"the mom and her kittens will stay together. As their time together increases, the bond grows stronger." -- an article in TheNest.com

 Adopt the kittens together. That's right. All of them.

"What if there are five kittens?"

Keep them together.

I discovered this principle when I visited an animal rescue and adoption center.  A man brought in a batch of kittens, said that his landlord told him to give up the kittens.  I asked, "Where is the mother?"

ANSWER:  The mother has weaned the kittens.  They are three months old, 12 weeks, that's plenty of time to prepare the kittens to be away from the momma.

I asked, "If I adopt these kittens as a group, could I borrow the momma for an hour once a week?  Becasue these kittens look in shock.  They look as if they were pulled away from their mom."

ANSWER:  The mother cat is a support cat.  I can't imagine being away from my cat.

I shrugged my shoulders.  I told the animal tech for the clinic. "How long do I need to focster these kittens?"

ANSWER:  Probably a week.  Send me photos of each one and we can get them adopted.

I asked, "Is it possible to get them adopted as a group?  To keep the family together?"

ANSWER:  "Good luck with that."

It turns out that there is some support for the "KEEP THE FAMILY TOGETHER" point of view.  A website called theNest.com has an article that puts forward the evidence that street cats often have a mother cat at the heat and several of the key members of the group are the offstpring from that mom.

Search:

thenest mother cat stays with her kittens

If allowed, the mom and her kittens will stay together. As their time together increases, the bond grows stronger. Well into adulthood, Mom may bring her kittens choice scraps of food and groom them. Feral cats will often form large social groups, usually consisting of Mom and her numerous kittens, as well as any offspring they may have had.

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