# Hello from West-Coast Canada!



## aiko707 (Mar 29, 2011)

Hi Everyone,

I, very recently, found myself to be a new owner of a very lovely (and very pregnant) female cat last week. During my times of dire need on cat information, google has consistantly referred me back to the catforum.

I hope to learn more about cats via the forum and hope to get lots of help from experienced cat owners out there, for this very novice cat-family-owner here.


- Aiko & The Cats
The seriously novice, canine-experienced, cat owner










PS: No, I haven't named everyone yet~ But have some ideas brewing


----------



## Susan (Mar 29, 2010)

How adorable! Welcome to the Forum.


----------



## OctoberinMaine (Sep 12, 2006)

Wow, you're getting a cat education quickly with those new additions! Are those 4 kittens, and are they all black? That's absolutely adorable.


----------



## Jan Rebecca (Oct 14, 2010)

Oh my - momma cat has such a cute face! I would love some of those kittens but hubby has said NO MORE cats!


----------



## Carmel (Nov 23, 2010)

Welcome to the forum! I live on the west coast of Canada as well (Vancouver area)...

What a cute picture, most of the kittens are black but I see one momma coloured kitten facing the camera!


----------



## BryanOwnee (Feb 21, 2011)

Hello from West Coast too.
Welcome to the forum.
Cute kittens


----------



## aiko707 (Mar 29, 2011)

Thanks everyone! They've been a bundle of milk monsters nekitty



October said:


> Wow, you're getting a cat education quickly with those new additions! Are those 4 kittens, and are they all black? That's absolutely adorable.


They're not all black, the picture doesn't do justice for them there.
2 are striped, 2 are solid.
- 1 has lighter stripes (it's the tubby one right now at 6.38ounces!)
- 2nd one has darker stripes
- 1 is full black
- 2nd is blackish brown (the tiny one)

I'll probably be posting in the breeding section later on, to gather more information on post-natal care :S


----------



## konstargirl (Feb 4, 2011)

Aww! Congrats! And welcome to the forum. When did she gave birth.


----------



## aiko707 (Mar 29, 2011)

konstargirl said:


> Aww! Congrats! And welcome to the forum. When did she gave birth.


March 24th and 25th 

She had her first one around 11pm, and the last one around 1:20am


----------



## suwanee (Jan 22, 2011)

Welcome! What a nice kitty family you have! Was momma a stray? Or how did you happen to have her adopt you?

I'm Left Coast too. Just a few hours south....in case you need a baby sitter! I've fostered many mommas with litters and had one litter unexpectedly just like you did with a cat someone dumped on my doorstep.


----------



## aiko707 (Mar 29, 2011)

suwanee said:


> Welcome! What a nice kitty family you have! Was momma a stray? Or how did you happen to have her adopt you?
> 
> I'm Left Coast too. Just a few hours south....in case you need a baby sitter! I've fostered many mommas with litters and had one litter unexpectedly just like you did with a cat someone dumped on my doorstep.


Yes she's a stray (well at least she doesn't seem to have any tattoos/chips/identification).


*The Story*

Around 1:00pm on March 24th, 2011, while doing some spring cleaning (moving some unused items into the storage room), I found this cat beside my apartment complex. She was very docile and extremely affectionate. She let me pet her and eventually let me pick her up. I managed to get her home, and after that, I called my friend and talked over what to do with her.

After getting some food for her, and picking up my friend, we noticed that she looked heavy set with a nice coat. Our conclusions were: she's either pregnant or fat. The odd thing was she didn't look obese (like she wasn't fat in the neck too), so we were leaning towards pregnant.

So during the day, while running my friend's errands, and cat errands, we read up on cat pregnancy. Y'know, just incase.

It was funny cause I was joking with my friend the whole day, that if she did decide to give birth, I would call her up and scream "*****" over the phone.

Well by 11:00pm (when I got home), she had had her first kitten! She had just started to lick the placenta off. I called my friend as promised (she was at another mutual friend's house), and screamed over the phone. I freaked out, she freaked out. All 3 of us were freaking out over the phone.

Thankfully another friend of mine went online, while I was desperately looking up what else to do online, he, being the cat-mid-wife expert, talked me through it. I prepped the printer box (the lone big box I didn't clean out that morning) and after I moved them inside, mommy cat had the last 2 kittens in the box.

After that, my boyfriend came by and brought over some cat stuff he had to assist with the sudden arrival of 5 cats in my apartment that day.

By 1:30am, she had successfully given birth to 4 kittens. 2 stripe, 2 black. 

*Story End*


----------



## Carmel (Nov 23, 2010)

It's a good thing you came along at just the right time, but I hope you've made calls to the SPCA in case this cat belongs to someone, she may have gone missing for the last ~2 months (the time it'd take to get pregnant and have a litter of kittens) or she could just be a friendly cat that belongs to somebody from the neighbourhood. Since it doesn't sound like she's all that scared of people it means she likely hasn't has to fend for herself very long (cats often go feral if they're left on their own) and that she has had previous positive contact with humans.


----------



## konstargirl (Feb 4, 2011)

Aww! That make sense. Are you planning on spaying her in the future once the kittens are bigger?


