Should I let my cat have kittens?

I had an interesting conversation last week with a lady who has a 6 months old kitten. She was trying to find a charity that would pay for the spaying operation, and was telling me that she couldn't afford the bill. She seemed to feel that it was her right to get the operation paid for, and the charities should be doing this. She told me that if one of the charities didn't help her, then she would just let the kitten get pregnant and have a litter, as she could easily home the resulting kittens to friends.

If she chose to do this, the result would be
1. She would have the cost of giving the mother cat extra food whilst pregnant and lactating.
2. She would have the cost of feeding the kittens until homes are found for them.
3. She might end up with veterinary bills if the cat has problems in delivery, or if the kittens need care (unless she decided she couldn't afford it and just stood by while they suffered)
4. By producing more kittens for her friends, she is depriving a kitten or cat that is already desperately waiting for a new home, from getting that home.
5. Either she lets her cat go on producing litter after litter, with all its costs, or she ultimately has to get the cat spayed and pay the bill in any case.
6. Allowing her cat to come into season, will result in males for miles around coming to mate, some of which may carry diseases that could be passed onto her cat - resulting in suffering for the cat, and more vets bills.

Wouldn't it be easier, cheaper and kinder just to get the cat spayed in the first place? And as a cat rescue organisation, should we be using the money that people donate to us to care for cats, or to pay the vets bills of other people who don't want to use their own money? I know there are cases of real hardship, but surely, if, as individuals, we take on the responsibility of looking after an animal, we should be prepared to pay out occasionally, and to budget accordingly.

I'd be interested to know what you think.

19th February

On Monday I took Darcy into the vets to be spayed. I hated doing it to her, and felt so mean putting her in the cat carrier. She sat hunched at the far end, her big eyes looking up at me. I felt like such a traitor.

When we got there, as the vet was examining her, she kept cuddled up to me, which was very sweet. The vet thought at first that my guess of 4 months was about right. Until he looked in her mouth. She has all her adult teeth which puts her at least at 6 months. Wow. At that point he said he'd better check she's not pregnant. Thankfully she wasn't. It did seem unlikely as the weather was so cold before she came in, and cats generally start to come into season once the temperature heads up again.

I had to leave her there, and then I had to go to Birmingham for two days to a work conference. This meant that Mark and Stella picked her up and she is with them until Friday when she will go to Sue's. I found myself on the Tuesday night, sitting all alone in a hotel room, and worrying about her. I phoned Stella on Wednesday morning to check, and yes, she was just fine. Sitting up in the pen, desperate to get out and play with all the cats.

I'm so glad, she can just enjoy the rest of her life now. Wonderful.

Darcy - Great News

Well the best thing ever has happened. A wonderful lady called Sue has offered Darcy a home. She came to see her on Friday, and is going to have her. I am so pleased. The home sounds just perfect.

They live on a smallholding, they have another cat, and dogs, horses, hens etc. But Darcy will be very much a pet, living in the home, but free to go outside if she wishes.

When Sue arrived, she got down on the floor and started playing with a toy with Darcy. You can often tell by the way someone plays with a cat, whether or not they understand cat psychology. Some people will tease a cat by dangling the toy out of reach, some move it so fast that the kitten has no chance of pouncing and catching it, and just gets frustrated. And I've seen other people who let the kitten catch it and then jerk it so hard they are in danger of dislocating the kittens legs. This lady knew exactly how to play. She made the toy hide behind corners, so that Darcy could creep up on it, her little bottom wiggling away as she prepared to pounce, she made it zig zag away, and then let her have the fun of leaping onto it and kicking ten bells out of it. She made it fly through the air, but always within leaping distance, and Darcy chased it and jumped, and ran, and pounced and stalked. Darcy was in her element and played and played. After Sue had gone, Darcy fell asleep by the radiator, so I took the photo above.

