If you’ve come across a litter of kittens in your yard seemingly abandoned, wait before you pick them up! Chances are, momma is just out looking for food. What you could do instead is keep an eye on them from afar, or put a ring of flour around them and leave them be for a few hours. Usually, if momma is around, she will leave footprints in the flour to show that she’s been back to check on them.

A kitten’s chance of survival is much greater when cared for by their momma. Kittens, especially when they look like little beans, have very weak immune systems, and rely on mom’s milk to build their healthy systems.

Help save these kittens lives and check this chart before picking up any found kittens! Kittens from birth to eight weeks do best when raised by their mothers. It’s often hard to find a foster home to care for bottle-fed babies. If you find a litter of healthy, young kittens in a safe place, such as a yard, the best thing you can do is to leave them alone. If they’re healthy, it means mom is nearby and will soon return to care for them.

For kittens eight weeks to adult, you can bring it into the center where it will be spayed/neutered, vaccinated, and either placed for adoption or returned to the community through our Community Cat Program. If it’s an unfriendly cat, please contact our Community Cat Coordinator or Sun City Cats for information and resources.

For more information on our Community Cat program, visit our resources in the sidebar to the right.

Fostering

Sometimes, kittens do still find their way to our shelter, and need to go into a loving, temporary home to thrive and be able to survive. If you’re interested in helping save kitten lives, join our foster program. Fostering is free and we supply all the food, supplies and medical care you would need, you just provide the love and care for a short period of time. For more information and to get started, visit our Foster page.