Kittens’ best chances of survival are with the mother.

South Florida shelters are taking to social media with a unified message in a plea to the community — please don’t kit-nap kittens! Every year shelters nationwide brace themselves for “kitten season,” and South Florida shelters receive thousands of kittens in the spring and summer months. When people find kittens outdoors without their mother, their first instinct may be to bring them inside or rush them to an animal shelter. Now in the peak of kitten season, animal shelters throughout Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties warn well-intentioned Good Samaritans that picking up found litters of kittens may be hurting more than helping them.

Research shows when kittens are separated from their mother, their chances of survival drop significantly. In most cases, newborn litters of kittens do not need human intervention. In fact, taking the kittens inadvertently creates orphaned kittens. The best approach is to keep kittens with the mother until they are eating on their own and can be safely removed for socialization and adoption. This ensures the kittens’ best chances of survival.

What should you do when you find a litter of kittens?

• Do not interfere with the kittens as it may cause stress to the mother. If you really want to help, you can provide some food and water for the mother that is placed a good distance from the nest.

• If you do not see the mother around, observe the kittens from a distance. She may be out looking for food, but she will most likely return.

• If the kittens are in immediate danger, such as under a car or in an area with flooding, find a safe place nearby to move them to, but make sure they’re still close enough for their mother to find them.

• If you have observed the kittens for 24 hours and are sure that the mother is not returning, you may pick them up and care for them. Newborn kittens need special care.

• If the mother comes back and is friendly, wait until the kittens are 2 pounds or two months old before bringing them and their mom to a veterinarian or to your local animal shelter to be vaccinated and spayed or neutered.

What happens if newborn kittens are brought into a shelter without their mother?

• Kittens under four weeks of age need round-the-clock care that most shelters are not equipped to provide. Shelters rely on volunteer foster programs to supplement the care and needs of newborn kittens. Unfortunately, when babies are separated from their mothers, it threatens their ability to thrive and survive, which is more reason to leave kittens with their mom.

• Orphaned kittens need to be bottle fed with special formula every two to three hours, then stimulated to eliminate. They are cleaned and kept warm because at such a young age they cannot regulate their body temperature.

What do you do if you want to foster the kittens and mother?

• Most shelters will provide everything needed to care for newborn kittens.

• Once foster kittens are old enough to transition to solid food and can be spayed or neutered, which is when they are about two months old or 2 pounds in weight, foster volunteers can bring the kittens to a shelter, so they can be placed up for adoption and find their forever homes.

For more information on how you can help kittens, contact your local shelter.

• Palm Beach County Animal Care and Control, 7100 Belvedere Road, West Palm Beach, phone 561-233-1261.
http://discover.pbcgov.org/publicsafety/animalcare/Pages/foster.aspx

Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League, 3200 N Military Trail #3100, West Palm Beach, phone 561-686-3663
https://www.peggyadams.org/how-help/foster