How can I get rid of unwanted kittens quickly?

August 28, 2005 4:58 PM

In addition to putting up posters, newspaper ads, calling friends and asking co-workers, what are legitimate "safe" options for getting rid of all our cats?

Our female cat (not fixed... I know.. I know) managed to claw through our screen door and get out one night. Flash forward 63 days - while away in another city, we got into a car accident. Upon our arrival back in Calgary on Friday, we discovered 5 new kittens in our basement. Normally not a problem, as we'd take care of them and maybe keep some of them - but because of our accident, we're really challenged to take care of these animals once they're past nursing and would love to give them away. The local SPCA euthinizes after 5 days though. What options do I have and what's worked for others?

posted by burhan to pets & animals (8 comments total)

The Meow Foundation is a no-kill shelter in Calgary. Contact them, if they can't take the kittens, they may have other suggestions for you.
posted by Felicity Rilke at 5:27 PM on August 28, 2005

Recently asked.
posted by fionab at 5:46 PM on August 28, 2005

Meow foundation - e-mailed them yesterday. They won't take them. They had no other alternatives other than ask around and put up ads in papers.

Fionab - my apologies.
posted by burhan at 6:14 PM on August 28, 2005

Good luck finding a home for these little kittens. This has a big list of shelters in Calgary. And get your cat fixed ASAP.
posted by fionab at 6:20 PM on August 28, 2005

ARF may also take them.
posted by some chick at 7:37 PM on August 28, 2005

If it is at all possible, hang onto those kittens until they are a minimum of eight weeks of age and can be weaned from the mother. The chance that a kitten younger than that surviving without a mom is pretty slim.

I am fostering a litter of kittens from an abadonded cat right now. The way I am finding homes for them is sending out e-mails to the pet lovers I know and asking them to forward it along to others. Thus far (knock on wood), it looks like three of the four will have homes.

You may have a hard time with the shelters. Summer is kitten season, and from what I've heard, they're stuffed to the gills with unwanted ones.

Definitely get your cat fixed once the kittens are weaned. Something I learned in the last couple of weeks: A female will go into heat every couple of weeks until she is impregnated. The mother that produced the two-month-old litter I have right now looks like she's pregnant again, already. (Once I get all the kittens adopted out, I'm going to work on catching her and getting her spayed.)
posted by Sully6 at 7:53 PM on August 28, 2005

A few more thoughts: If you can't find a shelter to take them, you could try contacting local vets to see whether anyone is interested in adopting the kittens or if they would let you put a flyer up in their office. You could also go a similar route with pet stores, from the chains to the boutiques.

Craigslist is another possibility, although I would do a little screening and possibly charge a small fee for anyone that wants to adopt them that is not known to you or an acquaintance of yours.

Good luck.
posted by Sully6 at 8:46 AM on August 29, 2005

I ended up finding a local free classifieds website. Put up a brief ad yesterday. Someone is taking the cat and her kittens tomorrow.

For the record, the SPCA, Killarney Cat Hospital, MEOW foundation, and ARF in Calgary do not accept unwanted pets (MEOW wants $1500 per).
posted by burhan at 8:24 PM on August 29, 2005