A Question for the Feral/Stray cat experts

[Denyce]

I have been putting food out for a couple of "strays" for a while now.

There are 2 that I know of for sure. One is a small gray striped tabby that is not quite as scared as the other. This little cat will look you in the eye and a couple of times it has come up to the glass storm door and rubbed it's cheek against the glass where my cats are looking on in amazement. But this has taken about 6 months to get this cat to be this trusting.

Twice now when I go out and put food on the porch and do my usual call of "here kitty kitty kitty" she has meowed and come running. The 2 incidents were about 2 weeks apart. The second one occured 2 days ago. That time he/she came close enough to sniff my finger. However, she panicked and ran off when I went to get her some canned food. She has gotten where she will eat for the most part the dry food while you are moving about in the house but only if you are moving quietly and she is very hungry. Now I am calling her "she" only because she is small and feminine looking. I have no proof.

The second cat has appeared with the first cat several times now. This one is almost pure black with gold eyes. She has just a few white hairs on her chest. I am calling her a female only because when I got a good look at her through a back window 2 days ago her sides looked suspiciously bulgy. *sigh*

I think they are living under my house. I have seen the gray striped actually going under there through some skirting that is for some reason pulled away from the house...*whistling and looking innocent* Also we have central air and heat so there is duct work under the house and all the cats and the dog periodically stare at the cold air intake vent. The cats are also then able to get into the furnace room from under the house which stays pretty warm because of the furnace.

The two cats seem to be very close. The black one acts more feral. She won't look at you and is VERY skittish about coming up on the porch to eat. She will bolt at the slightest noise and if you look her in the eye she is gone. I just don't think she goes far. The gray striped tabby is a bit calmer but not a lot. Her tailhead is wide for her size and it makes me think she has had kittens. It looks like her pelvis bones have been stretched.

The gray striped eats an enormous amount of food. I have seen her gorge almost a whole can of food and then within an hour or so eat a cup or so of dry. She is mainly the only one I see eating the food and I am going through a 5 pound bag a week now. Of course I might be feeding wild animals at night. But she is not fat by any imagination. I know living outside in the cold takes up more energy but I don't think that much. What I am wondering is .... have any of you with feral colonies seen females gorge and regurgitate for other cats? I know wolves and dogs do this...but I have never heard of cats doing it for another adult cat.

I am wondering if the gray striped tabby is the mother of the black cat from last year and the black one is now preggers and is so shy and feral that the gray striped is taking care of her. I have seen them touch noses and stay together and it seems as if the gray striped is taking care of the black one a bit.

It is cold and snowy here and I don't want to trap them. I put out food and water and they are able to get to a warm safe place. I just worry about the black one because she is so scared. I play with the dry food as I put it in the bowl trying to get them used to my smell. Anyway...I am babbling now...have any of you ever seen this type of protective, caring behavoir in feral/stray cat colonies?

Denyce

[catmandu]

Yes!
Scratchy was very protective of Scrappy 2 when they were Together on The Porch,and when she went to the Vets,it was discovered that Scrappy 2 was pregnant.
Sadly she was too young and her Little Kitten was stillborn.
Scratchy used to let her eat first,and did his best to keep her warm by covering her with his body.
You are right to keep an eye on them.
Please keep us informed about the Little Black Cat.

[barncat]

As Catmandu said, YES!

Feral cats form bonds of friendship and can be intensely caring.... I have had barncats bring home strays for meals... Kibbler-fudgebutt brought home a large male cat that never tamed down enough for humans to handle but helped raise and nurture other cats of the colony.

Cats can eat a lot at a time. She may be feeding others or she may have kittens hidden. The black-one may or may not be herkitten. Friendships form for a variety of reasons (Kibbler was male and so was his friend... and they weren't brothers or related at all.) A fat belly could indicate worms or be a side affect of longterm starvation. If she is truly a feral she probably would not be having kittens now... Cats that are wild generally do not go into heat during the worst of the winter in cold climates. There are exceptions, but if she is pregnant now, she was probably a housecat once and "done wrong" by her people.

Bless you for caring for them and feeding them. The black one may eventually take her cue from the greyling and trust you. Though I could never touch Kibbler's Friend, he did purr when I spoke to him.

[moosmom]

Denyce,

Sounds like the black kitty is feral. Eye contact means a threat to them. Talk softly to them and move slowly so as not to scare them.

Thank you for taking such good care of them.

[QueenScoopalot]

It doesn't sound to me as though the tabby one is feral. She may have been dumped, and linked up with the black one. I really do hope however that you trap them both (especially the pregnant one) and get them spayed. Babies being born this time of year are likely to freeze to death, or become sickly from the bitter cold. It's way too stressful for cats to give birth in this weather, and may be the end for mom to be too. Are there any low cost or free TNR clinics that you know of?