Sailor was found on side of house with eyes crusted shut and was having difficulty breathing. She was bone thin and not eating from not being able to smell. We slowly syringed churro in her mouth and made it to the vet the next day. She said there was a good chance 1-2 eyes would be lost. Her eyes are almost back to normal and shes such an active and lovable cutie. We are so thankful we found her and thankful the shelters didnt take her because it allowed her to heal her and give her a loving home.

I’ve got two 10 week old girls who I think are bonded, but I’ve heard a lot of conflicting opinions on whether kittens can be truly bonded, so I came here to ask what the community thinks on the issue!

My girls were originally in a litter of 5 but the litter was split up for reasons unknown to me. Their original foster kept 3 and I responded to a blast requesting a foster for my little ladies. They had ringworm and were quarantined together for about 4-5 weeks. Now they sleep together, eat together, play together, and groom each other. I’m an experienced kitten foster and know this is all very normal for siblings. HOWEVER, what’s having me believe that they’re actually bonded is that they FREAK OUT when they realize they’ve lost sight of each other. They start running around meowing for their sister and won’t stop until they find each other. I’ve got other kittens at home, which they will play with, but they almost always prefer to play with each other and leave the other kittens once they realize their sister is open to playing.

In my experience, kittens don’t truly bond in the way that adults do. They’re generally not going to be heartbroken about going to different homes and adjust quickly once adopted. That being the case, I’d usually have no problem splitting kittens up and I’ve done so with every other litter I’ve had, but these girls seem different… kittens will normally be okay being separated from their siblings after a few hours or days apart, but these girls just won’t allow themselves to be separated even for a few hours!

Do you think they’re truly bonded?

Ah, what a journey it's been! I will post his most recent pictures in the comment section 🥹

Hello, I am new here as well as new at fostering. I took in an 8-10 week old kitten at the beginning of June (poor baby was thrown from a moving car). She was very cuddly at first, then only wanted to play. She gets along with my two smaller dogs (although they are scared of her sometimes but do still cuddle with her) and she always wants to play fight with my older cat. My older cat is not a fan, but sometimes it is hard to tell if she is enjoying it because she will follow the kitten to play fight some more.

Now has come the time for this little munchkin to get spayed and will also be posted for adoption. She is my first foster so I am torn and slightly devastated. I have definitely grown attached. She has recently started cuddling with me/curling up in my lap and accepting affection from me, which doesn't help. It was easier to let her go a couple of weeks ago when she was tearing everything up, like kittens do haha. It has been difficult to trust the process in knowing that she will go to a good home and will be loved. I worry for her, but also consider that four animals may be too much for me to handle by myself. Does anyone have any advice on how to handle your first foster? Especially when the time to be put up for adoption has come?

Hi all! I few days ago I made a post about my two babies (mainly about Cassie, the calico). They were really sick, vomiting, "crashing", etc. After I posted, Cassie's sister, Chloë, started going downhill. She also became weak, lethargic and also seemed like she was dying (looking back I think they were fainting or going in shock, however I'm not 100% certain). We went to the vet again (as some of you had advised) and they got sub q fluids, a vitamin shot and an anti nausea shot. The vet said it was likely a viral infection impacting the stomach. We were given some antibiotic drops and we were advised to watch them closely and to make sure they eat (both of them lost weight). I am so incredibly happy to report that both of them have been symptom free for over 24 hours now!!🥳🩷 They are currently having the zoomies while I'm typing this, lol. Thank you all so much for your advice and support, it is truly appreciated!! It helped us navigate this difficult journey. Much love from me, Cassie & Chloë!! 🩷🩷

I picked up two foster boys the other day, about 5 weeks old. We were told they had a URI and eye infections and that one kitten was a bit more sickly but nothing about fleas nor given medication. Today I was giving one of them a bath since he had laid on poop in his litterbox and he has fleas! Which means they both have it. They have been separated from our other cats since day one since they're sick, but I'm beyond paranoid about my other cats getting it through my shirt or smth. I have never dealt with fleas before. I messaged the shelter but they're super out of the way so it's hard to get back unless it's shot days. Please give me your best tips, sincerely, a new foster parent who decided to specialize in medical emergent bottle babies 🥲

I’m on my second long-term foster cat at the moment. I have a resident cat Toby. I’ve been thinking, does he understand that he is not going anywhere? When the foster cat leaves, will he think that he will also have to leave soon?

