Tuesday, September 14, 2010

Oh no! We have visitors! **UPDATED**

If you know me, you know I’m not a pet person. I have nothing against pets, they’re just not for me. I’ve always lived a very busy life and have felt it’s not fair to have a pet that I have no time for.

That being said, Hannah and I came home last Thursday to find a mommy cat and her 3 kittens had taken up residence in our courtyard. I guess we’re not the only ones who realized it was a beautiful, private, quiet place to hang out. I’ve watched the mother and she makes her way in and out under the neighbour’s deck and they come up through the hole in my deck around my lilac tree and air conditioner.

I would never hurt them but I’m looking for suggestions as to how I can discourage this mother (Siamese) and her kittens from living here and encourage them to leave? I’m going to call animal control tomorrow and see what they say as I have no idea where the mother lives. I want our deck to be a safe place for Hannah to play and I’m not thinking the cat would be too willing to share it with us.

Until they find a new home, Hannah’s enjoying watching them through the screen door.Imported Photos 00038 Imported Photos 00041

Kitten anyone???

**UPDATE**

It's now Saturday night and I think my little family has moved on to greener pastures and warm milk. I'm not a cat person so did not make any effort to get to know them.

One thing that was recommended to me was to put egg shells where the cats were entering my property. I'm lucky that the only access to my deck for the cats was up through the deck around my lilac tree. I put the egg shells there on Tuesday morning and have not seen the cat or kittens since.

Hopefully they've found a wonderful new home with a family who loves them.

12 comments:

  1. Catherine, we went through this a couple of years ago. There are feral cat rescue organizations, if you are interested in contacting one in your local area. They can help you trap the mom and kittens (with a humane trap, of course) so that everyone can get inoculated and fixed (when the kittens are old enough). Then cat foster families can socialize the kittens so that they can eventually become safe house pets. The momma cat may need to simply be released, but at least she will be fixed.

    I've written about our experiences on my blog, but don't listen to me. I got sucked in. "Molly" now has me wrapped around her little paw.

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  2. Well, if the mommy cat is a wild cat, she will stop going out there once you start to go back outside. If she is not wild, then she might not leave but should be no harm to you. You could wait until they all leave and then block the entrence. Either way, the cats won't hurt you.

    Poor kitties! You sure you don't want even just one? Cat are super easy to have. We have 4 and they really are no problem.

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  3. So cute but I can understand your worry.

    Keep smilin!

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  4. Try this organization http://www.ora-animalsrescue.org/, they may be able to help.

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  5. We had a ferral cat last winter. What a mess! All I could figure out was that someone had a foreclosed house and left their kitten, which became a wild cat. At first I believed it belonged to someone else, but after a couple of weeks, it started becoming very skinny. We took it to the pound because it was too wild to come close. Our vet wanted normal fees to fix it, which was horrible, because it was not ours.
    I don't have any real solutions for you, but whatever you do, you should do it soon. She will become pregnant again shortly if nothing is done. And if she is not being fed from anyone around your place, the kittens will become malnurished. We all know the importance of nutrition as a baby.
    This is a hard situation to face, but good luck to you.

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  6. hehe but that one kitten seems to like Hannah...sure you can't keep just one? I promise she'll feed it! :-)

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  7. A dog would fix your problem. But then it could end up a bit like the kids book "I know an old lady who swallowed a fly.....

    Love your blog

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  8. Do call animal control.

    It only takes one to two weeks to tame wild kittens. You, not wanting pets, don't need all the details, but we have rescued two abandoned kittens and they are both wonderful pets-one is ours and one is our grown son's cat.

    They will all be better off if given the chance to be domesticated by someone who does want them.

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  9. My mother always said that mothballs will deter any animals. Worth a shot. Put them under the deck maybe where Hannah cannot reach them.

    You can also check out petstores for the furniture spray they sell for cats. Spray it all around your deck?

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  10. If that kitten is at your window, it is definitely not feral...I had feral cats at my old house and the tiny, tiny kittens would come no where near us. Good luck with whatever you decide!

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  11. Awwww, poor kitty's.

    Andrea

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  12. When you go to a cat show, the cages the cats are in all have clear plastic covers. The owners don't want dirty germ laden strangers (who knows where they've been and what germs they've picked up!) touching their fur babies.
    Based on the way that kitten is looking at Hannah, he/she is desperately hoping to be part of your family too. That is no feral cat. Not by a long shot.
    Head out and give it a scratch behind the ears. You'll be pleasantly surprised.

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