Foster Kittens

Fostering kittens is a wonderful and helpful thing to do. Your local animal shelter probably has small kittens in need of temporary homes before they are old enough to adopt. Doing this takes time, effort and motivation, as well as the strength to let the kitties go back to the shelter to find homes, but it will all be worth when you see your kittens living happily in their new homes.

Steps

  1. Contact your local animal shelter. Almost all shelters provide fostering opportunities for members of the community, and would really appreciate their help. Before you can foster, you need to get approved by the shelter and fill out all the necessary paperwork. You may need to go to a training session when shelter staff will explain in depth how to take care of the kittens. Once you have been approved to foster, it may take a while before you get your first kittens to foster. The best time to foster is spring (otherwise known as kitten season), the time when most kittens are born, and end up homeless at the animal shelter. During this time, the shelters are often overcrowded with newborn kittens, and could use your help.
  2. Decide what kind of kittens you want to foster. There are two different kinds of foster kittens - kittens with a mother cat, and orphaned kittens. This article focuses mostly on kittens with a mom, so if you want more information about caring for orphaned kittens, check out wikiHow's guide on how to care for young orphaned kittens less than three weeks of age. As you probably can expect, kittens with a mother are much easier to care for. The mother cat will do almost all of the work (nursing, cleaning, keeping warm, feeding and stimulating the kittens' bowels). If you are fostering for the first time, you will probably want to ask the shelter for kittens that have a mother, as without the mother, kittens face a far higher risk of becoming ill and dying - otherwise known as "failure to thrive". There is no cure, but having a mother definitely helps to prevent this. Also, consider the age of the kittens. The younger they are, the higher their risk of death and the more attention they will need. Without a mother, extremely young kittens face a high death rate. Depending on your experience level, ask the shelter for the kind of kittens you feel most comfortable with. It may take longer, but don't ask for more than you can handle.
  3. Find a room for the kittens and kitten-proof it. You will want to have a separate room for the kittens - a quiet, dark place away from any other pets that you can kitten-proof. Kitten-proofing means getting all the things that could be dangerous to small kittens out of the room. If the room is cluttered, it may be a good idea to move out desks, chairs, shelves, or bookshelves. Move out anything that you care about or could be dangerous for the kittens. Also consider moving out beds or other furniture that makes hiding easy for kittens, as it is not fun to spend your time trying to get the kitten out from under furniture.
    • Put away all things that are small (e.g. hair clips/ties, small toys, beads), are electrical (e.g. wires or cables), or are generally unsafe. If you wouldn't leave it in a room with an unsupervised toddler, you shouldn't have it in the kitten room.
  4. Furnish the room with kitten-friendly supplies. You will probably want to have some sort of bed for the kittens to sleep in, and as a general safe area for the kittens to go to relax where the mother can nurse them. It should have a top and feel enclosed. Layer it with towels, blankets, and other soft stuff. Near this, get food and water bowls or trays. The best are trays - long and shallow, good for a lot of kittens eating in at once. Don't use bowls that are too deep, as the kittens will have a hard time accessing food and water. If the kittens are needing to be bottle fed, check in with the shelter to get bottles and milk formula, or order it at your local pet store or online. You may want to get a couple of soft toys and some feather chasers. If the kittens are older, you may consider getting a cat tree, as these can provide hours of fun and a nice place for the kitties to relax. You will definitely want to get training pads if the kittens are not litter-trained. You can spread them out all over the floor and especially over the bed. Obviously, you will also need a litter box. You may prefer to get an enclosed one. The litter box will need to be scooped at least three times a day, and the litter changed at least twice a week.
  5. Get the kittens. Make sure you bring a carrying case or get one at the shelter, as you should never have the kittens loose in your car. If you can, try to bring some of the kittens' bedding or toys with them as this will provide comfort. Roll up the car windows and try to drive relatively slow as to not scare the kittens. As you drive, murmur softly and gently to encourage the kittens and tell them not to be afraid. When you get home, take the kittens to your separate room and get them settled in. Give them a while to relax and get used to their environment. Do not let them out of the room.
    • Always wash your hands before and after coming in contact with the kittens, to protect the kittens, you, and your pets from disease.
  6. If the kittens are with a mom and still nursing, let her take care of them. She will feed them and clean them herself, so you don't need to do that. But keep a close eye on them, and make sure each kitten is getting plenty of milk and attention. If there is a runt in the litter, make sure you give that kitten a little extra time with the mother cat alone, without the other kittens to compete for food. Make sure the mother cat is eating plenty of food. Either feed her dry kitten food or protein rich wet food, as she needs the protein to produce milk.
  7. Wean the kittens onto solid food when they are about 5 or 6 weeks old. You may start with feeding them wet kitten food, and supplement that with dry food by slowly adding pebbles of dry food to the wet food and increasing it as they age. If the kittens are eating on their own already, that's good. Feed them three times a day and let them eat their fill. Monitor how much they eat.
  8. If the kittens are still bottle feeding, make sure you feed them every two to three hours. This includes feeding the middle of the night. Feed the kitten until it is full. Before feeding, warm the formula to {{safesubst:#invoke:convert|convert}}. After each feeding, wet a cotton ball with warm water and gently massage the kitten's rectum until it defecates (this replicates the mother's tongue).
  9. Litter-train the kittens. To do this, after every feeding (nursing, bottle feeding, eating solid food etc.), place the kitten in the litter box. It should then do its business. If a kitten has an accident, quickly pick it up as soon as possible and place the kitten in the litter box. With persistence, the kitten should learn how to use it.
  10. Spend time with the kittens every day. Make sure you hold the kittens frequently, petting them and picking them up. Touch their paws a lot, as they will need to be comfortable with it when their nails are clipped. Play with the kittens a lot.
  11. Watch for any signs of lethargy in the kittens, and if it persists, call the vet. This can be an early sign of "failure to thrive" or sickness. If the kittens have goop coming from their eyes or nose, call the vet or go to the animal shelter to pick up ointment, which should be applied twice a day to the kittens eyes until the goop is gone.
  12. If you want to, start to let the kittens leave the room for short periods of time once they are seven or eight weeks old, accompanied by you. Never let them run around loose, especially if you have other animals. Don't force the kittens to interact with other cats or dogs as this can result in injury and fear. Always supervise the kittens carefully, and keep all doors closed.
  13. Take photos, and if possible, videos of the kittens. Your shelter will appreciate this when the kittens are up for adoption and they can post it online, on their website or on a pet finding website like Petfinder. You can email the foster coordinator the pictures. If you can, also include a small bio of each kitten, including a general summary of their personality, which will be helpful for adoptive families considering the kitten.
  14. When the time comes, take the kittens back to the shelter. This is the hardest part, as you have grown close to the kitten. Remember that you have greatly helped this animal and it will find a great new home. If you want to, you can ask your shelter if they would let you know when the kittens are adopted, and if possible, the email of their adopters if you would like to keep in contact.

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