Advice needed!

Queries and discussions about cat rescue & rehoming
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Mehak93
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Advice needed!

Post by Mehak93 »

Hi everyone,

I'm new to the forum and joined because I'm in need of advice. So on my road there is an alley way where there are a few feral cats, i have been feeding them and trying to look after them. One of the male cats has been mating with the other female cats and this has resulted in multiple pregnancies. I have been in contact with my local charity and the RSPCA to get help, I want to neuter these cats as soon as possible to prevent this situation from getting out of hand but there is a long waiting list before anything can be done. Things have taken a turn for the worse as now there are a bunch of feral kittens in a dodgy alley way and the mother cat doesn't seem to be looking after them. I have tried giving them kitten milk and food but they run off and even when I give them some space they don't go for the food. I feel terrible about this situation because it breaks my heart seeing such young kittens without food or shelter. I wish i could do more but I have done everything I could think of and now I'm a bit lost as to what to do. Unfortunately i cant take these cats in myself as I already have a cat who is very territorial.

If anyone has any suggestions please let me know as I'm desperate to get help for these felines.

Thank you in advance!
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bobbys girl
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by bobbys girl »

Hello and welcome to CC. First of all, thank you for caring for these cats and what happens to them. I personally wouldn't bother with the RSPCA

Where exactly are you? If we knew where you were there will probably be someone on here who can put you in touch with someone who can help. Our local animal shelter work with Cat's Protection and some local vets to Trap, Neuter and Release ferral cats. It has worked well with a group we call 'The Car Park Cats'. Perhaps there is a scheme like that near you?
Mehak93
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by Mehak93 »

Hi,

Thank you for your reply! I live in Forest Gate which is in East London. I have heard of the trap, neuter, release scheme but unfortunately the only vets/charity that cover my area have said that there is a long waiting list so I'm not sure how long this will take. It would be great if there are any other charities that could help as I don't feel reassured with the vets that I have called up already.

Thank you for your advice.
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Janey
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by Janey »

Hi and welcome,

The link below, with advice on feral cats, may be helpful

http://www.catchat.org/index.php/about-feral-cats

Also a list of rescues, there may be some you’ve not tried here:

http://www.catchat.org/index.php/cat-re ... uk-ireland

If you use Facebook you could use contacts on there to post and help you loan a trap/get advice too.

It’s good you’re trying to sort this as it can soon get out of hand. We had a problem in our area with ferals some years ago. Three of us, neighbours got them all sorted and have cared for them since, most are in their teens now. Our local CP loaned us traps and we managed to trap them all and liaising with the vets got them all neutered. Unfortunately CP wouldn’t take them in so we agreed to look after them. I would try ringing round all the rescues in your area and hopefully one will help soon. They may be busy with traps at this time of year especially, but they will also be glad you’re trying to sort this as it means less unneutered cats roaming!

Wishing you luck!
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Lilith
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by Lilith »

Hi, Mehak and welcome and good on you for being so concerned :)

i can't really add to the good advice from bobbys girl and Janey, but I had the same experience 13 years ago, feral community building up in bad conditions (even the house the two original girls had come from was semi-derelict.) It's lucky that cats are so resourceful about finding shelter but it doesn't make the problem any better. I was lucky in that I was (temporarily) catless and three girls had decided to move in with me (the toms came later lol) but I had fun with getting the 9 kittens placed. Another mother and kittens (she gave birth in their house) had been taken to CP by a neighbour but meanwhile I'm afraid I kept getting promised help and then it would fall through unless I pestered like mad, which I don't like doing!

I'm afraid the bottom line is that some animal charity workers (I don't say all, by any means!) will leave you to cope if you show any sign of competence, such as feeding/knowing about the need for neutering whatever. It's a compliment in its way, but cold comfort at the time. Most animal charities, especially the ones concerned with cats, are so rushed off their feet, short of money and space (especially at this time of year with the dreaded kitten season) that helpful members of the public become auxiliary rescue workers which again is a compliment, but I feel (from my own experience) a little more support could sometimes be shown, even if only verbally. The RSPCA I'm afraid is a joke. I was meek in those days but one day I yelled at them that I was doing THEIR job.

