Feral and stray cats

[kohdy]

Date: 5/8/2007 10:31:28 AM
Author: FireGoddess
I''m really glad to hear that AG. I figured it was just one less trip in the carrier but it''s good to know she won''t feel it as much since I''m doing it at the same time as the spay.

The front office guy said ''she might be a little bit pregnant.''

He checked her again for a surgery scar (none) and a microchip (none). Her nipples are slightly enlarged and he said her belly is ''a tiny bit round.'' Holy crap.

Oh my goodness! Holy Moly!!! Maybe that explains all the biting although she''s obviously doing much less of that now. Wow... I am really shocked. If she''s really "pregnant", you''re definitly in for some interesting adventures in a near future!

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 5/8/2007 10:31:28 AM
Author: FireGoddess
I''m really glad to hear that AG. I figured it was just one less trip in the carrier but it''s good to know she won''t feel it as much since I''m doing it at the same time as the spay.

The front office guy said ''she might be a little bit pregnant.''

He checked her again for a surgery scar (none) and a microchip (none). Her nipples are slightly enlarged and he said her belly is ''a tiny bit round.'' Holy crap.

Lets hope not, but it is possible unfortunately. Keep us posted as to how she gets on FG, also I bet in time the nipping will stop. I find neutering often makes a difference and she will be content to be with Chloe and on your lap most of the time! You are so wonderful for giving this little girl a home, bless you!

 

[FireGoddess]

Thanks Lorelei. I do hope the nipping will stop. They are proceeding with the spay, Kohdy. I guess if she was pregnant it was very early on? Not sure. Don't even know if they'll tell me when I pick her up though I will certainly ask.

She was so cute yesterday - she would even splay herself across my lap OVER my hand, which was pinned between myself and her belly. She is getting more comfortable. Makes me feel guilty about the surgery even though I have no doubt it is necessary and what's best. I hope this doesn't take the 'trust' too many steps backward! In time she'll forget though.

 

[Lorelei]

You are doing the right thing proceeding with the spay FG and you will probably find in a few weeks when she has settled, doesn''t have her hormones raging and knows she is loved, that she will be an incredible cat! You are an incredible woman for giving her a home, I truly mean that! I have 3 stray cats, one of which is a true feral and they have added so much to my life, along with my other kits.

 

[Gypsy]

Honestly if she''s a *little* pregnant they will just well... fix that. That''s what most of the spay neuter clinics I''ve been to do. Over population is difficult.

As for Duncan... yes, he is a love. I love all of my cats, but he''s... well, he''s my baby.

I''m so happy you found Holly. She''s going to be a wonderful cat... just some growing pains to get over.

 

[kohdy]

I guess it is best to proceed with the spaying even if Holly is "just a little pregnant." I am also very glad to hear about the progress Holly is making. She sure will turn into the most wonderful and affectionate companion you can ever wish for! Actually I am getting a bit jealous that Holly will want to sit on your lap all the time! Only one of my cats, Bobo, the shy one, will sit on my lap, but this happens very occasionally... He only does this when I am watching a good movie which is very interesting. (Only during a good movie I will ignore the fact that he is on my lap and don''t smother him with all the petting and kissing... Bobo must somehow know this fact.

) Anyway, Is Chloe out of the room yet? I am wondering if Chloe is getting interested in getting to know Holly?!

 

[FireGoddess]

Hey Kohdy - interestingly, the last 2 days that I have let Holly roam the house (but not my bedroom with Chloe in it) have been the SAME 2 days that Chloe will NOT come out and sit with me in the living room. Hmmmm. She did go out and sit on one of the chairs under the kitchen table sometime during the night, as we heard her sharpening claws on it.

But she hasn't wandered out of my bedroom much at all since Holly has been allowed to explore the house. I'm hoping she'll get over this soon.

ETA: I have to say it is hilarious that Holly just plops herself in my lap. Or vertically by sitting on my lap and putting her paws on my chest. She even gave me face licks twice last night. I totally wanted to squeeze her at that point but just sat on my hands. She feels very comfortable sitting on my lap as long as it's her terms.

 

[lumpkin]

Oooooh, if she was pregnant that would explain some of the nips, I'll bet. Remember about how male cats grab the females by the back of the neck? She's probably been mating a lot if she was in heat. I think it's best that you are going on with the spay. She's so young, I'm sure it is not good for a very young kitten to have a litter.

I haven't forgotten to look for that book for you FG. It's the end of the preschool school year and there are several activities, plus my older child has a Mother's Day thing on Friday, etc. I have been really busy and not been on the boards much the past few days.

Keep us posted. Love to hear about new little kitties.

 

[FireGoddess]

No worries on the book Lumpkin - whenever you get a chance.

You are right about the nipping, but I''ll get to that!

