Rescuing feral kittens - a worthy or lost cause?

[Jeannie in NJ]

Diane, I knew there had to be another reason I liked you, besides Disney World. You are a fellow cat person

[UncleEJ]

Ok! The biting kitten is now safely in the hands of the humane society where it will continue its quarantine. It has been five days since the bit so it just needs five more days. It looks perfectly healthy so i think the chances are very slim it wont make it, and will hopefully be able to be adopted out soon! I am glad it came to this end.

 

 

[StephanieZ]

Here is a CDC article about a rabid kitten incident.

 

If you intend to handle feral cats on a regular basis, please consider getting the vaccinations up front. It is a substantial investment, but maybe your insurance will cover it.

 

Feral animals (kittens especially) present unique rabies risks b/c:

 

1) It is hard to assess whether they are behaving normally since they are often very aggressive and frightened. (Abnormal behaviors, such as an oddly friendly racoon or an oddly aggressive known pet, are warning signs of rabies.)

2) Since they are generally aggressive, they very often do bite or severely scratch people attempting to handle them. This is an ongoing risk from the moment of first contact.

3) They are more likely to have extensive contact with wildlife, where the main reservoir for rabies exists.

4) The mother may not be present, so it is hard to know whether she is ill or dead from rabies (and thus presumably exposed her litter).

 

Kittens CAN be rabid. Please be advised that rabies incidence varies widely based on geographic location. Just because YOUR local health dept isn't worried about rabies in a species does NOT mean that it is not a serious risk in other locations.

 

In most cases, the risk of rabies transmission from a single incident is low, but with a 100% fatal disease, it is not prudent to downplay the risk.

 

Since dh and his staff see thousands of patients yearly, including dozens if not hundreds of recently rescued stray/feral animals, I am all too aware of the risk of repeated exposure. If you are exposed to a few incidents in a lifetime, you will most likely get away with downplaying the risk, but if you do it thousands upon thousands of times, chances are good that the statistics will eventually nail you. Of course, vets get the vaccines routinely. However, we do have to consider the risks when our unvaccinated staff members are handling ferals, etc. Based on personal and professional experience, I disagree about the potential risks in feral kittens.

 

All that said, I am a big fan of rehabilitating kittens. :) You just have to think through the risks and be careful.

[StephanieZ]

Another incident: http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2012/05/18/south-jersey-officials-worried-after-kitten-tests-positive-for-rabies/

 

Another: http://www.ajc.com/news/news/state-regional/henry-seeking-all-who-had-contact-with-6-rabid-kit/nSKmB/

 

Just google "kitten rabies" and you will find plenty more. Please be careful.

[emzhengjiu]

I just got in contact with animal control and am waiting for a call back from them. I am also going to call my Dr. and see about starting the vaccine. I do not want to take any risks, being dead is a bummer ;-).

 

The antibiotics they prescribed me are making me feel kind of sick. I hate when a good deed comes back to bite you, literally!!

 

This happened to a man where I work.  He tried to help a kitten near a busy street.  He was scratched and bitten badly.  In addition to antibiotics, he received the rabies shots.  He felt the same way; shots vs. death, easy decision.

 

[emzhengjiu]

One of our two cats was from a feral liter.  My daughter found him outside our apartment.  He was about 8 weeks old and mean.  Somehow he had gotten separated from his mom.  We couldn't find the mom or liter mates.  My now 16 yo DD who has a way with all creatures convinced me to foster the kitten until we could find a permanent home.  Fast forward 5 years, my foster cat is firmly ensconced on my sofa with no thoughts of moving on.  Our other cat was abandoned in the same apartment complex where we lived at the time.  She definitely had been someone's pet; not feral at all but very scared.   With overflowing dumpsters and places to hid, most abandoned / feral cats got along well there.  Our kitty was so tiny, she couldn't get into the dumpsters for food.  She was starving when we began feeding her.  I'm sure you can guess the rest of the story.  She's also firmly part of our family now.  She won't go near an open door to the outside even now three years later.  I've often wondered if she remembers how scary the outside world was for her.

