Question about stray cats

Hi.

we have recently discovered that we have a family of stray cats making our yard (and perhaps our barn) their home.

there is a male, female, and I think 3 kittens (so cute )

I don't mind them at all...in fact, I'd like them to get used to us.

my question is...should I feed them? I could bring milk/water/cat food out to the barn.

should I call a rescue shelter?

how long do cat families stay together? do they leave their young after a certain point or pack for life?

TIA

Re: Question about stray cats

If you want to kind of "adopt" them into your yard/barn, you can bring them food, etc. Just know that other cats from the area will probably come to eat too- if they know there is a buffet going on!

The other thing is- you should probably have them spayed/neutered...and the kittens too.. just to prevent them all from having more and more kittens. They reproduce so fast, it's crazy.
Lots of places will do this at little to no cost if you tell them these are strays/ferals that you want to trap, neuter and release.

Re: Question about stray cats

You can feed them, but be prepared for them to stick around if you do (which may be OK with you since you said you didn't mind them).

I've never had an outdoor cat before, so I don't know if leaving the food out for them would possibly attract other animals as well, but that crossed my mind. And I wouldn't want them to get dependent on the food you leave, because they'd need to retain their ability to hunt for food outside, but again, might not be an issue and I just don't know.

If you call a rescue shelter, I would think they'd take the cats and keep them in the shelter... but then you wouldn't have barn cats anymore.

Not sure about cat families in the wild, but I don't have the impression that they are pack animals like dogs.

Re: Question about stray cats

Oh yeah, you can def feed them if you want them to become your outdoor kitties -- they will probably keep the general area and barn clean of alllll outdoor and barn-related critters as a thank-you! My mom has an outdoor kitty and we never have any field mice or anything anymore - not even chipmunks which we don't even mind! It is his way of saying, thanks for the grub and little igloo to sleep in at night.

The only thing you have to do is get those humane traps that you can get from Vet offices or rescue groups in the area -- put some food in and capture all of them (You'll need several if you have multiple cats). Then, make sure they all get fixed! Otherwise, you'll have a colony on your hands!

That is what my Mom did with her cat and we haven't had, in ten years of having him, any other kitties or issues!

She bought him an igloo they sell at Petco and he goes in there at night. She even puts a heating pad in it during the winter!

HTH! GL!

Re: Question about stray cats

You can def feed them...they will stick around if you do this

Also, not sure how small the kittens are but if you can try and handle them a bit. Let them get use to human contact. Its nicer if they let you come near them without running or hissing.

We did this when we had strays in my moms backyard. This allowed us to get some of the kittens adopted as well as trapping them for when it was time to spay/neuter them - which you should DEF do. Otherwise, you'll have a colony before you know it.

We couldn't get near the mother cat...she still runs from us.

Except when she sees my mom...the hand that feeds her. She'll allow my mother a few pats on the head and a back swipe or two; before she hops away

For the winter months, I would set up a place for them to sleep in, with plenty of blankets...like the pp suggested. We set it up in my moms garage, and made a small opening on the side of the garage for them to get in & out.

Message edited 7/1/2009 1:22:17 PM.

Re: Question about stray cats

thanks guys.

a few other things...is there any additional precaution I should take since they are strays and I am pregnant?

I also have to say (please don't make fun..it's totally irrational, I know LOL) that I am a bit afraid of adult cats that I don't know....and the "dad" cat kinda scares me. I think it would definitely hiss and maybe scratch if we tried to get too close to them.

I don't want to split up their family if they normally stay together (which is why I won't take any of the kittens in to become inside cat) so I want to do this the best way.

I will talk to dh about having them spayed/neutered.

we know they do hunt (dh saw one of the adults with one of "our" chipmunks in its mouth a few weeks back) so I am also nervous about having them rely on our food, especially since we are not there every day. and since you mentioned other animals...I wonder if a bear would be attracted to cat food :P

UGH. so much to think about.

the kittens are super cute though. we have our two-seater sitting under a car cover in the drive way and the first time dh saw the kittens, they were playing with the strings on the straps that help the cover down (thankfully we discovered they were not living in the car!)

thanks for your advice/help!

Re: Question about stray cats

I don't think the parent cats would attack per se. They may hiss and move away from you if you tried to approach the kittens.

From our experience with stray cats, the parents would watch from a distance as we approcahed their babies. Once they saw that we weren't harming them - the hissing stopped, but they still backed away.

Try & lure the kittens away from the parents with some string or cat toy. They won't realize its you doing the luring until they are far enough away from their parents.

I probably would NOT try & handle the kittens since you are pregnant...not worth taking a chance in getting an infected scratch...their nails are like razors.

Let DH do the petting for now.

I'm not sure if they would stop hunting for food if you began to provide them the food.

If not I would leave food out when you are at the house & take it in before you leave.

Re: Question about stray cats

The cats could be carriers of toxoplasmosis so be very careful. I would just stay away from them. Normally toxoplasmosis is just carried in their feces but better safe than sorry. That's why they tell pg women not to change or go near the litter. Also, be very careful if you are doing any gardening or work outside.

Did you have cats growing up??? If you did, you could already carry the antibodies for it and you and the baby would be safe. It's a simple blood test. I had it done when I was pg and found out that I do have the antibodies so it was safe for me to clean the cats litter (joy).