The crazy cat lady's blog

April 2009

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Tue, 19 May 2009 17:18:00 +0000

I discovered a new colony of cats across from where I've been feeding and trapping. The business owners nearby have been feeding them each day, but they have not been fixed. There is a trailer park right nearby, so my guess is that a lot have come from there and are of varying degrees of feral/stray, and some have been fixed already.

The first cat I trapped was an orange male, who was already neutered, so he just got vaccinations, and an ear notch.

This is the second kitty:

He was an unneutered male, and they discovered he had an abscess on his neck, most likely from fighting. So he got neutered, vaccinated, and the abscess shaven, drained and cleaned. He also got FELV tested since it was obvious he'd been in a fight, and thankfully it was negative. Luckily, none of the cats in my area have tested positive for diseases, and hopefully it will remain that way.

December 14 - tabby girl kitten

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 20:30:00 +0000

We're giving "my" kitties a break, and are back to trapping at the second feral site to try and get the rest of Jimmy's siblings. There are three of them still running around, but unfortunately they would be too old to socialise, so we're going to have to trap-neuter-return.

We managed to trap one of the tabbies who is in being fixed.

Jimmy was named after the Australian singer Jimmy Barnes, so this kitten will be named Barnes. The other 2 kittens in the litter will be named Johnny and Farnham after the singer from the same era - hopefully one of the remaining kittens will be male...

I forgot to get her photo, so that will be coming soon when I next see her and have a camera.

December 8 - DLH tabby female

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 20:13:00 +0000

This girl is related to the DLH caught the previous week - they are the only two DLH's I have seen, they are always together, and they are bigger than the other kitties.

I named her Hagrid, in the hope she'd be a male, but oh well - she's a female Hagrid!

December 2 - male tabby and white and DLH tortie female

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 17:33:00 +0000

I started trapping at the area I've been feeding at for a while. The kitties have started running over when they hear me shake the food bag, so I figured that was a good time to start the trapping.

December 2 was the first night of trapping, and we trapped 2 kitties. One was a gorgeous long haired tortie who is always the first to run over, and she also grooms all the other kitties from that colony, she's a sweet cat. The other is a very handsome tabby male with a white chest (most of the cats in the colony have white chests)

This is McGonagall, the male

And Olympe, the female

October 20/21 - torbie female, tabby kitten, tabby and white male

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 07:48:00 +0000

This night I trapped a torbie girl I'd been after for a while who I named Hermione. While I was out there though, I could hear a kitten mewing. I realised there was actually two kittens mewing - the two that got separated from their mother on a previous trapping night. It was heartbreaking hearing them cry...

I put the traps back out to try and get them, and managed to get one of the kittens, but not his sister. As soon as I got the tabby, his Siamese sibling started crying and crying for him. It was very heartbreaking. I had transferred the first kitty into my recovery cage at home, and taken the trap back out to try and get the Siamese kitten, but she refused to go into the trap.

So the next day I got the adult female spayed, picked up a large crate from the shelter to house the kitten so I could socialise him, and that night went out with a better drop trap than I had previously used to try and get the other Siamese.

I had no luck with the drop trap, so put out a regular trap as well which she stepped into, but got spooked by another cat, so ran off. The cat that spooked her went into the trap though, so once again I was full up on traps!

The next day (October 22), I had the tabby and white male neutered, and continued spending time with the tabby kitten who we called Jimmy. Unfortunately, Hermione, the female who had been spayed wasn't doing well. She wasn't eating, wasn't moving from her litter tray and was looking lethargic.

By the next day she was still not looking good, so I released the tabby male (Oliver), and took Hermione to the emergency vet. She was put under anesthesia to get examined and was found to be dehydrated and had a temperature, but had nothing else obvious wrong, so she received fluids and antibiotics to help her along. She perked up the next day, so I released her that night. I wasn't convinced she was 100%, but I had done all I could for her, and I knew she would be happier back in her own environment.

Jimmy, the kitten, I worked on socialising, and he came along in leaps and bounds. It took him a few days before he would allow me to pick him up, but he eventually did, and then the purr came along soon after.

He was pretty scared initially, so I kept him for close to a month, and by the end of that time he was about 11 weeks old and a happy little kitten. I was having trouble finding him a home, so I surrendered him to Palo Alto Animal Services where he had a better chance of getting a home. He had a rough start there - he was very scared at his new environment, but after a few days settled in, and enjoyed all the attention he got in the adoption room, and soon got used to other cats and enjoyed wrestling with other kittens. He was adopted to the perfect family on December 5th along with another kitten.

Jimmy

Hermione

October 16 - tabby male

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 07:24:00 +0000

Another drama packed trapping :)

I had planned to release the girl we trapped over the weekend, and Andrew wanted to "say goodbye as well". So we went to the usual spot, and saw a kitten!

We tried to follow it, and saw another kitten, and another! We ended up seeing about 5 kittens, and mum. Mum ran off one way with 3 kittens trailing her, and the other 2 ran in a different direction. We looked at each other and said "crap".

