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FOUND KITTENS?
From late spring through early fall, we enter what’s commonly called “kitten season.” During this time, unspayed outdoor cats, whether they have owners or live as community cats, reproduce rapidly. It’s very common to come across a litter of kittens, or even a single kitten, tucked under a bush, porch, or in a garden with no mother in sight. The instinct is often to pick them up and bring them inside or take them to a shelter.
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Take a moment before stepping in. In most cases, the best thing you can do is leave the kittens where they are. Their mother gives them the highest chance of survival, so it’s important to wait and observe for as long as you safely can.
Common Misconceptions
The kittens will starve to death if the mom is gone for too long of a time!
Healthy kittens can go several hours without eating as long as they stay warm. For newborns, the risk of getting too cold is actually much greater than the risk of missing a feeding. During kitten season, especially in the warmer months, it is generally very safe to wait longer (8-10 hours) to see if the mother returns.
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The more you return to the nest, the longer the mother will stay away. It’s important to keep your distance while you wait for her to come back—stay far enough away to observe without interfering. If you’d like, you can place a light ring of flour around the area to help you tell if she’s returned.
A shelter will be able to take the kittens I found.
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If you take motherless neonatal kittens to a shelter, they will be euthanized unless there is an experienced bottle feeder available. There are simply too many kittens and not enough time or resources to care for them. Neonatal kittens do NOT thrive in a shelter environment—even with a mom. Kittens that are this young have close to no immune system, so the risk of disease, illness, and stress-induced problems is unbelievably high. These factors often make tiny kittens the most at-risk animals for being euthanized in shelters.
I can just bottle feed the kittens I found.​
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Providing critical care to neonatal kittens is not a job for the average, compassionate—yet inexperienced—animal lover. It is an extremely difficult, time consuming, and expensive undertaking. Bottle feeding doesn't even scratch the surface of the care required to keep neonatal kittens alive. Even for the most experienced neonatal rescuer, mortality rates of orphaned neonatal kittens can range anywhere from 40%-70%.
How do I know if the kittens are really in need of help?
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Use this graphic to help determine whether the kittens you’ve found truly need intervention or if their mother is simply away searching for food or taking a break.
Now what do I do that I've determined the kittens are in need of help?​
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Use this graphic to help determine whether the kittens you’ve found meet the criteria for our nursery's intake.
While we love ALL cats, The Itty Bitty Kitty Committee operates on very limited space and only takes neonatal kittens 3 weeks and younger.
If you have watched from a distance for at least 6-8 hours and the mother cat does not return and/or you are sure you have a kitten that is in need of help, please TEXT the following information to the contact listed below:
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Your location
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Where is the mother cat? (i.e. not producing milk, deceased, hasn't been seen, etc.)
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If you found kittens, please indicate approximately how long you have waited for mom to return.
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How many kittens are in need of assistance?
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Attach a picture if possible. Unless the exact date of birth of the kitten(s) is known, a picture is required before I'm able to intake.