It has been an interesting 24 hours, that''s for sure! I picked Holly up from the spay clinic yesterday. She WAS pregnant. With FIVE kittens. FIVE. Seriously, holy crap. They told me she was about 3 weeks along which meant she was only five months old when she got pregnant.

Poor baby having babies. I read that kittens that young who get pregnant frequently have stillborn litters or great difficulty giving birth. They are just babies themselves. I felt some pangs of guilt about the whole thing but had to remind myself that this is exactly why I wanted to rescue Holly in the first place - we don''t want to have a feral colony running around in a few mating cycles!

She was not groggy at all when I picked her up and just wanted to get. out. of. that. carrier. So I took her home and fed her a little bit. The change in her personality has been fascinating to me. She wanted to sit in my lap before, but now not only does she want to sit in my lap or on me somehow, but she wants to be petted. A lot. She has not once nipped at me and keeps head bonking me for petting. I can touch her feet or her belly or anywhere (I didn''t go overboard with the testing of this for fear of a chomp, but I followed her lead) and she just wants to be petted. No nipping or overstimulation or petting aggression at all. I think it had everything to do with the pregnancy and not wanting me to touch her belly or her backside at all. Weirdly enough having been spayed has completely eliminated that behavior. When I pet her she just keeps head bonking for more. Which I looooooooooooove.

 

[Lorelei]

I know it is hard FG, but best that she was spayed. Glad to hear she is recovering well, she is so lucky to have found you. I was thinking also of Tacori''s Grayson, the little stray she adopted, and the other animals that we have seen get loving homes here, PSers do good work!

 

[FireGoddess]

I was also thinking - isn''t that a bad thing that the vet had no idea she was pregnant last week? She got a full exam, shots, dewormer, bath, everything..shouldn''t they have noticed? This wasn''t my new vet (only went there cuz they could do the rapid virus test)...but it kinda makes me go hmmmmm.

Also, I forgot to mention - seeing Holly now makes me certain that she was pregnant when I found her. She seems so tiny now!!! Definitely in her middle, for sure. No wonder that cat was hungry!

 

[sumbride]

So glad she''s coming around!!!

If she was just 2 weeks pregnant last week it''s possible they couldn''t really tell. It''s better that she''s not now!!!

 

[ellaila]

FG, you rock!! I'm so impressed with you taking in this little lovebug and giving her a home and good healthcare -- exactly what she needs! I hope Holly and Chloe take to each other and become thick as thieves (in a good way of course

) -- hooray for kitties!

And please post more photos of both of them!!

 

[kohdy]

FG, I am so happy to hear that Holly is doing well after the procedure. I am also happy to hear that she''s being super affectionate! I firmly believe that you have done what is best for her. Can you imagine a baby having babies? It also sounds like Chloe is adjusting herself to this new arrangement slowly but surely. The fact that she went into the kitchen at night is very encouraging. She''s going to be all right after all!!! Yeah~!

Hopefully Holly will start to pay a little more attention to Chloe so that Chloe can feel a little more comfortable and even confident.

 

[Gypsy]

What a hard decision, but definitely the right one I believe.

I''m so glad she''s settling in and more comfortable now that she''s been spayed.

Frodo''s Mom was 6 months when we trapped her... right after her first litter. And that litter was VERY hard on her. She was sick, and starving (reed thin) and exhausted. And only one of her kittens (Frodo) had survived. We trapped her, spayed her, kept her in a HUGE cage for 10 days while fattening her up, then released her. She was very feral and could not be rehabilitated (we hired a wildlife rehabilitator to help us take care of her).

I think this is all going to work itself out just fine.

You are doing a fabulous job!

 

[AmberGretchen]

Oh FG, you definitely did the right thing - pregnancy is really hard on a kitty that young. And it is possible that the vet couldn''t tell when they saw her for the virus test - its a very rapid gestational cycle and so if he wasn''t specifically looking for it, it may have just not been obvious yet.

That''s great about the improved behavior - I''m sure she had all kinds of wonky hormones floating around before, poor thing. She sounds like such a love - is your DH taking to her (and her to DH) as well as you are?

Interesting that there must have been a male near you for her to get pregnant. Are there lots of stray kitties in the area? Do they all seem feral? If so, and you have the time/patience/resources you might consider becoming a feral colony caretaker. I know there are lots of feral cat rescue networks that will help you with this - basically you just set out food for the kitties, and once you earn their trust a little bit they loan you traps to catch them, have them spayed/neutered, their ears tipped so they can keep track of which ones are fixed, and then you return them to the colony. Anyway, I''m sure you''re super busy with Holly right now but this might be something to consider if there''s a serious feral cat problem around where you live.

 

[FireGoddess]

AG, I guess it's not a total shocker that she's pregnant. I have now seen 3 other cats around the yard since we moved there a month ago. These may be feral. They scatter if we're outside or if we get home when they're in our yard and have never come near us. I haven't seen a collar on any of them but they are pretty fuzzy cats (think Maine Coon) so it's hard to tell.

