Orange County Animal Services is proud to join The Bark Report with a special column called “Paws and Effect.” This column will be dedicated to informative animal services and adoption topics such as the importance of spay and neuter programs, adopting and adapting during COVID-19, introducing new pets into your home, and tips for helping pets and people adjust during family gatherings and celebrations. Join us for this monthly column to help spread the word about helping pets in many ways!
HELP! I FOUND KITTENS!
Many young kittens separated from their mothers are not able to thrive in a shelter. If you find kittens, please assume that their mom will likely return. Please don’t intervene right away.
When people find kittens, good-hearted instincts tell them to rush to the aid of these fragile felines. Thankfully, human intervention is typically not required. In fact, the best thing you can do is leave the kittens alone. Mom will likely return shortly, and it’s critical that the kittens remain in her care as she offers the best chance for them to remain healthy. If you find kittens and are extremely certain that they are orphaned, you can then step in and help by caring for the kittens until they’re old enough to find homes.
What’s the first thing to do if you find kittens? Look for mom! Their mother is their best chance for survival, and you want to monitor them closely (but from a safe distance) for roughly eight hours to see if mom comes back. She is likely out hunting and will return. If you can’t monitor closely, you can also check in on them every few hours for approximately 12 to 18 hours. If they are content and don’t seem fussy, there’s a good chance mom is coming back to tend to them. If the kittens are in danger due to their location, move them to a spot nearby so that their mom can find them.
You found kittens and their mother has returned? Great! Let mom care for them until they are at least 8 weeks old. You can even help by providing her with good food and water while her kittens are nursing. As the kittens start growing, you can also slowly introduce yourself to the feline family. This will help socialize them so that it’s easier to find homes for them later on. Be on the lookout for friends, family, or neighbors who might be willing to adopt a friendly little feline. Helpful resources include online tools such as Facebook and Nextdoor. When it’s time to consider spay/neuter for your feline family, local shelters and other rescue organizations are great resources. Check out Orange County Animal Services’ spay and neuter information here: http://www.orangecountync.gov/360/Spay-Neuter.
The mother cat did not return and you feel these kittens are orphans? You’d make a great foster parent! Or perhaps you can find a friend or family member who could foster! During kitten season, shelters are often overrun with kittens and do not have adequate staffing and resources to care for them and treat illnesses, especially during the COVID-19 outbreak. Diseases also spread more easily in a highly populated shelter environment. If possible, please care for them in your home until they are at least 8 weeks old. For many more details on caring for kittens, (including bottle feeding, helping them go potty, and determining their age) please see this page: http://www.orangecountync.gov/2378/Helping-Kittens.
If you have found kittens that need help and you are not able to care for them, please give our shelter a call for assistance: 919-942-7387. It’s best to keep them out of shelters if that’s possible. But we understand that this may not always be an option and we are here to help if needed. Thanks to everyone out there who tries to help our friendly felines, large and small!
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