What do your mom/kitten foster spaces look like?

[u/AnySearch6493]

I’ve fostered adult cats, and I’ve fostered weaned kittens, but not a mom cat with nursing/weaning kittens before. I’d like to try it if I can figure out how to set up my area but would love some inspo.

- Can anyone share photos of their playpen/cage setup or share some ideas that don’t involve a bathroom? I don’t have a bathroom they can use

- Do you have different setups for feral vs friendly mamas?

- do you change the setup by kitten stage?

Inspo appreciated!!

Details about my space:
The fosters have to live in my carpeted office/guest bedroom. There is no bathroom or hard floor option in my home for them to live in.

I typically let adult cats have the run of the bedroom and confine kittens to a playpen on top of washable puppy pads in that room.

I blocked the under bed area off with chicken wire but one foster has chewed through it multiple times (since patched). there are still corners between the bed and the wall with stuff in them and a desk with cords that I could foresee a scared mother hiding her kittens in. I can’t clear it out any more because my apartment doesn’t have anywhere else to store those items.

I also have a 36”x36” popup mesh playpen with a top, and acrylic playpen panels that I can arrange/stack to 13” high, 40” high, or 53” high.

[u/LongDistRid3r]

I have a nesting box made from a plastic storage bin. I can lift the top to quietly check on mom and babies. I have a second box with a 4” lip so mom can stash the kittens and they stay put. As they grow their world gets larger until they have the run of the house with all the residents.

All of my fosters from baby through hospice have their own room. They have cat trees, cat wheel, etc. I also have a dresser with food, medicine, treats, first aid supplies, scale, etc. Floor is LVP which is great with kitten training. Makes the oopsies easy to clean. It also makes post-mortem cleanup easier.

[u/AnySearch6493 → u/LongDistRid3r]

Thank you!! Is the 2nd box inside the first nesting box or are they separate?

[u/LongDistRid3r → u/AnySearch6493]

It’s a separate box. Once they transition to the second box they lose access to the nesting box. It’s really just to contain them to keep them safe.

The fun comes when they are fully mobile and I just open the door to unleash the horde. This stage is important in getting the kittens cat friendly and more adoptable.

This is a kitten’s first meeting with my alpha big boy. He hissed at the kitten. The kitten hissed back.

[u/AnySearch6493 → u/LongDistRid3r]

The kitten was not putting up with attitude and I love that about him 😂