kittens found in garden, what to do?

[MysweetAudrina]

My dh found a young female cat with 2 kittens in our open shed on Saturday. They were up high in a box. The mothers is not tame and she scampered. I didn't pick up the kittens but they appeared to be quite young. My problem is that we have a Tom cat and I am worried that he might harm the kittens. We have been leaving food for the mother and we have observed her eating it from a distance. She is very skittish. My cat is aware they are there and he spent some time sitting in the shed yesterday but not really bothering them or looking to bothered by their presence.

I am just wondering what the best thing to do is. I don't want to remove the kittens from the mother as they are too young and she probably has the best chance of protecting them. I would hate however if my cat hurt or killed the kittens.

Any advice please?

@MysweetAudrina any update on Mummy cat and her kittens?
You and your DDs are great for gently getting their approval to be brought into your family :)
Irish mums are great, no matter who they are looking after .

Hi, all doing well. One of the kittens is much smaller than the other and had started meowing alot so we were worried that she was fading. We got some formula and a bottle bit she refused it. We kept them in the sitting room with us and observed her and she seems to be feeding well and is quite active. Mum is still very protective and I made the mistake of trying to introduce the dog to her last night. I had him on his lead and I just opened the door. She tore over the room and attacked him. I got hom straight out of the room and shut the door. She then turned on dh and scratched and bit his legs. It's the first sign of aggression she has showed. Any tips on how and when to introduce the dog. He is feeling very sorry for himself as he is used to being with me all the time and cant understand why he can't come into the room.

Oh it's great to hear they're doing well.

I would hold off introducing the dog until the kittens are less vulnerable in the mother's eyes. She's in full-on protection mode at the moment and will see everything as a threat.

Have you tried the kittens with your dog without the mum?

Have you tried putting her on local fb pages or finding out if she is chipped? Someone might be missing her.

Aww it's lovely to see the progress they've made since you found them. Agree with previous poster that said to hold off on meeting the dog until the mother is a bit calmer. You're doing a fantastic job so far

I have posted on local pages and also searched through all the missing cat lists in my area and no match there. I will check for a chip when I am getting her spayed but want to wait until it wont cause her distress by being apart from her babies
Good idea with the dog I will wait and introduce him to kittens when she is getting spayed.

G

Some better pics

Oh too too cute
😻😻😻😻

Awwwww....

Is the mother more comfortable with people now?

Are you feeding them all kitten food? My foster cat families always preferred Felix - the kitten food is high protein and good for the feeding mum as well. They are sweet! What are your longer term plans for them? The babies will need neutering when they are around one kilo (some rescues will do it from 800gms.) Do you have a good local rescue who might take them on for you for rehoming once they’re weaned?

They were so lucky to have found you.

I though OP was going to keep them all? She's got one cat already, she might as well have four

Awww what a lovely post!

No! Cat Protection, not what rhe name infers. They put everything down. Only the little space they have, survive. RSPCA & other shelters 'put down' policy of ferals. And young kittens. Even though the Mum may be just owner abandoned but once domesticated. Not fair. Phone a Rescue organisation on Petrescue in your State. Maybe able to catch Mum with feed in trap. Rescues know how. Good luck.. But Mum needs desexing in a while.

Maybe read the full thread, Pinlot?

Sad update. The little one passed away today. Dd is heartbroken and hasn't stopped crying.

Just reading the thread for the 1st time and thinking how lovely it was. Very sad to hear your update but sounds like it might have happened sooner if you hadn’t brought them in

@MysweetAudrina
I'm sorry this happened to you and your DD. Your DD did the very best and sometimes it can't be helped

@MysweetAudrina just wanted to check in and say I hope you're all feeling a bit better today.
And that Mammy cat and her little kitten are doing well too.

Just read the thread, I am so sorry that the little one passed away. How are mummy cat and kitten doing now? And of course, how is DD?

Ahhh what a sad update. Might it be an idea to get mum and remaining kitten to the vets to have them checked over? Has mum been scanned for a chip?

Been following this OP, sorry to hear your sad update. Hope all are ok.

Congratulations on your new cats.

Oh no later to the party as always. So sad.

I'm so sorry about the little one, the lot of them are so beautiful! Hope the other kitten and Luna are doing well!