Stolen kittens. New update: Mama cat might need a home

[Barn_Mom]

I caught my feral mama that way too. As it turned out, she was less than a week out from delivering 5 healthy babies. While in the end it all turned out fabulously, she absolutely flipped out when I shut my front door, with her on the inside! She literally bounced off of the walls! My daughter came to the rescue and created a shute with a cat carrier, and I don’t remember what else, and caught her under the dining room table.

She raised her spider monkey ninjas in our 2nd bath, with help from us handling them from day one. When the time came to find them homes, I hooked up with our local SPCA. For $50, they tested mama and her babies, spayed/neutered them all and I fostered the kittens until they had room. The babies were all adopted in a week. Their sweet, sweet mama was already home and is my love and my velcro kitty. She loves me and hides from everyone else.

She just had her 9 year gotcha-versary a few days ago, and is roughly 10 years old now. Her babies will be 9 on the 4th of July.

[shiloh]

Happy birthday to them! My triplets - Jack, Duncan and Pearl celebrate their 14th b’day 7/5!
Catnip for all!

[avjudge]

@Barn_Mom

I caught my feral mama that way too. As it turned out, she was less than a week out from delivering 5 healthy babies. While in the end it all turned out fabulously, she absolutely flipped out when I shut my front door, with her on the inside! She literally bounced off of the walls!

To anyone trying this, do be careful - this just jogged my memory: my sister trapped a cat in her workshop hoping to have him neutered the next day, and he jumped through a glass pane (at the bottom of a full-glass door) to get away. Fortunately no injuries, but he’s still intact a couple years later.

[moonlitoaksranch]

Thanks for the heads up. No windows in the tack room. I’ll probably put a litter box and food in there for couple of days before trying to catch her. Maybe use an old sheet when I’m ready. I don’t like it when cats jump around and panic. Possible hurricane coming. It would be nice to get her in there in time, but our two barn cats come first. They will be locked in to keep them safe. Not just because of weather. We get a surprising number of wild animals that take shelter in the general barn area.

[Simkie]

I trapped a starving cat about a month ago, thankfully she was eager and easy to actually TRAP. But she got loose in the garage (where I crate the kitties I trap) because I was stupid. She LAUNCHED herself at the windows, it was truly frightening. We were able to create a chute back into the crate.

If you’re planning on shutting the tack room door, consider having a dog crate in there, where she can live until she’s settled. Cover it, perhaps entirely, for a few days, if she’s really freaked out. If she gets out of the tack room before she’s settled, there will be no getting her back.

The window launching cat wound up being a very sweet little thing, who was just really, really afraid. It doesn’t take long for them to come around, but those first few days can be a little scary (for them and us both!)

Good luck!

[moonlitoaksranch]

Good news! The feral cat trapper from the local rescue is bringing by a different type trap today. She’s going to look at the lay of the land with me, too. Once trapped, we can spay for free Wednesday morning locally, or for $40 in the next county any other morning. Once spayed, if she isn’t insane, we’ll keep her in an extra large dog crate to see if she’ll come around. I’d really like to be able to do the monthly flea treatments, like we do for our two barn cats.

In other news, one of our barn cats, Delilah, has allergies. She’s young and sweet. I brought her in overnight in the back bedroom. No sneezing this morning. Guess who’s coming in the house as soon as there’s an opening? We hope our niece will take her cat at the end of summer, so Delilah can enjoy being in the house (we really can’t do more than four indoor kitties). Our niece’s HATES our dog, so they have to kept separate. The dog is young and stupid and play bows to the hissing, growling cat. Clueless. Delila tolerates him much better. Her long hair makes it hard to be outside so it would great to make her an indoor kitty. Here’s a picture:

The other barn cat, Ralph, is the best barn cat ever. He rules the farm. Delilah hates him. He loves her and seems entranced by the feral female (she’ll get a name when we trap her and get a good look at her). I’m hoping Ralph and the feral will be the new barn dream team, once she’s spayed.

Last bit of news is how perfect a home the last two kittens have. They have their own room and are the only pets for a medically retired veteran and his brother. Emotional support indoor kittens.

[moonlitoaksranch]

Two new traps set this morning. Still no joy. She has a lot of tricks up her sleeve still.

I have one neighbor that I left a message for. She might be putting food out for her outside cats. I want to find out if there are other food options for this monster.

[moonlitoaksranch]

CAUGHT HER! She’s not friendly. Trapper from the pound will pick her up in the morning and take her to the spay clinic. I pick her up Tuesday night.

[moonlitoaksranch]

Okay, she needs a name. Any ideas? Not Hester or Jezebel, lol.

[Simkie]

She looks like a Martha or Minerva to me

And hooray on snagging her! You really can’t know if she’s friendly at this point. She needs several days to settle. Even friendly kitties get awfully angry being trapped.

[3PonyFarm]

Congratulations on catching her! She is pretty but looks mad!
Maddie?

[trubandloki]

Hope once she is a little less mad she will be willing to be a not as feral critter.
Congrats on catching her.

[moonlitoaksranch]

We have a Maddie dog.

I like Minerva. She looks stern, lol.

[moonlitoaksranch]

Minerva sounds good. I’ll see what the family thinks.

[Larksmom]

I like Trinket or Moxie

[TKR]

Awwwww!! She’s so pretty! Looks like a classic silver tabby to me. Classic tabbies have the swirls and mackeral tabbies are striped. I LOVE her! We rescued a pregnant feral female in February several years ago. She had her babies in our bathroom and warmed up quickly - probably the rush of hormones releasing with the kittens’ birth. I hope she’ll warm up for you! Sylvia? I had a fabulous broodmare who was a Native Dancer granddaughter years ago that was a grey and her barn name was Sylvia because she was just pure class (and knew it!). Good luck!

[Displaced_Yankee]

Minerva /mɪˈnɜːrvə/ (Latin: [mɪˈnɛrwa]; Etruscan: Menrva ) is the Roman goddess of wisdom and strategic warfare, justice, law, victory, and the sponsor of arts, trade, and strategy.

Goddess of wisdom and strategic warfare AND sponsor of strategy? Feral mama cat hits all those attributes in my eyes.

Again, no small for feat for @moonlitoaksranch. You have continued to do right by these creatures.

[SummerRose]

I’d name her “Sweetie” or “Lovebug” and hope that the power of positive thinking turns her into a people-loving kitty quickly.

[rubygirl1968]

Congratulations!! I’m so happy you got her. Her life is getting ready to change so much for the better.

Way to go!! You did good.

[moonlitoaksranch]

She looks like her daughter, Smoky. Muted tortoiseshell tabby. I just learned that it exists because I didn’t know what to call Smoky. No white on her at all, but she has the same orange nose.