A Feral Kitten Story

By Lorraine Davis, FieldHaven Volunteer and Sun City Lincoln Hills resident

FieldHaven volunteer Lorraine with an armful of irresistible “feral” kittens who will soon be socialized and ready for adoption.

I’ve been volunteering at FieldHaven for about two years now, but it’s only recently that I’ve become involved in the foster program. Several months ago, I trapped some feral kittens and reluctantly jumped into the ocean of trapping and fostering cats. I gained a new appreciation for what a difficult job it is, but it’s so very rewarding and I treasure every moment that I experienced. Last summer, I received a call from a neighbor that some kittens were sighted on the golf cart lane near Safeway in Lincoln. I was determined to assess the situation and trap the kittens if possible. I started on Saturday morning and by Sunday afternoon realized there were seven kittens and a momma cat. In the meantime, I enlisted the help of a friend and by 5 PM on Sunday, we had successfully trapped six of the kittens and the mom. On Friday morning, we caught a male adult cat, and it was obvious he was the dad because of the similarity in color and markings. We still set the trap every night hoping to catch the last kitten. At eight weeks old, living alone, his chances of survival were questionable.

We had mixed emotions. We were exhausted but excited that we had captured a total of eight. We also had many questions. How did the cats get there? Was the pregnant cat dumped and were the kittens born in the field? All the cats were afraid but didn’t act feral. Some of the kittens could be picked up and loved which led us to believe that they had experienced human contact at some point. Did someone dump mommy and her kittens after they had been born?

Please let everyone you know that dumping cats or kittens in a field or near a park is NOT the humane thing to do. They will probably not survive and it can be a cruel and agonizing death for some. Your cat should be spayed or neutered so this won’t happen in the first place, but if your cat does have kittens and you cannot take care of them, please call FieldHaven Feline Rescue or Placer County Animal Services. Do not abandon these kitties. It not only affects the abandoned cats, it involves a string of volunteers who must get involved in a long drawn-out project. These volunteers could be using their time and talents in other areas that might be more helpful to the rescue agency.

As for my kitties, three have already been adopted. The others are available for adoption at FieldHaven. The mom and dad cats were neutered and spayed and released as barn cats so they can live a safe and happy life. If you’re interested in adopting or volunteering, please give us a call at (916) 434-6022. Help us save more lives and educate the public so that this will not happen again.

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