In the end I did get the kittens placed with rescues, and the girls were neutered free of charge, to my surprise, which I was very grateful for; I hadn't realised that this could be done, and I feel that, unless you're feeling rich, this ought to be done in this case too. Asap, to prevent any further pregnancies. You will have to keep hammering at them.

It's great that they're getting food from you, especially the kittens, but I wouldn't worry too much about milk. Although the mother doesn't seem to be about, she may well be still giving them milk; it's meat, even bog-standard catfood, that they need now, but I'd recommend the 'Butcher's Classic' brand, only about £3 for 6 large tins, and not bulked out with cereal like many (more expensive) brands. I don't think those kittens will stay shy for long; they'll get used to feeding times and you'll find them getting bolder. Again, if they're big kittens, some plan ought to be in place to get them off-site, into rescues or homes, and neutered, but many rescues will say, we can't place kittens that are wild. I was up against this. I took one litter from a derelict garage at the age of 6-7 weeks and they WERE wild. I kept them just a few days in the bathroom; they used their tray straight away and soon learned to yell for their food. In a short while, with gentle luring/playing with a feather or dried grass stalk as I sat on the floor, I had them climbing all over me and getting used to a human presence/voice. They aren't that difficult to tame and these all found homes. The other litter was brought to me by my Emily, who, with her cousin Mouse, still lives with me; they were a month old so they had to stay with me for a while. 'Will the mother let you touch them?' asked one rescue worker. 'How tame are they?' Lol! Emily used me as kitten-sitter and even left them to come and sleep with me. Those kittens were so tame they climbed your legs!

Oops, sorry for the blog. I do hope you find some support soon and again congrats on helping these cats. Hopefully posting on CC may get you more notice from shelters, but in the meantime, do keep pestering. All the very very best and to the cats themselves x
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bobbys girl
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by bobbys girl »

Like Janey, several of us look after our 'ferrals'. This is me feeding the Car Park Cats - I SHOULD have been gardening, if they let me!
rsz_2011.jpg
rsz_2011.jpg (59.28 KiB) Viewed 3881 times
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Kay
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by Kay »

how well they all look too - no one half-starved there
Mehak93
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by Mehak93 »

Thank you everyone for your helpful comments, it's very much appreciated.

I will have a look at the list Janey sent and hopefully I'll come across another Charity that I might have missed.

I will also keep pestering my local vets as they have a rescue team who have the resources to neuter these cats.

It's heart-warming to know that you guys are looking out for these ferals and feeding them, I'm glad that these cats have you.

Bobby's girl, those cats look quite healthy! Thank you for feeding them
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Lilith
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by Lilith »

bobbys girl wrote:Like Janey, several of us look after our 'ferrals'. This is me feeding the Car Park Cats - I SHOULD have been gardening, if they let me!
rsz_2011.jpg
Wow! What a bonny lot - well since they're Irish cats they must be living the life of Reilly! :D

Again good luck with your lot, Mehak and please keep updating. All power to you and your feral community, do hope you get more support, all paws crossed here :)
Mehak93
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by Mehak93 »

Thank you! Although I'm still waiting to get the adult cats neutered, I do have some good news. The little babies are less shy of me now so I've been able to feed most of them :) Two of the kittens are still a bit nervous but I think with time they'll get used to me being around them and hopefully they'll join in the meal times :)
Mehak93
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by Mehak93 »

Hi again,

Just wanted to post a quick update to let you all know what's happened, I've been meaning to do this for a while now but I've been super busy!

So after constantly pestering my local animal shelter, they finally offered to take the cats in for neutering and take the kittens to hopefully find a forever home (this happened a couple of months ago). I'm very pleased to say that all of the cats have been neutered and 3 of the kittens have been homed! The adult cats have been released and are being fed daily, I just wish I could offer them a home in this cold season.

Thank you once again to all of you for your helpful advice and support. :)
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Lilith
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by Lilith »

Congrats! :D That's great news!

You must have put in a lot of hard work and persistence and it's paid off. You've got a lot of hard work ahead of you, taking care of them, but what a relief to know that the adults are neutered now.

You've really transformed these cats' lives and good on you!

So very very pleased to hear and thanks for the update :D
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bobbys girl
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Re: Advice needed!

Post by bobbys girl »

That's lovely news! Thank you for updating us, those kitties are lucky to have you.
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