catinthehat <nhollywoodcat@yahoo.com> wrote in news:f2ece4d3-4cb0-4e24-
8ea1-8a229f50fcc0@i12g2000prf.googlegroups.com:

Akkkkkkkkk! Freeways and kittens don't go together well.

Call Animal Control. They will indeed take them to the shelter, hopefully
to be adopted. If the mother is feral it is unlikely she is adoptable. If
the kittens are given human companionship before four weeks they will be
highly adoptable and find a home, which definitely beats being run over
while trying to cross the freeway. If the kittens are already running
around, your window of time to get them to an adoption center is closing
rapidly so you need to make a decision now.

Shelters are already filling up with kittens- and its only March.  Many
shelters are killing kittens by the litter. Whatever you do, *don't call
animal control*.

If you don't have experience trapping cats, do a online search for animal
rescue groups in your area. If you let me know your area, I'll try to help
you find a group that can help you.

Phil

This is actually a good thing. Since there is a way out, and mom is
showing up on your patio, your best option is to start feeding her,
twice a day, on a schedule. If she knows there's a regular food
source, she will eventually bring the kittens with her, and the fence
will become a non issue. Make sure to keep the feeding times about 12
hours apart, twice a day, with the evening feeding being close to
dusk. Once they are all there and eating regularly, get some raccoon-
sized live traps, tie the doors open, and start feeding them in the
traps. Gradually move the food from the front to the back of the traps
over several days.  Once they are eating in the traps, untie the
doors, set them, and you should be able to trap them all. I would not
try to do this with one trap. If you can get one for each animal and
get this done in one night, that would be better. Also, at the meal
before you trap them, give them just a tiny bit of food so they are
very hungry and will be more likely to get into the traps quickly when
you do set them. I have a friend who did this with a mother and four
wild kittens and she was able to get them all at pretty much the same
time doing it this way. You should let your vet know in advance about
this and bring the cats straight to the vet while still in the traps
to get checked out. (Make sure to cover the traps with a sheet or
towel after you catch them, so they don't freak out or hurt
themselves.)

Since the kittens are young, they should be fairly easy to socialize
and find homes for. Mom may be another story. At best, she'll be a
sweetheart and easy to find a home for. At the very least you could
spay her, release her, and continue to feed her. I know this sounds
like a lot of work, especially taking in four feral kittens, but the
fact is that most rescues, especially at this time of year, are
already full and unable to take on this amount of responsibility. You
would be doing a great thing and I think you would find it very
rewarding, even though it might take some time and financial
obligations. Thanks for worrying about this little family. If you
decide to do this and need some experienced help, let me know and I
can hook you up with some people who work in the field and have done
this many times. Good luck.

Is there an animal control dept. in your city/town? Or call a local
animal shelter for there help.