 

The feral and abandoned cat problem at that particular complex was bad.  Trapping was impossible because people would destroy or steal the traps.  I just wish that everyobdy would be responsible to have their pets neutered.

[mommymilkies]

(Haven't read the other replies, but...) When we lived in Guam, a pregnant feral cat took up residence in our shed. She had two kittens. She was so very thin that I put out cat food for her each day for a couple of weeks. I was hoping the kittens would be friendly, but the momma cat always hissed me away when I'd approach.

 

One day I checked on the cats, and the kittens had disappeared. Someone told me that momma cats sometimes ate their babies. I've always wondered if that happened in this case.

They were moved. When confronted with a threat or unknown humans, they move them. They don't eat them. Lol That's crazy.

 

I've never ever had a problem with feral cats even becoming full house cats. Of course, I like feisty cats. I've had feral cats that I considered too laid back and some that were crazy. Crazy is fun.

[mommymilkies]

Wait, you're killing the kitten to test it because you went after, trapped, and tried to hold a feral kitten? That's normal behavior for that cat. You were a threat. They didn't search you out and attack like a rabies case. And now that kitten is dead. I just don't get it. Can you please not ever approach and try to trap cats and kittens outside again? Rabies is very rare. And if you don't know how to deal with wild animals, don't try.

[emzhengjiu]

Wait, you're killing the kitten to test it because you went after, trapped, and tried to hold a feral kitten? That's normal behavior for that cat. You were a threat. They didn't search you out and attack like a rabies case. And now that kitten is dead. I just don't get it. Can you please not ever approach and try to trap cats and kittens outside again? Rabies is very rare. And if you don't know how to deal with wild animals, don't try.

 

I believe the kitty is in quarantine to see if it develops symptoms; it's not going to be killed for the rabies test.

[Jean in Newcastle]

I believe the kitty is in quarantine to see if it develops symptoms; it's not going to be killed for the rabies test.

Actually this thread is from May.  The kitty has long passed it's quarantine (or not).  But since the OPs last post said that the kitty was healthy on day 5 of 10, he probably passed.  

[emzhengjiu]

Actually this thread is from May.  The kitty has long passed it's quarantine (or not).  But since the OPs last post said that the kitty was healthy on day 5 of 10, he probably passed 

 

How funny, I didn't even notice the dates.  Interesting thread anyway!  thanks. 

 

[redsquirrel]

We accidentally got a feral kitten. She was found on the streets and a kind person took her in. My husband (at that time new boyfriend) adopted her. His dad is a vet so he had free vet care at the time. She was very tiny when we got her.

 

Anyway, she was insane. She never liked people and she bit and scratched with no provocation. Occasionally, she would flat out attack. No matter what we did or tried she did not like people. Her saving grace is that she pretty much lived under the bed. We have friends who never saw her in 10 years.

 

When we had kids, we were worried she would go after them, but she avoided them like the plague. At night she would come downstairs to eat and run around. In the morning,when the kids got up, she would go back under the bed. Good thing too, because if she had gone after the kids we would have had to put her down. She couldn't have lived with us, and the SPCA couldn't have given her away if she bit kids.

 

Anyway, she died of kidney failure, a common cause of death in old cats. We had her for 15 years. I can't say that I ever really liked her, but I did try to take good care of her.

[mommymilkies]

Ok I made some calls and it turns out animal control had not intention of trying to trap the kittens. But I found out that they would take a cat to the humane society to be tested for rabies. So we went and got the kitten (much more carefully this time) and I have it in a kennel and will be taking it in the the humane society first thing Monday. I am sad that the kitten will have the put down in order to have the test, but I need to know.

This is what I'm referring to when I said it would be killed to check. I hope it didn't come to that. I stand by what I said, though. Please don't mess with feral animals if you don't know what you're doing, and please realize that defensive biting and scratching are normal for cornered wild animals. It seems shameful to put them down because someone doesn't know what they're doing.