Is Tom Tom neutered? If he is and your Mom is taking responsibility for him,
the rescue group won't bother picking him up. If he's not neutered then your
Mom should have that done if she can catch him or with the assistance of a
rescue group if he needs to be trapped. There is no good reason to leave Tom
Tom run around out there making more kittens.

W

Can't you give them some kitten food and water for a few days and
wait&see if the mother does show up?

This can often be a problem with nursing cats.

Cats, it seems, are fickle about their new litters. If a cat (Queen) is
absent for whatever reason from its litter for any longer than an hour
or two it looses all maternal instincts towards the kittens.

They want the sex but not the kids! lol.

Kittens are weaned by about the 8th week and shouldn't really be taken
from the mother before then. It might be possible to feed an abandoned
or rejected kitten with baby formula. Avoid Cows milk, cats don't get
along with too much lactose. Gives them the Virtical Squirts!

Some cats two-time their owners by visiting a neighbouring house. It
doesn't help that the other person puts food out for it out of
misguided kindness. These are probably the bloody daft old women who
throw bread to the ferrel pigeons. (I'd sooner the pigeons were thrown
to the cats!) This can be a pain in the but in circumstances where the
cat is on a special veterinary prescribed diet or fasting ahead of an
operation.

A collar makes it obvious that a cat belongs to someone and a disk with
your name and number means that it is possible to trace the owner.

I find that my own cat has turned removing a collar in to an art from!
Don't they all, the little buggers! So much so that she has been
identi-chipped. Still, how many households do you know who have a
scanner?

Good luck, anyway!