So we quickly released Ginny, reset the trap we transported her in to try and get the 2 kittens that were still in that area, then tried to figure out where the other kittens went. We crossed the road, followed them around a building, and then realised they were going to the generator where I had caught a litter of kittens a few months back.

So we raced home, grabbed the other trap, and set it not far from that spot, and checked the first trap.

No kitty, but the kittens were hanging around there. We realised we needed a drop trap.

We moved that trap to the generator, the other trap to a bit closer to the generator, then stopped and looked around. There was 6 cats in my field of vision, but I couldn't see any of the kittens. So they and mum were still around as well.

We went back to the first area, put the drop trap out, and tried to get the 2 kittens. Long story short, we got no kittens, but we did end up seeing a total of 4 kittens in that area, and caught an older kitty in the drop trap.

We went back to the generator, and there was cats galore. There has to be 10+ cats there, plus kittens, and that doesn't include the ones I normally feed who I still haven't been able to trap and are one building over.

I decided that this particular drop trap is bad bad bad, and I will not be using it again. This kitty's nose got carved up as well.

His wasn't as bad though, and he could neutered the next day, and released the day after.

This is Neville. Unfortunately the vet forgot to notch his ear, so hopefully he's not silly enough to go into a trap again.

October 15 - tabby female

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 07:12:00 +0000

We were trying to get a particular cat who was avoiding our traps, so we used a drop trap. The drop trap is fantastic, as it's not at all threatening to a cat. A drop trap looks a little like this:

Unfortunately, once the cat is caught, it goes crazy trying to get out, and this kitty managed to smash her nose into one of the wooden supports. We kept her for a few days in the larger recovery cage so she could recover before being spayed.

She got spayed, the vet was nice enough to clean her up, and we named her Ginny. She was released a couple of days after her spay.

October 2 - 2 x tabby boys

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 07:09:00 +0000

I started trapping again on October 2nd after we realised the feral population was getting a little out of control.

First up were 2 x handsome tabby boys. We're going for a Harry Potter theme, so we named them Fred and George.

They were neutered, vaccinated and released the next night.

September 4 - trapped lynx point kitten

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 06:37:00 +0000

I discovered a litter of kittens who had a fabulous hiding spot in a wooden "box" that had been constructed to protect some piping. Unfortunately I couldn't get into it, so I had to just put the traps out and hope for the best.

I only managed to trap one kitten out of I think four kittens who we named Sabrina. She was only a little over a pound, so probably only 6 weeks or so, very skinny, riddled with fleas, had filthy ears, and just plain unhealthy looking. So I deflead her as soon I got the chance, got some good food into her, and after a couple of days she had turned into a ball of love.

We were going away, so I surrendered her to Palo Alto Animal Services where she was fostered out until she was big and strong enough to be spayed and adopted out, but her foster mum fell in love with her and adopted her. She is apparently very confident, and very loving. It's great when you can get them early!

Unfortunately I never saw any of her siblings again. I'm guessing the mother moved them, but that was a safe, warm place, and given how skinny and flea covered Sabrina was initially, I'm going to guess her siblings didn't survive.

July 2008 - litter of 5, plus mum and 6 rescue kittens

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 06:22:00 +0000

July was a crazy month. It all started on July 2nd when I went out to Google to trap a mother cat and her 5 kittens that staff had seen running around. I trapped the mother and one of the kittens (using 2 humane cat traps that I have), and the next morning trapped the last 4 kittens.

Trapping the last kittens was a challenge. They'd all been living in a generator, so we ended up having to get keys to open the generator, and literally grabbing the kittens and yanking them out. Finding them in the generator was hard, grabbing them was pretty easy. I just grabbed them by the scruff of the neck as they ran for cover, and put them in a cage. It was a six person job though - two people to spot the kittens, one to poke them out of their hidey holes, one to hold the cage for me, and me grabbing them

That same day I was due to go down to Gilroy and pick up a litter of kittens that needed help. Their owner was on a disability pension and living in a trailer park, and was given a cat that was unspayed, and got a little too friendly with her male cat who was unneutered. A litter of kittens ensued, and while she gave them lots of love, she didn't have the space for them (she has another cat, so 3 adult cats, and 6 kittens in a much smaller space than us!) could not afford the proper nutrition for them, or to get them spayed/neutered and rehomed and didn't want to take them to a shelter where they may get euthanised.

I had separate crates for the different litters in my spare room, but things were crazy. The Gilroy litter were about 11 weeks old, and had bad diarrhea (most probably diet related) so were super skinny, but were very sweet. The Google litter were about 7 weeks old and what I would consider semi-feral. They were hissing and spitting at me, and the mother would hiss at me, but she'd let me put my hands in the cage to change their food/water/litter without being at all aggressive - even if it meant putting my hand almost right under her nose. So I think she knew people were ok, and meant her survival, but we weren't to be completely trusted.

We were away that weekend because it was July 4, and I couldn't get the mother to be spayed until the Wednesday after, so for the first week I really had no contact with the kittens - just looking after their care, and getting them used to my voice and presence.

The 6 older kittens I got a friend to take care of for me - it was too many kittens in the house!