So Darcy will be spayed next week and after a couple of days to get over that, she will be going to her new home. We will go check the home out, but it sounds as if it will be just right. Sue is getting a room ready so that Darcy will be safe in the one room until she settles in. After that she will be able go outside if she wants. Mark and Stella have offered to lend them a pen so that Darcy will have a safe area at first. That usually works really well - they have a few days just in the pen, then they are allowed out into one room, and then gradually they get access to the whole house. After a few weeks its safe to let them go outside - just before meal time is best, so that they don't go too far. I just hope she doesn't stalk the hens.

I am so pleased that the right person has found her. I'm going to miss her.

Darcy Pics

10th Feb - Darcy being sweet

I thought you might like to see another photo of Darcy. She is so lovely. She wanted to sleep in my daughters arms all evening, so when she had to be moved, we gave her a fleecy blanket to cuddle by the radiator. As you can see, she took to this rather well.

She has also discovered that if she sits on the window sill in my study she can be warm from the radiator, she can keep an eye on me while I work, and can also see the birds feeding outside.

She purrs so loudly. Tonight we were in the kitchen with the kettle on, and wondered what the strange noise was. Darcy had come and sat behind us and was just sitting watching, and purring her head off.

It is amazing that a kitten that was so timid and scared of people, can adapt so well, and become so friendly.

She is still looking for a permanent home. Would she be the one for you?

6th Feb - Cuddles from Darcy

The back to basics has worked wonders with Darcy. I began letting her out of the pen again, and she has been fantastic. Yesterday she came and snuggled up on my knee, and then again today, as soon as I sat down she climbed on and settled down, purring happily. At first she would jump everytime I moved, but now she is a lot less worried about me moving around. This evening, I sat down on the sofa, and she was straight there, cuddling and looking up adoringly. What a sweetie. She has this little crooning noise she makes. Its very cute.

She loves it when my two cats come in, chirrups and purrs. She plays with Bailey and jumps all over him, but is much more respectful of Raffles. He prefers to sit and watch her.

I do hope we get the right home for her before I get too attached. And also for her sake - she needs to be bonding with her proper owner now, not with me.

Whoever offers her a home - if they are willing to take just a little time to build her trust, they will be greatly rewarded.

2nd Feb - more on Darcy

Today has seen heavy snow across the South East, and some snow here too. Last night I thought i was time to start picking Darcy up, so I got out the magic ingredient - a tin of Whiskas kitten. The solid meat one, not the jelly ones. It was rabbit flavour and as soon as I went in the pen with it she was just desperate to have some. So I picked her up and stuck the dish practically under her nose so that she smelt it before she had time to object. It worked like a charm. She slurped away happily, hardly noticing that she was being cuddled.

I took some more in today, and it worked well. So we are making great steps forward. She is using her litter with no problems at all, and covers everything over. Still building pyramids. She loves to be played with, and is very quick. A pleasure to have around.

At this stage, if the right person came and offered her a home I would consider letting her go, but it would have to be someone who has the patience to keep working with her and not rush things (as I did earlier!) . She will make someone a very delightful pet.

1st Feb 2009 - Darcy

There are some good videos on YouTube about taming feral kittens. Not that Darcy counts as feral - she is obviously used to some human contact. But the information is very helpful as she hasn't been used to being picked up, or sitting on anyone's knee or even stroked before now.

The videos recommend getting right in with the kittens and then using food as a means of getting them to accept contact. The new pen is a great help in this. It is about 4 feet long, so just about large enough for me to get into.

I decided to try it out on Friday evening. There was no-one home so in I went, and sat with the food whilst Darcy, after watching with some interest from inside her bed, came out and clambered up my knee to reach the dish of meat. As I was sitting there, hunched up, my daughter came home with a friend. It was at this point that I wondered what her friend would think, finding me cooped up in a kitten pen, with my feet virtually in the litter tray. They popped their heads round the sitting room.

"Oh hello," they said, "would you like a cup of tea?" It did make me wonder what sort of household this is, where a regular visitor takes it perfectly for granted that I might be apparently spending the evening sitting in a cat cage.


There is snow forecast for tomorrow and its freezing cold outside. Time to light the fire and snuggle up. On the sofa, like any normal human being.