I just want to take all the people who thought it was a good idea to dump their cats outside and SMACK THEM!!! How hard is it to take them to a no kill shelter?! At some point (after Holly and Chloe are cohabitating) I would be willing to try and TNR these cats - but as of now there are no extra rooms to keep the cages in after the surgery!! I wish people would be more responsible.

 

[VegasAngel]

I hope you all dont mind but I laughed my butt off at these crazy kitties http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lt8_dOz-puk

 

[FireGoddess]

I've seen that clip before VA but I swear, it never gets old!!! haha

Last night I took down the sheet that hides the kitties from seeing each other through the french doors. That meant that Holly could see me feeding Chloe and I think she was a little jealous for the attention.

She was crying, crying, crying (and this was after I spent practically the whole night with Holly!). Chloe was listening to it like, 'what the hell is that!??!!?' and it kind of put her off so she walked out. It seems we may be in this phase awhile?!?

Holly has no problem wandering around the house - but I can't get Chloe to investigate Holly's space because she gets freaked out at the noise (of having to put Holly somewhere else). Hmmmm. the only way I can see their first meeting going is if I put Holly in a carrier and bring her into my bedroom, which is Chloe's lair. That could work. In a few weeks.

 

[belle]

oh, fg! what a beautiful (pampered princess!) girl you have there! i''m so glad she has a happy home now. best of luck with her, i hope you will keep us updated on how everyone is doing.

 

[AmberGretchen]

FG - I know that that few weeks probably seems like forever right now but the long, drawn-out, patient introduction really is best. I like the idea of bringing Holly in a carreir into the bedroom with Chloe - sort of like how you introduce cats to a dog

 

[FireGoddess]

AG I spoke with the animal behaviorist at PHS and they are telling me to do this sock thing - where I rub each one''s face with a clean sock and put it in their respective rooms to sniff, twice a day every day for week (clean socks each time - that''s a lot of socks! LOL.). Then the week later do the same thing but put the socks next to where each one sleeps. In week 3 perhaps rub each cat with the sock wiped from the other''s face. Then see if they''ll eat treats on opposite sides of the door from each other (dunno about Chloe on that one). Having ''nose encounters'' with the door propped slightly open is next - again, Holly will be all over that but Chloe I doubt. She might need some rescue remedy for this!

 

[Gypsy]

Have you seen results with the rescue remedy FG?

I found some pastilles for human consumption at the Whole Foods in Campbell and I thought of you guys.

 

[FireGoddess]

Hard to tell Gypsy - I only used it once and Chloe was already out and sitting with me on the couch. It did seem to relax her somewhat but I'll need more evidence to be sure. The behaviorist at the humane society did specifically mention it to me so she thinks it works...

 

[rainbowtrout]

Wow, I just read through this whole thread. What an amazing job FG! I have never had a cat bite me so badly as to leave repeated puncture wounds, good for you for sticking it out. Yowza.

Too bad about the pregnancy, but all cats go to heaven, and I imagine they''ll be happier there. I can''t believe they mate so young, you would think there would be something that evolved to prevent that...

 

[AmberGretchen]

FG...that is a LOT of socks lol!!

But those tips sound fantastic - should really give Chloe lots of time to try to adjust. The Rescue Remedy sounds like a good thought as well - definitely a good idea before those nose-to-nose encounters!!

 

[FireGoddess]

Oh boy - setback. I am kinda peeved at DH.

I got home last night and who greeted me once I got in the door? HOLLY. Uh....she's supposed to be confined to her room, not have run of the house. I immediately panicked, put her in her room, and called to Chloe. Chloe came out after a few minutes and I petted her but then she got back under the bed. I thought - I wonder if this went okay? I got Holly back out just to see what she would do. I sat on my bed, Holly took a peek under my bed, saw Chloe from that distance, and hissed. Oh boy. Back to her room. Clearly Holly investigated during the day and must have met with a hiss from Chloe, and responded in kind. Nobody had physical marks of any kind so that was probably the extent of it. However I was upset with DH's mistake because this could set back the already to-be-long process!!! Now they likely had an unfavorable interaction and I have to go even slower to correct that. AGH. I don't think I have enough socks.

 

[Gypsy]

LOL @ that "I don''t think I have enough socks!!" at the end.
A little miscommunication with hubby, huh? They do need to be supervised when they interact for the time being... just make sure DH realizes that.
But the hissing is going to happen. I don''t think this is a huge setback. When they his tap them on the bum and tell them "NO" firmly.. then remove them from the situation for now.

 

[kohdy]

FG,
How are they doing now? It sounds all too familiar to me... all that hissing during the introductory phase... I really hope Chloe will gain enough confidence soon that Holly won''t be able to intimidate her too much! Let us know how things are progressing.

 

[monarch64]

FG Hope everything works out for you with the new kitty!