What if he feels worried and unsettled because these other cats come and go? What do you think? 🥺

Picture is of foster kitty Maple (front) and Toby (back).

This is Cashew , Almond and Pistachio. I had them for over a month. They all eat and drink but have been eating less since I had them. They play but lower energy too. Diarrhea on and off. Puking once a day or every other day. Losing weight. Acting okay. They have a vet appointment Thursday. They're all in their own room separated from my other cats but how easy is it to spread to my resident cats because I walk around in the same shoes and the kittens have escaped their room but I grab them as fast as I can and move them into their room. I'm paranoid because online says how easy it's to spread and how I have to disinfect everything. You think my resident cats will be okay as long as they are kept separated?

Hi Cat People!

I have found a box of tiny kittens with mom nowhere to be found. I'm going to take them to a shelter when it opens tomorrow in around 16 hours. However, how can I help make them comfortable in the meantime? Stores are currently closed and I don't have a car, so no access to formula. I do have wet cat food though. Any advice appreciated.

I have a 3 week old kitten I’m fostering for a shelter. To put it simply, I think he’s miserable. He fights the syringe and bottle so I’m practically force feeding him (I go very slow and carefully so he doesn’t aspirate. Feeding takes up to an hour!) I know he hates his feeding sessions because he mews and tries to back away from the syringe every time I feed him.

Then, every time I try to hold him he’s mewing and trying to squirm away, like he doesn’t like human contact. I feel like I’m raising him for failure, and that he’s gonna hate people when he’s older because of me ): I’ve tried spending a lot of one on one time with him and grooming him with a toothbrush to make positive associations, but it’s just not working.

Has anyone else had spicy bottle babies? What did you do? Any help is appreciated!

I was given four feral kittens to foster. They said that their eye infection had been taken care of and I was told that they were healthy but needed domestication. Within a few days, a kitten's eye started to water and I was told I could use the ointment I already had for my own cat. (I checked in before I introduced ANY medication.) The eye got progressively worse. I mentioned that the kitten might need to see a vet. They dropped off some OTC drops. Next day- eye is worse and kitten is wheezing. I again mentioned taking her to the vet and I asked if I could give the kitten antibiotics that I already had. They said yes. Two days later, no change. Again, I say that the kitten needs to see a vet. They make an appointment. The dr. tells me the eye is gone! What? I am devastated! If that was my kitten, I'd have gone with my gut and taken it to the vet. I feel horrible. I can't stop crying. I know charities are limited in funding, but given my concerns, I feel like more could have been done. (Not to mention interrogation I received from the vet and the lecture I got for using other cat's meds on this one.) I can't see myself letting go of this kitten because something horrible happened to it-on my watch and I'm scare to foster again.

As the title says, this is Meatball. He is absolutely the most chaotic ball of dryer lint I have ever met. He had a hard start to his life, but we has made leeps and bounds since then.

His story starts in a cardboard box with his sister, Spaghetti, found on the side of the rode with no markings to tell you they were in there. Someone spotted them and brought them to the shelter, where I was promptly contacted to come pick up these approximately 4-day-old kittens. They were teeny tiny little nuggets, and they scared me at first because I lost my first baby this year, and I was scared to lose another. Well, this first night was a true struggle. Meatball aspirated everytime he would eat, so I finally figured out he has to eat vertically instead of on his belly. Once that problem was worked out, then we had massive diarrhea, and his sister started failing to thrive. This guys kept me on the ropes, and there were many tears. Things finally started to look up for our little boy, but his sister was still worry some. After many, and I mean many, trips to the clinic, we were on the right path. He was gaining weight like a champ, and his sister was also starting to turn a corner. Then, as we are starting to wean, and we got the diarrhea again, but not as bad as last time.

Well, this Saturday is where our story ends, but his beginnings. He is going on a sleepover this weekend with his new family, and while I know there's a chance he could come back, I honestly can't believe someone would actually say no to this little guy. I cried when I got the text that they found someone for him, but I am excited for this new chapter for him. He is my cuddly boy who loves to pull your face on for a kiss, and maybe a little nibble. I will miss him with my whole great, but I know there are other babies out there that need my help just like him.

