We have taken in a stray tortie mum and her litter of 5 kittens who are 4 weeks old tomorrow. They were being fed and 'looked after' but the old lady next door but she found it too distressing worrying about them and I think the mum did too as she moved the kittens into our garage a few days ago.
We managed to catch them all and they are now in our large dog crate in the spare room with a cosy 'house-like' bed and litter tray in the crate. We kept the crate closed for the first day of so to let mum settle in but now they all have the free range of the room, though they tend to stick to around the bed and food.
This is the third litter in 18 months we know that this mum has had but judging by the size of her I'd say she was only about 2 herself. We've tried a few times to catch her but she's very shy and called the shelters to come get her but they never came. I'm so pleased we can finally get her spayed. Only problem is keeping her in for potentially another 4-6 weeks till the op can be done, I know it has to be done but she's not too happy about being cooped up
I know this is a bit of a rant but just wanted to check we're not doing anything wrong. The kits are still feeding from her only. She is being fed a mixture of kitten food and normal food and I've bought some lactol as I've heard this can be good for her. She's a brilliant mum so we only need to go in there to put down food and clean out the litter tray. We've been handling them all for short period to get them used to people and mum is lots more trusting than she was outside.
I phoned round all the shelter who are full and closed waiting lists. I called the vet who said it sounds fine and they shouldnt need any vet input but I think we'll take them all along tomorrow to get checked anyway and so if mum can be wormed etc we can get this done too.
Again, sorry for the rant x

Well done you! She sounds like she is having great care. A vets check up will be good and reassuring for you. In the next couple of weeks the kitts will start to wean. You will have your hands full of bundles of fun running around everywhere soon.!

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Thank you! I've just had a quick look to see if I can tell the sex and it looks like we've got a ginger boy, a ?long haired tortie girl and three grey/brown tabby girls. With all those girls I'm even more pleased we've got them!

Well done mummy cat and you too x

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It sounds fine to me. Cats are fully grown by a year at most (they are supposed to be 90% grown by 6 months, but mine seem to mature a little more slowly than that) so her size is not going to be an indicator of her age.

Liz

I just wondered whether it could be a sign that she had her first litter when she was very young, doesn't it stunt their growth a bit? I guess the vet might be able to tell from teeth etc?? We're taking them all for a check up tomorrow. They're 4 weeks old today and I saw one of them wee in the litter tray clever kitties

You could try your local cp, they might be able to spay her for free

You are ABSOLUTELY right there! Having litters early can stunt their own growth

Even vets can find it hard to age cats, teeth are only a vague indiction of age.

And well done you for rescuing the cat and her kittens. You sound like you have all their best interests at heart. Bless you!

Just got back from the vets and they are all in perfect health He agrees mum is a bit on the skinny side but she seems healthy. The 4 girls are about 500g and the boy is a chubby 600g, which apparently is pretty good for 4 week olds
Got worming meds for them all and the receptionist even phoned the cats protection league for us and got vouchers to have mum, the 5 kittens and even the 2 18month old kittens from a previous litter we look after neutered for free! And she gave us a free bag of kitten dry food! I'm so pleased we can give them the care they need, I feel good about all their futures now. Just need to find homes for them all!

Glad they are all doing well. Sounds like you have a very nice vets practice there.

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4 working cockers dexter 7, dizzy 3, murphy 2, charlie 1 and Eccles the dalmatian
5 cats cleo, katie & mickey (all 11) Merlin & Starr MC`s kittens
4 chinchillas (ranging from 19 to 4 yrs)
2 red foot tortoises
tropical fish in 6ft tank

Sprocket the rocket....(hamster) RIP


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