The Abandoned Cat Family

It happened last week early in the morning just after sunrise. My daughter woke up to the sounds of hustle and bustle right outside her window. If you look out from there you’ll see a shaded nook area that is quiet, private and birds like to nest there high above.

She saw a mother cat with her three kittens trying to find a spot to nestle. Once settled, the mother starts nursing them and my daughter falls instantly in love. She immediately asks me if we can feed them and provide them water.

Here are two quick side stories before moving on…

My story - I’ve never gotten along with cats. Or let’s just say I’ve always had a distrust in them from a young age after watching the movie “Cat’s Eye” (don’t judge me 😒). I literally thought they could suck in my breathe while I was sleeping (of course I now know this isn’t true) and I felt they were one of the sneakiest creatures amongst us.

My husband’s story - He grew up in a home where there was always at least one stray cat living with them. His sister would always find them and bring them home to nurture. Together her and her mom made their home a shelter to any animal that needed it. Now in is adult life he does not want any pets after sharing his house with so many over the years. 😅

So why the side stories and what does it all mean?

Together these stories equal a no pet zone in our household, especially cats (so sorry cat lovers and please no hard feelings towards us, it’s just the way it is). I actually tried to vouch for the kids to at least get a puppy but that didn’t happen either. I had a dog myself at one point and wouldn’t mind having another.

Anyways, back to the original story. A lot was going through my head when she asked me that question. The first thought was if we feed them they will never leave and always expect more. Another thought was we don’t know where they come from nor where they’ve been. That led to the next thought of we don’t know if it’s safe to be around them (disease wise).

Despite, there was one thing that overpowered them all and it was from a mother’s view. When I looked out that window and saw the mother cat feeding her babies and how frail she was, there was no way I was going to object to her request. I may not be a cat lover but I am also not a heartless human being.

I literally got emotional and it felt as if I were going to cry for that family. I just imagined how tough it must be for a single mom in the wild trying to survive as well as taking care of three babies.

We immediately brought out some water and food from our pantry. My daughter also found a box and put newspapers in it for them to rest in.

As we were setting things up we noticed the mother going around to each of us and rubbing against our legs. She was purring and desperately wanting a rub. I did make the kids put on some gloves before rubbing her just in case (I admit I get paranoid with roaming animals. You just never know what they might have 🙅🏽‍♀️.)

Later on we found out through our neighbor that this cat was not stray but most likely abandoned. I asked her how would she know that and she explained you can always tell by the way a cat acts. A stray cat wouldn’t be so sweet and friendly as this one and the way she rubs against us and begs to be touched is a for sure sign she once had a home. 🥺☹️

Now you know where the title got it’s name.

When we came outside the kittens scattered and found hiding spots. You can tell they were terrified and must have not been born yet when their mother had a home.

One stayed close to a toy and behind the concrete patio of our neighbor’s home.

Another came out a little but hid behind the box my daughter prepared.

Notice these two are twins? We couldn’t tell them apart. They are the cutest! Okay, yes I’m sure you also noticed the soft spot that was growing inside during all of this. 🥹

The third kitten was dark gray which was the color of his mother’s tail. I thought it was so adorable how they each had something of their mother’s. This one was the most timid and the only way we could get him to come back over was through food bribes lol.

He didn’t like the canned meat but it did get him to walk back to the nook area to see what his family was up to.

After awhile, the twin that was hiding by the box came forward to observe the water.

She was too busy keeping an eye on us to focus on it and didn’t budge. It wasn’t until after she talked it over with her mom to make sure it was safe…

that she finally gave it a go.

Meanwhile, her twin was also slowly making her way back over. We saw that we weren’t the only ones taking care of the cats. Our neighbor had bowls of food and milk put out for them too. ☺️

We noticed the mother cat was only nibbling on the meat and the kittens barely touched it. My daughter ran back into the house to find a can of tuna as we knew they would like that better.

As was so, the mother immediately started chowing down as soon as the can was placed in front of her.

The kids were so excited to see her eat well. I admit it was a good feeling knowing this nursing mother was eating. She needs enough energy to take care of those babies.

The kittens slowly began to gather around and move in towards the can to join her.

At one point they all tried to eat at the same time but of course that didn’t work 😂. Thankfully we had more cans of tuna to go around.

We noticed the twins stuck real close together and played quite a bit. It was hard to walk away because they were just so adorable.

The gray cat tended to stick by himself and explore on his own. He was very playful as well though. We saw him playing with his mother’s face as well as disturbing one of his siblings while they were nursing, demanding some play time lol.

He was also very curious of the box.

Later on that day my daughter looked out the window and saw the kittens resting in there.

It was such an eventful day. We continued feeding them for the next couple of days until my neighbor decided to take them in to care for them. They don’t plan on keeping them but are looking for someone to take them home as pets.

It was a bitter sweet moment because my daughter became attached to them and she even accidentally called them “our cats”. She was enjoying keeping an eye on them right from her room and taking care of them each day. She has a peace of mind knowing they will possibly get to have a loving home and belong to a family that will take care of them.

We hope the best for this family and that the mother continues to stay strong for her little ones. We even hope that they will be able to stay together but are aware that might not be the case.

All photos are my own and were taken with our Cannon EOS Rebel T6.

Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoyed!

🐈 🐈‍⬛