----------



## aiko707 (Mar 29, 2011)

*@Carmel*
Here's what I figure. If I post "found" posters up or contact the SPCA about her potentially belonging to someone, the owner might not want to deal with the kittens (especially the veterinary costs). So if I keep her until the kittens can be weened, then I'll take care of the kittens, and then we can look for the owner (if there is one) and the owner won't have to take the kittens.

It seems like the safest route for the kittens and mom at the moment.

My boyfriend's family has adopted some strays over the years too, and one especially was very affectionate too, despite not having belonged to anyone before.
*
@konstargirl*
If, by the time she's done nursing (and kittens are weened), and we can't find her original owner, I'll have her spayed. Kittens will probably be neutred/spayed, and adopted out, since I can't keep them all.


----------



## Carmel (Nov 23, 2010)

aiko707 said:


> *@Carmel*
> Here's what I figure. If I post "found" posters up or contact the SPCA about her potentially belonging to someone, the owner might not want to deal with the kittens (especially the veterinary costs). So if I keep her until the kittens can be weened, then I'll take care of the kittens, and then we can look for the owner (if there is one) and the owner won't have to take the kittens.
> 
> It seems like the safest route for the kittens and mom at the moment.
> ...


I can understand your concern, but I don't agree with the approach. If it was your cat lost, you would want to know it was safe and sound as soon as possible, and that's how you should be looking at this. You're saying you plan to wait two months or more before reporting a cat you've found? That's a very long time. On top of that, the cat should be taken to a vet to make sure it doesn't has anything like FIV from being on the streets.

BC SPCA: Found a Pet? (I assume you live in BC)

Also, "stray cat" is term meaning the cat has previously had an owner. Any cat that is affectionate to you that you find outside I can almost guarantee has previously had a loving owner.

A cat born in the wild is feral, and has learned from its mother to avoid humans. Similarly, a cat that has been left on its own for a long period of time and has needed to revert to fending for its self becomes leery of humans as well and many in this situation have been in an abusive situation with people in the past. Any cat you find outside that is willing to walk up to you, or warms up to you quite quickly as you described has likely not been on the street long.


----------



## suwanee (Jan 22, 2011)

Oh - but in the meantime, someone may be frantically looking for her! Especially if they knew she was pregnant. Sometimes cats hide themselves to give birth - like if there is too much activity where they live.

At least post fliers in your complex with a local phone number (doesn't have to be your phone, in case you don't want people to know you have 5 cats!)

On the flier, just describe the cat and see if anyone calls. Or describe the cat and say "Just gave birth to 4 kittens." If the owner wants to deal with it they will. If they don't, they won't call.

I would also call the SPCA like previously suggested. They should let you post a message without bringing the cat in, or they will give you ideas.

Please at least try to find her home!


----------



## jkish7 (Mar 31, 2011)

Should be a fun learning experience. I love kittens


----------



## aiko707 (Mar 29, 2011)

@Carmel
I can see you point, I've already brought her to a vet this past Saturday, including the kittens. They're all healthy, she's just a bit underweight. Vet has checked for any potential tattoos, and have come up with none. I'll inquire the SPCA tomorrow during the day, and make some fliers later tonight.

@suwanee
I have a feeling she doesn't belong to anyone from our complex (seen about 20+ dogs show up when our fire alarm went off though, only 1 cat), so I think I'll have to post fliers closer to the residential areas.

Thanks for the insight!


----------



## suwanee (Jan 22, 2011)

Fire alarm? Dogs are catchable in a hurry, cats not-so-much.

The fact remains, whoever her humans are should be given the _chance_ to find her. If she was outside on the side of your building and you picked her up, it wasn't like she came to you at your door begging for a home. She may have just been out for a potty break and started to feel labor pains and then just hunkered down for a moment to let them subside. Then you happened to show up at that moment and picked her up.

I'm sure it will all work out fine. At least they're all safe and warm.


----------



## aiko707 (Mar 29, 2011)

Just posted a found pet ad on petfinder, we'll see what happens with that.

Well that and, if she lived in my apartment building, I see her being an indoor cat. Not one that would be let outside the apartment building :S


----------



## Carmel (Nov 23, 2010)

aiko707 said:


> Just posted a found pet ad on petfinder, we'll see what happens with that.
> 
> Well that and, if she lived in my apartment building, I see her being an indoor cat. Not one that would be let outside the apartment building :S


I saw the ad you posted, I think it's good that you didn't post an image like a lot of people tend to do. Now you'll get to ask anyone that may contact you to describe how she looks & to supply an image of their cat (what are the odds that someone doesn't have at least one picture of their cat these days? Well, unless they're an older person.)...

I'm glad you'll contact the SPCA tomorrow, it could be that no one is looking for the kitty you found but if someone is it's important to try your best to reunite them - it's a horrible feeling when you've lost a pet.


----------



## calcrz (Mar 31, 2011)

Aw, welcome! Those babies are adorable!! Can't wait to hear what you've named them all and see more photos of them growing up!


----------



## Jazi&Levi (Mar 31, 2011)

Look at the momma! She is adorable... good luck with her&the kittens!


----------

