So I found something in my shed this morning...

[Missmonkeypenny]

Rural area, mum nowhere to be seen, very cold and shivering so have bought them in to warm up.

Now what?!

Look up The Kitten Lady on YouTube - she fosters kitten pretty much professionally. She's in the USA so I guess the vet set up is different there but has plenty of advice about looking after kittens!

If youve seen a black cat that's dead nearby I really don't think I would put them back . Plus you've handled them . Mum might abandon anyway ? No expert - but what if mum doesn't come back and the kittens are cold and hungry.....can they escape or wander off ? I wouldn't want to lose them .

I was going to suggest setting up a camera in the shed to see if mum comes back But flour would work too!

@fuckedandbombed Mum cats don't abandon kittens because they have been handled. They are too small to wander off. The OP needs to put down food (and yes, some flour on the floor is a good idea). Then if it hasn't been eaten and there are no footprints by evening she should take them in. Ideally she should look at the body to see if it has nipples in use, or indeed testicles, in which case it's definitely not the mum.

I've just seen a run over black cat on the way back from the shops and I'm hoping it isnt her

Seems a bit of a coincidence :(

Yes userxx - but there are a lot of black cats and we don't know how close the shops are. We can't assume anything yet.

@MikeUniformMike

Not RTFT. I have some names for them: Female - Flora, Elfine and Ada Male - Amos, Seth and Reuben

Definitely better than Feckless, Aimless and Graceless

Mike one of those is my sons name

🐱

If you put them back in the shed definitely keep an eye on then. They are so tiny that I'm worried they might wander off and then get into trouble.

You could post on local fb sites to see if anyone had a pregnant cat. She might have wandered off to have her kittens (they usually try to find somewhere quiet). You'd have to be careful though that you don't just get someone trying to claim them as they want some kittens.

Did you check if it had milk?.

I will go back out later to check the cat if it's still there - I couldn't stop or go back straight away as DS is ebf and needed feeding.

The missing mother could be Pointless.

See someone picked upon the 'something nasty in the woodshed' tone of the thread title.

The kittens are too small to wander off for those that are worried. They are only three or four weeks old from the photo (and the blue eyes).

@Missmonkeypenny

I am in the south east!

I wont be looking to make any money from them at all, just want them to have loving homes when the time comes

Me too! I will take one!!

I wouldn't put them in the shed tonight - it's Bonfire Night and the noise will be terrifying. Even if mom is still around the fireworks will probable scare her away.

@nonetcurtains nothing will stop a mother cat going to her kittens. They have been known to enter burning buildings to rescue them. It has to be tonight, but if there has been no evidence that the mum has come before say 8pm then the OP should take them in.

Now you get to love them forever - woohoo! I think they've chosen you 😁

Beautiful babies. You are the chosen one, op 🥰.

I hope mum is ok. If she's still around, a local rescue could possibly set a trap for her and get her neutered. The last thing she needs is more babies (adorbs as they are!).

@Missmonkeypenny.I see that you live in Hampshire, if you are on the south coast then there is a very good cat rescue in Lymington called Lymington Cat and Kitten Rescue.
Good luck with those beautiful kittens, they melt your heart, just hope that it wasn’t their mum that you saw knocked down. 😢

Although the kittens are black it doesn't mean the mother is necessarily the same colour. They can have all sorts.

OP - some cats find funny places to have their kittens, so it may be that the mother is a local pet cat who has chosen your shed as her place to raise her kittens. They may well have been born somewhere else and she has moved them there recently. It might be worth checking your local FB page in case someone is missing a formerly pregnant cat and/or kittens.

OP you have to keep them!!! How lucky are you. I think the only way I could get away with having another cat is if I found some.

Why oh why oh why can't I find kittens in my shed!!!!! So jealous!

Shamelessly PMK'ing.

They are lovely.
I DO hope the Mother cat isn't the one you saw, that she comes back and you can trap her and help them all. That would be the ideal thing.

I don't think the mum would leave them to be cold and shivering. She could be trapped somewhere I suppose, but more likely come to grief