*Semi-urgent* Anyone in Michigan want foster kittens?

[aly]

Hey guys,

My uncle (who is TOTALLY clueless about animals and has never owned one or cared about them much) is in the process of building a new home. He put in some cement steps last night and then found out there were some baby kitties trapped. They had to knock away some cement and were able to get the kittens out. They are very tiny but have their eyes open so I'm guessing they're around 2 weeks old. I'm in the process of sending him an email on how to care for them (he was feeding them milk - UGH) and looking around for rescue groups who could possibly take the kittens for him. I haven't talked to him yet (my mom did), but I know he won't want to care for them long. I think he actually has them outside hoping the mother cat will come back and get them.

If there's any way anyone in the Michigan area could foster them, please let me know. Thanks so much

[aly]

Oh I forgot to mention that he's in Detroit. I have no idea if he'd be willing to drive too far either

I REALLY wish I was up there so I could take care of them myself. It is so frusterating being so far away.

[catmandu]

We hope,that your Uncle,can get the help,that he needs,for those Poor Kittens!

[aly]

Just thought I'd let ya know that the mom cat came back and got the 2 bigger kittens and my uncle was able to get the 2 smaller kittens into a foster home for the local shelter. I will talk to him about trapping mom & the remaining kittens.

[moosmom]

Aly,

I live right outside of Detroit, in Ecorse. I'd hate to have him trap the Mama and leave the other 2 kittens to fend for themselves, seeing as they are so young. Since they are about 2 weeks old, they DEFINITELY need their mother. I hope the foster homes the other two kittens are in are bottle feeding them with KMR, a milk supplement. The hard thing about fostering babies that young is they need to be fed every 2-3 hours, and also need help going to the bathroom (that's why Mama licks their behinds, to help them pee and poo).

I work nights from 7 pm to 5:30 am and might be able to help. I have a cage set up in my back room. If we can find out where the mama took the other two kittens, we can probably gather them up and I can foster them till their old enough to adopt out. But I have to say that I am in a financial hardship at this point and cannot afford their vet care. If your uncle is willing to help out with food and vet care, I'd be willing to foster them. It'll be up to you to find good homes for them. I hope this is acceptable.

Let me know. My email address is [email protected], or call and leave a message at 313-388-1573.

[leslie]

Yes! Even though two are in foster care they are better with mom! Mom's milk has all the right stuff in it to protect them from viruses etc. Good luck finding and trapping her, and hopfully reuniting with the 2 in foster care. Moosmom- you are really going above and beyond what you can afford- if this pans out, I will sponsor some of them for you! Keep us posted! (Waaaa!) It is so too bad that they have been separated, but maybe not for long... we shall see. Mom's can be good at hiding and it takes some good detective work to find them!

[aly]

Thanks so much for the offer, Donna. I think it will be really hard for me to work on finding homes in Michigan while I'm here, but I could try.

I meant I'd talk to my uncle about trapping the mom IF he knew where the kittens were. And if he doesn't, then he can wait 5 weeks or so, then work on trapping them.

I hope the foster home knows about bottle babies too. He took them to the person before I even talked to him so I had no say in that. I should hope they know about caring for them if they are at the shelter, but you never know.

Since I've had tons of bottle baby experience, I wrote him a long email on their care, but I was too late and he had already taken them to the shelter.

*edit* I know they are better off with the mom, but it is the first week that is MOST crucial and they have at least had that.

[QueenScoopalot]

Moosmom...sure wish you lived around here, as that's an offer no one SHOULD resist! Times will always be tough for rescuers/fosterers *sigh*

[leslie]

Aly, what about letting moosmom and your uncle exchange phone #s. you could tell him she is a rescue worker, she could go into the neighborhood with her girlfriend and do some searches, (that mom is not going to show up again until the kittens are older and feral-if they live) and find out where the 2 fosters are, make sure they are in good hands and even see if the people the kittens are with are going to find mom and remaining kittens. Its hard but not THAT hard, just takes being smart (check all sheds, under all porches, every nook and cranny... be aware of cat hairs caught on entrance areas, anyone leaving out dishes of food etc), and sometimes just sitting in the car with catnip on the sidewalk every 8 feet or so (at night). Finding her is doable - it takes someone creative and dedicated. Moosmom may or may not have the time. whoever took the kittens is hopefully connected to a group that has someone that is good at this. what do you think?

[moosmom]

Aly,

Give your uncle my number and have him call me. I work nights but am home during the day. If he can tell me about where he last saw them, I'll see if my friend Kathy and I can take a ride and see what we can find. I will be more than happy to foster them.

[leslie]

Yay Donna! "A huntin' we will go, a huntin' we will go, hi ho the dairy- o..." Good luck connecting with Aly's uncle and I hope the search is not a difficult one! Take cat nip and a trap and all that happy stuff (oh, gotta find out how freindly she is, but bet on her needing to be trapped cuz she is likely going to be spooked by strangers- unless she's a real doll baby sweet and can be easily picked up! Keep us posted!