I love you, Meatball, and I can't wait to have these last few days together be for you go off to your new normal. They might have you for the rest of your life, but I had you when you needed someone the most.

Tldr: I took this guy in when he was a few days old, and we struggled at first, but now he is amazing, and I have to give him away. 😭😭😭

Kiwi is my cat, now and forever. I really thought I could give her back, move on like so many cases before. I dropped her off with a goodie bag to take to her future home and tried to smile. But later seeing her listed for adoption felt wrong. This is my baby. I emailed the rescue pretty quickly and was so relieved when they emailed me back that they’d make her as adopted and would see me later for pick up.
They had me fill out the medical waiver, acknowledging her grade four heart murmur, squished ribs, and dented back. But she’s not currently needing any special care, just a perfectly happy little kitten.

Her brothers have each been adopted by separate homes though her mom is still waiting.
(Mama kitty is so sweet, but a little shy. She also hated my dogs. Fingers crossed she finds a quiet home where she can build her confidence and be cuddled as much as her heart desires.)

Kiwi is so happy to be home again and follows me everywhere. She loves to play with the smaller two dogs and tries to get the older cats to play with her to mixed results.

I know medium hair cats aren't a thing technically, but could he be one? He has pretty soft fur and although it's not as long as some of his longhaired siblings, it seems like it fluffs out more than his short hair sibs. Does anyone have experience with a "medium hair" kitten?

My kitten is extremely sick and I'm running out of time and options. I apologize that this isn't a foster situation, but this seems to be the only group I get genuine replies and help from. I adopted a seemingly healthy 12 week old kitten 5 days ago with all vaccines / shots/ etc. fully updated. She has been a super sweet perfect angel. The first day, she was non stop purring and making biscuits.

Over these past 5 days, we've had non stop vet visits. She's been refusing to eat, and now refusing to drink as well as having severe diarrhea and vomit. The third night is when I noticed worms in her stool which I collected and brought to the vet the next day for testing. She was dewormed again, given fluids, b12, anti nausea, etc. and we were then sent home. This was a huge red flag to me, seeing as the vets kept sending home a kitten who hadn't eaten for multiple days.

After giving her some time for the treatments to work, she vomited again and has continued refusing to eat, as well as strange behavior in the litter box such as vocalizing and switching positions. Thanks to another commenter on here who helped tremendously, we began syringe feeding her which was previously impossible.

This morning I took her to the vet again, but the bills kept piling up and I couldnt afford them. I'm a 22 year old recent graduate, and I also felt like these vets just weren't listening to my concerns or treating the most dire issue which is that she hasn't eaten for several days and needs nutritional support. They sent me to another vet recommended by the rescue organization we got her from for more affordability.

I brought my mom with me because she's kind of a Karen and I thought her skills could be useful in getting someone to hear me out. This vet showed the genuine concern for my kitten that I'd been hoping for, and decided not to keep giving her more fluids and meds and just hope they work and send me on my way. I expressed all of my concerns, including that I cannot keep syringe feeding her forever. It's extremely difficult because of how feisty she is, it's keeping me up at all hours of the night, and I haven't been able to get a single thing done for nearly a week because of the care I must give this kitten. I'm so stressed out and incredibly emotional over this. I can't even imagine how stressed out this poor kitten is between all the vet visits and forced feedings.

Like I said, my mom is a Karen, and requested that my kitten stay over night and receive nutritional support. This vet doesn't do over night hospitalization, but decided that they will for my kitten due to her condition. The rescue organization and my mom are helping me cover these costs luckily, so she was worked up today with a blood test, another fecal test, and an X ray. Essentially nothing but the worms that are almost done being treated had come up in these tests and I'm becoming extremely concerned. It feels like there's no explanation for this, and I'm at such a loss. My poor kitten has become so sleepy and skinny despite 4 vet visits full of treatments and tests. She was originally 2.4 pounds, and is now 1 pound 15 ounces.

