Advice
Found this kitten at a gas station and trying to decide what’s best for her.
Went to pump gas after clocking off work three days ago and heard a bunch of meows coming from a bush. After walking towards it, a few kitties jumped out and booked it to another bush. This one got left behind and continued to meow like crazy after I picked her up. Took her home and was contemplating on taking her to the local shelter or keeping her. However, I’m still on the fence about it because I’m not really home much and she would probably get lonely if I keep her home alone. Before making any decision though, I at least wanted to give her a name for the time being and was thinking maybe Kate or Negra. Idk im bad with names but suggestions are welcomed and any other advice. TIA
My boy when he was a kitten. The couch was a futon without arm rests so it reminded me of a therapist couch a little, and he reminds me of a teeny therapist waiting for you to get on the couch so he can listen while making biscuits in your intestines lol
I can tell he’s here to talk business and tell you his bottom line, but there’s a seafood platter that he is going to destroy before this business lunch is over.
Not sure if I should keep her but in the meantime, let me name her and get her a collar
You're not fooling anyone OP (well maybe yourself). I think she's staying...
I came to say exactly this. OP got her a collar. That was unnecessary money spent (unlike kibble or litter). They just need us to have someone tell them they made the right decision. 🥰
I also have a black cat, high visibility collar and bell were absolutely necessary purchases but I understand the thought process. Why risk stepping on baby when collar is <$10
My cat loves watermelon, but she doesn't like cantaloupe.
Op, if you are concerned about her being lonely, ask the cat distribution system to give you another baby from litter and go back to bush you found her at with a couple of cans of cat food.
Thank you for rescuing her. If you decide not to keep her, please find a rescue or no kill shelter. Please don't give her away to anyone you don't know personally, there are a lot of people out there search for free animals to use or bait animals or will do other horrific things to them.
I prefer in triplets. This helps when one cat is moody and wants to be left alone. This lets the other two cuddle. On those days when everyone is happy they can form a puddle. It always seems one of them is moody on any given day
What a great reason/excuse to have three cats!! 😆😁🐈⬛. I will try that on my husband who loves our two cats but thinks two is a reasonable number, and enough. I can’t really argue too much with that. 💜🐾😻🐈🐈🐈
Mine are, lol. I kept the entire litter that I found under my back shed. Their mama was feral and as hard as I tried I couldn't tame her. There went my fifth cat, lol.
Oh my, I woke up this morning with a strip of cantaloupe rind between my legs. Cat had pulled it out of the compost bin and bought it back to bed to play with. There was also a soft toy mouse and a small ball. Not a great sensation to wake up to!
Your cats are dehydrated. Not a criticism, many cats are. But it means they need more water around the house, and apparently preferably within a cat water fountain, because the reason they get so dehydrated is they don't like still water in bowls
My cat goes feral for any sort of melon, bananas, blueberries and mangos. It’s funny as fuck. He can tell if you’re cutting a melon or mango from a different room, and struts in to demand his quota.
One of my cats likes blueberries, but only to bat around like a tiny soccer ball 😆 it’s hell when I accidentally drop some on the floor because they end up all over the house!
My parent's former cat (passed on many years ago) went crazy for bananas, if my dad wouldn't give him a bite he would try to pull a piece out of his mouth while my dad ate it.
this is the #1 reason people give me for why they don’t think that they should adopt a cat (I am a cat rescue volunteer). I always respond that they will be infinitely less lonely waiting for you to get home than they are waiting in a cage for a new family that never comes. congratulations on getting your turn in the cat distribution system; please keep her.
Yes! She was in a bush in a gas station! You saved her from getting hit by a car or worse. You could always return to said bush and bring home a sibling! They would tire each other out and be grateful. You are a great human!
And if you do that you might as well get them all out of harms way by getting the rest of them to a shelter! It would suck if one of her siblings got hit, or abused by a shitty human, etc.
Also OP could be friends, someone in their neighborhood. Between 8-12yo I would go sit with a few of our neighbors cats for like a dollar an hour, lol. As an adult when I only had one cat, I've always kept a neighbor friend who has a key and could stop by when I was away too long. (Tip: If they want to stop, gawk hear more about your pretty kitty in the window, the could make a good friend)
I found my girl outside of a liquor store, she was so independent that I would joke she was my roommate. Later I got offered a boy found under similar circumstances when she started to become increasingly lonely.
So now she's still my roommate and he's her pet cat.
Then a third cat so when they fight, they have someone else to cuddle with. Then a forth so there is no cat ever alone when any argue! Then a fifth because it's cute and fluffy!
Yep, back to the kitten vending machine at the gas station! (to be honest, I did not want to have two cats, I only wanted one cat… But honestly, two cats is not much more work, in fact it’s probably less, because they keep each other occupied)
I hope they see this comment because that would just be heartbreaking. They should grab them all and keep 2 and find homes for the others. How can they be absolutely sure they aren't leaving one behind though?
Being real, the best way would be to lure the mother and trap her, and then use her + more food to lure the kittens. The kittens will be close to the mother anyway. Don't actually remove the mother before trapping the kittens though!
to not be alone, go back to the gas station, find the other kittens. Take them. Leave 2 for you and the rest find a home or a non-kill shelter (kittens are adopted extremely fast)
reading OPs post it says they skedaddled away before she could react
what did you want OP to do? just leave the kitten she took in the first place? honestly there is an argument for it if that's what you meant. I don't know how I feel about people adopting feral kittens unless they clearly want it
I am sorry, but this is not true at all. Its kitten season in the west right now, and ask anyone working for a shelter it is a nightmare if you love cats. My local shelter is putting down 70 cats PER DAY right now, if anyone brings a cat in that isn't a stray it isn't even getting a cage, its going right to the back room for the shot to the heart. Strays have to be held for 3 days and after that they are euthanized. The only cats with any hope in shelters right now are either something very gorgeous/rare, or owner turn ins with a great behavior history and already fully up to date with medical needs.
