it or even get my head around a corner of it to take a peek. Momma does come out to see me whenever I'm in the barn.....but then she grabs a bite to eat and goes right back. I'll try to use a mirror and my camera to get a shot of them behind the box.

Regards,

Bob

Hello Bob. Here's a possible tip:

When I needed to know if one of my 'clients' was in, but was not answering the door, I would use my phone on a selfie-stick, through the letterbox. Then I could see if there was any post on the floor. If it was piled up, then I would call the police to break in to see if they were okay or not. The beauty of modern phones is that you can see the picture at the back whilst the lens is pointing forwards.

I hope this helps.

Best wishes

Bill 

Excellent idea Bill! That should be easy to do. Thanks!

Regards,

Bob

Bob from what I know, feed the momma and the young ones feed off her until she pushes them away. Then it's time to start feeding the young ones but I'm not sure the length of time. Congrats on the litter! Mike

Hi Guys,

  I see your reviving an old post here........but it's still relevant!  See Momma cat is now a Grandma cat!  Yeah, one of her daughters had a litter.  I underestimated (by a long shot) how quickly these guys can get pregnant after being born!  So my barn now contains Momma, Daughter and Brother of Momma and 5 of Daughter's kittens.  But everyone has been spayed/neutered now except for 2 of the kittens, and they're going next week.  I don't need any more mousers......altough these guys do an incredible job of mouse control.  I haven't seen so much as ONE in the past year, and my barn was overrun with them prior.  I've learned a lot about cats..........something I had no desire to do, but now see why people adore them so.  They're pretty cool.  Thanks for all the replies.  Oh..........anybody want a free spayed/neutered cute 'not-so-little anymore' kitten........or 4?  

;0)

Thanks,

bob