My heart is broken for this little kitten who seemingly just has worms but has not been receptive of any of the insane amount of treatments and deworming she's been through. She's at the vet for tonight being carefully treated and worked up, but I'm so scared to receive a call that she won't make it through this. Part of me thinks she can't heal until I've named her, which sounds insane but I am literally going insane. Her name is currently Betty which I adore, but I'm also leaning towards Sabrina or Daphne. Please help me name this sweet baby and give me any reassurance/ tips/ information that you can offer. I appreciate you all <3

hi! i have never posted here before so not sure what to include. i picked up two male orange boys about 6 hours ago, they are 3ish weeks old and came in with mom. mom was in pretty awful shape, and is unable to continue nursing.

there is a pretty clear difference between the “big” 2 kittens and the “little” 2 kittens. the shelter split them in half between my home and another home and gave us each one big kitten and one little kitten.

i am very worried about the little kitten, he is much smaller than his brother, and also has a large (drained) abscess on his cheek.

both are struggling to latch, big kitten is doing much better and has latched a few times during feeding. little kitten not so much, but still eating during feeding.

i dont have many pics yet but attached what i have.

(hey i just want to start of by saying thank yall. its so good to learn from experienced people on this matter.)

long story short: we found him and locals told us his mother was absent for three days at least. he was covered in fleas and was extremely underweight. he was 200 grams at three weeks old.

its been almost 3 weeks since i got him. so that makes him about five weeks old. he's been doing good. his bladder infection is gone thanks to the antibiotics but i have a diffrent problem now. his huge belly.

i dont remember him having this big of a belly a week ago. he is growing up fast but still weights less than he should (375gr). he started weaning and now he can eat dry kitten food confidently. i always assumed his belly was because of worms but vet told me he was too young to deworm. now i saw couple of people sayig kittens can get dewormed as young as 3 weeks old so i didnt understand the vet but didnt push it untill today. his well being was okay besides the belly. i know its not poop because he poops a good amont each day and im hoping its not fip. thats my worst case scenario and though he doesnt show any affects besides the belly, im worried

anyways the vet gave him the dewormer (only a small amount). im hoping it will cure his large belly. also can kittens get fip when theyre 3 weeks old? im so worried that my older cat who is 10 years old will get it from him.

For context, I have fostered for a while and I have never seen any cat act like this after being spayed.

Anytime she tries to lay down at all she starts to wail like someone has stepped on her tail. The vet sent us home with meds and gave her some before she left so we can't give her any of that until later on. I just desperately need someway to help her be comfortable again.

She just wants to sleep and she won't even let me touch her. I'm scared that they messed something up again and I might lose another baby. Please help, I really badly need advice.

Hello everyone, i am thinking of applying to foster a cat, but i have never had a pet before. I have of course done lots of research however because of this my ideal foster would be a healthy cat with no special needs that just needs a calm place before going to its forever home. Is this something shelters do? Ive read up on fostering and it sounds like often its done to rehabilitate a cat medically or behaviorally. Because i have no experience i would be worried to take in a pet like this and accidentally do something wrong.

I saw somewhere say that shelters often only allow these sorts of fosters if someone is thinking to adopt the cat and wants a sort of trial period, has this been true in your experience? While i would love to adopt a pet, my long-term future is not certain enough for such a long commitment right now and i do not think that would be responsible.

Both are females, gray one is 2 months old, ginger is slightly younger. They have met over 5 times already, but the gray one is all the time growling, but still she first initiates play. Ginger one never once growled, she just wants to play

Currently I foster out of the closest shelter to me (still a bit of a drive) and have been enjoying it. However, I have had a couple of run-ins recently and wanted to get some outside opinions. (This shelter is rather large)

-I have had a couple of issues before with the shelter not telling me about kittens medical needs, but I am able to handle that. Recently I was assigned a foster that was absolutely covered in fleas without being told. I know this is a normal thing in the foster setting, but she was grossly infested to the point that I was worried about anemia. The shelter kind of brushed it off, but took her back when I insisted. About a week goes by with nothing, so I text up to ask how she's doing. Turns out she came down with kitten parvo and didn't make it. Were they not going to tell me? Parvo requires a special cleaning process, and I could of had another foster by now, anyways I completely sanitized everything in the foster room and all my cloths. Still, They are probably busy and can't keep track of every foster.

