Remember them? Well they were sitting on my front porch looking up at me when I raised the blinds a couple of mornings ago! Initially a delight, I do love cats but no longer own one, but when reality hit I recalled what we've been faced with twice before when the same feral mom cat gave birth. This time there appear to be four, possibly five, kittens who are living under my neighbor's garden shed! As they are about 5 weeks old, mom must have left some to play on my porch in the early morning sunshine while she went in search of breakfast.
After talking with my neighbor we decided once again to call animal control and have them come with a gentle Havaheart trap which was set Tuesday afternoon. Yesterday morning we found these three cuties, feisty and hissing when we approached. Mom was playing around with another black kitten, apparently not too concerned for her now caged offspring.
Yes they are adorable, but no they can't be left here to join several others already roaming our neighborhood. The officer came and, while trying to get them transferred to another cage, the sweet little grey one escaped!
We managed to corner him/her in a bush but boy was he mad - never heard a kitten with such a loud voice. She eventually picked him up and as you can see he wasn't worried about his mittens, just her gloves!
The trap is reset, another little can of food awaits..............and of course I'm out there in the warm and sunshiny garden every five minutes to see what's happening.
Yes, it's sad to take them away, but the alternative is worse as we have several foxes wandering through the neighborhood and a permanent hawk perched on a telephone pole awaiting its next meal.
I could easily fall for this already independent grey, blue-eyed kitty but, and there are so many buts, off he went with the siblings as I dried a tear and wished him well.
All this starts with pet owners not being responsible. By allowing their cats to run wild without spaying or neutering, the feral cat population can explode within a couple of years. If you decide to offer a home to a cat, please make sure it is fixed before being allowed outside.
Later: Surprisingly, after a couple of years of trying, the mom was caught in the trap yesterday afternoon and removed by the officer in a stylish burlap bag! Sadly there is at least one more kitten left however another trap has been left, with plenty of food, hopefully this morning we will have that one too.
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It is very sad, and I agree with you 100%. Based on our neighborhood, it seems that pet owners with cats seem to let them roam - unlike most pet owners with dogs keep them contained.
ReplyDeleteWe have cats that have a neighborhood home, but are left outside to roam. They use my garden beds as their litter box, and I don't find that terribly endearing.
Pets can be such a blessing in lives. And, their owners need to be responsible for keeping them at home.
However adorable they may be at the kitten stage they do grow up and have babies of their own, a never ending cycle!
ReplyDeleteKudos to you and your neighbours for helping to control the feral cat population in your area.
I do hope they all find good homes and are well cared for.
Maggie
They are so adorable. But you're certainly doing the right thing. With all the free & very low-cost spay & neuter clinics, it is a puzzlement why folks are so careless!
ReplyDeleteGood for you Mary! I am a huge cat lover and did this many times at my old home. I finally trapped an old tom that was the cause of so many kittens.
ReplyDeleteBut you just have to have a least one cat! lol !!
I wish more people were like us!
Pamela xo
The grey baby is adorable. We had a stray wonder up 2 years ago. A big Mainecoon...I did exactly that...got his shots and had him fixed, Shabby Cat as we call him now lives happily on my porch. I am not a cat person but he will do for now! He broke my heart when I first found him...I hope to see you one of the days. I am supposed to be off Black Friday.....but that is the day our restaurant at The Depot is to open so I may be there. If not maybe I can meet up with you at the Sleepy Poet on Saturday. I have a few more spots to tell you about. Hugs, Janna
ReplyDeleteDefinitely owners need to be responsible owners. My cat came from adopting him at the Humane Society and there they neuter them all. He stays indoors too, as it is much safer for him.
ReplyDeleteAwww, I hate to see that but you did the right thing.
ReplyDeleteAnd, btw, I have been amiss! Didn't even realise you had changed blogs! Isn't that awful? I thought I had lost your blog address actually until re-reading some Christmas Tea posts and came across a quote of yours. You might want to check out my side bar of a little hoot.
hope you are well, Mary. Christmas is coming again! :)
Sweet, adorable little kittens, but now perhaps they'll have a chance at adoption and a good home.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad they got the mom! They should consider neutering and releasing her, as she's so obviously a survivor, and probably too old to domesticate. Considering that I used to be a "cat person" (now converted to "dog person" -- how did that happen?), I support your decision NOT to adopt!
ReplyDeleteI hope that they do get a good home. I would have loved that one in the front with the beautiful brown color! It seems that we always have black cats (we only have 1) over the years so a different color one would be nice. Yet I don't think Blackie would be happy with another one around, and I'm more for my cat being outside than in. It is sad to see animals drop off with no place to go. That is how we wound up with our German Shepherd that joined us back in the summer. Less than a year old, dropped off on a rainy day. So, lets wish for happy homes for those cutie pies!!
ReplyDeleteTake Care,
Ulrike