Meanwhile, the Google mother cat was spayed, and I had planned to keep her a few days to let her recover, then release her where I found her. Once she was at the vet for her surgery, I let the kittens out for the first time to let them start playing.

One was pretty brave, 2 were curious, and 2 were very shy. Only the brave ones came out, so getting them back in the cage was fine - it was their safe house.

The next day I tried again, only this time I could not get 2 of the kittens back in. It was very stressful for everyone involved! There was one kitten who each time we tried to socialise them would flip out - hiss, spit, strike at us, and get incredibly mad. The others were scared, but nowhere near as aggressive. To make it worse, she would run to the other kittens and then do this big act at me, which was freaking the other kittens out. The mere sight of me was enough to set her off.

I decided she really needed to be released with her mother - she would require more resources than I had (time, space, patience...), and she was scaring the other kittens and making them more wary which wasn't helping them.

So I got her spayed the next day, gave her time to recover, then released her and her mum together back to the generator where I first trapped them. The people at Google were going to keep providing them with food and water, so at least they were dry and safe, and had been fixed and vaccinated, so are a little more healthy, and can't reproduce. I've seen them since, and they're doing fine.

Meanwhile, the Gilroy litter still had very bad diarrhea - it was pretty much pure liquid, and they weren't putting on much weight. Off to the vet I trotted with 2 of the kittens, and some stool samples. They tested negative for kitty diseases and negative for worms, but did have ear mites, but the vet could find nothing else wrong. We walked away with a large bill, medication that would hopefully help the diarrhea, and ear drops for the ear mites. Their foster mum, Scottie, did an amazing job keeping their litter boxes clean (not an easy task!), giving medicine, applying ear drops and giving them lots of love. She also started putting mashed pumpkin in their tinned food - pumpkin is supposed to help make their stools more solid. That seemed to help, and they generally have good poop now :-)

Back with the Google kittens, the more shy ones started coming out and playing more almost as soon as the cranky kitten had been released. We were no longer crating them any more, so they had the whole room to play in which they were loving.

Generally to socialise them, we did these things:

1) Using interactive toys to play with them so they associated us with fun
2) Patting them and sitting close after they eat their tinned food, as well as giving them Gerber baby food off our fingers in the early staged (kitties LOVE that)
3) Taking them individually into the bathroom for some lap time - it was easier if they were separated from their siblings
4) I took the "easy does it" approach, whereas Andrew took the "tough love" approach. So I would pretty much let them be during the day - play with them, feed them and sit nearby watching them. So they got used to having me there, and got comfortable playing, eating and using the litter tray with me right there. I would let them approach me, then try to pat them. Andrew would pull them out from their hiding places, or scruff them when they were near by, and hold them, and get them used to be handled. He got the most purrs out of them initially as he was handling them more. I think it was good to have both us doing different things - they were comfortable going about their business with me around, and they got the handling they needed from Andrew.
5) I played podcasts from my laptop in their room to get used to the sound of human voices

It was amazing watching the progress of these kittens. They were so scared and untrusting when we first got them. Then the brave kitten learned early on that being patted was good, and became very outgoing and affectionate. Then another stopped hissing when we went to pat her, and started putting her head up to be patted. Then the one who loved to play but hated being touched started letting us pat him - then we could pick him up with no problems, and he headbutts his sister out of the way if I pat her and not him. He would also snuggle up under my chin if I was lying on my belly so he can get in close, and rub against my face. He made the most improvement. The last kitten was still very shy, but gained a lot of confidence.

We started finding homes for all the kittens, and an email to Google found us a fair bit of interest. The first appointments for their spay and neuter appointments (as well as vaccinations, microchipping, and another round of ear care/treatment for the kittens with ear mites) came around, and we did 3 kittens from the Gilroy litter, and 2 from the Google litter (the 2 Google ones had homes, so they went in the first round). The next night, one of the Gilroy kittens, and 2 Google kittens went to their new homes. Another couple also decided on 2 kittens from the Gilroy litter, but as the girl hadn't been spayed, they had to wait another week for after her appointment.

By this stage, I had all kittens back at our house. The Gilroy kittens were in the spare room, and the Google kittens were playing in our bedroom during the day, and go into the bathroom at night.

The kittens started finding homes though, and within a couple of weeks eight of the ten kittens had gone to their new homes, and they were all fabulous homes as well. The last two kittens took a while to find homes, but they were the shyest, so had more socialisation time, but also eventually found fantastic homes.

The Gilroy 6:

Blaze

James Bond

Daisy

Boots

Blaze

and Velvet

And the Google litter

Marissa, Susan, Francoise, and mum Sabrina at the back

Larry

Francoise

Sergey

and Marissa

June - injured foster kitten

noreply@blogger.com (Sarah) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 06:09:00 +0000

Sally was our first foster kitty for the year. She's been hit by a car, and had a fractured pelvis. We'd just gotten back from holiday, and I'd received an email from the shelter asking if anyone could foster her, so I agreed, and kept her for about 2 weeks while she healed.

She was a sweet little rascal who like all kittens, wanted to run around, not rest her injured pelvis!

She went back to Palo Alto Animal Services where she was adopted out.