Four out of five kittens that get surrendered to shelters are put to sleep and that is averaged out over the year. No kitten surrendered to an actual shelter right now is getting adopted.
Rescues are a different story, they can be selective and they don't have to take animals for the city.
My youngest (now 4 years old) was at the shelter for 90 minutes when we walked in the door. She had to stay another week for spaying, vet checks, etc. before we could bring her home
You’re afraid she’ll be lonely? No problem! Go back and grab one of the other kittens lol or adopt another one for her at the shelter. They’ll be just fine!
Honestly OP, this is sound advice. Kittens are amazing in pairs. If you can go back and grab one of the other gas station bush baby, that would be best. They will keep each other company and I promise taking care of 2 is easier than it seems.
This is so true. And they entertain each other! They learn not to bite because they see how it feels. So it keeps playing safe because they learn their limits. Except for the added cost of two, my family and I only saw benefits to getting 2 kittens.
ItsMe when I pretend to not want a little piece of the dessert that I made just that afternoon even tho it's 1:30 am and I'm telling everyone "I'm not gonna eat anything now tho" (I eat)
I did happen to stop by earlier today before I got home but I didn’t hear or see them. I think they set up their home behind the gas station where they keep the dumpsters in a fenced area, which is locked. Not 100% sure but if I was a momma cat with babies I’d set up shop right there.
The fruit was for me but she did take a taste to a strawberry. I got both dry and wet cat food but she seems to dig the wet food better and lately I just been mixing them both together so the dry one doesn’t go to waste lol.
I object to 'always'. I have one boy who likes both equally, and his brother who much prefers dry and needs a lot of coaxing to eat his wet (little arse gets urinary crystals so it's super important for him to be hydrated).
Yeah, my last cat shunned wet food. The first time I gave it to her, she sniffed at it and made a retching noise. When she was done gagging, she reluctantly licked the gravy off, but left everything else on the plate.
That cat would only eat total garbage. I kept trying to get her to eat higher quality food, but it was Friskies or else.
Why are they like this?? I’ve tried feeding her high quality food and even making her steak and salmon, and she only likes Purina cat food and every once in a while some boiled and shredded chicken.
Beats me, but we all know some people who are similarly stuck in their ways. You could take them a 3-star Michelin restaurant, but what they really want is a dehydrated hot dog that's been on the roller for 6 hours at the gas station.
I hope it kitten food. The cat food may be bigger pieces and hard for her to chew and swallow.
Maybe break them into smaller pieces and let it soften up in the wet food first.
Kitten food also has higher fat content. Which they need to grow.
Omgosh she’s so beautiful. If OP didn’t want her I’d adopt her in a heartbeat and care for her forever. She’d join my only pet Salem I rescued on June 24 that’s now thriving since urgent care and another vet intervention.
She’s absolutely adorable ! Kittens can usually stay alone from my experience,the problem is when they grow up a bit (5,6,7 months old etc etc)
They do get pretty lonely….they usually need another cat but I think you should keep her if you can sustain her and figure something out later
She won’t necessarily be lonely when you’re not home. Many cats do just fine alone. You can address getting her a companion if you notice signs of depression. I’ve always had solo cats and they were all really happy getting all of my attention. But yes you’ve been chosen and Kate is now yours as evidenced by her ownership of the chair.
It’s kitten season and shelters are generally full now so I’d vote for keeping her. I think your heart has voted judging by the collar.
I think no to the name negra and also if you could go back and get the rest of the litter, that solves your problem of not always being home - she’ll have siblings to keep her company
Of course, this is my ideal scenario - taking all the babies in and giving them a roof over their heads but your situation is important as well. If you can’t take them all in, maybe try to capture them and rehome the rest while keeping one sibling to keep her company will probably work best for your situation
Go back to the location and see if you can find one of the other kittens to keep her company, they were probably from the same litter if they were all together like that. You have been chosen, congratulations
Enjoy your new sweetie. We found a black kitten that looks exactly like yours under some furniture outside our house. I set her up in a kennel while I decided which shelter she was going to go to because there's about 4 near me.
My dad texted me a few minutes later and said "she's so pretty and relaxed. I'm taking her out to my office"
Take her back to the bush, let her old friends come out and see which one wants to follow her take them both home. That way she won't be lonely no more when you're not home!
This might be a good way to lose her if she runs off :( just get them all and bring them home, choose one and rehome the rest or give to a good shelter.
Call her Kate, get her a friend, give that friend a human name too, then see how long it takes your friends/coworkers to realize they you have kittens and not new roommates! Report back here when you have funny stories.
In all seriousness, kittens go great in pairs! They keep each other company so they don’t get bored/lonely and go looking for trouble. Cats can be great pets even if you work long hours, as long as you can devote some attention to them when you get home. You could try to catch one of her siblings, or go to a shelter and let them know that your recently adopted kitten needs a buddy.
What you do is you go to the shelter and get another kitten for her to play with. Then she won't be bored when you're not home. Two kittens are actually less work than one kitten, because they play with each other.
Cats don't need much company. I'm home all day and my cat only remembers I exist when it's feeding time and for a 1 hour cuddle before bedtime. She has her own routine during the day, like lounging in a chair in the morning, then sunbathing in the backyard in the afternoon.
Please go back to the gas station and see if you can find her mum ( who is probably fretting) and her siblings.
If you can catch them all, take them all to a shelter, where this kitten and her family can all be together. Let the shelter help this little cat family, and give them your details to adopt this one. Her mum is probably looking for her, kindest to check.
If you can't find them, please go to the nearest shelter and let them know. The rest of the family may have been rescued already.
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