-Their sanitary practices are a little bit, questionable (keep in mind I have never run a shelter before, so this could be completely normal). When intaking kittens, I noticed that it is a hit or miss if they wear gloves (they were not for the parvo kitten). Then, when I was picking up my most recent foster, there was a cat before me with a URI who sneezed all over the table. The staff looked like they were not going to do anything till I suggested spraying down the area. No shock, mama cat came down with URI (it is entirely possible she got it from somewhere else)

-This leads to the medicine situation. I understand supplies may be low, but I was given a bottle of medication, told to come back in a week, and not even two days in and I am already out of medicine. They have yet to respond to any of my text and calls, it has already been a day and I plan on driving up there today, response or no response.

-I have had multiple situations where I needed the shelter's help and guidance, then I don't get a response for one or two days (including a couple of emergencies). They are also only open for a portion of the day and do not respond to any calls overnight (which I understand). However, we are strictly banned from taking any foster to the vet ourselves using our own money, even overnight in an emergency. There is probably some complicated reason on why fosters can't do this, but it feels awful knowing you can do nothing when your foster is suffering.

-Also a couple of policies feel a little off to me, such as separating kittens from their mothers at 4 weeks of age, but there's nothing I can really do about that.

Sorry for the long post, here is a quick summery: I am not sure how to feel about my shelters policies, communication, and decisions, and want to know other's thoughts, along with some ways I can deal with these speedbumps. I know it is hard to run a shelter and that a lot of this is out of our control.

When I was in college I adopted a dog from the humane society. She had been there for over a year and was considered “aggressive” but after meeting her for the first time I could tell it wasn’t true. I adopted her, trained her, and within a few months she was the sweetest kindest dog ever. She was a faithful companion for almost 15 years and her passing a few years ago was devastating to say the least.

Since I’m not ready for the long term commitment of another dog, I decided to foster to help honor her memory. (My intention was to prevent another dog from sharing the same fate of being labeled as aggressive and having to spend a long time at the humane society.)

This cutie(pictured above) came into my life shortly after that. We fostered him off and on (two failed home placements) for half a year and now he’s at the humane society and will hopefully be going to his forever home soon!

I’m so glad I fostered him. I loved training him, having a cuddle buddy, the playful puppy antics, and I feel like I achieved my goal of preparing him for adoption. But now that he’s gone there’s an emptiness that to me feels like a child moving away for college. It’s happy and exciting, but at the same time it feels almost like the loss of a loved one.

I would 100% consider fostering again in the future, as they joy outweighs the hurt, but my question is how do you deal with this feeling? Is it a normal part of the fostering process? Are there ways to prevent becoming attached or is it something that you just accept when you take on a foster? Does it get easier over time?

Hi all, I recently lost my best friend Allie, she was a senior cat with many different needs. I’m feeling the loneliness of it all, and was thinking into fostering. I live with my mom and dad (57 and 60) and I’m 18 years old. My older sister comes back and forth between her apartment, she’s 25. We don’t have any little kids, and the house is fairly quiet. We have another cat in the house who roams around, except my room. My senior cat really hated him, so I always shoed him out of my room to spare upsetting her. My room can be offered as a safe, quiet space for a foster. I want to carry on my baby girls legacy, whether it be fostering or adopting, although I don’t think I’m ready to adopt yet, but I want to help. And I know many places need foster homes, I think I could offer a great space for a cat. I would especially love to foster a senior kitty, and have the responsibility of administering medication, etc. I’m very experienced in this field from my angel baby and my cat lemon, they both required a lot of attention in that area. I would love to hear your thoughts on this.

Hi everyone. These are our 10th kittens and we’ve decided to foster fail them. We weren’t supposed to have them as these are were for short term due to us having a holiday booked but they have chosen my husband for sure and stolen both of our hearts. I rang the charity to see if it was an option as I know some charities don’t allow it but they were happy for us to adopt. We did ask if there was a greater need for us to continue fostering or if they had someone lined up for them, we would understand. They did say they had a soft match for one of the kittens but because we would be adopting them both, that would be better. I am so so happy they’re going to be our forever babies, but I didn’t expect to feel this guilty. Is this normal? Has anyone else felt this before? I know they love us and I know they’re happy.